“Stop whatever you are doing! We have you cornered now, Soulweaver!”

  Soulweaver… this was a funny new title that they had assigned to me. Apparently, I’m one of the greatest evils that has crossed the land of Andasi, and that I need to be nipped in the bud before I can spread my influence further. Funnily enough, I don’t really think they understood how apt this moniker is, how close it came to what I was trying to do, despite the fact that my fall was being orchestrated as a political maneuver.

  The [Knights] surrounded me in my chamber, swords drawn, their fae companions at their side, and a formation being set-up to prevent my escape, while two of them, obviously the leaders, approached me within the formation. I could sense the nervousness of these [Knights], a tremble in their souls, aware that a cornered beast is when it could cause the most damage and expecting retaliation of the highest order from one of the most heinous villains since the [Warmonger]. This was of course all very unnecessary, as despite what the government might think, the combat ability I possess is negligible compared to the ensemble of [Knights] here. Pick any one of them, and I will most probably lose in the matter of seconds in a head-to-head fight. But this was no simple head-to-head fight, and I was no cornered beast.

  “Lowen Reletten… Old friend. Surely you must have figured out why your brother deserted the [Pegasi Knights]?”

  I continued to sit at the table in the chamber the [Knights] have most thoroughly surrounded, staring at the two leaders not too far away from me. The slimmer lead [Knight] on the right stiffened, and slowly took off her helmet to reveal a young woman with a scar on her right cheek and red hair in a bun. A breach in protocol for sure, but she knew my combat capabilities better than most and hence knew that the helmet did not matter much at all. A tired, worn-out look was spread across her face, and I could sense the turmoil and conflicting emotions in her soul, no matter how hard she was trying to prevent me from sensing that.

  “He was a traitor and a terrorist, just like you.”

  “You don’t sound very convinced.”

  “They offered me a chance to become a [Knight of Adamantium Order] if I brought them to you.”

  “And what was your choice?”

  A tear escaped from Lowen’s eyes as I felt the unrest in her soul raging as she struggled to make a decision. She was about to reply, no doubt trying to dodge the question but before she could answer, the other lead [Knight] rudely inserted himself into the conversation.

  “Her choice was clear, Soulweaver! Why else would we be here?”

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  He stood between Lowen and me, brandishing his sword at me while summoning his fae companion, a [White Foal] neighing by his side.

  “Oh really? I don’t think they placed that much faith in Lowen here, if not they would most certainly be sending much more than a potential [Pegasi Knight] and a random assortment of [Knights] here.”

  “What does that matter? We will defeat you nonetheless and bring you in, foul tainter of souls!”

  I chuckled a bit, amused at his zealousness and his resulting naivety. A fun little distraction, but there was no time for games as much as I wanted to debate with him on what a terribly formed plan this was for them based on the information they had. I ignored him, and turned to Lowen, who was biting her lip at the back.

  “Lowen, do you remember Taltienne?”

  She sharply raised her head and stared at me with a hard gaze, while the potential [Pegasi Knight] wanted to respond to the slight of being ignored, but ultimately chose to let the conversation happen. After a pregnant pause, her eyes softened a bit.

  “Yes I do, Ved. One of our first big successes.”

  “By now, I’m sure you have your suspicions on the true perpetuator.”

  “True is a strong word. But yes, I have figured out part of the underlying reasons, but what can we do about it?”

  She sighed in resignation as she drew her sword as well.

  “What if I told you a [Knight of Magicite Order] was there too?”

  There was a sharp intake of breath from both Lowen and the other lead [Knight], who no longer seemed content to let this conversation happen. He wielded his sword with conviction, and started approaching me.

  “Shut your mouth! Stop your tainting of the souls of [Knights]!”

  “Which one?”

  Both Lowen and I ignored him as she asked me.

  “The worst possible one.”

  “Stop your foul magic this instant! Or I shall be forced to stop for you!”

  The rest of the [Knights] braced themselves, and I felt the formation getting stronger. Clearly, they thought that some soul weaving was happening and that I was tempting one of their leaders with my vile words, but I was determined to have this conversation follow its course, and for me to finish what I came here to do.

  “Let me show you, Lowen. How the Soulweaver came to be from a humble [Muse], and the truth of your brother’s betrayal!”

  I raised my hand to cast a spell, while Lowen’s soul started settling as she came to a decision.

  “Cease this immediately!”

  The potential [Pegasi Knight] rushed in to stab me, clearly expecting me to stop my spell to defend myself, but I did no such thing. I felt the sword cleanly go through my torso, the surprise in the soul of the potential [Pegasi Knight], the instinctual shock in Lowen who tried to stop him but failed because this happened too far away and too suddenly, but most importantly, that the spell I had cast on Lowen had followed through: a spell that shared my memories with her.

  “It’s time to come clean, Lowen. Our souls have been weaved together for a while, whether we like it or not. And then we can choose who we want to be!”