Chapter 98 - Fusion

"And if fusion between two Scion Lords was totally uncharted territory and was potentially dangerous, then wouldn't this fusion be much more dangerous?" Aleyria said, her voice quivering slightly. 

She had finally fallen in love with Alexander, completely and without reservation, and then things had to happen one after another that could potentially take him away from her. She may be a strong woman, the strongest, even, but when her beloved had to face life-threatening danger which she could do absolutely nothing to help, she felt very, very weak. Much weaker than weak. Helpless. 

"Potentially much more dangerous." Alexander corrected. "The thing with uncharted territory is, it might be dangerous, but it might also be the easiest and smoothest fusion ever."

"I do not think so. You heard what Caerose said about the Almighty never meaning to allow beings to have powers from three different Gods. And now you're about to get all four! Even if the fusion does not kill you, the resulting curse will definitely kill you. Alexander, please listen to me. You CANNOT go through with this fusion! You cannot!" Aleyria pleaded desperately.

"Ehm. I have to admit, the lady has a point. Your body couldn't deal with the power of three Gods. But now that you've absorbed my Blood Essence, you should be able to resist it better, IF you do not unleash more of that power. However, if you were to somehow acquire the power of four Gods, I do not believe that your body can deal with powers of such magnitude. You will simply melt, like a clay pot melting due to the heat of the molten lava it was trying to contain. And that is IF the Power of Zegaro does not kill you first.' Blackfire said seriously. 

Alexander remained silent as he pondered upon the words of his beloved and his very knowledgeable dragon retainer. 

"Let's trace this back from the beginning." Alexander finally said. 

"I had the power of Zegaro and Perses from the very beginning. But only the Power of Perses manifested itself. It combined with the Power of Magius through the Crystal Sword to manifest the power of a Scion Lord. That was fine, right?"

Aleyria and Blackfire nodded, not really knowing why Alexander was doing that.

"The problem only arose when I included the Power of Zegaro into the mix. The resulting power became hostile to my body. However, Flamewing has the Power of Paladinos! That power would neutralize the hostility of the Power of Zegaro within me!" Alexander pronounced.

"You're forgetting that Dragostan, too, had the Power of Paladinos. But he still said he was cursed and that he was dying." Aleyria reminded him gently.

"The Power of Zegaro is the power of death." Blackfire said. "No living being can wield that power. If you want to use his power, you will have to do so as an undead. The moment Dragostan accepted the Blessings of Zegaro, he began to die. And when he finally manifested the Power of Zegaro, he died. That was why Paladinos slew him without a word. There was no turning back.

Alexander, it is already an anomaly that you can use the Power of Zegaro as a living being. If I only heard of this without seeing you this way, I would have immediately assumed that you're an undead. It is impossible for a living being to use the Power of Zegaro. And as it is, I believe that the more you unleash that power, the faster you will die. The Power of Zegaro blooms in death. There is no way around it, I am afraid.

When you unleashed the Power of the three Gods, the damage dealt to your body was probably due to the Power of Zegaro as much as it was due to the overwhelming power."

"Wait a minute…" Alexander said excitedly. "The Power of Zegaro blooms in death?"

"Yes. The death of a living being involves the dissipation of its life energy and the creation of death energy. The Power of Zegaro manipulates that death energy." Blackfire explained.

Alexander glanced at Aleyria, who was looking absolutely thunderstruck. After a moment, she turned to Alexander and whispered, "Is it… him?"

Alexander reached out to her and put his arms around her. "Maybe." He said softly. 

"Him?" Blackfire asked in confusion. However, enlightenment quickly dawned on him. "The previous owner of the body… That is why the Power of Zegaro can manifest within you. It is manifested through the death energy of the soul which died within that body."

"Could it be that I was injured purely because of the overwhelming power of the three Gods, and not because of the Power of Zegaro?" Alexander asked, feeling slightly excited. 

"It is possible…" Blackfire said slowly. "And if that's the case, now that you've absorbed my Blood Essence, you should be able to resist that power easily."

"Which reminds me, what exactly is this Blood Essence that you've given me?" Alexander asked curiously, even as he was gently stroking Aleyria's hair. The mention of King Aloxandros had unnerved her a little.

"The Blood Essence will slowly sink into your marrows and cause them to produce dragon blood as well as human blood from now on. And once that process is complete, you're ready for the final step of the fusion." Blackfire's face grew slightly morose as he spoke to this point.

"The final step of the fusion. Which is…?" Alexander asked.

"Which is when the human soul devours the dragon soul and splits into two. One will control the dragon body, and the other will control the human body." 

However, before Alexander could respond… BOOM! BOOM! Loud impact sounds could be heard from outside the house.

"They're here." Blackfire said solemnly.

"Halt! Wh-who are you?" Shira's voice could be heard from outside. 

"HEY! HEY! Umph…" 

The door slammed open and a beautiful woman dressed in white robes walked in, followed by a no-less beautiful middle aged woman in red. 

"Flamewing!" Alexander smiled widely and quickly made his way to her with Aleyria in tow. "I'm glad you're okay now."

Flamewing smiled shyly. Now that she was face to face with Alexander, she didn't know what to say. Flamebright, however, had no such issues.

She stepped forward and held out her hand. "I believe I owe you a great debt of gratitude." She said with a smile. 

"Absolutely not. Flamewing has helped me many, many times. Helping her get back to her body is merely my way of paying her back." Alexander grasped her hand and said with a smile. 

Flamebright nodded. Debts are debts, she would definitely pay it back, but it wasn't something that had to be discussed and decided upon now at their first meeting. 

Alexander glanced outside instinctively to check on the three girls who were apparently standing guard outside.

"Don't worry, they're fine. I merely brushed them aside." Flamebright chuckled. 

"We're fine, Your Majesty!" Shira called out.

Alexander nodded and closed the door with a little flick of his hand.

"And who is this beautiful woman that you're holding on so tightly?" Flamebright asked well… brightly. 

"Flamebright, this is Aleyria, my beloved." Alexander said with a smile. 

"Hello Aleyria, what a beautiful name." Flamebright said elegantly as she held out her hand to Aleyria.

"Hello, nice to meet you." Aleyria said awkwardly while shaking Flamebright's hand. 

Flamewing stepped forward and held out her hand to Aleyria too. "Hi Aleyria, it's really good to finally meet you in person! Especially after listening to Alexander whine and pine for you so much for the past few days!" She said brightly.

Aleyria gave her a wide smile and grasped her hand warmly. "Flamewing! It's really good to finally meet you too! I've always wondered how you look like. You're so beautiful!" 

"Thank you, not as beautiful as you though." Flamewing said with a smile. 

With that, the two immediately walked to the side of the room to continue their girl's talk. 

Alexander glanced at them and smiled wryly. Girls.

Flamebright glanced at Blackfire who had a troubled look on his face, and then looked at Alexander once more. 

"I assume Flamewing has told you then? That you are both currently in the process of fusion? And had gone quite far in the process?" Flamebright said to Alexander softly.

Alexander nodded heavily, his mood instantly falling. 

"Is there a way to stop that from happening?" Alexander asked.

"No. Sooner or later, the fusion would be complete. It is just a matter of time." Flamebright said quietly.  "Plus, even if there is a way, I do not think you should stop the process at all."

"Flamebright!" Blackfire said in mild horror. "She is your daughter!"

"I know she's my daughter, that is exactly why I think the fusion must be continued." Flamebright said gently. 

"Why?" Blackfire demanded.

"A fusion is merely that, a fusion." Flamebright said very simply. "Flamewing will not die or disappear. She will live on within him." Flamebright pointed at Alexander with a smile. 

"But you won't be able to talk to her, or see her…" Blackfire said urgently.

"Of course I will be able to see her. That big of a dragon can't simply disappear after a fusion. As for talking to her… I can do that too." Flamebright said. "Alexander, you need to understand one thing very clearly. A fusion is when two become one in the most intimate way possible, going beyond that of a marriage. Your souls will become one.. You will be in control, but Flamewing will be there as well."