The dragon's harem

Darkness burst forth, and the endless flames drowned. What Damnation feared would happen- was actually happening right before her eyes.

Vulkan had an expansion, a powerful, great, and unmatched one able to level entire continents. Arad, too, had one of no less power.

Arad’s void silently expanded out of his body and swallowed Damnation, her flames, her light, and her lava, engulfing the whole chamber and painting it black, snuffing all light.

The flames kept expanding inside Arad’s stomach, drowning in the endless expanses of his void.

If Arad wanted to suck anything into his stomach, he is limited by the dimension of his expansion as that act like a gate. This means that Arad couldn’t swallow a planet that didn’t fit inside his expansion whole. He must divide it up. Swallowing Damnation and Vulkan’s expansion whole wasn’t a problem for him. The problem was what came after, the painful explosion, and if that thing might rip his stomach open like what Eris did before to him when exploding her sun inside his stomach.

Damnation still didn’t give up, and why would she? While Arad’s expansion is limitless, she could still injure it if she managed to concentrate enough magic in one spot. She was more than capable of ripping the threads of magic with the firepower of her expansion, so why wouldn’t she be able to damage Arad’s stomach?

All Damnation needed to do was concentrate and focus her flames, rip a wound in the strange space of Arad’s stomach, and escape.

But it was then that a void, a gentle, alluring voice, rang through the nothingness of the void. Just hearing it made Damnation feel weird, hot and cold, bothered, and her body flinched, strange emotions burning deep within her heart, no, within Vulkan’s long-dead heart.

“Live a bright, happy life and die in a blaze of glory.”

In that instant, all of Vulkan’s flames faded away, disappearing as if they never existed, sucked into the alluring expanse of Nar’s bright red lips. The Fire Spirit Queen Nar floated there in front of Damnation, staring at the moving body of her long-dead Herald Vulkan.

The relationship between Nar and Vulkan was once the same as the relationship between Zephyr and Aella. Vulkan was the chosen one, the only person that Nar took under her and trained. She taught her the art of fire and turned into a master of pyromancy.

It was a strange sight, a one-foot-tall fairy teaching an 18km-tall Titan how to burn things down. The relationship between the two had extended far beyond just being a master and her student. Nar was like a mother to Vulkan. She took this ostracized, oversized Titan and gave her the love and care every child needed, and now, she was here to bury her once last time.

“Eris, give Vulkan her last rights.” Nar lifted her hands, and fire engulfed both her and Vulkan.

“Lived like a bright flame, illuminated the lives of others, and blessed them with warmth and heat. Now rest in peace, engulfed in the blazes of fire. From ashes, you were born, and to the ashes you shall return. Titan Vulkan, return to the embers of your mother.” Eris flew above them and illuminated the whole area with a blazing purple sun, watching over the process as Nar cremated Vulkan’s body.

Damnation struggled to escape Nar’s grasp, but she couldn’t move an inch. The irresistible will of the Fire Spirit Queen pushed Vulkan’s flames down, preventing Damnation from even struggling.

“Outer ghost began. I only seek to retrieve the body of my child.” She then looked into her eyes and growled, “GET YOUR FUCKING SLIMY HANDS OFF HER BODY!” Those words alone were enough to rip Damnation’s soul out of Vulkan’s body, violently cut and throw her off into the vast void of Arad’s stomach.

Damnation tried to return to Vulkan’s body, but that was an impossible feat. While Nar mostly stays in the form of a tiny fairy, her true self is a sentient, gigantic flame that could engulf the whole world. The flames burning Vulkan’s body were Nar’s body. The Titan had returned to the womb of the woman who wasn’t her true mother but still filled that role for her.

Vulkan’s body returned to its normal size of 18km tall, and Nar remained sitting on her shoulder, watching as the great existence burned to ash. Arad’s void only helped to collect the ashes in one place, giving the Spirit Queen one last chance to talk with her herald.

Even though Vulkan was dead and could neither hear nor reply to Nar, the Queen just kept talking, telling her about everything that happened in the past years. The many wars, the great flames, fires, the Volcanic Titans and their kingdom, how they thrived, and how they almost fell. She told her about herself and how she had to get Arad’s help to retrieve her body.

If not for Arad, Damnation might’ve managed to run away from Nar. As Nar expected, Zephyr’s words came true. It was worth the humiliation of being carried in his stomach. Getting Vulkan’s body back was all she wanted, and seeing her herald resting in peace was a dream she had for centuries.

The last thing Nar told Vulkan about was Amber. Nar had never taken a herald after Vulkan, but now that Vulkan was put to rest, Nar wanted to take another student, hoping that she’d become an even stronger herald, one that wouldn’t suffer the same fate.

“You’ve always hated being an only child. Look, you’ve got a little sister now. Her name is Amber. Her flames aren’t as hot as yours, but she has the heart and will to back herself up.” Nar flew away as the last of Vulkan’s bones turned into ash.

Arad’s void swirled up and collected all of the ash in a single, massive mountain and gave it to Nar. The Fire Spirit Queen pulled a ring and stored all of Vulkan’s ash in it. To keep it with her for the rest of time.

Zephyr flew down from the void and looked at her, “Vulkan is at rest now. I’ll get Arad to let you out if you want.”

“No, I’ll rest here until we get back.” Nar flew away and returned to Arad’s small world to rest for a bit.

On the other side, Arad was holding Damnation’s soul in his hand. “Now, what should I do with you?”