Never Really Gone

Chapter 27

Xisuma's POV

I stick toward the back of the group, listening in to the current conversation. The other four, Generik, Biffa and two others called Hypno and TopMass, are talking about the Dragon. Biffa suddenly stops, seeming like he only just realised something.

"Wait, it won't be like... weird, for you to kill a dragon, will it X?"

I'm a little confused for a moment, before laughing.

"Oh no, don't worry. They don't mind it, and they respawn anyway."

Hypno's golden eyes light up at those words.

"Do you know anything else about dragons?"

"Not really... they just like fighting people for the fun of it. 

I'm hesitant about going back to the End, but remind myself that I grew up there. This is the nice part of the End, not the Watchers' part. This is the part I like. So with a bright smile and a sword in my hand, I jump down into the portal.

The others need a minute to get used to the air, so I wait. Looking around, I feel a warm, fuzziness inside of me. This might not be the particular part of the End I grew up in, but it still feels like home. There's a few seconds of peace, before the dragon's earsplitting roar is heard in the distance.

This snaps the others to attention, the five of us running toward the beast's lair. They've clearly done their research, as Biffa and TopMass immediately take out two of the crystals with bows. Hypno scales one of the obsidian pillars, and I fly up towards the other, breaking the iron bars at the top.

As I fly back toward the ground, I pull my bow out, pulling an arrow back and aiming at the Crystal. It hits the centre, the magic orb exploding with a burst of purple and white. I land on the ground, where the dragon has briefly landed. We viciously swing our swords, until it takes off again.

Dodging the blasts of purple magic, I continue to fire arrows at the dragon, a few hitting it. Then, with a deafening roar, it lands, swinging its massive tail at us. I'm more toward the back and therefore able to easily jump over the edge of her tail, but the others are knocked off their feet and slammed into an obsidian pillar. There's no way they'd remain cautious after that. The dragon should be dead with one good swing, but then she stops.

There's a small flash of purple light around its body, and for a moment I think we've killed it. But then the dragon disappears, and in it's place is a woman with cuts all over her body, reflecting the damage done to her. More specifically, my mother. 

My eyes widen, but not before she hugs me tightly.

"I've missed you Xisuma"

She pulls my helmet off, kissing the top of my head. I'd expected to run into her eventually, it's just so strange to see her again.

"I've missed you too" I mumble into her chest.

"I'm very proud of you and Ezra"

"But... Ezra isn't here... what if he's-"

"He's alive. I can assure you of that"

I feel briefly relieved. Even if I don't know where he is, knowing he's alive is enough comfort for me. Hopefully he's with Grian and they're both safe.

"I'm so sorry that I hurt you... I didn't know it was you..."

"It's alright. You know I'll respawn and your mother will help me heal. You can kill me"

"But you're-"

"It's ok" she assures me "I love doing this... I'd do it much more if she wasn't so protective."

This makes me laugh a little, and my mom smiles.

"I'll always be here if you need me. I'll always come here if you want me to"

Then she turns back into a dragon, a mischievous look in her eyes. Grinning, I hug her one last time, before putting my helmet back on. Raising my sword, I swing it directly at her chest. It feels wrong, but I know that she likes to fight players, and doesn't mind at all. Her body explodes into a beam of light, and a shower of glowing orbs fall down on me.

Heading over to the others, I see they've begun to regain cautiousness. I worry for a brief second about how much they saw, but quickly dismiss the feeling. They can't have seen anything more then me killing her, if even that. TopMass shakes his head, blinking.

"Did you kill it?" He mumbles, clearly confused after being knocked out

I nod, a bright smile on my face. The others all whoop and cheer, high fiving each other in victory.

"How?!" Biffa asks "You were by yourself!"

I shrug.

"I don't know... maybe I was just lucky"

Hypno grins

"Good enough for me, let's get the egg!"

The two of them grab Gen and run off, but I stay behind. It's comforting to know that my parents will always be here, even if my twin isn't.