Through the dense foliage, a group of foot soldiers under Farid's command emerged. They looked menacing with their pointy spears and sturdy armor, but their arrogance was tangible, reflecting their lack of awareness about the power they were about to face.
Reinhart took a deep breath as he raised his hands, focusing his energy on the soil beneath the soldiers' feet. Inherently understanding his intention, the Yolk Tree on his shoulder suddenly morphed into a tiny, sapling-like form and rapidly dug into the ground.
The ground underneath the soldiers erupted into a maze of roots that tangled around their feet, tripping them over. As they struggled, entwined in a forest of roots, Reinhart commanded the Yolk Tree to produce a sudden deluge of sticky sap, but it came out as a thick sauce that smelled like honey garlic.
The soldiers screamed and cursed as they attempted to free themselves from the sweet-smelling mess. The sauce acted as a glue, further restricting their movements. The once menacing group looked more like a comedy act now, slipping and sliding in confusion and panic.
Just when Farid's guards thought it couldn't get any worse, Reinhart directed his focus to the air above their heads, his palms facing upward. He channeled his Mana, creating a massive transparent horizontal wall above them, and slammed his hand down to the ground. The shield came crashing down
smashing onto the sticky, floundering guards, flattening them onto the ground. Their screams were muffled under the enormous shield, effectively incapacitating them.
Meanwhile, the Yolk Tree returned to its miniature humanoid form on Reinhart's shoulder. "Prrredt!" It fist-bumped Reinhart's cheek victoriously.
Stopping to catch his breath, Reinhart looked around at the chaos they had created. The shock from his first solo battle was quickly replaced by the thrill of victory, and he couldn't help but laugh. "We did it, ...That's right! I still need to think of a cool name for you!"
"Prrredt!"
"No, Yolk is boring, and that is what you are, not your name," Reinhart explained, and the little creature scrunched its face and then tapped a wooden finger on its tiny chin.
"Amazing! Fresh as the morning dew, and yet you used your Yolk like it was an extension of your own body!" Aldren laughed, clapping his hands. "I would expect nothing less from my number one student!"
"Am I not your only student?" Reinhart asked, but this only made Aldren laugh harder.
"That you are, but I am still impressed! And you seem to actually understand it!" Aldren laughed, and Reinhart shrugged.
"Its emotions, its intentions...I am not sure how to explain it, but it's like an unspoken connection. " Reinhart stated, rubbing the top of the Yolk Tree's head gently. It cooed under his touch, letting off a subtle warm radiance.
"Well, this is certainly one outcome I wasn't expecting but am not surprised by it," Aldren replied, watching as Reinhart interacted with the Yolk Tree.
"So, what are we going to do with these four? We can't just leave them here, right?" Reinhart asked as he was still racking his brain for a good name for the Yolk Tree.
Aldren scratched his chin thoughtfully, considering the question. "Something has been done to their minds. There is nothing in them but your face, and Queen Maze's, but the rest of their minds are blank."
"You can do that with Mana?!" Reinhart asked in shock, and Aldren nodded his head slowly.
"Yes, but it is not something that can be tuned to take specific memories. Erasers specialize in wiping people's minds and then replacing their memories with something. Normally they can only make you temporarily forget something, but the person doing this took their time, wiping everything constantly. Each time their magic is used to make you forget, you lose something even when you get them back. If they do it enough, everything can be lost."
Reinhart looked to the guards and felt sorry for them. Each was only following an order. The problem was in the person that they decided to pledge their allegiance to. They are the ones that did this.
"What do we do with them then?" Reinhart asked, and Aldren sighed.
"We will take them with us, and I will have one of our Erasers work on them to remove the previous order. After that we will give them some new memories, and then place them in Halmore," Aldren said, but Reinhart perked up at the mention of the town's name.
"You mean the town without magic? I had almost forgotten about the place, and I meant to ask you about it. Do you know why they have no Mana when the rest of the world does?" Reinhart asked, and Aldren nodded.
"Yes, we took their Mana at their request," Aldren explained, making Reinhart step back in shock.
"They asked you to take it?" Reinhart asked in confusion, and Aldren nodded.
"Yes. Mana has caused more problems than help because people have no idea what Mana is or how to use it. I don't think I need to tell you what it was like when the Mana arrived. Entire villages were blown away or burned to the ground across the globe. The best thing that we can do is take the Mana from them for now. Maybe in the future, we can give it back, but for now, this is better," Aldren explained, and Reinhart remembered what Maze had said about her father trying to help people affected by the Mana.
"I guess that makes sense. Everyone has magic, but no understanding of how to control that could be very dangerous," Reinhart said slowly, but then he thought about Farid, and how the magic seemed to twist him. "What about other people? What if someone with magic goes to Halmore? How will the people defend themselves without magic?"
"Two Dralkon that specialize in mimicry magic live in town as humans, watching and protecting it. We assumed that other humans might try to take advantage of them after observing other humans for the first three weeks. The village of Halmore had been all but destroyed when we arrived, but we repaired the place and gave them an option. Let us take their Mana, or let us teach them how to use it. In the end, some did leave to keep their Mana, but the majority wanted their old lives back, so we are protecting them. You could say that we are giving them the choice that we were never given," Aldren explained with a tinge of bitterness in his voice. His eyes were far away as if reliving a haunting past.
Reinhart let the information sink in, understanding a bit more about the gravity of the issue at hand. His respect for Aldren grew as he learned about the Dralkons' intentions and help for the humans. "It sounds like a difficult choice they had to make but it's good they have you guys watching out for them."
Aldren gave a small chuckle, "It's the least we could do. After everything our home has been through."
Reinhart then remembered about the guards, "Okay so, if we are taking them with us, how do we go about it?"
"We will bind them with some mana chains and I will wipe your images from their minds. From their perspective, they won't remember a thing about this encounter or being under Farid's control." Aldren instructed, as he moved closer to the guards and began to weave intricate patterns in the air, creating mana chains around the soldiers' wrists.
"Huh? You can use that magic? I meant to ask how people are using magics like that since they don't seem very elemental. I thought that each person could only use one type of magic with their Mana, right?" Reinhart asked as Aldren began to bind the men.
"I have no such limits, but you are not completely wrong. Erasers are Water Mages since water cleanses. The greater understanding you have of elements, their uses, and how they react with others, the more diverse your magic can become. Magic is only limited by knowledge, imagination, and your Mana," Aldren explained, succinctly weaving the mana chains around the unconscious guards. "At least, that's the case for Dralkons, we don't have the same elemental restrictions humans have. For us, all elements and mana are intertwined."
Reinhart merely nodded, taking in the information as he watched Aldren work. He then noticed a shiver from the Yolk Tree as it watched the scene, fuzzy eyes wide and worried.
"Don't worry, little guy, they're not being hurt. They're just going to get a nice nap, and when they wake up they get a fresh start. Okay?" Reinhart reassured, gently rubbing the Yolk Tree's back. Its glow dimmed marginally, seemingly comforted by his words.
"Have you chosen a name yet?" Aldren asked, but Reinhart shook his head.
"No, I can't seem to come up with anything fitting. It's more difficult than I thought," Reinhart admitted, causing Aldren to chuckle.
"Naming can be a struggle, especially for something so unique. Take your time, you'll come up with the perfect name eventually," Aldren assured him, his focus returning to the guards and their bindings.
As Reinhart was left to his thoughts, he glanced down at the Yolk Tree currently napping on his shoulder, its glow soft and soothing. It seemed content and trusting despite their peculiar situation. Shaking his head at the strange turn his life had taken, Reinhart couldn't help but mutter, "What a soup-rise, indeed!"
It may have been the adrenaline wearing off or the reliefs of the day sinking in, either way, Reinhart found himself laughing softly at the pun. One thing was for sure: despite the dangers and oddities, life in Fallenia could never be labeled as 'mundane'.