That cry split through the roar of the flames consuming the sky.
A cry filled with rage, despair, and profound longing from a woman who had crossed a sea of blood just to find his hiding place.
"THERE YOU ARE, YOU BASTARD DRAGON!!"
Chronos screamed hysterically inside his chest. The island-sized colossal dragon no longer thought of anything else when he saw the condition of the woman before him.
SRAAK!
A blinding golden light erupted from Chronos's massive body. Within seconds, his enormous dragon form shrank dramatically, compressed, and transformed into the humanoid form of a silver-haired man. Without caring about the sea of fire spreading around him, Chronos ran toward the golden-haired woman with all his strength.
"REA!!"
A panicked cry tore from Chronos's throat. He had never felt so terrified and wretched in his entire life.
But before Chronos could reach her, Rea's frail body suddenly lost its balance. Her knees shook violently, her legs gave out, and the great sword in her grip slipped free, clanging against the burning stone.
CLANG!
The blood-soaked body collapsed forward.
"Rea!"
WHOOSH!
Chronos leaped just in time, catching Rea's body before it struck the scorching stone ground. The silver-haired man knelt amid the roaring flames, cradling Rea with the utmost care and letting the woman rest comfortably against his chest.
He trembled. Chronos's hands shook violently as his fingers touched the wounds covering Rea's body.
Four iron blades had cruelly pierced her from her back through to her chest. Warm blood continued to pour out, soaking Chronos's silver robe until it turned a deep red.
"Why... why are you here?!" Chronos's voice shook violently, his eyes flooded with unbearable despair. "Why are you hurt this badly, Rea?! What did you go through to end up fighting like this?!"
The questions poured endlessly from Chronos's lips. He was panicking. He didn't understand! He had gone to the farthest corner of the planet and hidden himself on a deserted island surrounded by storms, all so Rea could live peacefully in her village. How could the girl be here, her body riddled with sword wounds?
But Rea didn't answer a single one of his questions.
The golden-haired old woman only stared intently at the silver-haired face resting in her lap. Tears cut through the soot and blood on her cheeks. Her pale, dry lips slowly lifted, forming a faint smile etched with unbearable longing for the person before her.
With the last of the strength draining her life away, Rea tried to straighten herself within Chronos's embrace. Her tiny, trembling hands, covered in scars, gripped both shoulders of the silver-haired man.
Chronos froze.
Before the dragon could process what was happening, Rea pressed her lips against his.
It was a brief kiss, cold with blood yet burning with all the feelings held back for decades. A kiss that conveyed all the pain, despair, and warmth of the soul of a woman who had crossed a continent to find the dragon.
Rea slowly drew back and looked straight into Chronos's trembling golden pupils.
"I love you, Chronos..." Rea whispered, her voice so faint it nearly vanished beneath the roar of the flames. "Thank goodness... I finally got to meet you... after everything I went through—"
The sentence broke off in midair.
The frail hands that had been gripping Chronos's shoulders suddenly lost their strength and fell limply to the ground. Her head drooped helplessly against Chronos's bloodstained chest.
The woman's golden eyes remained slightly open, gazing at the burning night sky, but the light of life within them had gone out completely.
She breathed her last in the dragon's embrace.
A terrifying silence suddenly swept across the island's sea of fire.
"Rea...?" Chronos called softly. His voice trembled awkwardly. "Rea... open your eyes. Rea!"
There was no answer. No heartbeat. No more warm breath brushing against his chest.
"No... no... NO! REA!!"
Chronos screamed that name into the sky. The hysterical cry of an immortal dragon shattered the clouds, shook the vast ocean, and brought down the remaining rocks of the island.
The silver-haired man hugged Rea's corpse tightly, burying his face in her neck as he sobbed uncontrollably.
'Why?!' Chronos screamed inwardly, consumed by the confusion burning in his chest. 'What did you go through?! Why did you suffer even more after I left you?! Why did you have to die such a horrible death?!'
Guilt, regret, and rage at fate burned away the dragon's every shred of reason.
He had left her so Rea could be happy! He had hidden himself so Rea could marry and have a family! She should have hated him! She should have held a grudge because he had abandoned her without a word!
'Why, instead of hating me... did you chase after me until you sacrificed your life like this?!'
Chronos shook his head violently. He couldn't accept an ending like this. This wasn't the happiness he had promised his friend! This was the worst hell he had ever created!
"I refuse to accept an ending like this..." Chronos breathed, his voice cold and deadly as it rose from the depths of his throat. "I will never let you die like this, Rea!"
SRAAK!
A blinding golden light erupted from Chronos's body.
Lines of time split the night sky, tearing apart the reality surrounding the burning island. Without caring that his dragon soul had begun to crack from forcing his time-travel power again and again, Chronos used his power once more.
He would turn back time one more time!
'This time...' Chronos thought as the current of time dragged his consciousness backward. 'This time, I will never meet you. I won't let you see me, and I won't let you hear my name. You must not fall in love with me!'