A Study of the Soul

A clamor rose from the depths of the monastery library. A table falling, a chair crashing, books dropping.

“No way,” said Sybille. “No way, no way, no way!”

Leona and I arrived as fast as we could to the library to see Sybille sitting on the ground, surrounded by open books and scrolls, as well as her own notebook.

“Sybille,” I said. “What is wrong?”

“Bastion…” said Sybille.

She patted one of the books. She was incredulous.

“What is it?” I said.

“I may have just found a way to get your body back,” she said. “Your human body!”

Leona stared down at Sybille.

“His human body…” she muttered.

“Are you sure?” I asked. “I thought it was impossible.”

“It never was impossible to revert,” said Sybille. “You would just needed to use Master Croghan’s soul extractor. But… well, you know how awful that thing is. And what was more, that wouldn’t solve the problem of your body being susceptible to mana damage. But with the training you are getting from Sage Hanor, and this rune…”

She slid over her notebook towards me, showing a complex magic circle compounded with a world of runes upon it.

“It would stabilize it?” I said.

“Yes,” said Sybille. “It would be as though nothing had happened.”

I stared at the circle for a bit, trying to make sense of it. I picked up some basic runes, but I could not really decipher the whole thing.

“Does my human body even still exist?” I asked.

“It should be,” said Sybille. “We did not discard it after the transfer. Master Croghan and I kept it in the vat, and without a soul is not susceptible to mutations from that. I doubt that Master Croghan would discard an otherworlder’s body, either.”

“But how would we get to it? It must be in Master Croghan’s tower.”

“Well, that’s…” Sybille’s gaze, surprisingly, went to Leona’s for help.

Leona sighed.

“Bastion,” she said. “I know you have had a nice time up here in this mountain, but you have not forgotten why we are here, right?”

“To defeat Siege.”

“And?”

“Master Croghan. So, you are saying we will have to attack the tower?”

Sybille nodded.

“Yes,” she said. “That is the only way we would be able to reach Master Croghan.”

Now that was a difficult prospect. That place was guarded by monsters and well-guarded in a remote place.

“I wish it didn’t have to come to this,” I said.

“But it is,” said Leona. “Unless you want to call it quits now.”

“I won’t. I just…”

I just wished that things had turned out differently.