The patriarch of the Fire Dragons was lean, but his every movement exuded strength. He moved with such grace that his steps produced no sound on the gold-veined marble floor and seemed to glide rather than walk. "I assume Ruler Menadion has removed the Wight's imprint since Kalla is not with you, Lith. Please, allow the use of the Eyes to all those present." Erghak said. "This is your research team? Isn't it small?" Lith counted 34 Dragons sitting around the table. It wasn't a small number, but it was negligible compared to the size of the Brood. "True, but there are only so many geniuses in my clan and even fewer that I trust with such a powerful artifact." The patriarch nodded in agreement. "I can't risk drama queens wasting our limited time arguing or hogging the Eyes for their pet projects. "Those I've assembled here possess the mad spark of genius but also enough common sense not to let the opportunity to use the Eyes and Ears together slip from their fingers." "That's it?" Solus was flabbergasted. "I thought you were about to say they know the importance of teamwork or of focusing on the greater good." The 34 convened Wyrms exchanged a surprised look before pointing fingers at her and bursting into roaring laughter that made the golden walls of the room tremble. "Teamwork!" A woman with strawberry-blonde hair said. "She really said that!" "The greater good!" A black-haired man slapped his own leg while laughing hysterically. "Father of All Dragons, how old are you? Five?" "Enough offending our guest!" Erghak stomped the ground, bringing the hilarity to a halt. "I'm sorry for their behavior, Solus, but you did sound naïve. Have you ever met a genius who cared about any of that?" Manohar the First's name came to Solus' mind, but he was one of the most selfish and entitled people she had ever met. Then she moved on to other geniuses like Dawn, Baba Yaga, and Silverwing, yet none of them fitted the bill. "Grandmother?" She turned to Menadion, who shook her head. "I'm sorry, dear. I never worked in a team unless I was paid for it, nor did I help Valeron the First to unite the Griffon Kingdom. I only cared for myself and my family. The greater good was placed right after world peace and candy rainbows in my list of priorities." Solus knew that once they shared their knowledge, Magi and Rulers of the Flames had little care for what the rest of Mogar would do with those teachings. It was the reason the Royals had crowned Lith as the Supreme Magus. He was the first mage to share a ground-breaking discovery and ensure its applications would help people instead of making their lives harder. "But, what about Valtak?" Solus asked. "Only the wisest among us becomes the Father of Fire, not the most brilliant." Erghak replied. "And the Champion of Fire?" "Such a title awards a Fire Dragon's innate battle talent and martial prowess." The patriarch shook his head. "It hardly requires any high moral standard." 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮 'Suddenly me being a piece of shit during my first life makes a lot of sense.' Solus inwardly sighed. "I've already granted you all access to the Eyes." Lith handed the artifact to Erghak. "Remember your oath and that I can revoke your clearance as easily as I've given it to you, even if I can't find the Eyes." "Don't worry." The patriarch could hardly contain the Dragon greed as he held the artifact in his palm. "We won't betray Kalla's trust. You have my word." "And mine." The rest of the Wyrms swore one after another with their patriarch as a witness and Lith recording everything, just to be safe. "Ruler Menadion, my name is Bazhura. It's an honor to meet you." A handsome chestnut-haired man with the body of a Greek good offered her his hand. "Are you going to teach us the secrets of your masterpieces?" "The honor is all yours and no." She replied. "Then I've better things to do than waste time with niceties. Bye." He nodded and Warped away, quickly followed by 33 more Wyrms. "Geniuses." Erghak exhaled sharply. "Now, about your sister's armor…" A snap of his fingers brought the group to a smaller cave. A considerable pile of gold rested at its center, and the body of a young Dragon was curled up on its top. The ruby-red scales shone under the light of the torches like precious gemstones, and Lith would have thought the Wyrm was just sleeping if not for its many wounds. Some scales were cracked, others broken, but it was nothing that a good Healer couldn't fix in a few minutes. The gaping wound under the throat, where the scales of a youngling were thin, however, was a different story. Something strong, small, and lucky had struck one of the main arteries. The long neck of a Dragon forced their hearts to pump hard to send the blood to their heads. It had also caused Ishka to bleed out in less than a minute. Two adult Wyrms formed a circle around the gold pile, each with their head close to the tail of the other. No one could approach the corpse unnoticed. No one could hurt Rhana's and Hoshtak's Hatchling again. The couple formed what Dragons called the Mourning Crown, an array fueled by their mana and life forces that prevented a corpse from rotting. "Rhana. Hoshtak." Erghak bowed to the late Ishak and then to his parents. Lith and the others followed suit not to offend their hosts. The funeral rites for the young Wyrm were long over, he just had to be brought to his final resting place. "Thank you for coming here, brother Verhen." Aside from Rhana's feminine voice and being smaller than Hoshtak, there was little difference between the two Wyrms. "I'm willing to give you my baby if you give me your word you'll treat him right." "I will." Lith rapped his chest above his heart. "I swear it on my blood." "One more thing." Rhana looked at Hoshtak, who shook his head, trying to stop her. "Please, can you see if Ishka's soul is still here? I never got the opportunity to say goodbye to him." "I can do better." Lith could hear the pain in Rhana's voice. "If your son is still here and willing to follow me, I can make him into one of my Demons." Rhana stared at her husband in a silent plea. Hoshtak allowed himself to hope one last time, but aside from clenching his fanged maw, he showed no emotion as he nodded. "Please." She begged. Lith shapeshifted into his Tiamat form and let his black chains fly far and wide. He called for Ishka, channeling the strength and the longing of his parents. The black chains scoured the mountain, then the Valley of Life, and then the entire Mogar. Nothing answered the call. Lith reverted to his human form and shook his head. "Can you try again?" Rhana's voice cracked, stubbornly refusing to relinquish her hope. "Please, don't." Hoshtak's voice was as firm as it was cold. "Spare my wife from more pointless suffering. Our son is gone, and it's time we accept it."