She laughed as they climbed another set of stairs. “Moribund, all this is wonderfully inspiring stuff, it really is, but I’m a Remnant, and I want the world to die. I’ve seen a vision of how it happens and everything I’ve been doing, collecting all these weapons, is designed to help that along. When she arrives, Darquesse is going to burn this planet to a cinder and I’m ensuring that there are no God-Killer level weapons around to stop her. My old friends aren’t going to give me another chance because we’re not on the same side any more. Do you get that?”

“Why do you want her to destroy the world?”

“Because I’ve seen it, and I’ve never seen anything so beautiful. You wouldn’t understand. I’ve tried explaining it to Billy-Ray and he says he understands, but he doesn’t.”

“I understand.”

“No. You don’t.”

“Yes,” Moribund said, turning to her, “I do.” Dark veins spread beneath his skin and his lips turned black.

Tanith fell against the wall and stared, her mouth open.

“This is why I went from being a normal, humourless sorcerer to a sadistic psychopath and killer,” Moribund said. “A Remnant found me, climbed down my throat, and it’s been living inside me ever since. It is as much a part of me now as my own heart or my earliest memory.”

“I thought... I thought all the others were trapped.”

“All those darting black shadow-creatures are trapped, yes, and some like us, bonded pairs, are in gaols. But there are yet others out there, around the world. Some are bonded to sorcerers, some to mortals, some to other... beings.”

“Where are they? Why don’t they do something to free the thousands of Remnants who are being kept in the Soul Catcher?”

Moribund smiled. “Because they’re sociopaths, Tanith. And the longer they’ve been bonded, the less they care. It takes a concerted effort to start rebuilding that part of your personality after decades of neglect. For me, it was difficult, bordering on impossible. For you, it will be hard... but within your reach.”

“You wouldn’t be saying that if you had seen what I saw. It was beautiful.”

“I would wager that what you find beautiful is not the same as what I find beautiful. Once, I would have been at your side. But not now.”

They walked into the storeroom.

“You can come out,” Moribund said.

Wilhelm stood up from behind a crate. He was pale and sweating and his hand was heavily bandaged, and he looked at Tanith like she had just kicked his puppy. “You cut off my finger.”

“Yes,” she said. “I remember.”

“But I was on your team!”

“Because I needed to cut off your finger.”

“But—”