Liability's Accord, akin to the Christian belief in the 'age of accountability' in your world, involves a specific time frame in a child's life when the consequences of their actions do not fall upon themselves. This unique ability is wielded by Ego Users specializing in healing—more specifically, mothers. It remains relatively obscure within the Ego User community due to its paradoxical nature to be both nurturing and brutal, due to its act of transferring bodily pain from the child to the mother.
Upon forming a contract, a mother commits an unreplenishable portion of her soul to a vessel. Moments ago, I referred to this process as being 'brutal,' and that's because this type of bondage persists even in death, mandating the mother to fulfill the terms of the agreement until its maturity date. The vessel's resilience depends on the extent of the mother's soul invested into it. In the case of Mona Bordeaux, she had been absorbing Noir's pain for a decade, her soul enduring the agonies her son would have otherwise suffered fatal wounds from. While he may not have experienced direct harm, the relentless burden of his environment easily proved viable in eroding his mental well-being. Even the strongest man or the world's greatest hunter would find their will full of wear and tear in a place like Mille Dan, given enough time.
Mona's journey in the abyss before the afterlife was filled with unimaginable suffering. Each time Noir sustained an injury, she felt the searing pain rip through her body. Yet, she bore it all with unwavering resolve, knowing that her suffering meant Noir's survival. The constant agony took its toll, but the bond between mother and child only grew stronger, even if Noir was oblivious to it. Her sacrifices were not just physical; they were emotional and spiritual. Every scar she bore was a testament to her love and dedication, a silent promise to protect her son at all costs.
Noir's situation was a peculiar one indeed. Since his memory was erased and all he knew was the swamp, his philosophy evolved into being that 'killing or being killed' was all there was to life. Just like the beasts in the swamp, survival was all that mattered to him. But then again, he was far more ruthless. Even the animals had families and others that loved or cared for them. Noir on the other hand had nothing and no one but himself. He had nothing to lose and challenging the odds was the only thing that offered some level of stimulation. Over time, his isolation and the brutal environment forged a callousness in him, making him view empathy as a weakness. The swamp had not only shaped his body to be strong and resilient but also hardened his heart, leaving no room for compassion or tenderness.
But now that Liability's Accord is no more, I wonder what will become of Noir. As far as he knows, he's immortal and can't die or even be hurt. How will he react to physical pain or injuries? Will he hold onto the vicious philosophy he's lived by all this time? And his mothers sacrifice, when he finds out what she did, what will it mean to him? Will Jackie even tell him what Liability's Accord does to a person? What it does to their soul? The psychological ramifications of learning about the sacrifices made on his behalf could be profound. Will Noir feel an overwhelming sense of guilt, or will he become even more hardened, refusing to acknowledge the emotional weight of his mother's actions? Only time will reveal how these revelations will shape his future and the choices he makes.
Before I go, there is one thing that's been bothering me. It's exceedingly clear to me that Noir has a trauma response to being drowned by Wayfe all those years ago. Each time he chokes on water, he hurries to his feet and looks around as if he's searching for someone.
There isn't a single Memory Manipulator in all of Enho, so I couldn't tell you the extent of Cyllenes power. But could it be that, while she may be able to erase the memory of events from her subject's mind, she cannot erase the mental scars they leave behind?