Distant Shadows, Un-aged Souls

Rekka looked up; the thick trees surrounding them clearly hid them from the giant’s gaze. Feeling relieved, Rekka let out her breathe that she had been holding.

“Where’s Ajara?” someone asked.

Looking around at the group, it was obvious that she wasn’t there but with the giant still looking for them they would have wait, or she’ll have to wait. The giant finally gave up and left the area.  Using what light they had, since the light barely made it through the thick canopy above them, the group set out for Ajara. Using the map, she was some ways off and there seems to be someone else there with her. Keeping look out, it wasn’t long at all until Rekka noticed something strange with the tree’s shadows. They seem to be following them, well the shadows seem to move and merge with the next tree’s shadows. This unsettled Rekka, shadows, normal ones, don’t do that. Then images of the night on the island flashed into her mind.

“Isaac there is something up with the shadows.”

He didn’t seem to see what she was talking about, but as he watched he seem to notice along with everyone else. But it was dismissed as “This whole place is magical.” And they continued on. Rekka watched the shadows; they seem to be keeping from their sight but still able to watch them. “Watch?” Rekka thought and clearly she saw figures in the shadows. There were so many and they were all different, woman, men, children, and teenagers all of them just starring, watching them.  Rekka grip onto Jessica and tried not to point.

“There are people in the shadows.” She said in a low voice. Jessica looked, but didn’t seem to see it.

“They’re really there, watching us.” Rekka protested loudly. The group stopped and looking at the shadows, slow they began to see it.

  The shadow people seemed to be talking but no sound came out. Rekka was reminded of Sir when Billy used speak with dead spell. She looked at Isaac wondering if he knew what was going on. The shadows began to move closer.

“Hello, what do you want?” Jessica called, but the shadows people didn’t respond.

Isaac seemed to be contemplating, when Jessica seemed to have an idea.

“What about speak with dead spell?” she asked Isaac.

“No, you need a corpse for that spell to work.”

“I really do think that it would work, but if you don’t…” she trailed off and thought. After a moment she began looking for a stick, strange that in a forest a simple stick was lacking in the area.

“What are you looking for?” Rekka asked.

“A stick to write something on the ground.” She replied.

Rekka pulled out her sliver dagger and handed it to Jessica. She took it and began to write on the ground.

“Hello.” She wrote. The shadows covered the writing and receded. “Hello.” Was still written there; Jessica looked at it, and noticed it was different from how she wrote it.

“What do you need?”

“Help. To escape.”

“Who are you?” she wrote

“We have the followers of Erythnul.”

Rekka almost wanted to walk away right then and there. But she remembered that this was Ajara’s homeland. If what she believes was what everyone else believed then that would mean that these people believed that they were under Erythnul’s power because of the mark. Then could it mean that they…

Rekka whispered to Jessica, “Ask them if they know Billy Hill.”

Jessica did so, and the shadows answered, “He was among us, but he was freed.”

“Soultrapped. They are the souls of the soultrapped aren’t they?” she said.

Isaac had a hard time thinking that way, he more believed them to be trapped yes, but maybe another version of the soultrapped and earlier one.  It didn’t matter to Rekka, they were stuck here, and they really believed that they were under Erythnul’s command.

Raaein’s ears perked up and without warning he charged into the forest. The Shadows moved out of his way as he charged through them. Rekka watched him go. “Maybe he’s going to Ajara.”

Isaac in the meantime seemed to come to a decision and he casted a spell. The shadows reacted to it, some ran for it and other stayed but was unhappy with what had happened. He moved his lips slightly, as he concentrated on something. Then he spoke out loud.

  He had Rebuked them, and was now able to talk to them via a telepathic connection.  He basically told them that we couldn’t at this moment be able to free them. But if one of them was willing to stay connected to him as soon as we found a way we would use the connection to tell them. He reassured them that he would not command them to do anything and that they would be free to do as they please. They didn’t even have to come with him. But then Isaac did something strange, he quoted the Soul’s trapped chant. 

After he was finished he acted as if nothing happened. Rekka worried about this. But watched as a shadow stepped forward said a few things to Isaac then hid in Isaac’s shadow. Jessica handed back the sliver dagger, and the sores on her hand began to heal. With that done the group was about to check the map for Ajara when she and Raaein appeared from thin air. Rekka and Jessica were about to make fun of her when they saw the blood on her hands, but the look on her face stopped them. She was soaked in tears; steams of tears stains covered her dirty face.

Feeling a twinge of sympathy Rekka reached into her bag and pulled out her water skin. It was kept full, although she didn’t need it for drinking. Rekka stood sideways to Ajara avoiding looking at her, as she offered the water skin silently.  It was just too familiar to her.  That’s what she must have looked like when she was…Rekka didn’t want to go there.

“Use this to clean…I have cloth...if you need it.” She said, choosing her words carefully. Ajara accepted it wordlessly. No one else said anything while she washed her face and hands. 

Then to change the subject, Isaac began to explain what happened to the group just then. The name of the shadow came up and Ajara shocked, wide eyed, and repeated the name. The shadow reclaimed its form and Ajara blurted out “Father!”