Chapter 1262 Aquarius’ Soul
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Upon the defeat of Aquarius' Undead Corpse, Drake, and everybody else saw Aquarius' very soul, or perhaps what remained of him manifesting itself. It seemed as if this last piece of his soul had been confined within his own corpse as the Fragment of the Deep One parasitized it.
"Thank you, everyone." He sighed. "My soul was slowly being consumed by the Deep One's powers as I was sealed within my own body… I am grateful that you've freed me from that curse. The darkness that was engulfing me for so long…"
"A-Aquarius!" Sapphire cried, running towards the enormous soul of the Dragon.
The dragon gently smiled as he saw Sapphire. His soul began flowing around like a sea of gold, surrounding her and embracing her.
FLASH!
He slowly took the humanoid form that Sapphire knew the most, and embraced her in a hug, even if he was ethereal and untouchable, Sapphire felt his hug, his warmth.
"Sapphire, I am glad to see you safe." He said with a smile. "It seems you've gathered many new friends… All of you must have come from outside the islands, right? Oh… except those two."
Aquarius noticed Rose and Coral.
"W-We we were here before…" Coral said. "S-Sir Aquarius, it is an honor to meet you!"
"L-Likewise!" Rose nodded.
Aquarius smiled sweetly.
"It is good to see that the inheritors of my Familiars are such gentle and goodhearted children." He said. "One day, the future of the country will be inherited by you, I hope that you can bring my people to the prosperity I always strived for."
"Aquarius…" Sapphire cried. "You're leaving, aren't you?"
"…" Aquarius sighed, it was obvious.
Drake and everyone else noticed how his soul was slowly fading away. He had already tried using his powers to somehow contain him in place, but that only slowed the process… For Drake, it felt like an insult to turn him into some sort of ghost, and he knew that wasn't something he would had liked either way. Aquarius was too prideful for such a thing.
"I'm sorry, Sapphire. My time… has ended. An era has come to an end with my death." He sighed, caressing her face tenderly. "I wish I could stay longer… I wish I could caress you, and love you more."
"B-But you can stay! D-Drake! You said he could…!" Sapphire said, looking at Drake.
Drake sighed.
"Maybe I can… but it won't be the same as before." He said. "The Memory Orbs didn't had that purpose either. Once he finally died, I figured their true purpose already…"
"Heh, you're a wise young dragon, Drake." Aquarius sighed.
"W-Why? Why don't you want to stay longer, even as a ghost… or something?!" Sapphire cried. "I miss you… I miss you so much! I miss your caress… your kisses… your warmth…"
"Even if I remain, I cannot… give you that anymore." Aquarius sighed. "I am long dead, Sapphire. I… am sorry, but this is not something that can be done so easily. I wish… to stay with you much longer, but my beloved maiden, you've grown so much and become so strong. Do you truly depend on me to become the brave woman I saw fighting just now?"
"But…" Sapphire began crying. "I…"
She started gripping her fists tightly.
"I love you, Sapphire." Aquarius said with a tender smile, his body was fading away more and more. "I cannot stay much longer but… I am glad to see you one last time before going back with my family."
"I… I am also glad to see you one last time, dear." Sapphire smiled. She slowly began accepting the truth she had been denying, holding into a bleak hope, which she deep down knew wouldn't become a reality no matter what.
"However, I have another gift for you." Aquarius said. "Drake, do you have the three orbs?"
"Here." Drake nodded, giving them to him.
The blue orbs began glowing brightly in midair, as a small, crystalized piece of Aquarius soul surged from within his ethereal body.
"W-What is this?" Sapphire wondered.
"Can you give me a drop of your blood, and a piece of your hair?" Asked Aquarius.
"Huh? S-Sure…" Sapphire quickly did so, cutting some of her hair, and then giving Aquarius a few drops of her blood coming from a small wound in her index finger.
FLAAAAASH!
All ingredients merged together, as what emerged from within was… an egg, a blue colored egg.
"E-Eh? An egg?!" Sapphire felt surprised.
Aquarius smiled back at her.
"One of my greatest regrets was… to have never been able to give you the child you always dreamed to have with me." Aquarius said.
"T-This… a child?" Sapphire felt taken aback.
Drake and everybody else around the room were just as surprised. The last gift, part of the whole inheritance was actually… A child between Aquarius and Sapphire!
"I see…" Benladann smiled. "I guess it is the greatest gift you could ever receive. It won't be easy to be a mother but… It is rewarding at the end." She said, caressing Benladra and Kate's heads.
"A child…" Sapphire started crying even more. "My love… I-I can't believe this… I… I am not even ready for this but… I will make sure he… or she grows up fine, so you can be proud of them."
"I am sure you will be a great mother, no matter what." Aquarius said. "Now… Drake."
As Sapphire held the egg, Aquarius quickly flew towards Drake.
"Aquarius… Do you…?" Drake wondered.
"Partially so. I do remember, faintly, the memories of those dreams. Of a past… I wish I could had experienced. If we could had only meet earlier, if we could had only… become partners, brothers earlier. Maybe… maybe our lives could had been much different." Aquarius sighed. ｂｅ𝚍ｎｏ𝚟𝚎ｌ.𝚌𝚘ｍ
"You're still my brother." Said Drake. "We're dragons, blood connect us, we're family."
"Heh, I guess you're right." Aquarius sighed. "You're the only one here that can inherit this power, so please, have it… The rest of my Divinity, and everything else left behind. Dragon King Drake, from today onwards, you're also a Sea Dragon, a brother."
FLAAAAASH!
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