Chapter 134: A Mother's Pact!

Chapter 134: A Mother's Pact

Tessa closed her eyes, letting the whirl of thoughts consume her. The weight of the decision pressed on her, fierce and unrelenting. She hadn't yet felt the love of a man, hadn't shared the bond of her kind. And yet, here she was, on the brink of a choice that could alter her very nature. To carry the offspring of this Niöhöggr-like creature inside her—what did that even mean? What advantage could that possibly bring?

It was daunting, yes. Her life would be on the line, and in an unsettling way, she would lose a part of her purity, her innocence, to something neither entirely Kaelrian nor human. And yet… the idea stirred something deep within her, an untamed spark she hadn't known she possessed. She would nurture a powerful creature, bring it into existence, and raise it as her own. She could mold it, guide it, give it breath and purpose.

The idea of motherhood, however strange, called to her, filling a void she hadn't realized was there. Her prospects with men had long felt bleak; James Rudbick, once a glimmer of hope, had shown his true colors as a coward and a traitor. And Adrian, despite his strength and loyalty, was a path closed to her—they were family, bound by blood. In this strange proposal, she saw a way forward. If she had this child, she would have something uniquely her own, something she could love with a depth no other person could reach. For the first time, Anwari's words resonated with clarity: You can raise it as your own, and it will be loyal to you.

A faint smile crossed her face, a hint of wonder blending with a newfound resolve. Adrian, watching her closely, saw the shift and his heart sank. "Don't tell me you're actually considering this," he said, voice tinged with disbelief. "This is madness…"

But he knew her too well, knew that spark in her eyes. She had already begun to contemplate a future where this creature might call her mother.

"Even if it's partly Kaelrian," Adrian pressed, desperate to snap her back to reality, "it's not one of us, Tessa. We don't even know what it truly is. Anwari has a Niöhöggr as a mother, sure, but what does that make him, really? We don't even know what race he belongs to, if he's even Kaelrian at all. This could be something alien—something dangerous."

Yet his words faded, as Tessa seemed lost in a world of her own. She imagined this child, imagined the strange, instinctual bond she would share with it. She felt a pang, a fierce longing, for a connection that transcended friendship, one that could fill the emptiness lingering within her. She could be a mother in her own, unconventional way.

Finally, she looked at Anwari, her voice steady. "If I do this, I have two conditions…"

"You want to do this?" Anwari and Adrian spoke at once, shock written across their faces, but for vastly different reasons. Anwari's eyes gleamed with a glimmer of hope, while Adrian's face contorted with worry and disbelief.

Tessa pressed on, ignoring their protests. "First," she said calmly, her gaze locked on Anwari's penetrating blue eyes, "I'll accept your seeds and nurture whichever one survives. But you must place them in my hands first, where I can see them before I take them." Her tone held an unyielding strength, and Anwari seemed to accept her demand, nodding slowly in agreement.

Adrian, however, was less composed. "Tessa, please, think about this! You can't carry… that." His voice rose, strained with desperation. "If you want a child, I'll help you find a Kaelrian partner—a real one. You can have a child that's pure, a healthy Kaelrian baby, not this… this excuse for an octopus," he finished, shooting a scornful look at Anwari. But Anwari remained unaffected by Adrian's taunts, its gaze fixed solely on Tessa.

Without acknowledging Adrian's plea, Tessa continued, her voice firmer now. "The second condition…" She paused, as if weighing her words. "Once this deal is complete… I will kill you, Anwari. You must pay for your crimes. You've destroyed families, left children orphaned, and spilled innocent blood. There is a debt to be repaid."

Both Anwari and Adrian stared at her, stunned. Adrian's jaw tightened, his shock mingling with a strange respect—he'd expected her to spare Anwari. Anwari, too, was caught off guard; it had assumed that by granting her its offspring, she'd offer it some form of leniency. But Tessa's eyes held no mercy.

"Do you agree or not?" she demanded, her voice cold and resolute. "Either way, you will die. This clause only saves your offspring."

For a moment, the air was thick with tension. Anwari's gaze flickered, and it took a deep breath. This truth weighed heavily on it. Death was a bitter pill to swallow, and yet, if its kin could survive, death might be a fate worth accepting.

Anwari studied Tessa, finding itself both baffled and begrudgingly impressed by the unyielding will of this young Kaelrian. What trials had this girl endured to shape her into someone so steely, so devoid of fear or unnecessary sentiment? Despite her clear resolve, it was unexpected that a girl like her—someone so fierce and practical—would volunteer to carry a life so alien. And yet, here she was.

"I accept your terms," Anwari finally replied, its voice strained with an undercurrent of bitterness. It felt trapped between the sharks and the abyss. But after weighing its options, Anwari saw no better path than surrender. If its kin could survive, that was worth more than its own freedom or vengeance. What did its survival mean, anyway? An eternity in this cage, watching the rise and fall of countless civilizations, chained to an existence without purpose. Perhaps the end, bitter as it might be, was not such a dreadful alternative.

Lost in these somber thoughts, Anwari suddenly became aware of Tessa's outstretched hand, waiting expectantly. Her signal to begin. Adrian, watching this exchange, shook his head and sighed deeply, his frustration etched into every tense line of his face. No amount of reasoning would deter her now; Tessa was as unbreakable as a diamond.

Anwari took a steadying breath and lifted one of its dark, scaled tendrils. Slowly, the first one of the tendrils unfurled, followed by another and then another, till a large number of them were opened revealing a small collection of translucent, glimmering spheres, each pulsating with a faint, otherworldly glow. They looked fragile, almost delicate, yet held within them was the potential of a powerful new life.

"These are my seeds," Anwari explained, placing one gently into Tessa's waiting palms. "Each of them holds a spark of my essence. But only one will survive the journey—only one will be strong enough."

Tessa gazed down at the strange, shimmering spheres, feeling an odd sense of responsibility settle upon her. This was no ordinary child she was about to nurture; it was a creature bound to her, one that would carry her strength, her will, and, as Anwari had promised, its loyalty.

"Once the seed takes root," Anwari continued, "it will bond with you on a level deeper than blood. It will know your emotions, respond to your commands, and, as I promised, it will see you as its mother. This bond… it will change you, too. You will carry a part of my being within you, Tessa."

As Tessa absorbed these words, Adrian broke the silence, his voice low and sharp. "You do realize, Tessa, there's no going back. Once this… thing is inside you, you're bound to it, and it to you. It's a lifetime pact, not something you can simply abandon."

Tessa glanced up, meeting Adrian's gaze. "I know what I'm doing, Adrian," she replied calmly. "I didn't come to this decision lightly."

For a moment, the three of them stood in a tense silence, the air charged with the weight of the unknown. Tessa's path was set, and Anwari's hope rested on her courage. Adrian could do nothing but watch,