Chapter 37: UNEVEN ALLIANCE

"Mana circulation?" Aether sputtered, Lumi's pronouncement a foreign language on his tongue. The clock on the dragon's life ticked relentlessly, each tick a hammer blow on his chest. "How do I perform a mana circulation?" he rasped, desperation lacing his voice.Lumi's response crackled in his mind, devoid of empathy but brimming with information. "[The combined mana essence from the water pool and your irregular mana need to be combined to create a reaction that will weaken the seal placed on Dragonsworn.]"Weaken the seal? It sounded simple enough on the surface, like a child's recipe for mud pie. Combine the water's mana essence with his own... But Aether's stomach churned. This wasn't a playground experiment. This magic, this intricate dance with energy, was way above his control.He was an Awakened, yes, but his training was a cobbled-together mess focused on a singular, desperate goal: strengthening his mana vessels to siphon his mother's surplus mana. Her condition, mana glut, manifested in an almost tangible aura around her, making the process a crude but necessary act. But siphoning his own mana and the water's essence to create a reaction? This required a Mage, someone steeped in the intricate language of magic, not a fumbling apprentice like him.His last assessment, a cruel reminder of his limitations, echoed in his mind – 'compression of mana, five percent'. Did that even matter now? No. The dragon's life hung in the balance. He had to try, even if it meant failure and a night spent shivering against the cavern's bone-chilling embrace.Aether's resolve hardened. This wasn't about fancy spells or grand displays of power. This was about survival – his own and the magnificent creature before him. He closed his eyes, picturing the water, the raw essence it held. He channeled his own hidden mana reserves, a flickering candle flame in a hurricane. Could he nudge, coax, merge these two forces? It felt foolish, like trying to harness the wind with a teacup. But with a deep breath, he began, a desperate plea whispered on the wind, a prayer for a miracle in the heart of this forgotten cave.The ancient citadel was a tomb of silence, broken only by the relentless howl of the wind that gnawed at Aether's exposed skin. Darkness, thick and suffocating, pressed down on him, but with each agonizing tick of the unknown clock, a sliver of blue light bloomed in the void."I see the water's mana," Aether gasped, his voice a hoarse whisper against the wind's icy symphony. He clutched the water pouch tighter, knuckles turning white as tension battled with desperation. Sweat beaded on his forehead, a validation of the exertion that threatened to pull him under. But his resolve, fueled by the dragon's fading warmth, held him fast.He ripped one hand from the pouch, his fingers trembling as they sought the fabric over his chest. Here, beneath the pounding of his heart, lay his own sluggish mana. With a guttural groan that reverberated through the cavern, he strained to pull it out. A faint golden light flickered to life, a wisp of defiance against the encroaching shadows.The mana within him, however, was a sluggish beast. It felt sluggish, dense, as if burdened by an invisible chain. Aether strained with every fiber of his being, teeth gritted tight against the effort. "Come on, move!" he hissed, a desperate plea lost to the howling wind. Yet, the golden light remained stubbornly tethered to its source.Exhaustion, a merciless tide, began to pull him under. His focus wavered, the blue and gold hues dissolving back into the suffocating darkness. A gasp escaped his lips as he clawed for air, a single bead of sweat tracing a path down his temple. "Why can't I do it?" he screamed, his voice raw with frustration. Was this the end? Was his lack of mastery over his own power yet another reason he was doomed to suffer in this desolate wasteland?Aether's lungs felt like collapsing bellows, his vision swimming at the edges. Each attempt to coax the mana essences together had been a brutal exercise in futility. The water's essence shimmered just out of reach, his own mana a sluggish, uncooperative beast."Why am I so damned weak?" he rasped through gritted teeth, a torrent of self-loathing threatening to drown him. His mind flashed back to Eziel's clash with Nightscale – a battle fought with raw, primal power, a spectacle he'd witnessed from the sidelines, feeling utterly useless. What was the point of clinging to existence if he lacked the strength to even fight for himself?"Weak," he choked out, the word echoing hollowly in the cavern's embrace. He wasn't built for flashy spells or devastating magic – his weak mana vessels and limited combat training were a vindication of that. But then, a memory struck him – a time when someone, powerful and ruthless, had used him as a conduit for a feat that rivaled even Eziel's and Nightscale's prowess."Could it work?" he thought desperately. He'd tried a similar method before, failing to shield his mother and Ana. But this time, he wouldn't attempt full integration. This was a gamble, a wild card pulled from the depths of desperation."Lumi, is it possible for partial bio-mana integration, one that affects only half my body while leaving my consciousness intact?" The idea was absurd, a desperate Hail Mary thrown into the swirling void. Yet, Lumi's response crackled through the stale air, as emotionless as ever."[Calculating]"Aether held his breath, his heart hammering a frantic rhythm against his ribs. Just as despair threatened to consume him, a flicker of hope emerged from the monotone voice. "[Affirmative]."The news sent a jolt of adrenaline through his system. With the help of a being who understood his mana better than he did, perhaps the mana circulation was achievable. The future remained uncertain, shrouded in a thick fog of doubt, but for the first time since the dragon's condition worsened, Aether felt a flicker of control, a spark of defiance."Begin separate bio-mana integration," he commanded Lumi, his voice hoarse but laced with newfound resolve. This wasn't a surrender, it was a desperate gamble. And in the heart of this forgotten citadel, Aether prepared to face the unknown.