We stop briefly for lunch. I notice that the recruits who have been jogging all this time fairly slump to the ground as soon as they’re given permission. I find it interesting to see how there is no division between them: free citizens collapse onto the earth next to collared slaves. Tiredness renders social conventions irrelevant.

  Still, it’s a little concerning.

  “Are they going to be able to keep going?” I ask Maxen who is speaking to one of the caravan cooks. The woman – not Sera Nolis, unfortunately – has pulled a large, steaming cauldron out of a storage space and is working on it, tipping in several differently-coloured liquids.

  At my question, Maxen turns sharply to me and salutes. His expression, though, is easy – he doesn’t seem to be worried as his eyes pass over his troops coolly.

  “Of course, sir.” He gestures at the cauldron. “The food they’ll eat has been enhanced with certain potions we used to use to train up new recruits in the military. They increase the rate of recovery. By the time we are on the road again, the recruits will be almost refreshed – and stronger than they were before.”

  “This is normal treatment in the military, then?” I ask wryly.

  “Yes, sir,” Maxen answers crisply. “Initial training is always intended to push recruits to their physical limits. Those who distinguish themselves may be given Classes, but not until they have attained the maximum Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution that they can as a non-Classer. This journey offers an excellent opportunity for conditioning.”

  I nod slowly. That’s certainly true. If I could still earn points naturally, I’d probably even run along with them. I make a mental note to see how Noir is getting on – and whether we need to load him down with more weight to increase the benefits. After all, the more endurance my fighters gain now, the longer they’ll last in a battle before making mistakes from tiredness.

  “Agreed,” I comment even as I watch the cook starting to hand out bowls of what looks like a sort of porridge to those whose hunger forces them to their feet. I watch until I’m certain that everyone is getting a bowl – I’m pleased when I see some of the more mobile recruits fetching food for those still collapsed on the ground. And when I notice one of the non-collared people passing a bowl to someone with a metal band around his throat, I can’t keep the satisfaction from my expression.

  I clap a hand on Maxen’s shoulder. “It looks like you’re doing an excellent job here,” I tell him firmly. “Don’t hesitate to send any to me for healing if necessary.”

  “Yes, sir,” Maxen agrees, then salutes as I walk away to find my own meal.

  I inhale a perfectly pleasant bowl of tasty stew, and then go to check on Noir. He turns out to have gained a few points already, but he agrees to carry some boxes to see if it increases how quickly he can gain points.

  On my way back to my wagon, Nicholas falls into step beside me. I send him a look and my heart sinks at his grim expression.

  “Nicholas? Is something wrong?” I ask, alarmed. “Have you heard bad news from Zlona?”

  At my question, I see Nicholas visibly make an effort to blank his expression, lightening the furrow between his eyebrows and loosening the set of his lips.

  “Nothing that we haven’t already heard,” he replies shortly, then hesitates. “I…wish to speak to you. In private.”

  “Of course,” I answer, pausing before getting into the wagon. “Do you want to use Seal, or shall I?”

  “You do it,” Nicholas instructs with an impatient wave of his hand. “You need the practice.”

  I can’t deny that. As soon as I have ensured that our conversation will go unheard by others, I look at the lord expectantly.

  He takes a long moment to speak – I wait with as much patience as I can summon.

  “Earlier, you were speaking to your Bonded of Core spaces,” he starts, his tone unusually hesitant.

  “I was,” I agree, my attention sharpening.

  “You recall that I suffer from a blood-curse?”

  I blink.

  “I don’t think you ever said that you suffer from that. Only that your father did – and that’s why he died earlier than expected.”

  Pieces fall into place. Why Nicholas was interested in his own Core space. Why the punishment for the Forestheart family crossed multiple generations. Why Nicholas has no children. Perhaps even why he looked outside his family for an heir in the first place – though that could also be to do with his current relatives not being suitable. Certainly, he hasn’t made any effort to introduce me to them.

  “How long do you have?” I ask, the question slipping through before I can censor myself. I bite my tongue only after it’s escaped. “Sorry – I shouldn’t have asked that.”

  Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

  “No, as my heir, you have a right to know,” he sighs. “As for my exact life expectancy, I know not, only that my father withered and died within fifty years after the curse became active in him. I have already lived longer than that under its effects, but as no one seems capable of detecting the source of the curse in my body, let alone curing it, I feel I am living on borrowed time.”

  “I’m sorry,” I tell him awkwardly. I don’t know what else to say.

  “It is no fault of yours,” he dismisses, his side of the Bond briefly prickly. I suspect his pride doesn’t like any hint of pity. “I raise it only because, as my heir, you should know that you may be called upon to be Lord earlier than you would expect. And also….” Here, he uncharacteristically hesitates again. “And also because I wonder if you might be able to help me.”

  “Me?” I ask, a little startled. What do I know of curses?

  “You have accomplished a miracle with Tempest. I am trying not to hope when every other avenue I have tried has failed, but…it would be remiss of me not to explore the possibility.”

  I eye him cautiously.

  “You realise that we’d need to have a Dominate Bond for me to be able to examine you fully,”

  Nicholas grimaces.

  “Do you not have that Dominate derivative? You mentioned that it didn’t require a Battle of Wills and that the Bonded could end it at any time.”

  “I do,” I reply slowly, “but it still requires you to entrust me with everything you are, though it does allow you to break the Bond if you feel that I have betrayed your trust. Can you do that?” My experience of Nicholas is that he’s slow to trust indeed, and keeps mostly to himself. He’s far more relaxed around me than he used to be, but there is still a barrier between us, symbolised in the tight control he applies to the Tame Bond that connects us. A Companion Bond won’t allow him that control.

  “I will have to,” Nicholas replies grimly. “Because the alternative is to not even try this option. I may have left it too late as it is – you are due to leave in a tenday and we have the beast wave to deal with too. I hate to admit that I have struggled with this decision.”

  “Understandable,” I admit. Then another thought occurs. “Though, I’m not sure if a Companion Bond is the best idea.”

  “Why not?” Nicholas asks warily.

  “I’ve never broken a Companion Bond – and neither have any of my Companions – but there is a warning in the description that, once broken, it cannot be reinstated. It’s not meant to be temporary, and I fear that using it as such will cause a good deal of damage to the soul – and quite likely for both of us.”

  After my last experience with extensive soul damage, I’m not keen on inviting more just because Nicholas is squeamish about the normal Dominate Bond.

  Though, thinking about it, maybe I should be a bit leery myself – it’s a death sentence for a Titanbend to Dominate a free human in Moriax, and if Nicholas is the one to testify against me, there’s no way that I would be able to wiggle my way out of it. Of course, since it’s to benefit him, one would hope that he wouldn’t report it, but if something goes wrong between us in the future, he would have a powerful weapon to wield against me.

  Though, if he attests that he’s the one who asked me to do it….? I decide to ask him.

  “You’ve made the sentence clear for using Dominate on a citizen of Moriax. What if that citizen asks you to do it?”

  Nicholas eyes me, perhaps seeing the direction of my thoughts.

  “It’s a grey area,” he admits. “Though the evidence would have to be pretty decisive.” The corners of his mouth soften. “I had not considered that it would be as much a risk for you as for me,” he confesses. “I should have.”

  “Then how about this,” I respond, overlooking the last bit even though, yes, he definitely should have considered the potential ramifications of what he’d be asking me to do. “We make an agreement, signed with our magical signatures. That I will use Dominate on you at your explicit request on the condition that I release you within a certain amount of time – before I’m due to leave, I suggest. We’ll both keep a copy of the contract and then a truthteller will be able to determine very easily if I have broken the terms of the contract or not.”

  Nicholas considers my suggestion for a moment.

  “It’s a neat solution,” he agrees finally. “I did not wish to express a lack of trust by asking for such a thing, and I doubt you could hold me against my will, but I admit that I would feel better with it in place.”

  “As would I,” I admit. It’s insurance, if nothing else. Because if we go forward with this, I will never be able to truthfully answer that I have not used Dominate on a free citizen of Moriax. But how can I reject Nicholas now? After everything he’s done for me, I feel I must at least make the attempt. Still, I’d rather not willingly put my head in the noose to do so.

  “I shall draw up the declaration before we move forward. I appreciate your willingness to help.” His tone doesn’t reflect his words – he sounds almost angry. His pride again, I would guess.

  “Of course,” I reply honestly. “I hope I find something that helps you.”

  “I wish Jerry to be present – perhaps he can learn something even if you are unable to immediately cure me of the curse.”

  “I don’t know how much he’ll be able to see, but…why not?” I agree after a moment of thought. Certainly, I’ve gained a good deal of respect for Jerry – he and I have found a moment here and there to converse and the depth of his understanding of magical healing has been impressive. I might not have increased my Flesh-Shaping level yet, but I suspect it’s not that far off if I start applying some of my new knowledge.

  Nicholas nods again.

  “Then I shall find him and we shall ride in your wagon. We must continue our journey now.”

  I nod and dismiss the Seal. He strides off to find Jerry and I stare at the front of the wagon sightlessly. What have I got myself into, I wonder. Curses are definitely not my area of expertise – I don’t even know if it will have an effect that I can detect. I don’t fool myself into thinking that the Core space and the physical are the only aspects to the body – only the ones that I know how to access.

  Still, I can’t deny that I have a good deal of curiosity about what I’ll find in Nicholas’ Core space. Though I don’t know what level he actually is, I’m sure he’s higher than I am – but still the same Class. It will be interesting to see the similarities and differences between our matrices.

  I can’t help but feel a sense of responsibility here too, though – Nicholas has made it seem like this is his last option. I hope I can live up to it.

  here!

  here!

  here!

  here!

  here