How long had it been since the golden dragon heard someone call him by his real name?
No one left in this world should have known it, least of all his youngest granddaughter.
And her ability to take his flames with ease while proclaiming that she gave them to him...
Briefly, he recalled the descent and fusion of the dragon goddess and her fusion with Abaddon.
In addition, the fact that he and his seventh wife had a child no less than two weeks later and it grew at an alarming rate.
Even with all of the pieces to the puzzle laid out in front of him, Helios still did not want to believe it.
"Y-You... you can't be..."
Gabbrielle's eyes became slightly cold as she held out her hand.
A wisp of purely white energy left the chest of the golden dragon and returned directly into her hand.
Helios' eyes nearly shot out of his skull like some kind of old timey cartoon.
His powerful white flames that he was so proud of... they had just been taken away.
"When you annoyed me with your prayers for ninety days and nights for my blessing and a shred of my power, I so generously obliged you in the hopes that you would be silent.
Now you are ruler of this backwater world and you've forgotten who put you here."
With every word spoken, Helios trembled like a newborn who'd just suffered it's first spanking.
"Tiamat... take Lotan and get out of my sight this instant."
The lightning dragon took one last look at the captivating Abaddon and tossed the unconscious sea dragon over her shoulder before disappearing in a flash.
BANG!
Dropping to his knees, Helios banged his head against the floor as he fully prostrated in front of Gabbrielle and her family.
Abaddon and Seras rubbed their eyes simultaneously as if they were certain that they must have been witnessing a trick of the light.
Seras: 'The girls will never believe this.'
Abaddon: 'I wish Valerie had replicated more phones so that I could take a picture of this moment.'
"Great Mother, please forgive your blessed child's insolence... I-I simply never believed that I would meet you in this form and it has been so many centuries that-"
"Your excuses bore me. Ignorance is ignorance, no matter it's rhyme or reason." Gabbrielle said coldly.
This time, Seras and Abaddon wiped each other's eyes as they tried to ensure that reality was not deceiving either of them.
"Daughter... do you want to tell your parent's what we're missing from this picture?" Seras finally asked.
Gabbrielle turned around to find their father and mother sitting cross legged on the ground, clearly very interested.
Seras was nestled comfortably in Abaddon's lap, and the two of them were staring at their daughter like they were waiting to hear a tantalizing story.
Ignoring their childish antics, Gabbrielle ran her hands through her hair as she tried to explain.
"It is as I say. This one prayed to me fervently for help in defeating those lessers that plague his brethren, and I obliged him against my better judgement and at the behest of the old woman."
"Lessers??"
"Old woman??"
Gabbrielle thought hard but she was having a bit of trouble remembering the name of the insectile creatures.
"Bahamut, what are they called again?" She asked.
"Dragon slayers and dragon riders, Great Mother. "
"Right, those insects. And the old women is the wife of the creator, Asherah."
"What the hell are they?" Abaddon asked.
Gabbrielle looked at Helios for an explanation, and he shuddered a bit before hastily giving one out.
"They are scourges. Lesser smaller races that utilize the power of our kind either by taking their lives and absorbing our abilities or forcing them to live as mounts or concubines."
It was very clear that despite Gabbrielle's presence, Helios was becoming incredibly angry when he reflected on the fate of his brethren.
The princess however... seemed indifferent to it all.
"I did not care about the fates of those lost, as my belief was the if they were weak enough to be killed or even worse content to servitude, then they do not deserve my pity.
But Asherah brought this fervent child of mine into my realm and requested that I hear them out after he spent three months praying in the same spot like a monk."
"And you gave him... flame?" Seras asked.
Gabbrielle pouted somewhat and held out her hand to produce the simple 'flame' her mother was referring to.
"Mother... this power that father and I share is not simple flame. Are you familiar with the words, 'Let there be light.' ?
"Yes?"
"This is the light."
Abaddon and Seras' eyes widened considerably as they stared at the smoldering ball of white fire within their daughter's palm.
"This is origin flame, and only those touched by me can hope to manipulate or control it. It's power stretches as far as the light reaches within the universe, and it is capable of setting all reality ablaze."
She suddenly looked back down at Helios and returned his power back to him after a brief moment of consideration.
"He was placed in this world by the old woman, with the goal of growing the gift I gave him so that he could put an end to those insects at the appointed time."
"And I have been doing so diligently, Great Mother." Helios said shakily. "I even named myself after that sun god from Olympus, because I was so proud of the power you so graciously gave me."
"So I see." Gabbrielle said in an uninterested voice.
Honestly she found such a thing to be totally unnecessary and more than a little stupid, but she kept her mouth closed nonetheless in favor of more important matters.
"Are you still planning on holding my mother hostage here?"
"I-I wouldn't dream of it. She is free to come and go as she pleases." He replied immediately.
Gabbrielle looked down at her parents without saying a word, as if she was asking if they were satisfied with this result.
Abaddon and Seras made eye contact, and seemingly had an entire mental conversation within the span of a few short seconds.
The beautiful dragon suddenly stood up and kneeled in front of the already prostrating Helios.
"My King, I in no way intend to forsake my duties. I will comply with whatever you ask of me without fail, but I wish to live in Luxuria with my husband and our family."
"Your wish is granted. You are free to leave immediately."He said quickly.
'What the hell are you doing!? The Great Mother will surely punish me for making her own mother kneel!'
Helios was on the verge of fainting from anxiety.
Normally he would not have been this nervous and maintained a bit more composure, but there was just one problem.
He could not see through Gabbrielle at all.
For him to not even be able to see through her current level of power... he was sure that she must have retained a great deal of her strength.
However, that belief was largely untrue.
After giving her father the bulk of her power, Gabbrielle was now comparable to a fourth stage evolved at most.
She was getting stronger every day, but she would need several million years before she was even close to that level of power again.
The only reason that Helios could not see through Gabbrielle is just because she didn't want him to.
She still maintained a level of control over every true dragon in existence, and could manipulate them subtly or not so subtly.
After all, she was their maker.
Abaddon suddenly came forward and stood over both Helios and his wife. "Both of you... Stand up."
While Seras got up immediately, Helios was a bit slower.
And even when he stood up it was clear that he was looking at Abaddon differently than before.
Through some method or another, he had actually given birth to the mother of all dragons.
As for how such a thing was even possible... he hadn't the foggiest inclination.
"Do you know how disappointing it is to see you like this?" Abaddon suddenly asked.
"Hm?"
"I thought you a calamitous existence who was indomitable by all under the heavens. To suddenly see you prostrating is terribly shameful."
The way Abaddon was feeling now is the same way a kid would if they saw their favorite superhero smoking crack in an alley.
It was like everything he'd ever known about him was just gone up in smoke.
"There is no shame in acknowledging my maker, for she is the one who has given me life and rebirth. I will prostrate at her feet for two million years if I need to." He said defiantly.
"Don't." Gabbrielle warned.
"Yes, Great Mother." He said robotically.
Abaddon rolled his eyes as he gestured for Gabbrielle to come forward and patted her lightly on the head.
"She is your great granddaughter now, not some ancient mother goddess. Try to act with some degree of normalcy."
Helios looked at Gabbrielle's cold and regal gaze that contained a limitless depth of knowledge that encompassed everything.
There was no way in hell he would be able to do what was being asked.
"And you..."
"Eep!"
Abaddon suddenly grabbed Seras possessively and held her tightly so that she could not run away.
"Are you trying to make me jealous by bowing before another man in front of me? Can you accept the consequences that come with provoking me like this?"
It was unclear if Seras was more afraid or aroused by her husband's actions but the current flood crisis in her underwear would clarify any sense of miscommunication.
"I assure you, husband... I can remain on my knees before you as long as it takes for you to forgive me."
"I'll require proof of that devotion." He said with an evil smile.
"Why does mother have to be on her knees?" Gabbrielle suddenly asked. "Is this a means of punishment?"
Seras: "N-No!"
Abaddon: "Yes."
Helios: "Somewhat."
Seras' cheeks quickly turned red from embarrassment and she started pulling her husband towards the still opened portal.
"Can we go while I still have my dignity?"
Because Abaddon was just as pent up as she was ,he did not hesitate and he allowed her to pull him freely before he stopped and looked back at the golden dragon.
"I haven't forgotten our deal."
He picked Seras up and carried her through the portal without another word, and left Gabbrielle trailing behind.
The young girl looked like she might've had something to say, but elected not to in favor of getting out of here faster.
The portal closed as soon as she passed through, and Helios was left in somewhat of a daze from the previous events.
"I... need to lie down."
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