The Soul Keeper

I couldn't believe my eyes as a massive castle stood before us. The structure was so huge that it completely filled out view. We could barely believe our eyes.

It's massive stone walls transitioned to the rocky cliffs of the mountain seamlessly. It was difficult to say where the mountain ended, and the castle began. The natural shape of the mountain formed what looked like giant claws extending to the sky and the castle was built between the three peaks.

"This thing is massive." Lucius whispered. Asher drew a sharp breath, ready to say something. I glanced at him as he opened his mouth, then closed it again.

"How do we enter?" I finally asked.

We glanced at each other before Asher tilted his head. "Uh, well. How about we approach the gate?" Lucius raised his eyebrows. I shrugged and did as Asher suggested. We took a few steps forward and stepped into the shadow of the massive structure.

We stood before the metal gates, waiting for something to happen. Moments passed in silence, filled with expectation. Eventually, I couldn't take it anymore. "Yeah, no. I don't even know why I thought this might work."

Lucius started laughing. Asher raised his hands and shook his head. "Well, I tried."

We stepped back again. "Let's fly." I said as my wings appeared on my back. I stretched them wide and leapt up, into the air. I could barely hear Lucius' protests over the loud beat of my wings and the sound of the blowing wind.

Only a short moment later, my feet touched the top of the walls. My eyes widened as the courtyard and main building took my breath away. Colourful flowers decorated the courtyard, I could feel their magic even from all the way up here.

Intricate carvings on the building's exterior were more detailed than anything I'd seen before. What they depicted; I couldn't say. Despite the strong wind and harsh weather, the entire building was in pristine condition.

As I let my gaze wander, the other two soon arrived with Asher's spell. "Don't fly off like that!" Lucius started to reprimand me, but as soon as his gaze fell on the building, his voice faded.

"My god." Asher whispered. "How is this even possible?" I could see the conflict in his mind, it was all over his face. His expression twisted from wonder to distrust almost immediately. "Kai, I have a bad feeling about this."

I glanced at him. I didn't trust this place either, but turning back now, after everything we've been through was just unacceptable.

"Let's go." I said with a cold, harsh tone as I jumped down.

"Kai!" Lucius shouted as I beat my wings to slow my fall. As soon as my feet touched the courtyard, the plants around me seemingly came to life.

"Kai, this is not a good idea!" Asher shouted. They still hadn't jumped down. I looked up, then around. The plants swayed as the wind blew through them. I could see their colours become more vivid and their glow, clearer. I didn't even need to glance at my status panel to know that they were feeding on my mana.

"If you feel unsafe, you can wait here." I said, letting the wind carry my voice to Asher and Lucius. "I'm going in."

As I approached the main building, it didn't take long for me to hear their footsteps as they ran after me. I couldn't help as a faint smile flashed across my face. I didn't say anything, and neither did they. We arrived at the large, wooden door.

"So, how do we get in?" I asked, glancing at Asher. He shrugged. "Uh, approach?"

"Again?" Lucius cried out. I chuckled, but still stepped forward. A loud creak sounded as the door opened very slowly. I looked at Asher, eyes wide. He grinned. "It had to work eventually."

After some nervous laughter, we stepped inside. A large, empty and dark hall awaited us. Paintings and tapestry decorated the walls. The pillars supporting the ceiling were shaped like dragons and other mythical creatures. The floor tiles were a dark colour. Though I wasn't sure, it looked and felt like black marble.

Our steps echoed in the darkness as I raised my hand. A ball of flame appeared in my palm. I threw it in the air, allowing it to float a few meters above us. With the soft light of its flames illuminating our path, we moved farther inside.

With each step we took, the air grew heavier. This place was massive – how was I even supposed to find the primal core of water in here? I glanced at Asher. From his dark, worried expression, I could guess he felt the same way.

We soon came across a door. It wasn't anything fancy, it wasn't magical or anything either. Just some normal, ordinary wooden door. Yet, we summoned our weapons and prepared our spells before Lucius opened it.

There was nothing inside. A small, empty room. It was so empty that there wasn't even a speck of dust. Partially disappointed and partially relieved, we returned to the long hallway.

"How large is this place?" Lucius whispered as he led the way. Asher shrugged; we had no way of knowing.

"What I don't understand is," The sorcerer mumbled after a short while. "Why is this place so pristine?" He stopped in his tracks and glanced at us. "Look, the tapestry isn't damaged," He touched the marble pillars. "These don't even have a speck of dust on them."

I shook my head. "Almost as if this place is frozen in time." I said with a faint, bitter smile. "What are you thinking, Asher?"

He sighed. "Two options: Either this place was frozen in time as you just said, or the development team forgot about it."

I flinched – I had forgotten about that. "Right." I looked away. I hated this – this feeling of being used to this situation. Being used to my body, magic, demons and Ereth and flying and fighting.

"Are you ok?" Lucius's worried voice sounded. "You look pale."

I nodded. "I'm fine, just a little overwhelmed." I took a deep breath to clear my mind. Thinking of such things wasn't going to help with our current situation. It'd be better to focus and get things done. I was going to have plenty of time for self-pity later anyways, I jokingly thought to myself.

"Anyways," I said looking at the dark hallway awaiting us. "Let's keep going."

With that, we set off again. We walked in silence for a while, until we finally found something. A large door, with writing carved onto its surface.

As I read the text, my heart sank.