"The bond can be beneficial once properly formed," she offers, though her tone suggests she understands neither of us wants to hear about benefits right now. "Soul-bonded pairs share strength, magic, life force. They become more than the sum of their individual parts."
"And if we refuse?" I press, though the pulling sensation in my chest grows stronger with each moment.
"Then you'll both weaken until the incomplete connection kills you." Jelle stands, brushing droplets from her fingers. "The gods rarely offer choices when they decide to intervene directly. Your options are to complete the bond willingly, or let it complete itself while you both suffer needlessly."
The silence that follows feels heavy enough to crush stone. Around us, the temple's enchanted flames flicker in their alcoves, divine magic humming through the air with patient inevitability.
The thief—I still don't even know her name—stares at me with an expression caught between rage and desperation. Her dark hair falls around her face in waves that catch the magical light, and for a moment I'm struck by how young she looks. How utterly unprepared for the cosmic forces that just rearranged her life without permission.
Join the club, I think grimly. None of us asked for this.
4
HEIDI
The Nashai's words echo in my head like a death sentence.Soul-bonded pairs share strength, magic, life force.
No. Absolutely fucking not.
I've spent six years making sure I belong to no one, owe nothing to anyone, answer to nobody but myself. I've bled for that freedom, starved for it, nearly died for it more times than I can count. And now some cosmic joke thinks it can just... assign me to a stranger? Like I'm property to be redistributed at the gods' whim?
The pulling sensation in my chest grows stronger, like invisible hooks trying to drag me toward the massive xaphan whose fingers are still wrapped around my wrist. I can feel his warmth even through the contact, unnatural heat that makes my skin tingle in ways I don't want to think about.
"This is insane." The words come out steadier than I feel. "You can't just... claim someone based on magical mumbo-jumbo."
His golden eyes narrow, molten metal cooling to something harder and more dangerous. "I didn't claim anything. The gods made this choice for both of us."
"Well, the gods can go fuck themselves." I yank against his grip, knowing it's pointless but needing to try anyway. "I'm not going anywhere with you."
The Nashai makes a soft sound that might be disapproval, but I'm beyond caring about offending divine sensibilities. My entire world just got turned upside down by forces I don't understand, connected to a man I don't know, and everyone expects me to just... accept it?
Not happening.
"You don't have a choice," the xaphan says, his voice carrying the kind of authority that probably makes most people fall in line immediately. Too bad for him I've never been good at following orders. "The bond will kill you if we don't?—"
"Then I'll die free." The words surprise me with their vehemence, but they're true. I'd rather face death on my own terms than surrender my autonomy to cosmic forces that treat people like game pieces.
His expression shifts, something that might be respect flickering behind the irritation. "Admirable sentiment. Stupid, but admirable."
"Fuck you."
"Later, perhaps." The casual arrogance in his tone makes my teeth clench. "Right now, we're leaving."
He tugs me toward the chamber entrance, and this time I dig my heels in with everything I have. My worn boots scrape against marble as I throw my full weight backward, using every trick I learned on the streets to make myself dead weight.
"I said no!"
"And I said we're leaving." He doesn't even seem to notice my resistance, pulling me along like I weigh nothing at all. "You can walk or I can carry you. Your choice, little thief."
The condescending nickname snaps something inside me. I've been called worse things by worse people, but somethingabout the way he says it—like I'm amusing rather than threatening—ignites a rage that burns hotter than his stupid magical warmth.
"My name is Heidi." The words come out sharp enough to cut glass. "Heidi Marlowe. Not 'little thief,' not 'human,' not whatever other dismissive bullshit you want to call me. If you're going to ruin my life, at least have the courtesy to use my actual name."
He stops walking, those molten gold eyes studying my face with new attention. For a moment, something almost like curiosity replaces the arrogant authority in his expression.
"Heidi." He tests the name like he's tasting wine, rolling it around his mouth to judge its quality. "Fine. Heidi Marlowe who thinks death is preferable to divine intervention."
"Heidi Marlowe who knows that being owned by someone else isn't living," I correct, meeting his stare without flinching. "I've been there. I won't go back."
