The mystical flames surrounding me pulsed like a living heartbeat, sending ripples of heat and raw energy through the barrier that confined us.
They weren't just fire they were alive. Conscious. Each pulse carried awareness, flowing like liquid lightning over my scales. I could feel Ragnarok's power seeping into me, through skin, through bone, down to the deepest strands of my being.
It wasn't just energy
it was an inspection. A divine reading, as though my very soul was an ancient scroll being unraveled and studied line by line.
It wasn't pain. It was something far worse exposure. For the first time, I felt completely seen. Every cell, every secret, every flaw laid bare beneath the gaze of an ancient god.
"Fascinating…"
Ragnarok's molten voice echoed, rumbling like magma under a restless volcano. His flaming form circled me slowly, deliberately, like a predator studying prey. Twin eyes of burning stars flickered with something I'd never expected from a being like him uncertainty.
"Genetic markers… unprecedented. Heart-core thread pattern… entirely foreign."
A shiver crawled down my spine despite the searing heat. "What do you mean?" I asked, my voice trembling.
If even he, the eternal flame spirit who had guided awakenings for millennia, didn't know what I was… then what hope did I have?
Ragnarok's form darkened, flames deepening to crimson.
"I mean," he said slowly, "that in over two thousand years — among all the creatures I've examined, guided, or destroyed — I have never encountered anything like you."
The words hit like a hammer. Ragnarok was supposed to know everything. If even he was unsure, then what was I?
"But you must have some theory!" I pressed, desperation clawing at my chest. "Some guess anything!"
The spirit's flames flickered, dimmed, then burst alive again.
"I have a conclusion," he said at last. "But it is so improbable, so blasphemous to logic, that even I hesitate to speak it aloud."
"Please," I said, voice cracking. "I need to know. Even if it sounds impossible."
He inhaled deeply or the flame's version of it his entire body expanding and contracting like a blazing lung.
"Very well. Based on your genetic markers and internal architecture, there are three possibilities."
My claws dug into the earth, grounding me as the sacred grove hummed with tension. I could hear my heart beating against my ribs hard, fast, unsteady.
"First," Ragnarok said, "you may be the descendant of mutated reptilians shapeshifters from an ancient line.
Their blood carried the ability to assume any form, hiding among other races for centuries."
My stomach tightened. "Reptilian… shapeshifters?"
"Yes," he nodded. "But such a possibility borders on myth. Their species vanished a thousand years ago in a single night. No trace, no survivors. To find their blood in you would be… absurd."
I swallowed hard. The thought of hidden, monstrous bloodline made my stomach twist, but at least it meant there was some explanation. "Then what's the second?"
The flames brightened, casting long shadows across the grove.
"The second and far more intriguing possibility… is that you are a lesser dragon."
I froze. "Dragon?" The word slipped out like a prayer. "But dragons are… stories."
"Stories?" Ragnarok's laughter thundered through the air. "Boy, you stand before a legend, and yet call dragons myths?"
My claws scraped against the earth. "Why do you think I might be one?"
"Because your genetic resonance mirrors theirs," he said, circling me like a scholar studying a relic. "Lesser dragons are hybrids children of true dragons and dinosaurs. Bridges between two mighty species. Perhaps you belong to this rare in-between."
The words struck deep. My parents both dinosaurs , tyransourours. Then possibly I am hybrid.
"And… the third?" I asked quietly.
Ragnarok's flames trembled
this time not with fear, but excitement. The sacred tree itself seemed to glow brighter as his voice dropped to a whisper.
"The third… is that you are the offspring of a Greater Dragon."
The air left my lungs. "Greater… dragon?"
"Yes," the spirit said, eyes burning brighter than ever. "The rulers of realms. The apex of existence. Even spirits like me bow to their will. Their mere presence warps reality."
My throat went dry. "Are they… stronger than dinosaurs?"
"Stronger?" Ragnarok barked a laugh that shook the grove. "To them, dinosaurs are insects. Greater dragons are creation's flame given form. They are gods wearing scales."
A strange thrill ran through me the idea of being one of them. To think I might share even a drop of that blood was intoxicating.
But Ragnarok's voice cut sharply through the fantasy.
"Don't smile yet, little one. There's a problem. Greater dragons are bound to their dragon domain . They do not breed on this jurassic world.
Even lesser dragons rarely appear here, Barren land. For such a being to exist in Jurassic lands… defies all laws."
He paused. "Perhaps I'm wrong. Perhaps you're merely a dinosaur with… mutated genes."
I clenched my fists. "Forget what I am. Can you help me awaken?"
"Perhaps," he said, his tone heavy. "Dinosaurs awaken through Spirit Fruits. But dragons dragons awaken through trials. Two possible paths exist that I know of."
I leaned forward, heart racing.
"First," he said, " Awaken endure through extreme environments, tailored to their genome. Choose wrong, and death is instant."
I swallowed hard. "And the second?"
"They form an Evolution Pact with a flame spirit," Ragnarok said, his body flaring brilliantly. "A spiritual fusion essence merging with essence. The spirit becomes the dragon's catalyst, igniting their blood."
Realization struck me like lightning. "You're a flame spirit."
" without doubt"
His voice trembled now not with anger, but desire. Centuries of longing burned in his tone.
"Why are you shaking?" I asked softly.
"Because," Ragnarok whispered, "you've touched every spirit's greatest dream."
I frowned. "Dream?"
"To bond with a greater dragon," he said, his flames quivering with emotion. "To become one with their divine essence. To ascend with them to the Dragon Domain the realm of origin, where pure flame and consciousness intertwine."
"The… Dragon Domain?" I echoed.
" magicland " Ragnarok said reverently. "Where rivers flow with mana instead of water, and thought itself becomes creation."
I lifted my head, meeting his burning gaze. "Then… will you fuse with me?"
Ragnarok's flames blazed skyward, his voice deep and solemn.
"If you are truly dragon-blooded, the fusion will awaken you. You will rise above all creation. But if not…" His flames dimmed. "My essence will tear you apart. Not even dust will remain."
A long silence followed. My pulse thundered in my ears.
This was no choice. This was a gamble between glory and oblivion.
I took a deep breath, my fear burning away in the face of something stronger resolve.
"I'm willing to stake my life on it."
The flames closed in, swirling like a divine storm. Ragnarok's eyes glowed with pride and, for the first time, respect.
"Good," he said, voice like the end of an era. "Then let us see what destiny has written into your blood."
As I closed my eyes, the fire enveloped me. The sacred grove vanished. The last thing I felt was warmth then nothing but blinding light.
Either I would awaken as a dragon…
Or die trying.