Page 139 of To Trap a Soul

They could both be cursed here, yet together.

He followed the tether that fated them together, sire and offspring, the string black and orange like a twisting twine. At the other end, Nathair, who no longer looked like a spectre but his normal, alive self, lay sleeping in the middle of a vast meadow Weldir had made.

Pushing down long stalks of grass and lying in the false sunlight Weldir provided, Nathair’s long body was folded on itself like most snakes when they rested. His head and torso were somewhere within there, as he could see a meaty arm wedged halfway out of it.

Then Nathair shifted, and he swallowed that arm into the coils of his tail to rest more comfortably.

“Nathair,” Weldir called, not surprised by the thickness in his voice, as though it was laden with emotion.

The slithering slide of his tail stopped, as if startled.

Nathair popped his head out from the very top, and black orbs flared into bright orange. They shifted to dark yellow as he tilted his white serpent skull and peered at Weldir for the very first time.

Weldir lifted his arms so that his offspring could see his black, glittery, and oily body better, trying his hardest to suck in his mist to give better dimension to who he was.

Nathair yanked an arm from his coils and pointed a black glossy claw at him. “What?”

“What am I?” Weldir asked, guessing his question. Nathair nodded. “I am Weldir, the creator of this world. I’m also your creator and father. I am made of mist and shadow. Of nothing and much.”

Nathair nodded as if he understood, only to shake his head when it was obvious he actually didn’t. He looked around.

“Where is... bear skull?Or...son.Where am I?”

He no doubt was searching for his brother, who likely would have normally been there had he not been killed.

Weldir lowered his arms and sighed for his benefit. “You are dead, Nathair.” Then he held his hands out and made his broken skull form in his hands. “Your skull was broken by Orson in your skirmish, and I brought you here. To Tenebris. To my realm.”

“Tenebris? What is... dead? Where isOrson?” Nathair asked, before finally slipping his humanoid torso from the coil of his black tail, the sun casting a gleam of rainbows across his scales. “I find bear skull before he worries. We go home.”

He slithered off without any direction in mind, lifting his pointed snout to the air to smell for Orson. He scratched at his nose and sneezed, as if he didn’t like the scents in the air. He did it repeatedly, and Weldir made a mental note to ask him if the smells needed tweaking, as he himself couldn’t smell them whatsoever.

He just guessed from the human memories he’d dived into.

Weldir followed Nathair, concerned that his lack of humanity could make this transition more difficult. He had no idea how to explain the concept of death to a being that didn’t understand, despite being a part of its cycle.

When no idea of how to do so came to mind, Weldir grumbled.No wonder Lindiwe struggles with this.

It seemed like a difficult task. It was also disheartening that Weldir wouldn’t be able to relate to an entity that struggled to connect the dots within his own mind.

Luckily, Weldir was dauntless, and had plenty of time to assist in this endeavour.

He threw a viewing disc beside him. Lindiwe and their offspring, who bore a wolf skull but no horns or antlers, formed.I must have missed that she’d given them their skull when Ichecked earlier.She was hiding from the rain underneath the frond of a wide-leafed plant, cuddling them as she waited.

“I shouldn’t have left the cave,” she muttered angrily to herself. “If the rain doesn’t die down, we’ll head back.”

A glittering barrier of his own magic, as if he himself shielded her, sheltered her from what could be lurking in the shade of clouds and forest. She lay against the trunk of a tree, the shrubs and the branches above keeping her dry. Their offspring was in her folded arms, partially hidden within her feathery cloak to keep them warm and safe.

He often worried for Lindiwe when he slumbered, as he wasn’t there for her when she may need him. He had no idea if her voice calling out his name would ever stir him while he was unconscious, as he didn’t think she’d ever done so. It was always a relief that she was well, even if she looked a little worse for wear.

Like now, she bore nasty cuts across her jaw, as if a Demon had struck her in the past few days.I wonder if she got into another skirmish with one while obtaining this offspring’s skull.Demons chased after the blood scent once she made her kill, or sometimes, although rarely, she stole their prey to give it to their offspring.

Next time I bring her to my realm, I will heal her of those cuts and any other scars.He did so every time she was here.

Still, she did not require his assistance just yet, although he would make a proper confirmation of that soon enough. So, he focused all his determination on the creature who needed him just as much. Perhaps even more.

He reached out and...touchedNathair’s tail.

With pressure pulling at his face, likely revealing a grin, Weldir didn’t care that he spooked him, and made him turn with a fang-filled hiss. Nor when he unsolidified himself to escape the swipe of sharp claws so they passed through the ribbons of hisbody. No, instead, he peered down at his senseless hand with awe.

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