While the new crew busied themselves refitting the Azure Kraken and redistributing what few supplies remained, Emery secluded himself in the captain's chamber. His attention was fixed on Brollak, the towering grand magus who now stood obediently before him.
Emery worked in utter silence, his hands weaving through the void, tracing glowing threads of soul-binding energy. Each rune shimmered like molten silver, etched into the very fabric of the chamber. With a decisive flick of his fingers, the symbols shot forward and pressed themselves against Brollak's forehead, burning into his skin as they began to fuse.
The muscular man trembled. His jaw clenched, veins bulged along his neck, and sweat rolled down his temples as the runes etched themselves deeper. They pulsed and crawled, engraving their patterns not on flesh alone, but upon his soul.
