Page 15 of A Soul to Steal

“It’s obviously not, though.” As Aleron took them into a forest, Gideon yanked an abnormally vibrant leaf from a low-hanging branch. “Everything feels off.”

Even just walking was wrong. He’d been hoping for the huffing, the puffing, and the strain of movement. Other than climbing the near-vertical incline, everything had been as effortless as air, like he weighed nothing. Sometimes, it felt like they were gliding over water.

Gideon rubbed the pad of his thumb over the leaf, inspecting its weird, woolly texture. It felt wrong. Then he brought it to his nose, and the smell of vinegar and a collision of every leaf he’d ever scented bombarded him all at once.

“Nothing looks, feels, or smells right. It’s like he’s never been to Earth.”

“I asked Weldir about this as well,”Aleron stated, casting him a glance. His wing slipped over the side of Gideon’s hip, creating that much needed contact.“Weldir cannot smell or touch anything from Earth. Everything he has created was designed by memory – whether it was his own or from the minds of humans he delved into. Much of this is also influenced by our own memories.”

Ah, so that’s why everything looked... fuzzy or covered in a layer of fur. He still didn’t understand why everything had a vinegar smell to it, though.

Gideon sniffed his own arm. “I wonder if I smell wrong.”

“You do not smell like anything.”

“Really?” he asked, dropping the leaf to cover his mouth and tap at his cheek. “Maybe that’s because we can’t smell our own scent? If we influence our perception of the world, then that would make the most sense.”

Just at that moment, a sharp, thorny branch cut across his arm, and he hissed in a breath. He recoiled away from it before cupping his forearm. Blood welled, but faded almost instantly, as did the wound.

“I’m guessing sensation is another part of his design to trick us.” He wasn’t particularly pleased about that. “But that does leave me wondering what else I can feel.”

He knew he could feel emotions and their physical aspects within, could cry and have his face feel tingly with tears. What about tiredness, the feel of water, or perhaps even... pleasure?

His gaze drifted to the Duskwalker. With Aleron around, he refused to tug on his dick to find out if that last one was possible.

Does that mean if I drown or am crushed beneath something, I would be stuck? Would I heal only to suffer the same fate over and over again?That meant this paradise could potentially become a form of hell.

He shuddered at the thought.

Thankfully the demi-god in charge was benevolent.

“You said that only your kind and him could fully extinguish my soul. How is that possible if I’ll just heal?” Gideon would rather know what future he could potentially be faced with. He was also rather curious about this place.

It was helping to ease his painful pondering.

As much as he was attempting to hide it, he still struggled to adjust to all this. He forced his smiles, hoping they would eventually feel real – like he could force happiness and calm. He also thought it best that he didn’t let Aleron know he wasn’t coping. He didn’t want to have to talk about his sorrow and grief. Not just with him, but in general, hoping he’d eventually forget.

He had plenty of time – the rest of eternity – to heal from this. Hopefully one day, he would.

“The body you are looking upon is not your soul,”the Duskwalker answered.

He moved through the forest environment, which grew more intense with every step, with ease. He barrelled his way through shrubbery, whereas Gideon had to constantly pause and shove it away to make his way through. He often had to jog a few steps to catch back up when there was a break in density.

“What do you mean?” Gideon asked, shoving a branch away.

Aleron paused and turned to him. Balancing on three limbs, he reached out.

“This is just a husk, a projection. For me, I can eat this like it is flesh – I can even harm it.”

To give a demonstration, he grabbed his hair-dusted arm. With little understanding or care as to how Gideon may react, he sunk the claw of his thumb all the way into his skin and muscle until he’d buried it to the fleshy tip of his finger.

“Ow! Fuck, man!” he roared, yanking his arm away only for the Duskwalker to hold him tight. Then he drew his claw down, cutting a slice into his flesh. Gideon gripped his wrist, trying toease the pain that felt like it was scratching against hisbone. “Stop!”

Aleron let go. Since the wound was deeper than the thorn scratch, the pain and puncture took a few seconds longer to fade. No scar remained, as if the interaction had been nothing but a figment of his imagination.

Before the betrayal could truly settle in his chest, he gasped in surprise.

“But this.”Aleron shoved his clawed hand, covered in dark-grey skin and protruding knuckle bones, straight into his chest. He expected to feel pain, but there was no sensation as his body rippled like water.“If I was to damage any part of this, it would be permanent.”

---