Vaarsuvius' actions have immediate consequences for his or her relationship with his or her mate.
Cast
- Vaarsuvius (Soul Spliced) ◀ ▶
- Qarr ◀ ▶
- The IFCC
- Ganonron ◀ ▶
- Jephton the Unholy ◀ ▶
- Ancient Black Dragon ◀
- Inkyrius ◀ ▶
- Haerta Bloodsoak ◀
- Vaarsuvius' Auburn-Haired Child ◀ ▶
- Vaarsuvius' Green-Haired Child ◀ ▶
Transcript
- Panel 1
Vaarsuvius lands on the ground.
Spliced soul: The danger has passed.
Spliced soul: We have much to do.
Spliced soul: Much left to consider.
Vaarsuvius: <I realize that there is much damage to repair, my love, but unfortunately my presence is required—>
- Panel 2
Inkyrius: <STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM US!!!>
Inkyrius stands protectively in front of her children, brandishing a tree branch as if it were a knife.
- Panel 3
V is shocked.
Spliced soul: Look at the fear in their eyes.
Spliced soul: Have they ever looked at you that way?
Spliced soul: Will they ever look at you any other way now?
- Panel 4
The soul of Hearta Bloodsoak escapes from the chains of the Soul Splice.
Haerta Bloodsoak: Freedom! Ha ha ha ha ha ha!
Spliced soul: The necromancer has left the building.
Spliced soul: It was fun while it lasted.
Vaarsuvius: ARRRGH!!!
- Panel 5
Cedrik: Ah. crap.
Nero: I'll have to send someone out to collect the loose soul, I guess.
Lee: At least Haerta can't cast spells without a mortal host.
Qarr: Wait, what just happened?
- Panel 6
Lee: Holding on to a Soul Splice takes willpower like we said.
Nero: Anything that shakes you up or surprises you has a chance to break your concentration and let one of the splices slip away.
Cedrik: I'm guessing the reaction from the innocent bystanders wasn't quite what the elf was expecting.
- Panel 7
Lee: Don't worry, the other two splices are still holding, though Haerta was the most powerful of the three by a fair bit.
Cedrik: Which reminds me of a wager...
Nero: Yeah, yeah. I owe you ten soul pieces.
- Panel 8
Vaarsuvius is looking drained
Spliced soul: You know, I would work with her again.
Spliced soul: Oh, definitely. A real professional.
Inkyrius: <Leave my mate's body, demons, and begone! I don't know exactly what you have done to my Vaarsuvius—>
- Panel 9
Vaarsuvius: <No, Kyrie, it is I. I am your Vaarsuvius.>
Spliced soul: Such soft flesh.
Spliced soul: I wonder what it tastes like.
Inkyrius: <...No, not MY Vaarsuvius. Who did this to you?>
- Panel 10
Vaarsuvius: <No one, I did this to myself, so that I might vanquish the dragon.>
Inkyrius: <To yourself? You—what did you do??>
- Panel 11
Vaarsuvius: <I negotiated an exchange with three gentlemen from... other planes of existence.>
Inkyrius: <Which planes?>
Vaarsuvius: <...Those in the ventral position.>
- Panel 12
Inkyrius: <YOU SOLD YOUR SOUL TO FIENDS???>
Spliced soul: Willingly!
Spliced soul: Willfully!
Vaarsuvius: <Technically, it is more of a fixed-term lease with an occupancy date yet to be determined!>
Trivia
- Vaarsuvius mentions their mate's name for the first time, although it is a diminutive, Kyrie. V used Kyrie's full name in the next strip.
- In panel 4 one of the spliced souls references the public address announcement given after Elvis Presley concerts in order to disperse the lingering audience hoping for an encore: "Elvis has left the building".
- In panels 5 and 7, Lee refers to the necromancer whose soul was spliced as "Haerta". In #633 Nero referred to her as "Haera Bloodsoak"; however, this mistake was fixed in the compilation book Don't Split the Party, and the spelling with a "t" is consistent otherwise.
- This is the final appearance of the Ancient Black Dragon of Wooden Forest, who sought vengeance for her son whom Vaarsuvius disintegrated. The dragon appeared in eleven strips in total, first appearing in #626.
- This is the final appearance of Haerta Bloodsoak, the most powerful of the mages Soul Spliced with Vaarsuvius. She first appeared in #633.
- As mentioned in #667, Vaarsuvius was spliced to Haerta for 3 minutes and 6 seconds.
- Apparently, Nero and Cedrick had a bet going over which of their splices Vaarsuvius would hold onto longer.