Consciousness came to Dreleon in fragments—the distant drip of water hitting the grotto floor and the skittering of insects in the dark.
He heard a low, rhythmic thumping of his heart, like a machine, slowly he started hearing his whole body, the blood and pain were screaming like asking why you are not moving.
He forced his eyelids open, and they felt like lead shutters, too heavy to open at once so he opened half, and then.
Through the hazy blur, he saw the grotto was no longer empty.
Standing before the mountain-like silhouette of the old turtle was a creature that defied the laws of the physical world.
It was small, compared to the old turtle, almost the same size as him.
Like a spectral curve of green light, its body outlined in a shimmering emerald hue that traced the shape of a massive serpent.
Atop its head, a blue gem pulsed with an ancient, cold power, casting a rhythmic light over its piercing cyan eye.
But it was the red mist that paralyzed Dreleon's soul, as it flowed from the creature like a cloak of vaporized blood, thick and swirling.
To Dreleon's lion instincts, this spectral thing felt far more lethal than the Turtle's crushing pressure.
The snake tilted its head. The Cyan eye locked onto Dreleon, and its mouth opened slightly—a curve of the jaw that could only be described as a smile, beautiful yet utterly cruel.
[Genbu, do it fast. It is my last offer.] The voice resonated directly inside Dreleon's skull, cold and smooth. [I will give you the ultimate sleep formation. If you get any greedier, I will simply kill you and take the pup.]
[Hump! Why are you saying it now to that kid? I am too lazy to expend my mental waves.] Elder said without moving his physical body like it's the most uncomfortable thing.
The snake gave a gentle, creepy smile toward Dreleon. Then, absolute silence fell.
Dreleon watched the two monsters.
Neither moved their mouths, yet the air between them vibrated with an invisible tension.
Dreleon heard nothing but his own ragged breathing and the distant wind. It was a long, suffocating silence as the two entities communicated in ways his young mind couldn't perceive.
Suddenly, the silence was shattered by an excited voice booming inside his head.
[Hahaha! Hey, kid!] Elder Genbu's mental laughter was heavy and vibrating. [This fella is your teacher from now on—just go with it and stop disturbing my sleep!]
The paralysis broke as the elder's command faded.
Dreleon scrambled to his feet, his muscles screaming. "Wait!" he roared, his voice sounding small in the vast silence of the cave. "I was entrusted to you by the order of the King! Have you forgotten? You can't just send me anywhere on a whim!" He protested, not because he liked being teched by the turtle but because the snake felt even more dangerous.
[Hmmm... oh, yeah, it's a problem.] The Turtle's mental waves resonated with mocking amusement. [But kid... have you not wondered why I told you to go? Hahaha... truly a fool.]
[Human-lion pup, I have the King's decree here.] The snake's mental voice cut through the turtle's laughter like a cold blade, It lifted a coil, and within the red mist, a golden piece of paper appeared.
It radiated a suffocating, royal pressure—the same Lion Might Dreleon had felt the day he hatched. [It says that if the turtle agrees to the transfer, I can indeed teach you in his place.]
Dreleon didn't wait for it to finish. His body was fully functional, and his rage was overflowing.
He knew the pact—these two wouldn't kill him, because he was still pacted with the princess. So he thought to at least deal a blow, to satisfy his instincts.
He lunged, claws extended, aiming a desperate punch at the center of that shimmering green head.
[Hmmm... human-lion pup. I don't know if I should say your courage is commendable... or if you are utterly foolish.]
The blood-red mist covering the snake expanded instantly.
Dreleon didn't even reach the creature, as the red vapor swallowed him, he was again consumed by sleepiness.
But he didn't fall into the comfortable, heavy sleep the Turtle had provided before.
This was different.
He felt as if he had been dumped alone at the gates of hell.
Every nerve ending screamed in agony, a burning, needles-in-the-eyes pain that consumed his vision until everything went black.
In the reality of the cave, his body simply slumped into the mist, twitching as the red smoke curled around him like a shroud.