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- Freya (The Goddess of Beauty) ~
Floating down the bustling hallway, I glided past clerics, bishops, and devotees. Their conversations bubbled with enthusiasm and their faces glead with joy.
Today was a day of prayer, and the church of Frigg, the goddess of Motherhood, was awash with believers. Typically, my church was similar, but that day, their prayers would not reach .
*vwoom* Coming into the extravagant main hall built from marble and gold, with a ceiling so high it could accommodate even the largest of dragons, a breathtaking mass of mana washed over . However, I was not the one to receive it.
On the opposite side of the hall was a massive stone effigy depicting a beautiful woman, poised gracefully with a child cradled in her arms. It drew prayers like moths to fla, yet not a soul ventured near it.
But it wasn't their reverence that kept them away.
*vwoom* Floating over to the statue, the air steadily grew heavier before eventually forcing to anchor myself to the ground with divinity. -Ugh...- *tap* By then, those praying had beco motionless, and the dust in the air remained still, hovering listlessly.
But I continued forth, walking past the statue without hesitation before looking up at the towering, 150-ter-tall doors at the end of the hall.
Before I knew it, a look of annoyance had fluttered across my face. -This bitch...- Even with the eyes of a god, I couldn't see through it. -To think she's already recovered enough to use her divinity so shalessly...-
*tap* *tap* *tap* Continuing up to the door with a look of frustration, I thrust my fingers into its surface. *CRACKLE* Cracks slowly began spreading through it before I pulled my hand back and threw open the colossal door as if it were made of paper. *FWOOOSH*
A wave of mana slamd into nearly instantly, causing my knees to buckle and soul suddenly feel heavy.
But after just a mont, a voice, icy yet lodious, echoed from the vastness beyond the doors. "To desecrate another's sanctuary as such."
Behind the door, a gigantic stairway lood over , culminating in a lavishly adorned throne. Upon it sat a woman, exuding the grace and beauty of motherhood but with a chilling deanor that clashed with her appearance.
"I see you have not ceased your antics, Freya."
"Don't even get started, you conniving bitch. Just tell what you called here for."
She imdiately rested her cheek on her knuckles with a sense of aloofness. "In a mont. For now, how are you handling-"
*CRACK* I cut her off with a burst of divinity, cracking the intricately built floor. "If you say a single damn word..."
"Peace, Freya." She held my gaze, unyielding as she spoke. "I summoned you to give you so information and an offer, not to start a fight... Your reaction answered my question, regardless."
"Tch..." With the click of my tongue, my tensed hand eased. "You know what, alright. Just make it quick."
Her face remained still and emotionless as she responded. "Tomorrow, there shall be an event in Bahamut."
A hint of confusion instantly found its way onto my face. "What event?" -I don't believe there should be anything...-
She slowly leaned back, a faint smirk appearing on her lips. "It’s recent news, known only to a select few mortals, currently. The academy in Atlas, where so many of your dragons are stationed, is going to have a front row seat to.. quite a spectacle."
Suspicion instantly started gnawing at . "I'm going to need you to explain in detail."
She leaned forward, the light catching her eyes. "In a mont. For now, I have a proposition. There's soone in Atlas that you might find.. interesting. I want them gone."
Alarm bells instantly echoed through my head like a siren's voice. "Then send Vidar. Or better yet, handle it yourself."
"Patience, Freya," she intoned, a hint of allure lining her voice. "This individual, I believe, is related to that.. anomaly we sensed."
-What?!- I instantly recognized what she was referencing, but before I knew it, she had in her web.
"From my findings, a peculiar truth showed itself. The so-called 'Eye of Bahamut' might just be what we believed never existed..." She had so enraptured that I didn't even notice the sly smile creeping onto her face. "Odr's 'cell'... And now that 'artifact' has transferred hands, from the Ragnarok family, to an individual."
Thoughts ripped through my mind for a mont before I finally cald down enough to respond. "So what's in this for you."
The silence that filled the room was excruciating. "He knows far too much. Left unchecked, he may beco a thorn in Odin's side. I cannot allow that." She slowly straightened her posture before at my core. The real eyes of my soul. "Should you succeed, I will retrieve the artifact for you. However, in exchange, you will do a favor."
Every fiber of my being was yelling at , yet sohow, I didn't even notice.
"Whenever you are to speak with Odin, you must speak with first. Always." She watched my deanor in silence for a mont before smiling and relaxing her posture once more. "The academy in Atlas, 3.5 west, 1.3 south. 'She' will be waiting for you."
The next thing I knew, I standing in front of the pristine marble door, as if I had teleported.
But rather than being teleported, it felt as if I had yet to enter the room in the first place.
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- Vasilias Ragnarok ~
The sun painted the horizon with shades of gold, orange, and pink as I soared through the sky, the thoughts of Poniriá's plan still weighing heavily on my mind. Her drive and determination was impressive, but also unnerving, and the more ti I had to think, the more it gnawed at . -Why doesn't soone like her have a reputation?-
Over the past day and a half, I had spent most of my ti in the estate's lower library researching into the academy and Chalastís family's past, but throughout my research, while there was a small amount of information related to Poniriá being a scher, most of what I found was quite the opposite.
The more I dug, the murkier the waters beca. Stories of her well-thought sches were closely accompanied by stories of her rashness, just as stories of her being a gem in the Chalastís family were accompanied with claims of her being banished from the family for irrational behavior. And the worst part was that most of these were years, or even decades apart.
Her lineage records were even more baffling. So records asserted she was a direct descendant, while others believed she hailed from a distant family branch.
Everywhere I looked, it was like trying to piece together a jigsaw with extra, mismatched parts. -She is quite a well known political figure though... Perhaps they are just opposing sides of the sa story.-
In my eyes then, there was no reason for to have any doubt. The Poniriá I t was undoubtedly eccentric, but she didn't strike as soone warranting skepticism. It was what my gut told after all.
Furthermore, as promised, her plan was already underway. Rumors had already begun spreading through the city like a wildfire, and people's admiration for Myles and interest in Siratha and the Ancient Fenrir had all been growing exponentially.
The stage had been set, all that was left was to et with with her and finally get the ball rolling. -But I still have an hour to kill...-
Continuing to fly over the city for another mont, I watched the sun slowly sink below the horizon before turning back to the estate.
As I ca in for a landing, I noticed Krystallo standing out in the open, and as I finally touched down, she ca running over in a hurry.
"Brother!" She flung herself at , clutching my chest in a panic. "Whereever you're going soon, don't!"
-What?- "What do you an?" Her panic caught quite off guard.
"I had a bad dream! A really bad dream!" She sounded like she was holding back tears.
"Relax. Breathe..." I gave her a look of worry as I tried to embrace her. "Was there anything specific about the dream that you rember?"
She instantly nodded while looking up at . "I-It started with what l-looked like the body of a big brightly colored dragon being desecrated. W-When I approached it, the ground suddenly shook and the horizon went up in flas! Th-then when I t-turned around, the scales of the body had turned black and it l-looked like yoours!" She finally broke into tears as she pushed her forehead into .
My gut instantly raised warning signals. Although I had told Mother about the plan extensively, Krystallo had been purposefully left in the dark. -Where is this coming from?-
But my largest priority was to calm her down. "Krystallo, look at ," I gently wrapped her in my aura as I sat down and lifted her chin, forcing her gaze to lock with mine. "It was just a dream. Nothing has happened yet, so please-"
She sniffled, "Yet?!" As a fearful look spread across her face, her grip on tightened.
-Shit...- "That's not what I ant..." Gently caressing the top of her head with my aura, I tried to take a step back. "You rember what Mother taught us, right? As we get older, our dreams start becoming more and more like premonitions, but that isn't until at least the late Elder stage. Before then, a dream could be anything from a visualization of your desires, to your fears." The tears in her eyes glistened as she looked up at , pulling at my heart. "There is nothing to worry about. You know how strong I am, right?"
She hesitated for a mont before hooking her claws onto my scales. "But.. what if it is a premonition..."
"I promise to be extra careful just in case, okay?"
As I gently cradled her, her grip eventually loosened, though her face still held a shadow of uncertainty. "You better be..."
As the stars finally started coming out, I continued holding her close, but while I wanted to comfort her, I couldn't deny that I was unsettled as well.
Still, my mind told to chalk it up to re coincidence. After all, dreams are often our subconscious mind's way of working through our fears, anxieties, and desires. But the timing of her dream with Poniriá's plan was uncanny.
Feeling her finally shift around, I looked down to see her staring in the direction of the academy with a shimr in her eyes.
"Just promise ," she whispered with a slight waverting in her voice. "Promise you'll co back safe..."
Finally letting out a stress-filled breath, I eased my nerves. "I will, I promise."
She slowly nodded before begining to pull away, montarily hesitating before letting go completely. "If you aren't back soon.. I won't forgive you..."
Watching her slowly trod back to the estate, a heaviness settled in my chest, and after just another mont, I let out another sigh and looked up to the sky. "Ilios."
He instantly revealed himself next to as if he was waiting for it.
"I want you to watch over them while I'm out, but before I go..." I montarily glanced over at him, seeing his fur slowly wave in the calm breeze. "What do you think?"
As if waiting for it, he trotted over and sat in front of , looking up at with an unreadable expression before standing up and touching a paw to my chest.
Almost instantly, the mana in my reserve began to stir and a small suction of mana ford, quickly topping it off, but after a mont he removed his paw and stepped away, quickly following Krystallo's footsteps toward the estate.
Finding myself sitting out beneath the stars, all alone once again, I glanced down at my chest, the glow beneath my scales seeming brighter than normal.
I still had so ti before I needed to et with Poniriá, but now wasn't the ti to be lounging around. -Let's go early...-
*FWOOSH*
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