Lake of Souls

Once the world was gray. It was this way because the beasts who inhabited it knew of neither life nor death. Their world was static and unchanging as were they. One day the gods happened upon this planet and decided to change it. With this change came life and death. Warmth and cold. Color in an otherwise lifeless land. The gods did not believe that the former inhabitants of this land were now worthy of it. So they created new beings for this new world. To give these beings the power they would need to remove the former inhabitants the gods bestowed souls upon their new creations. There were five gods and five types of souls.

The soul of earth was given command of the land so that new life could be born into the world. The soul of fire was given command to burn away the rot so that new growth may take place. The soul of wind was given command of the air so as to help stop or feed all of this new birth. The soul of water was given command to help nourish all new life or to erode it away if needed. The final soul was the soul of life itself. Without it all that the other souls tried to accomplish would come to nothing.

But at the end of this process there was one entity who could not hold any of the souls and thus the gods simply left it and then they left the planet pleased with their work. This entity was like the beasts who came before him. Static and unchanging never needing nor wanting. After many years a sixth god came to the planet and he saw the one who had not been given a soul. He took a form that would not scare this entity and he came before him, "Tell me. Why is it that you stand here and do nothing? Were my brothers unable to give you a soul?"

The entity nodded if only slightly, "Yes. The gods told me that my body could not house any of their souls and they left me. I have stayed in this one spot since then for I do not need nor want."

The god nodded thoughtfully, "Whenever my brothers find a planet to change they always leave behind a lake teeming with fresh souls should they ever be needed. You should go there and claim one for yourself. Even if it isn't a perfect match no one deserves to be without a soul."

With that the god touched the entity on the chest and bestowed it with a sense of longing. For the first time in its life it needed something. It wanted something. With that the god left and the entity began its journey. It had been standing doing nothing for much longer than it thought that it had. All of the others had gone on to slay the former beasts of the land and establish their own lands. There were now five kingdoms that filled the land. One belonging to each of the various souls.

The first I encountered was the kingdom of fire. Their land was hot and humid with many steaming lakes and volcanoes. They were a land of strength for above all else might was what slayed the enemies of the land. As I walked I realized that my stamina did not fade, I did not need to stop for food or water, and that my body did not need sleep. I also found that I did not feel pain. I fell at one point into a lake that was boiling and I felt nothing. All I felt within me was the desire to find the lake of souls. I noticed early into my journey that many people of the land went out of their way to avoid me. As if there was something about me they could sense was off. That I was not like them.

I searched high and low within the kingdom of fire but to no avail. My search went on for so long that I eventually drew the attention of the King of the land himself. He had been the first to be given the soul of fire and thus he led this land. He sent five knights out to ask me what I was doing. I told them what I searched for and who I was. After this they attacked me calling me unclean and defiled for I had not been touched by the original five gods. At this point I came to discover I did not even suffer from the malady of death. They ran me through with their blades and burned my body. I slept and I dreamed of the lake. I could see it in my mind. Water shimmering aquamarine blue and clear teeming with souls. When I awoke the knights were gone and I was still alive. I picked myself up and continued my journey.

As I continued searching the land eventually ten knights came back for me. This time I was more prepared. I had managed to acquire a blade from a town I had walked through. When I walked to the blacksmith's everyone ran away from me so I simply took a blade and left. I tried to fight the knights and killed a couple before the rest killed me. I dreamt of the lake again. When I woke up the bodies of the dead knights were still around me. So I stripped them off their armor and found I was able to wear it. I also took one of their blades for they were better than my own as well as a shield. Even more knights came for me the next time but I killed them all. I found that when I killed them it made me stronger. Somehow I was taking their souls and it was making my body stronger even though I couldn't actually use the soul.

Instead of sending any more knights to fight me the King himself decided to find me. When he did he attacked without word or hesitation. I "died" to him several times but each time after waking we would fight again. Each time I died I dreamt of the lake and it spurred me on. Eventually I wore him down and killed him. His soul was of great nourishment multiplying my strength several times over though I still could not harness fire. His soul was also connected to the land and I now knew all that lay in his kingdom. I knew the lake was not here and so I left.

From the land of fire I went to the land of earth. Mighty trees stood tall across the land and jagged mountains covered the surface that was not held by trees. The people of this land lived in the trees and they too shied away from me. Many of them averted their eyes as if I was something too horrifying to look upon. Knowing what I did now I called out to all that would listen, "Bring me your King. I wish to strike him down." It did not take long for the King of earth to come to me. He had known of my presence since I had walked into his land. For he felt the footsteps of all that walked on his earth.

We fought and even though I was stronger now I still died a few times. I dreamt and it gave me resolve. Soon he laid dead at my feet and my strength was again bolstered. But still all I felt was my desire for the lake. His knowledge of the land came to me and thus I left because the lake was not here. My next destination was the land of air where all beings of the sky lived.

When I came to the land of air I saw birds, dragons, and many other beasts of the air. When they saw me they fled from me as if I were a visage of death to them. I cared not for they could not tell me about the lake instead I whispered into the wind, "Bring me your King. That I may kill him." In a violent gust came their King wrapped in shears of wind. I did not fall to him, not once. Soon his soul was mine. This time though not only did my strength grow but my body did as well. At monstrous proportions did my limbs stretch and contort upon themselves. But I did not feel pain and thus this was of no consequence to me. The lake was not here either and so I left still in search of it.

I came to the land of water, a place that in hindsight I should have come to first. This time there was nothing to greet me except for the King. He had heard of how I had killed the others and decided to confront me head on. He managed to kill me many times over. Often by drowning me but just like the others eventually he laid dead at my feet as well. My body became more fluid with taking in his soul. My limbs while still twisted and contorted now seemed to simply hang by my sides till I applied pressure. And then they came crashing down like a wave. I no longer carried a blade, shield, nor armor for these things were no longer needed. My body was my weapon. The lake was not here either. I was starting to think that I may have been lied to but there was still one more place to go.

The land of life was exactly as it sounded. A land where all forms of life flourished. I was greeted by the people of the land when I arrived. They were the only ones who did not turn from me. Instead they offered sympathy for me and offered to heal me if they could. I knew there was nothing they could do to help me and I told them as such. They humbly apologized for their failures in being unable to help me. Before I could ask for their King he came to me. He offered me his condolences for he knew that the lake was not here. Then he knelt down before me and told me, "If you still feel the need to kill me then do as you must. I offer myself to you for the protection of my land. Even if I wanted to, I know that I could not best you in combat." I did not speak back and I killed him. His people wept not out of sadness but joy at how benevolent their King was. His soul did nothing but give me a feeling I did not understand. It was a sensation that left me no longer wanting to kill. I had not cared before but now the thought of killing left me feeling something else I did not understand. I did not understand it but that did not matter. The lake was not here either.

I sat down and pondered where the lake could be. It was not in any of the five lands. I knew this for a fact. As I allowed my mind to flow over all the land I realized there was one place I could not see. A small piece of land that sat in the middle of all the other lands. With this knowledge in hand I left the land of life to find this place. As I did I realized through my connection to all the lands that this world was now dying. But it did not matter for my quest was almost at an end.

I arrived at this mysterious place and found a dome that was inscribed with the five symbols of each of the lands. I stood before a great door that would not open upon pushing on it even with my incredible strength. I reached a hand up and touched the symbol of fire. I felt something leave my body and the symbol lit up. My body was now weaker and I lost my knowledge of the land of fire but I did not care for this was the answer. I repeated the process with the other four until they were all lit. With this I was back to being what I used to be before I had absorbed all the souls. My knowledge of all the lands was gone as was my strength except for the few knights I had killed. The doors now opened for me letting me inside.

I walked inside the dome now to find that it was far larger inside than I would have thought. More importantly the lake was here. As I had always seen it in my dreams. Beautiful aquamarine blue and perfectly clear. I could see all the souls teeming underneath the surface. But the other thing I saw was myself and I suddenly understood why people had been recoiling away from me. My body showed all the ways I had died. I had never once healed between deaths. My bones were broken and shattered. My skin was water bloated and shredded but also showed burn marks. I was truly a monster in appearance but it did not matter for I had finally found the lake. I reached my hand into the water to collect a soul but something else happened.

The water began to turn black and all the souls started to fade away. The darkness stretched farther and farther into the water till it was filled with inky blackness. I tried to remove my hand but I couldn't no matter how hard I struggled. Then the water started running up my arm into my body, absorbing itself into me. I grew and grew becoming bloated and yet never bursting. This went on until the lake was dry. My body stayed a giant bloated thing for only a moment more and then I began to shrink back down to my original size. When it was done my body was healed and stronger than before. Stronger than when I had the five Kings inside of me.

I began to experience needs and wants for the first time in my life. Emotions flooded into me like a tsunami washing over me and leaving me almost drowned in their complexity and depth. I laughed, cried, and wept for all that happened. This continued on for days before I finally brought myself back under control. Once I did I realized that my knowledge of the land was back. I was the new King of this land. All of it. Now to go make all of my people like me. Strong and so full of emotion that they would burst. There would no longer be five gods. Only one and it would be me. The King of darkness.

This piece came to me in a flash of inspiration that I honestly could write an entire series on. I have now started working on expanding this short story into a full fledged book or at least novella. Below will be linked the prologue that expands upon the lore and story. But for now I hope you all enjoyed this. If you did then please leave a like, subscribe, and feel free to leave a tip. Till next time.

Prologue