Rick landed in a realm of deep, shifting hues—a space where colors bled together in surreal patterns, and the sky was neither day nor night but an endless twilight of swirling purples, greens, and blues. The air was charged with an almost electric energy, crackling with power that set Rick's senses on edge. Mountains rose and fell in the distance like jagged teeth, their peaks wreathed in shimmering mists that seemed alive, whispering secrets of ancient times.
Directly in front of him loomed an enormous tower, dark and monolithic, rising impossibly high into the swirling sky. The structure itself seemed to be crafted from some otherworldly obsidian, its surface smooth but riddled with veins of glowing crimson energy, pulsing like a heartbeat. Spires and battlements twisted up, covered in odd symbols that seemed to twist and shift as he looked at them. Surrounding the tower was a strong protective formation: an intricate weave of glyphs, barriers, and swirling orbs of light that hummed ominously, warning intruders of the danger they'd face if they tried to cross.
He focused again. So this was the reason. This was the thing that had kept him from Ailith. He could feel her, inside, faintly-but unmistakably-a candle flaring in the darkness. The frustration of being stopped when she was so near made anger build in him, fingers curling to fist.
Suddenly, a voice broke forth from within the ranks, calm but laced with irritation. "What brings you here?" it asked, cutting through the tense air like a blade.
Rick clenched his jaw as his anger really flared up at the impudence of the tone of the stranger. Stepping forth without a doubt, he walked toward the domain with steady steps and unshakeable composure, though the barrier stands before him. The voice came once more, sterner now. "Young man, do not move further. You cannot go beyond this boundary. It's something beyond your understanding.
But Rick did not break his stride. His energy surged, and with a simple push of his will, he slipped through the barrier, as if it were mere mist. The glyphs and orbs flared in protest, but the formation held no resistance to him, parting effortlessly as he moved forward.
And now that the voice was tinctured with shock, it gagged out in quiet. For near the foundation of the tower, keeping watch, stood the ancient to whom that voice came. The gray-haired, nearly kingly figure, robed as was his head, where dark energy licked, stood unmoving, mouth agape. His eyes bulged wide as they could go when Rick stepped into being before him. The young man's look was as frigid and unyielding as was the realm upon which they stood.
Fear did something bad to the old man's face, and realization clearly dawned on his eyes because this intruder was far beyond anything he had anticipated. He could feel the raw power with Rick, so vast that it weighed upon him like a heavy suffocating weight.
"How. how did you—", the old man stammered, losing the coherence of speech.
Rick moved closer to me, and his low menacing voice kept saying "Where is she?" such a simple question but filled with threats, sorted at your core.
The old man paled at the touch of the cold edge in Rick's voice, the sharp, slicing tone that seemed to promise retribution if he dared offer anything less than the truth. Rick's eyes nailed him with a piercing and relentless stare, and the old man's heart labored as if it might shatter under the pressure of that look alone.
He stammered over his words, trying to stand, and his voice still stuttered. "S-she's… fine. Fine. No one has really hurt her."
Rick reddened up to the neck, and what was left of patience rolled in on him like the waves that pounded dry sand. He took one step forward. His eyes narrowed, his voice was cold enough, and he grew even colder. "What is it that you keep telling me?" he rasped, each word loaded with a tone of anger so thick it felt like heavy syrup. "Just let me know where she is.".
The old man's hands trembled, and he gritted his teeth to bear Rick's gaze, his rising fear swallowing him down. The depth of Rick's anger was terrifying, as if it were a force of nature ready to obliterate everything in its path. He knew this young man could kill him with one thought, and the chilling realization clawed at him that Rick might be more than anything he had ever met.
"Mm- mm …She's… she's in the highest chamber," he finally stammered, weakly gesturing up the tower, the red veins pulsing harder and stronger as if pumping great energy. "The Princess is unharmed but held there by a spell… one that holds her power. Only one with… strength such as yours could break it."
Rick's jaw locked tight, but he said nothing, his eyes never leaving the old man as he took in the explanation. Without another word, he turned and began walking toward the entrance of the tower, the air around him thick with barely restrained power.
As Rick stepped over the threshold, he did not look back, but his voice came over his shoulder, deadly and cold as ever. "If she is hurt. even a little bit. you won't live to see another dawn.".
The old man stood there in silence as the threat dangled there long after Rick disappeared into the darkness of the tower. He was left standing there, drained of all his strength, haunted by the image of Rick's merciless gaze as he moved forward, an unstoppable force on a path that even he didn't dare try to block.
Dark shadows swept over Rick's face as he took it all in. The princess lay slumbering here in the center of this room; energy waves pulsed within her as a glimmer of radiant aura streamed around her form. It had to be said that in her very being lay the struggle—three separate streams of blood bound together now and threatening at any time to rip each other loose. And next to her stood a woman who closely resembled the princess, her mother, full of determination and dotted with tears in her eyes.
As he listened to the woman's words, the fire within Rick died down, but a seed of understanding took root. He could see now through the ripples of energy surrounding the princess that these bloodlines clashed beyond an ordinary spell. Each bloodline was ancient, each carrying incredible power, and the attempt to awaken one had set off a chain reaction that nearly destroyed her from within.
She spoke once more, her voice soft but unyielding, her eyes holding Rick's. "I knew you'd come…I know of the bond you share with her." She sighed; a flash of guilt crossed her face. "But I could not let her remain as she was, unaware of her own power and heritage. I wanted her to awaken, to become the force she was meant to be". Yet…" She looked down at her dead daughter, looking heavy with regret. "I miscalculated. The lines of blood in her are… out of my province."
Rick felt a twinge of compassion but kept his voice hard. "So you were thinking to roll the dice with her life?
The woman winced, but did not take her eyes from his face. "You do not understand. She is of my blood, and I am sworn to protect her. But I failed to understand that she needed to be taught to accept each lineage in balance… not coercion." She looked down now, the bitterness in her voice. "And now… I may lose her."
Rick's gaze eased a fraction as he continued to study the princess's form. He could feel the delicate yet potent mix of bloodlines within her: one was the bloodline of her mother's race, the Myrid, pulsing with the ancient powers of the sea; the second, a fierce dragon bloodline that made her spirit resilient and her body tenacious; and the third… it was shadowed, mysterious, but he recognized it as a form of dark energy, something perhaps dormant from his own entanglements with her past life.
If you were so attuned to her potential, Rick began, his tone measured but tense, you must have known that spell would be fatal if it failed. His eyes narrowed. Why take such a reckless chance?
She looked into his eyes with quiet resolve. "Because she was destined to lead our people and that means wielding all of the power within her. And… I believed. Believe that you might come. Believe that her strength would hold her through." Her voice betrayed a slight crack. "And now, the choice's yours, Rick.".
Rick turned to the princess and leaned his hand close to hers, feeling the turmoil churning in her aura. He knew he could soothe the battle raging within her, but only by entwining his own life force with hers—releasing a part of himself in return to smooth the pressure of the three lines of blood.
He took a breath, and as he focused his energy, he murmured, "You owe me nothing. But if there's a chance you can hear me… find your way back." Slowly, he began to channel his power, weaving it through the chaotic energies inside her.
The woman watched silently, full of hope, as Rick poured himself into stabilizing the princess. Time passed, the air heavy with tension, until finally, the turbulence in her body began to calm. Her breathing evened, and the flickering aura around her steadied, its glow softening.
When Rick pulled back, his features softened. For the first time in millennia, he felt a fragile connection, a sense that he had done something selfless, without any expectation in return.
The woman looked up, and recognition seemed to creep through her expression, tinged in sadness. She knew it meant that her daughter was about to embark on a trail that was to forever combine with Rick's and push them not only to learn to control their powers but to resolve the intricate web of emotions and a history they had for each other.
Rick lifted the unconscious princess gently and carried her into a bed nearby, settling down beside her with an untimely tenderness. He turned back, staring hard, his eyes harder but curious, as if studying the beautiful woman sitting there, who had somehow professed to be a princess's mother.
"Who are you?" he asked, his voice very low, with both demands and interest in it: "And how much do you know me?
She looked him in the eye, her face shifting between guarded calm and a hint of reluctance. Her presence was regal, every movement refined, and her voice was a soft whisper, but it carried a weight beyond her years. "My name is Naeris.". I am not only her mother but a protector of the ancient bloodlines that flow within her… and within you, Rick. She looked at him, her eyes probing, as if measuring how much to say.
Rick's eyes narrowed. "Me? How could you know anything about my past?"
A faint smile touched her lips, almost melancholic. "Your path has crossed ours before, though you may not remember it. Lifetimes ago, the Myrid race pledged their loyalty to a being of dark and dragon arts. a figure lost to legend. He wielded unimaginable power, but his heart grew tainted, his choices dark. You." Her eyes held his with a knowing intensity. "You are him reborn.".
Rick's breath came hard. He'd suspected in hushed whispers, sometimes almost catching what it said about pieces of his black past, but this, said in her tone, slammed against him. Kingdoms he had ruined and with a clear conscience snatched the lives from innocent faces; the friends and fellow beings turned to enemy he must face - the life where all of these hung - was hidden within all this history that is basically a part of the very DNA of the race called the Myrid.
"I see you understand now," Naeris continued, her tone softening. "I was there when the tales of your legend began… and when they ended in destruction. You left an indelible mark on our world, one that my daughter now carries within her." She glanced at the princess, a protective sadness in her eyes. "Your bond with her is deeper than you realize, Rick.". She is, in a way, a reflection of all you were… and all you have yet to become.
Rick felt all of that: the burden of his past, the spark of this newfound purpose, and a strange connection to the princess resting near him. He worked hard to calm his voice. "If that's true… if she's connected to my past, then what now? What am I supposed to do?"
Naeris stepped closer, never looking away. "The choice is yours, Rick. You can regain your power and pursue your desires; however, this time you carry with you more than just your own destiny. The Myrid race, your daughter's future, and possibly the balance of the realms are all hinged upon the path that you take. I know you feel the weight of your sins, but your actions now can bring redemption. or ruin.".
A silence fell between them as Rick absorbed her words. For the first time in centuries, the endless power and ambition he had once lived for seemed insufficient. In the princess, he saw a chance—not only to shape his legacy anew but to understand the part of him that had always eluded him: the elusive concept of connection, even love.
He didn't utter a word but turned his back on Naeris and faced the princess once more. His jaw locked into place as he nodded, and resolve hardened in him. "Then I'll stay and protect her, no matter what it takes." He looked back at Naeris, his eyes resolute. "But if you know my history, you also know that I don't forgive betrayal. If you have other motives, I will discover them.".
Naeris inclined her head, her face still unreadable. "I understand. I have faith that, whatever darkness may linger, you will not repeat the mistakes of your past. For her sake… and your own."
And that said, she turned around and walked out of the room, letting Rick stand over a princess, with redemptive thoughts swirling into the black power he held onto still. He knew where he was headed was not going to be easy, but for the first time in his life, he felt there was more to himself than what his existence meant, fragile as it might be, to be worth all of this.