“I don’t understand,” Endric said.
“I don’t know that any of us can ever understand what went through Urik’s mind. He is the most impressive strategist that I have ever known. He has been working with the Salvat priests for far longer than any of us have ever realized, but it wasn’t until he was in Vasha, supposedly held captive, that we realized he continued to send missives to them. He had managed to discover almost all of the missing statues. When he realized the remaining statue had to be on Salvat…”
“That is why you disappeared.”
“Partially.”
“Partly? What else are you keeping from me?”
Tresten smiled and swept his gaze around the Conclave library. “There are things that you weren’t prepared to know, and things that you needed to prove yourself ready to know.”
“And have I proved them?”
“To me you have, but I’m not the one you needed to convince.”
“You mean the Conclave?” Senda asked.
Tresten fixed her with a long and piercing gaze. “Indeed I do. Our friend Endric has the potential for greatness, and his potential will not be completely fulfilled via serving the Denraen. I know that might disappoint you, but his true potential lies with what he can do to serve the Conclave.”
“All of this was a test?” Endric asked.
“All of this was necessary. I was the one who proposed to the others that you were fitting for it. They thought that perhaps Novan should have been the one, or even Brohmin, though they overlook his other responsibility.”
“And what responsibility is that?” Endric asked.
“Not yet. You aren’t ready for it quite yet.”
“You haven’t answered why this was necessary.”
“Because Urik was using the priests as he used the Denraen. He wanted to impress the gods and thought that he could gain their favor—and their power—by doing so. I merely presented him an opportunity to return to Salvat to expedite the process.”
“You pretended to die.”
“I pretended to disappear. It offered an opportunity for me to observe in ways that Urik would not have expected, especially as he would have thought that I was truly gone.”
“How did you fake death?”
“Did I fake it?”
Endric laughed before trailing off, uncertain whether Tresten was joking with him or not. “How are you here if you weren’t faking it?”
Tresten smiled and took a deep breath, leaning forward. “I am pleased that you were able to prevent a greater destruction. Had you not managed to succeed, Urik would have destroyed much of the island, taking away the people and their history. It is the reason that the temple should have disappeared long ago. Attempts to seal it off have failed. I don’t know how he managed to resurrect the priesthood, and since he is gone, perhaps we never will know. Regardless, he has been stopped.”
“I wish I would have been able to keep him alive, then.”
“I think Urik is where he has long desired to be.”
“With the gods?” Endric asked.
“No. With his family. And now we no longer have to fear Urik, but there are other challenges in the world that the Conclave could use your service to handle, Endric. And yours, Senda.”
Endric glanced from Tresten to Senda, trying to gauge her reaction. She believed the Denraen were the epitome of what they needed to do, but Endric had experienced enough of the world that he recognized that there was another purpose. It was something that was beyond the Denraen.
“I will leave the Denraen and serve the Conclave,” Endric said.
Tresten leaned forward, shaking his head slowly. “That is not the request at all.”
“I thought you wanted me to serve the Conclave. After what I’ve seen with the Antrilii and with Urik, I will do it gladly.”
“No, Endric. You are needed to serve the Conclave by serving the Denraen.”
Endric looked at Senda. She watched him with an expectant gaze. “How?”
Tresten smiled. “I think you know how. It’s what you’ve been training for. It’s what your father has trained you for.” He leaned forward, holding Endric’s gaze. “You will need to lead, Endric. You can no longer deny the task before you.”
“I haven’t denied anything.”
“No? Then challenge your father. Lead the Denraen. That is what you are called to do.”
Endric stared at Tresten, thoughts rolling through his head. He’d already challenged his father, but that was when he had thought his father didn’t deserve to lead. Now he wasn’t as certain. His father had been the one to ensure he had the experiences he needed to become the soldier—and the leader—that the Denraen needed.
Not only the Denraen. His father had ensured that he was prepared for the Conclave as well.
How could he do anything else?
He was called to lead. And, were he honest with himself, he wanted to lead the Denraen. Not because he thought he could do better than his father, but because he thought he could try to do better.
“When?” he asked softly.
Tresten smiled. “When you’re ready. You will be called upon to do much, and the Conclave thinks that you might be the person to help guide the Denraen—and the Conclave—through what comes.”
He looked at Senda, holding her gaze as he answered. “What do you think?”
“Don’t be stupid. You know what I think.”
“You’re the Raen.”
“I never wanted anything else. You were meant to lead. I’ve only been holding it until you were ready—and willing.”
Endric took a deep breath before answering. “What choice do I have but to accept?”
Endric will return! Subscribe to my newsletter to be the first to learn when the next book will release. http://eepurl.com/cByltP.
Looking for another great read? Check out Wasting, The Book of Maladies Volume 1.
In the city of Verdholm, canals separate the highborns in the center sections of the city from the lowborns along the outer sections. The city is isolated, surrounded by a deadly swamp and steam fields which should protect the people of the city from the dangerous outside world. Until it doesn’t.
For Sam, an orphaned thief who wants only to protect her brother, protection means stealing enough so she can one day buy her way into a better section. She’s a skilled thief, and when she’s offered a job that can change everything for her, what choice does she have but to take it?
Alec is an apothecary who longed to join the prestigious university and become a physicker, but they rarely accept students from the merchant class, and he’s now too old to enroll. The surprising discovery of strange magic can change his fortunes, but only if he can fully understand it.
When the natural protection of the city fails and her brother is thrown into danger, Sam must become more than a thief to save him, but she can’t do so by herself. Somehow, she and Alec are linked through an ancient magic and together they might be the only ones able to stop an attack that threatens to disrupt the balance within the city and bring the dangers of the outside world to them.
Author’s Note
Dear Reader,
THANK YOU SO MUCH for reading Soldier Sworn. I hope you enjoyed it. If you would be so kind as to take a moment to leave a review on Amazon or elsewhere, I would be very grateful.
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D.K. Holmberg
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Also b
y D.K. Holmberg
The Collector Chronicles
Shadow Hunted
Shadow Games
Shadow Trapped
The Shadow Accords
Shadow Blessed
Shadow Cursed
Shadow Born
Shadow Lost
Shadow Cross
Shadow Found
The Dark Ability
The Dark Ability
The Heartstone Blade
The Tower of Venass
Blood of the Watcher
The Shadowsteel Forge
The Guild Secret
Rise of the Elder
The Sighted Assassin
The Binders Game
The Forgotten
Assassin’s End
The Teralin Sword
Soldier Son
Soldier Sword
Soldier Sworn
Soldier Saved
Soldier Scarred
Soldier Scarred Page 28