With a grim look on his face, Dall approached the nearest goblin corpse. “How long have these things been in here…?” he asked. He tapped his foot against the corpse’s stomach in an attempt to turn it over. When he made contact with it, however, its stomach concaved and a thick green liquid drooled out of his mouth. Grimacing, Dall faltered backward, covering his nose from the stench. “What the hell?” He knelt down, pulling his shirt up to block his nose, and stared into the goblin’s glassy, blood-red eyes. Turning his attention lower, he turned his head curiously. Its usual chipped, yellow teeth lined its mouth, but something seemed off. “Strange…” he whispered.
“What’s wrong, Dall?” Avice asked as she approached him from behind.
He straightened his back and pursed his lips. “I don’t think you would understand this…”
Avice crossed her arms. “I’d still like to know.”
“Would you like the long or short version of it?”
“Like I said. I want to know. So give it to me straight.”
Dall raised an eyebrow, then nodded. “Technically, monsters like these goblins here, you see, aren’t exactly… alive.” Avice cocked her head to the side. “They don’t have the body parts necessary for them to live like any other creature,” he said. “They live off the magical energy that Spirits radiate. That energy is usually stored in a small, chiseled rock hidden in their mouths.” He approached another goblin’s corpse. “None of these,” he whispered, forcing open its mouth with his boot, “have them.”
“And this is strange how?”
He glanced at her. “Do you see any Spirits around us?”
Avice strained her eyes trying to make out any floating balls, but she shook her head. “I haven’t seen any ever since we left the clearing…”
“Then yes. This is strange,” he put a finger to his chin. “That rock’s called a Mana Stone.” He narrowed his eyes. “Based on what I learned in Icalia, it seems like they fill the stone to the brim with energy. Like I said, without them, monsters wouldn’t be able to live. They would completely collapse into a pool of mud if they were forcibly removed. So considering that these things don’t have the Stones…” Dall shook his head. “This place is filled to the brim with Spiritual Energy. And that means that this place is dangerous.”
“I really hope it isn’t,” she whispered. “I want to trust Achaea.”
“Hm? Why” Dall asked, turning to her whilst dragging his boots against the ground. “You told me yourself that you can’t trust people so easily. Why Achaea?”
She pursed her lips. “I… I need to.”
Avice frowned and ran her fingers over the tattoo on her arm - the Eldred brand. She wrapped her entire hand over it, cursing the seared drawing carved into her skin. It served as her first memory of this strange and foreign world. Her first of what seemed like an endless stream of danger to her life. Nonstop catastrophe. There was not a moment where Avice believed she was truly safe. Even back in her cage in Fora, the dirty, insanity-filled eyes of the prisoners forced her to stay on her toes. The events that followed justified her worries. Monsters, people, Spirits… everything in this world seemed like they wanted her dead.
But then Achaea appeared and helped her achieve her first victory. Avice had no idea how, but Achaea had managed to make her feel safe. Made her feel welcome. At peace. So the thought of this place, Achaea’s residence, being dangerous ticked her off.
“She’s the only reason I managed to make it out of that fight alive,” she said. “She taught me how to fight with Spirits. She gave me confidence and believed in me.” Avice stepped over the corpses and slowly approached Dall. “Achaea has my respect, too. I can’t even imagine surviving on my own for centuries with just my own mind. I’d go crazy…”
“But Avice…”
“Most importantly,” she interrupted, “she has the key to getting me home.” Avice crossed her arms. “I’m doing all of this to get home. So I want to - no - I have to trust Achaea.”
“You don’t know this fact for sure though, Avice. She may be lying to yo-”
“Shut up, Dall,” Avice growled.
“You might be doing all of this for nothing,” Dall said sternly.
Avice grit her teeth and clenched her fists. Everything in her body screamed at her to punch him, but she instead sighed. “No, no, you’re right…” Avice rubbed her forehead. “It’s just… I don’t even want to think about that, Dall. Because if Achaea’s lying to me…” Her expression grew grim and dark.
Dall put his hand on her shoulder and gently shook her. “It’s your decision, Avice,” he said. “I’m sorry. Let’s just hope this works out, yeah?” He smiled. Avice’s heart, for a split second, skipped a beat. “Now then, are you ready to continue?”
With a nod, she said, “Let’s do it.”
“Avice, your right!”
“Got it!” She tightened her grip on her wooden club and swung it with as much strength as she could muster. Five small hunger-crazed goblins leaped towards her, eyes gleaming with fear and insanity. “Take this you bastards! AAAAAGH!” Avice yelled with all her might. She rotated her body. With the full force of her bat, she crushed all of their skulls in one swing.
Avice gasped for air when an electric zing poked at her neck, and she swiftly turned around. A goblin wielding a sharp dagger rapidly sprinted towards Dall, who had been preoccupied with another.
“Behind you, Dall!”
He quickly turned his head. Picking up the goblin closest to him, he charged the dagger-wielding goblin. With a yell, he crushed the two of them beneath him, and skewered them both with his sword.
Dall and Avice stood in place for a few moments catching their breaths. Avice had been trained from childhood to survive in dire circumstances where stamina meant everything, but never in her entire life did she expect to actually end up in these situations. The expected result was for her to be completely fine whenever the need called for it, but in reality, it was much more difficult.
Climbing five floors, each filled with at least a dozen insane goblins, in complete darkness was something Avice certainly did not expect. And neither did Dall. He at first took short quick breaths, but then proceeded to take long, calming ones. “It feels like I’m back in the war…” he muttered. He tensed his muscles and jumped up and down. Despite the fact that he winced every time he landed, he shrugged the pain off and said, “I think I’m good to go now.”
“M-Me too,” Avice mumbled. “Let’s keep going.”
Dall, for the sixth time today, cast Deep Sight. He hadn’t used the skill in quick succession like this in five years, so his focus had gradually took a turn for the worst. The second he activated it, his body went completely numb, and his head spun. With blurred vision, he stumbled forward. Sensing that Dall was about to fall, Avice stepped in front and caught him. “T-Thanks,” he said.
“No problem,” she said. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
“I’m sure. It's just that my Soul can't keep up with me. I haven't Expanded since the war, and I'm losing my touch," he sighed. "Regardless, the staircase is close by. And, if what I’m seeing is right, then there aren’t any monsters upstairs waiting for us.”
Avice tilted her head at the way he emphasized the word 'soul', but she shook her head. Something more occupied her worries. “Alright, now I’m sure you’re not doing fine,” she said, doubting a sudden change in the ‘group of monsters per floor’ pattern they’d witnessed thus far. “Let’s get some rest, yeah?’
“We can rest when we get to the next floor.” He gently removed himself from her. “There aren’t any monsters. Trust me…”
Avice stared dubiously at him. If they weren’t physically ready for another attack, they’d be killed. Up until now, Dall seemed like he was fine, but his stamina had strangely been running low. If by some chance his wariness made him slip up on accident, and there were in fact monsters on the next floor, then the responsibility would lay on her for not pushing him to rest now.
However, before she could give him her piece of mind, he quietly said, “There’s no time to waste. I’m going up whether you like it or not, Avice. So if you want to wait here and rest, then do it. I’ll wait for you on the next floor.”
She glared at him. If she ended up dead because of this, she wouldn’t forgive both of them. At the same time, however, she wouldn’t let Dall go up and kill himself if she stays behind. So she made the decision: It would be better to go up together than die on their own.
Avice felt like she should trust his words, and there was only one way that she thought could do that. “Fine, fine,” she relented. “Promise me there won’t be, alright?” Avice approached him and raised her hand. She clenched her fist. All her fingers were down except for her pinkie.
Dall took a step back, somewhat nervous at the serious look on her face. “What are you doing?”
“Pinkie promise me.”
“…What?”
“Do it. Wrap your pinkie around mine.”
“I’m sorry… I don’t really understand,” he said. “Is this a custom in your world?”
“Yes, yes it is. And this is important,” she said. “Wrap your pinkie around mine, and promise me that there aren’t any monsters.”
“Avice, this seems incredibly childish,” Dall responded.
Her cheeks flushed a deep red and she frowned. “Just do it, please.”
He narrowed his eyes. “And if, hypothetically, I’m wrong?”
“I’ll cut off your finger for lying.”
“Quite a drastic response to a lie, isn’t it? What’s the point of-” Her glare deterred him from continuing with that sentence. Dall nodded. “No. Sorry, understood,” he said as he lifted his pinkie and wrapped it around hers.
His heart leaped at how cold her hand was.
He looked into her eyes and said clearly, “There are no monsters on the next floor.”
She squinted, looking between his face and their entwined fingers. Their pinkies gradually grew white from how tightly she gripped him. No matter how long she stared at him, he kept his expression straight. Realizing that this will do, Avice sighed.
Then she smiled. “Alright. Let’s keep going.”
The two of them made their way across the room and eventually found themselves before the steps of the staircase. They took each step carefully, moving up one at a time.
Their steps echoed in the dark chamber. The temperature dropped drastically, and their breaths became visible. Avice had half expected Dall to be wrong and prepared herself to fight off another group of goblins. But she was wrong.
Nothing came at them.
They stood there motionless for a few moments when something hit her.
A sudden rush of emotion crashed into her.
Fear, anger, sadness, nostalgia, regret, pain, agony, happiness… so many waves of feelings bombarded her from all around, crushing her heart to pieces. Tears sprung from her eyes. Avice uncontrollably fell to the ground, her entire body writhing in pain and agony. She had no idea why. Every cell in her body wanted her to feel pain.
Feel angry.
“Avice! Are you okay?!” Dall yelled.
The overflowing emotions crashing down on her lightened once she heard his voice. Despite her aching heart and weak body, she raised her hand and gave him a thumbs up. “Aih’m faihne,” she said through her gritted teeth.
“It really doesn’t sound like it,” he said as he patted her back.
“Nho, nho, I’m fine,” she said, each word sounding nasal.
Taking a few minutes to compose herself, she stood back up and breathed in and out slowly.
“Seriously, I’m fine. At least, I think. It was like, the second I entered the room, my body just shut down. I don’t even know what happened.” Avice sniffled, inklings of that outburst still lingering.
“Are you sure?” Dall asked. “You’re not going to break down like that in the middle of a fight are you?”
“Wow, such a gentleman you are, Dall,” she said.
He glared at her, “You know that’s not what I mean.”
Avice smirked. “Of course I know. I’m playing.” She shook her entire body and groaned. “But still,” she said. “That was really weird, though.”
Dall blinked a couple of times. Then, he put a finger to his chin. "No, no, wait, wait," he said. "It's not that weird. Not at all."
"Sorry, what?"
"Avice, have there ever been times in your life where you've successfully performed an arduous task and came out of it feeling like a whole new person? Either somewhat joyous or angry?"
"How 'arduous' are you talking?"
"Something big. Or, no, it doesn't always have to be, but," Dall fumbled. He scratched his head and sighed.
"What are you getting at?"
"Look, there's this thing in my world called the Soul," he said.
"Yeah, my world has that concept too. Something about being a person's actual life, y'know?"
"Interesting. Except, for us, it's no concept." Dall's words piqued Avice's interest. "Every living being has a Soul. They're basically catalysts for everything that we do - our stamina, our strength, our intelligence, I can keep going. If one doesn't grow their Soul, then we'd forever be mere animals."
Avice's mouth twitched as she forced herself from smiling. That sounds cool, she thought. She quelled her excitement to allow Dall to continue.
"Basically, people like me can use their Skills because of our Souls. The bigger our Soul, Skills not only become more powerful, but we can use more of them as well. Some Icalian researchers say that humans have lost a drastic amount of our Souls that's necessary to see Spirits, but that's irrelevant. What is is that by overcoming harsh obstacles in our path, living beings can experience what we call Expansion."
"Which sounds like your Soul grows."
"Right. Souls can normally be filled by doing menial tasks, or doing things important to the person the Soul belongs to. That option usually causes Expansions once every twenty years." Avice's eyebrows rose. "But people like us," he said as he pointed between the two of them. "I fight on the front lines. You fought a lot of powerful monsters. We grow through combat, which..." He shook his head, cutting the thought of what he was about to say. "Regardless. What I'm getting at is that you fought and defeated both a Rabull and that giant Spider, right?"
"Y-Yeah," she said.
"People don't play around with those things. They're dangerous. Especially the Spider. And you defeated them."
Avice gasped. "W-Wait. No, even then, it shouldn't matter right? I'm not-" She cut herself off. Avice knew better. She might not have liked it, but it appeared that her body did in fact come from this world. She rubbed her hands together. "You're saying I 'filled my Soul', huh?"
"If not, it's about to burst," Dall responded with a nod. "Every person's Expansion is different. The one thing that happens to all of us before that, though, is an unusual burst of emotions."
"Kind of like what I just had," she said. "Wait, so the goblins I've been killing until now have been filling my Soul, as well?"
"That should be the case."
Sweat dripped down her cheek. "T-This isn't gonna mess with me, will it? I wanna be in perfect shape if I have to escape here. I won't get screwed over will I?!" Dall pursed his lips. She nearly collapsed to the ground. "To think that all of my achievements until now are gonna be my downfall... I'm gonna cry."
"It's no big deal," Dall said. "Expansions generally happen a couple of hours after your Soul's filled up. Considering how quick your, ahem, outburst went, I'd say your Soul's not quite there. So you should be fine."
She glared at him and said, "You better promise me."
"I won't pinkie promise this," he said. "I don't know what your Soul is like, so there's no guarantee. But what I can guarantee is the fact that I'll drag you out of a messy situation if you experience Expansion."
She crossed her arms, tapping her fingers against her wrists. “Alright. Fine. I'll trust you." She stretched her arms and legs. "Thanks for that lesson."
"Well, it's just something to know in case of emergencies," he responded. He moved next to her.
"Moving on, Dall,” she said. “I guess you were right about the monsters. Do you want to take a break after we find the next staircase?”
“Sounds like a plan. But let’s at least rest next to the stairs just in case. Let me see...” He closed his eyes and stood silently.
Avice ran her eyes over his body, from head to toe. Man, this guy really is attractive… she thought. A guy who talks like that even to someone like me? I might’ve felt something if we had met under normal circumstances. It’d be hilarious to see what my friends’ reactions would be, too. Or maybe even the rest of my class. They’d probably drop everything to hit on this guy…
She chuckled to herself, imagining the stupid looks on her classmates’ faces.
"Oh, I concur with that sentiment, girl," the woman's voice spoke in her head.
It surprised Avice enough to make her heart jump to her throat. "U-Umm, what?"
"This Dall human. He surely must carry at least a fraction of Aldrian genes in him. There would be no other reason for his absurd strength and beauty."
"Okay, I didn't go that far," Avice muttered.
"No, you didn't. I'm merely adding on to your thoughts," the woman said.
"Oh great, you can read them too. Is there anything Aldiran's can't do?" she asked.
"Don't worry, girl, I don't read into your mind too much."
"And, with those words, I'll never be able to think safely again. I can't believe this."
"Anyways, listen to me. I have a very, very bad feeling about this place. Be on your guard, understand? Do not let anything fool you."
Avice narrowed her eyes. "Wait, who even are-"
“A-Avice,” he muttered, his voice quivering. She turned to him. “I-I can’t.” His body shivered and he looked weakly towards her.
She rushed next to him and grabbed his arm. “Calm down. Breathe,” she said softly. “What’s wrong?”
“I can’t use Deep Sight,” he said. “I can’t find the next staircase.” He anxiously brought his hands to his head. “I can’t tell if there are monsters or not… ”
He tensed his muscles and took a deep breath. She didn’t know what he was doing, but clearly he expected something to happen, for he scowled and grit his teeth.
“My abilities are gone, too. What’s happening to me?” he cried weakly. “What the hell is happening?!”
“Dall, please calm down.”
“Calm down? Don’t tell me to calm down, Avice.” His voice dripped with vitriol and fury. “I’ve been trying to keep calm ever since Fora. And I’m not sure I can keep that up. The town, that Spider, this tower,” he said. He clenched his fists and glared at her. “I hate this.”
“Hold on a minute and just-”
“The Eldreds burned the city to the ground. The city that I was in. Crushed under my watch, and I did what? Nothing. No one knows what’s happened except for you and me. And both of us are here. Stuck in this damn tower for who knows how long. Not to mention the fact that we have to stay here for a night? The Eldreds are planning something, and the only people who can stop them before anything happens can’t do anything about it. I can’t stay calm.”
Avice stomped her foot on the ground and he glared at her. “We won’t get anywhere if you’re going to freak out about this, Dall.”
“Don’t talk down to me, Avice,” he growled.
“I-I’m not,” she muttered, panicking at the anger in his voice. “I understand that you’re angry, and I guess I might have had a hand in this whole tower business, but please calm down. I’ve seen it happen too many times back home. People fueled by anger don’t think straight. I… I know that for a fact,” she said. “So calm down. For now at least.”
He stood there, clenching and opening his fists, his breath uneven. Dall glanced at Avice, then at the ground, then at his own hands. “Fine. Fine. But we’re going to pick up the pace, you hear me? I’m about to let loose.”
“Understood, captain,” Avice said with a smile.
Dall nodded, then proceeded to unsheathe his sword. Without his ability to scan his surroundings, he was rendered powerless. The only weapons in his arsenal now were his sword and his mind.
The two continued onward on this freezing floor. They’d come upon a huge cobweb once in a while, which really triggered Avice’s alarm for the eight-legged, but otherwise, their way forward remained the same.
With chattering teeth, Dall said, “Keep your eyes focused, Avice. I’m going to need your help from now on, too.”
“Don’t worry, Dall. I’ll make sure to tell you if I see any-AAAH!” Avice screamed loudly.
“What is it?! A monster?!” His question wasn’t answered with words however, as Avice had slammed her body against his back. Either due to the cold or something else, Avice’s body shivered uncontrollably. “Avice you need to tell me. What is it?!”
“S-Spiders… Spiders…”
“Spiders?” Dall narrowed his eyes and looked past Avice.
He nearly vomited.
Corpse. Corpse. Corpse. Corpse.
Overturned, curled, grotesque spider corpses littered the room, each of them with sparkling, pale bodies, with dark purple fangs. It wouldn’t have frightened her as much if the corpses were normal, but these ones were about as big, or even bigger, than her. They had wide bodies, and long, hairy, thin spindling legs. Their glassy red eyes shimmered in the darkness.
Terrifying shivers ran down both of their spines. It was a surprise that they had managed to walk this far without encountering one.
Avice let go of Dall’s body and stood next to him. Her head grew dizzy and her breath cut short. “These… these things… what the fuck are they doing here?”
“I don’t know,” Dall said through gritted teeth. “But no matter what, we need to get through here. Keep your guard up. You don’t know if… something might attack us.”
“Stop, stop, stop, stop, I don’t even want to hear it. Oh, god, please. I hate this, I hate this…” she muttered. Shivers continuously ravaged her body. “Cursed. Evil. Spawns of Satan.”
“Avice, I’ll grab your arm to keep you steady if I need to. I understand that this might be terrifying, but you need to watch yourself.”
“I-I-I know. It’s just that… God I can’t. Dall I’m walking behind you.”
“But-”
“No buts,” Avice growled. “I’ll watch your back. I promise you I’ll keep my senses up. I’m confident in those at least. Just… Argh I can’t.”
“U-Understood…” Dall said.
The two continued weaving around the spider corpses, and they both jumped at the occasional spider leg twitch.
An hour or so later, they discovered the staircase leading up, and they ran as quickly as they could out of the room.
Avice gasped for breath, her throat completely dry.
These past few hours or so have been living nightmares for her. Dark, vast, eerie spaces? Check. Being alone with one person in said spaces? Check. Countless, never-ending spider corpses? Double-check. Her mental fortitude and heart of fearless courage had been on the brink of collapsing. If this small journey through these horrifying chambers didn't fill up her Soul, then nothing could have.
She didn’t know how Dall had been fairing, but she was absolutely sick of all of this.
After they had made their way to the staircase to the ninth floor of the tower, they both stopped for a second to breathe. “This sucks. This sucks. This sucks,” Avice grumbled. “Fantasy worlds suck. How the hell do spiders like these even get that big?”
“I’ve fought a couple in my entire life. Giant Spiders are rare out there, so I’ve never seen this amount in one place before. I agree. This is terrible.”
“How long do you think 'till we’ve reached the top floor?”
“I’m not sure… We should keep moving.”
“Yeah, we should. Honestly, I’m gonna give Achaea a piece of my mind when… I…”
As her voice trailed off, Dall turned to look at her. “Avice?”
“Dall, up there,” she said as she pointed up at the staircase. He followed her finger and his eyebrows rose. Then, a small smile appeared on his face. “It’s pretty bright up there, isn’t it?”
“It is. Avice, let’s go.”
The two of them ran up the stairs as quickly as they could, and when their feet touched the even floor, both of them laughed and cheered.
The darkness was no more.
Light showered the room, revealing everything inside. No monsters, no spider corpses, and a clear staircase sitting in the middle of the room. They sprinted towards the foot of the stairs and grinned.
Avice happily lifted her foot to finally reach the top when Dall called out to her.
“Avice, wait.”
She put her foot down and glanced at him. “What is it?”
“Let’s rest here.”
“We can do that on the next floor. Come on, let’s go.”
“Just listen to me,” he said firmly. “We don’t know what’s up there. You may have put your trust in Achaea, but I don’t know anything about her. She could be an enemy as far as I know. So we should rest and be prepared for anything that might happen.”
“I’m afraid I have to agree here, girl. Rest your body for now. It’s best to be careful,” the woman’s voice rang in her head again.
Avice bit her lip then sighed. “Fine, I get it.” She plopped down on the ground and stretched. “Might as well make the most of this time, then.”
“Good decision, Avice,” the voice said. “Climbing this tower took quite a while didn’t it?”
Okay, this voice. Who the hell is this? Avice thought. I’m gonna get sick and tired of hearing this out of the blue. She took a deep breath. But I guess there’s no harm in it just talking. Now then… let’s see what this room’s like.
Walking in complete darkness in large rooms piqued her interest. What did they look like? What secrets did the blackness hide? Avice eagerly scanned her surroundings. She had expected to see some ancient ruins or some sort of fantastical, mysterious architecture, but what greeted her was nothing of the sort.
In fact, the room surprised her in more ways than one.
Avice unsteadily rose from the ground and nervously made her way to one of the walls. Each step echoed in this vast chamber. Her heart pounded in her ears.
Once she was halfway to the wall, she stopped in her tracks and knelt down.
“Hmm? What’s wrong, girl?”
“Dall…” Avice called. He had been sitting down next to the staircase with his eyes closed. He cocked his head to the side inquisitively and asked her what she was doing. “Come here.”
He approached her, hand on the hilt of his blade ready for an enemy attack. “What is it?”
Avice picked up the thick, black cord with colorful, sharp wires poking out from its empty end. The chord was braided, and she poked the copper ends of the wires with her finger. “Do you know what electricity is?”
“’Electricity’?” he said. “It sounds familiar, but, I don't think so.”
“What the hell…?” Avice whispered. She raised her gaze and narrowed her eyes at what lay before her.
She stepped forward and placed her palm on the huge pane of glass that stretched around the entirety of the room.
Electrical cables dangled from the ceiling in the rooms behind the windows. Chairs built of metal and smooth-looking tables littered the area. Scorch marks and burns tainted the room, and black ash covered various areas in the chamber.
“This looks like something from my world,” Avice whispered.
“What?” Dall asked.
“This feels like… some science room or something. What’s something like this doing here?”
Then her brain stung, and a bright flash of white blinded her. She rubbed her eyes and was about to ask Dall what happened when something startled her.
“Having fun around here, Kiddo?” A male’s excited voice echoed in her ears. “Surprised they let a brat like you in this place. Don’t touch anything, okay? Aural’s the one in charge of this electric business, and I ain’t gonna talk to him if you hurt yourself, you hear?”
Avice brought her hands to her head. “W-What’s happening?”
As she blinked, she realized that the room she had been looking at was no more destroyed. It was in perfect shape, and people walked about wearing white coats and writing down on clipboards. And a man colored in all red stood before her.
“Don’t frighten her like that, you idiot,” another woman’s voice chimed. The color blue flashed in her head. “She got permission already. Just let her be.”
The man’s voice cackled. “Come on Kiddo, say something! You’re finally out of the house! What do you think about this tower?”
Her head stung again and she found herself back in front of the destroyed room.
“Avice?”
“Wha…” she muttered. “Did you see that Dall?”
“No, I’m sorry. You just said something about ‘science’ then stood there for a while. Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she said. Her stomach sank and she rubbed her head. “You can go back and rest, if you want.”
“Alright…” Dall said as he moved back to the base of the staircase.
She stood there for a moment with her arms crossed. “Well, I haven’t seen those two in a long time. I wonder what they’re up to these days,” the woman’s voice said.
“Okay, stop right there,” Avice muttered. “Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my head?”
“Oh my, this is the first time you’ve spoken up to me about my identity,” the voice said as she chuckled. “My name is Aria. And… I’m sorry to say that I can’t exactly tell you the reason for my presence.”
“Why not?”
“It’s a covenant that I cannot afford to break,” Aria said. “Anyways, all you need to know is that you can trust me.”
“’Trust you’,” Avice scoffed. “Like I could trust some strange nonsensical, disembodied voice.”
“You trust Achaea,” Aria said. “I don’t see why you can’t do the same for me.”
“How am I supposed to trust you when you’ve just appeared?” Avice said. She sighed and rubbed her forehead. “I’m not schizophrenic am I?”
“I haven’t just appeared. I’ve been here all along. In fact, if it weren’t for me, you would’ve been taken away back in that human village.”
Avice’s eyes widened. “That was you?” she whispered. “When I was in that… weird place?”
“Of course. I admit I broke the boundaries set for me, but it was necessary,” Aria said proudly. “So listen to me when I say this. You cannot trust Achaea.”
“Why?”
“She’s out for blood. I don’t know how she did it, but she completely blocked my ability to communicate with you. You couldn’t hear my voice at all in that forest, right?”
“Yeah…” Avice said. “Only after the Spider did I hear you.”
“That’s right. By some amazing miracle, she's learned how to interfere with people's Souls. So believe me. I’m on your side Avice,” Aria said. “Do not trust her.”
Avice gulped. She was about to respond when Dall called out to her, telling her that it was time they make their way up. “Thank you for saving me that time, Aria,” Avice said. “But I have no choice. Achaea’s my ticket out of here.”
“Mm… Well, we’ll see. Do your best to stand your ground. I’ll stay quiet for a while. Good luck Avice.”
She rubbed her eyes and shook her head. “So much crap this late at night… I just wanna be done with this already,” she said. Avice made her way to Dall and they stood before the staircase together.
“Okay, let’s finally meet Achaea,” Dall said.
“Let’s do it…” Avice said with a nervous smile.
This is it. It has to be. Please let everything go okay… Avice pleaded.
“I’m finally going home.”
