Sophia's Journey: Core of Truth

The maw of the beast before Nuxta radiated with power. Its pull surrounded Sophia. She would feel the impending doom of a rabbit as it was about to be devoured. Something an entity such as herself would find completely new. The jaws that devoured the Grimorium now surrounded her. Her power dissolved. She was pulled into the jaws of the portal, the beast, then power Nuxta wielded so boldly. Sophia would find herself within the center of it all. Bright multicolored arrays of primal energy expanding to infinity. Was this Sophia's new hell...? Sophia walked within a dimension of energy that flowed around her like water. She wouldn't be able to breathe but something would keep her from needing to. Her everything was being slowly assimilated into the white multicolored void she found herself in. It felt almost relaxing, alarmingly so. As if easing her into a fatal release of her sense of self. Even her mind would be slowly faded away. Her sense of self preservation gently dispersing into nothing. There was an echo however. Something below, far below, swirled like a black hole. The pure energy that surrounded her was being sucked into the darkness where the echo came from. She could feel the pull gently. Like a current flowing down stream. The voice in the echo was too distant to tell for sure but it was similar to a young beast crying out.

Sophia struggled, beams of pure energy firing from her mouth indiscriminatedly. Portals appeared to redirect and multiply those beams but it seemed nothing could prevent the beast Nuxta conjured from devouring her. Her roars were a mix of surprise, fear and anger, loud enough to part the skies itself. The roars and cries echoed through the battlefield, far and wide as Sophia and the Grimorium were surrounded and devoured by the colossal jaws. For the first time in her entire life, Sophia felt powerless. Surrounded by it's maws, the last cried those on the battlefield could hear was from a raging, rampaging beast until they were completely silenced. Transported to a strange place, she quickly realized that struggling and lashing out was useless. Primal energy expanded to infinity in complex arrays that surrounded her. Strangely enough, while she was in that dimension, empty and only flooding with primal energy it felt almost as if her very being was ressonating with all that energy. Almost as if she was being slowly... dissolved into all that primal energy. While definitely alarming, it was strangely... calming. The feelings of where her own aura, her own primal energy ended and the energy flowing through that dimension began were slowly beginning to fade. Her own sense of self was beginning to be dissolved into that sea of energy. It felt... relaxing. It was definitely not how Sophia imagined the end, death, would be... To make things worse, her own body, which was already attuned and accustomed with primal energy in a unique manner, due to the Grimorium Verum's influence offered little to no resistance to what was happening.

Sophia's conscience and her sense of self preservation were hanging by a thread. The last part of her mind and instincts that were still struggling shouted and yelled desperately, telling her that she shouldn't give in, that Nuxta must be stopped. It was honestly.. hard. It was getting harder and harder for Sophia to remain herself.

When she was almost about to give up though, something called her attention in all that energy, all that emptiness. Far below her, beyond the sea of energy where it all was being sucked and pulled for, the only thing that escaped from the darkness was an echo. Too far and quiet for her to clearly discern, it was similar to a young beast crying. Hanging on her conscience, preventing her own body from being dissolved with all willpower she still had remaining, she focused on that echo and began trying to find whatever was producing it. She didn't know exactly what it was but in such situation, where her end was almost certain, there wasn't any reasons for her to not risk herself. Besides... even in such dire situations, her curiosity was still a strong motivation. For Sophia, that same curiosity was always present. It was more than just a feeling, it was a part of her own being.

As Sophia went down she would see the darkness begin to envelope her. It was cause for great fear even for one as great as her. As in that darkness was something cold and empty. It siphoned the well of power that once embraced her. Now she journeyed through an endless void. Yet one thing far below was visible. A brightly shining object. From it the cries could still be heard. As she neared it the shape of the object began to become clear. It was the shape of an egg. Its light pierced through the infinite pit and resonated with the same white and multicolored array Sophia was surrounded by earlier. 

Getting close she would see the size of the egg was massive compared to hers. A familiar sound could be heard from it. Something akin to a young dragon. Something Sophia would instinctively know to be true. Life resonated inside and she was near another infinite source of power. This was purely chaotic in nature yet it was contained by the void. As Sophia would look back to where she came she would notice the vortex began to release particles of light. These lights danced around the infinite void until fading away. However a few would reach far down and touch the Egg. This would cause the egg to shine even brighter but only briefly. 

Time was of no value though Sophia did have a lot of time to think. She no longer felt as if her very being was being eroded. Now she was firm, flesh and blood, or so it seemed. A black feather fell down from above and landed on the Egg. It began to dissolve on the egg into a black goo. This caused the egg to slowly lose its color and turn grey. Approaching from above was Nuxta, his two black wings and armored body elegantly flowed in the emptiness. Gravity was of no value here either. He seemed quite pleased as he neared the egg. Touching it and once he did so a thin outline of light surrounded his every edge right down to the strands of his flowing black hair.

He stared into it, as if seeing more than the shell allowed. The ooze now drips, sliding down the eggs side. “Dragon of knowledge.” He began. “You seek to know the truth?” He turned to look at her. A smile and kind eyes went her way, even as he gazed upon a dragon. He spoke and treated her with mutual respect. “You and I are alike. Both connected to the source. The core. This. This is it.” He looked at the egg. “It was said that the king of dragon gods was born of this source. That he placed the dragons at the top of all god hood by devouring the former gods and establishing a reign of chaos. It was indeed the end of this world’s life. The first seraphim, my mother, told me this. That she had come from a source of divinity and broke from that divine nature to live in this world and share with its people. She was considered a god and brought all kinds of beings together. So when the dragon gods came to devour her she fought back. But unlike chaos, divinity cannot destroy. So she returned the dragon god to its former state. Returning him to this core. To be reborn one day to annihilate this world.”

He clenched his gauntlet fist. Then released it. Within it was a sphere of light. It reflected in his black eyes before he pressed it against the egg. The light returned as if it had been able to breathe again. “It was decided that I, Nuxta, Second Born Descended and child of the Moon God, become the keeper of this egg. I have been keeping it from awakening by redirecting the returning energy of all dying life away from it. You see all life in this world comes from this source and all life returns to it. I have severed this direct connection. What you were in earlier is what I have kept from this source, it is also where all life now comes from. I now control the flow of life and death... However I cannot keep every drop from getting to this core. One day it may awaken despite my efforts.” He looked back to Sophia.

“That’s not all. My mother has only removed herself from this world to allow the descended here to grow. To one day ascend to the heavens. Yet she trusted them too much it seems and was unaware of the results of having chaotic blood. These descended now are no better than the dragon gods who devoured whatever they wished. Upon their return she will surely revive the world for these descended… She is too pure of divine soul.. I will not allow these descended to inherit the new world!" He yelled. Anger growing within.

“With your help Sophia I can save those who are good. I can remove them from harms way to inherit the new world. With only a spell one such as yourself can cast you can bring these Kings and Queens of descended to their knees. To allow this new world to be free of their hunger for power!”