Chapter Twenty-Nine
It was surreal, Prince Kastrius decided, to actually live through a moment you had dreamt of for so long. He had envisioned this day a thousand times and a thousand different ways, and now that it had finally come, he could only describe it as perfection. The Haven streets overflowed with its curious citizens, and the might of its entire garrison spilled out across the royal plaza. The members of the Assembly of the Six Gods watched the proceedings from their great hall across the street, and ambassadors from every nation in Esharia gaped at the grandeur of the celebration.
And here he was, right at the center of it. About to change the very course of the future.
“You should be careful, my prince,” General Bremen warned from behind him. “If anyone were to spot you before the ceremony begins, it could—”
Kastrius dismissed the concern with a wave of his hand. He was tired of hiding. He was tired of living in shadows and working through others. This was his moment to finally step forward and claim his rightful destiny as Emperor.
But Bremen was right, unfortunately. Dressed in a brilliant white uniform with a long, flowing purple cape behind him, Kastrius wasn’t exactly difficult to pick out in a crowd. While their perch inside the Tower of Venar here on the far side of the plaza was well beyond the range of the naked eye, many of the onlookers below had probably brought along their own spyglasses and could conceivably catch an early glimpse of their majestic crown prince. He was supposed to be in Sandratha, and if his mother learned he was here it could still compromise their plans—or at the very least delay them.
Kastrius had endured enough delays in the last few months to last a lifetime. He could look out upon his glorious new city later.
“Everything is prepared, just as Veltar’s spies told us they would be,” he said as he stepped away from the balcony. Other than Rook, who was shackled against the western wall, he and Bremen were alone. “I have to admit, I’m more impressed with the senator than I thought I would be.”
Bremen’s eyes narrowed. “I would be cautious about putting too much trust in him, my prince. He has already betrayed us once.”
Kastrius smiled. The general was predictable, if nothing else. His military-sized ego was still hung up on the past when all that mattered now was the future. With the power of Consecration and the Balorite spells swimming in his head, Kastrius wasn’t nearly as worried about his allies at this point. Veltar’s time would come, certainly, but not quite yet. Bremen, on the other hand…
The general had a look about him the prince didn’t care for one bit. He had been wearing it for days, ever since they arrived in the city. Kastrius could just kill him now, but then he wouldn’t have anyone left to guard Rook. And more to the point, he might still need the man’s clout with the officer ranks in the rest of the military to get them to fall in line.
“But you do have faith in me, I assume. Right, General?”
Bremen tilted his chin up. “Abalor has chosen you to lead, my prince. And where He leads, I shall follow.”
It wasn’t quite a yes—and Kastrius wasn’t even sure it was sincere—but it was something. Maybe it would be worth just getting rid of him after all. Certainly once the celebration was over, anyway.
“You should probably get into position, my prince,” Bremen suggested after a moment of silence. “Your mother should be arriving within the hour.”
“She’ll make a grand entrance of it and take her sweet time, I’m sure,” Kastrius muttered. “But you’re right. I can’t wait to see the look on her face when she realizes I’m about to shatter her illusory paradise.”
Bremen nodded. “As do I, my prince.”
Kastrius glanced past him to the bound Ebaran man hanging on the wall. It was odd to think that for the last two years, he had been absolutely obsessed with recovering the power of the Kirshal, and now that it was here before him, it seemed so…trivial. He already felt more powerful now than he ever had before in his life. Other than Veltar himself, Kastrius couldn’t imagine another mage in the Republic standing against him, not with the awesome power of Consecration at his command. Even his late sister, often considered the greatest student of the last two generations, wouldn’t have been able to stop him.
But still, it wasn’t worth throwing away a potential resource. Rook had demonstrated remarkable durability. And once Edeh’s soul was extracted from him, perhaps Kastrius could use it to make himself immortal. Then they wouldn’t even have to bother with the so-called restoration of the gods.
For he would already be one.
“I wonder if our guest might wish to watch the proceedings. There’s a rack somewhere in this tower, isn’t there? Why not string him up and let him watch.”
“I’ll…do what I can, my prince.”
Kastrius shrugged. “Keep him safe for me, general. I’m counting on you.”
He started off down the stairs towards the plaza. Towards destiny.
The Last Goddess Page 72