Chapter 170 The Tears Of A Forgotten Sister

- POV Gaya -

I was standing there in the garden of our beautiful family manor, under the trees dancing with the wind and bathed in the sun. Yet I could feel neither the gentle breeze nor the warmth of its rays because my mind was elsewhere. A few minutes ago, my eyes had landed on a little boy who had appeared out of nowhere, standing near Shiro. The moment I saw him, my world collapsed without me being able to do anything.

I didn't see him well but that hair color, those eyes, that smell...I wasn't mistaken and I knew better than anyone that he belonged to my race. There was something different about him because that singular smell was altered by something stronger and out of the ordinary. However, this smell that I had not felt for years, had struck me in the heart and in the depth of my soul.

Without even understanding what was happening to me, I had fainted because of the shock, much too violent and unbearable. In my sleep, I saw again my friends, my family, falling one by one during this unjust and merciless War. My parents who had given their lives to protect me and allow me to have a future. All these emotions and pain that I thought were buried, had woken up like a tornado.

I had been trapped in a nightmare that I hadn't had since I met Freya and didn't want to fight anymore. Everything had played out in my mind as if I were living it all over again and it had all been so real that my very soul had been exhausted. The smell of blood, of burnt flesh, bodies as far as the eye could see, tears, suffering... like a stab in the heart, the scars of my past had reopened.

Everything had been so sudden, so powerful and uncontrollable that my body and mind had not been able to control the flood of such strong feelings. Hundreds of visions had played out before me, plunging me into a state of despair that I had not experienced in a long time. However, in my mental battle, a small, broken, pleading voice had risen in my dark world.

Shiro, my daughter, the little moon of the family, had pulled me out of this infernal loop with disconcerting ease. In spite of all my fears, my anxieties, my doubts, my regrets, and my pain, hearing her voice even in a very distant way had awakened me. I had felt trapped, unable to return by the only force of my will but my daughter, with her only presence, had given me the necessary strength.

I had opened my eyes to find myself surrounded by dozens of people in tears and my little Shiro also crying on my chest. So my first instinct was to hug her to reassure her and tell her to dry her little princess tears. I felt loved and even if Freya and I had to watch over the smile of our little moon, Shiro was protecting us as much as we were protecting her.

Then very quickly, the blurred memory of that other child had reappeared in my head once I had come to my senses and everything was a little clearer. Without thinking, I had put Shiro, whom I was holding in my arms, on the ground and rushed a little deeper into the garden. My body was still a little weak, my belly which was much bigger than when Freya left, weighed me down but I wanted to find him.

My senses were disturbed by my mind but I had done the best I could to follow that smell that seemed to disappear more and more. And then, suddenly, the trail had stopped under the white pavilion where we used to have dinner as a family and there he was. This little dragon that I had seen only briefly before I fainted, this little dragon who had my blood, this little dragon who was...my little brother.

I couldn't explain why or how I knew our connection but I trusted my dragon instincts and my sense of smell. So now I was a few feet away from the white stone structure and he was under the table with cookies in his hand. Neither of us said a word and we looked at each other but a lot of things and feelings were being transmitted.

*Dragons grow slower but...He...he's so small...*

As I slowly moved forward, I could see in more detail what he looked like this time. My little brother had almost no hair left, some of it had been torn out and the flaming crimson hair that is unique to earth dragons was nowhere to be seen. His swollen, burned and broken body was so small and thin that it looked as if it could break in half with a flick of the wrist.

He was missing his two beautiful horns that had been broken on purpose and as my eyes rested on the bits that remained on his forehead, my heart sank. The dragons' horns were what we were most proud of, not to mention the fact that they were full of nerves. Damaging them was painful, so I couldn't even imagine how he must have felt when they were broken.

*I...*

The more my eyes watched his body, the more I felt tears welling up in my eyes. I wasn't crying, but the sight of this fragile and wounded little dragon was unbearable. Every part of his body was scarred, every inch of his body bore the story of his hard past even though I didn't know it yet. The further I went, the more I felt my body trembling, my heart clenching and the rage rising inside me.

My little brother didn't speak, he just stared at me, but unlike me, he wasn't shaking anymore. His previously frightened face wore a childlike expression, full of curiosity and innocence. Remnants of cookies were on the corner of his lips and at that moment, all I wanted was to hug him. I didn't know how to do it or how he would react but I had to.

No one had joined us yet for some unknown reason, but at that moment, I only had eyes for him. I could feel my blood boiling in my veins, my heart pounding, and an overwhelming love. However, I felt all this but we were strangers to each other and neither of us seemed to know how to act although we knew our bond was precious.

"I...my name is Gaya. What is your name ?"

I was now right in front of the table where my little brother was hiding but I couldn't touch him because we were still a few meters apart. As I gently crouched down to his level, smiling so as not to frighten him, I introduced myself in a soft and tender voice. He looked like a small animal curled up under the table and his fragility was all the more obvious.

I waited there, neither too far nor too close for him to answer me but he still said nothing, his face closed and questioning. His wings were folded shyly behind his back and his empty amber eyes, although different from mine, did not let me out of his sight. The seconds passed but I was still waiting with a smile, hoping that he would finally speak to me.

"I..."

"cough cough"

As I was about to speak, my little brother started coughing and moaning as blood poured from his mouth. At that moment, my heart missed a beat as I saw what was in his half-opened mouth, understanding instantly why he couldn't speak. His tongue had been roughly cut off by what appeared to be an unsharpened blade.

The young boy in front of me had not only experienced atrocious things of rare violence, but he had also been deprived of his right to express himself. To Hell with the meters that separated us, to Hell with the tremors in my body...this was the last straw. I couldn't stand there and wait for him to make the first move, I just couldn't wait any longer.

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- POV General -

Ignoring all the precautions she had taken so far, the dragoness rushed at the young hybrid, driven by her instinct. Seeing once again the wounds he bore at such a young age, the Empress' wife was driven to act with her heart. She held her arms out to him trembling, her face sad in a scene that seemed almost in slow motion. However, the most incredible thing was not this sudden urge that the Queen had to protect him but something else.

The most incredible thing was that the young boy was also moving towards Gaya, discovering a new feeling and driven by a new energy. He had slowly pulled himself out from under the table and was also reaching out with his arms, making sounds without being able to speak. The young dragon was a wild child, abused, tortured, wounded and dying but deep inside his instincts were pushing him towards his big sister.

After a moment that seemed to last forever, for the first time, Gaya's arms closed around his fragile little body. She fell to her knees once more and as the sun shone brightly in the sky, she finally held her little brother. Unable to hold back the flood of emotions that ran through her, the Queen's face shone in the sun, tears glistening like diamonds, beading down her cheeks.

"I...I'm here...I'm here now...shhh"

Were the only words the dragoness could utter, as she enjoyed every second. His skin was cold but his sister's warmth warmed him, he had scars on his body but his sister's love was enough to soothe them. He had only known beatings and pain, but his sister's tenderness made him forget everything. He had always been tortured, but at this moment...he felt protected.

"Mmmh.."

Under the sky of Elysium, where a moving scene was taking place, the little boy nodded and finally closed his eyes. His little arms and hands rose with difficulty but finally closed around the dragoness. At that moment, the Queen's big crimson wings appeared on her back, tearing her dress and exposing her back to the sun.

Those two majestic wings opened wide, pointing to the sky of the Empire, imposing, magnificent and strong. Like a shield protecting them from all the dangers of the world, they closed on the two dragons who hugged each other. Little by little, the sunlight was obscured by these wings, plunging the brother and sister into total darkness.

Yet this darkness was reassuring, warm and protective, cutting the two beings off from the world for a short time. This small space was only for them and the Queen holding her little brother in her arms, let herself go with her emotions. Tears flowed down her face like a river and could not stop as powerful feelings mixed.

"I'm sorry...so...sorry...sorry...I'll protect you...I..."

Gaya couldn't help but apologize because, despite the darkness, she could feel that her little brother's body was not well. She could feel his bones, his damaged skin, the smell of blood that never left him, his heart beating weakly and his limbs tired. The Queen was crying her eyes out, hidden in plain sight, and little by little the young hybrid was also letting go, carried by the same feelings.

Both of them were crying together and while the dragoness' tears were crystal clear, her brother's tears had a much darker and unnatural hue. Nothing existed around them anymore and only each other's bodies seemed to be their pillars. Although they were strangers, they were family and just as she had sworn to protect her wife and daughter, the Queen swore to protect this little being who had already suffered far too much.

The little hybrid dragon had been alone in the world since birth, growing up in a place where survival was as much a blessing as a curse. He had been through so much, alone, far from a family, from the love and protection of a home. Today, she wanted to give him everything and know what had happened to him because once again, fate had been unexpected.

His little brother was crying without understanding why, all these feelings frightening him somewhat. He was in fact invaded by what was in fact relief, the relief of feeling loved and protected. As for Gaya, she was crying with sadness, joy but also with anger against those who had inflicted these 10 years of torture on such an innocent being. So many questions crossed her mind and little by little, the Queen felt her strength returning.

What was her little brother doing there ? Why did she only learn of his existence now ? Where had he been ? How had he survived ? Why was he in such a state ? The dragoness didn't know the details, nor his story, but she was determined to find out. She was not fooled and also knew that his health was a concern and that he needed to receive care quickly if he did not want to die.

Suddenly, while she was holding him and they were still crying, the mark on his back lit up, proving that Sage was using her locator magic. Gaya knew full well that whatever that mark was producing, whoever was on the other end was responsible. Taking a deep breath, in the darkness produced by her wings, the dragoness finally opened her eyes.

Her face could not be seen, no one could see that her tears were still flowing while only two amber eyes shone intensely. Holding her little brother a little tighter, as his weak body trembled, she stroked what was left of his hair, whispering the only words that came to her. At that moment, her eyes were glittering with a dangerous gleam, a gleam that had not appeared in her eyes since the annihilation of her people.

"I will protect you...we will all protect you. It's okay. We will show them..."

"...*sniff*...*sniff*..."

"We will show them all..."

Gaya was determined to figure out what was going on and who was behind it. The sweet, gentle, loving, motherly dragoness was still present, but for the first time in a decade, the Queen's true warrior flame was igniting. The same fire that Freya had managed to rekindle was burning more and more intensely in her soul, heart and mind.

To protect her little brother, so that he would never again have to go through what he had gone through...the Mother of Dragons would be reborn. Stronger than ever, more ferocious, driven by a destructive maternal instinct, accompanied by her powerful wife...the Queen of the Elysium Empire was determined to save him.

[N/A: Next chapter back to Freya]

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FULL STATUS

Names : Freya / Lucifer Nightshade

Age : 0 years old / Mentally : 25 years old

Sex : Female

Course: Ice Demon Wolf of Chaos - Adult

Race : Imperial Demon

Titles :

- Demon Goddess of Primordial Blood and Death (former - until all powers are regained) - 20%.

- Wrathful Lucifer (7th Sin) - Master of the unique Sins Demons (to unlock it please collect the other 6 - 3/6 - (locked)

- Dragon tamer

- Ruthless slayer

Level : 45/70

Exp needed for next level: 0 / 46 000

HP : 80 600 / 170 000 MP : 32 610 / 85 000. BLOOD : 100 / 100

Strength: 560

Defense : 560

Agility : 566

Endurance: 563

Speed : 562

Intelligence: 560

Charisma: 500 (imperial she-wolf)

Attribute points to allocate : 600

Married to : Gaya

Daughter : Shiro

Little sister : Kira (Greedy Fox)

Big sister : Kalaa Nightshade

Empire (menu)

Subordinates: 1239

Humans killed: 153

Souls: 2/3

Elements: Ice / Chaos (Freya) - Blood / Death (Lucifer)

Skills (all):

Attacks:

- Demon Claws (Lvl 5)

- Bite of hell (Lvl 6)

- Infernal ice spikes (Lvl 6)

- Fighting techniques (Lvl max)

- Mastery of the katana (lvl max)

- Demonic Empress aura (lvl 6)

Defense:

- Ice demon wall (Lvl 6)

- Demonic Cloak (lvl 5)

- Pain Resistance (lvl 5)

Attack/Defense:

- Domain of the Ice Empress "Frozen Wrath" (lvl 2) - (under condition)

- Death Gaze (lvl 1)

Others :

- Humanoid form

- Demonic form (linked to the title so incomplete) - 20%.

- Ice creation (Lvl 6)

- Storage of chaos (Lvl 4)

- Devouring Chaos (Lvl 5)

- Master of Souls (lvl 2)

- Lucifer's Threads of Blood (lvl 2)

- Healing Blood (lvl 2)

- Analysis

- Telepathy