Elran Eldred paced back and forth in his room, his echoing footsteps filling the silence. Every few seconds he’d stop in front of the wooden table sitting in the middle of the room. He’d tap the Crystal Orb sitting on top of it, waiting eagerly for its glorious glow. And every time, the glow didn’t come.

Beastwomen lined a wall, their hands and feet individually chained together. They wore mere dirty, brown rags that were cut too high above their thighs and were tight-fitting against their bodies. Their heads hung low. Whenever he passed by, they'd keep their eyes on the ground, their muscles tightening in fear.

He’d been waiting for thirty minutes at this point - far longer than he wanted. The message was supposed to arrive as soon as the mission was done. He grit his teeth and snarled. 

Then, the Orb sparked with a dazzling white. Elran grinned and rushed towards the table. 

“Lord Elran,” Solace Lora’s muffled voice spoke. 

“Solace.” Elran’s chilling voice dripped from his mouth. The women were quite familiar with his tone, as they forced their gazes to the ground. “Tell me why it took you so long to get in contact with me,” Elran said. Nothing greeted him but silence. He pounded his fist on the table. The women flinched, and the Orb rattled. The ground beneath him flashed green, and the stone floor twisted and churned like clay. “What. Happened?”

“My lord,” Solace said. “We lost her.”

Elran smashed his fist through the table. Another green flash, and the table disintegrated into ash. The Orb, which had begun to fall, was gently caught and propped up by a small stone pillar that rose from the ground. “What do you mean you’ve ‘lost her’?!” he yelled. “There’s no possible way. I gave you what you needed! I gave the Bandits what they needed. Despairities. Monsters. Magical Equipment. Everything! And you still fail?!”

“I apologize, Lord Elran. There were unforeseen circumstances that-”

“Brother Oliver gave me the chance of a lifetime to succeed here!” Elran said. “And now every ounce of respect I once had in the Family is going to go down the drain.” He held his aching forehead. 

“We have already sent out our best Despairity scouts to find her. She should not be too far from the city.”

“Yeah, and how could you know?” Elran sneered. 

“She awakened, Sir. Did you not feel it from the Castle?” Solace asked.

Elran’s eyes widened. Now that he thought about it, the entire castle had been in a stir ever since Elran had locked himself in his room. He did feel a very slight tingle in his fingers, but he thought little of it. So if he barely felt that, he knew that his Family definitely did.

He turned and threw open his door. Maids and butlers were hurrying to and fro, their eyes dark and sweat dripping down their faces. “What’s going on?”

The butler he grabbed shuddered and said, “Master Pravo is preparing the castle, Lord Elran. Your Brothers have been summoned.”

He threw the butler’s arm and he grumbled, “Get to work then.” He stomped back into the room and breathed in. I still have a chance of success here, he thought. They can still retrieve it. “The amount of energy to awaken would render a normal person useless,” he mumbled. “And even then it still escaped your grasp.” He sighed. “Double your efforts. No, triple them. Find it. Otherwise Brother Oliver will have both of our heads paraded through the city.”

“Consider it done, milord.”

Elran folded his arms and grunted. “Have you destroyed the village? Every single person exterminated?”

There was a pause once more. Before Elran could lash out, Solace said, “Three Qalee bandits got away. They were in possession of a Beastman without a collar. One with the Blessings of Aural.”  

Elran inhaled and exhaled. He didn’t need any more violence today. As long as the Eldreds receive what they needed, Elran believed himself to be fine. No one would bother listening to a bunch of bandits in the first place, so it would be fine if they were caught. Especially if one of them were a mere Beastman. “Anyone else?”

“Every villager has been exterminated,” Solace said. “The Bandits we were supposed to use to ensue chaos were all found dead in the Jail.” Elran furrowed his brow. 

Even before the awakening the Aldrian still held such power… 

He was told not to underestimate the Aldrian by his elder brother when he left for Pasia, but Elran thought little of it. His belief in the power of the Eldreds was too great. And now that the Aldrian was awakened, he knew he would have to take extra caution.

“There was, however, one Light Elf child hiding among the rubble,” Solace continued. “We have put her in a cage for the moment. Do you command we kill her as well?”

“No don’t,” Elran said. “Bring it back here. We can send it to the West to solidify our alliance with Sandalia.”

“Understood sir. Other than Dall Greatsword who has escaped with the Aldrian, everyone else is-”

“What did you just say?” Elran’s eyes twitched. “Dall Greatsword? With the Aldrian?” He raised his right arm and beckoned one of his slaves to come closer to him. The slave’s eyes darkened, and she approached him, the chains clanking against each other as she moved. Once she was in reach, he grabbed her and smacked her across her cheek. She fell to the ground. Not a single gasp or moan escaped her lips. He proceeded to kick her in the stomach, launching her across the room. Not a single person batted an eye at his fury. 

She stood back up, bowed her head, and returned to the line with the others.

Elran grappled the Orb with both hands and said, “Find them within three days. Three. If you’re not here by then with Dall dead and the Aldrian in chains, I will personally dismember every limb from your body. Do you understand?”

“Y-Yes Master Elran.” With that, the glow disappeared, and Solace’s voice never spoke again. 

Elran’s blood boiled and his head spun. He tightened his hold on the orb, and eventually shattered it into pieces. He spat on the ground and said, “Clean this shit up.” He jabbed his finger towards the ground. The women bowed and did as they were told. Elran bit his lip. “Be ready within an hour. I won’t be made a fool of again in this house.” He left the room and slammed the door shut.

---

Avice woke with a start.

Her breath was quick and short. Her palms were sweaty, and her heart pounded in her ears. 

Her mind, still reeling from the surges of adrenaline from the previous night, hadn’t calmed down yet. She tried to raise herself from the ground. She struggled to get her head up, knowing that she needed to confirm her surroundings. And yet no matter what she did she couldn't move her body.

Nothing felt different. In fact, she thought she felt fine.

But when she tried raising her arms, she realized that they were both incredibly numb. She immediately looked down to see if her body was there, and it was indeed. This was reality, this time.

Okay… I’m stuck, she thought. This is where the training kicks in. 

She gently wiggled her fingers and toes, and after some time, they eventually softened up and she was able to move them. Alright, so I’m not completely ruined. She continued to spread that feeling all the way through her body.

Now then, what do I do…? Avice turned her head to the right, and as soon as it moved, she cried out in pain. My damn head oowwwwww! A splitting headache tormented her. Calm down, calm down assess the situation first… Just ignore the headache. 

Avice continued to scan her surroundings, her head throbbing from the motion.

Okay, okay, a forest. Lookin’ a lot like the one I was in like two days ago… 

They were in a small clearing between the trees. She twisted her hand and brushed her fingers against the soft blades of grass. The smell of the fresh morning dew tickled her nose. Her ears perked at the sounds of trickling water and scurrying animals. Then, as she looked further, her gaze fell on Dall, a couple of feet to her right, collapsed with his limbs spread out. 

Dall… she thought. Wait, now that I think about it, where the hell are we?

She pursed her lips as she searched her memories. 

The fire. The smoke. And that white, empty, space. 

What even was that? She grunted as she lifted her torso up. She stared at her hands. “How did I do all of that…?”

Then the name rang in her ears. 

“Aldrian, was it…?” As she said it, the sounds of the forest seemingly stopped. Avice looked around, trying to figure out what just happened. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a small, green orb flying by. “That’s…” Then, even more orbs began to blink into existence. They hovered and danced in the air, swirling around Avice and Dall like little fairies. 

They look exactly like the red things that I saw when ‘I’ did all of that fire stuff… I think they were called Spirits? 

She reached out to touch one of them, and they gently floated away. “Um, hey,” she said. “Are you guys Spirits?” Then the Spirits stopped moving in unison, as if the air itself froze in time.

I guess they are, she thought. She nodded. If these guys’re Spirits, maybe I can ask them to heal me and Dall over there just like that Melody girl… said… 

Melody. The name of the girl Avice saved. The girl that just so happened to be in the center of it all when everything went downhill. 

Garnell’s head rolling on the floor, a woman’s body torn into two, a young child with a sword thrust into his chest… She remembered it all. 

And she remembered that she just stood there watching it all.

Oh God… Oh God what happened…? What the fuck happened?!

Vomit rose to her throat and she retched everything she had in her stomach out to her side. 

The screams. The cries. The pleas. 

Avice’s heart stung and sunk to her stomach as she thought back to the night before. She dragged her legs closer to her and she dug her head between her knees.

 T-They’re dead… They’re dead and it’s my fault, she thought. Then she snapped her head and grit her teeth. No! No... it can't be... it's not my-

“Aooooo!” A wolf’s howl echoed in the distance.

It was like her head switched off in that moment and went into autopilot. Without a hint of hesitation or worry, she forced herself over to Dall. 

Cold sweat drenched her back. 

She dragged him along and propped him up against the trunk of a nearby tree. She then dug her hands into the ground below and threw it on him. She smothered it until his clothes were wet and covered with mud and dirt. Then she did the same for herself and sat down right next to him. 

Realizing that she wouldn’t be able to do anything if they were caught anyways, her eyes darted about, looking for anything she could use as a weapon. Then she looked down at Dall. She knew that he was carrying a sword with him, so she clambered about looking for it. 

She found it lying where he first was, and she grabbed it, dashed back to where they were ‘hiding’, and held it at the ready. 

This whole setup taught to her by her father was the weakest of the ‘concealment techniques’. It was just the basics if she was out in the middle of the woods and she was in danger. He told her that her ‘scent’ would disappear if mother nature was smothered all over her. 

She thought to thank her father for this little tip, but she immediately shot the idea down. 

No use thanking the man when that was all he ever did for her. 

And the technique was most effective at night. From what Avice gathered, it was right about noon, when the sun was at its highest. 

So she knew this wasn’t going to do much in the way of hiding, but anything would work if they managed to get out of it alive.

She held onto the sword and kept looking side to side, looking for any signs of movement. 

She waited.

Her chest was going to explode.

And waited.

She held her breath...

Then after a couple of minutes, she put the sword down and breathed a sigh of relief. “I hate this…” she muttered as she plopped her butt on the floor. She ran her hands through her hair. “I really, really hate this…” She held her head low. 

I need to get home. Now… 

Dall’s ragged breathing caught her attention. She turned and looked down at him.

Avice knew little to nothing about him. 

Right, in fact, she knew nothing at all. And she still saved him. She narrowed her eyes. “Why did I…?” She looked at him from head to toe. His cut, dirty blond hair was now covered in dirt and leaves. His leather ‘armor’ was battered and bruised. His smooth, tanned skin was tainted with blood and soot. 

Geh, he’s pretty… 

“Looks like the kind of guy that’d make the idiots back home go crazy.” She laughed to herself.

But I need him right now, she thought. Without him, I’m alone. And I know nothing about this place. I’d probably die within days if he weren’t around. She sighed. We’re probably still going to die if he’s still asleep.

“First things first, you need to wake up,” she said. She tapped his face. She expected at least something to come out of his mouth, but there was nothing. She held her hand against his forehead. 

Cold… 

She immediately flipped him around and slammed her ear against his chest. 

His breathing’s erratic. 

“You better not ‘friggin die on me, I swear to God.”

Something inside of her clicked.

She spun around to see all of the green orbs still frozen in space. “Hey! You Spirit things! Can you heal this guy?” she asked.

The Spirits then began to move slowly, inching closer to her. And as they did, millions of child-like voices barraged her head. 

“Is she asking us?” “Can she really see us?” “Who is this lady?” “Hey she’s got purple eyes!” “I wanna go hooome” 

She flinched at their never-ending questions. 

“Hey, let’s help her”

“Nooo, we can’t”

“Why’s she out here in the woods?” 

“Gah, can you guys talk one at a time? Please?” she coughed out. 

Her request only added oil to the flames, as what she said cleared their suspicions. 

They asked how she could see them and how she could hear them and how she could speak with them. 

She thought she was about to lose it when a larger green orb floated forward towards her. The other orbs stopped talking and cleared the way for it. “I’m the leader of this Cell, under the command of Mama Gaea,” it said, it’s voice just a little clearer than the others. “How are you able to see us? Are you an Eldred?”

Avice shook her head. “What’re you talking about?”

“You’re a human. Hu-man,” it said, its luminous body glowing brighter. “You’re not supposed to be able to communicate with us.”

She pursed her lips. “Well, I can. So since I can, can I please ask you to heal my friend right here? He’s dying.”

“So what if he is? He’s a human. Humans die all the time. That’s why no one likes you,” the spirit said. 

“Look, I understand. You don’t like us,” Avice said, getting on her knees. “But I’m begging you. Can you please heal him?”

“What’re you going to do for us in return?” the Spirit asked.

Avice held her tongue. What could she offer these Spirits? These beings that she knew she should fear. She shook her head. 

“Since you’re so special among the humans, why don’t you use us then? Spare some of your energy right now and help him?” the spirit said, bouncing side to side. 

She knew it was taunting her, but she kept her mouth shut and bowed her head. “I’m afraid I don’t know how to do that…”

“Tough luck, then,” it laughed. The other Spirits around began to laugh as well. She grit her teeth. Humiliation again… She was about to give up when the Spirit continued and said, “How about this?” It floated up to her. It shone brightly in her face and she squinted. “If you do three things for me instead, we’ll heal the guy.”

“Y-Yeah! I’ll do them!” Avice blurted out. She widened her eyes and scowled. 

Idiot! Idiot!! Don’t just agree right away! Now I can’t take it back. 

But how could she worry at this point? She bit her lip and begrudgingly said, “What do you need me to do?”

“There’s the spirit!” it said. “The first is to kill off a trio of monsters that have been plaguing these woods lately. For the second, kill a bandit group that’s been dwindling my forest’s pour resources. And third, let’s see… Ah, I know.” It danced in a circle in front of her. “Why don’t you go ahead and find the “Shroud” and bring it back to me. Do all of that, and I’ll heal him.”

Her jaw dropped. “A-After all of that, Dall’s going to end up dead anyways!”

“Don’t worry, we’ll keep him on the edge of death. I’ll promise to Mama Gaea that we won’t let him die until you do everything I asked. Oh, but that doesn’t mean he’s not going to be fully healed either, so get to it.”

She closed her eyes as she thought about her options. 

Avice knew that two out of the three of the Spirit’s requests were life-threatening. Kill three monsters and kill a group of humans? Due to her training back home, she was confident she could hold her own in a fight, but doing it alone against groups of enemies wasn’t something she thought she could do. And she didn’t really think of what the third one meant. But she shrugged it off. Finding some piece of fabric in this forest would take up time, sure, but it was easy. 

Then she thought once more about why she was doing this. 

Why she was risking her life to save Dall? 

She knew that on her own she’d be screwed, but that didn’t mean she had to go out of her way to make sure he was safe. After everything she’d been through - everything she’s suffered through - why would she help him? 

Gritting her teeth through years of scorn and pain led her to stray away from people and keep her distance. If they ever got close, she knew they’d end up leaving her in the end. Even the people closest to her would just disappear from her life. It didn’t matter who. Everyone would betray her.

Wait. Not everyone.

Three people appeared in her head.

Ruby, Sam, and Kale. Her three best friends. The people who were there for her when no one was. She hit herself. How could I forget…? She clenched her fists. I slipped again. Dammit. “So I guess I need to return the favor. I can’t be responsible for your death,” she said as she tapped Dall’s shoulder. 

Finally, she also knew that they were now being hunted. That howl was from a Despairity. 

She knew it. 

That “Aldrian” title was, for some reason, now stapled on to her. That’s what the people who attacked her called her. And Dall was with her when she escaped. 

She knew that there would be a huge target on their backs now. 

Adding on, anyone who survived and knew of the “incident” would be hunted down and killed. 

Then she thought about Melody. Avice didn’t remember seeing her get killed, but the chances of that were incredibly high. 

She was just a kid… 

At this rate, she and Dall were guaranteed to perish. And that wasn't something Avice was willing to allow. 

She wanted to get home no matter what. 

Avice opened her eyes and said, “Where do I start?”