-----Sebastian POV------
The world tore itself apart around him. Colors bled into one another, twisting into streaks of light that bent and folded like ribbons in a storm. The ground vanished, the sky collapsed, and Sebastian felt himself flung through a tunnel that had no walls, only endless currents of shimmering fragments flashing past too quickly to grasp.
Then She appeared before him.
Her form was blurred, yet he could see the outline of white garments flowing like light itself, a halo faintly glowing above her head, and wings of purest white stretching outward in quiet majesty.
It was quick, strange, and overwhelming. Yet in that moment, she leaned close, her eyes locking with his. A smile touched her lips, warm and gentle, and her hands cupped his face with a tenderness that flooded him.
"Blessed child," she whispered.
The words echoed through him, and then the vision collapsed. Darkness swallowed everything.
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"Urgh…"
My head hurts.
I opened my eyes, but all I saw was darkness. Empty, heavy darkness. I blinked a few times, just to make sure my eyes still worked. Yeah… they worked. It was just really dark here.
Who was that women?
I pushed myself up from the cold floor. The stone felt rough under my hands, nothing like the soft paper I was standing on before… before Master...
The memories came back all at once. My chest got tight, my eyes burned, and my nose started to run.
"Snif…"
I crouched down, hugging my legs. Tears rolled down my face, soaking into my pants.
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It was so dark and I could not see where I was so I pressed myself against the wall and started walking.
My hand slid along the stone. At first it was rough, but then it changed to smooth with strange bumps and grooves.
"This… this has to be it."
I spun the mana in my core and lit a small fire in my palm. The glow spread across the wall, and my eyes widened.
Huge drawings covered the stone, wings stretched wide, scales carved in detail. The firelight made them look alive, like they were watching me.
Dragons
I remembered these.
It seems I am inside the Dragon's Lair, deep in the Red Dragon Mountains.
I felt a presence behind me and an ominous feeling filled my chest.
Slowly, I turned my head toward the darkness. My instinct told me to stay still, so I just stared while my heart pounded like a drum.
Growl.
The sound rolled out of the shadows, deep and heavy. It made my whole body shake.
I panicked and snuffed out the fire spell in my hand. The light vanished, and the cave swallowed me in black.
Thud.
The ground shook.
Thud.
Sweat slid down my face, cold and sticky.
Thud.
Each step was closer. My chest tightened.
Huff…
A hot gust of air blasted against me, carrying a rotten smell that made me gag. My eyes adjusted slowly, and then I saw an outline, massive and terrifying, standing just a few steps away.
Four legs pressed into the stone. Wings stretched wider than the cavern itself. Its body was covered in jagged scales, teeth sharp like knives, and eyes that glowed in the dark, staring straight into me.
Just like the murals.
My stomach twisting.
A dragon.
ROOOOOOOOOOOOAR!
The roar shook the cavern, rattling the walls.
My ears rang, my chest felt like it was going to burst.
"Eek!" I squealed, stumbling back slipping on the stone, falling and scraping my elbow.
The dragon's shape loomed over me, wings twitching, claws scraping against the floor.
I quickly cast an ice wall between me and the creature and sprinted away.
The dragon smashed through the wall with its head, like a whip cracking stone, and charged after me.
I darted around the bends of the cave, trying to break its line of sight, but it didn't stop. Every sharp turn, it threw its massive body against the walls, breaking stone and shaking the cavern apart.
ROOOOAR!
The dragon was gaining speed, almost on me. My chest burned as I ran, legs pumping, panic screaming in my head.
I stumbled, caught myself, and forced my legs to keep moving.
Don't stop. Don't stop.
Every muscle screamed, every nerve begged me to collapse, but terror drove me forward. The world narrowed to the rhythm of my feet, the pounding of my pulse, and the deafening certainty that if I faltered, the dragon's jaws would close around me.
I spotted a narrow corridor and dove into it. The dragon's body was too big to follow but it forced Its head itself inside, neck stretching with jaws snapping wildly. Each bite slammed into the stone, teeth flashing inches from me.
"Ahh!"
I panicked and threw a fireball at its face. The spell hit, exploding in smoke.
The cavern filled with black haze. I coughed hard, choking, my throat burning. My eyes watered, but the dragon didn't back away.
It got angrier.
It opened its large mouth and mana swirled in it, bright light building at the center. My heart jumped.
Run!
Adrenaline surged through me. I sprinted down the corridor, lungs screaming, legs barely keeping up.
The dragon unleashed its fire breath. Heat roared behind me, flames chasing me down. I dove out of the corridor, twisting my body to the side just in time. The blast scorched past, licking my arm.
Pain shot through me. My skin burned, flesh throbbing, the smell of charred cloth filling my nose.
"Ghh—!" I bit my lip hard, forcing myself to cast a healing spell. Light wrapped around the wound, easing the pain.
Exhausted, I slid down against the cavern wall heavily panting sitting for a brief moment.
ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAR
The roar shook the cavern, longer and angrier than before. I shot straight up, eyes snapping toward the corridor entrance.
The ground trembled as the dragon smashed against the stone, tearing the corridor apart, forcing its massive body through. Each strike sent cracks racing across the walls. It was only a matter of time before it reached me.
My chest tightened. Fear and desperation filled me.
I spun around, searching for a way out. Dead ends. Nothing but stone.
ROOOOOOOAR!
The sound of crushing rock grew louder, closer. My heart pounded.
What do I do? What do I do?!
The cavern shook again. Stones rained down from above, crashing into the floor. I stumbled, barely dodging the falling rubble.
Then I saw a faint glimmer of light above.
Hope.
I dashed to the wall and began to climb. My fingers dug into cracks, nails scraping, skin tearing as I pulled myself upward. My legs pushed hard, muscles burning, every movement desperate.
Halfway up, the dragon burst through the corridor.
ROOOOOAR!
I didn't dare look down. My body screamed at me not to stop, adrenaline surged through me and my arms and legs moved faster, clawing at the stone, dragging me higher.
The dragon spotted me and began to climb after. Its huge body scraped against the walls, smashing stone apart as it forced itself upward. The cavern shook, cracks spreading, chunks of rock raining down.
A massive boulder broke loose above. My head snapped toward a ledge beside me, and instinct took over.
I hurled myself sideways, fingers clawing into the jagged stone. The momentum swung my body hard, legs dangling over the abyss, shoulders wrenching as the weight of the fall tried to tear me loose.
The boulder crashed below, slamming into the dragon's flank with a deafening crack. The beast snarled, its climb slowed as shards of stone scattered across its scales. Dust and fragments rained down, stinging my face, but I forced my arms to pull, dragging myself towards the light.
ROOOOOOAR!
Furious, the dragon's jaws opened wide, glowing orange light building inside. Heat rolled over me, burning my skin even before the attack came.
I looked back and forth, the cave's exit was right there, just a meter away.
I am so close!
The glow behind me flared brighter.
I had no time.
The fire breath exploded forward.
I cast a shield, throwing everything I had into it. The beam slammed into me, the force launching me off the cave and into the air. Heat pressed against my shield while it pushed my body upward, the weight of the blast crushing me down while the fire shoved me up.
My lungs screamed, my vision blurred slowly losing consciousness.
But I gritted my teeth. I couldn't let the shield break.
I shut my eyes, focused everything on the flow of mana, and let out a raw, desperate scream.
And then silence.
The flames stopped. The crushing weight lifted.
Relief washed over me and I opened my eyes.
And I saw the most wonderful view I had ever seen.
I was high in the air, higher than the mountains beside me. They looked so small now, like piles of snow scattered across the land. In the horizon, those white peaks stretched endlessly, dividing the world into two colors, green forests below and white ridges above. And far beyond, at the very edge of the sight, a shining blue plain spread across the horizon.
So that's the ocean…
For a heartbeat, I forgot everything...
It is beautiful.
Then the feeling of my organs shifting, pressing into the back of my body brought me back to reality.
The wind roared in my ears, loud and wild, tearing at my clothes and hair. The world tilted, spinning around me in flashes of white peaks, green forests, and endless blue.
I was falling.
The ground was far below, but it was coming closer at every second.
My mind screamed at me to do something.
Anything!
Then something clicked inside me.
I circulated the mana inside me, spinning it faster and faster until my whole body shook. With the last of my strength, I pulled every drop of mana I had into one spell.
It was only a simple wind spell, but this time I reached out for more.
I grabbed at the air itself, pulling in every bit of ambient mana I could feel, stuffing it into my core until it burned.
The ground was rushing closer.
My heart pounded.
Now!
I pushed the spell out with everything I had.
A massive force exploded beneath me, crushing into the earth. The shockwave rattled the mountains, blasting dust and stone into the sky.
The world tilted. My vision blurred.
And then—blackness.
-----Narrator-----
The blast had carved itself into the mountain. Stone cracked and splintered, smoke curling upward in jagged shapes.
Around Sebastian, the ground still trembled from the force of his fall, loose rocks tumbling down the slope in sharp clatters.
He lay in the center of it, his throat burned, his ribs ached, and the harder he tried to breathe, the less it filled his lungs.
Far from the crash site, a lone figure moved along the edges of the mountain. His steps were heavy with his boots crunching against the frozen stone. The tremor from the explosion rolled beneath his feet, shaking loose snow and pebbles, and the sharp crack of air splitting apart pulled his head towards the horizon.
He stopped, listening. Smoke curled upward in the distance, twisting against the pale sky. The mountain groaned under the weight of the blast.
Even with the cold biting at him and the mountain trembling, he did not flinch.
Instead, he grinned.
He leaned forward, gripping the straps of his gear, and broke into a sprint, eager to see what had fallen from the sky.
---
Sebastian's eyes fluttered open while his body was stiff against the frozen stone.
He weakly gasped for the thin air surrounding him, each breath scraping his throat while trying to understand where he was.
Then a deep crack sound rolling from above him.
Sebastian forced his eyes upward and saw snow shifting and stone breaking loose at the peak. At first it was only powder sliding down but it grew as more snow and rock joined, gathering speed until it swelled into a massive wave that would swallow everything below.
His heart jumped.
I have to get out of here.
He tried to crawl, dragging his hands forward, but the cold bit into him, his palms stuck to the frozen rock, skin clinging tight, and when he pulled free it tore away, leaving raw patches that burned.
His fingers trembled and his arms refused to obey.
Move… come on, MOVE!
Panic rising sharp in his chest as the avalanche roared closer.
His thoughts spiraled.
Magic. I'll use magic!
He tried to gather mana in his core, spinning it the way he always but nothing came.
He had poured everything into that last desperate spell, and now there was nothing left.
"!!!"
The mountain roared, reminding him that there was no time left.
No… no, no, no! I have to move! Please, body, MOVE!
He clawed at the ground, frantic, trying to drag himself away. His thoughts screamed louder than his voice.
His arms shook, his legs refused, and he collapsed back against the stone.
"Damn it!" He screamed furious. "Why won't you move-"
"HAHAHA!"
The sound tore through the chaos, louder than the avalanche, echoing across the peaks. Sebastian startled by the sheer absurdity of laughter in the face of death, stopped mid-breath, his mouth hanging open, and tilted his head toward the source of the voice.
Through the haze of snow and smoke, a figure came into view, far off across a cliff that separated him from the boy.
He shifted his weight, muscles tightening beneath his patched winter gear, and crouched low as if the ground itself were a springboard. Then he leapt.
The man's body arced high, soaring over the broken ground in an inhuman jump that covered the cliff in a single bound while passing over Sebastian.
The man struck the ground with a force that shook the stone beneath them, standing squarely between Sebastian and the avalanche.
As the dust settled, the man's frame was towering, broad shoulders wrapped in patched winter gear worn from years of survival. White hair whipped in the icy wind, and a scar cut across his left eye.
His chest rose, his shoulders squared, and his voice thundered forward with confidence.
"Stand fast, little warrior! The mountain may roar, but I do not bow!"
Sebastian snapped back to reality, his voice cracking through the roar of the avalanche.
"H-Help me move—I can't!"
The towering man only tilted his head, grin stretching wide across his face. He then chuckled before shouting with the confidence of a crusader.
"Fear not, little one! For I am the wall that stands before you!"
He then turned to face the avalanche, shifting his stance making his boots grind into the stone.
His shoulders rolled back, muscles tightening, his massive frame lowering into the coiled posture of a lion ready to strike.
Sebastian's heart pounded as he watched.
The avalanche was closing upon them.
It's too close… it's too big…!
The man only grinned wider, the thrill of life burning in his expression.
The avalanche thundered forward, and Sebastian locked his eyes on the giant before him.
The man's fist drew back, veins bulging, his broad back outlined against the chaos. Then, with a roar that shook the peaks, he released his punch.
"HMMPH!"
The blow cracked the air like thunder. A shockwave erupted, colliding with the avalanche in a clash of raw force. For a moment, the wave of snow pressed forward against the man's strike but then the tide broke. The avalanche was forced back lifting into the air, dissolving into lazy snow that drifted harmlessly down.
The man snorted, satisfied, and threw his head back in laughter.
"HAHAHA! Did you see that? The mountain itself bends before my fist!"
Sebastian lay stunned, his mind scrambling to process what had just happened.
He had witnessed something so absurd.
The man turned with his grin still wide.
"Tell me, boy—your name."
Words catching in his throat.
"Se-Sebastian..."
The man flexed his bicep, pointing to his face with his thumb.
"Etch this name in your soul boy! For you stand before Reinhardt!"