"You're not alone." Bastian stood, still holding her hand, and drew her to her feet. "You have the general's military might. The rebel's popular support. The spymaster's intelligence network. And now you have me. You have the full weight of oath-magic and three centuries of accumulated power."
He led her to the center of the room, where a circle of runes was carved into the stone floor. Catalina hadn't noticed it before, but now it glowed with soft silver light.
"This is a binding circle," Bastian explained. "Used for oaths that carry magical weight. I'm going to pledge myself to you, Catalina. Not as a political ally or a military asset. As something deeper. The oath-magic will bind me to you across lifetimes if necessary. Do you understand what that means?"
"You'll be mine." The posse
