Date: Unspecified Time: Unspecified Location: Myriad Realms, Lil. Red Storm realm, Seed World, Living Section It took Dredre less than a minute to memorize the visualization method, but she practiced it in mere seconds. That was just unbelievable.
This wasn't some simple energy breathing exercise or circulation method—it was a method designed to help her recreate the exact state of mind and body she'd been in when she drove away the Breath of Erosion plaguing Redfall's soul.
Wyatt watched her with a mix of awe and pride. He had crafted the method himself, using what he'd recorded back then with his primordial soul pupils, but even he hadn't expected her to master it so quickly.
"What do you mean? Weren't you able to revive the dead before?" Wyatt asked, feigning ignorance, though his expression betrayed nothing. He knew exactly what Dredre was hinting at, but he wasn't about to confirm her suspicions. After all, the current Dredre was far more cunning—she might even lie to coax a confession out of him.
"Come on, Wyatt. Stop playing," Dredre said, narrowing her pink eyes as she stared him down. Her gaze was steady, probing, but Wyatt didn't flinch. When he didn't break, she finally revealed, "I know what you did."
"I've done a lot of things. What specifically are you talking about?" Wyatt asked with a mock squint, his tone the perfect blend of innocence and deflection.
"Really?" Dredre asked, her pink pupils locking with his in a silent stand-off. Her expression hardened, her lips pursed as if daring him to keep up the act. Finally, she broke the tension with a sly smile and asked, "Are you sure you don't want to know why I can truly revive the dead now?"
Wyatt's eyebrow twitched, a subtle sign of his curiosity piquing. But he quickly masked it, replying with a smirk, "We both know you can revive the dead already, so stop trying to test me with that."
For a moment, Dredre's intense gaze softened, but Wyatt could tell she was testing the waters. He was stunned to see her aiming directly at his weakness: his insatiable curiosity. She wasn't pulling punches and seemed perfectly willing to play dirty.
But tonight wasn't her night. Wyatt knew her better than she realized, and he could tell she was more eager to share her progress with him than he was curious about the mechanics of her newfound ability.
There was still so much of the old Dredre in her—the cute, bubbly being who couldn't wait to share her joy with her closest friends and family. Sure, she could lie now, and she wasn't afraid to express anger. But at her core, she was still inherently good. Her race wasn't wired for deceit or selfishness, no matter how far she had come. Wyatt smiled to himself, realizing that just because she could lie didn't mean she would.
"Argh! Fine, you win, but I'll get you next time," Dredre huffed, crossing her tiny arms in mock defiance. Then, with a deep breath, she launched into an explanation, her excitement bubbling over. "So, I was able to hear the sound of the river of souls because, when I tried to revive that fake dead person, somehow a connection formed between me and the river of souls. I have no idea how, but it did. And now, thanks to your visualization method, I can open or close that connection at will. It's like a key to the doorway to the river of souls inside me."
She paused, her pink pupils gleaming with admiration. "Wyatt, you're amazing! I can't believe you came up with something so incredible. I can't thank you enough. Now I'm not only able to save the forest but also the creatures in it too—"
Her words tumbled out so quickly that she veered off-topic, but Wyatt, grinning, gently steered her back. "Yes, yes, that's great. But how exactly are you able to revive the dead?"
"That? Oh, I can just pick souls out of the river of souls and bring them back into the living world, ," Dredre said with a flourish. Her tiny hands suddenly cradled a shimmering white orb, three times her size.
Wyatt's eyes widened. "That's a soul…" he murmured, his gaze narrowing as he noticed the dark tendrils coiling around it. "And it's tainted by the Breath of Erosion," he added, concern etched into his features.
But Dredre seemed unbothered, holding the tainted soul as if it were a harmless bubble. In fact, wherever the Breath of Erosion touched her, golden dust emerged, forcing the tendrils to retreat as though they were afraid of her.
"Who is that?" Wyatt asked, frowning. "Whose soul did you just pull out of the cycle of reincarnation?"
"I have no idea. Let me ask," Dredre replied, turning her attention back to the orb. "What's your name?" she asked softly. The soul quivered in her hands, vibrating as though attempting to answer.
Dredre tilted her head, listening carefully, before turning back to Wyatt with a solemn expression. "It doesn't know. Its soul has been completely eroded by the Breath of Erosion. It has no memories. It can't communicate through words."
The next second, the orb in Dredre's hands suddenly vanished. She had casually tossed it back into the river of souls, as if skipping a pebble across a stream.
Wyatt stared at her in disbelief. This time, he had his primordial soul pupils activated, so he witnessed it all with his own eyes. Through the connection between Dredre and the river of souls, he saw the shimmering currents and how she effortlessly discarded the soul.
For a moment, Wyatt couldn't help but swallow hard, his throat suddenly dry. As he gazed at her, a wave of reverence washed over him. In that instant, Dredre looked like the pink god of death—small but impossibly powerful, radiating an aura of otherworldly command.
Noticing the awe on Wyatt's face, Dredre's pink pupils sparkled with joy and satisfaction. His silent admiration was worth more than any praise he could put into words. She giggled softly, watching him remain frozen, still awestruck.