Chapter 147: The soul binder

Koth looked at his friend. He could see what was coming.

"How about we clean up and then have this discussion with some ale," he suggested. Nenhir grunted. They both refused to let Irin help, as she had cooked the food. As they sat down at the table with a mug of ale each, Koth pulled Irin into his lap.

"No point avoiding it, I guess," Nenhir said as he took a mouthful of ale. "After you called me about the group, I collected some things and headed out to find them. It took me four days. It wasn't like they were trying to hide or avoid me. I could feel the strange calm the moment I got close to them. Even though I know why, it took me a moment to shake it off. Right then I knew I was dealing with a powerful being. I kept to myself, watching them for a day. I have a tracking spell from my wild youth. It's a nifty little thing that can sense demonic energy and track it," he continued. Koth remembered the tracking spell that had been used on the artefact and realised his friend must have something similar.

"Were you able to track the demon?" Irin asked.

"I was," he answered. The lack of victory or accomplishment in his friend's voice made Koth draw Irin closer. "I had been right. Both the demon and its master were powerful. They had spent years siphoning energy from the travellers and spent very little of it maintaining the peace they offered in return. Harvesting power like that, they had to have a purpose for it. I did my research, I talked to some really horrible things to get the information, and when I got it, I wished I hadn't," Nenhir told them, shaking his head. Koth saw the worried look on Irin's face. She placed her hand on Nenhir's arm.

"Do you need to take a break? Is there something I can get you?" she asked. Nenhir looked up at her with a faint smile.

"I'm fine. I've been in the game long enough to know that sometimes things need to be done even when you don't like it," he told her. Irin nodded.

"Even though we know it needs to be done, it can still weigh on you," Koth told his friend. Nenhir nodded.

"The demon was a soul binder," he told them. Irin gasped and her hand covered her heart. Koth let out a curse.

"If I had known..." Koth started. Nenhir held up his hand.

"You were right to leave. The two of you protected something far bigger. And..." Nenhir looked at Irin; Koth understood and nodded. He didn't want Irin anywhere near the unbinding of a soul binder.

"I'm sorry that we sent you into that," Irin said.

"It needed to be done. I found out that the warlock was a young daughter of the former king of Arbendum. Her older sister was sent to the potentate of Esnon as a way to strengthen the diplomatic ties between the countries. Her sister did something that infuriated the potentate's wife and not only did she end up dead, but apparently she pissed the wife off so royally that the potentate felt he needed to make an example of Arbendum. He funded one of the rival families and it ended in the royal line almost being wiped out. The warlock was the sole survivor," Nenhir explained.

"I heard about that," Koth said. "Happened about eight or so years back?" Koth remembered hearing about the death of the royal family. He didn't care back then; rich people always did things like that. Now, it was different. It involved Irin's mother, and he knew she would feel bad for the role her mother had played in all of this.

"She was seeking revenge?" Irin asked. Nenhir nodded.

"She was planning to use the power she collected not only to kill the current royal family in Arbendum, but also to destroy the entire Esnon continent," he explained. "She had found a soul-binding demon and made a pact with it, then she made a separate pact with the travellers to use them so she wouldn't have to sacrifice her own life."

"You went back and talked to the travellers?" Irin asked.

"I had no choice. When I knew what I should look for, it wasn't hard to see. The soul binder hadn't just been siphoning their life force; it had tied their souls to it. Most of them were like human husks filled with its dark sludge. I sat down with the leaders, the ones you told me about. I explained what the demon was, what the warlock intended to do, and then I told them that the only way to stop it was for them to voluntarily give up the agreement. An agreement can't be severed unless one of the parties disbands it. I was honest. I told them they all were too far gone; there was no coming back from the path they had chosen. When the bond would sever, the soul binder would perish and so would they. They didn't have enough of themselves left to stay alive," he told them. Both Irin and Koth nodded.

"There's another way," Koth pointed out. Nenhir looked at him and nodded.

"What?" Irin asked.

"If there is no one left for the soul binder to feed off, it will die," Koth explained.

"But that would mean..." she stopped in the middle of the sentence.

"To kill the entire group of travellers," Nenhir finished for her.

"What happened?" she whispered.

"The leaders refused. They told me they would find a way to protect the innocent. We all knew it was just empty words. When the demon was finally powerful enough, there wouldn't be anything they could do. I walked away from our talk to prepare for what I needed to do. A man walked up to me; he had heard what we talked about. His wife had been the latest victim, and he wanted to know the truth. When he learnt what they had done, he turned pale as a sheet. He asked me if his children had lost their souls as well. Given how the deal had been struck, none of the young ones had been affected yet. They didn't come into the demon's grasp until they agreed to take part in the deal during their coming-of-age ceremony. The man got a hard look in his eyes and he asked me to wait by the fire for a moment. I could see him walk around the camp. He talked to every traveller that had children or youngsters. In the end, they all stood in front of me, demanding to know how to sever the bond."

"They wanted to save their children," Irin said. Koth caressed her cheek.

"They did," Nenhir agreed. "I told them what to do, and one by one they spoke the words that severed the bond. The others tried to stop them, but they had made up their minds. The little part of them that was left won over the darkness they carried. One by one I saw how they sank to the ground. Their bodies seemed unable to stand when the bond was gone. We heard the shriek from the demon as it felt its life slip away. When all those willing had severed the bond, it was too late for it. It had lost too much of the anchor keeping it here, and I could feel it vanishing back to where it had come from. The travellers that hadn't severed their bond to it suffered the same fate as those who had severed the bond willingly. In the end, there was no grand battle, no victory worth remembering. In the end, I was left in the middle of nowhere amidst a pile of dead bodies with a group of children and youngsters that were now on their own," he told them. Koth saw that Irin was crying, and he felt a hollow feeling in his chest. It had been the right thing to do; it had to be done. It didn't mean they were happy about it.

"What happened to them?" Irin asked.

"Some of the older ones helped me burn the bodies while the others watched the younger ones. When morning came, I took them to the closest city. There was a temple of Alesseja that took them all in. They will be cared for," Nenhir said.

"But they will never forget," Koth added.

"They won't," his friend agreed.

"The warlock?" Koth asked.

"The unexpected severing of the bond with the demon damaged her. Her magic core splintered. She will never be able to work with magic again. I still felt she could be dangerous, but my tolerance for death had been reached. I sent a tip to the current royal family in Arbendum. If I'm right, and I most often am, they will tie up the loose end," he told her. Irin nodded. For a while, they were all silent, thinking about what had happened. Irin leaned her head on Koth's shoulder, and he was gently rubbing her back. After a moment, she sat back up.

"Thank you for telling us," she told Nenhir.

"Maybe it would have been better if I had made up a happier story," he said. She gave him a sad smile.

"No. This is better. This way we can honour the bravery of those that sacrificed themselves for their children," she decided. He nodded. "How about we go outside and I will show you Noodle and you can show me how you extract his venom."

"I like that plan," Koth said and helped her to stand.