Chapter 5 - Part 2/3

["It seems you're making it a habit of bringing men in." a familiar voice called from behind in a playful tone. ]

Haiden felt the warm summer breeze blush his cheek as sky blue eyes met his own. The scorching sun heated his ears red with just a flash of Tasgal's boyish smile. It was as if winter had ceased to exist when he saw him awake in that white bed, still partially naked he could not help himself follow the tick trail of dark hair that flowed from Tasgal's chest down to...

"Ah-Hem!" Tasgal faked a cough to grab Haiden's attention.

"Tasgal! Y-you're awake!" Haiden recovered from the daze, pink dusted his cheeks. For the past days that he had been taking care of an unconscious Tasgal, Haiden's unwanted thoughts had been hard to ignore. Yes, he felt responsible for the state of the man, but he couldn't help but be drawn to the powerful aura he had, even while sleeping, Tasgal seemed to exude a certain confidence. "How are you feeling? Does anything hurt?" he asked.

"I'm good. Better than ever, actually. I feel like I slept for two days!" Tasgal said flashing Haiden a smile.

"You... uh... actually slept for four days, Tasgal. Are you sure you're alright?" he said walking to Tasgal's side, pressing a shaky hand on his forehead; taking his temperature. He saw the assistant do this.

He's a bit warm, but not too hot. That's good. he breathed in relief. Tasgal's eyes widened at the unexpected contact, and as soon as they locked eyes both of their heads turned the other direction; Haiden pulling his hand as if he touched an open flame.

"S-sorry. I was just checking your temperature." he quickly added.

"F-four days?!" Tasgal said after he finally processed the information. He had been in the infirmary before with loss of consciousness, but never for this long. "Shit! Istrek will be pissed." he gave an awkward laugh and rubbed the back of his neck. His tousled dark hair was sticking every which way. "I guess I should say thanks. Master Coner, came by earlier and told me what happened. You've repaid your debt, huh?" he said in a quiet voice, unusual for his always happy and confident demeanor. He stared at the wooden floor, examining it carefully. It creaked under Haiden's feet as he constantly shifted his weight on one leg then the other.

"No, I didn't." he finally replied. "It's my fault you weren't paying attention, and my fault you were unconscious for so long. The debt is still on." he said determined.

"It's alright. You don't have to do this, little...ah-uh-Haiden." he quickly corrected himself and gave Haiden an apologetic smile. Haiden's own lips twitched trying to form a smile.

"Listen here, you...you big ninny! I said no!" he snapped. "And I'm not little! Get that through your thick skull." he was thankful for Tasgal's little slip, the awkwardness was becoming unbearable and he needed a change of pace. He hadn't snapped like that in a few days and it was quite relieving.

"Ninny? Damn that old man. Don't be mad at me because you're short. Little guy." Tasgal replied with a raised brow.

"I'm almost as tall as you!" Haiden screamed.

"If by almost you mean not at all, then yes. I tower over you by at least two heads!" Tasgal pulled the white covers off him, revealing a snug pair of white trousers that had replaced his leather ones, and stood on his feet. Haiden, now had to look up at him and glared with furrowed brows. Tasgal's smug boyish smile took over his face in triumph, raising his hand above Haiden.

No, he wouldn't! he thought as Tasgal's hand gently patted his head. Haiden quickly swatted off his hand.

"I could blast you off right where you stand!" he warned.

"Oh, now you can Wield?" Tasgal retorted.

Ugh! why does he annoy me so much?! Haiden asked himself. Fuck his blue eyes, and fuck his... hairy chest and his... trailing off in thought at his white trousers. His cheeks became considerably warmer.

"You fuc-" the doors burst open cutting Haiden off before he could finish the long string of profanities that he had planned to say to Tasgal.

"Maree! Where are you?" a girly shrill resounded through the room as a wide eyed young woman burst through white drapes. "Maree! You seen him? He's this tall." she said reaching with a hand above her head, "has blonde hair and angry all the time." the girl described.

That's an apt description. he mused.

"Uh, try over there." Haiden said as he pointed the next draped bed over. The girl immediately went for it, pulling the curtains off.

"Maree!" the girl screamed in shock seeing the man caked in blood. She collapsed by his bedside dramatically. Maree didn't suppress an irritated sigh but didn't dismissed the girl as he did with Haiden. "Did those bastards did this to you again?" she asked concerned. It was hard not to overhear everything, the girl was so loud.

"It doesn't matter, Camila." he replied coldly.

"Shush, you're in no position to talk. I told you not to go anywhere without me!" she said fisting her hand at Maree. She looked like she was about to shove her fist down his face. Maree just put his hands up in defeat and let out a small laugh which spread to Camila.

"I was late, alright? They caught me in the corridor. I didn't mean to walk alone." he confessed.

"I swear if I ever put me hands -"

"You know, eavesdropping is rude. Snappy and nosy, tut tut." Tasgal interjected.

"I-I wasn't!" Haiden denied it.

"Sure, neither was I." he joked. The white drape flung open by the stocky assistant. She always had a kind smile on her face.

"Alright, there, huns?" she asked.

"Yes, M'am." Haiden replied.

"Good, off you go then. This rascal may be up, but he still needs his rest." she said humming then turning her back to them making herself busy with some items on a metal trolley.

"I better go, then. I have to catch up on some reading anyway." Haiden said nodding towards the door.

"Right, will you come and visit tomorrow?" Tasgal asked.

"Of course he will, hun. He's been here everyday, hasn't he?" The woman added, making Haiden laugh nervously and earning a brief smile from Tagal.

"See you later, then." Haiden raised a hand for a quick wave and bolted out.

・‥...━━━━━━━☆☆━━━━━━━...‥・

"...Fios, as all of you know is the catalyst for Wielding. If you misjudge the amount of energy you need to enact your will with, disaster will surely ensue!" Master Rwoy warned. "Let me show you how one tiny bit of Fios can turn your spells from helpful to a death sentence." he said holding his palm upwards waiting. A glass container encasing a leafy green plant with long pink spikes that protrude from the stems flew off the shelf in the back and placed itself on top of Master Rwoy's palm. The plant was familiar to Haiden as he saw it grow everywhere while on his journey to Elo'yn. "This, is a common Yulumi'farakx or a sparkling howler plant. Can anyone tell me the main characteristics of this plant?" he asked. A sole student rose her hand at the question. Seeing that nobody else wanted to challenge the know-it all of the year, Master Rwoy sighed. "Malticia, please enlighten us." he said.

"Thank you, Master Wielder Rwoy." Haiden could almost hear the other students roll their eyes at her. No one liked her. She was the daughter of one of the wealthiest merchants in Elo'yn. Her status, intellect and ability ranked her on top of the first year class, no one dared go against her and her friends.

"Master Wielder, or just Master Rwoy is fine, Malticia. No need to be so formal."

"Thank you. The sparkling howler is best known for the luminescent seeds and howl-like noise it makes when the seeds are released. One of its lesser known properties is that its howl can induce a hypnotic state, the Hundui people used them to enter a trance-like state in which they believed it allowed them to see spirits." she answered with a smug grin on her face as her eyes darted across the classroom reveling in the annoyed gazes she received.

"Very good, Matlicia. You're quite knowledgeable, young lady." Master Rwoy said. "I will now channel my Fios in this sparkling howler to attempt to make one spike bloom, then I will show you what the wrong amount of energy will do to the plant." as soon as he finished another student raised their hand. "Yes, Jory?"

"Master Row, won't the howl affect us, then?" he asked concerned.

"Don't be stupid." Malticia scoffed. "It takes dozens of plants to bloom at the same time to take down one single person, let alone an entire class room."

"Yes, that's quite right, Malticia. Also, watch your language in class. Right, then." with that Master Rwoy placed the glass container on his wooden desk and removed the casing and stepped back extending an arm towards the plant. Haiden felt the prickly sensation of static. Within seconds, one of the long pink spikes started shaking until its tip opened slightly and the howling began. All the students with the exception of Malticia and Haiden covered their years. It had something so familiarly horrifying to it that it made Haiden's blood run cold, the hair on the back of his head stood up. The opening widened and the spike split into two thin petals, so wide they overlapped at the sides forming a complete circle, in the middle of which laid a long yellow pistil that was full of black dots. The blossoming took seconds but felt like minutes, especially with the howl ringing in their ears. As soon as it stopped, the black dots burst into lively sparks that gently lifted in the air, fizzling away. The students gasped in awe at the light show. "The sparkling howler needs very specific conditions to blossom, but the seeds germinate really fast and even within the human body, so be careful not to inhale it." at once the front row students jumped from their seats and fled to the back. Master Rwoy chuckled at them. With a wave of his hand the seeds gathered in a bowl on his desk and the fizzle stopped. At once a small green sprout pooped out of the bowl. "Now for the not so fun part" he announced as he raised his hand again towards the plant. Haiden felt the static increase in potency ever so slightly it was barely perceptible. The leaves browned, one by one. It withered right in front of the class, going from brown to yellow to dark grey until it just crumbled into dust. The students gasped in shock and Haiden's eyes widened and his jaw clenched. He remembered how bloody gashes burst out of Mara as his energy flow wavered. It made him sick to his stomach.

"Right, everyone. Your assignment for next week is hone your Fios control using these small light stones." he held his arm up and a bag flew into his hand. "They are small and weak, and require the most minute and constant stream of energy to stay little. Too much and they burst into dust, so you have to gradually increase the potency until you hit the sweet spot. Next week we'll have a sparkling howler for everyone of you. Who ever fails will have clean-up duty for the rest of the month." he smiled wickedly at them as they groaned. "Dismissed!"

The students pounced on Master Rwoy to grab as many light stones as they could carry, to practice on. Haiden simply waited while everyone was finished and grabbed the last remaining four stones for himself that were mere pebbles. He gave a quick goodbye to Master Rwoy and headed to the dining hall for lunch.

The thick blanket of gray clouds retreated for the first time in what seemed like weeks, finally revealing a clear blue sky which gave the appearance of a sunny warm day, only for the winter wind to bat away any hope of an early spring. Haiden walked on the stone tiled ways that were snow free, as opposed to the rest of the students from his year. They were running and fighting in the snow. They laughed and screamed with joy as they bulldozed walls of snow and throw snowballs at each other made Haiden's stomach sink with loneliness. He sighed and thought of Tasgal, how he was faring cooped up in the infirmary then slowly drifting to Maree. He had tried to say hello to him, but got completely ignored.

What an asshole, he could at least say 'thanks' for saving his ass back there, he thought kicking a stray pebble off the stone-tiled way. The pebble, lighter than he thought, went shooting straight ahead hitting a blonde head of hair with pinpoint accuracy.

"What the fuck!?" the man yelled turning around only to reveal the ungrateful asshole himself, Maree.

"Maree! What happened?" Camila jumped in front of him, as if to shield him from any further attacks, her gaze soared around trying to find the aggressor.

"Sorry!" Haiden shouted, speeding up his pace. "I didn't mean to hit you, Maree. I wasn't looking." he said finally caught up with them.

"Sure you didn't." he said and turned around continuing his walk.

"You two know each other?" Camila asked.

"Yeah," before Haiden could start his sentence Maree stopped and gave him a death glare to shut up, but he ignored him. "we met yesterday. I brought him to the infirmary. I met you there too, remember?" he said.

"Oh! Yeah, you seemed familiar. Thank you so much for helping Maree, he never listens to me and he has a big mouth that gets him in trouble." she said with a smile.

"Yeah, I noticed." Haiden chuckled.

"You want to join us - Ouch! That hurts!" Maree grabbed Camila by her arm and was dragging her away, stopping a few paces away before furiously starting to whisper. Haiden pretended he didn't hear and looked around trying to distract himself, but he couldn't help the loud whispering coming from the two.

"What are you doing, Camila?" Maree's whispered was carried out quite effortlessly to Haiden's ears.

"I'm trying to be nice, he HELPED you!" she briefly turned to Haiden giving im a smile and wave before turning back to Maree.

"I didn't ask for his help," he sneered.

"Well, I'm glad you got it, you idiot! You could've died! We're eating with him and that's final. Stop being such a big baby." with that Camila went and grabbed Haiden by his hand and pulled him forward. "Come on. I'm starving!" letting go of his hand when they reached Maree. They walked in silence the rest of the way to the dinner hall until they've sat down. They went to the second floor, which ever since the year started Haiden noticed that only the students from the most influential families dined there along with the faculty members.

"I don't think we've been properly acquainted. I'm Camila, Camila Theren." she said with a warm smile, extending an arm.

"Haiden, nice to meet you." he replied shaking her hand.

"Haiden..." she waited for him to add his last name.

"Just Haiden." he said laughing nervously. He cursed the fact that he hadn't tried recently to remember his past. By now he could've had at least a last name, but his mind had been occupied by other, more important, things.

"Alright, just Haiden. Haven't seen you in Elo'yn before. I'm guessing you're not from around here."

"No shit," Maree added. Camila slapped his arm and scowled at him.

"Behave! Sorry about that, Haiden. He's always like this with new people." Camila gave him an apologetic smile. Haiden just laughed it off.

"I'm from Yn'lan province, up north." he answered truthfully.

"Oh, I've been to Yn'lan a few times, papa has a summer house in Gor've. Gorgeous green hillsides."

"Your papa has summer houses in every major city, Camila." Maree said in a snarky manner.

"Shut it you! Not my fault he owns every smelting forge in the empire." she puffed her chest, proud of her father's achievements. Haiden suddenly felt quite inadequate. Here he was, an orphan with not even his memory to call his own, talking with the daughter of a man that could probably buy the whole province of Yn'lan on a whim. He felt like the butt of a joke.

"What about your folks, Haiden." she asked. Haiden's throat instantly closed at the mention of his parents, making it harder for him to swallow.

"T-they're gone." he simply said, lowering his head. He didn't want to see the pity in their faces. It was as if the cold winter air turned into an smoldering inferno, making him sweat profusely. No one said anything immediately as a servant brought their food.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Haiden. I'm sure they were great people." Camila said, before putting her hands together and closing her eyes.

"Yeah," Maree added.

"I-I guess," he said, leaving it at that and started digging in. Halfway through their lunch Camila stopped and placed a light pebble on the table.

"Ugh, Malticia is such a know it all." she said, hovering a hand above the pebble. Haiden felt the static on his skin. Ever since the students poured into the Academy at the start of the year, his senses were going haywire. He'd feel static almost constantly while in the dorm, making it hard for him to sleep.

"She can eat a load of mrondung for all I care." Maree added looking at the Camila's pebble turn into dust because she sent too much Fios. She took another one out and began again.

"Ever since we were little she had to be the center of attention! Everything is an elaborate scheme of hers to get more attention. She's always been like that." she said.

"You know her?" Haiden asked. Both Maree and Camila startled as if they forgot he was there.

"Yeah, our fathers have been business partners before we were born. We used to be friends." her face turned sour and the pebble evaporated into dust instantly.

"You need to build it gradually." Haiden said, trying to change what seemed to be a sensitive subject.

"What do you know?" she said taking another pebble out and again it turned into dust in just a few seconds. Haiden rolled his eyes and pulled one of his own out of his pocket.

"Here," he said. This was the first time he tried, but he had practiced on other mediums and managed partially heal Tasgal. He knew he could do it. Haiden mentally checked for the locked door, now he always had it locked, and drew on his Fios until his fingertips tingled with static. He started with the faintest wisps of energy, it was imperceptible and he gradually built it up. The stone responded to his Fios after a few minutes, starting to glow softly. He gave Camila and Maree a smug smile.

"How?" Maree asked. "We just got out the that class!"

"Show me!" Camila demanded.

"I-uh, I've been practicing on my own since I got here." he lied.

"Show us!" Maree added. "I'd be damned if I get stuck with cleaning duty!"

"For a month!" Camila added.

"For a month!" Maree repeated with a nod.

"Alright, but I can't today." he said with a sigh.

"Why not?" Camila crossed her arms and pursed her lips.

"We have natural sciences with Master Omnelia in a few and I have to visit Tasgal after. I promised." he said, looking at his half eaten plate hoping they wouldn't see his blush and started packing a sweet bun in a cloth. Although, it shouldn't have been hard, given his pasty complexion.

"Tasgal? Was he that hunk you were with yesterday in the infirmary?" Camila asked. It annoyed Haiden that she referred to him like that, but he kept his mouth shut and nodded. "He's so dreamy," she added. "I hope I get paired with him next half cycle. Tasgal, was it?" she sighed, her eyelids fluttering at an image in her head. Maree rolled his eyes at her.

"That's what you say about any Ashen you meet. Close your legs for once why don't you?" he added. Camila immediately snapped out of it and slapped Maree over the head.

"Rude!"

"What do you mean by paired?" Haiden asked confused.

"He doesn't know?" both Maree and Camila said simultaneously.

"N-no?" Haiden added even more confused.

"Under what rock have you lived?" Camila said. "In the second half of our first year we get paired with an Ashen for the rest of YOUR LIFE!" she yelled

"Don't be daft, Camila." Maree said turning to Haiden. "It's only until you gain the status of Master Wielder. Then you can free the Ashen."

"Free?" Haiden asked. "It sounds like their forced to do this."

"In a manner of speaking, they are." Maree confirmed.

"They can't marry or have babies until their Wielder achieves Master Wielder status." Camila confirmed. "Their sole purpose is to protect us, and in turn we them." Haiden's heartbeat stopped for a moment. The thought of him and Tasgal being paired, getting to see him so often, made his head feel light as his ears reddened and cheeks blushed.

"C-can you choose who you are paired with?" he asked.

"I remember papa saying the Wielder can request a certain Ashen, but it only works when the Ashen requests it too. The catch is that they don't tell you when someone requested to be paired with you, it must be something that both parties want or something like that. If only one of you request this by the end, you'll still be paired randomly." she said with squinty eyes trying to remember all that her father had told her.

"She's right." Maree agreed. "And Wielders get almost zero contact with Ashen before the pairing. So, we don't have any chances to get to know anyone enough to want to be paired together."

"No fun!" Camila whined. Haiden nodded in agreement. He hoped that after Tasgal is released from the infirmary he'd get to see him again.

The rest of the lunch went off with idle chat. It reminded him of the time he'd spent with Regor during their journey, the fun he had simply talking about the most insignificant subjects. Maree quickly relaxed in Haiden's presence and stopped being his snide self after seeing how he didn't pose any threat. He saw that Haiden wasn't like the young men that had beat him. The three of them walked together to Master Omnelia's class which went by slower than he hoped.

"You sure you can't come and show us how it's done?" Camelia begged with pouted lips.

"Sorry. How about tomorrow at lunch?" he said and Maree nodded in agreement. Not waiting for another whine from Camelia he went straight for the infirmary where he found Tasgal waiting.

"Almost thought you wouldn't show." Tasgal said, a smile lighting his face.

"Hey, I promised, didn't I?" Haiden chuckled and slumped in a chair beside the bed. "What you been up to?" he asked.

"Absolutely nothing! I'm bored out of my mind!" he groaned. "They wouldn't let me do anything, even though I feel fine." he complained.

"You were stabbed, Tasgal. What do you expect."

"So? I got stabbed four times in the past two months! Just happened that this time was a bit deeper. That's all." slight guild flushed over Haiden.

"You almost bled to death. Stop being so stubborn. How long till they let you go?" he asked.

"Tomorrow morning they said. See? I'm totally fine." Tasgal said flexing his bulging bicep. Pink dusted Haiden's cheeks and he laughed nervously.

"Here, brought you something." Haiden threw a wrapped parcel in Tasgal's lap.

"A sweet bun! Creator's bless you, they're my favorite." Tasgal ate the whole bun in two big mouthfuls almost choking himself to death.

"You didn't die from a stab wound, but you'll kill yourself over a sweet bun." Haiden joked.

"Totally worth it!" Tasgal smiled at him.

"Did you know Wielders get paired with Ashen warriors?" Haiden asked all of the sudden. Tasgal looked at him with a raised brow.

"Of course. Ashen means protector, after all." he replied.

"Oh, I didn't know that. I... I don't know a lot of things, do I?" Haiden admitted. "I'm trying to catch up, though." he said, pulling a book from his cloak's pocket and pointing at it which read 'Small encyclopedia of ordinary peculiarities'. "I found this in the library, thought it might help, but only got the weirdest facts." Haiden looked down, unsure whether to feel sad or frustrated for his lack of memory and knowledge.

"Hey, we can't know everything. Can we?" Tasgal said trying to make him feel better. "I'm sure i don't know any those facts from your book, read me some."

"You sure? They're pretty weird."

"Positive!" Tasgal encouraged.

"Alright." Haiden opened the book at random. "It says here... the male Lampry bird has a retractable penis, twice the size...of...his body." Haiden quickly shut the book and Tasgal immediately burst into laughter. Haiden let out an amused chuckle but his cheeks were hot from embarrassment.

"Creators, I wasn't expecting that." Tasgal said between fits of laughter.

"Well, I didn't got that far in the book."

"Come on! Read some more. I haven't laughed like this in a long time!"

"A-alright.' Haiden enjoyed the feeling he got when Tasgal laughed so he opened the book again, this time scanning for something even more outrageous. "Here!" he said tracing his finger under a line and read out loud. "As a sign of virility, the Water Mercy powerfully flatulates on their partner's head," Tasgal already started giggling trying to contain himself. "sometimes resulting into severe concussions due to the underwater shock." Tasgal all but lost it. His laugh was contagious, it spread to Haiden along with a sensation of warmth in his stomach. Time flew by quickly as they spent their time together reading the strangest facts and laughing their lungs out.

Today was a good day, Haiden found himself telling himself as he thought of his casual conversation with two new possible friends and now this moment with Tasgal. He wished he could do this all night. The stocky woman pulled the white drape and popped her head in and said.

"It's getting quite late, huns. Tasgal needs his rest if he wants to be released tomorrow. Off you go." she shooed Haiden making Tasgal groan in annoyance.

"Come on, Ria. Can't he stay a little longer?" he begged making his eyes as big as possible. Haiden's heart felt like it would explode any moment while looking into those summery blue eyes.

"No can do, mister. If you're not gone by the time I'm back I'm calling Master Uligarth." she warned.

"It's alright, Tasgal. I'll see you around." Haiden said grabbing book.

"Fine, go! Leave me alone in this white torture chamber!" he said dramatically, plopping on his bed. "See you around, Haiden." he quickly said with a smile. Haiden shook his head with a smile and took his leave.

He's such a child sometimes. he thought amused.

As he stepped outside of the infirmary, the chilly air crept under Haiden's dark green cloak. He quickly put up his heat cloak to withstand the winter cold, even though his time with Tasgal was enough to keep him warm throughout.

The night belonged to the blue sister as she stood proudly in the cloudless sky. The melancholic atmosphere it created almost seemed ghostly. The dark shadows were even darker and the blue dim light sent shivers down Haiden's spine as it brought up painful memories to the surface. Wanting to get to his room as fast as possible, he decided to take a shortcut through the castle, through the inner courtyard and then straight to the dorm instead of circling the whole castle. Once inside the castle, the main corridors were warmly lit by light stones on either side, banishing away the sister's deathly light. It gave Haiden a short lived sense of security, as soon as he reached the doorway to the courtyard, the blue light spilled in every corner. He saw the huge yellow tree as it reflected the blue light on its pale leaves, giving them an ethereal glow. It was as if it had its own light. Haiden pushed forward stepping inside the courtyard and walked toward it, standing halfway between him and the next exit.

As he approached the inner circle where the benches were laid around the tall tree. He carefully looked around him as a feeling of anticipation bloomed in the pit of his stomach. The hair on the back of his neck rose, feeling a pair of eyes pointed straight at him with an intense gaze that made him feel uneasy. He turned in circles a couple of times, trying to see if there was someone spying on him, when finally stopping to face the gray trunk of the tree. Black hair contrasted the light gray of the trunk. The figure quickly moved out of sight, behind the tree and Haiden followed. There was a familiarity to the figure that he briefly saw for mere seconds. He went around the trunk multiple times, only to pick up the same figure with black hair staying just out of sight. Haiden couldn't even hear the figure's footsteps as it kept avoiding Haiden. Tired and annoyed Haiden stopped.

"Show yourself, whoever you are!" he yelled. But the figure was still behind the trunk, only for its black hair and back to be visible. Something about his strong stance and form seemed so familiar. "Show yourself, now!" he urged the figure. "What are you a pervert?" he followed and still nothing. Only silence, He was certain it wasn't his imagination or the light playing with him. He clearly saw the figure of a man, which he chased around the tree and now stood silently behind the trunk. "This is your last warning!" Haide yelled and readied his Fios. Out of nowhere the air started to have a certain pressure to it and a distinct smell of something sweet. Too sweet. Haiden covered his nose and mouth with one hand and raised the other ready to defend himself. The smell was unbearable but he didn't lose focus on the figure. It balanced itself on one foot then the other as if it was uncertain of its actions when it finally stopped alerting Haiden. The pale blue light played menacingly on the back of the figure, there was something so familiar about it, yet Haiden couldn't point out what it was. His senses didn't yell danger, but uneasiness. There was something unnatural about it which he felt in its voice after it decided to speak.

"Free me." it said, in an icy whisper right in Haiden's ear. He turned around to see nothing behind him. He quickly turned again to the figure but it had disappeared. Haiden's blood ran cold and his heartbeat raced almost bursting out of his chest, but not because the figure was now gone, but because of the voice. He'd recognize that voice anywhere.