Chereads / Endless Essence / Chapter 7 - Intermission

Chapter 7 - Intermission

Somewhere far away, a woman sat on top of a mountain.

By her side, a gargantuan white dragon laid lazily, staring down in the same direction as her.

They were observing a group of trees.

Each tree was as massive as an entire world, and were separated by thick white mist, reaching all the way up to their leaves. The distance between them could not be measured, for they were far from each other, yet also very close.

The extent of such a sight was so incredibly abysmal, ordinary beings would go mad from looking at it.

That's why the distance between such worlds was relative. It all depended on the strength of the one who were to brave such a journey.

Suddenly, the woman's mouth curled slightly up. This caught the dragon's attention, for he had never seen her smile. It was a smile that quite fitted her features, so he knew it had been from the heart.

"Something good happened?" He asked. His voice was like a giant waterfall.

As soon as he spoke, the woman's smile disappeared. The dragon couldn't help but cower at the sight of this, for he feared he had just spoiled whatever made that woman happy.

His eyes sneaked a glance towards a dark green spear she held. He could feel its power even from there, as well as the bell of death ringing every time she moved it. Despite their difference in size, where the woman did not reach the length of one of his claws, he held a deep respect for her.

"It's nothing." She replied bluntly.

She was oblivious to the dragon's thoughts. Or it could be said she considered them so obvious and fitting she stopped paying them attention altogether.

It was but natural for prey to fear.

She stood up. The cold astral wind brushed her long purple hair.

"I hope they find redemption for their mistake one day." She casually commented then, staring down at the trees. "You'll watch them until they do?"

The dragon nodded solemnly. "It is my duty to see they do not trespass. And so, they shall not, until they find a way to break the cycle, or their extinction catches up to them."

The woman nodded, a hint of song dancing in her scarlet eyes.

"Catch up, uh?" She muttered, lost in thought. This also caught the dragon's attention.

She always seemed to be deep in thought, yet there was a subtle difference this time. It took the dragon a long pause before he could find the variant...

She looked younger.

Her appearance had always been young, but at that moment there was something inherently nascent about her.

"Baghairtgor." She called him, while still observing the trees below. "One day, a man will come and bring change to this place."

As a dragon, Baghairtgor could not frown, but such would have been his expression after he heard her words.

"Change?" He inquired, for he had learnt the hard way to trust her prophecies-like comments.

She possessed, after all, a trace of divinity.

"It will be easy to recognize him." She looked straight at the dragon then, her scarlet eyes full of wisdom. "He will certainly try to get past you. When he does… Kill him."

The dragon shivered upon hearing her tone. What did that man do, for her to show so much emotion in a single word?

The dragon bowed. "It shall be done."

She nodded in approval, and with a flicker, she disappeared. Courtesy was but superfluous, and ceremony was something others needed if they wanted to remain alive when approaching her.

The dragon felt like a storm had passed, and after changing his posture, he continued with his eternal vigil.

The woman, at the same time, somewhere down the mountain, smiled once again.

"The heavens as your witness, uh?" She muttered. A hint of delight and approval escaped through her lips. "Indeed. You'll need to be at least that bold if you ever want to find me."

She stared towards a certain direction, albeit she couldn't see nor sense who she was trying to reach.

An invisible thread appeared to be attached to her.

She had always hated to be tied to something.

But that feeling…

That feeling wasn't so bad.