章 11: Winter dragon
After we found Gareth, I opted to split up as I had remembered something interesting that was on this island. Using the excuse that I would go and follow a lead on a purging wand, they allowed me to leave as we needed one to get past the shriekers. The rest of the group would follow a lead on another purging wand.
I began moving towards a corner of the island, since I remembered that there was a winter dragon chained up there.
It wasn't difficult to find, the atmosphere around me became chilly. And it was hard to miss it's body due to the size. I wondered if I could recruit it for my cause to punch Odin, or even turn it into a spirit ash to summon.
'What?! Are we not enough?!'
'A whelp such as this can't even begin to compare to us.'
'What? Are you two willing to work together now?' I rolled my eyes
'Over my dead body!'
'Your body has been gone for ages now red one, and as if you would be of any help when he already has myself.'
'Oi, white one! You want to say that to my face!?'
If it wasn't already obvious, these 2 were Draig and Albion from DXD. Back when I was reincarnating, I had the option of getting 3 random powers or replacing one of them with a tutorial. So I got out with 2 random powers and a guaranteed tutorial.
The powers were decided purely by RNG. First a wheel would spin for the universe, then it would spin again for the kind of power in that universe. It hit DXD on the first spin, then Sacred Gear on the second. So I ended up with two random sacred gears.
Unfortunately I didn't find out which sacred gears I had until 10 years ago, when they woke up. However to my annoyance, they refused to share a host. So I was unable to use either of their sacred gears.
'Which reminds me, there was something I needed to get off my mind.' I thought back on something.
'Draig, Albion.' I called out to them.
'What? Are you finally ready to become the White Dragon Emperor?'
'As if anyone would want that! The title Red Dragon Emperor sounds much more amazing!'
"Enough!" I said out loud with exasperation. These two never stopped bickering, it was as if they were siblings.
'We are not!'
'Don't even joke about something like that!'
"Look... I just wanted to thank you two." I said with a hand on my head. Honestly I was beginning to get a migraine.
'...For what, did I miss something? Oi white one, what is he talking about?'
'I don't recall doing anything as of late.'
"I mean back when I was doing the ritual to become a Primeval Sorcerer." I clarified. I still remembered it vividly, the feeling of helplessness. Regret and despair that my arrogance was about to get my soul assimilated into the Current. "You two saved me, right?"
'...That wasn't us.' What?
'We were unable to do anything against that dimension, back then.' I frowned at that. Then what the hell happened back there?
'We don't know, one moment we were facing death, then that thing came out of nowhere.' Draig explained. I imagined he was speaking about that hand.
'We do not have much sway over our power in new users, especially when you have not even brought out either of our Sacred Gears before.' Albion clarified.
'Yes, often times. Our hosts would ambush the other one, before they had gained much strength.'
"Sigh, I don't like this feeling of being in the dark about something within me." I frowned, but eventually decided to let it go. "Nothing I can do about it, I need to stay focused."
"While we're here, I might as well propose a deal. You two refuse to share a host right?"
'That's correct.'
'We are meant to be separate, rivals, adversaries.'
"Even if that meant being the Oppai and Ass Dragons?" I snorted
'DON'T REMIND ME!' Draig roared out
'Those were dark memories....' Albion shuddered
"Alright, well how about this. Would you two agree to fighting with me, if you had your own bodies?" I proposed a possibility.
'Not possible, we are dead.'
'Indeed, our souls have been trapped within these Sacred Gears for ages.'
"Humor me, if you had your own bodies again. Would you be willing to fight for me? You know my goal by now."
'Yes, to punch that worm Odin.'
'He seemed stronger than the one I encountered. A worthy foe if anything.' I nodded in agreement.
"That's because he is. My goal isn't to kill him though, but it's not like his pantheon will just sit back and let me take a swing at his mug."
'...I suppose it would be better than having to share a host.'
'The prospect does sound interesting...'
"Then you agree?"
'Very well, I don't know how you would go about doing that though.'
'It doesn't sound very feasible, extracting our souls from where God sealed us, and finding a suitable body is a tall order.'
"Let me worry about that. I'm not saying it's easy, but things worth doing are rarely easy." Like planning to punch Odin in the face.
'Then...'
"I still want to try to recruit the winter dragon."
'But you don't even need him with us!'
"I need all the help I can get. Especially since you two are currently out of commission. Although convincing a Dragon is difficult, I hope you two can help me speak to him."
'Hmph, if this whelp knows what's good for it. It'll be happy to join.'
'The young ones are generally impulsive, so we may be able to convince it.'
"Thanks." A confident smile graced my lips. I can't win on my own, so every bit helps.
∞
Moving closer to the dragon, Zieg began to feel a bit nervous. He wasn't exactly adept at recruiting people, however he hoped that Rykard's Great Rune will help. According to Draig and Albion, they found him more pleasing to the eye after he had obtained the ability.
Once close enough, he could see two bone totems thrumming with powerful source. The dreadful power chained the dragon down. At first he thought it was asleep, but he noticed it's body trembling. It must have been in constant agony.
'If I still had a body, my blood would boil with rage.' Draig practically snarled.
'This is terrible...' Albion was solemn.
It was indeed a sorry sight. A great winter dragon reduced to nothing more than a slave.
"Let's try breaking the totems." Zieg muttered, taking out his sword. He pointed the tip towards the bone totems and a released a night comet. The beams easily destroyed the structures, shattering their foundation.
The dragon slowly rose up, it's head still drooped down. The newly freed dragon looked sick and pale. As Zieg approached, it stretched it's wings weakly and fixed it's intense gaze at him. Frozen tears glinted in it's eyes.
"My gratitude for your efforts, friend. Yet, I am no more free now than I was in those chains. Please, help me find true liberty or sing me to the endless slumber." It pleaded with a deep masculine voice. From it's words, it seemed like that wasn't enough to free it. "But of course that must be why you stand before me... Slane called to Lady Death, and here you are. A coincidence?"
"A coincidence indeed." Zieg responded with a shake of his head. "I came here to ask if you would fight by my side. In return I will help you achieve vengeance."
"Ah. My fate, it seems, is not my own to call." The dragon named Slane sighed. "My soul is bound to joyless obedience. Purged of my source by the wickedest of witches, I stand in thrall to her every whim. She has only to command, and my traitorous body complies." He was too tired to even snarl, let alone growl. If anything it had just sounded like he had given up.
"And now here you are, trying to change the hands of my leash?" It chuckled in despondence.
"You are mistaken, brat." A gauntlet shimmered to life on Zieg's hand.
"We would not stand by as one of our own were reduced to such a state." A pair of light wings took form behind his back.
"This feeling, why do you feel as if you were my own kin?"
"Because these two dragons follow me." Zieg stepped up, eyes locked with Slane's in an intense stare. "I do not need a slave. What I need are allies, there is no place for slaves in the battles ahead." He stated with sincerity. Slane focused it's gaze, staring off for a few minutes. The chill wind was all that was heard among the silence.
"...And if I refused?" The winter dragon finally responded.
"Then I will free you regardless. Like my companions said, we won't stand by and allow you to remain in this state." Zieg said as the dragon watched for any indication of falsehoods.
It found none.
"Then I will accept" It bowed it's head.
"I look forward to working with you in the future." Zieg's lips quirked up in a genuine smile.
Moving closer to him, Zieg placed his hand on the dragon's head. Their eyes closed, and the ice dragon known as Slane scattered into golden light. The light coalesced around Zieg in a small twister, before gently disappearing within him.
'This is an odd place.' Slane's voice sounded out in his mind.
'Wait, where are you?' Zieg blinked in confusion. He had never done that before, and none of his summons ever talked.
'I'm not sure. The sky is full of stars, truly breathtaking. A chill moon hangs over the horizon, and the ground beneath feels like water, yet not.' He explained his surroundings with interest. 'There seems to be others here, however they are not responding. It seems they are focused on the moon.'
'...By any chance are they mostly soldiers? Are some of them headless?'
'Yes they all seem armed, and I see about 5 of them that match that description.' Slane confirmed after a moment.
'Holy shit, I have a reality marble!' Zieg thought excitedly. Or at the very least an inner world. It sounded like the final boss area, after he chose Ranni's ending.
'Well alright, I'm gonna go find the bitch that screwed you over.' He decided to keep his promise before thinking about this newfound information.
'She is the witch Radeka! I was in love with her once. For the smallest slight - really, a trifle - she wielded a purging wand against me, enslaving me to her will.' Now that he wasn't immediately dying, he could actually sound more aggressive. 'She trekked far underground, seeking ingredients for her vile potions. Be wary, Radeka is a cunning one.'
'You truly are a whelp, if you had not seen her true colors and had become so smitten with her at a glance.' Draig spoke up
'Ah to be young again...' Albion reminisced.
Slane began to make some embarrassed dragon noises that Zieg couldn't understand.
∞
I made my way into a cave with a giant skull as the entrance. Honestly it just seemed like the most likely place as it was nearby. The giant skull was practically a sign that screamed 'Here I am!'.
I noticed a large assortment of traps blocking the path. I could have just had my summons run right through, but instead I teleported myself right pass. I'm starting to get better at this.
Eventually I entered a room with giant red flowers growing around.
'There she is!' I heard Slane as I brought my eyes towards the other end of the cave.
A tall woman stood amid a field of corpses, some fresh, some ancient. The sour smell of them stung my nostrils, and eyes. As I moved closer, the stench bloomed into a humid flavor I could almost taste.
The woman turned to me, bitten lips parting into a grin. She tucked a small bunch of black-red roses into a leather strap across her hip and, preparing to curtsy, offered me a hand.
Obviously I knew better than to take it as I gave her a flat deadpan expression.
"What a boor." She stood at her full height, lips pursed in disappointment. She cocked her head as if to take in my appearance. The stench of death and sewage suddenly intensified.
"Hm... the corpses beneath your feet can't account for a stench such as this." I said, analyzing the area. This stench was too strong, even for rotting corpses.
"Now now, that's enough of that." She smirked before speaking in a language I couldn't seem to understand. "Ave domore, d'mir galach?"
"I have no idea what you're saying."
"Hah, never mind. I mistook you for someone else." She shook her head after confirming that I wasn't who she thought I was. "I am Radeka. And you... you must be here for the same reason as I." She patted the bouquet at her hip.
"But you're too late, these roses belong to me. Looks like we'll have to find some other way to keep you busy..." She spoke sultrily.
I took a moment to examine her. Her outfit exposed a large portion of her skin. She was practically wearing a bikini. The way the clasps and buckles on her outfit hugged into her caramel skin. Shit, she was sexy and hot. I am now horny as hell. Unfortunately, I am a man on a mission and have no time for bitches until I punch Odin in the face.
I smirked at her and responded. "No need, someone else wants to keep you busy."
"Radeka... I will have retribution." Slane appeared behind me from a glyph. Oddly enough, he didn't look like a phantom. Instead he looked completely alive.
"How... you know those chains were in place for a reason..." She actually became wary now.
"Well we don't plan on leaving until you're dead." I grinned at her, sword in hand.
"Then I suppose you won't be leaving, darling." The corpses around the room all got up. Power thrummed from her before giant bugs grew out from the flowers.
"Oh nice army there, I have one too." I sneered, releasing my own little army of soldiers, ranging from Mausoleum soldiers, Radahn soldiers, to Godrick solders.
"What!?" Radeka was obviously not prepared for an army to corner her.
"Radeka, you will not escape!" Slane roared.
A slaughter ensued.
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