Didn't You See What I Did!?

“I still don’t understand why you’re doing this!” Galanoth grumbled as Daeris tugged him along behind her through the grown-over paths of Greenguard Forest, trodding down the vines and ivy that grew underfoot.

“I told you, Gal, I wanted to show you something.” Daeris answered in a voice that seemed to have answered this statement many times before. She glanced back at the Dragonslayer and offered a small smile. “Anyways, we’re almost there!”

Galanoth rolled his eyes, and begrudgingly let the rogue pull him along for a while longer, until they came to the vine-covered mouth of a deep cave. He gazed into the depths in a futile attempt to see what lay behind the blackness, before Daeris suddenly nudged him forwards. He turned and took the torch that she offered him, then started forwards into the mouth of the cave. “This better be worth dragging me all the way from BattleOn…” He grunted under his breath, but Daeris heard him. Damn her and her seemingly supersonic hearing.

“Oh, don’t worry, it will be. At least, for me.”

He started to retort with a snarky comment, but trailed off as the tunnel they had been wandering down opened into an expansive chamber glittering with crystals of all sized. Galanoth slowly walked to the center, rotating in a circle as he took in the sights around him. “Amazing…” He whispered, the light from his torch reflecting off the crystals and sending beams scattering around the room.

He started when Daeris coughed behind him, and he looked at her over his shoulder. “This isn’t what I wanted to show you.” She said, her voice uncharacteristically soft. She waved her hands in a manner that reminded him strongly of Warlic, and the crystals began to glow and pulsate with a soft light. A breeze, seemingly from nowhere, blew through the room, fluttering his cape and extinguishing his torch.

Galanoth stared, his eyes flickering from his torch to the crystals, his mind unable to form any words for what he was seeing. He whirled around to interrogate Daeris on what the fuck he was seeing; but stopped as he saw her.

She was glowing. Just like the crystals, she was emanating a pale, golden light that hurt Galanoth’s eyes just be looking at it. Her eyes, normally a deep emerald, had brightened to a startling shade of green that glowed just like the rest of her. “This is.” She stated simply, her lips barely moving as she motioned towards the front of the chamber.

Painstakingly, he dragged his eyes from the woman in front of him to where she was pointing, and his eyes widened even more in disbelief. In front of him, a large image sparked to life. It transformed the room around him into a solitary rock floating in empty space. “Remember when I told you why I was acting so odd around you after the defeat of Drakath?” Daeris’ voice came from beside him now, and the Dragonslayer glanced over at her.

“Yes, because it turned out you were actually a giant fucking dragon?” He said this with a hint of spite in his voice.

Daeris sighed and shook her head. “For the last time, I didn’t know before the battle. If you should be angry at anyone, be angry at Artix. Apparently he knew the whole friggin’ time what I was.”

“The goddamn Eternal Dragon of Time…”

“Reborn.” Daeris added.

Galanoth stared. “Reborn?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I wasn’t… This wasn’t the first time I was the Dragon of Time. I came before, but then I was slain. Then I was born again, in this world.”

“Slain? You? The Eternal Dragon of Time? Impossible!” Galanoth scoffed.

Daeris chuckled. “You shouldn’t think so, since you were the one who did it…”

Galanoth suddenly gaped. “W-What?! I think I would remember something like that! I-I-”

She cut him off with a wave of her hand. “Watch.” She commanded as the space around them began to warp once more, and Daeris showed Galanoth what Iadoa had shown her so long ago.

They were in a castle. Swordhaven Castle, to be exact. Though Galanoth didn’t remember the floor as being quite so red…. Oh. The room was littered with corpses and fallen undead soldiers, and only one among them stood alive. “They’re gone, all of them…” The image of Galanoth said, his voice as cold as steel. Out of the corner of her eye, Daeris saw the real Galanoth recoil a step.

“In this universe, Sepulchure won. There was no hero to stop him.” She explained simply, memories of her time in The Span threatening to overwhelm her.

The other-Galanoth tightened his grip on his Dragonblade as he looked around the room. “There is nothing I can do to bring my friends, my family… my home. Unless the ancient lore holds true…!” Galanoth saw a fire burn in the eyes of his image, and remembered his own pain at losing his family and Demento. He coudn’t bear to think of losing everyone he had ever known or loved.

The room warped again, and they were standing on a rock in space, watching other-Galanoth face down a giant beast that could only be the first Dragon of Time.

“It’s past time you arrived, Dragonslayer…” The voice was wise and echoing, but it was distinctly Daeris’.

Daeris smirked. She remembered having déjà-vu the first time she saw this with Iadoa, and now she understood why. She looked over at Galanoth, who was watching the exchange with interest.

“How many miles would you cross to save a world? And how much blood would you shed?” The Dragon of Time continued, seemingly judging other-Galanoth.

“I, just want-”

“Enough! You seek to reverse time, the world, and everything. You know what you must do… And so do I.”

Galanoth stared in horror as the image of him assumed a battle pose and lunged forwards, right for the three hourglasses nestled where the Dragon’s heart should be. The Dragon was huge; but the Dragonslayers aim was sure and true, and his blade struck home as the Dragon collapsed to the rock. “No!” Galanoth yelled, watching as the sands from the hourglasses mixed at the feet of other-him, and the world shifted around him one last time.

“I…I” Galanoth stuttered, the cavern having returned to it’s original form. “I killed you…” His voice was barely a whisper, and his eyes were glazed with shock.

Daeris felt a pang of regret for showing Galanoth what had happened before. But he had to know sometime, and she pushed the feeling away. Resting a hand on his shoulder, the rogue attempted to comfort him. “What happened was a great and terrible thing, but it had to be done. Without it, this world would not exist.

Galanoth was having none of it, and shoved her away. "Didn’t you see what I did?! I. Killed. You!” He yelled at her, voice shaky.

“Yes, you did. And I didn’t have to see it, I experienced it.” She added as an afterthought.

He ignored her. “You should hate me! Why don’t you hate me?!”

“Because, Galanoth, you’re one of my best friends-”

“Why don’t you try and kill me every time you lay eyes on me? Why don’t you want to run with me through with my own blade every time I’m near you?!” Galanoth continued, taking off his helmet and throwing it to the floor. He collapsed on the ground, burying his head in his hands. “I slaughtered you… I murdered you, and you still see me as a friend…”

Daeris now knew that bringing him here was a mistake. “Gal, please-” She attempted, slowly walking towards him.

“Just leave me alone… I need to be alone. To think.” He said softly, and Daeris knew better than to go against that.

“Alright.” Daeris sighed, as the last traces of the glowing light left her body. “But… Be back soon, okay?”

Galanoth didn’t respond or make any motion to show that he had heard her.

With a heavy heart, the Hero of Lore turned away from her friend and started her way out of the deep cave.