Deviant: No Longer Human

!!

Ka-Boom!

But fate, it seemed, had other plans. Before Asmodeous could savor his victory, the sky itself rebelled against the injustice, splitting apart with a roar that silenced all other sounds.

Roaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarr!

The air trembled, the very earth shook, and in that moment of cosmic upheaval, something ancient and powerful made its presence known.

"Huh?" Asmodeous\'s moment of triumph was cut short, confusion etching his features as darkness swallowed the daylight, casting an ominous shadow over the battlefield.

"Wha—arrghhhhnodjdkh!"

A scream of terror and pain—the likes of which had never before escaped Asmodeous\'s lips—pierced the air. In an instant, a massive maw, lined with razor-sharp teeth, descended from the heavens, engulfing him whole.

Crunch... Crunch...

The sound of Asmodeous being devoured resonated through the silent witnesses, a grim reminder of the power that lurked beyond their understanding.

In the aftermath, silence reigned, broken only by the ragged breaths of the survivors.

"..."

"..."

"..."

Wang Xiao, Ericka, and Seraphine remained frozen, their eyes locked on the behemoth before them.

Its eyes shone with a yellowish light, alien and unfathomable, while its body, covered in white scales, blended seamlessly with the snow around them.

The creature\'s wings, vast and imposing, unfurled behind it, casting a shadow that spoke of ancient power and majesty.

The dragon, the mythical beast of legends, seemed almost... annoyed?

Its massive eyes rolled in what could only be interpreted as exasperation, as if it had been drawn away from a particularly engaging dragon pastime to deal with this mess.

"Wt—!?" Wang Xiao was dumbstruck, his mind grappling with the reality that a dragon—a creature of myth and legend—stood before them, not just any dragon, but one of colossal size, its entire form impossible to take in at a single glance.

The dragon, for its part, seemed to give a huff that stirred the snow around them, its breath a visible puff in the cold air.

It was as if the creature was sighing at the inconvenience of having to display its might to such an insignificant audience.

A new realization gripped Wang Xiao, an instinctual understanding that flight was futile against such a being.

This dragon, this guardian of the skies, held their fates in its claws, capable of extinguishing their lives with as much thought as one might give to snuffing out a candle.

And he was right. In the presence of such a creature, all plans, all strategies, and all thoughts of resistance paled.

They stood at the mercy of a being that belonged more to the realm of dreams and nightmares than to their reality.

"Are you alright?" In the midst of the silent aftermath, a gentle melody pierced the tension, a soothing sound that seemed almost out of place in the cold, harsh environment of place.

Whoosh!

And then, with a graceful movement that commanded the attention of all present, a figure leaped from the dragon\'s back, landing with an elegance that contrasted the chaos of moments before.

The newcomer, with silver hair cascading like a waterfall of moonlight, caused a stir among the group. Her arrival was as unexpected as it was dramatic, leaving Ericka, Seraphine, and Wang Xiao in a state of startled surprise.

Wang Xiao, in particular, found his gaze drawn to her rosy cheeks, her fair complexion that seemed to radiate its own light, and the distinctive teal jacket that sparked a flicker of recognition in his mind.

"It\'s you..." His voice was a mixture of suprise and realization, the words barely a whisper.

The flower girl from Icevale, the very one he had sought without success, now stood before him, inexplicably allied with a dragon.

Aurora\'s expression shifted, a shadow passing over her features. "I have a name, Aurora," she corrected him, her sigh cutting through the tension as she addressed the group\'s stunned expressions.

Rooaaar!

The dragon\'s roar, a sound of ancient power, seemed to echo Aurora\'s introduction, though the resulting gale sent their hair into disarray, a wild dance in the wind.

Hiss!

At a distance, Seraphine and Ericka wore expressions of sheer terror, their faces drained of color as the dragon\'s gaze swept over them. Aurora, noting their fright, let out a resigned sigh and glanced towards them, a gesture of acknowledgment that prompted an immediate reaction.

Thud! Thud!

In the next moment, both women succumbed to their fear, collapsing into unconsciousness. Wang Xiao, witnessing this and standing perilously close to Aurora and the dragon, instinctively took a step back.

Aurora turned to face him once more, her eyes momentarily reflecting the icy depths of a winter storm before softening. "They\'re only asleep, haven\'t died yet," she assured him, her lips curving into a gentle smile. "But if they remain exposed to the cold too long, they might not wake up."

Wang Xiao\'s gaze darted between Aurora and his fallen companions, a silent debate raging within him. With a determined nod, he moved to lift Seraphine and Ericka, only to freeze as the reality of his missing hand dawned on him once again.

Caught in this absurd situation, Wang Xiao couldn\'t help but let out a frustrated chuckle.

Here he was, standing in the aftermath of a confrontation with a godlike being, in the company of a woman and her dragon, contemplating how to carry his unconscious friends to safety with one hand.

"..."

Slightly embarrassed by his own oversight, Wang Xiao resorted to using his psychokinetic abilities to levitate Ericka and Seraphina\'s unconscious forms.

Casting a dark look back towards Aurora, who responded with a subtle smile, he propelled himself into the air, leaving the scene behind.

Once he was out of sight, Aurora\'s expression shifted, the smile fading into something more contemplative. "Aura, do you also think I might be a bit... Stupid?" she asked, half in jest, half in earnest self-reflection.

Whuff!

Aura, the dragon, lowered its massive head towards her, its breath a warm gust against the chill air.

Aurora sighed, the weight of her thoughts growing.

The dragon\'s response, a gentle exhalation, left Aurora to interpret its meaning—agreement, denial, or perhaps simple empathy, symbolising it\'s intelligent nature.