Inside the Stillum, two figures were deeply engaged in their oh-so-important work.
One, a small figure, hovered in midair with a rag clutched in his clawed hand as he lazily wiped the dust from the towering shelves stacked with countless books.
The other lay sprawled flat on the ground directly beneath him, arms and legs spread wide like a squashed cockroach. His cheek was pressed flat to the cold floor, his eyes dull and complaining as he half-heartedly wiped the bottom shelf with the corner of a rag.
"Seriously, all I did was confess my mistake, and he punished me by making me clean the floor. Percival is heartless," Uthayn whined like a spoiled princess.
Caw Caw
Mara agreed with his master's sentiments. With sluggish movements, he lazily dusted off the shelves. As the time passed, his eyelids dropped with boredom. He opened his beak in a yawn, tongue flicking out, but then something shimmering in the corner of his eye caught his attention.
His gaze quickly shifted to the Soul Tree. From a distance, the tree resembled a cotton-stuffed canopy with soft feathers hanging from the branches. At the very top, on a brittle, dried-out branch, one particular feather pulsed with an unusually bright glow.
Greed flashed in Mara's eyes. As if possessed, he flew towards it.
In his haste, the rag slipped from his hand and landed with a splat right on the top of Uthayn's head.
"Ugh—!" Uthayn gritted his teeth, yanking the dirty rag off and flinging it aside. He looked up to scold Mara, but the supposed sticky crow who had been sluggishly dusting moments ago was now nowhere to be seen.
Uthayn narrowed his eyes and rose to his feet, scanning the Stillum with growing suspicion.
He found him flying toward the Soul Tree in a daze.
"Mara!" he called out, but the crow didn't listen.
Upon reaching the tree, Mara perched on the branch, his crow feet clutching one of the branches. His sticky fingers extended toward the particular glowing feather, and he plucked it from the branch without hesitation.
Uthayn's eyes widened in response. "Mara, place it back!" he yelled.
As someone who grew up in the Hall of Void, he knew how important the feathers on the Soul Tree were. If anything got damaged, the consequences would be dire—not to mention, Percival was already angry at him.
If he found out his pet damaged a feather, he would be finished.
"Mara, place it back and come here," he ordered with a stern tone.
Mara looked closely at the glowing feather in his hands. He twirled the feather, amused. The shining light glowing from it reflected in his round black eyes, and he became more obsessed with it, unwilling to return it to the branches.
He looked down at his master and cawed again.
Caw… Caw.
Uthayn shook his head. "That's not something you can keep. Come down here and I'll give you shiny ambers. You're a good boy, right? Place it back on the branch," he coaxed, hoping he'd listen.
Understanding his master's words, Mara's face dropped in sadness. His reluctant eyes returned to the feather. He sighed and obeyed his master, but before that, one last time, he hugged the feather as if it could comfort him.
And that's when the worst happened.
With the light breeze, the feather in his hands brushed his nose. Mara felt an unbearable itch.
His beak opened wide.
Uthayn nearly slipped. "You dare—" He didn't get to finish before a loud sneeze echoed through the Stillum, disturbing the silence of the entire place.
Mara's sneeze was loud enough to shake the entire place. The feathers on the branches trembled, and the ones in the direction of the sneeze got plucked right off, scattering through the air, including the feather in Mara's hand.
"-_-"
"We are doomed," Uthayn muttered under his breath. He glared at his pet, who had already shrunk his head, realizing his mistake.
Uthayn sighed, looking at the Soul Tree. With countless feathers occupying its branches, he couldn't even tell how many had flown away. And now that their foothold was gone, the souls would already be eager to escape.
Without wasting a second, Uthayn closed his eyes. His tall body shrank in size, and a tuft of feathers sprouted from his skin, covering his flesh in thick black plumage. His nose morphed into a beak, and in place of Uthayn, now stood a large black crow with a cunning, sharp gaze. He spread his wings wide and flew out of the Stillum through the window.
Mara blinked and followed his master, this time considerately closing the window behind him.
With the Hall of Void stretching far and wide, Uthayn and Mara searched together for the scattered feathers. After what felt like an eternity, Mara returned holding two feathers in his hands, while Uthayn carried three.
With a tired sigh, they both returned to the Stillum.
After placing the recovered feathers back onto the Soul Tree, Uthayn's lips twitched. Even after such a long search, fourteen feathers were still missing from their place.
He crossed his arms, biting his nails in thought. Suddenly, his eyes lit up.
He turned to Mara and said excitedly, "Didn't Claudius have doves in his birdcage? Let's go and get some feathers and place them here. With a little trick, Percival wouldn't find out."
Mara's eyes brightened, and he nodded eagerly, agreeing with his master's idea. The two of them smiled silly, already turning on their heels to exit the Stillum.
But to their horror, standing behind them were none other than Percival and Claudius, the High Wraith of Fury himself.
Claudius grinned wide, raising a glowing feather between two fingers. His voice was sweet and syrupy with mock delight.
"My dear intern," he addressed Uthayn, "pray tell me, why do I see this soul feather in my bathtub?"