10

"I promise," you say.

With the word "promise," the sword flares to life again, the blue flashing as bright as a lightning bolt. You feel a searing pain in the hand holding the hilt, but it's gone before you can react by dropping it. You have an uneasy feeling about what just happened.

"What was that?"

"The sealing of your oath."

"Oath, what oath? Who said anything about an oath?"

"What's a promise then?"

"What if I didn't want to make an oath?"

"It's a little late for that. You already have."

"It was a dirty trick, coercing me like that."

"You're saying you didn't know the implications of making promises to magical artifacts?"

"That's not the point."

"You just promised to get some much-needed training so we could be a force for right and justice. Right?"

"Well…"

"Small price, I think. Unless you were planning to renege."

"No," you tell it. "I wasn't."

"Good. Now, let us quit this place."

Earlier That Morning