Korsha's head turned, only enough to see who was clapping their hands. She kept Tal in the corner of her vision, not willing to give him an advantage. Her eyes widened as she saw Anadrov standing there. He stood straight backed, regal, like a king about to address his people. His eyes drifted from Tal to her. A smile creased his cheeks.

“Well done my good and faithful servant.”

A rush of euphoria and joy washed over Korsha. It filled her like an autumn fire on a cold stormy night. She had to keep herself composed as Tal hadn't been dealt with.

“How are you still alive?” Tal whispered, the words dripping out of him in horror.

Anadrov gazed shifted from Korsha down at him. He wore a smug grin as he appraised the young technomancer.

“You may serve Lady Arsanthia, but did you ever consider who she serves?”

“Goddess...” Tal said, his body slumping as though the fight had fled from him.

“How do you think the governor got her position? She was the first person I had Korsha bind.” Anadrov gestured to Korsha with a prideful smile that made her blush, “A most useful tool. What's more, is the fact you were there when it happened.”

Tal exhaled as though being punched in the gut. His head fell back and he stared off at the ceiling. He closed his eyes as he scrunched his brow.

“I remember now.”

“I wondered if you would ever catch that detail but I will grant you that she looks... far healthier now. Through her I kept tabs on you. Gathered intelligence. When I heard about your little plan, I figured we could have a game. A challenge. One strategist against another.”

“We... we were all just pawns.”

“Perhaps some of you were,” Anadrov's gaze fell upon Korsha again. She looked away, unable to meet its intensity. Anadrov's clipped bootsteps approached her. A hand gently cupped her chin. He lifted her face until their eyes met. “You were my queen. The first and last line of my defenses.”

“Now what? You're gonna lock me up and throw away the key or kill me like you did to Deidra?”

Anadrov lowered his hand. He grinned at Korsha. As he spoke his gaze remained fixed upon Korsha.

“Kill you? Why would I kill someone so useful.”

“You won't win Anadrov. There are more of us. We won't stop until we eliminate you.”

“Ah yes, the others. Unlike a traditional game, this one only ends when all the pieces are eliminated. Unfortunately for you I believe you're all out of moves while I still have plenty that I can do.”

“I won't talk. You can torture me but we both know my training will last long enough for my allies to scatter. They'll regroup somewhere else. I'm worthless to you.”

An amused smile crept along Anadrov’s face as he turned away. Korsha watched as he made his way over to Tal, knelt down and rested his hands upon his knees. Korsha followed, not willing to trust Tal to not do something underhanded. Now on the other side, she could see her master shake his head as though he were dealing with an irate toddler who just couldn't understand the simple wisdom he was giving.

“You're not worthless. You just need,” Anadrov leaned closer to Tal until their noses were almost touching, “purpose.”

With that Anadrov stood, snapped his fingers and once more Korsha fell under the scrutiny of his gaze.

“As your last test and demonstration of your loyalty, I command you to bind him.”

Korsha had seen this coming. While Anadrov had been speaking with Tal she was having flashbacks to that terrible night. If Tal was right and Deidra was dead it was because Korsha hadn't been strong enough, obedient enough, to do as she was ordered. If she had been good enough she would have bound Deidra and her sister would be here.

Alive.

With her.

“Did you know that I offered Korsha the same chance to redeem her sister?”

Korsha watched as Tal shifted to stare at her. She could see through the paper thin defiance that floated on an ocean of fear. He bared his teeth like a cornered animal as Anadrov grabbed his shoulders. Tal struggled but Anadrov jabbed him several times. The technique left Tal's body bound up and unable to fully move. Korsha smiled at the irony. Now all I need to do is bind you so that you can live.

“But she wasn't strong enough. Instead of following my orders, she broke down.” His hard gaze turns to Korsha, “Will you make the same mistake as last time?”

Anadrov yanked Tal up, supporting his body so that Korsha had easy access to him. She hesitated. Part of her wanted Tal to suffer for everything he had put her through. Looking at him made her ache. He was the representation of a better time, a happier time that had soured over the years. He was the inevitability of the past. She stepped forward.

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“Don't do this!” Tal said as he pulled his head to the side in a futile attempt to delay the inevitable.

A strong wave of guilt crashed within Korsha. It drowned her heart. She understood. Some people just weren't worthy of making their own decisions. They needed guidance. If she had done that for Deidra then... I'm so sorry Deidra. I could have saved you but instead I was selfish. Korsha stood before Tal, towering over him. His wide eyes stared up at her. The terrified features of his face were made all the more potent by her shadow.

Korsha took a deep breath. If she did this then she'd lose Enaru. He'd know. He always knew… somehow. She wondered if she should tell her master. She glanced at his face. It was cold. Hard. It was that same look she’d seen all those years ago. It brooked no argument. It demanded results. He would only see it as an excuse. I’ll just have to find another companion. It’s not like I’m used to being alone.

She met Tal's gaze, this time she didn't flinch. Didn't look away. She held him in a way an older sister might hold a defenseless child. She had to protect him. Show him the error of his ways. She reached out with her hand.

“Excellent. Bind him to yourself.”

Korsha stopped, turning towards her master unsure if she'd heard him correctly. He gave her an approving nod.

“After we eliminate his co-conspirators, I have no further use for him. He will be yours to command. A gift for your loyalty and a strategic second layer to your own defenses.”

Tal's eyes grew wide as Korsha's hand reached for him. Her hand pressed against his face. Her fingers curled in, grabbing onto him.

He screamed.

The sound erupted around her, echoing in the confines of the container. Then it faded as the world bled away. She'd shut her eyes and when she reopened him she was no longer in the container. She was in that liminal space between her world and that of the spirit.

Everything was coated in a thick viscous darkness. The ground moved and swelled as though it were liquid though it never broke the perfectly even surface she now stood on. The only other feature that existed beyond herself was Tal. He hovered in the air before her. His body was without his armor. Without his clothes. Without most of his physical features. This was his essence.

She set to work, her hands grabbing at the darkness and pulling strands from it. She infused them with her intention. With her desires for him to listen. To obey. To submit. She wove the strands into his very essence. The darkness slithered through him. Twisting and splitting until it inhabited him. It now dwelt within him.

To him she would now be like a goddess. Something to be listened to. To be honored and respected. He would crave for her wisdom like sustenance and when she gave it he would devour it, consuming it until he had taken it in its entirety.

That had been his body.

The seat of his desires and instincts.

She turned to his mind. Here she hesitated. She needed to bend his will into a new direction but she didn't want to alter it entirely. Tal was smart. Under his own ingenuity he'd done all this. It had ultimately led to him falling into her master's plan but who could really oppose Anadrov?

She made her decision. She would ensure he couldn't act against her. That he'd have to act upon her best interest. She wouldn't ensnare him fully. That would render him useless to her. She paused. Blinking for a moment.

Useless.

To her.

That was a strange combination of words. One that was foreign and had an exotic taste to it. She repeated it several times and understood why her master liked it so much. There was a potency there. Making things useful to oneself was how progress had been made. All scientific endeavors had been made through these means. Hadn't they?

“Useful,” she whispered, her voice radiating out from her, “to me.”

She proceeded with cautious determination. She continued about her work for sometime with only the silent as her old familiar companion. Not for long. I won't be alone anymore.

“What are you doing!”

She froze mid stitch. Enaru had finally found her. She continued on as if he weren't there.

“This is wickedness. Why have you chosen the path you refused so long ago?”

Korsha's brow furrowed. She'd always enjoyed Enaru's company but now she was beginning to see him more as a nuisance than a guide. He was always speaking of things that had never happened. It was confusing. Vexing. Her life had those in abundance without him adding to them. No, what she needed was some peace. If that meant leaving him behind then so be it.

“Why have you forsaken the old oaths? Auria please don't do this. Don't forsake our bond?”

She'd finished.

In her mind she formed the image she saw in the mirror. The one she had been so disgusted with. Now it wasn't quite so bad. The corruption of Azaelah was still there but that didn't mean she was all bad. She was obedient. Useful. And in that usefulness was born the greatest quality of all: loyalty. And from the nurturing of that virtuous fruit she’d harvested purpose. Now she was going to give purpose to another person. What could be more divine?

She brought her hands up, forming them into the triangle shape. She took a breath. She ignored the ranting of Enaru, letting it turn into muffled background noise.

She breathed out.

Her breath was a fine mist that flowed into Tal. It transformed him. It covered him like a second layer of skin.

“No!”

Korsha stood there. She wanted to turn back, to gaze at Enaru one last time but she couldn't trust herself to be strong enough. It was time to let the past die.

“Goodbye, Enaru.”

“Korsha! Move you foul daemon or I'll...”

Enaru's voice faded away as Korsha opened her eyes. Once more she was back in the presence of her master. Tal's eyes had been shut. She looked to her master for guidance. He remained stoic. Was this another test? She glanced down to Tal's relaxed features. She chewed the inside of her lip as she thought.

“Arise.”

As if that had been all he was waiting for, Tal opened his eyes. His movements were still stiff from when Anadrov had attacked him but he complied. Tal blinked several times and then his eyes settled upon Korsha.

“What would you have me do, my master?”

Korsha thought for a moment. Then she looked towards her own master. She remembered what he'd told her all those years ago when she had been a small and frightened little thing.

“Listen and I will grant you purpose.”