Consensus Breaking (The Auran Chronicles Book 2) by M. S. Dobing Page A

guess, you freed her?’
    ‘That was my intention.’ The smile on Morgan’s face vanished. The steel returned, his eyes narrow. ‘I did not count on the magi getting involved.’
    Cade sighed. ‘Of course, she was Aware. I’m guessing she did not belong to a Family?’
    Morgan spat. ‘A Family? No. She was a mongrel to them, not fit to touch the Weave in any form. But they sent a welcoming party alright. One of their coteries turned up. It had no intention of taking her into their fold, have no fear of that.’
    ‘What happened?’
    Morgan poured another ale. He paced in front of the fire, the liquid swishing around the inside of the metal tankard. ‘What happened? I tell you what happened. They sent two. The rest of them didn’t bother. She was a girl. Nothing to worry about. They would purge her, Cade, you know what that means?’
    ‘They sever her connection to the Weave.’
    ‘No! It does much more than that! It severs her connection to her soul! Did you know that?’
    Cade wasn’t sure where this was going, but the manic look in Morgan’s eye told him now wasn’t a time to be challenging the warrior’s tale. ‘No,’ he simply replied.
    ‘Yes! I didn’t know it. But I’d heard rumours on my travels, stories about the ghosts who would appear to purge these devils. Sometimes of course it was the sheol, they’d already possessed the poor soul and they had no option but to be killed. But for those who hadn’t succumbed just yet, the punishment was worse, much worse! Condemned to live a life without a soul. Just an empty shell destined for the void.’
    Cade waited until the fire in Morgan’s eyes had died a little. The old warrior sat again and stretched out tired legs. Satisfied that the worst was over, Cade returned to the lounge and sat opposite.
    ‘There’s more isn’t there. What did the girl refer to? Where are you going?’
    Morgan leant forwards, his eyes darting left and right as if to ensure that unwanted ears were not present.
    ‘We’ve heard rumours of a place, a place where our kind are welcomed,’ he whispered.
    ‘A place? What place?’
    ‘A sanctuary. For all the newly awoken, and for those struggling with a connection to the Weave but without the wealth and support of the Families to protect them. There is a leader amongst them, one who is calling to the newly awoken.’
    ‘I’ve never heard of this. Where is it? Who is this leader ?’
    Morgan sat back. ‘No, not yet, I’m not ready to tell you.’
    ‘What? Are you serious? You don’t trust me?’
    ‘I do, boy, of course I do. But she doesn’t,’ Morgan replied with a shrug of his shoulders. ‘She’s been through a lot, much more than a girl that age should have to go through. It took me months for her to trust me enough to bring her back with me. I don’t wish to jeopardise it now.’
    Cade sat back. ‘I see. And how exactly do you propose to keep her safe whilst en route? Safe from the sheol, or the magi?’
    Morgan shrugged. ‘It’s worked so far,’ he said.
    ‘Well, you’re welcome to stay here as long as you need, for what it’s worth.’
    ‘What about you?’ Morgan said.
    ‘What about me?’
    ‘You say the Brotherhood is no more. That you are not the First Sword?’
    ‘That’s right.’
    ‘Then come with us. Let us find this sanctuary together. They will probably have use for those with our particular skills.’
    The offer was more appealing than it should’ve been. Cade had nothing now. No goals, no aims. He wasn’t even sure why he’d returned to the Croft in the first place. Was this fate? That he’d run into Morgan like this? Was this meant to be his path for now? But then Seb came to mind, and Sylph. Could he just abandon them? Leave them to the whims of the magi? Whatever this sanctuary was, if it even existed, it would definitely not be compatible with the world that Seb had been taken into.
    He stood from his chair and walked back to the balcony. He rested his hands on the rails.