The Soul Keeper

Morning come, I left my room and joined the others, who were waiting for me at the hallway leading to the library.

"Morning." Lucius said with a bright smile. He seemed much happier and energetic than before. I was pleasantly surprised – at least someone had rested well.

"Hey." I said as I yawned. Because of the wyvern's effect and Asher's unexpected visit, I had only slept for a couple of hours. I glanced at the sorcerer as I bid them both good morning – he seemed just as tired as I was.

"Let's go." He said, clearly unhappy. Lucius nodded and led the way as I followed from a few meters back. Asher's words had cast a doubt on me – what if the primal core wasn't enough? Was I going to lose myself?

"Kai?" Lucius's voice pulled me out of my thoughts. "Hey, are you ok?"

I forced a smile. "Just a little sleepy."

His smile faded, leaving its place to an almost angry expression. "You're not telling me everything."

I dropped the fake smile. He knew me too well, and honestly, he was the last person I needed to fake my emotions to. "No," I replied with a sigh. "And now we have other things to focus." As I said that, we arrived at the door to the library.

"Wait." Asher stopped us before I could push the door. "Are you sure about this?" He glared at me. His eyes were begging me to change my mind. "This could end badly, that sphere is clearly filled with dark magic."

I didn't avert my gaze. "I need that primal core, Asher."

After a moment's hesitation, the sorcerer stepped aside.

That was the end of discussion. Neither him, nor Lucius suggested we find another way. I pushed the doors open and we stepped inside. Once again, the beauty of this living, breathing room, took my breath away.

"Asher," I said as we approached the centre. "If I tell you to teleport me, don't hesitate, don't ask, just do."

He nodded. As I glanced at them, I could see the worry on their faces. "Don't worry." I forced a smile. "I'll be fine."

"Of course, you will." Lucius said, suddenly grinning. "Anyways, let's do this." Before I could stop him, he stepped closer to the sphere. As he slowly reached out to it, I grabbed his arm. "No."

I pushed him back, I wasn't about to let him risk his life for something only I needed. "Asher, be ready." Lucius stumbled back as he shouted. "Kai, wait!"

I turned my back on them just as Lucius regained his balance, then touched the surface of the black sphere. I was taken aback as my hand passed through it with very little resistance.

"Wait, it's not a barrier?" Asher whispered. I shook my head. "I can feel my skin tingle." I said with a low voice.

"Be careful." Lucius said as he approached me. He was ready to pull me back at the smallest sign of trouble. I nodded, then took a deep breath and stepped inside the sphere. It felt weird, the air inside was much cooler. I shivered, where was I?

All I could see was darkness, surrounding me. I looked back, only to see Asher and Lucius' silhouettes through the dark veil of the sphere. While I couldn't quite see their expressions, I could tell how nervous they were from their stances. Lucius seemed ready to leap in right after me while Asher's raised hand indicated he was ready to cast a spell.

The scene gave me a little bit of confidence. Enough to face whatever came next. I looked ahead. I could see movement at the other side of the veil. My brows furrowed – there was no one else at the castle but us. I took a step closer – I was now standing at the centre of the sphere.

"What's going on?" Asher's voice echoed in my mind. It was hazy, almost as if it were about to fade. "Kai-"The connection severed as I took another step forward. At the same time, a cold wind blew my hair up, causing me to glance down. My eyes widened as I spotted it �� the glowing white crystal in the ground. It was at the centre of the sphere, clearly supplying it with mana.

"Asher?" I called out to him in my mind but received no answer. I forced myself to remain calm as I glanced back. They were still there; I could see their silhouettes. In fact, Asher seemed much more worried as I could spot a faint glow in his hand. Was he preparing to teleport me out of here?

I needed to get the crystal – the primal core – before he did so. I knelt on the ground and touched the surface of it. It was buried into the black marble floor tiles. How was I going to get this out of here without destroying everything around here?

I bit my lower lip, then summoned my inventory. As I took the scythe out, I couldn't help but be a little worried. There were too many unknowns, what I was doing wasn't exactly 'safe'. I stood back up, scythe in hand, and raised it above my head, tightly grasping its shaft with both hands.

"Please work." I whispered before brining the scythe down on the marble tiles. A loud thud and cracking sound echoed. I almost let go of the shaft – why was the sound so unusually amplified? I glanced down with worry and anticipation. My lips formed a smile as I noticed the large, deep crack on the marble tiles surrounding the primal core.

"Yes!" I whispered with anticipation as I once again raised the scythe. It didn't matter how many times I needed to do this – I was going to get that primal core. Another loud thud echoed as more cracks spread throughout the marble tiles. I wasn't going to let the wyvern take over.

With each hit of my scythe, the cracks on the marble tiles widened and spread like a spiderweb. Perhaps a minute later, the primal core was freed from the cold grasp of the ground. Tired, I wiped the sweat off my forehead. "Finally." A smile appeared on my lips. A smile that shattered not a moment later.

"Indeed." A cracked, dry voice sounded as something grasped my wrist. "Finally."