“No!” Bahar’s voice tore from her, raw and desperate. Permanently bound? To *him*? The man from her nightmare, the one who would butcher her squad. Her vision blurred with panicked fury. She yanked her arm, as if the physical act could rip away the glowing brand, could sever the invisible cord. Heat surged from the Rune-Core's brand, rattling her teeth.
Kadir stood motionless, his gaze fixed on her, dark and unreadable. He hadn't flinched when Razak called him a butcher. He hadn’t flinched when the Rune-Core burned its mark into his skin. His composure was a silent accusation, a further twist of the knife in her gut. She had to get away. She had to break this. She had to save them all.
She spun, putting her back to Kadir, and sprinted. Her worn boots slapped against the courtyard’s rough stones, a desperate rhythm against the roar in her ears. Each stride pulled at the tether, a searing thread tugging at her arm, then her shoulder, then her entire nervous system. It felt like her very veins were being flayed. Her vision swam, the ornate pillars of the Bastion blurring into streaks of grey. Her throat locked tight on a ragged wheeze.
[RUNE-CORE: PROXIMITY VIOLATION DETECTED. SEVERITY LEVEL 2. MAINTAIN SYNERGY RANGE.]
The pain ratcheted up, a sudden, merciless current that seized her muscles. Her legs buckled without warning. Bahar screamed, a choked sound, as she crumpled to the ground, her knees hitting the rough stone with bone-jarring force. Her arm spasmed, the brand on her skin a throbbing ember.
She lay there, gasping, trying to force her limbs to obey, but they twitched uncontrollably. Tears of agony stung her eyes. This wasn’t just a punishment; it was a physical restraint, an invisible chain that bound her to the one person she had to avoid at all costs.
A shadow fell over her. She squeezed her eyes shut, not wanting to see him. A hand, strong and surprisingly gentle, slid beneath her arm, then her knees. She was lifted, effortlessly, into the air. Bahar thrashed, a furious, flailing defiance, but the nerve-fire was still a raw burn, leaving her weak and trembling. She could do nothing but hang in his arms, humiliated and helpless, as Kadir carried her.
He moved with a silent, measured gait, not towards the barracks, but towards the lower fortress gates, the massive Ironwood doors that led out into the Blight-Ash wasteland. Dread surged anew. Was he taking her out there? Was he going to abandon her to the ash-horrors?
Suddenly, the ground trembled. A low, guttural roar vibrated through the stone, followed by the screech of grinding metal. The air filled with the acrid scent of ozone and the sickly sweet smell of decay. A tremor ran through Kadir’s frame, barely perceptible, but Bahar felt it. He shifted her higher in his arms, his pace quickening.
“What was that?” she whispered, fear finally eclipsing her anger.
Before he could answer, a thunderous crash ripped through the air. The Ironwood gates, reinforced with Bastion steel, exploded inward, splintering into jagged shrapnel. A towering, multi-limbed monstrosity lurched into the grounds, its chitinous hide the color of bleached bone, its numerous limbs ending in razor-sharp claws. It was a blighted beast, one of the most feared ash-mutations, usually found miles deep in the wasteland, not within the fortress walls.
Its four segmented eyes, glowing an eerie violet, scanned the courtyard. The scattered guards raised their dull blades, but the monstrosity moved too fast. It swiped, and two guards were flung against the wall, broken and still.
Kadir lowered Bahar, setting her on her feet, but keeping one hand clamped on her arm. “Stay close,” he muttered, his voice a low rumble. He drew the obsidian cleaver from his back, its polished blade reflecting the gloom.
“But… Timur!” Bahar remembered her fake fiancé. He’d been cowering by the fountain, clutching his absurd ‘dowry’ satchel. Her head snapped toward the fountain. Timur was frozen, a statue of terror, clutching a small, embroidered pouch. He was foolishly attempting to deliver the dowry to secure their fake engagement.
The beast's gaze locked onto Timur. It let out a chittering shriek, skittering across the flagstones with terrifying speed. Bahar’s heart leaped into her throat. She tried to move, to shout, but her feet were leaden.
Kadir moved with the speed of a desert wind. He pushed Bahar behind him, then launched himself at the horror. The obsidian cleaver sliced through the air, finding purchase in a joint of the creature’s leg. The beast shrieked, a high-pitched, piercing sound, and turned its attention to Kadir.
One of its massive claws, sharp as a whetted obsidian shard, raked across Kadir’s side. The blow sent him stumbling backward, a guttural groan escaping his lips. Bahar gasped, a searing stitch exploding across her ribs, mirroring the strike. It felt like a white-hot blade had ripped through her, even though the claws had not touched her skin. This was the sympathetic resonance of the tether, the terrifying consequence of their forced bond.
[RUNE-CORE: SYNERGY STABILIZED. PROXIMITY MAINTAINED.]
Kadir recovered, his movements fluid, almost dancer-like, as he dodged another attack. He returned a swift counter, severing one of the creature’s smaller limbs. The shared ache flared in Bahar’s arm, a sharp, momentary sting, as if her own muscles had performed the strenuous act. She staggered, clutching her side, then her arm. This wasn't just agony; it was a constant, brutal reminder of their bond.
Enraged, the beast lashed out again, this time aiming for Timur, who still stood paralyzed by the fountain. Kadir roared, a sound of raw defiance, and threw himself between the merchant and the creature. The claw struck, not his side this time, but his shoulder, tearing through the thick leather of his uniform. He grunted, a sound of profound effort and pain, but held his ground, protecting Timur. The beast's claw was embedded in Kadir’s flesh.
Bahar cried out as hot torment ripped through her collar, exactly where Kadir took the blow. She could feel the tearing sensation, the burning sting of the wound, the phantom gush soaking her skin. Her legs nearly gave out. He had taken that blow deliberately, to protect a civilian.
Kadir, his face grim, twisted his blade and yanked it free, dislodging the claw. A torrent of foul-smelling ichor erupted from the creature’s wound, and it shrieked, writhing. Its weight shifted, sending tremors through the courtyard. The tremors intensified. The archway above them, already weakened by the brute's initial breach, groaned under cracking masonry.
“Get back!” Kadir yelled, his voice strained. He shoved Bahar violently against the nearest stone wall, pinning her there with his body just as the archway above them collapsed in a roar of pulverized rock and dust. He shielded her completely, his blood-soaked shoulder pressed against her cheek. The impact rattled her teeth, and the borrowed wound across her collar burned with blinding intensity.
His breath, ragged and warm, ghosted over her ear. “I know what you saw in your dream, and I am trying to stop it.”