58 Goodbyes

Ash gripped the large green beast core in her hand as she stared at the corpse of the mosquito queen. She could feel a mixture of vampiric and poisonous essence radiating off the speed type core. This was the power she needed to advance. All of her abilities would recieve a boost from this. She shook her head sadly. Even though she had vampiric essence coursing through her human body thanks to the passion filled nights with Dark she was not a true vampire. She had no vampiric abilities. The amount of essence was truly too small. But perhaps with this she could gain one.

She shook her head at the thought. Simply strengthening her poisonous threads would be enough. They were already rather deadly, increasing their power would be enough. Both her and Lily had both recieved powerful cores, Though this time she had truly gained the biggest benefit. The dual core Lily had obtained was strong, most likely the strongest core this swamp had to offer for her specialty, but it was nothing compared to a queen type core. the power a queen held in a territory was top of the line.

Ash did not let this go to her head though, chances were she would not recieve such a harvest on the next level up. Agility type queens were rare, more than likely the next one would not be compatible. This would force her into taking a lesser core. The problem got even worse if she wanted to focus on agility and poison type cores. Her best bet then would be to take down the rogue spiders she encounters. She really didn't have a problem with this, spiders were cannibals by nature.

Lily stood behind her surveying the scene. Thousands of dead Mosquitos laid before them, their small cores glimmering in the sunlight. The scene was rather beautiful, in a morbid, We just killed an entire family of insects kind of way. She couldn't help but smile at the sight, Ash's body was govered in grime, a mixture of mosquito goo and mud, and yet the sight sent a small flutter in heart. She squeezed the skeletal hand she had been holding for such a long time. Soon she would leave it behind on the alter, Completing the mission of the man who had always been by her side. Inside she was already saying her goodbyes. But there was not a void left, she could feel this woman he had left for her slowly filling that leftover spot. She knew the void in her heart would never truly be filled, but it was enough.

The defeat of the mosquito queen was the last significant threat before the shrine. The journey was relatively peaceful, Lily's illusions kept them from being attack as they continued their trek through the swamp. They continued to see mosquitoes, though they no longer traveled in swarms, rather they seemed to float around with no clear purpose. A portion of them simply laid uselessly on in the swamp, allowing the mud to slowly devour them. Without their queen the mosquitos simply had no reason to live.

A week ago, even a day ago Lily was just like those stray mosquitos, simply floating where the wind took her, desperately holding on to what had been the foundation of her life in this world. She still didnt know what she was going to do after she left the skeletal hand behind. This world was different from everything she knew in the past. The only reason she had survived the last almost 2 years was because Dark had kept pulling her along, making sure she did not fall behind. When she had been in danger he fearlessly rushed in to save her. That's what eventually led to his death. He had disregarded his own safety to save her life.

Tears began to roll down her cheeks, though she was unaware of it. They continued to Journey through the swamp. It did not take long for them to arrive in the clearing that surrounded the shrine. The area around it was filled with the discarded skin of a reptile. It was obvious what species the guardian of the shrine belonged to.

The scent of decay was over powering as they approached the Shrine. A large reptilian head rose as they approached, though it did not attack. Its blood red eyes looked at lily, completely ignoring Ash as they approached.

The snake never took its eyes off of Lily as she approached the shrine. The skeletal hand she was carrying reacting just as much as the corrs that they both carried. The girls held off on their evolutions however, as they gently laid the hand on the alter in the shrine. Lily's melodious voice was the first sound to break the silence.

Tears were still falling from her face as she spoke, Beside her Ash had a look of loss. They both bowed their heads. Even the giant snake seemed to lower its head. "Thank you Dark for the light you brought to my life. Without you I would not have survived up until now. You were the rock that held me together, the glue that allowed my broken pieces to come together. I never told you about my past life. All I ever said was that I killed myself. The truth is that I died of a broken heart. The boy I had always had a crush on as a child went off to war. He was a Healer, Graduated in the top of his class in magic despite the fact that he was a beast master. He had a butterfly for a mana armament. He died saving my brother, I never got a chance to help thank him, or even Express my feelings. His name was John. John Enders. You reminded me so much of him, when I first saw you. you even looked alike, only younger. And then I heard your story, that you died in combat saving a soldier. I knew then that you were one in the same. But I couldn't say anything. I was too scared, scared that you would reject my heart even after all we had been through."

"Imagine my surprise when you actually cared for me! When you loved me and saved me! I was so happy. These had been the best 2 years of my life. Thank you John, Thank you for loving me for all of my broken pieces."