Milo sat at the base of a giant tree. His prosthetic was transformed into a basic fidget toy. Eva was standing over him, her eyes full of concern and wariness. Milo had learned to ignore her devious looks. It seemed she was still suspicious of the gracious gifts that this benevolent tree had given the cohort. The only other person who joined her suspicions was Sunny. He especially took Eva's side when he climbed high into the tree one day. Taking forever to return.
"Milo, I have something to tell you"
"What is it? If you want some fruits I can grab them for you"
"No it's just... you're under a mind hex, in fact all of us are, except for Sunny and I"
"Mind hex? You're talking nonsense, there's no way we're under a mind hex, the Soul Tree would never allow something like that to happen. It'll protect us, and give us delicious fruits forever"
Eva's expression turned from weary to downright depressed. Milo could never understand what was going on in that head of hers... however she was a close friend, maybe he should ask more about this mind hex...?
What was Milo thinking about, ah that's right, he and Eva were good friends, so he should go find a particularly delicious fruit for her to eat. Maybe then she'll realize there's no reason to leave this paradise.
'The tastiest fruit for the best friend in two worlds!'
Shaking his head, Milo allowed his prosthetic to change back to its original form. With a heave, he began to climb the tree. He knew that Sunny had become strangely distant after disappearing for hours, so maybe Milo shouldn't climb so high.
After an hour of climbing, Milo stopped at a bulbous fruit, plucking it from the branch it was resting on. He took a huge bite out of it. The succulent juice filling his mouth and quenching his parched throat.
"This is the good stuff" Milo murmured with a half full mouth. Plucking one more, he put it into his rucksack. Holding his own fruit in his mouth, he began his descent. Occasionally stopping to take another bite out of his fruit. By the time he reached the ground once again, he had already finished his own fruit. The Spell whispered into his ear
[Your soul has advanced]
Milo did not bother to check his runes for how many soul shards he had gained. He already knew the number well. He had delegated himself to only eating one soul shard per day. He had sixty eight when they first arrived here, it had only been a week. So he had seventy five now.
Milo walked over to Eva who was talking to Sunny. Noticing that Milo had arrived, Sunny stood up and left, leaving Milo rather confused.
"Does Sunny not like me anymore...? Well, anyway, Eva, here is your fruit"
---
Eva stared at the red fruit with disdain. However, after staying here for a month without action, it was the only food available. With a reluctant sigh, she bit into the fruit.
[Your soul branches out]
She had to get out of here. She had been discussing with Sunny how in the world they could get out. Sunny talked to Nephis who was only able to manage short bursts of energy, and Nephis said to built a boat, however the boat would not be able to fit everyone. Fortunately for Eva, one of the attributes she gained with her Aspect allowed her to enhance any charm memory. It also happened that Milo had a charm that allowed the wielder to traverse through water very easily. The best bet was for Eva to convince Milo to give her the Pearl of the Deep, then use that to swim to a nearby platform.
"Hey Milo, do you mind letting me borrow that charm memory of yours?"
"Why do you need it? You aren't planning to swim away from the Soul Tree right? If you are... I wouldn't know what to do"
Milo suddenly had unshed tears in his eyes, and Eva hated it. Hated how her newly found friends were being manipulated by this forsaken tree. She would save Milo, and hopefully Sunny could save Nephis and Cassie.
"No... nothing like that, I was thinking of finding a very potent fertilizer so the Soul Tree can produce the juiciest fruit ever. You can come along too, you'll get the first bite of the fruit"
Milo's eyes lit up with joy. Eva could practically feel the happiness spill out from his very being.
"I knew you would come around! What are waiting for? Lets go!"
Milo planted a hand on Eva's shoulder.
[You have received a Memory: Pearl of the Deep]
Eva led Milo to the edge of the island. With a smile, the both entered the water. Milo ignored the warnings screaming in the back of his head to return to the Soul Tree. Even if the tree didn't like it, he knew that Eva meant well. She was his best friend, she wouldn't do anything to hurt him.
---
Sunny watched as Milo and Eva disappeared into the night, it seemed Eva had succeeded in her plan. Now all that was left was to get Nephis and Cassie off the island. The boat was complete, now it was just one last push. With a pained expression, he brought down the pommel of the Midnight Shard down on his ring finger. The thrall of the Soul Tree seemed to be particularly more powerful after Eva and Milo left.
---
Eva continued to swim. Her speed was astonishing, and she barely felt fatigued in the water. She swam until something suddenly dragged her and Milo underwater. Forcing her eyes open, she was enthralled by the most beautiful thing she had ever seen. Two sets of beautiful green eyes with slits down the middle, a smile that would make even the War God falter. Milo also looked enthralled by it, even more so than the Soul Tree had enthralled him.
The being gently extended towards Eva. In a panic, Eva summoned her dagger and attempted to stab into the mix of scale and flesh the being had. But it was of no avail. The dagger split down the middle, and the Spell whispered into her ear.
[Your Memory has been destroyed]
The being... no siren, this was clearly a siren of some kind. The siren looked at Eva with a mix of disappointment and amusement. Like the attempt to hurt her was laughable at best and adorable at worst.
Eva gritted her teeth, she looked over at Milo. Unlike Eva, he did not have the ability to breathe underwater because he didn't have the charm. However, Milo was still breathing just fine. In fact, his breath was steady and even.
'Another mind attack? Seriously this is getting ridiculous'
The siren gently grasped the Pearl of the Deep in it's hand. Its eyes had a small hint of recognition at the sight of the pearl.
The siren then grabbed Eva and Milo, dragging them to gods know where. Milo was still seemingly enthralled, his mind was likely being soothed. However Eva, both fortunately and unfortunately, was immune to mind attacks. She could barely see through the gaps of the Siren's finger, however she saw the notable land marks pass by within seconds. Such as the statue, the cliff that Nephis and Cassie had resided on, and even the cliff where Milo and Eva had fought the Abyssal Serpent.
Eva shivered at the passing by landmarks, one question ran through her mind.
'Just where the hell is this thing taking us?'