Back at the inn, Adam thought of what they could do next: “I don't think there is anything I can do to change the mind of the spirit here. Let's go to another cathedral and try there. Maybe somewhere there will be a spirit that will listen to us!”
Evelyn could not think of anything else and readily agreed with Adam. Unfortunately, the story remained the same no matter where they went. The life spirit's hate for death essence ran too deep and they would not hear what Adam had to say. Leaving from the third cathedral they had gone to since they had left Jorlund, Adam was well and truly stumped.
Frustrated, he exclaimed: “How do you reason with someone who won't even listen!?”
Evelyn could only shake her head without an answer. Evelyn also felt at a loss. She had come to help Adam, but had yet to do anything that could actually help him with his efforts. All she could do was to continue to encourage Adam to keep trying.
Arriving back at the inn they were currently staying at, Evelyn turned to Adam: “It's getting close to dinner, why don't you head to the room and I will bring some food over.”
Adam nodded his head: “Thanks.”
It would be more relaxing to eat in their room than to eat in the common area with everyone else. As Adam walked to the stairs leading to the rooms upstairs, he heard Evelyn order some food at the counter. The woman behind the counter chuckled: “Look at how diligent you are, bringing food for your man!”
Evelyn merely pouted and said: “Just give me my food.”
Adam also shook his head as he continued walking. It was cheaper to buy one room with two beds than two separate one bed rooms. Unfortunately, everyone kept on getting the wrong message and assumed that Adam and Evelyn were a couple! Adam bitterly thought: 'What, two friends can't share a room?'
Still, Adam had to admit that he saw where the others were coming from. A man and a woman traveling together. More likely than not, something was going on between the two. Adam himself couldn't help but occasionally think of Helen when he saw Evelyn. However, Evelyn was Evelyn and not Helen! She was also many years his junior! Adam did not have any untoward thoughts about her.
Adam walked into their room and kicked his shoes off before heavily lying down on his bed. With a deep sigh, he tried to forget about the troubles he was facing. No solution would present itself if he constantly agonized over the problem.
Shortly after, Evelyn came up with some food. There was silence while they ate. Evelyn wanted to say something, but also didn't want to bring the problem up. At the end of their meal, Adam broke the silence with a sigh and said: “We won't go to another cathedral. I believe it is just a dead end trying to persuade the life spirits like this.”
Evelyn nodded: “So what do we try next then?”
Adam shook his head: “I'm not sure yet. I need a fresh mind to think, so I'm not going to think about it for now. Maybe in the morning.”
Adam and Evelyn then went to bed early. Adam also got up early the next morning. To help clear his head, he decided to do something he hadn't done in a very long time: practice sword movements! Adam didn't have a sword on hand, so he borrowed a broom that was not being used. He unscrewed the head and went out the front of the inn to practice.
Unfortunately, there wasn't a yard or garden nearby, so Adam had to practice on the street! Thankfully, it was still early in the morning so there were few passersby. Adam felt a little embarrassed practicing in the open like this, but that was also a refreshing feeling to distract him. He only thought: 'Just focus on the movements. Who cares if they think you're crazy!”
It didn't take long for Adam to become engrossed in the sword movements. Freely moving and flowing, like water. Adam thought of something, but decided to just continue with the familiar and nostalgic sword movements. Before long, Adam also felt a gaze upon him. It was Evelyn standing by the entrance to the inn! For a moment, Adam lost himself in his memories, this felt just like the time long ago when he and Helen lived together! Adam suddenly broke out of reverie: 'No! She is not Helen. She is Evelyn now. I cannot think of her in the same way.'
Breaking away from those distracting thoughts, Adam stopped his practice and went up to Evelyn: “I think I know what we will try next.”
Evelyn beamed a smile at him: “Good! I got some food prepared on a table further in.”
Evelyn led Adam to a table further in back of the inn's common area. A few gazes followed them as they went to their seats. In addition to their unique appearance, Adam also showed them such an oddity of practicing sword movements with a broom early in the morning!
Adam and Evelyn started eating their breakfast as Adam talked: “Convincing the life spirits isn't going anywhere and I don't think it will change no matter how many cathedrals we go to. So, let's try to convince other spirits instead! I know of this water spirit that we can talk to. At the very least, it will listen to what I have to say.”
Evelyn excitedly said: “Good! However, I think we should talk to more than one type of spirit, do you know of any other?”
Adam scratched his head with a defeated smile: “I generally know where one wind spirit is, but I don't have a guarantee of finding that one. Other than that, there was an earth spirit, but waking it up would likely cause a few earthquakes...”
“Well, let's go see this water spirit you know first.”
Later that morning, Adam and Evelyn departed for the water spirit. Their destination was a lake Adam had spent a few years purifying his body by.
Three days later, Evelyn and Adam had yet to reach the lake. Flying high in the sky, they both started to hear the cries of war carried on the wind! It didn't take long for them to see what was going on in the distance. A battle was being waged on the ground as two dragons fought against one another in the sky! Both the dragons were fire dragons and neither had the advantage over the other.
“...Should we intervene?” Evelyn asked.
Adam shook his head as he started to change his course to go around the battle. He sent: “It is hard to tell which dragon is on our side to start with. We could also make things worse with our appearance. The southern flock may send more dragons out since they would believe the northern flock had already sent us to reinforce our side... right now, it is better to not intervene with anything.”
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There was nothing Evelyn could say to refute Adam's words as they continued on and past the battle in silence. A few days later, they finally made it to the lake.
Adam touched down near the shore. Evelyn got off as she looked around and said: “This is a nice place.”
Adam Human-formed before nodding. “It is rather peaceful here. I am not quite sure why others haven't found it yet, but no one really comes here.”
After briefly talking,Evelyn set about making camp while Adam sat down and spread his elemental sight out to find the spirit. It didn't take too long for Adam to find it. He sent out: “Hey, I'm back!”
The spirit responded: “Oh you're, like, back man. How's it been?”
“Alright, for the most part. I was hoping to get your help with something.”
“I dunno, man. I've never been great at the helping thing.”
“Well, if you could just listen to me and answer some of my questions, that would be of great help!”
“That doesn't, like, sound to hard. Shoot away then, man.”
Adam started out: “Do you know why the life and death spirits hate each other so much?”
“Oh, that's easy, man. It's, like, in their nature. Kind of like how fire spirits don't get along with us water spirits, but, like, ten times worse! Yeah.”
“Well, they have gotten to the point where they are even going to war across the world! Do you know of anyway this can be stopped? The very existence of this world proves that spirit essence, even life and death essence, can act in harmony! There has to be a way!”
“Whoa, man. Chill down. You don't have to get, like, so rowdy. I understand where you are coming from, but this war is, like, inevitable. Even if they can work together, they won't, man. That's just the decision they've, like, come to. That's why some of us hide out in your world, man. We can, like, stay out of the war.”
“But the war is still coming to the world! With your help, maybe we can stop it! If the other spirits who have hid in our world come together, just maybe you can convince the others to stop!”
The spirit shook: “No way, man. It's, like, not that simple. Besides, that's still getting into the middle of the war, man. Maybe others will join you, but I'm, like, just going to go with the flow.”
With a sigh of frustration, Adam mumbled: “Thanks.” before pulling back his elemental sight. Adam long knew the personality of this spirit. If it didn't want to do something, there was no way to convince or force it to do it.
Seeing Adam sigh in frustration, Evelyn hesitantly asked: “Did it not work out?”
Adam shook his head: “That spirit came to this world to escape the war. It doesn't want anything to do with the war, even if that is trying to stop it.”
Evelyn thought to herself: 'Why are we being stopped at every turn!?'
She then thought aloud: “Maybe we are going about this the wrong way.”
Adam thought about it for a moment and then nodded his head: “I think you're right! Spirits are different from humans. I have been trying to convince them like I would a human, and that doesn't seem to be working. We need to work from a different angle, but what...”
Evelyn was surprised, but happy, when Adam told her that her random mumbling was correct. She was trying to think of some more input to give him as Adam's face sudden turned bright with an idea, but then turned dark. He spoke: “I just thought of something, but it would be dangerous and perhaps just as unlikely to work.”
Enthusiastically, Evelyn asked: “What!?”
“What if... we convinced the southern flock to join an agreement with the northern flock to not join the spirits' war! It will soon get to the point where hordes of ghouls are summoned and nobody wants to see the world running rampant with them! If nobody fought their war on their behalf and we prevent any Portal Stones from being used to transport ghouls and spirits to this world for their war, we could stop it!”
Evelyn agreed: “Yes, that could work! Only... it will indeed be dangerous. We would probably have to go to the village of the southern flock to try and convince them. If they surround us and decide to kill us...”
Adam nodded: “That's why I'll go alone.”
“What!? No!”
“I can fly faster than you can. I can fly through danger better if I am alone, then if you were on my back. My color closely resembles that of a death dragon, so they will be unlikely to suspect me. It's safest if I go alone!”
Evelyn sighed: “Why do you always have to take the heaviest burden?”
Adam was slightly taken aback as Evelyn continued: “You helped me in interrupting that water dragon, then you forced the death dragons back and destroyed the Portal Stone. All I have been able to do for you is to try and make you comfortable through this trip... it's just not fair!”
Adam chuckled. “As far as we know, I am the first spiritualist to follow my path since the world was created. I may somehow have the ability to stop this war from happening, so I obviously have to put in more effort than others. That is all.”
Evelyn mumbled: “It's still not right.”
Adam ignored that and continued on: “Do you know where the village of the southern flock is?”
“Generally. It is in the far south. Just like there are barren frozen fields up north, there are also frozen fields way down south. You will have to cross the ocean to reach it, though.”
Adam nodded. “You can tell me more about it on the way. When we reach the ocean, you will have to stay behind.”
Evelyn was still resistant to the idea, but she at least had the time it took for them to reach the ocean to try and change Adam's mind or come up with a different plan.
The initial trip to the south took three weeks. Adam and Evelyn passed through numerous kingdoms either warring or on the brink of war. They also went pass more than a few battlefields. Things were quickly getting worse.
At the end of those three weeks, Adam and Evelyn found themselves on a shore overlooking the ocean spreading down to the south. Evelyn said: “You know, I could still follow you after you leave.”
“You could, but I know you won't if I ask you to stay.”
Evelyn pouted with frustration. The whole trip, she had been unable to convince Adam that she should come. She then said: “You have to come back!”
Adam nodded: “Of course I will! I may be late on occasion, but I have always come back!”
Even after saying that, Evelyn still looked torn as she looked at Adam. Adam took a step toward her as he started to say: “I do mean it. I will co-”
Evelyn also suddenly stepped toward Adam and gave him a kiss! It was light and fleeting, as she quickly stepped back and said: “You absolutely have to come back!”
Leaving a stunned Adam, she quickly turned around and Dragon-formed. Taking off into the skies, she flew toward the north. Adam could only blankly stare at her fleeting figure. He finally started forming some incomplete thoughts: “Wha-... But... Why did...”
Adam finally vigorously scratched his head in confusion then viciously kicked a stone into the distance. He then shouted: “How do you expect me to react to that!?”
He then started mumbling: “I see much of Helen in her. Of course it would be great if we were together! But, it would be unfair if I only loved her for the part of her that is Helen....”
After thinking for a time, Adam finally shook his head and sighed: “Let's think about this later.”
Adam also Dragon-formed and took to the skies toward the south. Over the ocean, there was no place to rest. For another week, Adam constantly flew over the water. Finally, Adam could see a frozen landmass in the distance. Adam thought to himself: “Somewhere up ahead is the village of the southern flock... this is the only other way I can think of to stop the war. It has to work! '