"Young Hauke's future is in your hands."
Aspakos's words weighed on Erkembalt like an anvil strapped around his tail, dragging him down to the ground and forcing him to look at the captive Frost Walker like a person rather than a puzzle to be solved. The aging artificer would have preferred to treat Hauke's condition as nothing more than a challenge to his skills, one that he could succeed or fail at without real consequence. After all, Lady Nyrielle had only asked that they try, she had never demanded results.
But now, his old friend had not only reminded him that this was a painfully young man, younger even than Erkembalt's own children, but he was a young man who could be incredibly useful in the days to come.
