Cass leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes, as Alyx continued speaking with the smiths. The swordswoman explained the other equipment she wanted for herself, Marco, and Kelstor, the smiths jotting the details down and sketching ideas across their papers.

But it wasn't dark behind Cass's eyelids. Lights floated around her, beacons in the dark.

Souls.

She inhaled sharply, but it was useless to pretend she couldn't see them. Useless to pretend that wasn't what they were.

Alyx's burned brightest in the amber of her aura, hot and fierce, coiled in a perfect orb in her chest. A tether ran from the swordswoman's soul across the room to the yard, where Kelstor lay, to Kelstor's soul. His was far smaller than Alyx's but burned no dimmer. It was a dark maroon, like wine in a dark cask. Across the tether, pulses of light drifted back and forth, from one soul to the other. They were slow, gentle things. Like casual touches of long time partners. Thoughtless but caring.

The smiths' souls were far dimmer than Alyx's. They glowed softly, one cream the other pale green. Periodically, one would pulse, and the other would pulse a moment later. Almost like lighthouses signaling one another silently through the dark.

Marco leaned against the smith's worktable, his soul a pale red, shining with a steady light. Telis hung behind, her soul a dim white that seemed to slip behind his.

And then there was Salos in her lap.

He was a brilliant gold, the color of his eyes. A cord hung between them, far thicker than the one between Alyx and Kelstor. Light drifted over it, brilliant blue as it left her soul, gleaming gold as it left his.

Their bond.

Intangible yet more real than she could have ever believed.

And she didn't understand why she could see them.

How common is seeing souls? Cass asked Salos. A brighter pulse of energy flickered across their bond with her question.

A bright pulse of gold came back to her with his answer. Souls are imperceptible. No one can see them.

Not a good start. No one?

No one, he repeated.

So you can't?

I am included in 'no one', he said.

Cass pursed her lips. So not even demons can see souls?

A deep, unsettled grumbling rolled through his body.

Salos? Cass pressed.

Demons have a sense for them, but it still isn't anything as sharp as 'sight'. Like how you can smell food in the air. You know it's nearby. He spoke about them like they were something other than himself. Cass let him.

So if I said I could see souls, that wouldn't be a cause for concern? Cass asked.

Salos audibly sighed. What?

Well, I think they are souls, Cass hedged. Though she thought they were souls the same way she was sure the sky was blue and that the ground was down. This was 'common sense'.

And that certainty scared her as much as anything else.

She didn't need to explain that to him. He could feel it in her words. He could feel it across their bond.

Why does this happen to you? he muttered. When did it start?

When I saw Kohen in the underground cathedral tearing into the paladin captain's soul.

Salos shook his head. That should not have been a trigger.

There were already a lot of soul bits in the air, Cass said.

Sure, but that should not have made a difference.

Well, what's your theory then? Cass poked him.

He shifted away in her lap. I wish I had a better answer. Maybe your Mana Sense? Souls aren't entirely dissimilar from mana.

Cass shook her head. That had been her first thought, too. But just like she could close her eyes, she could toggle Mana Sense off. And the lights didn't disappear with it.

Your perception isn't special, he muttered to himself. His tail thrashed.

But you don't see them? Cass confirmed.

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No. Not really. I have a feel for them. I can tell there is something soul-ish between Alyx and the dragon. I can imagine how the dragons could tell we were connected. But that's it.

Maybe it's a slyphid thing? Cass suggested.

I've never heard of slyphids having a special relationship with souls, Salos said.

We could check? Cass said.

Sure, go ahead.

Cass activated Shifting Minds. Space twisted around her as she went from sitting in the chair to lying curled in a lap as she and Salos swapped bodies.

She could still see the souls of their companions and Salos's soul in her body.

I don't see anything. Salos squinted around the yard. It isn't your body.

Cass shifted them back, settling again into her chair. What is it then?

Something about you. Salos shrugged. Maybe your soul itself?

That wasn't an answer. But they could speculate about the reasons for hours and come no closer to a conclusion. It could be any of those reasons. Salos could be wrong and some demons could see souls, just not him.

But they wouldn't know without asking someone who knew more about souls. And she wasn't sure she wanted to admit to strangers she had these kinds of questions.

She sighed. More powers she hadn't asked for.

She reached out to the cord between them. It passed through her fingers, entirely intangible. Was it real or just a visual metaphor of their connection? Just the only way her human mind could understand the sensory information?

Could they cut it and separate themselves from one another, or would that kill Salos?

Out the corner of one eye, she could see another soul a great distance off. She grimaced. It wasn't particularly bright—if anything, it was the opposite, strangely weak—but it pulled at her attention all the same.

She knew exactly whose it was. She had no business knowing. The color was muddy and indistinct, more purple than anything, but still a far cry from purple.

Kohen.

There was no cord between them, at least. But it flickered in tune with hers. Reshaped to her Will.

Have you decided what to do about your new servant? Salos asked.

Cass scowled. What can I do about him?

She'd fixed him. Even the demon god had been impressed with what she'd done. She'd smoothed out his edges. He wouldn't attack anyone for demonic reasons. He was well enough.

He wasn't her problem.

Say what you will about his manners, he is powerful, Salos said. And anyone with eyes can see he has no future here, even if he keeps a lid on his demon-adjacent state. He would be more valuable to you as a battle-thrall than a pawn here.

I'm not making him either of those things. Her disgust rose.

But she had power over him. Her Commands were a compulsion he couldn't refuse.

He deserved it, a corner of her mind whispered. He was a trashy noble who exploited those under him with his Authority, both 'natural' and magical. There was nothing wrong with forcing him onto the receiving end once in a while.

Her stomach twisted, uncomfortable with the thought.

You aren't seriously planning on letting him loose, are you? He knows too much.

Cass rubbed her forehead. What does he really know, Salos?

He knows about me.

So does Alyx.

He stiffened. Since when?

Cass bit her lip. She deserved to know. She's our companion. Your hunger for parts of your soul has dragged her into too many dangerous situations to leave her in the dark.

Something dark and uncomfortable oozed over their bond. His soul pulled away, dragging his feelings apart from hers.

Was this before or after she came to rescue you from the temple? he asked.

Cass hesitated. He wasn't stupid. He'd figure everything out if she told him the truth. He would realize why she was by herself after revealing that kind of information to Alyx.

But, just as she couldn't bring herself to lie to Alyx, she couldn't lie here. Before.

Something spiked across their bond, sharp and cold, and gone again just as quickly. And she came to rescue you, anyway? He shook his head. This and that are different. She is an ally devoted to your cause. He is conquered property.

People aren't property. Cass glared at him, the ice in her soul leaking into the words.

He shuddered back, withdrawing further. Whatever you want to call him, you acknowledge he has no reason to hold loyalty to you?

Cass grumbled, but she couldn't argue that. They hadn't gotten along before this mess and he'd been anything but understanding the other night.

For entirely valid reasons.

Cass pushed on anyway. Whatever he thinks about me, he has no reason to tell anyone about me or you. He's not stupid. Probably.

Anything he could tell anyone about her would only raise questions about himself. And as bad as all that would be for her, it would be just as bad, if not worse, for him.

You expect too much out of him, Salos said. Never underestimate the stupidity of others.

Cass rolled her eyes. We're leaving, Salos. We aren't coming back. What can he possibly do to us?

Salos grumbled. Our forces would be stronger if you brought him along.

Would they? Cass asked. Or would you spend the entire trip telling me to kill him because we can't trust to take our eyes off him?

If you understand then—

I'm not killing him, Salos. Stop suggesting it.

Salos huffed and readjusted himself in her lap.

She would just ignore Kohen. That was the only thing she could do.

When she left the city, she wouldn't be around to Command him anymore. It wouldn't matter that she had this power. Their lives would continue unchanged. She didn't need to make more complicated decisions about him.

He wasn't her problem.

She pushed her thoughts of Kohen aside. Worrying about it wasn't helping.

She was tired. The forge was warm. The open air of the yard, clean and fresh. The glow of love the craftsmen felt for Alyx and Kelstor was real and revitalizing. She would have given anything to sit here and celebrate the end of the Festival with them.

She would have given anything to relax the next several days in their company with no worries about what came next.

Unfortunately, this stolen moment while Alyx arranged for their equipment was all Cass was likely to get.

Alyx was banished, and even if she wasn't, Cass had pressing business. Every moment she waited was another Robin could be in danger. That Kaye could be lost. That the other waited alone on Earth in the depths of depression assuming they were dead.

They had to go. The sooner the better.

That her Health was once again in the trash was irrelevant. That she had only just survived kidnapping and sacrifice was irrelevant. That the pile of things she didn't want to think about teetered at the edge of her mind, taller than ever, was irrelevant.

It was time to get out of Velillia. It was time to find her sibling.

The duchess hadn't had an answer. But there were still other avenues. She still had a meeting with an Academy professor. They'd know something about interrealm travel.

Cass would find her siblings. They would go home together. They had to.

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