-Morning - Ancient forest west of the Ragefire volcano - Nefiru's POV-

We continue our walk north while the chilly wind blows in from the east, around the tall volcano as the bright morning sun rising across the almost-cloudless blue sky is casting shadows and coloring the foliage regrowing green leaves. Traversing under the shade of the tall trees as midday approaches, and bordering the foot of the volcano on the trail that was made by my constant passing, we advance towards the open log residence the siblings helped build to feel a little more secure.

The girl sitting on my back between the left folded wing, and the middle spikes broke the silence after walking for a moment. "Ah! Maybe that wolf Midas will get new pack members by early spring since big bad Dragons annihilated half of it." Shaila said with an accusing tone.

"Ouch!" I dramatized feeling a little guilty of my deeds. "Mhm, all things considered, I really qualify as a villain." I asserted while nodding.

"Not that it matters to me...you are a beast after all. Haha..." She declared with a chuckle.

"Yeah... And somebody always has to be the prey." I stated, thinking of the overhunted wolf tribe. "In any case, I don't plan on killing the golden wolf's pack members again...unless necessary since I need their cooperation," I announced the promising ally candidate.

"Ohh! The possible ally you mentioned!" Shaila recalled my gamble for getting close to wolf tribe.

I hope so... Wolves care for their own, but any beast should be resolved to die when trying to take another life, and they probably lose pack members often, especially during winter. I conjectured from observations low possibility of revenge.

"Yep. There was no retaliation from Midas or any high ranking wolves, so my impressions were right for sparing his life." I affirmed the golden wolf inaction.

Although we haven't intruded in wolf their territory and antagonized them either, we are also gonna have to avoid killing Mida's pack if they trespass in our turf during these troublesome months...unless the aggression is intolerable. I draw a line to make my plan work.

"Are you planning to teach him something?" She asked wondering the reason.

"Not yet. The immediate concern is dealing with the High-Ranking Snakes after they finish hibernating, and realize three dragon whelps who are responsible for their decline in numbers. I explain the priorities.

"But snakes aren't pack-animals. They have been ignoring you until now." Shaila said puzzled.

"Superficially...yes. Because the slithering bastards rarely team up. However, their hibernation seems more optional than a trait of the species since winter just makes them sluggish, and they didn't resort to cannibalism or risk fighting the crazed wolves. Which means...snakes somewhat have some pride for their kin." I elaborate the possible reasons for hunting us. "The absence of active predators probably just makes their numbers grow large, then powerful serpents disappear for the rest to grow strong or become food to the wolves which will feed giant snakes once they return." I assume the predatory chain.

Hmm... There are faint traces of wolves being further south, but none appears to have lasted, and my past siblings didn't survive this forest either despite leaving the nest as big dragons. It seems unlikely we'll be able to live comfortably anymore after two months, and I'm too busy waiting for Faust's plan, or magic training to relocate the siblings far south. I realize the imminent threat we face while being glad not to be an ignorant dragon whelp anymore.

"Uh... Then you are interrupting the cycle, or tipping the balance in favor of wolves." Shaila said understanding.

"I guess so. We prefer to eat snakes...mainly because they taste better than wolves, and fighting groups is more annoying than plucking serpents from trees without flying or magic. So, eventually, this will result in more wolves, and fewer snakes." I supplemented.

Furthermore, disposing of high ranking snakes will grant us more hunting land all the way up to the ocean, but we'll have to fight the wolves for our share... Anyway, as a water Dragon with growing needs for water Elementals, that is most welcomed. I affirm the gains from an alliance to a side.

"Ah! The enemy of my enemy..." She remembered. "But you said it doesn't always work though." The white-haired girl reminded.

"It should...to an extent. The Wolves could use the help, especially in spring after the snakes emerge from hibernation, and start their own mating season when there are warmer temperatures and abundant prey...including growing puppies. Furthermore, despite their ability to make enemies, the wolves seem more reasonable than snakes." I guessed the common enemy that could make us allies.

"You are committed, huh? So, have you seen Midas again?" She asked for the befriend progress.

"Nah, it's hard to reach him without being detected since he knows my scent well and avoids getting close to the borders," I announced the difficulty to find the golden canine.

"Well... The golden wolf and his mate should stay alone during the rest of winter in a good spot with plenty prey to sustain themselves." Shaila informed of a good chance of meeting.

Hmm... Indeed! The best hunting grounds are probably being occupied by different Alphas in the tribe to sustain themselves before giving birth, and feed the young pups after with all the critters in the forest coinciding their emergence. I review information about the repopulating beasts.

"Uh... There's still the communication barrier, and that will take great effort with a wild wolf." Shaila reveals a problem to have a beast wear a collar.

Fuck no! I'm tired of the collar! It consumes too much magic for a few sentences, has a short range, doesn't translate everything, and interferes with Mana sensitivity. I halted the idea of using a collar thinking on the alternative to communicate.

"Oops! I forgot it's safe to practice here without drawing attention." I realize the freedom of repercussions.

"Do I have to cover my ears? Although the colorful display on your wings was pretty, it broke some windows last time..." Shaila criticised the lightning experiments with mockery.

Sigh... It's frustrating not being able to partake in conversations after all the effort to memorize a language just from hearing people talk. I asserted commanding magic and lightning elementals.

"HYAAU!" Shaila shrieked before writhing on my back from a little electrocution.

You do not want to ridicule effort! I even had to practice alone, and barely sleep to have better control after the angry Lester pointed out that only wind dragons are known to speak before divine rank. I recalled the decision of secrecy before saying.

"That was just a test to use my wings as a speaker for something else, and it worked, by the way, but it's just...not efficient enough. The volume is high but consumes too much magic, and it's inconvenient getting my wings numbed while keeping them open, if not painful." I recall the method of tensing and contracting the scaly membrane with electricity. "Luckily, recalling the method used by a dragon to puke somebody... gave me the idea of controlling muscles in my throat with Lightning Magic, and achieve the articulation necessary to replicate many more sounds than before. I announced the discovery.

"Agh! You beast! You would've found another way regardless." She countered with a protest.

I guess... But a water screen which consumes a lot of magic didn't have enough cohesion to withstand the vibrations, and the sound easily distorted. I reviewed a discarded idea, then proceeded to execute the process.

"TEEShSestiiiiggSShhh..." I practice tunning my vocal cords to speak.

Finally! I have never been so happy to hear gibberish coming out of my mouth. I take a moment to appreciate speaking after months.

"Haha... All the fuss to sound worse than a toddler." She chuckled with contempt before insulting.

Grr... it may look simple, but the multitasking is high enough to cause mental fatigue. I compare the degree of complexity before answering.

"Hmph! Do you enjoy being electrocuted, or don't know this is harder than puking out a live human?" I probe her.

"Uh... Do your best...?" She replied unsurely.

On what!? The electrocution or the practice? I retorted at the questionable response before answering her.

"Well, it is something taken for granted that humanoids can speak languages because of their oral cavity, and fine coordination permits it, but you would find it difficult to speak a language that requires a specific throat structure. So, I compensated for many factors to reproduce the desired sound frequency outside of Dragon specifications by controlling electrical impulses in certain muscles with trial and error, then days of calibration." I elaborate the problem with beasts speaking human language.

"Mmn... And this is how you plan to communicate with the wolves." Shaila affirmed.

"I've already memorized basic forms of their communication...just need to replicate it" I report the steps.

"...It'll be faster if we rent a tamed wolf once you stop sounding like a dying animal." Shaila proposes an idea while mocking my method.

Yep! It sounds and feels quite uncomfortable for me too, but it also looks creepy talking to an unmoving mouth. I recall stories with giant creatures speaking. Now it makes sense why those dragons in anime barely moved their mouths when speaking human language. The beasts would have to force their vocal cords to do all the work. I realized an explanation before wondering of multiple tongues.

"Hmm... Will it be the same language though?" I inquired with a hint of doubt.

"It will. Most magical creatures, especially those with tribes have the same language, and it includes body actions, but there are no books to learn it..." Shaila answered convinced.

"Heh~ You are quite informed..." I praised her while nodding.

"Mm-hmm... I've been reading many things before we set out to explore in the future." Shaila replied naturally. "Also, we won't have to worry about people, or many demi-human tribes since almost everyone adopted the Stilus language for convenience...afterall countries fall, and people migrate after losing the protection." The knowledgeable girl added.

"I see... It is indeed imperative to overcome language barriers before visiting other wolf tribes in search for your family and my wolf-self. I declared the preparations to avoid trouble.

"Ah, jeez! How can you be so confident about that?" She skeptically said while hoping for proof.

"You tell me. You are the one with many dreams about wolves doing--whatever wolves do, and you will remember even more things later!" I said in a sarcastic tone while rolling my eyes.

"Guh! Now that you mention, it is strange having dreams in my infancy about a creature I never saw before." Shaila deduced. "Hmm... At first, I didn't know what to believe hearing about descendants, but now, the curiosity is killing me!" She demanded confirmation while pulling at my wing and hairs.

"We'll know for certain eventually, but finding out how long I've been in Alkalis could help reassessing those odds. Unfortunately, this world is not keen on recording history, and the only reliable source is an odd dream that seems to be a new memory after my 6th life. The dream of your life is the only valid clue, and all the information should already be in my head, but it takes time, effort, or...luck due to the capabilities of my Rank." I announced the difficulty of retrieving forgotten experiences before evoking the complications with such endeavor.

Memories are a specific set of neurons activated by particular stimuli while most of the brain is always active with ever-changing regions of more significant activity, and with difficulty memorized a rough mental map of the dream by process of elimination using magic arts. The electrochemical signal is the same between all neurons, and boosting the automatic process of lightning affinity reactivates weakened connections to enhance the memory.

"Uh-huh... I know it's difficult, but it's been days without hearing anything positive." Shaila said losing patience.

Well, she is helping by stimulating neurotransmitter production and counteracting cellular degradation during the procedure, but obviously, I'm the only one who sees any results... I affirmed thinking how to answer.

"And progress is slow on delicate operations...I even have to deal with false memories!" I replied helplessly before deliberating on the dangers.

The probability of mistakes is inversely proportional to control, and my current Rank may be capable of sensing the nucleus of a neuron directly, or thousands of cells at once, but there are billions of them in the head! Still, the fragment should warn in the worst case scenario, as it did during the brainwash. Although I'm not sure what would count as 'death,' at that point, it is the only contingency plan, and I wish there were instructions for more options. I reassess the risks of tampering with the brain before attempting to speak a different word.

"BRASshAiiiin!" I spoke sounding worse than a zombie.

"Pfft! You sound scarier than you look!" Shaila pokes fun at my efforts.

"Mean." I rebuked her. "At least Hilda used to find me menacing..." I briefly remembered the ignored maid.

"At any rate, are you sure there is more to find in that scaly head of yours? Did you dream anything besides that sealed memory?" Shaila inquired positive results from our experiments.

"Of course. So far, I revealed more details of the dark room, and couldn't confirm exactly how many years I waited before you appeared, but reinforced the impression that it's not the Guardian that was going was going on vacation after 18 years. Perhaps the new Guardian isn't so good at removing memories, and that dream remained, or he broke the rules to help me since the previous one wouldn't reply my calls, let alone alert me of danger. Then concluded after taking into account Liana's age, the unknown person, and the mating seasons every five years, that I was alive 25 years ago." I elaborated the results.

Guardian's duty is for a thousand years without breaking the rules, and he seemed in a hurry to send me off after taking memories rather than keeping me around. I shouldn't be the copy left behind either since fragments of my soul only have just a portion of the total essence that shouldn't awake double high affinities. Also, it seems I waiting in that room for an apology before losing my memories, and perhaps that person was another Fragment who died because of me under the supervision of the same Guardian. I conjectured.

"...So unless they kidnapped my soul ten years ago, I would have lived a minimum of 15 years in this world as a wolf..." Shaila muttered while contemplating.

Haha...kidnappers of souls! Hmm... Then again, should having the essence of your existence taken away be worse than being kidnapped as a child? From my experience after becoming a slave, it doesn't matter what happened in my past infanthoods because the soul carried on without memories after dying, but losing the self-awareness and accumulated wisdom as an adult sucks a lot. I evaluated.

"Still.... What if I turn out to be something else?" Shaila inquired with insecurity after pondering.

"Like the snake Guardian playing a prank by guiding me to the serpent that ate me in my fifth life? That might explain our attraction! So, do you feel like a snake?" I said with mockery.

"Agh! I don't see myself as a snake..."Shaila ruled out the possibility. "Ah! Should you be calling your soul supervisor like a mere snake you eat in the forest? They can listen, right?" She admonished.

"Well... Not all guardians may be friendly, but he's alright, and the current one doesn't seem bad either. Anyway, I'm certain you are not a simple girl, and that's enough for me. So, just be patient, and look forward to the journey, not the destination." I advised without raising expectations.

"Fine. I want to find out, but I hope you don't become insane messing with your brain like that." The little helper said worriedly.

"I'm trying not to do anything irreversible, and at most, become retard again after the neurotransmitters wear down, then drool a little more like some dead piece of meat, but it'll be fine in time," I explain brain conditions resulting from my experiments.

Yep. It already happened. I tried to feel like a genius by increasing brain activity beyond natural limits, but the results...made me aware of many limitations as well as advantages. I affirm.

"Right... You should have explained that to me--before you drooled on my dress!" Shaila protested.

"Hahaha! For science! It's great progress compared to doing this at Rank 4, so I'm looking forward to over-boosting my brain at high ranks. Although I still need to get back at Liana for putting my tail in my mouth while I was...indisposed." I proclaimed thinking of the positive side.

Well, the sudden leap was exhilarating since a normal person has around 40 thoughts per minute which expands depending on Rank here, but the reckless actions increased my processing capabilities way over that. Meanwhile, the Spirit strengthened like achieving a temporary Rank over mine which could allow fast magic training if it lasted more than a few minutes, but the nasty consequence of such reckless actions left me without the ability to think...for hours. I review the outcome from overclocking the brain like a CPU.

"Hehe...You chewed your own tail!" Shaila giggled recalling the prank. "Still, it's ironic that you risk going crazy trying to recover buried old memories while I still struggle to cope with mines to move on," Shaila said saddened.

"Well, the ever-changing connection of all your memories make up who you are right now...you are your memories. If anything... degradation, neglected experiences, and false memories are what's scary, but unfortunately, traumatic experiences last longer." I announced the intricacies of the brain from my understanding.

"Uh-huh. The brain is more reliable to remember bad things." She made her own adverse conclusion of the brain imperfections.

"That's how it is. It may be a defect or a reason to avoid the horrible event from repeating." I conjectured resuming my practice.

...

"Teeeesting, testing..." I slowly spoke words from my mouth after a moment of practice.

It sounds like some slow video playback, but I can't speed up speech more than this for now, though I can work on the pauses, and pronunciation while conversing since I have everything memorized. I

"You did it! Congratulations!" Shaila cheered. "Although you were in such a hurry to get rid of the collar that your throat is probably painfully sore. Isn't it?" She followed up with a sarcastic remark.

"Ahem! It's...proougress! The collar...sarved...its purpossse well." I announced saying slowly.

I can't believe I'm talking again after six months!! I asserted feeling proud of the achievement before shaking my body.

"Uh... what are you doing?" Shaila asked gripping strongly.

"Celebration dance! Watch the taaail~" I replied with better sentences.

"Puahaha!" Shaila burst out laughing. "Hah~ Now we just need to register you at the guild for an identification badge, and sell back the collar...just don't dance there." She spoke with ridicule.

"I'm not selling the coollar." I declared.

"Oh, right. We still need it to communicate with your sister..." Shaila said realizing our incomplete dragon language.

"Well, yes. But I will need moar collars in the future, and trusted assistants for some projects. Slaves should work, and the girls could replacen the temporary maids that are a disaster waiting to happem." I announced my intentions.

I'm going to need a loyal group of talented individuals in the future, and slaves are the recommended bunch from stories, but my first encounter with them was a wake-up call to be careful. I reaffirmed that not everything is what it seems.

"Ohh! I also want to know how it works too since probes inside are too vague, but it is an expensive thing to break open just for curiosity. The Tinkers are the only ones that build it, but they don't sell all secrets for money, and even merchants would rather sell any information to the highest bidder." Shaila said, making me recall worthwhile discoveries.

The collar channels magic energy through capillaries thinner than human hairs made from the same material that holds mana crystals together. Then processing units with different composition operate by trapping and forcing tiny portions of magic to become unstable which produces binary signals for transmission, or execution of functions.

I figured the collar is in the neck since magic leaks the most there, and uses mechanical movement to remain active. But its not all terrible when it does help train magic as a substitute for the core. I concluded the workings of the device before answering.

"I don't really care how the collar works but what MAKES IT work. It's because of a substance that turns into a nearly invisible fine dust after using the mana crystals, and they don't bond by methods known to me yet." I slowly explain as Shaila waits for me to finish.

"Ah! The crystalline dust that you started calling Mip." Shaila guessed. "Ufufu... it sounds cute~" She degraded the name.

The Mips interacts with Mana and Magic well, but I couldn't call it dark matter just because it's unknown, and dark matter might be more than one type of unidentifiable thing. Therefore, I'm going with Mana Interface Particle--MIP. I recall the reason for the acronym.

"Yeah... It doesn't even have a proper name, and somebody already found a practical use for something this neglected, but it has numerous applications despite the cute name. It makes me a little glad to have become a slave...just to find this. However, I'm more interested in enhancing my muscles with Mip to increase the force of magic pushing on them for greater strength, and to trap the escaping mana inside me from dead creatures for later consumption." I reveal the plan to increase mana collection.

"Father didn't warn you, but that's not healthy...it will shred your muscles, and eventually your body will expel them anyway. Also filling yourself with those crystals will impede the Spirit's movement at our rank, and they are not easy to obtain in large quantities either unless you buy several dragon-size collars to break." Shaila points out the negative aspects.