-Braye Des Pri’mordi-

“This is...Disappointing…” Clover mumbled as he peered into the small box. “It's just some rusty amulet…” He lifted the simple amulet with two fingers and inspected it closely. It was made of gold and heavily tarnished. It had no gems or any other intricate designs. It was entirely bare, save for the same faded letters and an empty socket.

“What is this boy?” Clover asked as he held the amulet to the Big Gray’s face.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!” Each head exclaimed in an unintelligible language. However, its eyes sparkled with delight as if it knew exactly what it was.

“So you do know what this is?!”

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

“Can you show me who owned it?!”

“Woof! Woof! Woof!” Each head barked in unison before launching itself towards an exit, catching Clover off-guard. He had to tightly grip Big Gray’s pelt so he would not be flung off!

Does it really understand me? Or is it just playing around? Clover wondered. No matter. As long as this doggy doesn’t turn on me I should be safe from elimination!

Big Gray carried Clover towards down a long corridor, from time to time he would be able to peak into various other rooms that were just as or more magnificent than the last.

“What is this place?!” Clover exclaimed with his mouth agape. The three-headed dog had led them into a large outdoor plaza. And judging by the vast amount and variety of flora within it one could only guess that this was previously a garden. The only difference was that this ‘garden’ was more like a secret forest that was hidden from the desolate world outside. Exotic trees of all shapes and colors freely extended their canopies into the sky while beautiful and unique flowers dotted the ground. Deer, birds, and various critters scurried all around them without a single care or worry.

All of this life is in the middle of a barren wasteland?

Clover noticed that it was clear that these creatures have never experienced fear in their lives as they did not flee from the sight of Big Gray. Instead, they walked up to him and greeted him as if they were all long-time pals.

“Are these your friends?”

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

“That's strange. I would have thought that you would’ve eaten them! I mean, you were so hungry when I gave you those meat skewers!”

“Woof!!! Woof!!! Woof!!!” Each head barked in anger as Clover mentioned eating his friends.

“Jeez, okay. Don’t bring up eating your friends again, gotcha…” Clover mumbled. After an awkward silence, he spoke up again. “Ahem...This is amazing! Did your owners plant all of this?”

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

“Are they still alive?”

Big Gray’s eyes filled with pain as he looked at the ground before he shook his head and whined. It was clear that whoever created this vast palace had been long gone and Big Gray and the palace were remnants of an age long forgotten. After Big Gray finished grieving, he wandered deeper into the forest. After a couple minutes of trekking through the verdant landscape, they reached a flat clearing that revealed the truly immense size of the garden.

To Clover’s surprise, there was even a large lake in the middle of the garden. From his high vantage point atop Big Gray, he could see many large fish residing deep within its ominous waters. But what interested him the most was the long bridge that led to an island in the center of the lake.

“Whine...Whine…Whine…” Big Gray cried as he peered into the island and walked onto the bridge. Although it seemed old and decrepit the bridge did not strain or wail from the dog’s weight. Upon reaching land, Clover’s eyes widened in surprise for the umpteenth time that day.

“Are they your masters?”

“Whine...Whine...Whine…”

In the middle of the island was a grand pavilion, unaltered from time. It was breathtakingly beautiful with large fountains, statues, pillars, and a myriad of the most illustrious plantlife Clover had ever seen!

However, the most peculiar sights were the two graves that laid in its center and the two people who were standing beside them!

“Hello?! Are you two the masters of this place?!” Clover called out. However, the two individuals did not speak back. Instead, they continued to gaze forward.

“Whine...Whine...Whine…” The dogs continued to cry as they gazed at the pair. It was only after a closer look that Clover realized that the duo was not alive, but were instead incredibly life-like statues!

“I guess that answers my question…” Clover muttered as he urged Big Gray forward. Unfortunately for them, it appeared that there was as an invisible and impenetrable barrier that prevented anyone from approaching the graves. Instead, the three-headed dog could only place a single paw on the barrier as it was unable to reach its master.

There were three things Clover could observe from his location. The first is that the statues were of the same race as the undead horde outside the palace. The second observation is that the statues were of a man and a woman. And lastly is that they both had a tattoo of a strange symbol on their foreheads, with a jewel in the center of it.

“Bastille told me that the most famous and successful Seekers have always chosen to be buried in obscure locations so that they could rest in peace without having anyone steal their treasures. Or worse, use their body parts as alchemical ingredients!” Clover shuddered. “Perhaps these two had the same idea! Maybe they had powerful treasures buried with them! But why and how did they end up in Denari’s Realm?”

“Come on, boy. Let's go somewhere else…” Clover ordered as it was clear that this area only brought pain to the aging dog and that he wouldn’t find an answer to his questions.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

But to his surprise, the dog carried him forward and around the barrier. The two of them went deeper into the island, eventually arriving in front of a small and quaint house. Since the dog was too big to enter, Clover decided to disembark and venture inside by himself.

Clover was able to hobble inside as he supported himself with his spear, while his other leg dangled uselessly to the side. One of Big Gray's heads managed to fit its snout in the door but was unable to go any further.

The insides were simple and rustic. There was a single bed fit for a couple. A few bookcases filled with faded books and scrolls. As well as a table with two chairs and a small kitchen. On the side of the wall was a single banner with the same symbol that was on the statue’s foreheads.

“This must be their home! I wonder if there is any treasure in here!” Clover wondered aloud as his treasure loving Seeker side showed itself.

“Grr...Grr...Grr…” Each head growled at Clover as soon as he mentioned the word treasure. Clearly, they would not allow some boy to ransack their owners home!

“I'm just kidding!” Clover chuckled awkwardly. But if there is anything worthwhile…It wouldn’t be of any harm to sneak it out with me!

“Oh? What's this?” He said as he found another metal box, similar to the one that contained the rusty amulet. Inside was a round stone of jade. Its green color was pretty, but it did not seem valuable. However, what attracted Clover to it was the symbol that was carved into it.

Why does it have the same symbol as the banner and the statues? Clover wondered. “Do you know what this is?”

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

“You do?! Well, spit it out then!”

“Woof! Woof! Woof!” Each head howled as it licked Clover’s outstretched hand which was holding the jade. In a quick single motion, Big Gray swallowed the jade stone!

“Big Gray! Why did you do that?!” Clover exploded in anger. “I said spit it out! Not lick it up!”

“Warf! Warf! Warf!”

“Warf? What the hell does that mean?!”

“Geh! Geh! Geh!” Each dog gasped for air as if it was choking, before becoming surrounded by a bright green light!

“Big Gray?! What's going on?!”Clover’s eyes widened in fear. Although he had only known Big Gray for around an hour, he didn’t want him to die! “How can I help you?!”

In just a few seconds, the green light covered Big Gray completely as Clover helplessly watched! Eventually, Big Gray's entire body dispersed into many orbs of green light, leaving only the jade stone behind. To Clover’s surprise, the green orbs did not disintegrate into nothingness, but instead flew into the jade!

“Big Gray! What’s going on!” He exclaimed as he ran over to the jade and picked it up. As he held the small stone, Clover could feel a warmth to it that was not there before. All of a sudden, the jade flew out of his hand, and gently socketed itself into the rusty amulet!

“Big Gray? Are you inside the amulet?” Clover whispered, but the jade amulet did not respond

“Fine, I may as well relax inside the cabin until the round is over…” Sighing, he inspected the amulet one last time before putting it on, accompanying the silver necklace Kate had given him a year ago. “Maybe Chowder will know how to take you out…”

Clover continued to search the cabin for loot, but to his displeasure, it seemed that the jade was the only item of worth. He tried to pass the time by studying the foreign language, but similar to the books in the grand hall, they too had faded away due to time.

“Chowder! I’m ready to leave at any second!” He yelled. But to his disappointment, the purple cat spirit did not answer back. “Well, I can’t explore the rest of the palace because of my bum leg. But I think I can manage exploring the rest of the island.” He said before leaving the rustic cabin. Albeit at a slow pace, he managed to hobble around while using his spear as a walking stick. Fortunately, the island was rather small, after a few minutes of wandering around Clover found himself back at the graves. However, this time, there was something peculiar about the statues. The jewels on their foreheads were glowing, and it appeared as if the eyes of the statues were following Clover’s every step.

“What the hell?! That's creepy!” He yelped. But after a few seconds, he calmed himself down and rose up the courage to approach the graves stopping only once he reached the barrier. “Umm...Hello? Can you hear me?” To no one’s surprise, the statues did not answer back. They simply gazed at him with the same forlorn stare.

“Of course you can’t….”

All of a sudden, the jewels on their foreheads sent out a bright pulse of Arcana! The barrier started to ripple and fluctuate as the pulse of energy spread throughout it, eventually, the barrier that was originally separating Clover and the graves gradually disappeared. After a few seconds, the jewels dimmed as they stopped pulsing.

“Well, this is suspicious...But I can’t be called a Seeker if I don’t take risks!” Clover grinned as he hobbled toward the two graves. The graves were simple and low key and made from common stone. Of course, like everything else in the palace, the graves were inscribed with the same faded and unknown characters.

“That's the same symbol on the jade and banner!” Clover exclaimed as he looked at the graves. Each one was inscribed with the peculiar mark. At this point, there was no doubt in his mind that the symbol had something to do with the owners of the palace!

Creek...

The stone tiles that covered the ground creaked as they opened, revealing a long set of stairs that led to a dark passage. Clover, nearly jumping out of his skin from the sudden scare, forcefully calmed himself down and entered the passage.

Creepy statues, creepy symbols, creepy graves, and now a creepy passage...Yep, I’m definitely walking into a trap! He thought but did not stop. Thankfully the passage was a straight line without deviations as it would’ve become impossible for Clover to find his way back without light.

After nearly five minutes of hobbling along, a bright blue light became visible. The sight of a blue flame came into view, which only piqued Clover’s curiosity even more.

“What is this?” He wondered aloud as he entered the small room. It was cramped, incredibly so, and the only defining feature was a brazier that held a blue flame.

“Bre’ach’ Unt via bein des? Yoy endesde acha benderi Pri’mordi!”

“What?! Who is there?!” Clover shouted as he searched for the owner of the deep voice.

“Set’l eown topi ari Pri’mordi. Yoy fet jandi! Jave ento obien.” The deep voice spoke once more. Upon closer inspection, Clover realized that it was the blue fire that ‘spoke’

“How is a flame able to talk? No, this must be some weird magic! Where are you?!”

“Set’l eown stipey! Braye des Pri’mordi! Yoy unt ande ba? Bi un...Est zen diva asta oron.” The flame spoke once more, before sizzling away without a trace.

“What was that?” Clover whispered. All of a sudden, another blue flame alighted in front of him!

It continued to grow and grow, before sizzling away as well, but not before leaving behind a blank stone tablet. As he continued to inspect it, Clover saw a blue fire burn inscriptions onto the tablet, leaving behind the same characters and symbols he had seen on the graves, books, and scrolls around the palace.

“DEIOS DURAYNE! RE’NIGIT DES PRI’MORDI!” One last bellow echoed through the cramped room before it became silent once more, leaving Clover alone with the tablet.

“I was hoping for some real treasure. But this must be of some value. Bastille might know what it is!”

Just as he was examining the tablet, Clover’s body began to fade away and turn translucent. Fearing that he might lose the tablet, he made sure to store it in his pack. Within a few seconds, Clover’s body faded away without a trace, leaving behind the strange black palace.

“Ah! Oh! Yikes! Wah! No! Why! Please!” One after another, dozens of Seekers were shot out of the portal, screaming all the while! Due to the high rate of ejection, the Seekers all ended up piling up on top of one another, creating a bizarre yet hilarious sight. Luckily for them, as soon they left Denari’s Realm their wounds were instantly healed.

“Bastille! Spirit Realms are dangerous!” Many younger Seekers declared as they ran over to their Guildmaster. But they immediately stopped in their tracks as they felt the murderous aura that revolved around the dark man. Every sense of his was trained onto the portal. And his body was like a coiled spring that was ready to leap out and strike at a moments notice.

“Ahem...You all may want to leave the Guildmaster alone for now.” Edward chimed in from his seat. He was still calmly sipping on tea as he observed the situation.

“O-okay…” They mumbled as they left the area.

“Bastille, what do you plan on doing to the boy once you catch him?” Edward asked while furrowing his brow. “You won’t kill him, right?”

“Of course not.” Bastille snapped. “I’ll make sure to properly interrogate him.” His eyes narrowed into a fierce glare. “But if he were to find himself in an accident afterward...Then that would be too bad..."