The Forsaken Hero

As I slipped into sleep, I triggered a pulse of mana in my soul, reaching down to the Oracle of Eternity. When my eyes closed and my consciousness faded, I found myself in my soul space again. I’d expected some mental resistance, some instinctive hatred of the place after spending what felt like years locked within it, but instead, it felt like I was coming home. The stars glimmered brightly as though happy to see me, and I smiled faintly.

”I’m back,” I said to no one in particular.

I didn’t know if this was the best idea, having a vision when I should have been fully resting, but I needed answers more than I needed sleep. Besides, my body could heal while I existed in the soul space.

This time, I found myself in complete control over my visions, and I willed an image of Fable. The ability instantly responded, and the threads of white light quickly formed a scene. The resulting vision was crisp and clear, nothing like the hazy glimpses I’d been catching while I slept.

But beyond that, as I drew on my mana, there was a faint burning pain in my soul. It stemmed from the singed fringes of my soul, feeling similar to the sun purge on my flesh, yet much sharper. As far as pain went, it was nothing compared to the sheer agony I’d suffered for years when my soul was shattered. In fact, I barely noticed it, and that was only because I’d had no pain for the past few months, giving me some sort of reference.

I held my breath as the scene materialized, placing me directly in a camp. I recognized the soldiers’ armor and flapping banners immediately: the Last Light Company. Their tents spread out for almost a mile in all directions, their numbers similar to when I’d last seen them. I felt some of the weight leave my shoulders at seeing they’d survived the war in Brithlite all but unscathed. My selfishness hadn’t cost too many of their lives.

As the vision sharpened, I focused on the campfire directly beneath me. A small group huddled around the flames, the atmosphere quiet and subdued. Relief washed over me as I recognized their faces. They were all there. They were all safe.

Korra and Gayron sat side-by-side, her head resting on his shoulder, their hands intertwined. Grace sat cross-legged beside them, her long, dark hair flowing in the gentle breeze. She spoke with animation, her hands gesturing as she described a battle she’d fought in a demon gate. Her frequent glances at the others revealed her attempt to lift their spirits or at least distract them from their worries.

Across the fire were Fable and Sari. The young foxkin curled on the wolf’s back, idly stroking his neck as I had done so many times before. Her tail swished as she listened to Grace’s story with rapt attention, her eyes shining, and gasps escaping her at all the right moments. But my wolf lay lethargic and limp, his head resting on his paws, his gaze distant and vacant. Even when Sari squealed at an exciting turn in the story, his ears barely flicked in annoyance.

They all seemed well, if a bit subdued. Suddenly, Fable’s ears pricked up, the dullness vanishing from his eyes. Grace stopped mid-sentence as he abruptly stood, nearly throwing Sari from his back.

”What is it, Fable?” Sari asked, scrambling to regain her balance.

He threw back his head and howled, an expression of pure joy. The sound echoed through the camp, reverberating off the tents and into the night sky. His cry held an eager anticipation that stirred the camp despite the late hour.

A moment later, before anyone could react, a shimmering golden gate appeared above him. Without hesitation, he lunged forward, cracking the ground beneath him with the force of his leap. Sari yelped at the sudden movement, clinging to his fur as they soared toward the gate. At the last possible second, a black shadow shot through the air, snatching her from his back and carrying her safely to the ground. As they landed, the shadow materialized into the humanoid form of Wisp, holding her close as she clung to him, her face etched with fear.

”Wait, Fable!” Korra cried, leaping to her feet. But it was too late. The moment the wolf’s tail passed through the gate, it swirled shut, vanishing in a shower of stars.

A stunned silence fell as they all stared at the empty space where the gate had been. Korra took half a step forward, and her lips parted in disbelief.

”What the hell was that?” Grace asked, tilting her head in confusion.

”He’s...gone?” Korra whispered, her voice faint, her eyes distant. She seemed not to have heard her friend. ”But that was... I mean, it had to be...” Her face lit up with a bright smile, relief flooding her features. ”She’s alive.”

The vision shattered, returning me to the soul space, but it didn’t matter. I knew they were alive, and that was enough for now. I’d be able to find them later, as soon as I sorted out our current mess with the demons.

With my main purpose accomplished, I settled into a sitting position, my legs tucked to one side, my hair drifting in the astral breeze of the soul space. From there, I looked inward at my soul. There was no point in sitting around while my body was resting, so I began studying what damage the sun purge had caused.

Fortunately, the scars seemed rather minor, afflicting only the two fringes. The Lord of Fire must have brought me to R’lissea in time, and she was able to reverse it before too much permanent damage was caused.

Permanent damage. My lips flickered into a hint of a smile. As R’lissea had proved, there was very little permanent damage in this world. There were only wounds we didn’t yet know how to cure. Fortunately for me, damage to the soul wasn’t one of those things.

I grasped my mana, unable to wait for myself to wake before getting started. I’d never truly used magic in my soul space. It had never been something I’d been concerned with or had the time to pursue, but if it was only on my own soul, it should work.

Sure enough, five magic circles blossomed around me, slowly rotating into one single ring around my chest. From there, I began to probe into my soul, stitching together the stars that made my existence. Where the sunpurge had burned, I soothed, and where my soul had been torn open, I mended it.

There was no actual flow of time in the soul space, but it seemed hours had passed by the time I finally let go of my mana. Even though my soul form had no need for physical strength, I still sagged, feeling exhausted. The damage was minor; it didn’t require even a fraction of the power that repairing my soul had needed, yet I still felt drained. My soul had grown a lot in the last few months, even while I was unconscious, but it had barely been enough.

That was an exciting thought, actually. I hadn’t realized it, but my soul had reached the mid-stages of the seventh level. Usually, that only happened under intense training, but perhaps the constant stimulation of the Oracle of Eternity was enough. And maybe that, in turn, had been one of the reasons it had taken me so long to wake up. Much of my strength must have gone into generating the visions I’d lived through.

Not long after I finished, I felt the soul world fading, consciousness tugging at my mind. I awoke in the same tent as before, only this time, there were two people peering down at me.

The first was R’lissea, her eyes swimming with concern, and the other was Elise. She wore a simple white dress that looked a size too small for her, closer to mine or R’lissea’s size. She clutched at the hem of her sleeves with her fingers, biting her lip nervously. When my eyes opened, she jumped as though startled and quickly looked away.

”You’re awake,” R’lissea said, sounding relieved. She reached out and touched my cheek, sending a pulse of life magic through me. It was like a wave of warm water slowly enveloping my soul. When it faded, her relieved smile grew.

”What was that?” I asked, touching my cheek after she removed her hand, her warmth lingering.

Her relieved smile grew. ”Just making sure your body was alright still. I’m still not really sure what’s going to happen now that the sunpurge is gone. For all I know, your body might go through some kind of shock, or it could even relapse.”

”I...I see,” I said slowly. The last thing I wanted was to lose my newfound freedom. It hadn’t seemed so bad when I had the sunpurge, just another difficulty to deal with, but now I shuddered at just thinking of the scars coming back.

She nodded, and her voice lifted with wonder. ”Were you healing your own soul just now? You were sleeping peacefully, and then suddenly, your aura exploded. I was half afraid the demons would come tearing in, but fortunately, the Lord of Ash took action. After he killed a few of the evolved ones, the rest stayed back.”

”Oh,” I said, rubbing my horn in embarrassment. I’d completely forgotten the fact that I had to let the barriers down around my soul to heal it. Considering we were in the middle of a demon army, that could have proved fatal.

”It doesn’t matter. It’s hardly the first demon he’s killed,” she said with a small smile. ”I’ve almost gotten used to it.”

I sat up, feeling another wave of wonder at the lack of pain. The sunpurge on my side hadn’t been as old a companion as my shoulder, but it had been with me for months now. Then, with some effort, I looked at Elise. She avoided my gaze, but I could sense the turmoil in her heart.

R’lissea looked between the two of us. ”I think I’ll give you some space,” she said, slipping from the tent.