Chapter 96: Side Story 1. Here be Dragons, Here be Humans, Here be Me

So much time had passed…

The stars fell…

The world shifted…

Eons went by in a blink…

Even though it happened so long ago.

Even though I met more strange beings.

Names were buried by the sands of time.

Eons passed.

But in the end…

I couldn’t forget you.

How many centuries had passed since I met you?

I was naive and nothing more than a young lizard.

In spite of all the warnings you persevered.

And eventually you met me.

You ignored the tales of old passed down by your kin…

You ignored all the signs that pointed towards your doom…

You ignored the writings of the prophecies.

There be dragons.

But you never cared.

I never understood it.

Why would a being so weak risk their life to explore?

What was there to see?

I wanted to understand it.

However, those times were long in the past.

Buried by the sands of time.

Never to be remembered.

Your descendants forgot your name long ago.

Yet you never cared for the marks you left.

You simply wanted to…

I didn’t understand it. Even after all this time.

I couldn’t understand it. A lonely traveler of the weakest species, one with skills that would put others to shame, one that wanted to see the world and experience new things…

One that wanted to see the joys of life.

Yet you knew how finite your time was. However, all my worries were unfounded when you laughed in my face.

Silly dragon, it doesn’t matter what I don’t get to see. What matters is what I get to see. You said. It puzzled me to no end, those philosophies of yours, your nonsensical conjectures were peculiar.

They were fun.

What made you go out of the way for me? I never understood it. I was one in a dozen. But somehow you ended up with me. And so I asked.

Why me?

Why not you? You always answered back.

It never made sense to me. I didn’t know any better. I couldn’t understand where you were coming from. I didn’t understand your desire to experience new things, your way of doing things, your motivations. They were all a mystery.

As a dragon. My time was almost infinite. But yours counted down by the day.

Yet it never bothered you.

You were curious, much more than any of my kin. You were driven. A far-cry from the things I was used to. The mighty ones, or so we were called. Beings sought after for their wisdom.

But you never cared about what I said.

You would just scoff. Why would I do that? Sounds counterproductive. It was curious, but enjoyable to see. A valiant heart willing to challenge those above him.

One to rise above all.

A being who would achieve greatness.

One that would change the fate of a species.

You claimed you wanted to travel. You claimed you wanted to see the horizons. You claimed you wanted to understand more. But they were all lies. I could see it.

I could see your sorrow as you realized the status of the world.

I could see your despair as you saw villages getting razed by stronger beings.

I could see the darkness forming in your eyes with every passing moment.

But no matter how many sights you saw, you smiled and continued proudly. It makes me sad, but in the end, I am but a human. You said, your voice deflated. Nevertheless you carried on.

You broadened your horizons.

Saw new mesmerizing sights.

Understood more things.

I joined you in your expansive journey, watching like a spectator, or perhaps as company. Such was the life of a dragon, a fleeting one. We continued on and on.

But in the end.

Even though your resolve was strong.

You still succumbed to it.

Silly dragon, you began. No. Dragon, please let me borrow your power.

Why? I asked, perplexed.

Because, you choked, words caught in your throat. I am powerless to change things, for in the end I am only human.

No matter how many times you were challenged, no matter how many times I had to save you, no matter how many times misery struck. Your head never went down, yet this time. It lowered itself in front of me.

You weren’t this fearless explorer no more. You weren’t this valiant soul no more. You weren’t a being of equal no more… In the end, you were a human. The things you saw, the things you experienced, the tragedies you witnessed.

They affected you.

Unlike dragons, they meant a lot to you. Every single one of them. Unlike dragons, you didn't let them leave your mind. Unlike dragons, you cared.

A sigh escaped me.

I pondered in front of you, as your body quivered in its shattered pride. I had entertained the ruse for so long, I had entertained you for so long. I had seen more than any of my kin. And it was time for it to come to an end. It was time for the journey to end. Because I was a dragon, and in the end, you were human.

In the end our values were different, humans lingered and cared, dragons were fleeting and careless. I wasn’t a human, but a dragon. We were different, and soon, I had my answer.

Then use my power to bring change. I answered and you smiled.

Perhaps you didn’t understand what it meant, what my answer meant for you and me. No, you didn’t understand what it meant at all. But for my species it was different. A commitment. Yet, I agreed anyway. I wanted to see the heights you could reach.

I wanted to see the vision you desperately seeked.

First was a small village being attacked by a monster of the abyss. Humans screamed, blood was shed, and children died. Please. You pleaded to me. The first request, the first of many.

And soon, the monster was no more. Burnt by the scorching flames of The Beyond. Gone forever, extinguished from this plane. There was no happiness in your face, no victory, there was just a sigh of relief.

Thank god not many more died. You said, a burden lifting off from your shoulders.

You rallied the rest of the villagers, you guided them to start anew, and you became a hero. But there was no excitement in those eyes of yours, there was simple hope. A feeling of yearning perhaps, one that I had never seen before. Using my breath a moat was formed, using my breath metal was made, using my breath change was brought.

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Some thought you were my puppet. Some thought you were my little experiment. And some thought it was all a dream. But I knew it was all thanks to you. However, even though everyone was thankful, you didn’t stop there.

Let us go, dragon. You called and we continued.

Even if the ground split in a mighty roar, you marched forth. Even if the abyss tore open and brought peril, you held your head high. Even if the gravity changed, even if the day became darkness, even if the dead rose from their slumber, you never faltered, you never changed, you always marched.

The journey went on, flames after flames.

Village after village, saved one after another. Eventually you were crowned as a savior of humanity, crowned as the greatest hero, crowned as the chosen one. But you wanted more. No matter the perils we encountered, the journey continued, but something brimmed within you. I had seen almost everything that you were by now. But then you took me by surprise, showing me the last of you.

You want to learn about dragons? I asked in confusion. Why? You have my power.

It isn’t mine. You clenched your fists. If it isn’t mine. When you’re gone, what will happen?

I’ll never go. I answered.

But what if you do? What shall I do then?

Eventually I caved in, perhaps it was the same resolve that made me want to help you in the first place. Or maybe it was the commitment that I had put myself into, I didn't know. Soon with my help you learnt to use the flames of The Beyond as well. But just when things were looking up, just when things reached the highest point, you looked at me once again. The same resolve as before.

Dragon, I am thankful. But this is something I must do alone.

At the edge of darkness you stood alone. But why? I asked, unable to comprehend.

Because I am human. You answered with a smile.

I closed my eyes and nodded. I think I had finally understood what it meant to be human at that point, perhaps I didn't, but it didn't matter, not at that moment anyway. Soon you vanished into the uncharted world to cave a place for humans to be in, free of worries, free of predators, free of the shackles of fate. Perhaps I didn’t see it sooner, but in those eyes as we bid farewell I finally saw your vision, it was grand, grander than anything else I could’ve imagined.

A place where humans could be free.

I went back to my cave. Retreading the mesmerizing sights I once saw along with you, forests had grown, what were once remote villages had turned into bustling cities that sang praises in your name, what were places infested of danger were peaceful prairies bustling with life. Your exploits resounded in the world like those of legends. Your might, not lesser than us, dragons.

Your journey had brought change.

Change that you couldn’t see.

You wanted to see your vision.

But it had already come true.

Years passed, the uncharted became the charted. Maps were made, networks were formed, infrastructure came to be. Soon dragons turned into creatures of myth as you paved the way forth for your kin. And eventually, I wanted to see what you had become.

I had to see.

You stood at the precipice of success, no territory left unclaimed anymore, no place unculled of danger, no place was left untouched by your hand. You smiled, staring at the edge of the world, at the vast nothingness of space, the peace in your expression was obvious. Your vision has finally come.

Dragon. You spoke, your voice frail. What brings you back?

I wanted to see your success. I answered sitting beside you, and joined to stare at the expansive sight of the stars.

Now that I think about it. You mentioned. This is the first time we relax together.

I suppose. I answered, not following.

Soon I heard a tired sigh come from you. Dragon, I cannot thank you enough for what you’ve done for me. But I am regretful.

Regretful? I asked.

Yes, regretful. You nodded slightly. I am now old. You ran your hands through your wrinkled skin. I stopped at nothing but my goal, and achieved it, but I have no legacy to call my own.

I shook my head. Human, you’ve changed everything, you’ve changed the fate of your species, even if you’re forgotten your deeds will still stand. A testament of your existence.

You pondered. I suppose. But in the end… I think I wanted something more. A family.

Nonsense. I spoke. You carried humanity on your shoulders, a father to humanity. That’s what they speak of you. And that’s what they shall call you.

You chuckled. I guess so… You might not remember this in a few centuries, but I am thankful.

I didn’t answer. We stared into the distance, not saying anything. Your time was running out.

Thank you dragon.

You’re welcome.

And then, you closed your eyes and smiled one last time. The wind blew, and soon I was alone. A human that had gone beyond humanity, a human that had stepped beyond the realms of possibility, a human who had done the impossible.

Decades passed, centuries passed, eons passed.

Once again, I stand on the edge of the world.

It was a tale as old as time itself.

One that wouldn’t leave my mind.

You were grander than all the dragons I met in my life combined. I began. You never realized what it meant to be a dragon. I spoke with slight sorrow. But even then, I understood what it meant to be human.

My betrothed.

Father of humanity.

Your name, long forgotten.

But your achievements, brilliant.

Perhaps they forgot who you were.

Perhaps they never knew you even existed.

Because in the end, their time was limited.

Time was limited.

I closed my eyes.

Human, conqueror of dragons.

Mightier than any dragon.

A long sigh escaped me, one that carried foreign feelings.

You were grand, as dazzling as the end of the world itself.

But in the end you were as blind as a dragon.

In the end you couldn’t understand.

I had agreed to see where you could go.

I lent you my strength to see your vision.

I lent myself to see your vision.

Mightier than human, mightier than dragon.

But in the end I couldn’t judge you.

I was different from my kin just like you.

Anyone else would’ve abandoned you.

Yet I can’t seem to be able to forget.

Not a human, not a dragon, just you.

And yet, you taught me about yourself.

About what you thought meant to be human.

And in the end, I think I understood what I was.

I looked into the darkness of space, the stars twinkled as if they were impervious to the sands of time. I looked at the mark that I left in your remembrance eons ago. In the end, time was finite.

Not a dragon, not a human, just me.

Here be dragons, here be humans. I smiled and closed my eyes for the final time. Here be me.

Goodbye, my betrothed, the only one I couldn’t forget, and the only one that I fell in love with.

Thank you for the unforgettable journey.