There had to be another way. The Voice's cruelty - and her wicked cunning - twisted anew in his soul, fueling the anger that had simmered there since he'd been stricken with the Blight. This wasn't right, and he squeezed Sam's shoulder again as his friend's hand covered his with paltry reassurance. "What about blood?" he asked, weakly, desperately, knowing that the bookmaker had already thought it through and found the other options to be dead ends. "What about... about Rex? You said she was your friend, surely she'd help you?" He shook his head. "Surely she and at least some of the others have to see this for the threat and intimidation tactic that it is? And if they know you have only a year... that means it's happened to others before..." He drew to a halt, sucking in a sharp breath at the can of worms that thought opened.
Sam looked down, but the bard didn't release their connection with his first and oldest friend on Caido as fear was put into words and left Jigano cold. "Is that what they are?" he asked softly, struggling with the idea that the monsters he had faced the past two years might deserve more sympathy than he expected. "Ascended who turned away from the Voice and refused to worship her? So she turned them into - let them turn into - what they are now?"
Sam looked down, but the bard didn't release their connection with his first and oldest friend on Caido as fear was put into words and left Jigano cold. "Is that what they are?" he asked softly, struggling with the idea that the monsters he had faced the past two years might deserve more sympathy than he expected. "Ascended who turned away from the Voice and refused to worship her? So she turned them into - let them turn into - what they are now?"
