Drake never thought he would ever met his mother in such a way! But this gigantic presence and the two beautiful blue eyes looking down on him as if they were two full moons atop a night sky were hers… It was as if she had come here to greet him, but to the surprise of Drake, it seems that her being here was because of a different reason.
"You… why are you here?" He wondered.
"I've always been here. This is a place where my soul remains overseeing all other souls." She said.
"Overseeing all other souls?" He asked.
"When one of my descendants or relatives passes away, their souls come back to me, to this place… this power, the Draconic Records. It is a power that doesn't originate from me, nor my siblings, but our mother… She created them and each one of us modified it differently, gaining power from it and connecting our souls with our descendants. This is a way to fool Hel and remain with our family, even after death."
Nifl's words were cold yet precise, the moment Drake heard them, the many silhouettes of the dragons connected to his bloodline suddenly began to move, as their shapes finally took form and color! They were all… somehow alive? Dozens if not hundreds of descendants of Nifl, and siblings of Drake had awakened from their slumber, even after death, their souls were all connected together in a big, interconnected network!
"You've never been alone, my child. Every step you took since you hatched from that egg has been seen by us. You've always been surrounded by family… My dear son… You don't know how happy I am to finally see you face to face." She said, her figure quickly materialized in front of Drake, a graceful and enormous Ice Dragoness emerged. Her horns were made of Ice Crystals, forming a sharp and graceful crown atop her head. Her two aquamarine eyes were shining brightly, illuminating everything around her, and her body was covered by ice crystal scales, with large crystal spikes all over her body, making her both intimidating, dazzling, and beautiful… even her wings had crystals, each time they moved they resonated with one another, creating soothing and dinging sounds…
"This is… You're really Nifl!" Said Drake. "But why? What is this place? And how are the souls of my siblings stored here?!" He asked in surprise. There were many things he didn't understood, as a curious man he couldn't help but ask a series of questions to Nifl. The serious goddess suddenly smiled, as her enormous figure lowered her head to approach her little son.
"Hahaha! You're so charming already…" She said. She might seem to be a cold beauty, but she was in fact very emotional and motherly. She approached her snout to Drake and kissed his face softly.
"E-Eeehe?!" Drake felt flustered.
"My dear boy, I love you so much."
"W-Wha…?!"
"Before anything, I wanted to give you a little peek because you're simply way too adorable."
"Mother…"
Drake quickly lowered his guard before her, as she showcased him her motherly and caring side. Although deep down he still had a lot of questions and a bit of resentment that she never was there when he struggled the most or many other things… But it was already explained by Fafnir to him, she was in her Sanctuary healing from the wounds inflicted upon her when she protected the egg where he came from. He simply had to let go of such emotions and accept her, but such thing wouldn't be so easy as it was in his mind, and it might take a while…
Well, it seems that such a thing was speeding up as he was slightly charmed by his mother's caring nature. Drake had never felt such motherly love aside from his aunt, but this motherly love was genuine from a mother now, not from an aunt of his previous life… She was truly his very mother of this second life of his… Nifl.
"Y-You didn't had to do that!" He said rather embarrassed. "N-Now tell me more about this Draconic Records thing and how it works…"
"Fufu, ordering your own mother? Aren't you a bold one, huh?" She asked while giggling. "You remind me of your father, you got a lot of Fafnir's traits! How is that old geezer doing?"
"Fine… I just learned he was my father to begin with after I beat the shit out of him for forcing his ideals into me." Drake answered his mother honestly.
And Nifl… busted into laughter.
"HAHAHAHA!" She laughed, her laughter resonated through the entirety of the space. Drake also heard the laughter of all his siblings, as fi they were all connected, all their emotions were shared towards him, as he began to laugh as well. This connection of emotions and feelings… was something incredible.
"You're really something else, my dear son!" She said. "Fafnir can be a stubborn man sometimes, but he means no harm to you, he loves you just as much as I do!" Nifl majestically said, as she sat down in the floor of this space and embraced her son with her front claws, pushing Drake into her chest.
"W-Waaah…!" Drake cried in surprise, as he was dragged close to his mother.
"Even though these aren't your physical forms, I've been wanting to hug you and love you for so long… So let me hug you as tight as I can… I will make up for all these years I have not been at your side, Drake…" She said with a motherly gaze. The enormous and majestic dragon… an ice dragon goddess that ruled over the Realm of Niflheim… she was pampering him!
Drake recalled his past, when he first hatched, and how he waited an entire day for a mother to come for him… But nobody came, he felt completely alone and desolate in such a moment. He always wished there could be someone to raise him, someone to love him in this harsh and cold world… when he finally found them, he never let go of such people.
But now… he found the mother he always wanted.
