Chapter 2: Soul Mage "Finn! Yo! Finn!" Who’s calling my name...? The voice started out distant, but became louder and more incessant, till Finn snapped his eyes open. "Finn!" "Huh!" Finn jerked in his seat, eyes open widely as he stared at the source of the loud voice. The person was seated right across him in what looked to be a carriage. A young man with tousled blond hair, fairly good-looking face and an averagely built frame. He had the confident air of someone who was good with words and knew it. "Rick." The name left Finn’s lips instinctively and naturally without thinking. "You effing weasel. I thought you said nothing happened between you and Violet last night?" The guy named Rick smiled knowingly at Finn. "Look at you sleeping midday huh? So you finally got some action. Some of that—" he proceeded to do a weird twisting and jerking movement with his waist as he grinned. Finn frowned, "No. I left right after I escorted her home..." he replied naturally yet again. What is going on? Why do I know this? It felt normal to him. There was no sense of disconnect. No feeling of ’this is not my body’. Just a minor bout of disorientation as his mind sorted through this version of his memories. The fight that’d just happened had not faded from his memory, but it had become distant and unreal, like it had been just a dream... one of those weird dreams that occurred during a short mid-day nap that you forgot after a minute. Finn absolutely felt like this had always been his reality. If he could describe exactly how he was feeling right now, all he’d say was it was like he’d peeked into some alternate life. Some other version of himself in another reality. "Hey man, are you okay?" Rick asked with concern on his face. "You seem a little dazed... More dazed than usual at least." "Ah!"Rick suddenly snapped his fingers in realization. "Is it that dizziness again? Just go get yourself checked by a healer mage, man. You have the money anyway." As Rick spoke, the required memories came to the fore of Finn’s mind, providing context instantly. It was seamless, and there wasn’t a time he was left wondering what his friend meant. But besides that, unless he thought specifically about it, no other memory came up. "I’m fine." Finn assured his friend. "Hmm..." Rick nodded, then shrugged, not fully convinced. "Well we’ve arrived for a while now, princess. You’re the one who said you wanted to meet my guy..." The Grade 2 Initiate Revenant. Finn remembered again. They were here to meet a soul mage. A Revenant, to be specific — an unofficially sanctioned soul mage. And that was why they were being secretive about it. Besides the fact that Revenants were not sanctioned by the ruling houses, there was also Finn’s father. If he ever finds out about this... "Then let’s not keep him waiting," Finn stepped out of the carriage, but not before putting up a hoodie. Rick followed right after, tapping the body of the carriage twice to alert the coachman to move. The thwack of reins sounded behind them as their coachman spurred the horses down the road immediately. Rick walked to the front and led the way. "Try and keep close, princess," he chuckled, adjusting his hoodie to cover his face more, "you don’t wanna stray from me where we’re going," he patted Finn’s shoulder. They had stopped right at the outskirts of the red light district, choosing to walk the rest of the way despite the fact it was mid-day and the place wasn’t even close to its nightly bustling atmosphere. They weaved their way through the district, passing through nooks and corners, buildings and alleys, with their heads down, not paying attention to the courtesans who called out to them even in broad daylight, till they finally reached their destination – A small nondescript building slotted in a lone corner. "You know, maybe we’re being too hasty with this, Finn..." Rick glanced at his friend. "Two rich family scions willingly bringing themselves to such a shady place...? This looks like where you walk into and don’t come out alive..." Rick began to rethink his decision as he observed the deserted surroundings. But Finn stepped forward unhesitatingly. "You’re the one who told me about the guy. You’re the one who brought me here," he stared Rick dead in the eyes. "I’m not going back without what I came for." Finn was surprised at his own words. The him from Earth wouldn’t be this daring. He could be strong-headed at times, yes. But not to the point where he risked his own life... But considering his current situation... Finn knew exactly why he needed to see this Revenant. It was something that had become vital and urgent immediately the memory surfaced in his mind. Rick stared into Finn’s eyes, searching for any sign of hesitation, but all he saw in there was a firm will. Finn was determined to meet with this Soul mage, despite the fact that he was a Revenant. Why? "Finn..." Rick suddenly stilled, watching his friend’s face with an ominous realization, "you’ve already assimilated a soul mass..." It all made sense now. The dizziness. The out-of-character behaviour for the past few days. The eagerness Finn had shown when he mentioned he might know a real soul mage... Finn had already assimilated a chaotic soul mass! Rick’s expression morphed into one of utter terror after Finn remained silent, confirming his claim. He immediately grabbed Finn by his shirt, jerking him close, whispering with a surprising menacing tilt to his voice, "Are. You. Fucking. Mad, Finn!" 𝘧𝓇𝑒𝑒𝑤ℯ𝑏𝓃𝘰𝑣ℯ𝘭.𝘤ℴ𝘮 Finn closed his eyes in what seemed to be surrender, letting out a sigh while his friend scolded him harshly. It was true though. He had been stupid... The previous him... The current Finn would never have made the same decision. Back in the carriage, when Rick had mentioned the guy they were supposed to meet, the required memory had slotted right into the fore of his mind, giving him the context required. It was exactly then he knew the severity of his situation and why he needed to see a real soul mage. The previous Finn had dabbled in soul magic — A path that was not looked upon in a good light, especially in this part of the world where Arcanists — normal mages — reigned supreme. Soul mages were seen as parasites. They could not use mana, and therefore could not use magic. They were practically like every other average person who failed to show any talent for magic, fated to live out their lives doing normal jobs. But there was a vital difference that separated a soul mage from the average person. The ability to sense, cleanse and manipulate Chaotic Soul Masses. Whenever Arcanists died, their mana-saturated souls devolved into a chaotic mass that corroded living creatures, and the very fabric of the world itself. And for some reason only a very small percentage of the population could sense vividly, and interact with these soul masses. Soul mages... Or more officially — Ossuarists. Only certified, official soul mages were called Ossuarists... But unfortunately, Finn was no official soul mage...