Chapter 57 - Fifty Seven
The morning fog had not yet lifted when Orrin called me to the stone circle.
The Guardian bird stood beside him, tall and still as a statue, its feathers shimmering with the glow of early light. Its golden eyes watched me, not with judgment, but with an ancient knowing.
"Today," Orrin said, "you begin the Fifth Way. The path of Soulbinding."
I looked from him to the bird, my heart already pounding.
"What is Soulbinding exactly?"
Orrin knelt beside the stone altar and placed a small bowl carved from moonrock on top. "It is the act of tethering your spirit to another’s. It is rare, sacred, and dangerous. If done wrongly, it can break your mind. If done well, it will open your soul to power, pain, and clarity."
He looked up at me, serious. "You will bind your soul to the Guardian. Just for a moment. But in that moment, you will feel its truth. Its memories. Its pain."
I nodded slowly. My chest felt tight, like my breath had caught somewhere deep inside. "What if I can’t handle it?"
Orrin didn’t soften his tone. "Then you are not ready for what lies ahead."
The Guardian stepped forward. Its beak touched the bowl. A soft hum filled the air.
Orrin took a moon-etched dagger and made a small cut across my palm. I didn’t flinch. Blood dripped into the bowl, mixing with water Orrin had poured from the Vale’s sacred spring.