Page 183 of To Free a Soul
What Weldir could do with this... was limitless.
This wasn’t just some pretty piece of a crown, but part of Almethrandra’s life force. This was pure, unadulterated mana. Not just any kind, but one that could be manipulated in ways he normally couldn’t do.
At least, not on his own.
I have proven I can restore life, so long as it has some kind of anchor.Emerie was an example of this.I can create life.Proven by his many offspring.I can offer power through me.As he had with his mate.
I am a being of death, of life, and in between.
He made the crown shard float between his hands and sent a jolt of mana through it to see how well it mingled with his own.And since I’m her direct descendant, our magics mix well.
Now to test it properly, without informing anyone.
Weldir called Lindiwe’s soul to him. He broke off just the tiniest piece of the palm-sized fragment and pushed the grain of golden crown towards the citrine flame. Then he pushed in his own mana.
Immediately both began to vibrate, and threads began intertwining with each other. He immediately halted the spell, as it confirmed what he’d assumed without making it permanent. He would also need much more to successfully complete what he’d tested.
But it gave him his answer.
Next, he called the broken pieces of Nathair’s skull. He removed a little more of the crown, made it collide with the other detached fragment, and then put it between the many pieces of his skull. It vibrated, as did the skull, which began to reassemble.
The pieces meshed together so seamlessly that they were barely noticeable except for a hair’s width of gleaming gold.
Weldir held Nathair’s serpent skull, whole and mended.
The question is, will I be able to attach his soul back to it?He rotated it one way, and then the other.I don’t see why not, as his anchor is whole once more.If he could bond skull to soul, he could free him from death.
Uncertainty ruffled his mist, and he tapped a foreclaw against the skull’s snout.I would like to try.It may allow Nathair to liveon Earth again.I know it would make Lindiwe happy if he is returned to her.
If it was successful, how could he do the same for Aleron?We don’t have his skull pieces.He tapped his foreclaw faster.Perhaps if she obtains the same fruit-bat skull and similarly shaped goat horns, I can mould them to his soul.He could at least attempt it while informing her not to get her hopes too high.
Firstly, I’ll have to try with Nathair.
If this works...A rather foreign and unsettling emotion thickened the very space surrounding him. Sadness, perhaps? His own form of grief?It means they will leave.
He’d no longer be able to interact with his offspring and would once again be alone. Entirely.
I like my offspring nearby.He enjoyed conversing with them, playing with them, and teaching them.Oh well. This is what we wanted all along.
There was no point in being upset about it. He was used to the utter solitude, although he thought it might be more sorrowful now that he’d experienced companionship.
“Lindiwe,” he called, before he even pulled up her viewing disc.
When he did, it made a ring around her deep in the mountains of Mongulien on a summer’s day.Good, she hasn’t yet fully evolved our offspring. He figured she was nervous about doing so just in case something went awry.
“Yes, spirit of the void?” Her lips curled a little in mild humour.
He chuckled.I see she is back to being her perkier self.
“I didn’t inform you, but I sent Aleron to Nyl’theria to meet with the Gilded Maiden.”
She halted in her travels across the base of a mountain, and pushed back her hair when a rather strong gust of wind slipped itall forward. Her cloak and dress swayed, following its direction. “What? Why?”
“I wanted a gift, and I have received a rather substantial one. She has given me part of her life force.”
“Okay. So what does that mean?”
His answer was quiet and heavy as he said, “I may be able to bring Nathair, and possibly Aleron, back to life.”
