Chương 116: Have You Always Been This Empty?

Teresa, the gnome and her royal guard were still searching for the Green Dragon. For hours, they had continued climbing along the mountainside, following increasingly treacherous and dangerous paths. The vegetation had disappeared long ago, leaving behind nothing but dark rocks, crevices and nearly vertical cliffs. They had reached a dizzying altitude. They were thousands of meters above the ground, beneath a merciless sun that seemed determined not to grant them even a moment's respite.

The light was blinding, and the heat reflected by the rocks made the air almost impossible to breathe. At that altitude, oxygen was also much scarcer. Every breath became more difficult. Teresa tried to maintain a steady pace, but she could feel her legs growing heavier and heavier. Sweat ran down her forehead and back, while her throat had become completely dry. She casually lowered her gaze toward her boots. She froze. The sole of one of them was beginning to melt.

"Damn it…" she muttered. Naomi noticed immediately.

"My lady". She approached and examined the boot.

"I'll carry you. Otherwise, you risk suffering a serious burn".

"I can manage…" Teresa replied through clenched teeth.

"I don't doubt that". Naomi did not even give her time to protest. She firmly lifted her up and carried her on her back. Teresa let out a small gasp of surprise.

"Naomi, what are you doing? Put me down".

"I'm sorry, my lady, but I can't allow you to get hurt".

"I can still walk".

"I won't allow your feet to be completely burned". Teresa fell silent. Despite the situation, a faint smile appeared on her face. The gnome watched the scene carefully.

"You really are very loyal to her". Naomi shot him a look.

"Shut up". The other soldiers couldn't help but smile. For a few moments, that little exchange almost managed to break the tension. Then they resumed their climb. And the journey became hellish once again. Their water had run out long ago. Despite the altitude, the temperature had now risen above forty degrees, and the heat seemed to penetrate all the way into their bones. That was what made the climate of the Rocky Mountains different from everywhere else.

Here, the heat remained the same or barely decreased, even thousands of meters above sea level. Their skin burned beneath the sun, their lips were cracked, and every breath felt as though it were dragging sand through their throats. The soldiers had even stopped talking. They conserved what little energy they had left to keep moving. The journey seemed endless. This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

And, above all, no one truly believed in the existence of the Green Dragon. Only Teresa still believed. Or perhaps, more precisely, she desperately hoped it was real. They continued climbing for another stretch. They passed alongside a rocky wall. Then another. Every corner looked identical to the one before it. Rock. Sun. Dust. Nothing else. When it seemed that there was nothing ahead of them but yet another barren, lifeless stretch, one of the soldiers suddenly stopped.

"Wait". Naomi stopped.

"What is it?" The man pointed toward a large rock formation a little farther ahead.

"There". Teresa raised her head. Beyond the rock formation, something caught their attention. For several seconds, no one said a word. Three enormous black eggs lay on the ground. They were gigantic. Their dark surfaces reflected the sunlight and seemed almost covered in thin veins. Naomi immediately lowered Teresa to the ground. Her eyes lit up.

"It…" She took a few steps forward.

"Is this…an hallucination?" She rubbed her eyes. Then looked at the eggs again. They were still there.

"No, my lady…" Naomi said. She, too, stared at them in disbelief.

"I can see them too". The other soldiers confirmed it. Even the gnome was left speechless. Teresa felt her heart begin to race. For months, she had pursued that legend. She had listened to stories that most people considered nothing more than superstition. And now, right before her eyes, were three pieces of evidence that were impossible to ignore. Dragon eggs. Teresa's expression changed. Her exhaustion seemed to vanish for a few moments. The pain in her feet, her thirst, and the heat faded into the background.

"The Green Dragon…" She clenched her fists.

"It's here". Faelira waited. She had no intention of wasting any more energy. She remained motionless until the wound in her chest had regenerated completely. The flesh slowly closed. When even the last sign of the perforation had disappeared, Faelira raised her gaze toward Xarath again. He was watching her.

"Catching your breath?" he asked ironically. Faelira looked him in the eyes. For a few seconds, she said nothing. Then she spoke.

"Can I ask you a question?" Xarath tilted his head slightly.

"Considering this will be our last conversation…" He slowly cracked his neck.

"Go ahead". His tone was almost bored. Faelira continued staring at him.

"Have you always been this empty?" Xarath did not answer.

"Was there ever anything inside you that you shared with other living beings?" she continued.

"Did you ever feel love? Not even hatred?" Xarath observed her for a few moments.

"That's three questions".

"Answer them".

"Why do you want to know?" Faelira lowered her gaze slightly.

"Because I'm curious. I want to know if there was ever anything inside you that could have made you similar to us". Xarath sighed.

"Yes". Faelira remained motionless.

"I've always been like this. From my very first breath". There was no sadness in his words. No anger. Simply emptiness.

"Do you know what my first action in this world was?" Faelira did not answer.

"Reducing my mother to dust". The woman's eyes hardened.

"All it took was touching her face with my tiny hand to reduce her to ash". Xarath lowered his gaze to his own hands.

"My father was devastated. I think that, for a while, he tried to convince himself that there was still something inside me. Something that made me like other living beings". He paused briefly.

"He tried to raise me". Xarath's expression remained impassive.

"In the end, I reduced him to dust as well". Faelira slowly clenched her fists. Xarath continued.

"All it takes is one touch for me to erase a life. A single touch, and every experience, every memory, everything that person built throughout their existence disappears". He raised his gaze.

"When you are capable of erasing a life so easily, you begin to understand just how fragile it is". He paused again.

"And when you understand how fragile it is, you begin to wonder what meaning it truly has". Faelira stared at him.

"That's bullshit". Xarath remained silent.

"You only say that to justify your atrocities", she continued.

"What happened to your parents may have been an accident. But afterward, you had the ability to choose". Her voice grew harsher.

"And you always chose evil". She took a step forward.

"Even when you killed my parents". Xarath looked at her.

"They had welcomed you. They had fed you. They had given you a family". Faelira gritted her teeth.

"They had given you their love". Xarath sighed.

"You have lived for centuries, and you still believe in good and evil?" His gaze grew colder.

"In some universal justice?"

"Of course I believe in it". Faelira's answer came without hesitation.

"Justice is a value shared by those with a pure heart". Xarath stared at her for a long time. Then he smiled faintly.

"Then explain this to me, sister". His tone was calm.

"Why was I able to kill our parents after they welcomed and fed me without suffering any punishment?" Faelira did not answer.

"Why, after centuries, am I still here?" Xarath slightly spread his arms.

"Why has universal justice never punished me?" The wind swept across the battlefield. Faelira remained motionless. Then she smiled. It was not a smile of joy. It was the smile of someone who had finally found her answer.

"Don't worry". Xarath furrowed his brow slightly. Faelira raised one hand.

"The day of your punishment is today". Her eyes turned icy.

"And I will be the one to pass judgment". Xarath became serious.

"What do you mean?" Faelira did not answer. Energy began to gather around her body. She needed only one strike. Just one. Faelira stared at her brother. She had seen his cruelty. She had seen his emptiness. She had seen the lives he had erased without the slightest remorse. And now, she would put an end to it all. She was ready to end the fight. To punish Xarath for all the atrocities he had committed. That day, justice would have a face. And that face would be Faelira's.