The Haunting Shadow

Kalei felt his consciousness being swept into an invisible whirlpool. After a hazy, disorienting journey, he finally arrived in a completely unfamiliar space.

The space was not very large. The ground beneath his feet was pure white, smooth as a mirror, while overhead stretched a deep blue starry sky, dotted with stars that glittered like diamonds.

Beneath that tranquil sky, two bloody, mangled eyeballs floated incongruously, looking grotesque and completely out of place in what should have been a pristine space of the soul.

As soon as Kalei entered this unfamiliar space, his mind immediately cleared. He realized this must be the space of the soul Priestess Laria had mentioned. The two unsettling, fleshy eyeballs in the sky were likely the manifestation of the curse Savatheras had left inside him.

The moment the eyeballs sensed Kalei's consciousness entering the space, they cried out excitedly, "Kalei! Hahaha, Kalei, you're here!"

Hearing the voice, Kalei was both shocked and furious. "Savatheras, you're still alive?"

Savatheras snorted. "Dead? I am dead, yes. You treacherous little brat killed me. But I used my soul and eyes as the price to plant my master's curse deep within your soul, so don't think you'll get off lightly."

Before they could get another word in, Savatheras resorted to his old trick. He controlled the eyeballs and sent them hurtling toward Kalei like boulders.

"You despicable bastard," Kalei said. "You don't think you can beat me here, do you? This is my space of the soul."

As he spoke, his body grew rapidly in response to his will. In the blink of an eye, he became a warrior clad in full armor and wielding a greatsword.

"Is that so?" Savatheras laughed. "Then let's find out."

Savatheras paid him no heed and continued to hurl the eyeballs at Kalei.

Kalei raised his greatsword and easily blocked the eyeballs.

Savatheras was not discouraged in the slightest. Under his control, the eyeballs became two enormous rocks and crashed to the ground. Then they bounced back up and came hurtling at Kalei again.

Kalei continued to block with his greatsword, knocking the boulders away.

The two of them used their minds to conjure up all kinds of objects and magic, attacking each other back and forth, but neither could harm the other.

But Kalei gradually began to feel that something was wrong. He realized that fighting Savatheras was getting him nowhere, while an ache was spreading through his body, as though he were being harmed by some invisible force.

After thinking it over, he quickly understood. Savatheras had deliberately lured him into fighting in the space of the soul, so his soul would be harmed without his noticing.

He had to admit, that bastard was downright sinister. Even reduced to a wisp of a remnant soul, he still had no intention of letting Kalei go. He was even willing to use himself as bait in an attempt to drag Kalei into an abyss of self-destruction.

Savatheras was thoroughly enjoying himself. When he saw Kalei suddenly stop, he asked in surprise, "What's wrong? Don't you want to kill me anymore?"

Kalei sneered. "Savatheras, you old bastard. Do you really think everyone else is an idiot?"

Savatheras laughed smugly. "Hahaha, so you figured it out. What are you going to do now? Can you kill me without damaging your space of the soul?"

"You can't. My consciousness is protected by my master. You can't kill me unless you destroy your own space of the soul."

"So don't even think about getting rid of me or escaping my master's gaze. You're the sacrifice I'm offering to my master. That's your final fate."

Kalei smiled. "Is that so? I may not be able to kill you, but what about Her?"

Savatheras froze. His eyeballs rolled uneasily. "Who? Who are you talking about?"

Kalei ignored him. He knelt on one knee, opened his hands toward the sky, and softly called out, "May Elune be with you!"

Those few simple words held a mysterious power that sent ripples through the space of the soul.

Hearing the name "Elune," Savatheras shuddered and cried out, "No! No! Master, save me..."

Unfortunately, even his master could only turn tail and run from Elune.

At Kalei's call, a hazy moonlight appeared in his space of the soul by some unknown means. It was neither dazzling nor intense, but it carried an irresistible, purifying power that instantly filled the entire space.

The moonlight fell upon the two eyeballs formed from Savatheras's curse. They immediately became immobile and began to dissolve, bit by bit.

The pain of a soul dissolving was beyond anything the body could endure. Savatheras let out one shrill scream after another. Having already died once, he had no desire to experience the terror of death again. He hurriedly shouted, "You damn brat... No... Kalei... Stop... Stop! I'll tell you where your father is!"

Kalei kept praying, unmoved. "Oh? You're an old liar. Why should I believe you? How about you tell me what happened to my father first? If you haven't lied, I'll spare you."

Terrified, Savatheras had completely lost his composure. He endured the pain and shouted, "Fine... I... I'll tell you. I was the one who took your father, but I never intended to kill him. I only wanted to turn him into a Satyr. Later, on the way back to Fel Fire Valley, he jumped down a waterfall while we weren't looking and escaped. I don't know what happened to him after that. The waterfall wasn't far from Fel Fire Valley. You can go look for yourself."

"Now I've told you everything. Will you let me go? If you do, I'll help you lift the curse and leave your space of the soul..."

Kalei said coldly, "Is that so? Are you sure you haven't lied this time?"

By then, more than half of Savatheras's soul had dissolved in the moonlight, and his terror was growing. When he saw that Kalei still did not believe him, he shouted, "Everything I said is true... I absolutely didn't lie... Hurry... Hurry and let me go... It'll be too late..."

Kalei decided that he sounded sincere and smiled with satisfaction as he stopped praying.

Savatheras thought the moonlight would fade when Kalei stopped, but it did not change at all. Both furious and shocked, he cried, "You damn brat! You little beast! You lied to me! You tricked me! I curse you!"

Kalei shrugged. "Old man, don't assume everyone is as base as you. I didn't trick you. It's just that I don't have complete control over this moonlight."

Savatheras refused to believe him and cursed furiously, but no matter how much he ranted, the moonlight did not diminish. It only grew brighter.

Before long, Savatheras's remaining soul had completely dissolved amid his screams.

Kalei had not expected Savatheras to suffer like this even after death, but he had it coming.

After the two eyeballs dissolved in the moonlight, only a shadow remained. The instant it appeared, the moonlight pinned it in place before it could struggle, like an insect trapped in amber.

The shadow roared and rapidly swelled, trying to break free of the moonlight's hold. But no matter how it struggled, it was useless. It dissolved bit by bit in the moonlight, until it finally vanished into nothingness.

Kalei knew this shadow was the power Xavius had left inside him. He had not expected it to be completely powerless before Elune's might, like a fish on a chopping block. This gave him a deeper understanding of, and reverence for, the Moon Goddess's power.

With the shadow gone, the curse in Kalei's soul was completely lifted. The moonlight Elune had sent down seemed almost conscious as it gradually dimmed.

Not long afterward, Kalei woke from his meditation and saw Laria watching him with concern. As soon as she noticed he was awake, she hurriedly asked, "How is it? Has the curse been lifted?"

Kalei nodded. "Thanks to the Goddess, the curse has been lifted."

Laria smiled. "That's good."

Kalei stood and stretched his limbs. "What time is it now?"

"Almost dark."

Kalei was surprised. "That soon? It didn't feel like much time had passed." As far as he could tell, the battle in the space of the soul had lasted only ten minutes or so.

"That's because you were in the space of the soul, where time passes differently from outside."

All right, Kalei didn't dwell on it. He thanked Laria again for her help, then chatted with the High Priestess for a while, discussing her faith in Elune, especially how to earn more of Elune's favor. After that, he left the Temple of the Moon.

He had come to the Temple of the Moon mainly to lift the curse. He had not expected to learn where his father was from Savatheras's remnant soul.

He still didn't know whether his father was alive or dead, or exactly where he had gone, but at least he had a lead to follow. He couldn't help feeling much better.

For now, though, he had no time to search for his father. What he wanted to know was how the Sentinel Corps had fared in the battle at Fel Fire Valley.

He went out into the street, but didn't run into anyone, so he had no choice but to ask his teacher Matt.

His teacher Matt had clearly taken part in the battle. He seemed too restless to sleep and was pacing back and forth in his little courtyard, his face alight with the excitement and exhaustion of battle. When Kalei asked how it had gone, Matt launched into a lengthy account.

Just as Kalei had expected, the battle at Fel Fire Valley was over.

After receiving Thisalee's message, Maestra Fortress had immediately sent out four hundred Sentinels under the cover of daylight to launch a surprise attack on Fel Fire Valley.

The veteran in charge of the attack was Kalei's old acquaintance, Arenia.

Beautiful, stern, and experienced in battle, the company commander had been promoted to captain of Maestra Fortress by Shandris Feathermoon for her role in the Furbolg crisis.

Under the new captain's leadership, Maestra's forces had, without question, won another victory.

They had wiped out most of the demons and Satyrs in Fel Fire Valley, capturing a smaller number to hold for questioning.

Two hours earlier, Arenia had already led the troops back from Fel Fire Valley with the captured demons and Satyrs in tow.

Since the troops had gone out to fight in broad daylight, the civilians barely knew a battle had taken place, so the town remained quiet.

Kalei sat opposite his teacher with a glass of Golden Skin Juice in hand, watching him recount the battle with shining eyes. A strange feeling welled up inside him.

He knew his teacher had taken part in the battle, but hadn't expected him to be so excited about it.

Sometimes he wondered if, for Night Elves with eternal lives, their supposed love of peace was merely a façade. In truth, they might yearn for battle. Only a satisfying, hard-fought clash could awaken the passion in their hearts and make them feel the existence and value of life.

Perhaps this contradictory temperament could only be found among an immortal race.

Matt clearly hadn't noticed anything unusual about himself. After recounting the whole battle, he began describing some of its exciting moments, like a Sentinel's heroic feat or the brilliance of a particular tactic.

Kalei had to change the subject. "Teacher, where did Thisalee go?"

Matt paused, then picked up the Morning Dew Wine on the table and took a few sips to wet his throat. "She... Uh, she went after the Satyr leader."

Kalei was surprised. "They didn't catch the Satyr leader?"

Matt shook his head. "That bastard was powerful and cunning. Arenia shot him, and he immediately abandoned his troops and ran."

Kalei's heart stirred. "Which way did he run?"

Matt thought for a moment. "North, I think. I'm not sure exactly where he went. The battlefield was too chaotic at the time." He sighed. "I hope Thisalee makes it back safely. That Satyr leader won't be easy to deal with."

North? Kalei pondered the idea. He remembered that there would later be a place called Fel Fire Path north of Fel Fire Valley. In the game's later setting, Fel Fire Path was also a gathering place for Satyrs. Could Savatheras have fled there?

He thought it was entirely possible. It seemed he would have to find a way to leak information about Fel Fire Path, to make sure they rooted out the threat for good.