The Soul Keeper

I woke up, out of breath and panting. The memory of my dream was still fresh in my mind. I glanced at my trembling hands, then sighed. I couldn't shake the feeling of Mother being disappointed in me, just after I lost that duel against Aoife.

"Damn it…" I mumbled as I pushed myself up to a sitting position and pushed my loose hair away from my face. "I hate this." Those were memories I didn't want to remember right now. Especially not after a crushing defeat against Fetheion.

I sat like that for a bit, then jumped off the bed and walked out of my room. I didn't feel like sleeping anymore. I didn't want to lose myself in other dreams or nightmares. 

As I walked to the entrance, a familiar voice sounded.

"Kai?" Fetheion asked as he stepped out of the library, a pile of parchments in hand. "What are you doing up so early?" 

I shrugged. "I just woke up, bad dreams. What time is it?"

He stepped closer. "There are still a few hours until dawn. Are you ok? You're really pale. Do you have a fever?"

He reached out to touch my forehead. "No, doesn't look like it," He mumbled. "You haven't eaten anything, have you?" He asked, clearly worried.

I blinked a few times. The Déjà vu was impossible to miss, wasn't it?

"I'm fine," I forced the words out. "I want to wash myself before I eat anything." 

Fetheion glanced at the library. "I see. I'll have something prepared for when you're done, so drop by the library, ok?" He waited for me to nod, then headed to his own room.

I stood there for a while, confused. It took me a moment to pull myself together at least a little and head outside. 

I shivered as the cold night air touched my face. I wondered, were there seasons in this world? Because if so, this cold could only mean winter was near. 

I hurried to the pond. The water's surface rippled as I submerged myself in it. The cold water quickly numbed my skin as I dove underneath the surface. I could see the freshwater fish scurry away as my hand touched the sandy bottom of the pond. It wasn't as deep as I thought it would be.

I remained down there for as long as my lungs allowed, then swam back to the surface. As I dried myself and got dressed, I decided to find some soap next time – water wasn't quite enough anymore.

As I walked back to Fetheion's house, I still couldn't get the similarity between his and Uncle Eion's actions out of my mind. He truly reminded me of him.

When I returned, I hesitated before entering the library. I honestly didn't want to talk with Fetheion right now, but I was hungry, and I had things I had to talk about before the others woke up. Mainly, whatever power it was that he used to end our match.

I found him buried under the documents on his desk. 

"I thought Asher took care of all that for you." I commented as I grabbed a sandwich on the low coffee table by the couches. The Divine sighed and shook his head.

"I don't think he ever wants to help me again." I chuckled; I wasn't really blaming the blonde sorcerer for not wanting to deal with paperwork. 

I bit into the sandwich as I sat on the couch. It was tasty as always, though I couldn't help but feel like it lacked something. It was probably nostalgia speaking though, since I remembered the food back at home.

"Something on your mind?" Fetheion asked after I finished my meal. I hesitated, there was so much on my mind that I didn't even know where I'd begin if I were to speak about it. "Well," I said after a moment. "I was wondering – you said most Divines had another type of power as well. Do you know what they are?"

Fetheion sighed and put the piece of paper in his hand onto the desk. "I know nothing but rumours." He finally said.  He fiddled with the edge of the papers. "We used to keep things such as these secret, and for good reason too. If they had known my powers, I would have never been able to disappear like this."

I nodded. It made sense, considering how powerful each of them was, keeping a trump card hidden was only smart. I pondered – perhaps I should do something similar as well. While I did trust Asher and the others, I still wasn't sure of what to think about Fetheion. Sure, he'd helped me, but it was clear he wouldn't hesitate to destroy me if it meant my predecessor could return.

"Kai," He said, pulling me away from my thoughts. I raised my head to glance at him. Why was his voice so serious all of a sudden? 

"I'm going to kill the Guardian by the Keeper's tomb." He said after a moment. "You should be there to absorb its soul. The memories you may see could help us learn who took your predecessor's soul."

His words startled me. "I guess so, yeah." I mumbled as he turned his attention to the documents once more. "When will you do it?" I asked hesitantly.

"Right after dawn." He showed me a faint smile. "I don't want that best to defile his tomb any further. It should have never been there in the first place." He clenched his fist, but then forced himself to calm down. "You won't be in danger, I can probably –"

"No," I cut him off. "I'll fight too." I wasn't so weak as to hide behind him. At the very least, I could help him out a little. I didn't want him to think I was helpless. 

No, I simply didn't want to become irrelevant. Because I knew that was exactly what would happen if the previous Keeper of Souls ever got the chance to return to his own body.

Fetheion shot me a surprised look, clearly ready to shoot my suggestion down. Yet, his expression changed, and he simply nodded. "Alright." He said in a low voice.

I sighed a breath of relief. I was worried I'd have to fight him on this. I was glad it hadn't come to that, though his quick acceptance was a bit weird. "We leave at dawn." He said with a sigh.

I nodded. "Alright," I said. Since there wasn't much left to be said, I stood up and headed for the door.

"Oh, and Kai," He added. "Please don't tell the others."

Though his request surprised me, I nodded. "Alright." I said, then left the room. I closed the door behind me, then headed outside.

It was still dark out – there ere still a couple of hours until dawn. I stepped to the middle of the arena where we fought just yesterday. Not a single trace was left of yesterday's match. The overturned earth, the burnt grass… none of it remained. It was as if nothing had happened here.

Fetheion's powers once again surprised me. What couldn't the man do? 

A distant howl reminded me of why I was here. I extended my hand and my sword appeared from the darkness that formed around my arm. It looked eerily similar to the darkness Fetheion controlled. Was it a result of what he had done to my interface?

I pondered about it for a moment, then shrugged. I could ask him if I needed to. Now, I wanted to focus on the task at hand. I took a deep breath and used Soul's Aspect. As my body took on the form of the corrupted demon, I assumed a combat stance – the one we always use for training.

I counted until ten, then began my training routine. Mother had drilled this into my head from the day I touched a sword for the first time. I knew it like the back of my hand. I could probably do it in my sleep, under normal circumstances. But now, with Soul's Aspect active, I found myself losing balance or overstepping quite often.

It was because of the change in my body – the difference in strength, speed, and mobility. My centre of balance was ever so slightly different because of the horns and tail. The claws made it slightly more difficult to hold the sword with both hands – I needed to one hand it to use it effectively. 

I had been sloppy, I thought as I flowed from one move to the next. I had neglected to train every day. It was hardly a surprise that I wasn't improving at all. Instead, one could even argue that I was regressing ever so slowly. With each day I skipped training, my form was only worsening. 

If I were even a little better – a little faster or stronger, I could have been able to keep up with Fetheion. Well, only when he wasn't using magic, but still, that was a step in the right direction.

And that was what I had to do. Step by step. I was going to grow stronger.