Percival's POV
Julian's eyes expanded with shock. He started to speak, but I pressed my hand harder against the phone's speaker.
"Are you there?" Kaelen's voice cut through the silence, sharper now with irritation.
"My apologies," I replied smoothly. "Poor reception. Shall we proceed?"
I shut my eyes and inhaled deeply. The ancient words flowed from deep within me, carved into memory through decades of dangerous bargains. Through a lifetime of trading pieces of my soul for survival.
"By blood and bone, by soul and stone," I intoned. My voice shifted into the rhythm of ceremonial magic. "I bind myself to you, Kaelen of Hall Vance. I will speak no falsehoods to you, neither in speech nor action nor silence. I will not serve as betrayer against your cause. I will bring no harm upon you, not through direct means nor through others, not through deed nor through neglect, not through magic nor by permitting another to strike unopposed while I stand witness."
