The hand to his arm was a touchstone, something to focus on and help him begin to find a place for these new revelations, and he smiled wanly at Rexanna in gratitude for her care. Her simple explanation was almost certainly hiding an entire saga behind the handful of words she actually used, but he could understand if she didn't wish to share what might have been a very personal decision in more detail. Still, more snippets emerged, and he exhaled slowly, listening with surprise as she revealed her magic to remain, and only the gifts from the old gods lost in the exchange.
"Even so, a brand can be changed," he murmured, still a little dazed. "But this... all of this... Rexanna, it's incredible. Though..." He hesitated, gaze sharpening as some of the ramifications sunk in. "This... what you've done... did you do it for yourself? Or for Bastien? Pledging your allegiance to the Voice seems to be a far more permanent choice than to any of the old gods. With her, there is no going back..." And she had, from what little, admittedly biased, information they had, once instigated a war that she had no reason not to continue. And Safrin had once implied that her control over her 'children' might be far more absolute than she let on, holding it as a trump card. The thought of Rexanna falling under that control after running from Zariah...
Jigano shuddered, feeling a coldness settle into the pit of his stomach, but still he tried to find a reassuring smile for his friend. "Hopefully Zariah will find you more than she can handle if she returns," he murmured instead.
"Even so, a brand can be changed," he murmured, still a little dazed. "But this... all of this... Rexanna, it's incredible. Though..." He hesitated, gaze sharpening as some of the ramifications sunk in. "This... what you've done... did you do it for yourself? Or for Bastien? Pledging your allegiance to the Voice seems to be a far more permanent choice than to any of the old gods. With her, there is no going back..." And she had, from what little, admittedly biased, information they had, once instigated a war that she had no reason not to continue. And Safrin had once implied that her control over her 'children' might be far more absolute than she let on, holding it as a trump card. The thought of Rexanna falling under that control after running from Zariah...
Jigano shuddered, feeling a coldness settle into the pit of his stomach, but still he tried to find a reassuring smile for his friend. "Hopefully Zariah will find you more than she can handle if she returns," he murmured instead.
