The dragon's harem

The bath ended, and Arad was back in his room, resting on the bed while looking at the ceiling. It has been a long time since he felt this tired after a fight, but that was a good thing. He can see that there are still many things out there that can take him down.

Eris and Mira were at the table beside the bed, talking with their angels over a cup of tea. Kali was on the balcony with Diana, and Isdis sat beside Arad on the bed.

“So? A god is dead. Just like that?” She looked at him with a smile, and he chuckled. “Like that? Alexander didn’t want to die. He lost all of his power and then got smacked in the face with the power of the sun, yet he still stood for a fight.”

Eris turned toward Arad and Isdis, “I’ve felt that. Amaterasu seemed annoyed more than pissed. But she still channelled more power than I ever felt from her.”

She looked at the angel standing in front of her.

The angel spoke in a calm tone, “She dropped a mini-sun. Alexander taking them was shocking, even to me. I didn’t know he was that tenacious.”

“He was a god of war. I would’ve been shocked if he didn’t stand back up.” Arad waved his hand, “You don’t reach that level of power without surviving death at least once.” He looked at Eris, “I bet he was just a normal human soldier, fought in many wars until he became known as a violent warmonger who fought like a monster on the battlefield.”

The angel nodded, “Alexander was a great man, some even called him Alexander the Great. He conquered many kingdoms, leading an inexhaustible army across the lands.”

Kali looked at them from the balcony, “Alexander was powerful, but that was it for him. That was his problem; he was just strong. He could’ve been better if he tried to change a bit, maybe listen to advice instead of thinking that his power can solve everything.”

She looked at Diana, “I’m certain Yog would’ve warned him before he turned into an abomination and given him a way out. But I bet he thought he could fight his way through it.”

Arad yawned, “I don’t blame him for not trusting Yog. That little magic goddess is quite the suspicious one.”

“Indeed.” Kali stretched her arms and jumped, reaching the bed in a single leap. “You should rest now. It’s rare for a dragon to get exhausted enough to need sleep.”

Kali smiled, “And believe me, you’re going to get even more exhausted later on.” She pointed outside the window, “Can you see it from here?”

Arad looked outside, and he could barely spot the branch showing from the horizon. “The world tree, Yggdrasil. Cerilla wanted to climb it.”

“The world tree is a whole world in and of itself. She -Adam and Lucifer’s older sister- is a powerful being, ancient, wise, and most importantly, a home for many powerful beings. Climbing it won’t be easy; it will be hard and deadly.”

Arad closed his eyes to take a nap. “Elves managed to climb it, what problem would I and Cerilla have?”

“The tree is sentient; she’ll challenge you as she sees fit.” Kali’s words echoed in his head as he fell asleep, and soon, he started dreaming.

An endless gray desert, a radiant golden sky, and a massive, majestic tree of pure gold and magic dominating the sky with its branches.

Arad was in his draconic form, but even he looked no bigger than a speck of dust beneath the tree’s godly trunk and radiant light.

Arad looked around, seeing the empty desert spanning endlessly behind him. This was a dream, but why is he aware that it’s a dream? Something didn’t seem right, and he was about to find out.

“Welcome home, Child of None, Father of All, welcome to endless beginning and end.” The voice of an elderly woman boomed across the sky, crackling with the wind and mixing with the rattle of the tree’s branches.

“Since when were dreams this annoying?” He looked at the tree.

“Is this a mind attack? If so, it’s not working.”

The tree remained silent, and then spoke, “If it were a mind attack, you would already be dead. I just wanted to talk, privately.”

“I doubt I’ve got a lot of things to talk about with the world tree. I didn’t even know trees could talk.” Arad looked, ready to talk, while his mind looked for a way to end this dream and wake up.

“At the start of time, I was the first mortal created by AO. The first living being that isn’t based on AO himself or the abominations. I’m the oldest in the universe, and I connect everything with my branches and roots. From the depths of hell and the abyss, to the highest peaks of the heavens.”

Arad could already guess more of that, and he was aware that the tree was trying to say something, but dancing around the bush.

“I guess you know I’m coming with Cerilla. What do you want?”

“You’re using me as a road to reach Sylph’s heaven. But you and Cerilla alone won’t make it. Bring Jasmine and Plum with you.” The tree’s branches danced, “Without those two, you’ll die.”

Arad smiled, “And what’s in your branches that could kill me? You look like a really burnable piece of wood, don’t you think so?”

The tree was silent for a second and then spoke, amused, “What could kill you? Me, of course. I want Jasmine to have a chat with Sylph, and I want to see Plum for myself. You either bring them with you, or I’ll make sure you never climb me.”

“And what do you want with them?” Arad started to get worried. The tree is ancient, older than all the gods by many eons. He didn’t have a single shred of doubt that she could kill him if she really wanted to.

“Jasmine and the dark elves have a right to speak about. That’s something you’ll have to ask her about.” The tree was silent for a second. “Plum. I have a personal problem with her.”

“Plum never did anything to you as far as I know.” Arad started to think about Plum. Did she get on the world tree’s bad side, or is there something good here?

“She has been spreading through the worlds, shoving her trunk up my ass like she has the right to. I believe you humans don’t find it amusing if someone did that to you.” The tree’s branches rustled.

“If she wants to spread her seeds, she’d better find another universe.”