Conrad sipped the cold water, savoring every drop. It was the first drink he'd had in three days. He turned to look at the old man with cracked glasses, dressed in worn animal hide, smiling with a twinkle in his eye, clearly eager to share something.
"So… what happened to your friend? Did he get captured by Ra—uh, I mean the ex-lieutenant? And what's he like?" Conrad asked, leaning forward with curiosity.
The old man tugged at his clothes, then suddenly snapped his head toward the window, squinted in horror, then sighed in relief and smiled faintly at Conrad.
Conrad blinked, caught off guard by the old man's abrupt, erratic movement. He continued, "How do you know about that ex-lieutenant? By the way, I hate him, he chopped of Dante's le-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. But you know what saved you just now, right? Back on the surface?" the old man interrupted, his voice suddenly serious.
"Uh, you?" Conrad replied, still confused.
"Wrong," the old man said. "Right when you passed out, you screamed and released some Mara. I felt it and came to the surface. When I found you, you were covered in shadows. Those shadows aren't just random, they're part of some ability you unlocked from being near an artifact. The shadows somehow acted on its own, so when your Mara flared up, it enhanced the shadows, making them burn anyone who touched them. Me? My Mara's weaker than it was in my prime, so I couldn't protect myself properly when carrying you and got burned pretty badly."
Conrad's mind was racing with disbelief, trying to process everything. Burning shadows? Mara? It all sounded insane.
"What exactly is Mara?" he asked, still trying to wrap his head around it.
"Mara, young Conrad, is a hidden power deep inside every living being. It just needs to be awakened. You can imbue Mara into things, amplify attacks, and use it for protection. Your body already awakened it, and you didn't even realize it."
Conrad's jaw dropped. This was a lot to absorb all at once. "So… what are these shadows, then?"
The old man scratched his head. "Those came from an artifact you touched, or came near, at least. There are a lot of artifacts around, but what makes them dangerous is that they're imbued with Mara from long ago. Most people stumble upon common artifacts, but you, my young friend, you found a rare one."
"But I don't remember touching anything like that..." Conrad muttered.
"Doesn't matter. When you're near the right artifact, the Mara inside of you reacts. That's what happened with you."
Conrad thought for a moment. "So this shadow power... What exactly can it do?"
The old man gave a shrug. "Hard to say. It's definitely versatile. So far, it's protected you and burned anyone who came near it, but with some training, you might be able to do more. Maybe you can be sneaky, use it to hide, or ambush your enemies. Who knows?"
Conrad's eyes lit up. "Sneaky? So, you're saying I could use it to infiltrate the castle, retrieve Dante, and get out of here?"
The old man's face fell slightly. "NO. I mean, yes, but no. Right now, your priority should be learning how to control your Mara. You need to focus on that before anything. As for leaving the island, it's not going to be easy. The castle, or more likely the Crimson Tower, is where you'll find Dante. Now as compensation for saving your life, can you dea-"
Conrad felt a wave of determination. "Fine. You'll teach me to use this Mara power, and or this shadow power, and then I'll get Dante. We'll storm the castle and take down the ex-lieutenant. Then, we'll get you and the others out of here."
The old man seemed to hesitate before responding. "I was actually going to ask you to deal with the dragon that's been knocking on my window every day, but... this works, too."
A distant voice came from outside, bored and indifferent: "There is no dragon at your window, old man. You're just schizophrenic."
The old man shrugged. "Well, alright then, I'll teach you. But, damn it, do I really have to be the mastermind behind the plan to take down Ravik, uh I mean the ex-lieutenant?"
Conrad glared at him. "Wait, random but what's your name? Just so I can talk to you normally instead of thinking of you as 'old man', and who's Ravik?"
"It's Alfred, and... I'm not old, I'm only in my late 70s, and Ravik... he's the ex-lieutenant," the old man replied, sounding a bit exasperated. "If you want to know everything about this island, and what's really going on, I'll tell you. There's a small rebellion brewing here, waiting for someone to lead them against Ravik."
Conrad nodded eagerly. "Sure. Tell me everything. I want to know about the island, its history... all of it." Conrad started to relax as he was going to intake all this information.
"I'd also like a refill of water."
Alfred let out a chuckle and tossed his old wooden staff into the air, the ruby at its end catching the light. "Water? Forget that. Anyways. Great, we can start training while I tell you. But be ready, young Conrad. You'll need everything I can teach you."
Conrad sighed and brandished the staff, ready for whatever training awaited him. This would be a long road, but he was more determined than ever to get Dante back, defeat Ravik, and uncover the secrets of the Forgotten Island...