Xenosaga Fan Fiction ❯ 30 Kisses ❯ Red Dragon ( Chapter 19 )
[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]
By: Niu Shiy-Ue 
#8 our own world
AU, character death
Non Anime: Xenosaga Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.19.2006 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.4K | Visits: 363 | Status: Work In Progress
#8 our own world
AU, character death
Non Anime: Xenosaga Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Romance | Type: Other | Uploaded On: 03.19.2006 | Pages: 1 | Words: 1.4K | Visits: 363 | Status: Work In Progress
Red scales stirred restlessly over gold. The dragon shifted in his sleep, ethereal images of bygone eras floated in his luminescent blue eyes. Idly one leg stretched, before being brought up short by the black metal shackle that was chained to the wall.
He dreamed of his youth, of freedom. One of the first creations, Eldest of the Mad God's children. No one would have dared to bind him then. He and his siblings were masters of the universe.
Rubedo, Firstborn, Heart's Blood. He was the essence of metal and heat, had played with the Sun himself and not gotten burned. He had been hailed as both God and Demon, but had never really considered himself either. Rubedo was never truly evil or capricious, but he always felt things in the extreme and acted on those wild emotions. How different he had been from his younger siblings!
That drew his thoughts to his Twin, Albedo, Eternal, the Phoenix. Created within seconds of each other, Albedo had been the other part of himself, the light of the flame to his heat, the ash that was left and the snow that extinguished the fire. Yet at the same time he had been different, quieter than Rubedo's exuberance, solitary while Rubedo sought out others. Rubedo remembered the last time he had seen his twin, ages and ages ago. He wondered how his brother had changed in his last burning. He wondered how many of those pyres he had missed, chained in the cave with only the light he gave off to illuminate the shadows.
He shifted again, disturbing his bed of treasure. The shine from the various coins, jewels and other items caught his eye. The gold was the same color as the hair of his sister, Citrine, the Lady, the Singer, the Lorelei. Now if any of them had been cruel, it had been her. He remembered her delight in drawing mortals to her waterways, drowning them and then carving their bones to make gruesome instruments to accompany her. Flutes and drums, harps and guitars strung with her own long hair, but they made the most beautiful music in the world. Citrine's blood had been colder than the icy streams she had dwelt in, but he still missed her. What he wouldn't give to hear her sing again?
Another yank on the metal chain sent the shadows dancing. That was Nigredo's dominion. Lastborn, Death's Steed, the Basilisk, his youngest brother had always felt most comfortable in the dark. He had always been ashamed of himself, preferring to hide away, even more solitary than Albedo had been. He had disappeared long before any of the others. Even before UDO had come.
Rubedo snarled then attacked the shackle again viciously. UDO had done this to him! UDO and humans, with their petty desires and petty fears! UDO, the demon, with his Song of the Nephilim, seducing the stupid mortals into following him while taking away their souls. It was UDO who had given them the knowledge to bind one of the Elder Children, UDO who had taught them the sigils of the Dead God, UDO who had given them the blood to write them!
UDO who had slaughtered an innocent dryad for her immortal blood. UDO who had murdered Sakura.
If a dragon could cry, he would have. Ultimately it was his fault. His fault for not being strong enough to protect his love. And so he stayed in the cave, bound by the blood of his lover, shackled for so long that not even he knew how much time had passed. All alone, except for the occasional human visitor.
He smirked at that thought. Humans never seemed to learn. They thought him harmless, chained as he was in this lightless cavern. They came to him, demanding immortality, power, wealth. Shouting their petty desires, never realizing how fast he could move, how far his talons could reach. Occasionally, if they were more intelligent than most or had brought a worthy enough gift, he let them live. Even more rarely, if they were particularly interesting, he actually gave them what they asked for. But not often, just enough to ensure that they kept coming. As for the others, well, it had been a while since he could go hunting.
Speaking of which, here came another one of them now. He could hear them coming through the passage. Dragging footsteps, frantic heartbeat, the smell of mortal blood told him everything he needed to know. This one stepped out into the cavern. Rubedo took the opportunity to observe his next meal.
Taller than most, dressed in the same black metal that bound the dragon's leg. Curly, dark hair over pale skin and hypnotizing green eyes that for some reason reminded him of his youngest brother's gaze. The man took a weary breath and shouted, "Monster! I, Gaignun Kukai of Miltia, have come to kill you and claim your treasure for my own!"
If a dragon could roll its eyes, he would. How boring. The last three challenges had been the same, word for word. And how human, calling him a 'monster'. Anything they didn't understand or feared automatically became a 'monster' to them. It wasn't even worth wasting his fire on this guy. His head snaked out and he bit down.
As soon as the taste of blood filled his mouth, he knew something was wrong. Distantly he felt the shackle break and crumble to dust, at the same time he felt his form shrinking. He was being reduced to human form, a shape he hadn't taken since Sakura had been alive. For a moment he was dumbfounded, staring at pale, childlike hands. Then the knowledge of what was wrong kicked in.
What was wrong had been the taste of blood. It had been sweet with none of the metallic taste that so characterized mortality. Rubedo had eaten enough humans and half-humans to know the difference and this man had not the slightest taint of impending death on his soul. Until now.
Sky blue eyes looked up in horror. "I-I don't understand."
The man smiled. "Don't worry about it. You'll be able to take your real form again, as soon as I'm dead."
Rubedo fell to his knees, ignoring the bits of metal that dug into his now soft skin. "Who are you?"
"Has it been so long that you've forgotten me, Eldest Brother?"
"N-nigredo?" It would have been a strange sight, a naked boy cradling the head of a dying man in a room filled with gold and jewels and illuminated only by a slight glow from the boy's skin. "Why did you do this?"
"It was the only way." The man coughed, blood flying from his mouth. "Just as the death of an immortal bound you, only the death of one could free you."
"But why you? Why not get someone else? Or Albedo?"
"I'm sorry. I'm sure you would have preferred Albedo to rescue you."
"At least with Albedo I know he'd be okay! You're dying!"
"At least this way I'm doing something useful, rather than simply poisoning everything around me with my existence. It's better this way."
"Don't say that!"
"It's true . . . " His youngest brother was fading away and there was nothing he could do to stop it. "I'm kind of glad I did it this way."
"How-how can you be happy about this!" Tears, of pure liquid silver began to streak down a childlike face.
"I'm being held . . . by the most important person to me . . . " Weaker and weaker and Rubedo was holding on so tightly that his nails broke through fabric and skin. But he couldn't stop his brother's soul from slipping away. It had never been in his power to do so. "I could . . . never do that before."
"You-you idiot!"
"Yeah . . . I should have . . . tried this long ago." He took a deep breath. "Rubedo . . . I'll be waiting . . . but not too soon, okay?" Green eyes closed.
Rubedo was left with the taste of his brother's blood in his mouth.
He dreamed of his youth, of freedom. One of the first creations, Eldest of the Mad God's children. No one would have dared to bind him then. He and his siblings were masters of the universe.
Rubedo, Firstborn, Heart's Blood. He was the essence of metal and heat, had played with the Sun himself and not gotten burned. He had been hailed as both God and Demon, but had never really considered himself either. Rubedo was never truly evil or capricious, but he always felt things in the extreme and acted on those wild emotions. How different he had been from his younger siblings!
That drew his thoughts to his Twin, Albedo, Eternal, the Phoenix. Created within seconds of each other, Albedo had been the other part of himself, the light of the flame to his heat, the ash that was left and the snow that extinguished the fire. Yet at the same time he had been different, quieter than Rubedo's exuberance, solitary while Rubedo sought out others. Rubedo remembered the last time he had seen his twin, ages and ages ago. He wondered how his brother had changed in his last burning. He wondered how many of those pyres he had missed, chained in the cave with only the light he gave off to illuminate the shadows.
He shifted again, disturbing his bed of treasure. The shine from the various coins, jewels and other items caught his eye. The gold was the same color as the hair of his sister, Citrine, the Lady, the Singer, the Lorelei. Now if any of them had been cruel, it had been her. He remembered her delight in drawing mortals to her waterways, drowning them and then carving their bones to make gruesome instruments to accompany her. Flutes and drums, harps and guitars strung with her own long hair, but they made the most beautiful music in the world. Citrine's blood had been colder than the icy streams she had dwelt in, but he still missed her. What he wouldn't give to hear her sing again?
Another yank on the metal chain sent the shadows dancing. That was Nigredo's dominion. Lastborn, Death's Steed, the Basilisk, his youngest brother had always felt most comfortable in the dark. He had always been ashamed of himself, preferring to hide away, even more solitary than Albedo had been. He had disappeared long before any of the others. Even before UDO had come.
Rubedo snarled then attacked the shackle again viciously. UDO had done this to him! UDO and humans, with their petty desires and petty fears! UDO, the demon, with his Song of the Nephilim, seducing the stupid mortals into following him while taking away their souls. It was UDO who had given them the knowledge to bind one of the Elder Children, UDO who had taught them the sigils of the Dead God, UDO who had given them the blood to write them!
UDO who had slaughtered an innocent dryad for her immortal blood. UDO who had murdered Sakura.
If a dragon could cry, he would have. Ultimately it was his fault. His fault for not being strong enough to protect his love. And so he stayed in the cave, bound by the blood of his lover, shackled for so long that not even he knew how much time had passed. All alone, except for the occasional human visitor.
He smirked at that thought. Humans never seemed to learn. They thought him harmless, chained as he was in this lightless cavern. They came to him, demanding immortality, power, wealth. Shouting their petty desires, never realizing how fast he could move, how far his talons could reach. Occasionally, if they were more intelligent than most or had brought a worthy enough gift, he let them live. Even more rarely, if they were particularly interesting, he actually gave them what they asked for. But not often, just enough to ensure that they kept coming. As for the others, well, it had been a while since he could go hunting.
Speaking of which, here came another one of them now. He could hear them coming through the passage. Dragging footsteps, frantic heartbeat, the smell of mortal blood told him everything he needed to know. This one stepped out into the cavern. Rubedo took the opportunity to observe his next meal.
Taller than most, dressed in the same black metal that bound the dragon's leg. Curly, dark hair over pale skin and hypnotizing green eyes that for some reason reminded him of his youngest brother's gaze. The man took a weary breath and shouted, "Monster! I, Gaignun Kukai of Miltia, have come to kill you and claim your treasure for my own!"
If a dragon could roll its eyes, he would. How boring. The last three challenges had been the same, word for word. And how human, calling him a 'monster'. Anything they didn't understand or feared automatically became a 'monster' to them. It wasn't even worth wasting his fire on this guy. His head snaked out and he bit down.
As soon as the taste of blood filled his mouth, he knew something was wrong. Distantly he felt the shackle break and crumble to dust, at the same time he felt his form shrinking. He was being reduced to human form, a shape he hadn't taken since Sakura had been alive. For a moment he was dumbfounded, staring at pale, childlike hands. Then the knowledge of what was wrong kicked in.
What was wrong had been the taste of blood. It had been sweet with none of the metallic taste that so characterized mortality. Rubedo had eaten enough humans and half-humans to know the difference and this man had not the slightest taint of impending death on his soul. Until now.
Sky blue eyes looked up in horror. "I-I don't understand."
The man smiled. "Don't worry about it. You'll be able to take your real form again, as soon as I'm dead."
Rubedo fell to his knees, ignoring the bits of metal that dug into his now soft skin. "Who are you?"
"Has it been so long that you've forgotten me, Eldest Brother?"
"N-nigredo?" It would have been a strange sight, a naked boy cradling the head of a dying man in a room filled with gold and jewels and illuminated only by a slight glow from the boy's skin. "Why did you do this?"
"It was the only way." The man coughed, blood flying from his mouth. "Just as the death of an immortal bound you, only the death of one could free you."
"But why you? Why not get someone else? Or Albedo?"
"I'm sorry. I'm sure you would have preferred Albedo to rescue you."
"At least with Albedo I know he'd be okay! You're dying!"
"At least this way I'm doing something useful, rather than simply poisoning everything around me with my existence. It's better this way."
"Don't say that!"
"It's true . . . " His youngest brother was fading away and there was nothing he could do to stop it. "I'm kind of glad I did it this way."
"How-how can you be happy about this!" Tears, of pure liquid silver began to streak down a childlike face.
"I'm being held . . . by the most important person to me . . . " Weaker and weaker and Rubedo was holding on so tightly that his nails broke through fabric and skin. But he couldn't stop his brother's soul from slipping away. It had never been in his power to do so. "I could . . . never do that before."
"You-you idiot!"
"Yeah . . . I should have . . . tried this long ago." He took a deep breath. "Rubedo . . . I'll be waiting . . . but not too soon, okay?" Green eyes closed.
Rubedo was left with the taste of his brother's blood in his mouth.