#A/N - "I don't know what I'm writing, my head feels like it's spinning, I want to rest today, but I want to finish this [vacation] arc quickly and return to Earth soon"
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After everything that happened, the battle, the transformation, and the heavy need to prove himself, Aksara was exhausted.
Taufik understood. He didn't rush him.
Instead, he gave his son ti to rest. Ti to breathe. The toll on Aksara's body and spirit was clear. Even soone as strong as him needed a mont to recover. And this is also not on Earth, so Aksara couldn't utilize his full power.
They stayed on the island for a little while longer.
Just enough to let the quiet return. Just enough for the wind to lose its edge and the sky to soften.
No more battles. No more shouting.
Only the sound of waves and the feeling of being alive.
When Aksara was finally able to stand without shaking when he smiled, even just a little, Taufik knew it was ti.
They looked to the north.
Toward the endless cold.
The Ice Continent waited.
And so, together, they began to move forward again.
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As the na suggests, their journey to the Ice Continent is far from smooth.
The further they go, the worse it gets.
The sea below thrashes like a wild beast, waves crashing and rising like mountains. The wind cuts through their clothes like sharp blades, howling without pause.
Lightning dances in the sky, falling like rain, bright, angry, and endless.
The world feels like it's trying to push them back, to stop them from reaching their goal.
Most of the sea monsters don't dare co close, not with Lembuswana and Basukhi there.
Their presence alone keeps most threats away.
But so monsters are foolish, or desperate.
They try to attack, but none of them ever last more than five seconds.
Sotis Taufik ends it with a single strike.
Sotis it's Rani, fast and sharp like a flash of light.
And sotis, the others step in. Working together to make sure nothing slows them down.
"...I don't rember this sea being like this the last ti I was here. What changed?"
Taufik spoke quietly, eyes fixed on the raging waves below.
"Does this have anything to do with The Original Lembuswana, Father?"
"I don't think that's the case… Well, we'll find out once we reach the Ice Continent. Akh'sha probably knows sothing about this"
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Through the biting cold and the storm-choked skies, the Ice Continent finally revealed itself.
From afar, rising like a jagged spear toward the heavens, the Big Mountain stood, imnse and immovable, its peak hidden by swirling snowclouds. That was where the Blue Dragon Kingdom lay, shrouded in ancient frost and powerful enchantnts. It was said that even ti moved slower around the mountain.
Taufik narrowed his eyes, the wind biting at his face. He rembered the last ti he stood here, how the sea monster had erged and made its way toward that towering mountain in the distance.
Beside him, Aksara stood tall once more. He said nothing, but his gaze was locked on the mountain peak as if he could feel sothing stirring there.
Ahead of them, Anugerah moved with quiet elegance, her cloak flowing behind her like a shadow dancing through the snowstorm. Her eyes shimred with distant nostalgia as her gaze settled on the land before her, her holand, veiled in frost and mory.
"…Basukhi," Taufik said softly but firmly, "head straight for that mountain peak. That's where we're ant to go"
After that, they continued to fly through the storm, riding on the broad, scaled back of Basukhi.
His massive wings stretched wide, glowing faintly with divine energy, each beat sending shockwaves through the storm clouds.
The wind howled around them, angry and relentless, but Basukhi moved with purpose, undaunted, unshaken.
Taufik stood near the front, his cloak whipping wildly in the howling wind. His gaze never wavered, locked on the distant peak that pierced the storm-covered sky like a silent sentinel.
Just behind him, Anugerah knelt with one hand resting gently on the scaled hide of their massive companion.
She whispered words only the wind and herself could hear, soft, ancient syllables that seed to calm the air around her.
Her voice was a thread of calm woven into the chaos, her presence a quiet anchor in the heart of the blizzard.
Farther back, Rani and the others huddled together with the children.
Laughter and awe spilled from their lips as they gazed in wonder at the icy landscape... So different, so strange, and yet breathtakingly beautiful.
Then, suddenly, light.
A beam of blue fire erupted from the peak of the Big Mountain, carving the clouds apart in a violent spiral. It wasn't an attack, but a signal.
Aksara leaned forward, his eyes narrowing. "That wasn't natural"
Taufik nodded, a faint smile tugging at the corner of his lips.
"No… That was a dragon's call," He said calmly. "They know we're here"
He glanced toward the peak, his voice lowering with a hint of reverence.
"That was an invitation"
Basukhi flew onward, wings slicing through the icy winds, until they reached the mountain's summit. Nestled within a vast crater carved into the heart of the peak lay the Blue Dragon Kingdom, a kingdom made from the Eternal Ice.
It was the birthplace of Anugerah.
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The descent was slow, deliberate.
Basukhi circled once above the mountain's peak, his massive wings scattering the clouds like whispers before landing gently within the great crater.
The mont his claws touched the Eternal Ice, the world seed to be still.
A low hum resonated through the land, as though the mountain itself acknowledged their arrival.
And then, they ca.
From the shimring towers carved of sapphire ice, from the deep caverns beneath the frozen earth, from the soaring spires that pierced the blizzard skies, the Blue Dragons erged.
Not in battle.
Not in fear.
But in welco.
Hundreds of dragons, majestic and ancient, their scales shimring in hues of cobalt, indigo, and glacial silver, gathered in a wide circle around the landing platform.
Their humanoid forms were tall and elegant, with horns like crowns and eyes like stars frozen in ti.
So remained in full dragon shape, their bodies vast and coiled, wings tucked as they bowed their great heads.
One stepped forward.
Clad in robes woven from ice thread and starlight, his presence radiated quiet power. His horns curved like twin crescents above his head, and his long hair fell like flowing snow behind him.
"Anugerah bin Iceland, Daughter of the Eternal Peak… Welco ho"
The voice echoed, not rely through the air, but deep within the soul, resonating like an ancient chord struck within the mountain itself.
With practiced grace, Anugerah descended from Basukhi's back, her every movent carrying the weight of both nobility and long-buried mories. Her expression remained calm, but her eyes shimred with emotion as she lowered her head in solemn respect.
"I have returned," She said softly. "…Brother"
A mont passed before a familiar voice cut through the reverence, light, and teasing.
"How cold of you, Akh'Sha," Taufik called from behind, a smirk on his lips. "You didn't even greet ?"
Akh'Sha let out a low, rumbling laugh that echoed across the icy stone, deep, ancient, and rich with both amusent and sothing warr beneath.
"Still the sa, My friend," He said, stepping forward from the shadows of the mountain. His form was imposing, draconic yet humanoid. "You never could resist stealing soone else's mont"
Taufik chuckled in return, hands tucked into his cloak as the wind stirred around them.
"Guilty as charged"
Anugerah simply smiled, the tension in her shoulders easing. For the first ti in a long while, the past didn't feel so far away.
Akh'sha could only shake his head, but a mont later a warm smile appeared on his face.
"... It's good you haven't changed, my friends"
Then Akh'sha's gaze shifted, past Taufik, past the swirling snow, to where the rest of the family waited.
His eyes settled on a young girl peeking from behind her siblings, curiosity dancing in her eyes, her presence quiet yet unmistakable.
Kiara. Anugerah's daughter… And Taufik's.
For a mont, the wind seed to be still.
Akh'Sha's expression softened further, wonder and recognition blooming like frost-kissed flowers in his ancient eyes.
He stepped forward slowly as if approaching sothing sacred.
"…So this is her," Akh'Sha murmured, his voice barely above the whisper of the wind. His eyes lingered on Kiara, full of quiet awe.
"She resembles Anugerah… Back when she was just a child"
A gentle smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, half mory, half marvel as if he were seeing a reflection of the past made new again.
Anugerah glanced at her daughter, then back at her brother. Her eyes softened, the weight of years lting into a quiet, tender smile.
"Her na is Kiara, Brother," She said, voice touched with pride and sothing deeper."... My child"
Akh'Sha looked at Kiara once more, his gaze thoughtful, reverent. He stepped forward, lowering himself to one knee so he could et her at eye level. The power within him did not vanish, but in that mont, it felt gentle.
"I see, then welco, Kiara," He said solemnly. "Daughter of Anugerah. Niece of mine... I'm your Mother's big Brother, your Uncle, welco back to the land of your origin"
Kiara blinked, stunned, then offered a small, uncertain smile, drawn not by words, but by the warmth in Akh'Sha's voice.
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