”Daddy loves you, Kirin.” The big dragon spoke in a soothing voice while cradling the small bundle he held close to him. The seven foot tall two legged dragon male smiled down to small baby dragon he was holding, his ‘son’ Kirin, as if the child was actual his, or real.

Hacesh had now been under Xyaban’s control for nearly over eight months, and she had pretty much replaced all the old Hacesh’s personality and memories with ones that suited her view of the world better. Between constant drugging from Xyaban’s natural toxins that kept his in a stupor and docile at the beginning, to using sex to manipulate him and physical torture to drive in the ideas that she wanted him to think, the Hacesh that was now was nearly as crazy as Xyaban was. He wasn’t as prone to violence as she was, as Xyaban, while she did truly and deeply love him despite what she had done to him, with her command he could pushed into doing that which he wouldn’t have done before.

Xyaban hadn’t done what she did to make him a thing for her to use in a fight, that was just a biproduct. No, she had done to him what she had out of her own twisted sense of love and reality. When they had first made and made love Xyaban had been smitten with Hacesh, where as normally she was terrified of other dragons because of past abuses. When it became clear that Hacesh, while enjoying their time together, wasn’t about to settle down and have a bunch of babies with her like Xy wanted, Xyaban had resorted to more drastic measures to get what she wanted. Despite his huge strength advantage and his age Hacesh hadn’t been prepared for what the five-foot-tall dragoness was capable of.

And after everything here now stood Hacesh, holding Xyaban’s dragon baby doll she had made years ago, believing that the bundle of wool and cotton stuffing was one of his own offspring. Hacesh did have his own real offspring out in the world, but he wasn’t the best father and after making sure that the young were born healthy and the mother fine he would usually take off. Now he was taking care of this doll like it was his own and, in his mind, he loved Xyaban as much as she loved him.

”Mommy will be us a bit later, Kirin, don’t worry.” Hacesh grinned as she found a place to sit with his back to a tree. This was new as well, Hacesh being alone with Kirin away from Xyaban, since before Xy had rarely let him out of the cave let alone be alone away from it with Kirin. But she trusted him now more, and was believing her own lies on top of that, furthering her trust in him.

The big dragon settled in, Xyaban would gate to them in time, she knew where they were going to meet, and they would take a small journey from there as a twisted little happy family.

The beauty of the Valley was lost to the man but it didn't bother him - recently he had discovered that his lack of sight only annoyed him when it involved Alairia… Alairia; oh how she could twist his heart with only a few words, it really didn't take much for him to want to please her when the young woman spoke though for the life of him he could not have explained why she made him feel this way.
Raith had never felt anything in his life beyond loathing for those around him, people had always been tools for him to use in order to reach his goal… originally that was exactly why he had reached out to Alairia and yet… and yet… somehow she had changed his view of her and taken hold of his heart. Since spending time with her once more at the ball had only fueled further anger and frustration in the man's heart - he would never see her face, he would never be able to look into her eyes nor see her smile… killing Angela's Champion and stealing the man's life for his own had set off something within him, something dark had begun to grow, something that had lurked deep within him for some time… but now it was beginning to find it's way free. 

A voice caught his attention and the man stopped, listening carefully as he scented the air. Raising an eyebrow he cocked his head to one side, listening harder to confirm a suspicion he already had. Again the voice spoke and Raith scoffed loudly; he knew what this beast was - it was something that had set him down this dark path in the first place. Denied his own Draconic heritage it seemed insane that this… this thing was allowed to hold such magnificence while he was denied it himself. "Oh, Mummy may be along later, but you will not be here." Raith laughed as he brought himself out into the open."How pathetic. Dragons are meant to be creature of immense power and magnificence… and here you are, talking to… nothing like you have a real child, I have never heard anything more disgusting in my entire life." He spat. "I cannot have my Draconic side as I am supposed to and yet you get to have such power?! You deserve nothing!"

At the sound of the voice coming closer Hacesh got back to his feet and turned to face the stranger. At the words spoken Hacesh snarled. ”You dare speak like that about my son?!” Hacesh replied anger filling his voice. ”Walk away now, welp, while you can.” Hacesh warned as smoke started to trickle from his mouth in a clear warning and threat that, should action be taken against him or his baby he would act accordingly.

What Hacesh was not realising was, because of what Xyaban had done, he wasn’t thinking like he used to when it comes to a fight. In the last he would be more aware of his ability to gate Kirin away from danger and shift into his own forty foot self to easily combat this ordinarily small threat. However, Xyaban liked him much more in his normal two legged form, so had conditioned him to only shift forms on her command, and since she wasn’t around that wasn’t going to happen. He could also use telepathy to contact Xyaban and bring her here right away from whatever she was doing, but since he hadn’t been away from Xy’s side for long until now that hadn’t been something Xyaban or Hacesh had thought of.

So Hacesh was on his own now against this being, alone to protect his son.

Raith threw back his head and laughed; long dark hair cascading down his shoulders as the mirthless sound rang out around them. "Son? Son?!" He spat. "How pathetic and stupid are you to speak of a son when the only two heartbeats here are our own?!" He snarled, hands clenching into fists so hard that the knuckles turned white from the pressure and he drew blood from his palms as his nails cut into the skin. The threat went unnoticed; the anger Raith felt was now beginning to take over all rational thought and just as it had with the fight against the Champion the rage in his heart began to course through his veins, setting his body on fire. 

Suddenly the blind man shot forward until he was in front of the Dragon, he was ready to attack him when something touched his hand - something made of wool and soft material. Snatching it from the Dragon's grasp the man danced away; letting his hands explore the form before he sneered in disgust, holding it up by it's tail. "This is your son? You're even more disgusting than I first realised; to think that a Dragon could fall so far from grace as to call a doll it's own child. I shall do you a favour you abomination; I shall end your life and therefore rid you of your madness. It is the least I can do for my kin." He hissed, hands taking hold of the doll; twisting it until the material ripped and split in two. 

Discarding the broken doll with vehemence as though it physically offended him to touch it Raith drew his tainted blade and readied himself into a fighting stance. "Come Dragon, I shall give you a chance to fight; an honourable death might at least redeem you after this pathetic display."

((Full God mode permissions given to both sides during the fight))

Hacesh twitched when the man mentioned the heartbeats, somewhere deep inside of him that rang true, but the personality that Xyaban had implanted was overriding it and making him not register what was being said. Before Hacesh could react the man was in front of him and then away again in a blink and Kirin was gone from Hacesh’s arms.

Hacesh snarled. ”Give him back, now! He is no…” Before he could the man twisted the doll and tore it into and the stuffing hit the ground. However, that’s not what Hacesh saw in his eyes, he saw, well, his son being torn in half. Hacesh roared as fury pulsed through him as he charged forward, arms out stretched to grab this murderer and end his life as slowly as possible. Fire rose from the dragon’s maw and he unleashed a torrent of fire before him while he charged.

The dragon’s mind only had one thing on it at the moment; kill this man. Beyond that, rational thought was gone, if this was the old Hacesh this man wouldn’t likely stand much of chance against Hacesh. But in the state that poor Hacesh was, well, the advantage was out his hands now and in the hands of the baby killer before him.

Laughter rang out around them as the doll fell from Raith's hands; one foot stomping down on the broken thing and it's sorry looking innards. The feeling of it beneath his foot only angered him further - how could a Dragon allow itself to be mislead like this? How could a Dragon be so deplorable?! No, he would but an end to this madness; it was the least he could do for his kin… 

Flames rose in the Dragon's maw but Raith saw none of this, instead he heard the roar and the flicker of the flames - felt the air whipped away as the flames ate at it and he felt it's heat. At the last moment he span away - but he felt the flames catch his right shoulder and hissed a little as he felt the skin blister and smelt the singed flesh and clothing. There, there was the power befitting a Dragon! There was that raw, animalistic majesty he had been denied his entire life - at least he could give the creature some dignity before he ended it's sorry life. 

As the Dragon threw itself in his direction Raith flicked his tainted blade, slicing across it's shoulders. 

Hacesh could smell the burnt skin from his fire and swiped with his claws but the man dodged the attack. In reply Hacesh snarled in pain as he felt the blade slash across his shoulders and could smell the blood as it oozed down his skin. Turning to face the threat again Hacesh thrust his hands out and sent a blast of concussive force towards Raith, or where he thought Raith would be. Hacesh followed that up by another breath attack, but, instead of fire, this time Hacesh let out a torrent of ice from his maw. He was capable of naturally breath both fire and ice without magical assistance, which gave him an advantage in a fight when most thought he would only be capable of one element.

”You killed my son! If I don’t kill you, his mother will!” Hacesh roared and breathed in deep again to release more ice towards Raith. Hacesh was losing himself in his rage as it grew while he tried to kill Raith.

Dodging beneath the claws and dancing to one side Raith knew there was no point in dragging this fight out for too long - the Dragon had lost it's mind long before Raith's arrival but now he had lost his decorum as well, prolonging the inevitable was merely insulting to the creature and Raith hoped to offer the Dragon some of his dignity back at least. He could smell the Dragon; smell his rage and his anger and it made him all the easier to read and predict - while his moves could indeed be described as erratic they were also sloppy and loud which meant that dodging them was becoming increasingly easy. 

He felt the chill of the ice as he ducked to the floor; huh well that was a revelation was it not? "Then let her try." Raith snarled. The rage in his own heart had become calmer - it lingered but no longer ruled him. His fingertips tingled as he stood up and readied himself for what he knew he had to do. Slicing across both his palms the man sheathed his sword and launched himself at Hacesh; dancing around the Dragon he jumped onto his back and held on tightly. Sliced palms to the open wound he had given the Dragon across his shoulders he began to dig deep; feeling the power deep within himself - one of the few things he had inherited from his mother. The Touch… it was a powerful trait passed down the Minadrian bloodline and would allow Hacesh the honourable death Raith had promised him. 
As Raith's blood mingled with Hacesh's Raith felt the flow of the Dragon's life beneath his palms and began to draw it into himself. His shoulder, a minor wound anyway, healed as he began to take Hacesh's very life from him. While one began to fade the other became stronger because of it. "Go onto the next journey, step through the Gate and take the Path to the next life knowing that you have been saved from the torment of this one." Raith whispered. 

This murderer was fast and Hacesh was having trouble keeping up, if he could get a hold on the man he could tear him apart. Hacesh’s rage was blinding him, if he was his old self, he’d put up a hell of a fight, if he hadn’t talked down Raith from a fight to start with.

When Raith dodged the ice breath Hacesh roared again at the top of his lungs, clearing out any kind of living thing within earshot. There were few things that wanted to be around an angry dragon. But Raith came in fast and Hacesh lashed out with his claws, but they were dodged and Hacesh then felt Raith jump on his back. Between his wings so he couldn’t use them to bat the man off, instead Hacesh thrashed back and forth for a moment to try and shake him before reaching back to try and grab him.

But Raith was too slippery for him to grab, Hacesh’s rage making him not think his own actions through. Eventually the dragon’s fighting slowed as he felt himself become weaker as his life force started to leave him. With Hacesh being well over three thousand years old, he had a lot of life force to drain, so after a bit longer Hacesh swayed and dropped to his knees, all fight was gone from him as he had not the energy left to do so.

Raith’s words were barely heard through the haze starting to form over Hacesh’s mind as his eyes became heavy. He was starting to lose feeling in his arms and legs and slouched while he kneeled. He gave one final attempted at grabbing Raith off of his back, but the motion made his fall forward onto the ground as his eyes rolled back.

A deep-down part of Hacesh’s mind, however, was ok with this. He had lived a long life, and since he had become Xyaban’s, he hadn’t been himself. Perhaps this was for he best.

Moments later Hacesh gave one last heavy sigh of breath before his chest stopped rising and falling.

Gripping tightly Raith maintained his hold of the Dragon, keeping his bleeding palm pressed to Hacesh’s wound. There was a great deal of life in the Dragon; not that that was much of a surprise - given the lifespan and power of the beast it was going to take some time to drain the life from him. It was a pity - had he been assured that he could snap the Dragon out of whatever madness he had found him in then Raith might have just weakened him rather than kill him… sadly he was not skilled in such things - he was a Necromancer, it was Death he worked with.

He felt the Dragon struggle once more and he smiled slightly; good at least the beast had enough pride to keep trying to fight for his life. Raith could feel the surge of power rushing through his body; filling every part of him, the Dragon’s life force was immense and for a moment he almost let go - the power was almost too much for him but Raith lapped it up, a smile crossing the man’s face as he began to take it all in, making it a part of himself.

Finally the Dragon ceased his movements and he took his last breath, his body falling still. When Raith was convinced that the creature was in fact dead he relinquished his grip clenching and unclenching his fingers as they tingled, the wound on his palm now completely healed alongside the burn on his shoulder. ”May your next life be more peaceful than this one.” Raith uttered softly as he turned away from the Dragon’s corpse and left the way that he had come, power now coursing through ever part of his body.