Chapter 3890: Deep Scars (Part 1)

The Empowered Abominations and the humans who had helped Raum in exchange for power or money seemed to have simply disappeared. No traces of their presence remained except for small piles of ashes that the cleaning arrays had already thrown into the trash cans.

"Ladies, gentlemen, and kids, please, don’t worry." Leegaain said while giving them a deep bow. "This nightmare is over, but it’s up to you to put an end to your nightmare. Have a nice day."

Before the prisoners could understand the meaning of his words or ask him a question, Leegaain clapped his hands and Warped everyone to the capital of the Gorgon Empire.

There, the Magic Empress stood ready to welcome the least fortunate among her subjects and give them one more chance to turn their life around. Milea would give them a place to stay until they recovered, offer them to learn a trade, and heal any ailment that afflicted them.

Whether Raum’s victims returned to the streets or found a permanent home, however, depended solely on their choice.

***

"Is everything alright? Did you get hurt?" Leegaain asked as he appeared beside Aryk and Lilax.

"No." The young man replied. "Everything went according to your plan, Owl. I mean, Leegaain. I mean, your Dragonship. I meant no disrespect, Your Draconic Excellence."

Aryk finally snapped out of his shock enough to notice the black scales covering the Guardian’s body and raised his hands in apology, wondering if he had to raise them higher in worship.

"Are you really a Dragon?" Lilax swallowed hard, trembling from head to toe.

She and Aryk had spectated at the fight from a safe distance, but that had made it even more impressive.

The two youths had witnessed the might of the spells in their full brilliance, heard the deafening boom of the strikes, and watched the shockwaves generated by the blows open deep fissures in the ground that spanned for as far as their eyes could see.

"Not just a Dragon, Lilax." Leegaain replied. "As I told you back when I disguised myself as a child, I’m the Father of All Dragons. I am a Guardian."

"Is that another word for god?" Color drained from her face, and if not for the spell keeping her floating in mid-air, Lilax’s knees would have given out. "Only a god can have so much power."

"Again, there are no gods on Mogar, children." Leegaain dismissed the title with a sweep of the hand. "Forget about the honorifics. After what we have gone through together, you have earned the right to call me by my name. Okay?"

The two youths exchanged a shocked look before replying: "Okay."

"How do you feel, Zoreth?" The Guardian approached his daughter, feeling that something was wrong with her.

The Shadow Dragon replied with jumbled words, her mouth frothing with black blood and saliva.

"Did you give her the potion as I instructed?" Leegaain used his breathing technique to assess Zoreth’s condition, and what he found left him deeply disturbed.

"Of course, my god... I mean, Leegaain." Aryk nodded. "We told her to drink it all and avoided touching her directly. Zoreth sat on this weird chair, and we carried her away."

"I believe you, and that’s the problem." The Guardian sighed. "My daughter has consumed a potion I concocted to be the perfect nourishment for someone like her. It should have healed any wound Raum inflicted on her and restored her strength.

"Yet her body and life force are still a mess. She’s going to need all the help she can get, and not only to overcome the trauma of her kidnapping."

"Can’t you help her?" Lilax asked. "You are a go- I mean, a Guardian, and she’s your daughter."

"I wish it were that simple." Leegaain sighed. "Firsts things first."

He pointed his fingers in the direction of Raum’s hidden base, and a loud rumble accompanied the collapse of the structure. A series of controlled explosions destroyed every machine the Wonderer had built while Leegaain stored the historical artifacts inside his pocket dimension.

A blast of Origin Flames purged the land from the arrays, setting the world energy free to circulate again. In time, all traces of Raum’s work would disappear, and the balance would be naturally restored.

The mystical fire also levelled the ground, smoothing rocks and debris in a uniform, unbroken valley.

"What was in the potions we drank?" Aryk asked. "I’ve never felt so powerful and confident in my whole life."

"My best body-enhancing potions." Leegaain replied while opening a Warp Steps to the Blood Desert. "Without them, Raum’s aura would have been enough to freeze you in fear."

’And the clash between our auras would have been enough to kill you.’ He inwardly added, keeping that part to himself, not to pointlessly scare the youths.

"I see- Wow!" Aryk had never used a Warp Steps, and his first experience didn’t shock him only because his mind was still reeling from the fight between the Guardian and the Eldritch.

"Did we die and go to heaven?" Lilax said. "This place is too beautiful to be on Mogar."

Suddenly, they weren’t floating in the sky anymore, but standing on solid ground. The room they had walked into was filled with light and high-end furniture that dwarfed Raum’s collection like the sun does a candle.

A stunning woman of rare beauty sat behind a black mahogany desk. Dozens of documents flew around her, and hundreds more formed tall piles on her desk. The moment her emerald eyes met the youths’, they felt as though their souls were being weighed and found adequate.

"I’ll take that as a compliment, young lady." Salaark gave Lilax a polite nod as a thank you and turned to Leegaain. "What happened, old lizard? I know you won your fight, but you look like someone who has suffered a harsh defeat."

"I’m afraid there’s something wrong with Zoreth, young sparrow." Leegaain replied. "Can you please examine her with your Rebirth Magic?"

"Of course." She rose from her chair, placing the thumb of her right hand upon the Shadow Dragon’s forehead and the palm of her left hand over Zoreth’s heart.

Invigoration told Salaark everything she needed, but she also used her Rebirth Magic diagnostic spell, Riptide, to leave no stone unturned.

"I’m sorry, old lizard." Salaark said after examining Zoreth’s life force top to bottom. "Even with your potion coursing through your daughter’s body and the world energy of my palace, she shows no sign of recovery."

"That’s why I brought her here." Leegaain nodded. "Let me show you what I’ve learned about Raum’s research."

A quick mind link shared all the relevant information contained in the Wonderer’s journals.

"I see." Salaark nodded. "It’s not my help you seek. I’ll bring you to Lith in a minute. Before that, who are these children and what do you have in mind for them?"

She pointed at Aryk and Lilax, who had spent their time dabbing Zoreth’s drool and shifting their weight from one foot to the other. They were too afraid of disturbing the Guardians to make a peep.

"I apologize for my rudeness, children." Leegaain said. "Aryk, Lilax, this is Salaark, the Overlord and Guardian of the Blood Desert. Salaark, these brave youths are Aryk and Lilax of Dekari. We were captured together, and they helped me rescue Zoreth.

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