Discordant Note | TBATE

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Arthur Leywin

I winced with every laborious step. My body—still aching over half a day since my battle with the Wraiths—protested every shift.

But my mind was clear. Terribly, horribly clear.

"Reports say that Burim has been struck by a lavatide," Alanis Emeria said, her blue eyes, rimmed by a ring of pink, flashing. She mechanically shifted through half a dozen communication scrolls in her hands as she followed after me. "The true extent of the aftermath is inconclusive, however."

The elf—who had devised my training regimen and had a stickling ability to organize things—continued to robotically list off what was known about the Rogue Hero's attack on Burim. She had been an invaluable asset in restructuring my information divisions. With her objective and orderly mind, I'd been able to truly take control of every speck of knowledge flowing throughout Sapin and Elenoir.

I suppose I have that phoenix's name now, I thought darkly. Chul Asclepius. Not the Rogue Hero.

"What word do we have on the surviving figures of the Alacryans?" Sylvie demanded, marching in furious lockstep with me.

"It is likely that the Scythe, Seris Vritra, yet lives," Alanis replied simply. "Multiple sources claim she was seen in the aftermath of the clash between the Rogue Hero and Spellsong. Whether the Hero or Spellsong survived their battle, however, is another matter. In the same vein, the former Lance Balrog may also have perished."

Alanis shifted her blonde hair slightly. "Keep in mind that our reports are rudimentary. Many are contradictory or confused as well. This is all speculation on my part based on the available pieces."

"Thank you, Alanis," I said sharply. "You are dismissed."

The elf bowed, her hair drooping over her face. "Of course, King Leywin."

She walked away without the barest change in her steps. I'd learned long ago that I needed to be explicit in my commands and orders with the woman. She did not comprehend implicit social cues.

"This is bad," Sylvie said, fidgeting with a lock of her wheat blonde hair as we continued to walk toward our destination. "You were so close to working something out. For Virion to be healed, before that brute charged in and ruined everything."

I kept my eyes forward, receiving nods of respect, reverence, and awe from the servants and guards we passed. The whispers of "King Godspell" and "Commander from Epheotus" rang through my ears, but I filtered them away.

Sylvie's anger was palpable as her aura radiated from her, dark wisps of energy sparking and popping with the force of a nascent asura. Her fists were clenched tightly at her sides as she trailed me. She tried to restrain her emotions over our bond, but it was impossible.

"Nobody could have predicted this," I assured my bond, sensing her quiet guilt. "The phoenix intentionally laid those trails for you to follow. And none of us could have guessed his intentions with the information we had."

Hell, we didn't even know the 'Rogue Hero' was a phoenix until I'd sensed his flexing of power. The mage had some sort of artifact that made his asuran signature hard to detect, but my manasight had pierced it once he'd revealed more of his power.

"But our only chance to see Virion healed is gone," Sylv snapped. "All because I couldn't track down this… this foolish child!"

My thoughts were immediately drawn to Cylrit, barely healed by Sylv's arrival. He was currently locked in the deepest of our dungeons, far from conscious and shackled to a bed. I would have wished for better accommodations, but the only place in the castle that could hold the Retainer was the deepest levels.

Indeed, any chance to negotiate with Seris Vritra died with her Retainer's capture. I knew war, knew the sanctity of a parlay. And regardless of the circumstances, our parlay had been broken. Shattered.

The Wraiths that waited to assassinate Chul, though… I suppressed a shudder as I remembered my battle with them. Were they only there for Chul? Or had they been tracking me, too?

Agrona is escalating this war. In response to Taci? Sylvie? Or just to put down that phoenix?

"No," I said quietly to my bond, still thinking these things over and over. "You can't blame yourself for this, Sylv."

Sylvie bit her lip, looking away from me as she did so. "It's just more death," she whispered, halting in her steps. "I just don't want more people to die, Arthur. It's… I just want to make a difference."

I stopped, turning to look at my bond as she stared at the floor. She retreated slightly from our mental tether, but I knew a hint of what feelings coursed through her being.

"In Epheotus, Grandma Myre told me why we protect the lessers," Sylv said, clearly uncomfortable. "We asura… we were once like them, in ages long, long ago. Before time even had a name, we were lessers. That's why the dragons are supposed to be your guardians, so you can one day find your ascension. But nothing I do has helped anyone."

My bond bit her lower lip, her golden eyes downcast. "The massacres always happen everywhere I'm not, and my vivum arts are never enough, even as they progress in power. I'm supposed to be an asura, Arthur. I'm supposed to succeed where my family failed."

My expression softened as I took in her words. She refused to look me in the eye, her thoughts shadowed as she suppressed familiar guilt and self-scolding. The same kind she always supported me with, bolstering my shoulders when they slumped from the weight of the world.

I struggled for a moment, trying to figure out the right thing to say to make this better. I wanted to wash away her pain, to reassure my young dragon that it wasn't her fault. I wanted to list all the logical reasons why she couldn't be blamed for this. That it was Agrona's fault and his alone.

But as I thought of all the moments I'd shared with Tess, Ellie, and the Council these past few months, I realized that that wasn't what Sylv needed.

Words and reassurances weren't what she needed right now. She just needed someone to listen.

I took my young dragon in a hug, holding her tight, letting her draw from the strength I still held. She hugged me back, burying her face into my fresh clothes as her arms trembled. "Ever since that massacre," she whispered, clearly struggling to hold back tears, "I promised myself that I'd be a protector. One that wouldn't let these things happen. But they are. I'm an asura, but I feel…"

We stood there for a time as I held my bond, letting her hold me. Letting her be weak, because I could be strong in her place. The hall echoed with silence as she trembled, time slowing around us.

"Thank you, Arthur," Sylvie said quietly, her emotions settling. "Thank you."

"I'm always here for you, Sylv," I said in turn, my voice barely a whisper. "You're my bond. It's a two-way street, you know. Sometimes, we're all weak."

It took being a king again to really understand that. Even if the weight of the continent was on my shoulders, there were people at my side who gave me their strength. I wasn't alone, and neither was my bond.

Sylv closed her glittering eyes, squeezing me for a moment. I felt a bit of disconcerted worry as her emotions became more shrouded. "Arthur, about what Myre said–"

The moment was abruptly shattered as two absurdly powerful mana signatures flowed toward me. Each moved with ephemeral, fairy-like grace, but there was a sharp distinction to them. One was cool like a stream with the scent of roses. The other carried poisonous, seductive undertones that made me unconsciously wary.

Tess strode down the corridor with the dignity of both a princess and a Lance, her turquoise eyes hard and cold. Not far behind her, Aya flowed as she twisted sound and wind magic to accentuate her seductive facade.

Tessia was quick to speak as she caught my attention. She bowed ever-so-slightly, the mist trailing in her wake shifting and whirling with secrets.

It's only been a few months, I thought, inspecting her core with respect, and she's more than a match for any of the other Lances, even as they grow in power as well. Especially with how her Elderwood Guardian Will has changed.

"Lance Silverthorn, Phantasm," I said, pulling myself back to my full height as Sylvie moved away from me. "It's good you're here."

Tess' eyes were shadowed as she watched me, holding back some sort of indescribable emotion. "There wasn't much of a choice, Arthur," she said simply, her tone graceful. "We each have something to report."

I felt my earlier warmth dip into calculation and worry as my eyes flicked to Aya. She stepped forward, taking my attention. Her dark hair had grown well past her shoulders by now, draping like shadows over her Lance uniform.

"King Leywin," she said forcefully, bowing slightly. Aya had been one of the few Lances who had wholeheartedly supported my ascension to commander, something that made my life infinitely easier. "Viessa Vritra appears to be moving. I've been tracking her across the Beast Glades for the past few weeks in anticipation of something, but she's finally vanished off the map. I was unable to follow the taint of her mana any further south of the Dire Tombs dungeon. From what I've gathered, I suspect she's ready to strike."

I frowned, digesting this information. Once our intelligence put together that Viessa Vritra was somehow portalling the beast hordes across the continent, it became our top priority to put her down, and if that was impossible, to delay and disrupt her wherever she went.

The Scythe had taken many lives as we sent them to disrupt Alacryan camps and beast operations. It had quickly become clear—to me at least—that none of the Lances were truly prepared for a head-on confrontation with her. But Aya was a master illusionist, something we'd pieced together was a specialty of Viessa's. Who better to stall and nip at Viessa's heels than someone who knew her craft?

"Do you have any clue as to what she might try and do?" I asked seriously, focusing on the elven Lance. "Another beast horde, maybe?"

"I don't think so," Aya replied after a long moment of consideration. "The Scythe never gave me attention, even as I stalked after her. I got the sense that she was almost always aware of me, but never responded to my attempts at provocation. I suspect she was… waiting for something. But whatever that was, it's arrived."

I hadn't even gotten the time I needed to outfit all my armies with standard gunfire training and tactics. Only a few companies would be able to use my weapons with any level of efficiency, and it appeared that the war was changing again. Gideon's development of weapons was in the works, but far from mass production.

"You've done well, Phantasm," I said honestly, shifting this away for further inspection later. "I'm sure the both of you have heard word of what recently happened in Burim?"

"That's precisely why I'm here," Tess bit out, stepping forward. "Because Avier returned with something, just as we arrived, and Rinia was there to receive it. She said she had… explanations for you, about the phoenixes and where they came from."

—

My steps were like thunder as I marched along the massive corridor. I'd donned a simple gold crown and fur mantle, professing my station as I marched. My hands were locked behind my back. The elven Lances walked with me, our aura and power a statement. Only slightly behind us, Sylvie strode with the regal arrogance of an asura, further emblazoning our status into the minds of all who observed. Everywhere we moved, people bowed in reverence, the world itself seeming to part for us.

But despite my outward appearance, I was seething inside.

Rinia said that Avier would return to her soon, I thought, feeling anger rising in my stomach as the implications of it all settled deep in my core. That damned seer.

I struggled to keep my aura in check as my footsteps echoed around us. Mist swirled and eddied around our feet like a red carpet, Tess' mana twisting with the same implications. Rinia knew far, far too much. And if she'd expected my parlay with Cylrit to fail from the start…

I was tired of things being out of control. I had been reactive in my first steps as king, but since then I'd become painfully aware of how much information I lacked. Even with the restructured information division, we still didn't know the Alacryans' exact numbers, their capabilities, or anything else.

It didn't take us long to reach Rinia's rooms in the deeper depths of the castle. The first thing I saw was a massive, scaled mana beast. It stood on two legs as it guarded the doorway, a pair of wings held tightly against its side. The elongated mouth looked almost like a dragon's, and its eyes flickered with intelligence.

Aya immediately shifted into a combat stance, surprised by the creature's repressed aura. Sylvie's draconic eyes narrowed dangerously as she stared the mana beast down, but she didn't move.

I raised an arm, signaling to Aya to rein in her mana. "Avier," I said sternly. "Move aside. Now."

The wyvern ruffled its wings. "A king's grace follows you, Leywin," he said, his voice like a deep earthquake. "But do not act rashly with my master."

"I have always treated your master with respect, Avier," I countered. "Step aside. She wouldn't have directed you to this castle if she didn't expect this confrontation."

The wyvern-–which normally took on the unassuming form of an owl-–shook itself. "Very well."

And when the massive mana beast stepped aside, I could finally see.

Rinia was laid on a bed, staring up at the ceiling. Her breathing was shallow and pained as she inhaled weakly, her lungs rattling audibly against her ribs. Her bony hands were clenched around something that glinted in the low light, her cane leaning against the large bed.

I blinked in surprise, momentarily stunned. I'd been expecting the wry, snappy old woman who always worked in the shadows. But the empty eyes that stared at the ceiling told me another story.

She's blind, I realized with a start. She can't see anymore.

Tess moved forward without another word, striding to Rinia's bedside. My childhood friend knelt by the Elder, her graceful demeanor melting as she took the seer's hand in her own.

I'd almost forgotten. Amidst the fires of war, I'd lost that part of me that fondly remembered Elshire. This woman was the one who always allowed me to speak to my parents when I was separated. She'd given me more advice than nearly any other.

"If you want to expand your sight," the woman croaked, struggling with every breath, "sacrificing your eyes is a simple way. Strange, how that works."

I felt my anger drift away on the wind, replaced by a subtle mix of pity and guardedness as I stared at the dying elf. With my aether sight, I could tell her lifeforce was almost entirely spent. She might live for a few more months, but that was pushing it.

Tess swallowed as she clasped Rinia's withered hand. She seemed saddened. Resigned, as she stared weakly at the floor. Aya Grephin shifted slightly, turning away from the scene.

"Don't go grieving me yet, girl," Rinia pushed out. "I've still got work to do. Plans that need enacting. Schemes that need scheming, that sort of thing. I won't die just yet."

She's used up nearly all her lifeforce, I thought darkly. Just like her sister did, so long ago.

Sylvie stepped from around me, moving to kneel with Tess in an act of quiet support. My bond didn't grieve as Tessia did, but I could feel the hurt and empathy radiating from her like the soft waves of low tide.

"What did you want to tell me, Rinia?" I asked, feeling my shoulders slump at my bond's emotions. I felt grateful that King Grey's phantom was not here today to haunt my vision.

"No subtle threats today?" she said, turning her head. Each of the wrinkles on her face was deeper than the greatest ocean trench as her sightless eyes stared at me. "I was almost looking forward to your vague hints of violence and retribution, King Leywin."

"Say your piece, Elder," I said, feeling my patience strain again. "You only have so much left to say. Are you going to waste your words on barbs?"

"Words are how we live, child," she countered weakly. "I need to say as many barbs as I can before I succumb."

Silence threaded through the room for a time. The early evening sun cast warm rays through the nearby window, but it didn't feel warm inside this sickroom. It felt cold.

"I see you're not in the mood for humor," she said instead. "That's alright. But I simply thought it would be good for you to know… How I came about my powers."

My eyes darted to the item the seer kept clasped so desperately in her hands. If I focused, I could see the purple particles of aether darting in and out among her fingers, caressing a silver medallion between her bony digits.

"You weren't trained by the ancient mages," I said, already feeling my suspicions rise. "Nor by the dragons."

Rinia shifted slightly in her bed. Each movement made me wonder if dust would fall from her limbs. "I was trained for many years in a place that is now far, far out of my reach," she said quietly. "The Hearth, they called it. With my sister, we learned under a refugee."

Scattered questions and understandings slowly started to align themselves as my eyes met Sylvie's. "Who was this refugee?" I asked quietly. The way Rinia drew on her lifeforce to fuel her aether arts…

It reminded me of someone. Someone I'd fought before.

"Mordain Asclepius and his clan," Rinia replied quietly. "My sister and I had a natural art in divination, but it was uncontrolled. Many years ago, however, Avier—when he was still young—took us to a hidden sanctuary far away from civilization. There, we learned for many years."

I frowned, feeling disconcerted by this. I gave a subtle glance to Aya, who complied by enveloping us all in a sound barrier. The elven Lance bore deep creases to her brow as well as she listened with rapt attention.

"The Asclepius joined Agrona," I said, trying to fit this into everything I knew about the Lost Prince. Sylvie had told me that he'd left to join Agrona centuries ago. Something wasn't adding up. "And Toren Daen is clearly of the phoenix. He has a ghost following him, for hell's sake."

"Lord Mordain did leave Epheotus, child, but not to join with Agrona," Rinia chided softly. "That's where the lie is. He hid away. There was one of his clan who went to parlay with Agrona, though, but she was betrayed."

I exhaled a sigh, feeling my mood plummet. I walked to the empty desk at the edge of Rinia's room, grabbing a chair. The room was painfully quiet as I hauled the chair over to the seer's bedside.

Aurora Asclepius. The one who followed Toren Daen. I flashed back to the meeting with Cylrit, where the phoenix had intervened as he demanded news about his mother, oscillating like a flickering lightbulb between childish hope and childish vengeance.

But I could sense that this wasn't the point of this talk. Rinia was building towards something, something I couldn't see yet.

I looked to Sylvie, sensing my bond's thoughts. "Did you know this, Sylv?" I asked. My bond had been the one to tell me that the Asclepius Clan had fled to join Agrona, but now Rinia told me that they were all somewhere in Dicathen?

Sylv's golden eyes darted to Rinia, almost fearfully. She opened her mouth, then shut it again.

"No," she said in a hushed voice. "No, I didn't know. But Windsom told me that the phoenixes joined Agrona. He wouldn't—"

"Windsom," Rinia scoffed, interrupting my bond, her voice gaining strength for a moment. "You know what he'd do, young Indrath. You know exactly what he'd do. He's a monster, just like the rest of them."

I blinked in surprise as Sylvie recoiled, her shoulders hunching inward. She looked away as if she'd been slapped, our bond darkening. Her choppy, wheat-blonde hair shadowed her face as she withdrew her hand from Tessia's back.

My azure eyes cooled to ice as I fixed Rinia with a stare cold enough to freeze hell over. "What is this about, Rinia?" I bit out, feeling agitated on behalf of my bond. "You're dancing around something."

Rinia chuckled lightly, pulling her hand from Tessia's. My childhood friend shifted uncomfortably as the aged seer shifted slightly. Slowly, she maneuvered herself to sit upright. Her empty eyes stared through me as her mouth opened.

"Do you know what happened to the ancient mages?" she asked quietly. "They were masters of aether, Arthur. They had more influence over aevum, spatium, and vivum than even the dragons. So why are they all gone?"

"Rinia," Sylvie whispered, "stop."

Our bond was fully dark, now. A haunted, empty darkness that made goosebumps rise along my skin.

"He'll learn eventually, young Indrath," Rinia scoffed. "What, you think a genocide of that scale can ever stay buried? The djinn left their remnants behind. Not even the dragons could destroy those."

I froze, the implications trickling over my skin like cool spring water down a mountain slope. The dragons of the Indrath Clan–

"Please," my bond begged, standing up and moving over to the elven seer. The sheer amount of panic radiating from her every movement made my thoughts spike in alarm. "Rinia, be quiet. You need to be silent. You can't say things like this!"

"Why? My bones are old. I'm destined for death for my aetheric knowledge regardless. It doesn't change anything if I say that Kezess Indrath ordered the death of the ancient mages." Her green-orange eyes flashed, and though they were milky with blindness, I thought they could see once more. "Isn't that right, Taci Thyestes?"

I let out a deep breath as I felt goosebumps trail along my skin, the hairs standing on end. I couldn't sense anything out of the norm—not in the mana at least. But I knew, instinctively, that someone loomed by the doorway.

I slowly stood, calling on my mana. My body still ached from this morning's desperate battle, but I let that drift to the back of my mind as I looked over my shoulder.

Taci Thyestes loomed near the doorway, his red-winged spear glistening like fresh blood. With the effects of Mirage Walk, he was nigh undetectable to normal senses. Even though he projected no intent whatsoever, I could almost taste his bloodlust as his olive-yellow eyes bored into the elven seer.

Aya cursed, her black hair whipping about her as she shifted into a combat stance by my side. Tess' eyes were alight with emerald green rage as they flashed in defense of her aunt. She rose as well, placing herself by my side as we stood between the asura and the elven seer.

"Lies don't suit you, Student of the Lost Prince," he said, his voice promising a slow death. "I was warned about you. I have been watching for your subterfuge, and I knew it was only a matter of time."

Taci's words struck me like a thunderbolt. I'd always been worried about the asura potentially going rogue or complicating my ability to lead the war effort, but the possibility of him being a spy had never registered.

His grip around his spear tensed. "You spread the lies of the Vritra Clan," he said, a sneer parting his lips. "Such an act will bring only death."

He took a step forward, his aura finally flaring. I ground my teeth, making my stance clear.

"You will not be threatening people in my castle, Taci Thyestes," I said, making sure my aura pressed back against his. "Step. Back."

The castle stones groaned as our mana flickered and danced in subtle clashes. The boy-asura's eyes flicked from me, to Tess and Aya standing resolutely at my side.

Already, I was nearly a match for the young pantheon in direct combat—and he knew it. If he wanted a fight, the assistance of two of my Lances would only sway a battle in my favor.

How far is he willing to push this? I wondered, clenching my teeth as sweat beaded along my brow. How far am I?

"Will you stop me, Lesser King?" Taci sneered, his eyes narrowed as he stared at me. "Will you throw everything away for a half-dead elf spewing Agrona's lies? She claims the exact thing as the lessurans on the other continent."

"Will you?" I countered, feeling King Grey's cold calculations run through my mind as Dawn's Ballad fuzzed into my hands.

Taci's knuckles whitened on his spear, and it seemed to me he was halfway ready to throw himself at me in bloody vengeance. "Regardless of what you do right now, Arthur Leywin," he hissed, "That elf will die. Windsom will see to it if I do not. It has been his duty for generations to see to the end of dissenters against Lord Indrath's will. She is already doomed."

My mind churned with all the plans Elder Rinia had laid across this war. The way she'd manipulated and maneuvered everything subtly sat wrongly with me. I needed to be in control if we had any chance of winning this war.

I had been angry with her, true. She kept secrets from us. I still wasn't certain she was telling me the truth about Kezess Indrath killing the ancient mages, but if the mere suggestion was enough to bring about a death sentence–

But the rising tension broke abruptly from a tired, quiet voice. "Stop, Taci," Sylvie said quietly. "You will leave Rinia Darcassan be immediately."

Sylv, what–

Taci barked a laugh. It was a sonorous, mirthful thing as it rumbled through the entire castle, his mana redoubling again. "Truly a puppet of an asura, Lady Indrath," he said. "More a puppet of this lesser king than an asura yourself. You've been molded and influenced by them like festering rot. Not even an Indrath," he scoffed, true disgust spilling from his tone like bile.

"Rinia Darcassan speaks the truth," Sylv said, looking away. "About the ancient mages and my grandfather."

For all that he was a warrior asura, it seemed that Taci was not expecting this. He paused, blinking incredulously. "Then you are a greater fool than I ever imagined, Lady Indrath," he sighed. "To so readily believe the lies of the Vri–"

"My grandmother told me." Sylvie looked up at Taci, her eyes hollow as they seemed to absorb him right into her soul. "At the end of our training in vivum, she told me the truth of the djinni genocide, Taci. That her husband ordered it. That she personally razed their Faircities to the ground for the crime of withholding their aether arts."

The room was silent as a grave. No sound echoed out that would escape the utter tomb that the infirmary had become. I thought I could hear the breath leaving my body as I stared, slack-jawed, at my bond. Sylvie?

"Are you going to impale me with that spear of yours, Taci?" Sylvie asked, still kneeling, her hands crossed over her lap. Her eyes were gaping pits to a void I didn't know existed before now. "I believed my grandmother's words. I'm saying them now. If you kill Rinia, why won't you kill me, too?"

Taci was silent as he stared at my bond, his hand gripping his spear. And for a moment, I feared he might try and kill my bond. If not out of anger, then the sudden fear I saw in his eyes as they flickered about.

"Sylv?" I asked, my voice hoarse as I took a step toward her.

"I didn't tell you, Arthur," Sylvie cut me off, looking away, "because they would've killed you, too. They… They might still kill you. Because I spoke."

The earlier conversation I'd had with my bond—her worries and fears of watching people die from the massacres—took on a new light. Her resolve to succeed where her grandfather failed in protecting us all burned in the back of my mind like a star.

Taci didn't speak. He seemed utterly frozen as something inside of him seemed to have… shifted. Broken, or maybe transformed entirely. I couldn't tell. But I couldn't tell if he would lash out at Sylvie or simply turn around and run.

A child, I realized. Though Taci stood at my height, his eyes were that of a boy who'd just had his worldview cracked.

"Windsom will be here," Taci bit out. "He'll come for you eventually, seer. This means nothing."

Rinia sighed. "I knew that, Taci Thyestes. Ever since my sister died, I knew it was only a matter of time before that dragon closed his hands around my throat."

I needed to act now. Seize the initiative before things deteriorated.

"Rinia will be placed under guard," I snapped out. My eyes flicked dangerously to Rinia. "The seer will be imprisoned as well. She has a lot to answer for. But we will not be base executioners."

Tess made a sound of outrage, but a look from Rinia herself silenced her. The old elf only nodded slowly. "You're so afraid of these old bones that you'd lock a little old lady into a cell?"

I glared at the seer. I'm trying to save your life, I thought. And I will have those answers.

Rinia knew far, far too much. She had predicted Chul's assault on Burim. How else had she been able to bring us here with such swiftness? She also clearly knew more about the asura, Spellsong, and this war than she ever let me know.

Taci blinked, his eyes focusing again. His breathing was heavy as he whirled, his teeth clenching as he glared at me. "Don't think this saves her from me," he hissed, like a child throwing a tantrum. "You think you've done something today. But you haven't. When Windsom arrives, I will torture the Asclepius Clan's hiding place from her. And then I will kill her."

The young asura whirled on his feet, ripples of force wafting off him. He stalked out the door, no longer blocked by Avier. He slammed a fist into the wall as he went past, cratering it and making the room rumble.

–

Rinia complied with surprising ease. Though she hobbled and made wry, sardonic remarks whenever Tess shifted too much, she allowed the elf princess to carry her to one of our nicer cells.

Sylvie was still in Rinia's rooms. She'd insisted on meditating alone, dismissing us with those empty eyes. I'd wanted to stay and comfort her, as I had earlier. That was something I could do now. I wasn't so… useless with emotions like I used to be.

Except Tess had pulled me along, telling me that Sylvie needed to be alone with her thoughts.

And as we walked lower and lower through the castle, I felt the analytical mind of Grey reassert himself with a force I hadn't felt in a long time.

If what Sylv and Rinia said is true, I realized, then Kezess is just as dangerous as Agrona. They're both willing to cross lines that shouldn't be crossed. Do things that should never be done for victory.

I remembered the Lord of the Dragons' apathetic lavender eyes as they judged me from on high. How barely worthy of his attention I'd been, and only because I bore his daughter's Will.

But I don't have Sylvia's Will anymore, I thought, gnashing my teeth. They can't afford to simply assassinate me, can they?

Regardless of the reality, the mere possibility made this war far, far more complicated. It seemed I couldn't avoid this war always becoming more mind-warping and chaotic with every step I took.

Down and down and down we went, a darkness spreading around us as the earlier revelations—and future plans both—bounced around my skull.

My mind wandered to Tess, who walked with rigid steps behind me. Was that what Cylrit meant when he implied the castle wasn't safe for the elven princess? I thought, halting suddenly in place. I turned to look at my lover, my brow furrowing with worry.

The princess slowed in her walk, Rinia held in her arms. Her teal eyes met mine, just as deep a whirl of emotions and questions there. I traced the shape of her face into my mind. The curves of her features, the way her gunmetal gray hair seemed to float about her on eddies of mist.

"Art?" she asked uncertainly, her beautiful face burning itself deep into my psyche.

If Kezess knew Tess was Agrona's goal, I realized with horrible, terrible certainty, he'd have her killed immediately. And I could do nothing to stop it. If he sent a message to Taci ordering him to execute her, what could I do but fight a futile battle?

"Nothing, Tess," I lied, turning back around as I felt sweat moisten my palms. "It's nothing."

I knew Tess didn't believe my words, but she was silent, too. The darkness of the slowing stairwell and flickering candlelight made me feel as if I were walking deep into a tomb.

"Your boyfriend is realizing that Kezess Indrath would murder you as easily as he squishes a fly if he ever realized what Agrona wants with you, dear," Rinia said unhelpfully. "And could you shift your arm more near my legs? My old bones really can't–"

"Could you just be quiet for once, Rinia?" I bit out, struggling to keep my mana contained. "Just one time, could you shut up?"

She scoffed, but was silent after that, all the way until we reached her cell. It wasn't really a true prison cell. More like a padded room for house arrest. The bed was lined with fine silks, and artwork adorned the walls. There was even a writing desk and reading material on a nearby bookshelf.

But Tess still hesitated at the brink. "Elder Rinia," Tess said, "Are… Are you sure this is what you want?"

"It's not about want, girl," Rinia said as Tess set her down. "It's never been about want. It's about need."

The seer said nothing else, sitting herself down on the bed. She waved a wrinkly tree branch of an arm at us as we watched. "Shoo, shoo," she said dismissively. "I've got a lot of being imprisoned to do. "

I glared at the seer, my exhaustion from this entire day weighing deep on my bones. I would interrogate her tomorrow, when I didn't feel as if my soul had left my body.

"There is still light at the end, Arthur," the elf said quietly as she stretched herself out over the bed. "I'm a blind old bat now, but I can still see it. Hopefully, you can, too."

I exhaled a breath through my nose, then turned. Finally, we saw ourselves away from the seer. We walked back the way we came. I struggled not to let my shoulders slump, the crown on my head feeling heavier.

I was surprised, then, to feel Tess' arm linking through mine. She laid her head on my shoulder as we walked, seeming to sink closer and closer to me. Her warmth helped banish the chill in my bones.

I returned her gesture, holding my childhood friend's arm tighter. "You normally don't do this in public," I said, voicing a silent question. This sort of intimacy was something we kept reserved for when we were alone, away from watching eyes. The duties of war and battle took precedence over our relationship.

Tess was silent for a time, still holding onto me in an intimate way as we walked. The eyes of servants, guards, and soldiers lingered on their Lance and Commander as they watched us. "There might have been a time when I thought that war was no place for… us," she said quietly, her gaze distant. "But as everyone around me fell, I was reminded… Reminded that I don't have that much time. And that sometimes, it's things like us that make war worth fighting at all."

We arrived at the room before long. Both of our feet had led us here, to our one place of mourning.

Gramps' private suite.

The unconscious elf didn't look any better than the last time I'd seen him. Sunken and gray as the corruption spread through him. He looked old. Older than Rinia, even.

Tess and I sat in the two chairs by the bedside, simply being with the old elf. Wordlessly, the elven princess waved a hand, her nature magic swirling green around her fingertips.

A pair of silver roses nearby regained their vitality as Tess imbued them with life. The world seemed to brighten slightly despite the darkness all around as the princess' wildly beautiful magic misted through the atmosphere.

I slumped in that seat, feeling my bones creak. I closed my eyes, holding Tess' hand as I felt each ache that pervaded my body. I still hadn't rested since I'd fought the Wraiths, and though many of my wounds were washing away from my accelerated white-core healing factor, I didn't feel that way.

The only respite I'd received these past few hours was that Sylvie and Tessia banished that horrid phantom of Grey from my sight.

"This changes everything, doesn't it?" Tess said into the quiet stillness. "What does this mean for the war? If the dragons of Epheotus are just as bad as our enemies?"

I didn't respond for a long time, just held Tess' slim hand. It seemed to fit into the rough, calloused grooves of my palm with abnormal perfection. Like a key fitting into a lock. Or… two chains linking together.

"When I first started my wars against Trayden in another life," I said, my voice sounding raw and tired, "I deceived one of my closest advisors, Marlorn. The way I instigated my takeover of Etharia's government was built on a lie that set us against our enemies."

I'd been telling Tess stories from my previous life when we got the chance. Anecdotes and tales that helped her know me more and grasp who I was. I couldn't see her nod, but I sensed it.

"Marlorn eventually figured out that I'd lied to him. Lied to the world. He raged at me, threatening to reveal it to everyone on principle." The memory drenched itself up like a haze. Of how Marlorn had shouted and spat at me about how I'd slain Holden Drutha. "But he never did so, despite how much he threatened it."

"Why threaten it in the first place?" Tess asked, shifting slightly. "From what you've told me, you would've had him… Well…"

Executed.

"Marlorn wasn't a good man, Tess," I said somberly. "The last good man on Etharia's Council died with my blade in his chest, before I used him as justification to start every war. Marlorn was a pragmatic man, above everything else. We were too deep in our wars with Trayden and her allies to risk revealing that the entire justification was a lie."

"So he just… went along with it," Tess said sadly, catching my implication. "He followed a tyrant because there was no better option for him, didn't he? Even if the people he fought for were worse than his enemies."

I winced slightly at Tess' accurate description. Tyrant. "Yes," I replied, my mouth feeling dry. "Yes, that's exactly what Marlorn did."

The room was silent again, the only sound coming from the rise and fall of Gramps' chest. His ragged breathing filled the air as the sterile scent of cleaning chemicals invaded my nostrils.

"I'm going to have to organize a strike against Seris," I finally said, breaching the subject. "This opportunity, it's… It's too risky to pass up. Seris is the most dangerous opponent I've ever matched minds with, and with this opening and the failed parlay, it gives her a chance to justify an attack. But it gives me an opening, too."

The young woman—the Lance of Elenoir—didn't respond right away. She knew what I was talking about, what I was weighing. I'd tried to bargain with Seris Vritra to gain Spellsong's aid, but I didn't even know if Spellsong was still alive. He'd apparently fought off an asura. I could hardly comprehend how or what he'd done, but still…

"You weren't telling me that story only because of Kezess, were you?" Tess asked.

Two Marlorns, and two Tyrants.

"No, I wasn't," I admitted, my tone wrought with guilt.

It would be unjust for me to strike at Seris now. Unfair, after she trusted me with her parlay. And now, Cylrit was captured under the pretenses of peace and negotiation. It was a violation of the deepest kind.

"Grey would send Lances to Burim and have it destroyed with overwhelming force while it is still weakened," I said, closing my eyes. "Like a shark sensing blood, I'd wipe the Alacryans from the face of the earth, then turn my gaze east and ensure Viessa Vritra was put down."

I couldn't let this opening go. I needed to do something to capitalize on it. My reservations didn't matter, but…

"But I can't do that, Tess," I admitted. "Not after I promised to try and draw in Spellsong's intervention for our grandfather."

"It's going to be war, then. All-out battle along our southern front." I shifted, opening my eyes and staring at the elven princess. From the hard gemstone glint in her gaze, I knew she'd lost something of herself in this war, just like I had. "The Sehz River is their most vital chokehold and the basis of our supply lines, and the Alacryans rely on their ships and mobility. That river is going to be their greatest point of attack. They need to take Blackbend City if they want to punch through us."

I worked my jaw, remembering Aya's earlier warning about Viessa. I wasn't confident sending the Lances out alone in battles yet, especially into occupied territory. I knew the gap between them and the Scythes far more distinctly now, even as they grew without their artifacts' restraints.

But Tess was right. If the Alacryans were to try and punch upward from Darv, their best shot was through the Sehz River. Which meant that the most pitched battles of the war would be along that flow. There might be guerrilla attacks jumping from the tunnels all along the border, but the greatest chance for a true army to march on Sapin was by following the flow of their only source of freshwater. Blackbend City acted as the best station between the Wall and Beast Glades and the rest of Sapin. So many supplies and troops passed through that section that its loss would be a critical blow to the war effort.

Which meant that it would be under siege.

I'd trained up more than a few battalions on the use of firearms and cannonry, too. The troops of Dicathen were raging inside for vengeance, raging to finally strike back after they'd been massacred and decimated for months by a ruthless, unseeing enemy.

It was time I granted them their bloodshed.

"And Arthur," Tess said, looking me in the eyes. "My abilities with my Will… They've grown substantially. I've done nothing but train for the past couple of months. It's time we put them to the test."

Ad if on cue, a little vine wove itself from under Tess' shirt cuff, snaking out like a creature sniffing the air. It had a life of its own, that strange imbuement of nature magic.

I let out a deep, weary breath. "What do you have in mind, Tess?"

I didn't have the energy right now to even think like Grey. I couldn't engage that political part of myself to deduce a grand, master plan of some sort. But Tessia? She was a princess. She'd been born and raised in politics, and her soft heart had been hardened by war.

I didn't have to do this alone. I didn't need to make my plans alone. That thought comforted me.

"I was thinking," Tess said quietly, leaning in closer. "With my regular talks with Mawar combined with what I can do now… I think we have a way to deal a devastating blow to the Alacryans."