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The Threat of All Realities

"We're being attacked? But we did not see anyone..."

"He said Solid enemies. They materialized out of nowhere. Everyone's known this is a thing."

"Solids? You mean the ghosts?"

"Resurrected ones, and those who don't want to reason. There's a lot of them back on Terra."

"Wait. You said it's a thing," said Raithorakh. "You mean, this is not the first or second time?"

"Everyone on both Wind of Change and the _St. Vincent_lost the chance to witness the initial action towards them. In just two years, they destroyed five major space hubs after their attacks, while unintentional, put them in their cross-fire. Some cooperate, like the Aquran explorer fleet and the Saurian war fleet, but that's not many. We are only winning because of our superior technology."

"Well, that's reassur-

There was another rock, followed by something exploding. They all managed to hold onto something and avoided getting thrown off.

"That doesn't mean we have the necessary weapons. This was a hospital ship!"

"Was?"

"Backup ship, for the intergalactic travel," said the engineer. "Our primary ship goes on without a hitch."

"So, you converted it back to its primary form, then?"

"Yes, but it's not a highly offensive one."

"That explains things," said Raithorakh. "And I wish we're not in space. I can at least help."

"Having a dragon as a starship passenger is wrong in many ways."

"I hate everything about that sentence."

Meanwhile, up on the bridge, the sudden appearance of the Solids caught everyone unaware. Right after going out of FTL, they were quickly riddled with energy attacks that drained a lot of their power to sustain the shield, especially since they had just got out of the vortex. As a result, one of the shots bypassed the thin shield and hit the hull of the ship. Fortunately, the ship's hull was reflective, meaning that it managed to deflect most of the light-based energy shot. It still caused major structural damage under that part of the hull.

Pritchard and Lunera tried their best to maintain chain of command while Dairyu, Selis, and the Aquran twins helped coordinate interior problems like fire and stuff. Both Dairyu and Seiryu's elemental controls were very useful in many situations, such as fire-gutted rooms. Seiryu made sure that some fire could be extinguished by strategic use of water, while Dairyu managed to create a vacuum in a room that quench fire that could not be extinguished by water or fire extinguisher system. As they had limited resources and general overwhelming of fire suppressant system, these two helped immensely.

Capisa and the ship's helmsman were trying their best to maneuver the ship among the chaotic attack from both sides. It was harder for Capisa as the ship was far bigger than he was used to, and carried a big load in the form of crews, shuttle ships, and a dragon. While his predicament was lessened somewhat with the AI-driven systems, he tended not to trust one and let the AI maintain life support, even though it was also a bad idea. He tried his best for evasive maneuvers, but a ship as big as a dreadnought, with less weaponries and weaker shield, was prime target, along with the space station.

The ingenious and creative use of shielding provided by Kalesa let the ship reached the heavily-weaponized Scyllan space station with an almost depleted shield and damage in parts of its hull due to bypasses. The ship managed to hold on, but many were injured or otherwise killed from the unexpected assault.

The main crew of the Wind of Change managed to hold on, but they, too, sustained serious injuries. Dairyu, whose air-based elemental ability required him to maintain vacuum, went too close to a room and ended up being trapped under collapsed foundation, right before the whole room collapsed. He broke a few bones but managed to stay conscious, in courtesy of his mutated body. Rose, who was helping the medical crew and research crew in securing their experiments, was blown away by an explosion, though it did not cause major harm except burned fur and cracked ribs. Both Calventis and Dajar did not sustain serious damage, mainly because they were in the engine room, where the only damage there was radiation leak. As Calventis (A Scylla) and Dajar (wearing enviro-suit) were impervious to radiation, they did not get major radiation sickness, though Calventis sustained bruises due to the ship making evasive maneuvers, and Dajar's suit system was damaged and he almost suffocated due to unregulated water.

Xsatuki, despite of not doing anything major, was also injured, mostly because of his long body. The Viper's serpentine physique made him less perceptive and ended up injuring most of his lower body either because it was caught in some rubble, caught in malfunctioning doors, or cut by something falling and he was unaware of it until the pain registered. It was embarrassing for him, but others, especially Selis, tried to remind him that his serpentine body was too big, and it could not be helped that he would be injured by trivial stuffs. He still felt like an idiot, though.

Of the 400 something crew, around 50 of them was killed, mostly in areas that were exposed to the vacuum of space and areas where the structure collapsed due to external damage. The hull held on, which mean that St. Vincent would not broke, a testament for its durability being a sister ship to an intergalactic cruiser Pineapple Express.

Everyone was glad that they survived a war of old, but were also devastated by its massive scale and the destruction, which did not leave any mark due to Solids disintegrating after their second life expired. Still, the way they were destroyed, and how they were simply a moment in time that almost killed them, was something that they felt overwhelming enough.

The Scyllan space station was, thankfully, equipped with emergencies regarding dreadnought-class ships, one which St. Vincent was one. They quickly scrambled to help the crews while the rest tried their best to keep attackers away from their position. They mostly succeeded due to their advanced technology.

Seiryu, who was not seriously injured, walked out and met with Raithorakh. The dragon walked out of the ship's hangar bay to a spacious place where he could at least walk. The appearance of a cyber-enhanced dragon seemed so out of place, but with everything that had happened, the black-scaled draconian just didn't care anymore. The fact that he was still standing there was also something so out of place.

"Hello, Seiryu," said Raithorakh. "How's Dairyu?"

"He'll live," he said. "He broke most of his bones after being crushed by the roof. Thankfully, his Warrior mutation gives him greater endurance than most Orients, and the broken bones did not damage any vital organs. He'll be out of action for a day."

"That's great. I thought he would be permanently out of action."

"It's not bad enough. I mean, he doesn't hurt anything other than his bones. He doesn't need any cybernetic enhancement to go on. Don't worry. He won't return to the living world like me."

"I guess so. How about you?"

"Me?"

"Your feelings. You may be a resurrected ghost, but you must've some feelings to go with it. Otherwise, you might not feel sadness, or sympathy."

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean. I was a killer back in my living days, and a good one at that."

"Everyone is a killer one way or another, especially if they lived through a war."

"How about you? You may be a dragon in any sense, but you must've been involved in a war or two."

"I have, as a mount and friend to my rider, Richard."

"So, he's your rider, huh? Make sense. There must be a degree of respect between a human and a dragon to let him ride your back."

"It's a simple matter, really. Richard saved me by installing my cybernetic parts. Well, technically, it's not him, but a mysterious gentleman who I suspect is stranded in the past."

"That gentleman must've been a cybernetic engineer, then, to be able to install a nano-construct cybernetic enhancement like this one."

"I heard it's quite contemporary."

"Not widely used, though, at least during my time alive. They may have made it work 30 years since then."

"I won't know it until I asked an expert."

"How about you? Have you consider starting a new life here?"

"No, and I don't plan to. My presence here is an anomaly, and I do not want to be called the only dragon in the universe."

"I'm sure there are draconic looking creatures somewhere out there."

"But I'm the only one from an alternate world."

"And you're also the only one with a 23rdcentury cyber-prosthetics in that draconian world. In any sense, you're a visitor in that world, too."

Seiryu then sighed. "I won't stop you from trying to return home, unless there's a risk involved. You were the one who told us about the dangers of opening an interdimensional portal with the open wound analogy."

"Yes, and I'm well-aware of that. Accidents like this do happen, but there's one twist in it."

"And that is?"

"I turned back to my original form, as did Richard. It may not have any problems for him But, for me?"

Seiryu quickly grasped what Raithorakh meant. Now that he was a fully-grown dragon, his body could no longer fit the slightly bigger, but smaller interior, Wind of Change. Repurposing St. Vincent as an interdimensional portal generator was a great task, not to mention too much to return two stranded individuals while risking the lives of 400 or so crew.

Raithorakh had been pondering about it ever since he came on board the space station. It was a mistake crossing the portal with Richard. It was simply done for his curiosity, as he was curious and interested in many things ever since he was revived by cybernetic parts. Like what Richard said earlier, everything about a dragon in space was a mistake. Still, nothing could be done, as it had already happened, unless they turned back time.

The dragon was an oddity for the Scyllas, who also had their version of dragons that had also gone extinct in ancient times. They were, however, more interested in the clearly, but not quite, contemporary nano-construct cyber-prosthetic Raithorakh had, one that replaced parts of his body, two front limbs, parts of his face, and the tip of his tail. They noticed that everything was contemporary and could be easily duplicated, with Raithorakh feeling less special over their remarks, and the fact that it was quite common for Scyllas suffering from war injuries to have their bodies enhanced with cybernetics so they could continue, unless they chose otherwise.

Raithorakh had not felt a weight on his back for many years, but when Richard wanted to try and ride on the dragon's back, for old time's sake, he complied. Years of being a draconian seemed to rob his resistance to back weight, but he slowly adapted, especially considering the fact that Richard, now human, weighed far less than his draconian form.

They walked on the vast space station while watching the carnage outside. It seemed magnificent to see such destruction being so pretty to look, with exchanges of energy shots looked like a dance of light. It may look like a magnificent sight, if it wasn't a morbid one. They both looked at it in sadness.

"Such beauty...with so many deaths," said Raithorakh. "Even for a dragon, it is ridiculous."

"Maybe because it is beyond dragons," said Richard. "The universe is far bigger than our world, their world, and our home world."

"Indeed, Richard. For so many years, I thought my kind is the apex, without considering the fact that human potential is limitless."

"Except if you count in draconians."

Raithorakh chuckled. "The best of both kinds. No wonder they are myths, with the magic forgotten by time. Speaking of magic, everything in this world, and everything that happened in it...seemed to be far too spectacular to be explained by science."

"You found any information or research about this."

"No. It's quite new for them, and for us. It is too fantastical to be considered scientific fact. It is as if we reached a place where magic is universal."

"Everything can be explained, one way or another. You just can't fathom the truth."

The voice was not from Richard, so they turned their heads to the source. There was a draconian wearing a white robe and carrying a staff, looking like a mage of sorts.

"Who are you?" said Raithorakh.

"I am one of the beings with knowledge," said the figure. "But, I have no time for idle chit-chat. Your space station is in danger."

"Danger?"

"I'm afraid I have no power over him. Be cautious, Raithorakh, Richard. Everything has fallen in place. The end has started."

"Why are you telling us this? We're not even from our world."

"Like I said. Everything has fallen in place."

After he said that, the whole scenery of destruction suddenly became dark, as if the window's anti-glare was activated. All of the sudden, the whole space station went dark, with the lights went off and everything turned off. It was silent all of the sudden, except for those who were wondering why the lights were out.

Both Richard and Raithorakh suddenly felt a chill, as if death walked in front of them. They quickly realized something was wrong and both readied themselves for a fight.

In the darkness, there was only silence, and a silence in space was something dangerous and terrifying at the same time. Both Raithorakh and Richard looked around, trying to find where the source of dread was. The mage figure was gone as the surrounding went into darkness. They tried their best to go as close as they could, to prevent back ambush.

Suddenly, they heard a noise. They turned towards that noise, but sighed in relief when they saw a familiar face: Seiryu.

"It's a relief to see familiar faces," said Richard.

"Wait, Richard. Something's not right," said Raithorakh. "We can't see anyone around us, so why he's the only one we can see?"

Right after he said that, 'Seiryu' drew his sword and pointed it towards them. Water suddenly burst out from behind him, creating a tidal wave towards the two. They were both engulfed by it, being caught unaware, but it was nothing to a dragon. Raithorakh shielded Richard with his wing as Richard used his own magic to electrify the water. It somehow worked, but 'Seiryu' seemed unfazed.

"What the hell, Seiryu?! If this is a sick joke..."

Raithorakh shot a laser beam through his maw, which was reflected by a personal shield. He then noticed that the Orient in front of him was not the one he talked with some moments ago. In a glance, he may look the same, but only a dragon could make a difference of horn length and size, and Seiryu's cervine horn was clearly different.

"Richard, that's not Seiryu," said Raithorakh.

"Not him? I don't think there's any other Orient with that kind of horn."

"The horns are the problem. They are of different form than the one we know."

"You look at a drake's horn?"

"Is that wrong?"

"Not at this moment. We'll talk about it later!"

'Seiryu' resumed its attack, and it was far more powerful than before. The water, however, turned to ice, which surprised them, convincing both that this 'Seiryu' was not the one they knew.

"This is going to be a problem," said Richard. "We're in space, and we're fighting not-Seiryu."

"We'll think of a way. Right now, try and find a way to get out of here."

***

The encroaching darkness affected the whole station. Unlike Richard and Raithorakh, however, everyone quickly realized what situation they were in. Everyone were fighting against their doppelganger. Evil doppelganger who looked similar, but with subtle differences that was hard to notice at first. Seiryu, who was walking towards Dairyu after talking with Raithorakh, was fighting against the same Black Orient, but with a noticeable difference, most notably was the fact that he was wearing an odd, feudal era armor, but with magically-imbued sword that could match Seiryu's special Warrior sword. He quickly knew this Dairyu was different because he had a long white hair covering most of his draconian head, and possessing a red pupil instead of Dairyu's golden, on top of having black sclera.

"I don't know who you're supposed to be, but don't fuck with me," said Seiryu while making a gesture. He pulled out water from a nearby fountain and attack 'Dairyu', who promptly used a powerful air pressure to push the water aside, given how it had a low force.

"Never have I seen such ferocity from a water dragonkin," said 'Dairyu', making a stance. "Your kind never want to lift a finger to fight."

"Well, this kind is not your usual drug. Who the fuck are you, anyway? You're Dairyu Tsukasa at a glance, but clearly, you're not my Dairyu. Is this darkness your work?"

"I may wield the power of wind, but alas, this is not my doing," said 'Dairyu'. "And I am not Dairyu Tsukasa. I am Dairyu of clan Shimada, and you should call me Great Emperor Dairyu, Black Warrior."

"Great Emperor?"

"Fear my reckoning, warrior."

He lunged forward, and Seiryu was held on the defensive. He sparingly used his water abilities and his sword skills to fend off Shimada, but it was clear that, like the black Orient, Shimada was also enhanced by something, presumably dark magic. Unlike Seiryu, however, Shimada was clearly enhanced more, and that enhancement somehow made him emanate a vile aura.

Near where Seiryu was, Capisa was fighting against himself, a doppelganger named Capras S'har, who was an unhinged Aquros with unpredictable fighting style that made Capisa off-guard, and also the fact that he was so unhinged that his armor was nothing but the one providing him filtered water air. But, unlike Seiryu, he ended his fight quickly. After Capras was caught off-guard by Capisa's grenade, he was shot point blank by a low-powered positron gun. While it wasn't enough to cause hull damage, it was enough to penetrate an Aquros's skull, breaking the enviro-suit and drenching it with dark blue blood. Capisa just looked at his doppelganger's body and said, "Good thing you're an insane psycho. If you're a well-composed one, the trick might not work. I know it's weird to say this to myself, but let's hope Leviathan gives you a just punishment, and peace for those you've claimed."

In the infirmary ward, Rose was ambushed by her own doppelganger, though she could not be described as evil. In an ironic twist, Rose's doppelganger, Rosa McGowan, was a human werewolf hunter from a gothic reality. They both seemed to be reluctant to fight each other, but Rose's attempt to protect herself, and Rosa's creed to hunt down all werewolves, somehow made the fight odd.

"Seriously. Of all the bloody things in the multiverse, I got paired with a bloody werewolf hunter? Is this a joke?"

"I still can't believe there's one of me who is a werewolf," said Rosa, with a thick Northern Vitania accent. "And a central folk at that. Hey, you."

"Yes?"

"Your family's a werewolf, eh? I can see it in you. You're born one."

"And you're quite level-headed for a hunter," said Rose.

"No werewolves in my place can talk like this. Even someone that's born wolf."

"Still, you have all those silver that can kill one. Say, why don't we group up?"

Rosa scoffed. "Group up? With a werewolf? Oh, my pa will kill me for that."

"Except your father's not here, and we're having trouble lately. You're the least of it."

They were interrupted by another one, now a full werewolf with white fur. Both Rose and Rosa quickly knew that this new one was different, and had a strong killing intent.

"That your target?" asked Rose.

"This is something even worse," said Rosa while pulling out her silver knife. "A hellhound. Same weakness, but less effective."

"So, silver does not burn this kind?"

"Silver just give an edge to cut its coat."

"How about werewolf claws?"

"You're free to try."

As they did so, Raithorakh and Richard, who managed to run away from Seiryu's elemental powers, found themselves lost in darkness. The whole place suddenly turned into something different, with dead bodies and claustrophobic walls that barely fit Raithorakh, along with blood-red colored 'paint' that may or may not be blood.

Raithorakh realized what they were against. He knew one individual, one dragon, that could do such thing. Unfortunately for him, he had no idea on how to counter it, along with the encroaching darkness that spread chaos and malice. He had never been hit with such potent illusion, one that she could do in her death angel form. It was her specialty.

"Richard, don't lose your nerve," said Raithorakh. "This is exactly like Avila's illusion."

"Exactly like her, or something worse?"

"Can you imagine _anything_worse than the angel of death herself?"

"Her mom?" replied Richard blankly.

Raithorakh sighed. "You got a point there. Stay near me."

Richard did so, but the illusion caught up. Richard started to see visions of death and destruction of an urban area, one that he recognized as Milsteir. He saw the bodies of his draconian friends strewn across the bloodied main street, rotting and dead. This also include his wife, and his children, which started to unnerve him.

Raithorakh saw the way he was killed, many years ago, as a witness. He saw how parts of his dragon body was blown off by the demonic entity that also threw him across the land through a portal. For the dragon, it was an eye-opening experience, for he quickly realized that dragons, much like humans, were also vulnerable to pride, and with that, he learned a hard lesson. His case, however, was a unique one, as those dragons whose pride failed them usually fell. He did not, and he rose up for the sake of it.

His re-discovery of the hope he felt during the moments of death, his greatest fear, freed him from the illusion. He wondered if he was a dragon, or was it because of acknowledging the past. The dragon was not sure, for Richard's fear was clearly something that made his usually tough attitude down to something that displayed fear.

"Richard, snap out of it," said Raithorakh reassuringly. "It's an illusion. All of it."

Richard did not reply. He had clearly gone far in and was in the verge of being lost. Raithorakh needed to try something that could help him. Encouragement, giving hope, and even sympathizing somehow didn't work. It did not reach his ears. The illusion had started to take a grasp on him.

Even for a dragon who had lived among humans, he had started to lose his own plan. The dispel of his own illusion was also temporary, and they started to reach him, too. He tried his best to cling to his will and hope, and still hoped for the best, while asking questions about who, what, and why everything happened for the past minutes or so. Something terribly powerful was preying against them, and it was winning.

That was when he took a glimpse of a feathered-winged black-scaled dragon that may or may not be the one he personally knew. Its presence 'blew' all the illusion away, and it approached him, caressing his face with its head, growling softly.

"Are you the angel of death?" said Raithorakh, still thinking it was an illusion. "So, the ultimate fear is the fear of death, after all."

"Sorry to disappoint you, Raithorakh, but it is me, your old friend."

His expression turned from acceptance to surprise, then relief when he saw that the dragon wasn't lying. It was his old friend, Avila.

Richard, who was also freed from his fear-induced illusion, immediately recognize her, possibly because of her characteristic eyes and general difference from the other Argoons he knew. It was her.

"Avila?" said Richard.

"The one and only," she replied. "Alive and still kicking."

"Wait. If you're here, where's...?"

Avila smiled.

"He is doing his best: saving others."

The darkness did not dissipate in many other areas, however, but the illusion was gone. The Seiryu that was chasing Richard and Raithorakh faced off against a mysterious dragon that popped out of nowhere, but he was unceremoniously killed when he was impaled by a nearby tree, which was apparently not a hologram or a synthetic. It grew past its planter and its roots creeped towards 'Seiryu' before impaling him through his armor. He kept walking, silently, like a ghost.

Both the prime Seiryu and the alternate Dairyu were still locked in their own battle in the darkness, with Seiryu losing. He did not realize that the Dairyu in front of him had a particularly evil aura that strengthened him, and this caused Seiryu, who was caught unaware of it, to be soundly defeated.

Before 'Dairyu' dealt the killing blow, however, something flew towards him from within the darkness. It was silent and it came out of nowhere. When 'Dairyu' heard the noise, it was already too late. The thing sliced his neck, the only part where the armor was the thinnest, decapitating the evil Orient and spurting blood everywhere, even to a surprised Seiryu.

He then looked towards where the thing landed. It was a sickle sword.

"This is the final circle of hell?" said a voice. "Somehow, it's underwhelming."

Seiryu then called out the owner of the voice.

"Who's there? Did you throw the sword?"

"Yeah. You...well, you don't seem to be a demon. I can't sense demonic aura within you."

"Will you come a little bit closer? This whole place is covered in darkness."

Seiryu was ready to attack this new person, and he lifted his black sword, getting ready if the person was another threat. He was surprised by his remark.

"Don't raise your sword if you don't want to be considered a threat. I can sense your aggression."

"Then come close. I'll lower..."

"It doesn't matter if you still regard me as a threat. In fact..."

The figure walked closer, and when he was within distance, Seiryu looked towards him and was again, surprised. The first thing he saw was that he was a black-furred jackal person, and the second thing he noticed was the faded golden pupil this jackal person had, and the fact that he was not looking towards him.

"You're blind?"

"What do you think?"

"Haven't seen a blind person that often."

"Haven't seen? Ah, what the hell. Anyway, I'm surprised you can speak Hordo despite of not being a demon."

"Universal translator helps," said Seiryu, before he felt the pain of fighting 'Dairyu' came rushing in. The jackal rushed towards him and tried to help him up, but his blindness did not help, so Seiryu grabbed his hand and supported himself on his back.

Elsewhere, Rosa and Rose were struggling to fight the hellhound werewolf, who was clearly a feral and too powerful for both. For Rose, it was the first time she ever believed a hellhound existed, and for Rosa, it was a strategic disadvantage. There were only a handful of hunters who survived being attacked by a hellhound, and all of them lost something one way or another, and only one legendary hunter managed to kill one.

As they tried to retreat, given the infirmary's cramped space and its mostly damaged nature, they ran out to the darkened corridor, surprised by the darkness. They knew it was a mistake, but Rose's higher level of senses caught the hellhound's scent, and she warned Rosa.

As Rosa prepared herself for the killing blow, however, the hellhound suddenly burst into flame. It roared and howled while trying to quell the fire, and as it did so, a figure, clearly a werewolf himself, rushed towards it and, using a broken piece of metal rod, stabbed the hellhound and light it on fire. It started to burn intensely, howling and roaring as it was burned to crisp and into dust.

"W-what?" said both Rosalinda.

"You two alright?" said the figure. Rose now noticed his features and realized that he wasn't a werewolf, but was close to one. His head was canine, but he possessed a pair of black horns and red, demonic eyes that looked very intimidating. He also possessed stripes of greyish color in parts of his body. The most striking feature that made him different from a werewolf was his long feline-like tail that was prehensile and covered in black fur, with a triangle tip, like a demon.

"Yes, we're fine. But you...who are you?" asked Rose.

"He's a demon," said Rosa while lifting her sword. "That was warlock magic, wasn't it? I can sense a foul aura of dark magic from it."

"Can't help it if you're a hellhound, right? Besides, why the fuck it's so dark in here? I thought we came through a bright portal. And where are the others?"

The darkness suddenly lifted itself, and everything returned to normal, except for some deaths. Many were surprised by it, and not only that, the space battle outside was gone. The space station also suffered extensive damage, but not enough to cause a hull breach.

"Ah, that's better," said the hellhound.

"Who are you supposed to be?" asked Rose, and was also a repeated question in many other places. In Seiryu's place, the jackal who helped him replied when asked.

"Name's Anubis," he said.

"Like the ancient god of death?" said Seiryu. "Kinda hard not to find someone with that name. It's common among middle-eastern jackals."

In Capisa's place, where he found 'Seiryu' impaled by some roots, he asked a similar question, with the dragon, a silver-scaled dragon with red striped, answered, "Seraphor, and you owe an answer, shark-man."

Both Rosa and Rose then heard what the oddly dressed hellhound said when asked the question.

"My name is Ifrit Schelkz," he said. "And you owe me an explanation."