A valley appeared in their vision. Trees and grass dyed in grey covered the lands. It was as if ashes rained to color the fields. In between the mountains, a wide river span long with fog obscuring both its ends.

Most eye catching of all were the countless souls popping out of the river. However, it did not end there, since at closer inspection, Eros' amazement turned into shock with tinge of fear as he realized that the entire river is made up of souls and not a drop of water could be seen!

"Unbelievable." Fryr said, eyes gleaming with fascination.

Not far, there were many stone huts. Some near the river and some at the foot of the mountains. As they got closer, sokai's living in the valley seemed to have noticed their arrival. Oddly, they were all bald like Firo, including the females and children.

When Hagu saw this, he laughed and said, "Hey Fryr, I think we found your home."

Fryr tried to ignore Hagu since he was still engrossed in the portrayal of his disguise. However, Hagu did not stop and even urged Eros to join in his childish goading. In the end Fryr was provoked into a puerile outburst.

"It's the Chief's heir, Firo." Many voiced out as they started to crowd towards Eros' group. Then an old sokai voiced out, seemingly now the heart of the crowd. "Who are these individuals?"

Firo respectfully bowed and answered, "Tribe Elder Hekka, these are my friends from Sheles. They came here to visit."

Hekka stared at each one of them as if trying to discern their intentions. His white thick brows would often furrow, which caught everyone's attention since it was far color from his swarthy complexion. Even his already wrinkled forehead would create more creases while saying some strict words.

"We do accept visitors, so assist them and make them feel welcome. But Firo, we need to discuss something important."

Firo frowned upon hearing this. He simply told Eros' group to relax and ask anyone for assistance, then quickly followed along Hekka leaving Eros' group under the care of the tribesmen.

Eros' group was led to a stone hut. It was regular in size and from the outside it seemed it could barely fit four individuals. However, when they entered, a stone stair was at the center of the room obviously leading to a lower floor. When they curiously stepped down the stairs, what they saw made them like the place.

A large underground area with stone walls came to view; four rooms were at each corner and a small pond at the very center. Eros now felt satisfied in the hospitality of the tribe, even Eris smiled upon seeing the oddly glowing pool of water inside.

However, as usual, her excitement didn’t last long when they realized that the pond is made of souls.

“This is the hut with the biggest pond. I hope it is to your liking.” A female sokai said. She was the one tasked to assist on their group’s needs.

All of them were speechless, nobody could voice out that souls would not mix well with their rest. Especially when the female sokai was smiling proud, as if saying it really is the best they have.

….

In a different stone hut, Firo was extremely distressed, his hands clutch tight at the stone bed where someone laid seemingly dead.

“How is his condition? And how did this happen?” Firo asked tone extremely heavy far from his usual personality.

“It happened five days ago, our tribe chief suddenly collapsed into his current condition and no medicine could help him recover. Some even said he was possibly poisoned. But some did not believe it, since there were already symptoms of the tribal chief being ill some months ago. Luckily, even he seems to be dead, he is still alive and barely hanging on.”

“How did the Tribe Elders react to this?” He asked.

“They did not say anything yet, but I believe if your father’s condition would not improve, a new tribe chief would be chosen.”

…

Days passed, and they barely saw Firo. They would often wander around to observe the peculiarity of the valley. One time they climbed one of the mountains to see what’s ahead, but everything was covered by thick fog obscuring even magic to sense far. Wandering into the fog was also a taboo. Everyone who entered it never came to tell the story.

Even though they were stuck in the valley, it was actually very large. A day would not be enough to reach the end of the river covered by the fog. There were also many sacred places for the tribe. Most popular was the sacred groves, where numerous trees with unusual symbols engraved in their trunks exists; seemingly carved with a knife soaked in blood that ended countless of lives.

However, it wasn’t the trees that made the place especially important, it’s the small amphora two fist in size. It laid there crudely in the ground, and its whole outer body covered with a very old bandage cloth riddled with letters unreadable even to the ancients.

When Eros’ group first laid eyes on the jar, it was from afar. They were not allowed to get close to it, nor inspect it with magic. But even though the distance made it as small as a grain of rice, they could tell that the item contains secrets beyond what they could tell with their eyes.

The greatest proof was Fryr’s eyes which flared up with greed just like the time he caught sight of the branch of the Tree of Life. “Such amazing item.” He said. Eros was silent, but he was also deeply intrigued by the amphora’s secrets.

Seeing their reaction, their guide proudly explained, “Our ancestor, the founder of the tribe was someone of great dreams. Born with the ability to communicate with souls, he wanted to create magic befitting for our unique skills. It is said that he traveled numerous lands in Eunos just to find the place with the highest concentration of souls to perfect his magic. That perseverance led him to this valley and it is where he laid eyes on that very amphora. As soon as he saw it, he knew that it was something incredible and might also carry extreme dangers. Wary, he observed the amphora for some time. Soon, he started to see visions, clues, and other information which led to the creation of the magic which we use today. It is said that he sat in front of the amphora for one year without stop, and when he stood up, he was able to cast the first ever magic of our tribe. However, along with his enlightenment, he realized that the amphora carried great danger, so he decided never to touch it and made it into a law which existed until this very day.”

“There is indeed countless of ways to create magic or achieve greater strength.” Eros said, seemingly moved by the dedication of the founder of the tribe.

Fryr was equally amazed, but was more focused on the amphora more than anything else, while Eris simply nodded while looking deeply at the amphora, studying it with greatest intent.

Feeling prouder, their guide led them to more places, boasting more about the history of their tribe. Soon, at dusk, the guide left, fulfilled in completing his task. Eros’ groups also went their separate ways. Eris went back to the stone hut. Hagu and Fryr wandered more, while Eros decided to observe the river seemingly inspired by the tribe founder.

As soon as he reached the river, he saw many young individuals sitting crossed legged near the edge. They were all observing the souls flowing, extremely focused.

Curious, Eros walked towards the river, eyes glued at the souls constantly rising and howling. Before realizing it, he found himself standing near one sokai. Suddenly, he heard a voice shouting, “Do not go there!”

However, before he could turn his head to see who shouted, the sokai’s face beside him twitched. Souls suddenly appeared out of the sokai’s body and quickly flew towards Eros.

The one who shouted, quickly made action and flew towards Eros’ direction, however, he was too late. The souls were already about to touch Eros and he was still several steps away.

“NO!” He shouted, extremely worried.

However, to his shock, Eros shielded himself with his palms, then flung the souls away like tangible object which landed on the ground, shrieking.

“How…?” The sokai who came to his rescue was confused into a halt, but after regaining composure, he quickly pulled Eros away the river and landed at a distance he felt to be safer.

Puzzled, Eros asked after seeing the sokai who dragged him away, “Sir Hekka, what was that just now?”

“Soul mishandling.” Hekka replied, “Those you see beside the river are trying to temper themselves and gain control of some of the river souls. However, the souls in the river are extremely unpredictable and dangerous, one small mistake in handling them could cause them to go berserk and attack anyone.” Hekka then pointed at the sokai who mishandled the soul and said, “But even though they attack anyone, they will not attack the sokai who mishandled them since we have trained them of a magic to protect themselves. However you..” He continued, looking at Eros deeply, “Even without our magic, you were able to deflect a river soul without sustaining any form of injuries. At your level of strength, it is impossible to even touch a soul directly from the river. It should have eaten your defenses and even hands ….. How did you do it?”

“I am unsure myself.” Eros replied while inspecting his palms, “I instinctively blocked it with my hands with a simple magic defense, but I never expected it to work perfectly.”

Hekka who was baffled by what he witnessed could not help but be curious, so he asked, “Do you want to try learning a basic magic from our tribe?”

“Eh?” Eros was a bit shocked, “Isn’t your magic prohibited to be taught to those not from your bloodline or tribe?”

Hekka slightly smiled, then said, “Our tribe is very strict about some rules. However, we never prohibited teaching our magic to non sokai. In fact, we tried it several times before, but unfortunately, all those who tried to learn failed.”

“This just proves that your founder made it specifically for your race.” Eros replied, seemingly dispirited, but his eyes obviously showed interest in learning the magic.

“Our tribe wants to pursue magic to its pinnacle. Currently, we are at a dead-end on how to proceed further, so letting other race learn our magic is part of our experiment in hopes to get a clue on how to progress.” Hekka explained, while observing Eros intently. As he did, he easily caught on Eros’ interest, so without hesitation, he raised his hands and opened his palm. There, a small soul floated which reminded Eros of something Fryr gave him in the past. “Magic inheritance?”

As response, Hekka shook his head, before saying, “This is not magic inheritance. It is simply a way to pass information about a certain magic. Unlike magic inheritance, you need to learn the magic manually from the information you will receive.”

Without further delay, Hekka guided it towards Eros’ forehead and there he pushed it inside with his finger.

The information about the magic quickly entered Eros’ memory where a thought from him could access it easily. “So this is the sokai’s basic magic.” He could not still believe that Hekka gave it to him easily without even demanding anything in return.

Hekka nodded, and said, “Try to learn if possible.” Then he left with an expectant look in his face.

Now left alone, Eros sat down where he stood, facing the river which he quietly observed. Time passed, and Eros’ remain seated on the location. Fryr and Hagu came along to bother him, but he ignored them. Eris also sat beside him occasionally but kept silent and did not say a word.

Even Hekka would observe and visit him from time to time, giving Eros some words of advice. Obviously, he was curious on how Eros would approach on learning the magic as a human. Eros found him to be extremely strict, but he did not complain, knowing he also want him to succeed.

More days passed, and Eros remained focused not willing to give up. This made Hekka realize Eros’ abnormal thirst for power, which he both fear and admired. Even the other elders got news of the situation and kept watch on Eros in hopes to learn something for their own progress.

Sadly, not everyone agrees with Hekka’s actions. Those from the other side of the river always eyed Eros with hostility and contempt. Eros easily surmised that there is another power in the tribe which is opposed to having them as visitors. It might also be linked to why they haven’t seen Firo for a long while. But knowing they are at the mercy of the tribe, Eros remained reticent and simply continued his training.

Among the sokais who disapprove of their stay, there is one who seemed to loathe them the most. He always sat at the opposite bank controlling souls from the river. It was very eye catching, since of all the young sokai, he seems to be the one with best control over the river spirits.

“Is he trying to make me feel inferior by doing that?” Eros thought to himself, as he watched the sokai impress others.

“Do not mind him.” Hekka’s voice suddenly sounded in his ears, “You cannot compare to Hara, since he is a genius rarely seen in a tribe. It would be best for you to go back to your stone hut and train at the pond in it. The souls there are already tamed and not dangerous. They are actually for training purposes for the younger generations.”

“So that’s the purpose of that eerie pond…” Eros thought, but he quickly dismissed the idea and replied, “Sir Hekka, I appreciate your concern, but I think I will gain more understanding from the river of souls.”

Hekka didn’t say another word and respected Eros’ decision. With this, the days went by quickly. Every day, it would be the same scene, where Hara would show off his incredible talent, and Eros would remain silent. The only thing that made things different was the weekly announcement of the progress of war in the Kingdom of Sheles.

The worry of the tribe about the war affecting them was apparent from these announcements. It was obvious that they were preparing for the worst.

From those news, Eros learned that the war has progressed rapidly after he left. Two of the eight great families were surprisingly suspected with treason, which were the Virrel and Para. However, before the ruler could decide on the fate, they all mysteriously disappeared. The families who were left now became extremely cautious of each other not knowing who else could be trusted.

Eros was shocked to know that the kingdom got wind of the betrayal. Even though he knew that Alre and Ruven were enemies of the kingdom, he never thought that it would be to the scale that whole families were involved. Of course, he had suspicion, but it was too early for him to conclude such.

“It seems like to ruler is more cognizant than I thought.” He said while thinking about he how he concealed information to the ruler.

Not being able to do anything about the war, he focused on his training instead, and raised the bar. Every time he is hit with inspiration, he would step forward closer to the river without hesitation. This process proceeded slowly, but Eros was learning that he was at the verge of learning something.

Unexpectedly, the greatest influence of his progress can be associated with Hara’s blatant derision. His arrogant display always pushed Eros’ understanding to a breakthrough. If not for it, Eros would have needed to ask for Hekka or Firo for more guidance to understand certain aspects.

“I hope that idiot continues this.” Eros thought.

….

One day, in an oddly large stone hut located at the opposite bank, many tribe elders sat crossed legged forming a circle. Each one of them emanated power those from the grand wizard realm, Hekka included.

“Elders, I propose that we remain neutral and do not engage ourselves in the war.” Hekka said.

As response another elder sneered, and said, “Do you think those elves are unaware of our existence and have no way to enter the valley?”

“I agree with elder Shalon.” Another one voiced out, “Those enemy of the kingdom of Sheles would definitely strike Hearthenfire’s territory which is next to ours, and in no time, they would surely strike us if we do not take their side.”

Many nodded in agreement, and some seem to take the stance of Hekka to remain neutral, but there are a few who simply observed.

As the discussion grew intense, one of the few who remained silent the whole time suddenly spoke. “I do not think we can decide on this without the tribe chief.”

She was a female sokai, but her aura seemed to be no less than Hekka’s and Shalom’s. Even bald, and old, her femininity never lessened. She wore golden hoop earring which match all the golden bracelets on her arms and legs.

“Indeed. Lady Reya.” Shalon replied in eagerness, “I saw the condition of the current tribal chief, and I can tell how his condition worsened in a short while. I believe with the current crisis, it is right to consider selecting a new tribal chief to ensure the safety of the tribe.”

Those who were obviously on Shalon’s side from the very beginning voiced out their agreement, pushing the topic of discussion towards the reelection of the tribe chief.

Hearing this, Hekka gritted his teeth and voiced out, “This is a disrespect to the tribal chief. He is still fighting for his life and would surely overcome his illness. According to tribe rules, we are only to select a new tribe chief if the previous one perishes, or if he betrayed the tribe!”

“We mean no disrespect, but we are in a great predicament.” Shalon retorted, “And the tribe chief’s illness has no cure. We need to do this for the future of the whole tribe.”

Hekka frowned and thought, “This cunning old fox. Trying to push for a new tribe elder again.”

As the discussion became chaotic, a domineering voice resounded. “It seems like we will not be able to conclude this today.”

It came from a sokai with unusually stronger energy from the rest. Around his body, there were souls floating, sometimes popping out of his skin. He doesn’t look too old, but his beard was already grey. The souls surrounding his body were dark in color, and seems extremely sinister bringing unimaginable terror.

“We should all think this through on our own first, and then come back for a decision after a month.” He then stood up, and added, “I hope that each one of you made your decisions by then.”

Shalon smiled and followed through, “Sir Alram is truly wise.” And he also stood up before saying, “It is also best to think of the one who you wish to become the next tribe elder.”

Everyone have different expressions on their face, but nobody added a word. One by one, they silently stood up and left.

….

Near the river, Eros still sat, focused. He was still not able to control even the soul, nor perform any magic Hekka taught him. When Hekka passed by him, he asked, “Any progress?”

Eros replied, “I am unsure myself, but I am getting a clearer understanding of the souls.”

“Good.” Hekka replied with a single word, then began walking away.

Worried since Hekka felt different from his usual strict nature, Eros asked, “Are you alright?”

Hekka waved it off, and answered, “Do not worry. It is all trivial tribal matters.”

Eros slightly nodded and was left alone. This thus became another opportunity for Hara to sit across him at the opposite bank of the river and show off. “It has been two months, and you are still trying? Humans will never learn of our magic.”

As days passed, his contempt for Eros only grew. And now, he would occasionally not only glare at Eros, but would also throw insults. His words, were not loud, but being a wizard, Eros could clearly hear what he was saying even from afar.

After a while of mockery, Hara felt vexed just by looking at Eros so he stood up and left, directly towards a stone hut very close to the river.

Inside, Alram floated above a pond filled with black souls, emitting countless eerie shrieks and howls. The souls seem be to be grabbing his legs dragging him toward the pond, and some purposely attaching themselves in his body.

When, Hara saw the scene, he respectfully bowed and started to back away, “I apologize for disturbing your training father.”

Alran shrugged off the formality and asked, “What is the matter, son?”

“I am at my limit just by looking at that human named Eros.”

“My son, I know you loathe those who are not sokai, but bear with it, since soon, he will leave the tribe.”

Hara nodded and said, “I understand father.”

….

“I cannot believe they are doing this to father.” Firo roared.

“Calm down, the best we could do now is figure out how to heal your father.”

Firo again said furious, “I cannot calm down with their blatant betrayal. That Shalon is pushing things too far.”

“I believe he is only doing this in the orders of someone else. That sly fox does not want to be the tribal chief as far as I know. All he wants is to work behind, in the shadows.”

“Is it Lady Reya?” Firo said, “She has been keeping neutral all this time, but everyone could tell that she is after the position of my father.”

Hekka sighed and responded, “Even I am unsure who is actually leading this movement, but there might actually be more than a single elder aiming for be the new tribe chief.” He then paused and looked at Firo deeply before adding, "As I said, it is best to cure your father. Thats will be the solution to all of this."

"I really hope there is a cure.."

Outside, Eros continued his training without stop. It would have been a normal sight, if not for a certein development which shocked everyone training beside the river bank.

At a short instant, some of the souls at the river seemed to have took notice to Eros and stared deeply at him as if waiting for his orders. That action signifies the first step on gaining control of the souls.

Commotion started to erupt. Many elders came out to observe if Eros' achievement is real or not. Even Hekka and Firo quickly got wind of the news and they quickly made their way to get a clearer view.

"Did he actually manage to learn our magic?" Firo asked shocked.

As response, Hekka simply creased his brows and tried to observe the souls, however, he could not tell if the news was false.

While everyone was observing, Eros was still on a daze. For more than two months, he have been commited to the magic, but it was his first time seeing results which made him ecstatic. "I did it! Now I am sure that I am able to learn their magic. Just a bit more time, and I can probably control some souls."

Hekka being the one who taught Eros of the magic, approached Eros first, along with Firo by his side, and asked, "Where you really able to it?

Eros smiled to him and nodded before answering, "I now understand the basics of your magic."

Hearing Eros' affirmation, made both Hekla and Firo shocked to the core. For so long, there has never been anyone from another race who understood even the basic of their magic.

Seeing Firo, Eros stood up. It has been some time since he showed up. With this, they greeted each other and was about to began chatting. However, Hekka interrupted their next line and said, “It has been always the vision of our tribe chief to push our tribe’s magic further, and as a solution, he envisioned that us sokais might not only be the one capable of the magic. A non sokai learning it and progressing with it through an unknown path could enlighten us on our own path of magic.” He then paused and looked at Eros deeply before saying, “Since you have opened the door for the vision of our tribe chief, I believe he would do anything just to see you.”

Firo’s all smiling face from seeing Eros also turned serious as he nodded, but with a trace of worry on his face.

Eros who was the subject of the matter remained silent and simply obliged. He does not know why Firo seemed worried, but now he seemed to have a slight understanding on the tribal affairs.

As the three of them walk towards the tribe chief’s stone hut, Firo hesitatingly explained, “Eros… The reason why I haven’t seen you for a while is because of my father’s condition. He has a few days…” Before, he could continue, Eros seemed to have caught on the entire situation and interrupted, “I understand. You don’t need to worry about us. Being sheltered by your tribe is enough reason to be eternally grateful to you and your father.”

Losing his own father, Eros could understand how painful it was even just thinking about the possibility of death of his loved one, so without hesitation he did what he taught was necessary and even put on an expression of encouragement that says that everything will be fine.

Soon, they found themselves in front of the most ornated stone hut, filled with numerous patterns that even Eros could not understand. “Come.” Hekka actioned with his hands while moving towards the sole entrance.

Eros laid eyes on the tribe chief. His condition seemed to have worsened from when Firo first saw him upon their return. His life force felt like a flickering flame about to be extinguished by the smallest movement of the air.

“This…” Eros muttered.

For both Firo and Hekka, Eros’ expression was what was expected to anyone, but what they did not expect was Eros’ next words.

“Elemental poison.” Eros said, brows deeply knitted.

Gasp could be heard from Firo and Hekka. They did not even tell Eros the possibility of poisoning. It was only a speculation on their part, but the way Eros said it felt like Eros knew that it was poison without doubt.

“Did you just say that our tribe chief have been inflicted by some form of elemental poison?” Hekka quickly asked, his eyes shining with the light of hope.

“Yes” Eros said, while approaching the tribe chief who laid motionless on his stone bed. “I can feel something like an elemental magic foregin to him in his own body.”

Even though Hekka felt excited by Eros’ words, there was an obvious trace of apprehension on his face. “Are you sure about this?”

Firo then said, “Elder Hekka, Eros is a genius on elements. He have ousted everyone from the same generation on Ronsorth and proved himself as the best in the whole of the Kingdom of Sheles. His words carries much weight when it comes to elements.”

Hearing this, Eros was touched by Firo’s trust in him, so without delay, he said. “If I haven’t learned of your magic, I might not be able to see through this poison.” Then he placed his palms above the tribe chief’s forehead and closed his eyes. After some time, he began speaking while still seemingly trying to figure out something, “The flame elemental poison was masked by a soul magic. To be precise, this poison was done by someone who excels both in your magic and flame elemental magic. Or maybe a combination magic by two powerful entities. The flame element which is now merged with his soul slowly burns it which weakens him to the point of dying.” After saying those words, Eros slowly pulled back his hands, opened his eyes, and faced both Firo and Hekka.

Then he said, with all seriousness, “Even though I have discovered the poison, I am not skilled enough to even dare to try removing it.”

He pulled out some gems which he got from Genna, then murmured some spell, afterwhich, it all turned to dust and entered, the tribe chief’s orifices.

“What did you do!?” Hekka hurriedly checked the body of the tribe chief, but instead of something grave occurring, the vitals of the tribe chief seemed to have normalized a bit.

“Those gems…” Firo said, “Those are the ones you collected in Genna.. The cost of those gems are extremely high. Why did you do it…?”

With a smile, Eros patted Firo’s shoulder and said, “If not for you, we could have never escaped the kingdom.”

And even though those gems are rare, it would not do anything besides halting the spread of the poison for seven days. I only used its very pure elemental energy to suppress the rampaging elemental poison on your father’s body.”