Shattered Soul

Meanwhile, Spirit lay in the snow, black blood staining her pelt. Her head was swimming in a murky confusion, unable to concentrate due to the poison running rampant in her body. She coughed once more, blood splattering onto the pure, white snow. The blood was black.

Spirit's poison resistance was slowly being pushed back, a slow, painful process that felt like thousands of knives were cutting into her.

Suddenly, the poison weakened significantly and Spirit began to purify and drive out the poison.

The innate element of poison was extremely rare and powerful, being able to attack multiple targets efficiently and quickly, however, the only downfall was that it would weaken greatly if the user or target left the area.

Spirit lay in the blood-soaked clearing all night, battling against the darkness that threatened to consume her, only stirring when the sun's rays shone through the forest canopy. Spirit had escaped the clutches of death.

The red light of the sunrise illuminated the forest, uncovering traces of the battle left behind by the cover of night.

Spirit opened her eyes, slowly climbing to her paws, swaying. Her pelt was soaked in a sticky mixture of red and black blood.

Taking a few moments to get her bearings, Spirit's murky, unfocused eyes jolted awake. She paced anxiously, frantically recalling the prior events. "Mother," She thought, "I have to find her."

She sprinted off into the forest, nose pointed downwards and occasionally running against a tree or bush to rub off the dried blood.

Spirit skidded to a halt in front of a deep pit, examining the dried blood on the snow that had most likely dripped off from injuries.

She took a deep breath, scenting the air. The harsh scent of blood was hard to miss, but Spirit was only trying to find out who the blood belonged to.

Her eyes widened, speculating what might have happened and thinking the worst. As Spirit paced around, she trampled over numerous bright purple plants. Spirit paused, running over to the plants. "Violet Sparks," She whispered after examining them.

A Violet Spark was an extremely common plant. They grew wherever there was enough energy, generally where a soul stone was used but died off quickly due to lack of energy.

Most places had enough energy to grow these plants, but the Forest of Dreams was one of those few places that didn't, unless, of course, a soul stone was used.

The fact that one was here, where there was clearly not enough energy, was either a poor attempt at gardening, or a sign that some sort of magic was used here.

Everything clicked for Spirit. Snow, her mother, was unable to win against so many opponents, choosing to flee, but fell and injured herself due to some petty adventurers setting traps in the forest. This allowed Rain to either kill Snow, or capture her.

Spirit peered down into the pit, loathing the adventurers who did such a despicable thing. Spirit hissed, knowing that the only reason an adventurer would set a trap in the Forest of Dreams was to catch a Silver Innota.

Spirit was young, but not ignorant. She knew, that in the nearby human city of Greyrose, Adventurers liked to catch, buy, or sell Silver Innota in order to help with their quests. She had no idea why any Silver Innota would want to be enslaved by a group of adventurers, but she, as well as many other Silver Innota, had labeled them traitors.

She sighed, holding back tears and hoping, wishing that Snow didn't die. Being caught by adventurers would be better, as long as she was still alive. Spirit blinked, tears falling down and splattering onto the cold, hard ground.

Spirit turned away, planning to search for more clues until a familiar, blue sparkle caught her eye. Spirit gasped, peering into the pit. Her heart pounded, wishing it was what she thought it was. Spirit raced towards a large branch, and with much difficulty, lowered it into the pit.

She climbed down easily due to her curved, cat-like claws and unearthed the mysterious object. It was a crystal heart pendant, attached to a thin, silver chain, and next to it, was a mysterious black dragon emblem.

Spirit ignored the dragon pendant, staring at the necklace. Complex emotions swirled in the depths of her eyes. The sapphire-blue necklace had belonged to Snow, her mother, and had never left her side.

Spirit stood there for an indefinite amount of time, her head bowed and tears spilling out of her eyes like a waterfall. Eventually, she raised her head, peering at the strange black dragon pendant. Spirit whimpered, immediately recognizing the symbol. Spirit shook her head harshly, determination filling her eyes. "Shattered Soul," she vowed, "I'll make you pay."