The skies sung beautifully for me. The souls of the dead and dying screamed in chorus and I watched them billow up in a dark purple and black hurricane out from the soul-well before me.

The eery and inhuman whine of their screams pushed at me like a physical wave of force. It flung my robes wide open, revealing my sunken skin and withered frame. I thrust my hands out wide, as if to encompass the tormentous hurricane in an embrace. It towered thirty feet high and loomed over me.

Spiralling coils of deathly ether flung out from the tips of my bony fingers and coursed through the hurricane. Tethering souls and making them screams even more. The sound filling my heart with eager joy, and feral hunger.

Ethereal crystal blue chains shot out from the spinning torrent of souls. They punched through the walls of my theatre, spiking themselves deep and locking in place.

Once the chaotic current of souls was contained, I over my mouth wide and breathed in a sharp singular breath. The hurricane twisted, spiralling into a narrow funnel that shot towards my yawning mouth. I ate them without chewing. Letting the vacant souls devoid of personality and being, satiate my appetite.

"Apologies, my Lord. The great-one has sent a message,” A servant rushed into my theatre and bowed his withered head towards me. I snapped my jaws shut, and glared at his cowering form. The hurricane snapped away from my grasp.

“Nobody, is to interrupt my feeding--” I started as coils of death snaked out from my three shadows towards the servant. “Wait,” I held up a hand as his words finally reached me. “The Great-One you say?”

“Yes my Lord. I was told to relay the message to you,” he pressed his head to the floor submissively before me. I waited.

“Well!” I snapped.

“My Lord. The Great-One said to relay that: It is finally time to advance our plans. Aetherium’s corruption is spreading and another branch has fallen to my betrayer of a brother’s forces. I believe their second wind is due to his re-emergence in the ether. We shall strike while they’re weak. The wolf is still wounded, and hopefully just as weak.”

I looked away from the servants bowing head towards my spiralling well of souls. The anchored souls billowing in the air, straining against the chains. Then I saw something I’ve only seen once before. Pale green souls silently flowed through the hurricane. They wedge themselves near the souls who were being used as anchors.

Then their mouths gaped open to reveal a pair of fangs and they lunged forward. Sinking their ethereal teeth into the necks of the chain souls.

Where there teeth sunk in, the pale green light began to spread and encompass each bitten soul.

“HOW DARE THEY?” I screamed shrilly. As corruption began to spread through my meal. I couldn’t eat the souls of those sent by abominations. That is why they were culled off.

“Someone is messing with my meal,” I growled and my three shadows elongation out and wrapped themselves around the bowing servant. He struggled futilely, but it stopped the moment I tore his shrieking soul out from his body and stuffed it in my mouth.

“I need to speak to Makkian,” I said finally after having calmed down. I watched as the pale green souls flowed through the hurricane infecting each one with a bite.

I would have to purge the soul-well of corruption. “It is time to advance our plans.”

End of Part 1.

This novel is the work of Rhys Thomas. If you are reading this and it has not been published by Rhys Thomas, then this work has been stolen. Please report this to Amazon and me at email: [email protected]