The Soul Keeper

"So," A woman's voice sounded. "What exactly is it that you heard?" She sounded annoyed more than anything. More so than seemed justified. 

"I don't know!" The voice I heard just before I jumped into the water sounded. 

"What do you mean you don't know?" The annoyed woman asked, her voice getting more irritated with each word she spoke.

The man just sighed, then silence followed. Moments later, he clicked his tongue. "Well, I was sure there was something going on here." He mumbled. "Seriously, did you guys hear nothing?"

A bunch of voices said no simultaneously. I furrowed my brows. How many people were there? Five? Six, at most, I decided. 

"Can we just keep going if you're done here?" The woman asked.

"Can you be patient for just a few god damned minutes?" The man replied with anger. "What if there is something of value here and we miss it because you're so damn impatient?" I heard footsteps, then a low splash. Had someone just jumped into the water? Why on earth would they do that?

"Hey, wasn't this supposed to be a cursed lake with undead and corpses and miasma?" A different voice asked. I tilted my head slightly. Was it the lack of danger that would give me away?

"Maybe someone killed them?" Someone else chimed in.

"Maybe they only come out at night?" Someone else asked.

"Don't be stupid – they're undead, not vampires." The previous person told them off. 

I had to hold my chuckle – they seemed like a fun bunch. Hearing them chat like this made me feel somewhat nostalgic. 

"Hey," The man who first brought them to the lake shore spoke again. "Why did you call the place cursed?" I grinned – he had asked the question I wanted to know the answer to as well. Mainly because I was currently swimming in said lake.

Hiding behind the rock formation, with only my head above water, I was quite defenceless. It would be quite unfortunate if something decided to attack me. Sure, I could escape, but I would be noticed by those players for sure and that was something I wanted to avoid.

"The lady at the guild said a fight happened somewhere around here between a demon and a huge beast." The person who first brought the subject up explained. "Apparently they both died at the end of it and the place became cursed by their vengeful spirits."

"My god, you love idle, useless gossip like that don't you?" The annoyed woman cried out. "Can we please be on our way now?"

"Why are you so impatient?" The man shouted. "We're not late for anything, we finished our quest, and nothing is chasing us!" I could hear the built-up annoyance in his voice. "So, what's the hurry?"

I rolled my eyes. The water was cold, and I was freezing. I didn't want to be stuck here because of some drama going on between them. While I was certain their fights and worries were perfectly justified, this was not a good timing.

"The Divine will make a speech!" The woman shouted, causing my ears to perk up. Which Divine were they talking about?

"Which Divine?" The guy asked. I blinked a few times – was he reading my mind or something? This was a bit too creepy for my tastes.

The woman didn't reply, but the man sighed. "You're fangirling too much." He spoke. I assumed the woman had made a gesture to signify the Divine since the man seemed to have gotten his answer. I felt annoyed – I really wanted to know which Divine they were talking about.

"Oh, shut up!" The woman shouted. "And hurry up, I want to get back in time – she'll talk about when the assault will happen and all that. We need to be there in time, so we learn about all that."

I raised by brows – what was this assault she was talking about? I made a amental note to ask Mona about it – she was in the city not too long ago, she had to know something, right?

"Jeez, fine." The guy mumbled. "It's totally your fault if we missed a great treasure here though." 

"Yeah, yeah, let's just be on our way." The woman replied, not really caring too much about any kind of treasure, or her teammate's feelings. "Come on." 

I heard audible sighs followed by the sound of their footsteps growing more distant. I waited for a good ten seconds after their voices faded, then slowly climbed on the rocky formation at the centre of the lake.

"That was too close for comfort," I mumbled to myself. The Demons had just found out I had survived; I didn't need to add any more factions to that list. Secrecy was my strongest weapon right now – I was being an idiot by risking it like this.

I pondered a moment as I sat under the warm sunlight. It hurt my eyes, but I liked the warmth, especially after sitting in the water for so long. I didn't waste too much time here though – if one group of players passed through there was no reason to think others wouldn't.

I weighed my options under the sunlight. I could return to Fetheion's house, ask Mona about the Divine's speech and Fetheion about this 'curse' here. Or I could dive into the lake and try to find those vengeful spirits myself.

I glanced at the sun. I still had at least a couple of hours before dusk. After pondering for a moment, I decided it was worth the risk. I took a deep breath and once again, jumped into the cold, clear water.

I dove down and was quickly surprised by how quickly the sunlight dimmed. Before I had even swam three meters downwards, I found myself in a near pitch black darkness. I could still see the surface with ease, but it was as if the sunlight simply refused to pierce these waters any further.

With furrowed brows, I continued to swim downwards. Unlike most, I didn't need the sunlight to see anyways. I could see just fine in the darkness.

Though soon, a different issue rose. The issue of my breath. I could feel my lungs burn as I swam further down. I still couldn't see the floor of the lake. My vision had started to become darker as well – not because of the lack of light, but because there was something magical about the lake.

I hesitated for a split second, then quickly swam back up. "Damn," I mumbled to myself after reaching the surface and taking deep breaths to calm my racing heart and burning lungs. "I wish I had those souls…" 

If I could use Soul's Aspect on the soul of the Sea Serpent we killed all those months ago, I would probably get some form of water breathing ability out of that. I clenched my fists. Damn that Divine who took all of my souls away when she had me killed. 

I glanced around – I could try and find a somewhat powerful water beast around, but was it really worth the effort and risk while I could probably just as Asher to help me out here? With a sigh, I decided that it was, in fact, not worth the risk. Getting myself in more trouble was not the solution to this.

Instead, I decided it to be a good time to go back to Fetheion's home. I knew Asher and the others were there – with my rifts, I could bring us back here with ease anyways. Long distances were no longer the huge issue that they once were. I was grateful for that.

I climbed out of the water onto the rocks in the centre of the lake, then used Soul's Aspect to assume the form of the corrupted demon. I created the rift with ease and stepped through it, leaving the cursed lake behind. Perhaps half a second later, I was standing in the grassy area where we fought Fetheion just a little while ago.

As my transformation faded, I took a deep breath and glanced around. I had expected to at least see Mona out here, but there wasn't a soul around. With furrowed brows, I approached the door and walked inside. 

"Fetheion?" I called the Divine's name, only to be met with more silence. "Mona, Asher?" I asked, my voice getting louder with each name. "Lucius? Laura?" I first checked the library, only to find it empty. I ruched over to the bedrooms and barged in every single one of them. Each time, it was empty.

Nothing – no one, not a single soul was around.

"Hey! Not funny, guys!" I shouted as I ran to Fetheion's room. Was he in the hidden room downstairs? I dashed down the narrow, dark stairwell only to be met with more silence. Deafening, suffocating silence. He wasn't here either – his workshop was just as empty as the rest of the house.

Where had they all gone? What could have possibly made them leave so abruptly? How was I going to even find them now that I didn't have the mental connection with Asher anymore?

Was it even possible to find them?