Elegy from Another World

After a day of oppressive silence, within the forbidden zone, the massive body of the white dragon Zoimem finally trembled slightly. Her icy eyelids lifted with difficulty, revealing a pair of bewildered, pained, yet wary green vertical pupils.

I stood at a safe distance and tried to communicate through my megaphone tentacles: "Can you speak, Zoimem?"

The dragon's head swayed slightly, and a low, hoarse gurgling sound came from its throat, clearly indicating that it did not possess vocal organs similar to those of humans. But this was expected.

"It's okay, we can communicate in another way." I gestured to Xiaobei, and the special mental contact hand gently adhered to Zoimem's head again.

The connection at the level of consciousness was re-established. This time, her thoughts were no longer as turbulent and chaotic as before, but filled with weakness, confusion, and deep sorrow.

"Who...are you? Where...is this?" A slightly hesitant but clear female voice entered my mind, carrying the deep echo unique to dragons.

【My name is Liscia. This is our home, a sanctuary.】I tried to keep my mind calm. 【You are safe, but we must temporarily restrict your freedom. We hope you understand.】

[Safety?] Zoimem's thoughts were bitter. [My body... my wings...]

"That was a last resort. Your previous aggression was too strong," I explained. "We'd like to know more: why did you attack us? And, how much do you know about yourself?"

[Attack...] Her thoughts drifted into memories, a programmed resolve settling in her mind. [Intruders...threatening the dragon eggs...must be eliminated. It is my duty.]

"Dragon eggs?" I guided the conversation. "What do those three eggs mean to you?"

"Everything." Her answer was unwavering, filled with an almost instinctive protective instinct. "They are my cubs, and I must protect them until they hatch. This is the meaning of my existence."

Do you know how you were born? Who is your mate? When was the egg laid?

A series of questions caused Zoimem's thoughts to visibly stagnate and become confused. [Born... Memories are hazy... There's only one voice... Telling me my name and responsibilities... My mate? The egg... It's always been there... For thousands of years...] Her thoughts began to become restless, and whenever she touched upon these core questions, that invisible sense of constraint seemed to come back into play.

"What did that sound like?" I pressed.

[Cold... devoid of emotion... like the law itself...] Zoymem's thoughts revealed fear.

The conversation lasted a long time, and I roughly confirmed my previous memories: she was a created guardian whose memories and thoughts were deliberately restricted and guided, and whose thousands of years of solitary guardianship were built on a potentially nonexistent foundation.

The next day, Tia rushed back, covered in dust, with three dragon eggs carefully wrapped in soft fabric, as well as dragon limbs and wings that had been properly preserved.

"Lady Liscia, I've brought everything back!" Tia placed the package on the ground.

I walked over and reached out to touch one of the dragon eggs. The feeling in my hand made my heart sink—it was too light, completely lacking the solidity that a living being should have. An ominous premonition welled up in my heart.

"Tia, bring me a bright light."

Tia conjured a sphere of light and brought it close to the dragon egg. The light shone through the translucent shell, revealing the interior—completely empty!

"This... is hollow?!" Tia exclaimed in shock.

I picked up the egg, confirming its shape by touch. Taking the dagger Tia handed me, I carefully made a cut in the shell—it was indeed empty! The inner shell was smooth, without any trace of embryonic development, like a meticulously crafted…work of art.

We checked the other two eggs, and the result was exactly the same—they were both empty shells!

"What on earth is going on?!" Tia was completely dumbfounded.

I also felt a sense of absurdity and chill. We looked at Zoimem, who was bound by tentacles, and transmitted this discovery directly to her through our mental connection.

Zoimem's mind froze, as if unable to process the information. Then, an indescribable, immense shock swept through her consciousness. The object she had protected for thousands of years, fought for, and given everything for, had never existed in the first place? Her entire dragon life, the meaning of her existence, was instantly emptied, turning into a complete joke.

Her mind went completely blank, a deathly silence descended, as if she had lost even the ability to think.

We could all feel the despair that could freeze one's soul. An eerie silence fell over the entire prison area, broken only by Zoimem's increasingly heavy breathing.

After waiting for about an hour, the deathly silence was finally broken, turning into an overwhelming grief.

"Woo-woo-woo-woo-woo!!!"

In reality, Zoimem raised her massive head and let out a heart-wrenching dragon roar, filled with endless sorrow and despair! The sound was unlike a battle roar; it was more like a heartbroken wail, shaking the entire prison area. Large, crystal-clear tears, like a burst dam, gushed from her enormous dragon eyes, rolling onto the ground with soft "plop" sounds.

We were all stunned by this tragic scene. Even a dragon, when faced with such immense deception and emptiness, would reveal such human sorrow.

"Let her cry..." I sighed and said to Tia and Xiaobei, "A blow like this would be unbearable for anyone."

Seeing Zoimem, who was crying and instinctively trying to wipe away her tears with her forelimbs but could only tremble helplessly because she was restrained, my heart softened.

"Xiaobei, Tia, let's put her limbs back on." I made the decision. "Her wings aren't ready yet, but at least... let her move a little and wipe her tears. She's already pitiful enough."

Neither Xiaobei nor Tia objected. The tentacles carefully loosened their restraints on the roots of the limbs. Tia cast healing magic to promote wound healing and nerve reconnection, while Xiaobei delicately manipulated the tentacles to assist in fixation. The process went smoothly. Zoimem seemed completely immersed in immense grief, showing no reaction to the changes in her body.

After her limbs were reattached, she instinctively used her newly freed forelimbs (dragon claws) to clumsily wipe away the tears that kept flowing, looking like a child who had lost her most precious possession, helpless and pitiful.

The cries echoed through the cave for a very long time. We stood silently by, our hearts filled with complex emotions.