Post by ParamountKeymaster on May 16, 2018 22:20:12 GMT -5
The silence was suffocating...
Paul didn't know what to say. Kelsey didn't have the energy to speak. They simply walked back to the hotel in silence, trudging through the lobby, into the elevator, and through the halls of Kelsey's floor with nary a sound. They barely even had the nerve to look each other in the eye, instead casting solemn glances at their feet or the horizon. Despite the uncomfortable hush, their arms remained linked throughout the entire trip.
Soon enough, Kelsey slid her key into her door and shuffled her way into her room, her arm limply detaching from Paul's. He stood there in the open doorway while she came to a halt near the foot of her bed, both of them slightly turned away from each other and staring at the floor. The silence persisted.
...........................
"So, uh..." Paul eventually choked up, voice croaky, eyes unfocused, tail twitching. "Hopefully you'll... sleep well tonight..."
"Yeah..." Kelsey numbly muttered back. "Hopefully... Kenny's alright, huh?"
"Y-Yeah..." Paul rubbed his arm, too abashed to look directly at her, too ashamed to take in the frustration evident on her face. All he could think to do was take a deep breath and turn around. "Well, I... guess I'll see ya tomorrow... at the Plaza... for the thing..."
He pursed his lips. He wanted so badly to take it all back. To start over. Anything to make Kelsey's experience tonight less miserable. But he couldn't. "I'm sorry."
Kelsey looked up at Paul's back, her expression softening considerably as the guilt in Paul's voice struck her. Just as he started to step out into the hall, Kelsey let out the breath she had been holding, rushed over to him and grabbed the door before it could close behind him. "Paul?"
He froze and stiffly turned back around, his yellow eyes finally meeting her blue.
For a moment, Kelsey simply stared up at him, taken aback, looking equally guilty. Then she rubbed her neck and gently continued, "What happened tonight... wasn't your fault. We both just got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. So... don't beat yourself up, okay? Am I frustrated with how the night turned out? Yes, but I'm not frustrated with you. If I came across that way at all, I'm sorry."
The corner of Paul's mouth twitched slightly, as if trying and failing to crack a smile. He then shrugged back and her and sighed, "Can't say I blame you. I just wish there was something I could do to make up for it."
"If it makes you feel any better, before all that BS started, I really did have fun."
"Good... Er, uh... I-I'm glad."
Seeing that her apology wasn't doing much to cheer him up, Kelsey offered Paul a little grin. "Who knows? Maybe once we're done with all this angel and demon stuff, we can... you know... try again? Find a nice place to go, just you and me?"
That finally got a bashful smile out of him. "Yeah. Maybe."
"Hm. I'd offer a hug, but I'm still kinda gross."
"Ah, don't worry about it. I'm a mechanic. I'm used to being dirty," Paul chuckled as he wrapped an arm around Kelsey himself. "Glad I got to hang out with you at least a little."
"Me too." Kelsey closed her eyes and returned the one-armed embrace, gently nuzzling against Paul's chest, feeling a great deal warmer and more comfortable than she had all night.
The two separated after a good five seconds, sooner than Kelsey would've liked, but not without good reason on Paul's part. "Thanks, Kels. I really should go check on Kenny..."
"Heh... Yeah, you go do that. No problem." Kelsey nodded and waved him off as he started making his way down the hall. "Night, Paul."
"Good night, Kelsey," Paul softly responded, smiling at her over his shoulder, hands in his pockets, voice smooth as marble, eyes full of an intense warmth that stopped her heart for a split second. Then he walked off, shyly rubbing his neck as he disappeared around a corner.
Kelsey stood in her open doorway for much longer than necessary, staring down the hall as if awaiting something else, jaw ever so slightly slacked. It took her a moment to snap out of the stupor she found herself in, and when she did, she was hardly even aware of the first words she croaked out. "Did he just call me Kels?"
Blinking in utter bafflement and shaking off whatever strange feeling had befallen her, Kelsey retreated into her room and locked the door behind her, more than ready to wash tonight away...
Soon enough, Kelsey stepped out of the bathroom clean and refreshed, grateful to be rid of the slime, monster blood and ripped-up dress that had previously covered her person. She breathed in the cool air and ran her fingers through her blow-dried curls, then she shuffled over to her bed and flopped down atop it, lazily rolling over onto her back.
From there, Kelsey stared at the ceiling, mulling over what the heck had just happened. It definitely felt great to have found a friend in Paul, but everything that had occurred since the actual date portion of their date (Was it really a date, though? Yeah, sure, why not...) had left her feeling so angry that she hadn't really stopped to think what any of them really meant. And when she did, it made her realize just how little she actually knew. A crazed gunman and their crew were after a crazed bird man. Why? She had no idea. Who was more worthy of her trust? At that given moment, she really didn't care. There were fox people and dragon people and giant effing monsters, all of which seemed to be from the same universe as William, Percy and the demon in Percy's head, none of which she had the slightest idea how to approach.
What was all of this building up to?
Whatever it was, Kelsey was almost completely convinced she was a part of it whether she liked it or not.
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. How was it that fighting the demons back home was so much simpler than this mess? It almost made her pine for that battle. But now that she was here, what was she supposed to do? What was there to fight for? How was she supposed to-?
"Heyo!"
"GAH!!!"
Kelsey sat straight up, eyes wide, gasping for air, refusing to look directly at the smug-faced boy sitting next to her. Once she caught her breath, she let out a loud, heavily delayed f-bomb, then sharply turned to scowl at her astral doppelganger. "Can I get ONE MOMENT OF PEACE around here?!"
"Well, you're bonded to ME, so... no," Tri answered honestly, arms folded behind his head as he lounged against the bed frame.
To that, Kelsey just let out an exasperated sigh and slumped against the frame next to him. "I don't understand any of this, Tri. I mean, Percy and William seem like decent enough guys, and I'm even willing to give Imago a shot... but the angels, the monster, all these magical people... I don't get what any of them want. All I know is that they seem to be gathering here for something."
Tri shrugged. "Hey, if I'm being honest, I didn't figure you'd be able to wrap your head around the full story."
"Yeah, well f*** you too."
"What matters right now is that these guys know you mean business." Tri smirked and pumped a fist at her. "Who cares what any of these dickweeds want? If any of 'em try to mess with ya, just kick their a**. That’s probably the best help your new buddies could ask for."
Kelsey shot a deadpan stare at the bed. "Do any of them actually need my help?"
"Yes."
She turned her stare on Tri out of the corner of her eye. "You're sure about that."
"Completely positive."
"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I only barely managed to ward off that Protostar Beast thing, and even then, I wasn't enough to take it down. If I had a hard enough time against that thing, how well do you expect me to hold up against whatever lunacy these guys have planned? Hell, me beating Gin back home was pretty much dumb luck." Kelsey curled up and stared at the bed again. "You give me a lot of fancy powers, Tri, but that doesn't make me a great fighter."
Tri's grin widened. "You know there's a simple solution to that."
Kelsey groaned. "Consuming souls will not make me a better fighter."
"How do you know?"
"HOW DO YOU KNOW?!"
Tri folded his arms. "You've tapped into your current potential about as much as you can. If you wanna get stronger, you gotta start making some sacrifices."
"Yeah, in probably the most literal sense!" Kelsey scowled at him. "I told you I'm not gonna start sucking up random souls and damning innocent people to purgatory! The only reason I took Gin's vessel's soul is because it was stuck in a useless body after we beat him!"
"Who said you had to feed off randos?" Tri asked, tilting his head cheekily. "There's plenty of self-entitled fothermuckers on this island who’d be better off dead than alive. Might as well put them to good use, right? If anything, the adversaries we have lined up here would make you even stronger than some Average Joe's soul."
Kelsey took a deep breath and looked away again, still wanting to argue about the morality of taking someone's soul despite understanding too well what he was trying to get across.
"And actually, it's funny you bring up Gin, because there's something I've been meaning to tell you ever since you beat him."
Kelsey's expression remained flat, as did her tone. Despite this, she knew that Tri knew that she was genuinely curious about this new topic he was broaching. "Yeah, what?"
"Consuming that kid's soul gave you a new power!"
"Hm. I was under the impression that leveling up wasn't that instantaneous." She looked up at the demon with heavy eyes. "So what's this new powe-?!"
The moment she asked that, Tri slammed his palm against her forehead...
---------------------------
Everything was dark. Strange echoes filled the void. The air seemed to go from sweltering to freezing and back again every second.
Nothing new for Kelsey.
She folded her arms and looked around the infinite blackness, just barely making out the writhing shapes of tentacles surrounding her on almost all sides. "Okay, so... the in-between. What're we doing here?"
"̡I͟t's t̶ime I͘ taugh́t͞ ̸yo͢u ͞h̢ow͏ to͟ a҉c͠c̶es̸s̴ ҉y͠òur ̛s̛oul̵sc̀ap͞e,̡" Tri's voice responded from every angle.
"My... 'soulscape'?"
"Ye̛s͘.҉ Y͘o͘u̢r̨ ҉i҉ǹner se̛lf. ̴T͠h͜e͝ ̧a҉s҉tr̸a̢ĺ ̶r̵ealm̀ w͞i͠th͏ìn̢ ̀you͜, ̵pr͏o͜j̸ected by͘ y̷ou̵r͏ ̵ve͠r͘y̛ s̴oul̵, c͘raf̵t̸e̴d̷ ͏b͢y a̛nd͜ ̕re̴f̶lèct͟iv̶e̷ ͝of ̀y͢our̷ ͏pe͟rsona͜lit̨y̸, ̛y͝our͜ ͏thoug̵ht́s,̨ ̛y̕ou͟r ̢de̢s͜i͟r͏ęs̴,͟ e̶ver҉yth̴ing ͜yo̸u ̨t͡rùl̶y a̕re҉."̢
"Is that my new power?"
"́Hel͜l ̸ǹo҉! ҉An̛ýo̶ne can̵ ac̷ce͜s̵s̨ ͏th̢e̶įr ̷soul̢scape ̕if t͞h̕ey̨ ̸try ̕h͘a͟r͠d ènougḩ! Wha̴t͡ awa͡it͡s ̡y͏o͟u ̸i̸n th͞e̶r̷e, ͝how̧ev̴èr͏,̷ ͘is ̕s̛om͞ethi̶ng ̴t͘ru̕l͢y u͞n̸i͏qu҉e.̵.̧.̴"
Kelsey let out a protracted sigh. "Alright, if you say so. How do I get to my soulscape?"
"C͢l͢os͜e̶ ̵your ̵e̛ỳe͝s͠."
Unable to resist first rolling her eyes at that cliché request, Kelsey did as she was told, mentally separating herself from the void with her own self-imposed darkness. "Now what?"
She felt one of Tri's tentacles gently rest upon her chest...
"K͞al̸th.́"
Immediately, Kelsey's eyes shot open as she felt a strange sensation deep within. Not a painful one. Not even an unsettling one. A feeling wholly unlike anything she had ever felt before. It was as if Tri had reached down into the center of her being, grabbing hold of her very essence while simultaneously embracing her from every side, warmly, protectively... almost tenderly. It stole the air from her lungs, but it did not suffocate her. It shook her to her core, but it also rooted her to it. It held her tightly, firmly, but it made her feel more liberated than she ever had before.
"K̕e͝èp͞ ̸the͞m̛ ͟c͝l͟o͠sed.̸"
Kelsey stood there shuddering and panting for a moment, only barely registering Tri's order. Then, with a hard cringe, she squeezed her eyes shut and wrapped her arms around her chest. That strange feeling had yet to subdue. "What was that?!"
"Your ̡s͟oul n̨amé.͏"
"Soul name. Sure. So I have a soul name now?!"
"Ev̢er̷y̷t̵hìng wit̷h͝ ͏a҉ s͘oul̀ ̛h̢a̛s ͡a͝ ̷s͞oul̶ ͢nam̢e. A ͢n̵am͟e̢ un̶i̷q̴u͝e to that s̷o̴u̷l̕.̡ ̷A͟ name t̸h̡a̧t̡ i͘ş ̡th̴at҉ ҉soul̨.̸ ̷I͢ţ's ev̕ery̛thi҉ng̀ ͟yoú a̵r͢e͜ s̛u҉mm̸ed u͠p in̵ a s͠ouǹd ̨tha̕t n̡o̡ o͏n͡e ͜els͘e͝ ̨h͜as̨ e̵ve͏r hea̸rd͞ ͠b̨e͢for̴e͞. I͟ lea͠r͜ne̶d ̡t̵h̶is̢ na͟me ҉t̛h̶e͢ ̴mom͜eņt͡ ̕we ́fo͞r͡gęd̶ o͏ur͟ ̴pact̸,͡ ͜j҉ús͏t ̕a̴ş y̛ou l͜ea̸rnȩd ̸mine."
"What're you talking about?! I've only ever known you by your true name!"
"My t͏r͘ưe͡ ͜nam͏e̕ ͘is̶ my͟ ̸s̴o҉úl̀ ̧n̶ame͜. ͏As̡ a̵n ar̴c͠ḩdemo̵n,͢ I ha͢v̷e ̕ov̕er̕c͠ǫme ̧th͏e n͘e̕ed͠ to ̧s̶af̡e̴g̢ưarḑ m̨y̵ ̵ņa̕m̸e͘. A͝ p͘ęrs҉on̛'́s͡ ͝s̷o̶ưļ ͠na͡m̛è ͢ìs̶ t́h͜e ͡key͟ to t̨h͢e̵i̴ŗ ęnt͟ire being.̀ ͢I̵f ͞aņy ͏les̶s͝e͝r crèa҉tu҉r̡e̸ were ͟gi͠v͞èn t͟h͟e͡ key ͘to ̴my̷ ͢so͠ul,̵ ͏they̵ w͢ou̷ld f̷įnd̵ o̢nl̷y̢ ma҉dne͟ss͏ ͜and͞ u̸nt҉h͠in̕ka͠b͢le͝ ho͜r̕r͜o̕r..͡.̴ w͞h̷ereas yo͟ùr͝ s͡oul ̨n̕a̧me ͞i̴ņ t͟h̵e ̶w҉r̡on͏g ̕hàn̢ds ̕co̷u̷ld̴ ͞l͢e̵ave̡ y̢o͠ur̵ ̴very e̸s͝sence vuln͜e͏rable͠.͞"́
With her eyes still closed, Kelsey warily placed a hand on her chest, finding Tri's tentacle still gently caressing her, wrapping her fingers around the appendage as if desperate for any kind of comfort. Her soul name... It seemed like such a simple concept, but to know that this little sound Tri had just uttered could expose everything she was inside for anyone to see... it made her stomach churn just to imagine how much power this name had. This name that, moments before, she didn't even know she had, yet now felt like everything to her.
"͝I̵ ̀s҉u҉p̵p͡ose ҉it go̸es̶ ҉with̨o͏ut ̶s̢aying thát no͡w ̵that ̶y͞óu͠ know̕ ̵y͠our͝ so̕ul n̛ame, ̶y̧ou c̷a̵n̨ ne̢v͟e͜ŗ sp̡ea̢k óf it t̡o̢ anyóne҉. ͠T͡he power͜ ̢th̛e͟y cou͞ld͢ ͞w̕i҉e̴ld óve͘r̷ ̢you̡ i̧f͝ ̡it̕ was͘ e͝v͢er͏ ͡d̷i͏scov̀er̢e̛d ẃo̧u͟ļḑ be c̵a̧ta͜s̛t̵r̴o̧ph̷ic̢."͏
"R-Right..." Kelsey nodded, clearly understanding the gravity of the situation, hands firmly pressing Tri's tentacle to her chest like she was trying to keep her soul from spilling out.
"̷Aǹd̢ n͡o͠w t̛ha̢t ҉y̛ơu͟ ̶h̡a̴v͡e ̢th̷e k͟ey̷... u͟s͝e ͢i̵t.̢ O͜p̨e͝n̨ t̛ḩe do͢o̧ŕ t̨o̸ ͠yoưr͝ sóul̨s͡ca̷p̀e͏.̵"
Kelsey nodded again, knowing full well what Tri was asking her to do. She took a deep breath and searched within herself for her core, ready to take a look, confident that she had the power to do so, curious what she would discover inside.
"Kalth..."
She felt the name pull her in... drawing her towards her center...
She followed it... She let the warmth consume her from the inside out...
The world lit up behind her eyelids.
After waiting a few seconds, Kelsey hesitantly cracked her eyes open.
When she did, she found herself standing on a beach, quickly prompting her to take a look around. White sand stretched on forever to her left and right. Ahead, a vast, blue sea with small, gently crashing waves. Behind her was what looked to be a jungle, so densely wooded that it seemed pitch black beyond its first row of trees. The skies above were clouded over; while they weren't a drab, stormy grey, they were definitely a very eerie silver. Beyond the soothing flow of the water, all was quiet. No ships, no bird song, not another living thing to be seen.
"Uh... Wow... So..." Kelsey awkwardly rubbed her arm as she took in the vast landscape. "This is my soul, huh? It's... not what I was expecting, I'll give ya that."
She turned to her side just as Tri appeared next to her in his usual, humanoid astral projection form. "So why exactly did you need to bring me here to teach me about this new power? You did say it was unrelated to tapping into the soulscape, right?"
"Come with me," Tri slyly instructed with a wave of his finger. "There's someone I want you to meet."
As Tri took off flying down the beachfront, Kelsey just stood there and did a double-take. There was someone else in here? How? This soulscape was hers alone, wasn't it? Was this person some sort of subconscious projection? An inner demon of sorts? Why else would there be someone to meet inside her own-?
Oh...
It took her longer than she would've liked to admit, but Kelsey eventually realized who Tri was referring to.
Paul didn't know what to say. Kelsey didn't have the energy to speak. They simply walked back to the hotel in silence, trudging through the lobby, into the elevator, and through the halls of Kelsey's floor with nary a sound. They barely even had the nerve to look each other in the eye, instead casting solemn glances at their feet or the horizon. Despite the uncomfortable hush, their arms remained linked throughout the entire trip.
Soon enough, Kelsey slid her key into her door and shuffled her way into her room, her arm limply detaching from Paul's. He stood there in the open doorway while she came to a halt near the foot of her bed, both of them slightly turned away from each other and staring at the floor. The silence persisted.
...........................
"So, uh..." Paul eventually choked up, voice croaky, eyes unfocused, tail twitching. "Hopefully you'll... sleep well tonight..."
"Yeah..." Kelsey numbly muttered back. "Hopefully... Kenny's alright, huh?"
"Y-Yeah..." Paul rubbed his arm, too abashed to look directly at her, too ashamed to take in the frustration evident on her face. All he could think to do was take a deep breath and turn around. "Well, I... guess I'll see ya tomorrow... at the Plaza... for the thing..."
He pursed his lips. He wanted so badly to take it all back. To start over. Anything to make Kelsey's experience tonight less miserable. But he couldn't. "I'm sorry."
Kelsey looked up at Paul's back, her expression softening considerably as the guilt in Paul's voice struck her. Just as he started to step out into the hall, Kelsey let out the breath she had been holding, rushed over to him and grabbed the door before it could close behind him. "Paul?"
He froze and stiffly turned back around, his yellow eyes finally meeting her blue.
For a moment, Kelsey simply stared up at him, taken aback, looking equally guilty. Then she rubbed her neck and gently continued, "What happened tonight... wasn't your fault. We both just got caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. So... don't beat yourself up, okay? Am I frustrated with how the night turned out? Yes, but I'm not frustrated with you. If I came across that way at all, I'm sorry."
The corner of Paul's mouth twitched slightly, as if trying and failing to crack a smile. He then shrugged back and her and sighed, "Can't say I blame you. I just wish there was something I could do to make up for it."
"If it makes you feel any better, before all that BS started, I really did have fun."
"Good... Er, uh... I-I'm glad."
Seeing that her apology wasn't doing much to cheer him up, Kelsey offered Paul a little grin. "Who knows? Maybe once we're done with all this angel and demon stuff, we can... you know... try again? Find a nice place to go, just you and me?"
That finally got a bashful smile out of him. "Yeah. Maybe."
"Hm. I'd offer a hug, but I'm still kinda gross."
"Ah, don't worry about it. I'm a mechanic. I'm used to being dirty," Paul chuckled as he wrapped an arm around Kelsey himself. "Glad I got to hang out with you at least a little."
"Me too." Kelsey closed her eyes and returned the one-armed embrace, gently nuzzling against Paul's chest, feeling a great deal warmer and more comfortable than she had all night.
The two separated after a good five seconds, sooner than Kelsey would've liked, but not without good reason on Paul's part. "Thanks, Kels. I really should go check on Kenny..."
"Heh... Yeah, you go do that. No problem." Kelsey nodded and waved him off as he started making his way down the hall. "Night, Paul."
"Good night, Kelsey," Paul softly responded, smiling at her over his shoulder, hands in his pockets, voice smooth as marble, eyes full of an intense warmth that stopped her heart for a split second. Then he walked off, shyly rubbing his neck as he disappeared around a corner.
Kelsey stood in her open doorway for much longer than necessary, staring down the hall as if awaiting something else, jaw ever so slightly slacked. It took her a moment to snap out of the stupor she found herself in, and when she did, she was hardly even aware of the first words she croaked out. "Did he just call me Kels?"
Blinking in utter bafflement and shaking off whatever strange feeling had befallen her, Kelsey retreated into her room and locked the door behind her, more than ready to wash tonight away...
Soon enough, Kelsey stepped out of the bathroom clean and refreshed, grateful to be rid of the slime, monster blood and ripped-up dress that had previously covered her person. She breathed in the cool air and ran her fingers through her blow-dried curls, then she shuffled over to her bed and flopped down atop it, lazily rolling over onto her back.
From there, Kelsey stared at the ceiling, mulling over what the heck had just happened. It definitely felt great to have found a friend in Paul, but everything that had occurred since the actual date portion of their date (Was it really a date, though? Yeah, sure, why not...) had left her feeling so angry that she hadn't really stopped to think what any of them really meant. And when she did, it made her realize just how little she actually knew. A crazed gunman and their crew were after a crazed bird man. Why? She had no idea. Who was more worthy of her trust? At that given moment, she really didn't care. There were fox people and dragon people and giant effing monsters, all of which seemed to be from the same universe as William, Percy and the demon in Percy's head, none of which she had the slightest idea how to approach.
What was all of this building up to?
Whatever it was, Kelsey was almost completely convinced she was a part of it whether she liked it or not.
She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. How was it that fighting the demons back home was so much simpler than this mess? It almost made her pine for that battle. But now that she was here, what was she supposed to do? What was there to fight for? How was she supposed to-?
"Heyo!"
"GAH!!!"
Kelsey sat straight up, eyes wide, gasping for air, refusing to look directly at the smug-faced boy sitting next to her. Once she caught her breath, she let out a loud, heavily delayed f-bomb, then sharply turned to scowl at her astral doppelganger. "Can I get ONE MOMENT OF PEACE around here?!"
"Well, you're bonded to ME, so... no," Tri answered honestly, arms folded behind his head as he lounged against the bed frame.
To that, Kelsey just let out an exasperated sigh and slumped against the frame next to him. "I don't understand any of this, Tri. I mean, Percy and William seem like decent enough guys, and I'm even willing to give Imago a shot... but the angels, the monster, all these magical people... I don't get what any of them want. All I know is that they seem to be gathering here for something."
Tri shrugged. "Hey, if I'm being honest, I didn't figure you'd be able to wrap your head around the full story."
"Yeah, well f*** you too."
"What matters right now is that these guys know you mean business." Tri smirked and pumped a fist at her. "Who cares what any of these dickweeds want? If any of 'em try to mess with ya, just kick their a**. That’s probably the best help your new buddies could ask for."
Kelsey shot a deadpan stare at the bed. "Do any of them actually need my help?"
"Yes."
She turned her stare on Tri out of the corner of her eye. "You're sure about that."
"Completely positive."
"Well, in case you haven't noticed, I only barely managed to ward off that Protostar Beast thing, and even then, I wasn't enough to take it down. If I had a hard enough time against that thing, how well do you expect me to hold up against whatever lunacy these guys have planned? Hell, me beating Gin back home was pretty much dumb luck." Kelsey curled up and stared at the bed again. "You give me a lot of fancy powers, Tri, but that doesn't make me a great fighter."
Tri's grin widened. "You know there's a simple solution to that."
Kelsey groaned. "Consuming souls will not make me a better fighter."
"How do you know?"
"HOW DO YOU KNOW?!"
Tri folded his arms. "You've tapped into your current potential about as much as you can. If you wanna get stronger, you gotta start making some sacrifices."
"Yeah, in probably the most literal sense!" Kelsey scowled at him. "I told you I'm not gonna start sucking up random souls and damning innocent people to purgatory! The only reason I took Gin's vessel's soul is because it was stuck in a useless body after we beat him!"
"Who said you had to feed off randos?" Tri asked, tilting his head cheekily. "There's plenty of self-entitled fothermuckers on this island who’d be better off dead than alive. Might as well put them to good use, right? If anything, the adversaries we have lined up here would make you even stronger than some Average Joe's soul."
Kelsey took a deep breath and looked away again, still wanting to argue about the morality of taking someone's soul despite understanding too well what he was trying to get across.
"And actually, it's funny you bring up Gin, because there's something I've been meaning to tell you ever since you beat him."
Kelsey's expression remained flat, as did her tone. Despite this, she knew that Tri knew that she was genuinely curious about this new topic he was broaching. "Yeah, what?"
"Consuming that kid's soul gave you a new power!"
"Hm. I was under the impression that leveling up wasn't that instantaneous." She looked up at the demon with heavy eyes. "So what's this new powe-?!"
The moment she asked that, Tri slammed his palm against her forehead...
---------------------------
Everything was dark. Strange echoes filled the void. The air seemed to go from sweltering to freezing and back again every second.
Nothing new for Kelsey.
She folded her arms and looked around the infinite blackness, just barely making out the writhing shapes of tentacles surrounding her on almost all sides. "Okay, so... the in-between. What're we doing here?"
"̡I͟t's t̶ime I͘ taugh́t͞ ̸yo͢u ͞h̢ow͏ to͟ a҉c͠c̶es̸s̴ ҉y͠òur ̛s̛oul̵sc̀ap͞e,̡" Tri's voice responded from every angle.
"My... 'soulscape'?"
"Ye̛s͘.҉ Y͘o͘u̢r̨ ҉i҉ǹner se̛lf. ̴T͠h͜e͝ ̧a҉s҉tr̸a̢ĺ ̶r̵ealm̀ w͞i͠th͏ìn̢ ̀you͜, ̵pr͏o͜j̸ected by͘ y̷ou̵r͏ ̵ve͠r͘y̛ s̴oul̵, c͘raf̵t̸e̴d̷ ͏b͢y a̛nd͜ ̕re̴f̶lèct͟iv̶e̷ ͝of ̀y͢our̷ ͏pe͟rsona͜lit̨y̸, ̛y͝our͜ ͏thoug̵ht́s,̨ ̛y̕ou͟r ̢de̢s͜i͟r͏ęs̴,͟ e̶ver҉yth̴ing ͜yo̸u ̨t͡rùl̶y a̕re҉."̢
"Is that my new power?"
"́Hel͜l ̸ǹo҉! ҉An̛ýo̶ne can̵ ac̷ce͜s̵s̨ ͏th̢e̶įr ̷soul̢scape ̕if t͞h̕ey̨ ̸try ̕h͘a͟r͠d ènougḩ! Wha̴t͡ awa͡it͡s ̡y͏o͟u ̸i̸n th͞e̶r̷e, ͝how̧ev̴èr͏,̷ ͘is ̕s̛om͞ethi̶ng ̴t͘ru̕l͢y u͞n̸i͏qu҉e.̵.̧.̴"
Kelsey let out a protracted sigh. "Alright, if you say so. How do I get to my soulscape?"
"C͢l͢os͜e̶ ̵your ̵e̛ỳe͝s͠."
Unable to resist first rolling her eyes at that cliché request, Kelsey did as she was told, mentally separating herself from the void with her own self-imposed darkness. "Now what?"
She felt one of Tri's tentacles gently rest upon her chest...
"K͞al̸th.́"
Immediately, Kelsey's eyes shot open as she felt a strange sensation deep within. Not a painful one. Not even an unsettling one. A feeling wholly unlike anything she had ever felt before. It was as if Tri had reached down into the center of her being, grabbing hold of her very essence while simultaneously embracing her from every side, warmly, protectively... almost tenderly. It stole the air from her lungs, but it did not suffocate her. It shook her to her core, but it also rooted her to it. It held her tightly, firmly, but it made her feel more liberated than she ever had before.
"K̕e͝èp͞ ̸the͞m̛ ͟c͝l͟o͠sed.̸"
Kelsey stood there shuddering and panting for a moment, only barely registering Tri's order. Then, with a hard cringe, she squeezed her eyes shut and wrapped her arms around her chest. That strange feeling had yet to subdue. "What was that?!"
"Your ̡s͟oul n̨amé.͏"
"Soul name. Sure. So I have a soul name now?!"
"Ev̢er̷y̷t̵hìng wit̷h͝ ͏a҉ s͘oul̀ ̛h̢a̛s ͡a͝ ̷s͞oul̶ ͢nam̢e. A ͢n̵am͟e̢ un̶i̷q̴u͝e to that s̷o̴u̷l̕.̡ ̷A͟ name t̸h̡a̧t̡ i͘ş ̡th̴at҉ ҉soul̨.̸ ̷I͢ţ's ev̕ery̛thi҉ng̀ ͟yoú a̵r͢e͜ s̛u҉mm̸ed u͠p in̵ a s͠ouǹd ̨tha̕t n̡o̡ o͏n͡e ͜els͘e͝ ̨h͜as̨ e̵ve͏r hea̸rd͞ ͠b̨e͢for̴e͞. I͟ lea͠r͜ne̶d ̡t̵h̶is̢ na͟me ҉t̛h̶e͢ ̴mom͜eņt͡ ̕we ́fo͞r͡gęd̶ o͏ur͟ ̴pact̸,͡ ͜j҉ús͏t ̕a̴ş y̛ou l͜ea̸rnȩd ̸mine."
"What're you talking about?! I've only ever known you by your true name!"
"My t͏r͘ưe͡ ͜nam͏e̕ ͘is̶ my͟ ̸s̴o҉úl̀ ̧n̶ame͜. ͏As̡ a̵n ar̴c͠ḩdemo̵n,͢ I ha͢v̷e ̕ov̕er̕c͠ǫme ̧th͏e n͘e̕ed͠ to ̧s̶af̡e̴g̢ưarḑ m̨y̵ ̵ņa̕m̸e͘. A͝ p͘ęrs҉on̛'́s͡ ͝s̷o̶ưļ ͠na͡m̛è ͢ìs̶ t́h͜e ͡key͟ to t̨h͢e̵i̴ŗ ęnt͟ire being.̀ ͢I̵f ͞aņy ͏les̶s͝e͝r crèa҉tu҉r̡e̸ were ͟gi͠v͞èn t͟h͟e͡ key ͘to ̴my̷ ͢so͠ul,̵ ͏they̵ w͢ou̷ld f̷įnd̵ o̢nl̷y̢ ma҉dne͟ss͏ ͜and͞ u̸nt҉h͠in̕ka͠b͢le͝ ho͜r̕r͜o̕r..͡.̴ w͞h̷ereas yo͟ùr͝ s͡oul ̨n̕a̧me ͞i̴ņ t͟h̵e ̶w҉r̡on͏g ̕hàn̢ds ̕co̷u̷ld̴ ͞l͢e̵ave̡ y̢o͠ur̵ ̴very e̸s͝sence vuln͜e͏rable͠.͞"́
With her eyes still closed, Kelsey warily placed a hand on her chest, finding Tri's tentacle still gently caressing her, wrapping her fingers around the appendage as if desperate for any kind of comfort. Her soul name... It seemed like such a simple concept, but to know that this little sound Tri had just uttered could expose everything she was inside for anyone to see... it made her stomach churn just to imagine how much power this name had. This name that, moments before, she didn't even know she had, yet now felt like everything to her.
"͝I̵ ̀s҉u҉p̵p͡ose ҉it go̸es̶ ҉with̨o͏ut ̶s̢aying thát no͡w ̵that ̶y͞óu͠ know̕ ̵y͠our͝ so̕ul n̛ame, ̶y̧ou c̷a̵n̨ ne̢v͟e͜ŗ sp̡ea̢k óf it t̡o̢ anyóne҉. ͠T͡he power͜ ̢th̛e͟y cou͞ld͢ ͞w̕i҉e̴ld óve͘r̷ ̢you̡ i̧f͝ ̡it̕ was͘ e͝v͢er͏ ͡d̷i͏scov̀er̢e̛d ẃo̧u͟ļḑ be c̵a̧ta͜s̛t̵r̴o̧ph̷ic̢."͏
"R-Right..." Kelsey nodded, clearly understanding the gravity of the situation, hands firmly pressing Tri's tentacle to her chest like she was trying to keep her soul from spilling out.
"̷Aǹd̢ n͡o͠w t̛ha̢t ҉y̛ơu͟ ̶h̡a̴v͡e ̢th̷e k͟ey̷... u͟s͝e ͢i̵t.̢ O͜p̨e͝n̨ t̛ḩe do͢o̧ŕ t̨o̸ ͠yoưr͝ sóul̨s͡ca̷p̀e͏.̵"
Kelsey nodded again, knowing full well what Tri was asking her to do. She took a deep breath and searched within herself for her core, ready to take a look, confident that she had the power to do so, curious what she would discover inside.
"Kalth..."
She felt the name pull her in... drawing her towards her center...
She followed it... She let the warmth consume her from the inside out...
The world lit up behind her eyelids.
After waiting a few seconds, Kelsey hesitantly cracked her eyes open.
When she did, she found herself standing on a beach, quickly prompting her to take a look around. White sand stretched on forever to her left and right. Ahead, a vast, blue sea with small, gently crashing waves. Behind her was what looked to be a jungle, so densely wooded that it seemed pitch black beyond its first row of trees. The skies above were clouded over; while they weren't a drab, stormy grey, they were definitely a very eerie silver. Beyond the soothing flow of the water, all was quiet. No ships, no bird song, not another living thing to be seen.
"Uh... Wow... So..." Kelsey awkwardly rubbed her arm as she took in the vast landscape. "This is my soul, huh? It's... not what I was expecting, I'll give ya that."
She turned to her side just as Tri appeared next to her in his usual, humanoid astral projection form. "So why exactly did you need to bring me here to teach me about this new power? You did say it was unrelated to tapping into the soulscape, right?"
"Come with me," Tri slyly instructed with a wave of his finger. "There's someone I want you to meet."
As Tri took off flying down the beachfront, Kelsey just stood there and did a double-take. There was someone else in here? How? This soulscape was hers alone, wasn't it? Was this person some sort of subconscious projection? An inner demon of sorts? Why else would there be someone to meet inside her own-?
Oh...
It took her longer than she would've liked to admit, but Kelsey eventually realized who Tri was referring to.
