Alice rested her hand on the lead Thestral's bony neck. The herd's current leader hesitated; she could feel the ancient pull of a powerful soul coming off her, but the herd's collective will still held it back. They weren't ready to trust a human again.
"I'm not here to force a decision from the whole herd," Alice said calmly. "I just need to talk to whoever actually calls the shots."
The leader turned and looked toward a gaunt, ancient Thestral that stood apart from the rest, eyes half-lidded, like it had stopped caring about the world centuries ago.
That one.
The leader walked Alice over and gently touched foreheads with the elder. A moment later, the old Thestral opened its cloudy eyes, gave Alice a long, weary look, then struggled to its feet. It led her to a massive boulder covered in carved pictures (primitive, but clear enough to tell a story).
Alice studied the stone murals and started narrating what she saw.
"A long time ago, a young wizard came to your herd. The leader back then worked with him. They experimented on souls. It went horribly wrong. A lot of newborn Thestrals died. The leader from that time was badly wounded and never recovered."
She glanced at the old creature. "Am I reading that right?"
The elder dipped its head once in confirmation… then shook it slowly. Leave.
It was done with humans.
Alice noticed the huge tear in the elder's wing and compared it to the damage shown on the boulder's carved leader.
"That leader in the pictures… that was you, wasn't it?"
A flash of raw pain crossed the ancient Thestral's eyes. Bingo.
Alice's voice softened, but only a little. "Don't you want to make up for what happened back then?"
"I'm not asking the herd to take any risks. I just need to borrow a tiny bit of your natural soul affinity. One volunteer is enough. Zero danger."
"And in return? Someday, when you and your herd need it, you'll have my protection."
The elder snorted (actually snorted) and stomped the ground. A ripple of soul-force slammed into Alice, making her bones hum.
The message was clear: You? A little witch? Protect us?
Alice's expression went very still.
She spread her arms, closed her eyes, and let the dam break.
The tattoo on her wrist vanished. Behind her, a banner unfurled in complete silence (black silk, no wind, yet it rippled like it was caught in a storm). The Banner of Ten Thousand Souls materialized right in front of the herd.
The second it appeared, every Thestral froze.
The elder dropped to its front knees without meaning to. Phantom Thestrals (hundreds of them) began rising from the banner: foals that never grew up, adults who died screaming, every single soul lost because of that long-ago betrayal. They circled the elder like accusing ghosts.
The old Thestral tried to look away. It couldn't. For decades it had refused to let those shades manifest; it couldn't bear the guilt. Yet here they were, dragged into the open by the girl's artifact.
One by one, the rest of the herd arrived. They saw their former leader kneeling before a human child, surrounded by the dead. None of them dared step inside the ring of ghosts. The air itself felt like it would swallow anything that crossed the line.
The elder's defiance crumbled. It finally understood where Alice's arrogance came from. This wasn't an ordinary witch.
When the ancient Thestral lowered its head (this time willingly), Alice smiled.
"There we go. See? Much simpler."
"I did hope we could be friends and that you'd lend me your power because you liked me. Turns out a little friendly oppression gets the job done way faster. We'll work on the friendship part later."
She stepped forward. A ribbon of shadow peeled off the banner, wrapped gently around the elder, and sank into its hide. The jagged tear in its wing knit itself whole. A tiny emblem of the banner appeared on its forehead like a brand.
The elder threw its head back and let out a ringing, joyous cry. For the first time in centuries, it felt whole.
Alice gave it an approving pat. "Only Thestrals can be healed that way; the banner runs on soul energy. Consider it a signing bonus."
Then she grinned. "Now, let's test what I just bought. Have the herd form a perimeter. I've got experiments to run, and I don't want any centaurs or professors poking around."
The elder whinnied once. Instantly, sleek black shapes fanned out through the trees, forming a living wall of silence and wings.
Alice rolled her shoulders, banner still floating behind her like a loyal shadow.
"Perfect," she murmured. "Time to see what a simplified Banner of Ten Thousand Souls can really do."