Chapter 142: Above Reproach

Mother shook her head.  "I will let you in on a secret.  You don't have to marry the ones you soul-bond with."

"Huh?"  I gasped, startled.  "Isn't soul bonding the equivalent of a marriage?"

"Who told you that stink pile?"  Mother laughed. 

"No no, Darling.  Somebody thought it was a great idea to combine the soul-bands with their wedding vows.  Then someone else thought it was a great idea also and did the same. 

"Eventually it spread everywhere, and pretty soon, what was once just a way for a weapon to be mage-controlled turned into granite-etched marriage truth." 

She looked at me with intensity.  "The truth is, soul bands were originally created for the sole purpose of connecting the various members of a Power Triad to make it easier for three people to act as one." 

"When your lives are on the line, you cannot hesitate because you are not clear what your partners are thinking about."