‘A possession?’
Nanda shook her head. ‘More like a pact. The kind I make are really quite minor, all told. If you were reckless enough, strong enough, desperate, you might make the kind of pact which… well, nobody comes out of those with their soul intact. It’s said that such a pact ultimately destroys the soul, leaving nothing to enter the Deathlands after decease.’
‘So they’re rare,’ said Konrad slowly.
‘Extremely. They are banned across Marja and Assevan, of course, which is hardly necessary given how difficult it is to find a creature who’d bind itself to you, and you to it, in such a way. And few have a powerful enough motive to seek, or accept, such a bargain.’
Konrad watched her face. ‘These Warders, of your Order. Are they — you — tasked with watching for such bargains?’
‘Our
