“Ah, I have a question or two… or three” I said to the old man in front of me while taking the small knife that he was handing over and putting it inside my pocket for safekeeping.

“Uhmm, but before that. I still don’t know what your name is… Sir” I said. I haven’t noticed until now, but ever since I entered the mansion and after all the talking that he did, I still didn’t know what his name was. If I called him as to how Fredrick addressed him before, then that would be quite rude of me. ‘Old man’, I don’t think anyone that’s past their prime would want to be reminded of their old age.

“Oh? Ahaha, right. Pardon this geezer for not introducing himself” He said as he stood up from the comfy chair that he was sitting on, put his right arm at his left breast, and then bowed slightly. “The name’s Cobalt Langston, a pleasure meeting you”

Now that he was done introducing himself, I thought of introducing myself too, since it would be impolite not to when the other party is doing that because of what I said.

“Rei Feld, uhmm… nice to meet you, Mr. Cobalt” I stood from my seat and bowed slightly too, but without putting my right hand on my left breast.

“Nice job, Rei. But next time, let’s get rid of the ‘uhmm’ part” Al said.

Mr. Cobalt laughs as he saw that I introduced myself in a formal way.

“So, kid, what was it that you were trying to ask this hip and cool geezer” He said. He still calls me with ‘kid’ even though I gave him my name already, but I don’t mind. It’s one of the privileges of the elderly to call someone younger than them ‘kid’, I guess?

“Ah, that. Uh, I was wondering if, you know… why was it only me?”

“Only you?”

“Yes, uhmm… about that stabbing thing that you said before. Why can’t the others do it, besides me?”

“Oh, that” He said, realizing what I was asking about. “I need to delve a little bit into the fundamentals for the reason why it needs to be you. So, ask anything that you might find confusing. Along with how I like telling stories, I also like a student who keeps on asking questions”

“Ah, okay” I replied. If possible, I would like to ask every bit of detail that I might find fascinating… I’m not saying that I’ll put anything that I won’t find interesting to the side, though. I just like to prioritize things that would keep me, well, interested.

…

Do I have my priorities backwards?

“Then, let’s start with the ‘Container!” He said in a very excited tone. “As you already know, a ‘Container’ or the heart of a human body houses its very own unique type of Soul that it’s shaped”

“Uhmm, I’d like to ask what that is” I quickly asked the first thing that I wanted to know.

“The unique Soul that you shape?” He asked, trying to find out whether that was the one I was asking about.

“Ah, yes” Maybe on the next time I ask something, I should make it a bit clearer what I meant. It would put the whole question and answer thing a little bit faster.

“Well, every living thing or anything at all that has a consciousness has its own Soul that it shapes. But yours is… hmm, yours doesn’t have a primary, so, the reason why your body is absorbing the surrounding Souls might be because of it” He then explained further. “When a normal body shapes its own Soul, it gradually leaks the old one out of the body to be replaced by the newly shaped one. Reason being, your very own Soul that you shaped gets corrupted over time”

“Why is it getting corrupted?” I asked that since I already know what happens to a Soul that wasn’t released.

“It has something to do with the ‘Gaia Cycle’” He said. “To explain that, the Earth also has its very own Soul that we call ‘Gaia’. That very Soul is split up whenever a new being that’s born or created with a consciousness stays on Earth. So, basically, what we are shaping inside our bodies is unique to our own, but, in truth, it’s just a miniscule part of Gaia that we transformed”

“Ah, so the newly born babies gets a part of their Soul from this Gaia thing?”

“Not really, but later on they will,” He said to correct me. “It’s different from an object that grew consciousness that immediately gets bestowed by a Soul from Gaia. The newborn child would first have most of their primary from their biological mother, and after some time has passed, then a ‘pure’ Soul of Gaia would slowly replace the mother’s”

“Ah…” I muttered in understanding.

“So, continuing on, the Gaia Cycle is something that a doctor’s apprentice from the late eighteen hundreds by the name of Yasul Holinghorn first discovered” He said, but quickly retracted back his statement. “Ah, he wasn’t the first, though. He was just the first one to publicize his findings where he put a few caterpillars in two different jars that were for studying a different matter”

“So… not first, but first to tell everyone else?” I asked and he nodded to affirm it.

“The first jar he used was a normal glass one, but on the other set of caterpillars, he accidentally used a jar that was made out of materials that trapped the Soul. And a few hours later, when he was about to start the other study that he was conducting, the second jar’s occupants died”

“Oh” I muttered. I now thought of what could have happened to me a few days later without my heart or this rings that I was currently wearing. It wasn’t a pretty thought.

“Black smoke came out from the bodies of the caterpillars, and soon after, the smoke condensed and formed a black liquid that filled the jar” He said. “That liquid wasn’t poisonous or anything, but the main thing that it had was that you couldn’t get rid of it. It didn’t evaporate even after he poured the contents of the jar on his fireplace. It just stayed there like a taint that would never disappear on the face of the Earth. From then on, that black liquid was called ‘Yasul’s Black Taint’”

Mr. Cobalt then laughed at the mention of the black liquid’s name. “A cheeky brat, I say. Naming something with his first name on it. He just couldn’t let the chance to be written down in the history books pass by”

Black Taint… I have to remember that. It seemed quite important, so better to store it somewhere in my head for the future. It’s always best to know any type of information that might be useful someday. That’s why I think those trivia things that you’d find in the internet or magazines isn’t a waste of time reading. Not a waste of time at all.

“For what the Gaia Cycle entails, it’s said that every Soul that Gaia gives towards its inhabitants, needs to come back to the source to cleanse it of the corruption that we made it to be. Otherwise, well, you know the rest”

“So, it’s like purifying water that we used so that others can use it too?” I said, and he nodded in affirmation.

“But enough about that, let’s talk about what happens when YOUR body absorbs them” He then changed the topic. “So, using the things from before as a comparison, the Souls that you absorb is akin to the part of Gaia that normal people shape. Those Souls that are then stored in your heart are transformed further, making its own unique typing, but it’s more… how do I say this… Ah! It’s more corrupt. Yes, that’s it”

“More… corrupt?”

“Yes. Although, I don’t know where your heart was sending the excess before this whole commotion started. But it must have been doing something quite amazing if it’s using the corrupt Souls in the surroundings to fuel it. Something that hasn’t been discovered by anyone… yet” He said while his eyes were gleaming. “It’s still a fact that those Souls that you absorbed is now a part of you. Meaning, whatever it is that you absorbed won’t be directly harmful to you, or even better, you can control it”

“I can control it?” I asked a little intrigued.

“With some knowledge shoved into that head of yours, and daily rigorous training, you might be able to” He said. “Although, what you might be able to do and can’t do depends on some factors”

“What are those?” I asked very curiously. You could clearly tell in my voice that I was excited now. Very excited that I might be able to do some magical things.

“There are a few, but the main ones are the eye insignia, the container’s capacity, Soul affinity, and the most important one of them all…” He stopped his sentence and looked at me with a serious face.

I gulp at the sudden change of atmosphere and waited for him to continue. His eyes were dead on serious like never before, and it was making me jittery.

“The most important one of them all…” He repeated what he said. “IS TALENT!”

“Ah…” I got excited from all of the build-up, but I was disappointed by the result. I mean, that was something a cheesy coach would say to his athletes. It’s not that I don’t believe talent was an important thing, but… I expected something more, uhmm… out of this world.

“Let’s leave those talks for later, let’s move on to what happens to someone else that comes into contact with a corrupted Soul from someone else” He said.

“Okay”

“Then, have you ever drank milk before?” He asked, which I nodded to answer it.

“What do you feel when you drink it, though?” He asked again.

“Fine… maybe a little bit refreshed, I guess?” Milk is refreshing when it’s fresh from the farm, but I’d rather have the ones that you can buy from the supermarkets. I don’t know, there was something satisfying from drinking something straight out of the carton.

“Okay, then what do you think would a person who’s lactose intolerant feel when they drink milk?”

“Uhmm… not good?”

“There you go. It may not be the best analogy out there, but that would do with what I’m talking about. So, just think of the Souls from the Well that your heart’s currently containing to be milk, and everyone else besides you is lactose intolerant”

“Oh… oh!” I finally got it after a couple more seconds of thinking about it.

“That doesn’t mean that it has no negative effects, though”

“But I thought it can’t harm me?”

“It wouldn’t, but too much of something isn’t good for you, even if that said thing is something that’s keeping you alive” He said. “So, the reason why it’s you, kid, is because of your body’s constitution to absorb the surroundings Souls, and second, because it’s your container that he’s using. If it were anyone else, then they would surely die from being overrun by a massive amount of corrupted Souls that their body’s natural resistance couldn’t even hold a candle in defending itself. No one in their right mind would volunteer to do a suicidal thing like that. Even my boy himself that’s bound to the Well wouldn’t risk coming close to your heart right now”

“Oh, is it… that dangerous?”

“For us, it’s akin to poison gas, but to you? Not so much” He said. “You just need to stab it, and get the hell out as quick as those flimsy legs of yours could propel you forward”

Now, I really feel conflicted about all of this. On one hand, I’d like to help, but on the other hand, I don’t want to risk doing it because I might make a mistake that would jeopardize everything… I feel somewhat nauseous all of a sudden.

“Then when does, you know, everything start?” I asked with my voice a bit shaky.

“Soon, I suppose” He replied as he looked at the large grandfather clock that was near us. “They’ll call when their done undoing that lock he put in the entrance… what do you say I show you a few more interesting things, then?”

“Uh… okay?” I said. Anything that could take my mind out of the spiraling thoughts of failure was a good thing.

“Before that, ask him what happens to your heart after you stab it” Al said.

“Oh, ah, Mr. Cobalt. What happens to my heart after I stab it?” I asked.

“Hmm… if it doesn’t collapse because of the large amounts of Souls that it currently contains, then it should be fine. Even if you put a few holes in it, we can still patch it up. So, you better grab hold of it before you leave the Well. Otherwise, it will just rot inside there for a long time”

“I… okay” I have to remember that. Stab, grab, and then run for my dear life. Okay. Stab, grab, and then run for my dear life. Got it.

“So, uhmm, what was it that you were going to show me?” I said.

“Look at my hand here” He said. “Now, I want you to concentrate real hard, and try to look for something that you want to see”

“What I want to see?”

“Yes, what YOU want to see”

“Well… alright”

With that said, I tried to concentrate and imagined something that I wanted to see. And after a minute of forcing something inside my head to work really hard and process that ‘something’ on his open hand, there wasn’t anything that happened.

“It’s not working” I said.

“Kid, what are you even trying to imagine seeing, anyway?

“Uhmm, a talking… book?”

…

“What?” Al said unexpectedly.

“Well, that’s an interesting bit for kid of your age” Mr. Cobalt rubbed his chin as he said that.

It’s perfectly normal for someone like me to think of a talking book, right? Just imagine it, a book that can start talking and speak of its contents to the people who want to read it. That’s a godsend! Sure, there are apps for devices that do just that, but... I still like holding onto a book while reading (Or listening, if they ever do start to talk).

“Hmm… a talking book?” Mr. Cobalt who was in front of me, started to ponder over something. “Then, try to visualize my hand as a talking book” He said after some time.

I did as he instructed me to, and imagined his hand to be a… how does that even work? No matter how hard I try to imagine his giant hands to be a book, it just stays being a hand… what if I made his hand talk first before imagining a book.

I then imagined his hand to start talking, but there was another wall blocking my path. Where was I supposed to put the mouth? At his palm? Should I put some eyes and a nose on it too? That looks creepy, though, so maybe just a thin line for a mouth.

“Ah! There’s…”

“What? What is it?” He asked.

“What’s happening, Rei?” Al was curious too.

There it is. I can see it. A gigantic load of…

“Nothing! It’s still a hand!” I said a little bit frustrated. Even if I imagined it very hard, as in, pain inducing hard, there still wouldn’t be a mouth appearing anytime soon on his palm.

Mr. Cobalt sighed, as he was disappointed at nothing happening, but he let out a little chuckle moments later and regained the vigor that he had before.

“That’s fine. I just wanted to test out one of my old friend’s teaching method. I guess it just didn’t work out” He said to console me. “Look at my hand again. I’ll give it a lot of juice so even someone like you could easily see it”

He then lifts his open hand and presents it in front of me.

“Huh?” I rub my eyes just to make sure, but there was something on his hand, or should I say, something coming out from it. It was a little unnoticeable at first, but if I concentrate hard enough, I could clearly see what it actually was.

“There’s… blue smoke?” I said.

“That’s good, though, I put a little too much effort” He put down his hand and breathed heavily while laughing. “Cons of being a hip and cool geezer like me. You get tired really fast”

“Uhmm, Mr. Cobalt, are you okay?” I asked him. Straining your body while you’re an elderly person isn’t too good. It might cause complications or even result in death in some cases. But, looking at the man in front of me, I don’t think the latter might happen any time soon. He looks like he works out in the gym a few times a week or even more.

“I’m dandy” He said while making an ‘okay’ sign with his right hand. “So, do you know what that blue smoke is?”

“Uhmm… colored smoke?” I said.

“Wrong! Haven’t you been listening to what I was explaining this whole time?” He said.

“Ah… a Soul or something?” I replied.

“Ding ding ding! It’s MY Soul that’s leaking out” He said. “That’s what normally happens, but I just concentrated it to a point that it would be visible enough for you”

“Oh… neat”

He was dissatisfied with my bland answer. “You sound a little bit disappointed there, kid”

“Ah! No, I wasn’t. It’s just…”

“Just what?”

“Uhmm… I thought it would be a little more… fanciful than smoke?”

He laughs once again because of what I said. He’s laughter was kind of contagious because I felt like laughing too, and there wasn’t anything that I found even a tad bit comedic about all of this. Is this what they call ‘Going along with the flow’?

“Sorry to disappoint you, kid. That’s how a normal body releases its pent up Soul” He said. “There’s also some uncommon cases of someone’s Soul when it’s concentrated to a very high degree to be released in a liquid state, or even something close to solidifying”

“Ahhh…” I muttered, like a student that learned something amazing from his teacher.

“Now, look at my hand again” He said as he put out his hand in front of me once again.

“Okay” I said. I then concentrate on his hand to check if there was something that would happen again, and indeed, there was. The space around his right hand started to distort. It was like that thing on a very hot summer’s day when you look at something from afar, and that distortion in the air happens because of the change in density and angle of light. That very thing is happening around his hand at this moment.

“AH!” I got surprised and covered my face with both of my arms because his hand suddenly caught on fire.

“See here? This is what happens when you learn how to control it” He said in satisfaction when he saw my reaction. ”You could do a lot more amazing things with it, but it depends on your imagination, talent, understanding, and hard work”

“Wah…” I slowly brought both of my arms down, and looked at his hand in wonder. It was being covered by a mesmerizing blue flame, which flickered and danced in front of me while I watched it. It was quite a remarkable sight.

“But the first thing to learn is too naturally see it” He said. “If you survive what’s going to happen, then come back here and I’ll teach you the basics. You’ll need it later on if you want to pay me back the rental fee”

“Uh, I thought that it’s… that it’s somewhat safe for me?” I asked a little bit disturbed that he’d say ‘survive’ as if there was a high chance that I wouldn’t.

He laughed, but this time it was loud enough for it to ring in my ears for a couple of seconds. “Kid, nothing’s for sure in this stupid world, hell, even death isn’t a sure thing here” He then leaned forward and said the next words that came from his mouth in a rather serious tone. ”Not everything is going to go according to plan a hundred percent of the time, kid. So, you should just doubt the plan from the very start and the people behind it, and come up with a ‘Plan B’ of your own. You should drill that into your head if you want to live a long life”

“That’s a very pragmatic way to look at life, but nonetheless, I agree with the man” Al said.

...

Isn’t that outlook on life… tiresome? If you doubt everything and everyone, then whom can you even trust? I do get what he’s trying to say, and I can’t deny what he’s said because someone I helped put me inside a nightmare and almost ended up killing me because he needed something that I had, but it’s just…

As I was thinking that, Glenn comes out from the hall on the right and came near us while he was carrying a tray with a teapot, two porcelain cups, and an assortment of sandwiches.

“Excuse me” He said, as he laid the tray on a table that was separating our seats and poured the tea on the two cups. He then put one in front of me and then the other one in front of Mr. Cobalt. “If there is anything else that you might need, please call for me”

“It’s fine. Thank you, Glenn” Mr. Cobalt said, and then Glenn bowed and went back towards the hall on the right. “Go on, have a drink. We still have a good few hours left to relax before it starts, and I doubt he’d undo it and rush outside knowing there’d be people securing the place”

Nodding my head, I grabbed the porcelain cup and took a sip. I was delighted at its mild taste, but I kind of like it to be a little bit sweeter. I think I prefer the ones that they served in that teashop that we went to yesterday.

After some time, and when we were both done drinking our tea and eating the sandwiches presented in front of us, it grew silent. It rather felt awkward to be sitting right here and not saying anything at all. Maybe I should start a conversation… weird that I would be the one saying that.

“So, uhmm, you’re Gerrard and Felicia’s grandfather?” I asked him to break the silence.

“Yes, I’m those kids’ grandfather” He said.

“Ah… are they, uhmm, cousins or something?”

“No, they’re siblings” He said. “Although, they both have different mothers”

“Oh, is uh… is everything okay with them?” I asked. From the things that I’ve watched and read about those kinds of settings, is that those kinds of family with different mothers would be a very dramatic one for the whole family. As far as I’ve seen and read, that is.

“Their fine as a pair of pears” He said smiling. “Both of their mothers live in a separate place, though. But other than that, everything is peachy”

Huh, I guess not everything can be liked with the things that I’ve watched and read. But it still must be hard on them to some degree, I guess. Not too sure, since everything that I’m basing it on isn’t that trust worthy in the first place. Mostly because it’s from soap operas and fantasy novels. I’m not saying it isn’t reliable in some situations, though.

“Oh, yeah, about that other question that I wanted to ask” I said. “Wouldn’t the people that disappeared cause a scene in that country, or rather, their family and friends would cause an uproar or something like that?”

“Ah, forgot to explain that one. Good thing you brought it up” He said as he took another cigar from his pocket and lighted it with a lighter. The end of the cigarette just caught on fire, which was very cool and convenient if you ask me. “The government who knew full well of what happened asked a favor from another Dominion Lord to use their Well to erase any traces of what happened during that whole event”

“Uhmm… Ah, okay… what?” I said, as I was confused at his explanation.

“Didn’t I explain to you that you could do more amazing things when you learn how to control the Soul?” He said, and I nod my head in acknowledgement. “When I meant ‘more amazing’, it’s at the level of shifting reality to some degree, at a high cost, though. And that ‘high cost’ equates to a large amount of Souls, which is what a Well has”

“Ah, now I kind of get it”

“It was a hefty favor, and it would take almost a decade or more to regain that large quantity of Souls in the Well again” He continued. “They didn’t disclose what deal they made, though, so everybody else who wasn’t involved was kept in the dark. I even tried to sniff around just to get some juicy topics to tell the boys, but they’re just too tight lipped”

“So, they’re all just continuing on with their lives?” I asked.

“Huh? Where’d you get that from?” He asked, slightly confused at what I just said.

“Uhmm, I assumed that they’d ask everyone that was erased to come back and return to normal?”

“Oh, that, well… no, they didn’t” He said. “What they asked for was to alter the memories of the citizens of that country, so that all things pertaining to that city and its inhabitants were erased from their heads. That’s a far easier solution to their problem than to undo everything and bring back people who’d do the same thing all over again when commanded”

“Oh…” I said with pity for those brainwashed and manipulated people. “But again, how did Mr. Molony’s memory not get erased?”

“Beats me. From what I knew, he’s been sent away along with the others, so, maybe he must have left the country by that time”

“Ah…”

“Hmm, he looks like a very troublesome man. I just hope he won’t cause too much of a problem for us later on” Al said.

I hope so too.