As our group arrives at Seraphine's Rest, the gloom of the overcast sky brings our spirits down. In dire need of a healer for Elias's wounds, my heart grows heavy at the sight I’m greeted with.

  Not a single soul can be seen in the seemingly abandoned town square.

  "Where is everyone?" Clarence asks, spinning around in confusion. "It's midday, there should be someone around, right?"

  "Something's not right, be on guard."

  We venture further into the ghost of a town, our footsteps echoing through the barren pathways between small cottages.

  "Clara!" Clarence shouts. I turn to see him pointing toward a dimly lit tavern. "Look, there's light coming from inside! Someone has to be in there, right?"

  "Let's hope so."

  I’m the first to enter, and it's a strange sight. Bodies are slumped over tables and chairs. Dozens of them. Strewn out across the floor are even more people. The scent of burnt fills the tavern, and Clarence comes in right after me.

  "They’re all dead…" Clarence whispers as he sees the townsfolk, holding his hands over his mouth.

  At a glance, it certainly does seem that way. But I know better. These people are asleep, but something was definitely wrong here. I touch the nearest patron, and the moment I do, my eyes grow wide.

  "Terra..." I breathe his name, my mind racing. "Terra, drop Elias and run! Run away, now!"

  "Wait, what’s happening?!" Clarence asks, spinning around just in time to see me catch Elias in my arms.

  "Help me with him!"

  As we stumble outside with Elias between us, Terra runs, his clay body kicking up clouds of dust in his wake. But before he can get away, it hits.

  It’s a low hum at first, but soon enough I’m cursing under my breath as the noise turns into a piercing ring that fills my ears. It feels as if my brain is being scrambled by the noise and I fall to my knees alongside Clarence.

  Terra is not as fortunate as us though. I look up just in time to see his earthy form take on a dark crimson as what little blood he has in his body is forcefully ejected from it. A moment later he collapses, and begins to convulse violently.

  "Damn it," I gasp, trembling uncontrollably. "We shouldn’t have come here..."

  Struggling to regain my bearings, I push myself up from the ground, my limbs weak and unsteady. I feel drained, mentally and physically. Clarence rises too, his expression a mixture of confusion and drowsiness. "What was that?" he asks, and lets out a big yawn.

  "Soul Harvest. An area of effect spell that siphons all souls within its radius every few hours until there’s nothing left. It’s been outlawed by the kingdom of Astrovia for centuries though due to how inhumane it is."

  "Your knowledge is impressive," comes a raspy voice from the path ahead. We look up to see an elderly man with hunched shoulders and large spectacles, staring at us intently. He leans heavily on a cane, but smiles up at us. "I’m glad to see you got our message."

  "Who are you?" Clarence challenges, holding a hand up, prepared to cast a spell.

  "Wait stupid," I whisper, grabbing a hold of his arm. "Let him speak."

  The old man seems unfazed by this, and answers. "My name is Elric, I’m something of the village elder around these parts. I was hoping that you would come soon. Our town has been plagued by this curse for some time now."

  "And why is it that the Soul Harvest hasn’t affected you, ‘Elric’?"

  "Easy now, young one," Elric replies, raising a hand in the air. "You Crowsongs are certainly known for your intensity, but I mean no harm." He holds an insignia with a crow engraved upon it. "This heirloom was given to us by Seraphine Crowsong many many years ago. It has protected my family for generations."

  His story is plausible enough, those insignias are a rare sight. Just the fact that he has one proves his words hold some semblance of truth. The Crowsong clan used to be much larger in the past. We had our own forge, weaponsmiths, enchanters, and those insignias were mass-produced centuries ago, but…that was in the past.

  "Your friends are hurt. You’re welcome to come back to my humble abode if need be."

  "Clarence, take Elias, I need to get Terra."

  This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  I find Terra's crumpled form, his clay body is already giving out, and his eye is now a dull gray.

  "Oh Terra, you poor thing..." I murmur, before carefully dragging him back to Elric’s house.

  "What happened to Terra?..."

  "He's sturdy, I made sure of that. But since he’s just a soul inhabiting an artificial body, he doesn’t have much of anything to protect him from attacks that target the soul. You could say it’s his biggest weakness."

  Elric assists us in getting Elias settled into a bed, and then comments on his condition. "Your friend's wounds are horrible. What fate befell him?"

  "It's a long story," I say evasively. "For now, we need to find a healer."

  "Unfortunately, the only healer in town won't wake up. Nobody will because of this… this damned curse," Elric tells us. Holding up the Crowsong medallion once more, he continues, "I believe I'm immune to it due to this"

  "That’s right, that insignia keeps a protective ward around those in its vicinity. It’s likely that Seraphine was unable to finish her quest if she never came back for it."

  "I see… Well I paid the 100 gold deposit along with my letter. If you need more payment than that, I’m sure we could figure something out once the curse has been dealt with…"

  "100 gold!? That's what we charge?" Clarence interrupts.

  "My father is an even greedier man than you," I reply dryly before turning back to the elder. "Do you know where the source of the curse may be coming from?"

  "Well, there is a dungeon to the east... the Dusken Depths."

  "Show us on the map."

  Elric marks the location for us. With our destination set, time is of the essence.

  "Let's hurry then. We're short on time, and have to deal with this dungeon first if we want to save Elias."

  "W-What about Terra? He's goop, and he's not moving…"

  "Terra is a strong soul. He was only hit once, so he'll be fine with time. In a way, it's like he's sleeping. "Elric, please watch over him while we're gone," I gesture towards my brother. "I know you're no healer, but just try your best."

  "Of course, young lady. I will," the elder says, and the authenticity in his voice puts me at ease, just a bit.

  As Clarence and I head towards the door, the elder stops us.

  "Would you like to hold onto this?" He holds the medallion high for us to see once more.

  I shake my head. "No, we'll be back before the next wave hits. You hold onto it though, just in case."

  Stepping outside, Clarence turns to me. "Will we really be back before that Soul Harvest thing happens again? You said it happens every few hours."

  "No. We'll likely be hit by it again before we reach the end of the dungeon. But Elias and Terra especially, need the protection more than we do."

  "C'mon, we're going to have to run." I break out into a brisk jog. Clarence struggles to keep up, but he matches my pace after a few moments.

  "Hey, why is Terra so important to you?"

  "What do you mean? He's a spirit I summoned, of course he's important to me," I reply, barely able to catch my breath.

  "That's not what I mean," he insists. "You wanted to protect him, and he always listens to you. He's someone you know, right?"

  I think back on my past lives and Terra's presence echoed within them all. It was true; there was something about Terra that transcended lifetimes, a connection that went far beyond that of a simple summoned spirit.

  But I didn't know what.

  "Every life, Terra is the first soul I summon. Not by choice, but because he answers my call without fail, regardless of where or what form I bind him to," I explain, my voice steady despite the fatigue that weighs on me.

  "Has he just been waiting for you to summon him then?"

  "I don't know."

  "Surely you must know something about him? We've always been warned to be cautious about who we bring back. Any spirit could be a malevolent one, right?"

  "In life, he was a holy knight."

  "Isn't that bad? They hate-"

  "He's not like the knights of the Radiant Vanguard that brand those who use ‘lesser magics’ as heretics. No, Terra is different. He embraces magic, although he still despises necromancy. Throughout every life, he's been the one to keep me grounded. He's become something of a moral compass for me."

  I look over, and it seems like only bits and pieces were truly heard. A prompt appeared, asking me to spend more Karma, but I couldn’t afford that now.

  "That makes sense..."

  "Yeah, in a way, he’s the only friend I’ve ever had," I say, giving Clarence a small smile. He had picked up on the most important part, and that’s what mattered.

  "Earlier you said that Soul Harvest was outlawed a long time ago. Who else would know about it other than a Crowsong?"

  "Before Death made a pact with our family, he tried to go down many other paths. He created fiends, liches, overlords, skeletons, undead of all kinds. Many of which want to free the living of having to fear Death."

  "Why did he do that? Don't we spend all our time getting rid of undead like that now?"

  "Who knows? Gods make mistakes too."

  Clarence's curiosity must be satiated now. Either that or he's too tired to ask anything else. By nightfall we reach the entrance of the Dusken Depths. Surrounding it is a group of decaying corpses, little more than rotted skin and bone.

  "What are those?" Clarence asks, leaning forward, he steps on a twig. The snap of it alerts each and every undead of our location as their heads turn to face us.

  Of course, this couldn’t be helped. Clarence wasn’t used to this yet.

  "Undead, zombies, to be exact. They’re weak to fire. Aim for the head, and whatever you do, don't let them bite you."