Jason…
The name was yet another echo from Krystia’s past. He was the first person she had seen after she’d killed her parents in that Isen tower, and for a long time afterwards he had been her personal hero, the one who had snatched her from the inevitable jaws of death. But she hadn’t seen him in many years, not since she was taken away for training in the Celenest temple. As time went on, Tevek had taken Jason’s place as her own private white knight, but she had never forgotten the young man’s face or what he had done to protect her those years ago.
She could scarcely believe the cold, ruthless image in front of her was that man’s father.
“I dispatched the rest of my minions here to assault the Crell garrison and keep them occupied while my people regroup,” Ethan went on. “That should contain the situation until I can reach Celenest and the Alliance reinforcements arrive.”
Krystia nodded and dragged her thoughts back into the present. “At least the Council was willing to send reinforcements. Darius was shocked when they agreed to it.”
“The councilors responded just as we thought they would. They cannot ignore demons—or the new threat posed by this Crell channeling technique.”
“They tried to, believe me,” she said. “Most of the councilors were still hesitant to commit. We’re fortunate Lord Alistan came around; he’s been the de facto leader of the opposition for as long as I can remember.” Her upper lip curled in disgust. “They’re still terrified to start a war, even with an invasion army staring them in the face.”
“We got what we wanted,” Ethan said. “For now that will have to be enough.”
Krystia eyed him warily. “You really seem determined to get out of Lyebel. Did the Crell finally spook you, or are you just that scared of the paladins?”
“You’re the one who sent them into the city in the first place,” he reminded her tartly. “But you’re just going to have to accept that you don’t have all the facts about the situation here. Tevek may be wounded, but he’s no fool—and neither is the vaeyn. Sooner or later, they’re going to realize the Resistance could never have survived this long on their own. When they do, they’re going to start asking questions…and it will be best for everyone if I’m not around to answer them.”
“Hiding here might not be any easier for you,” Krystia said. “Sir Alric and several other knights stayed behind in the city. And the closer you are to me, the more you jeopardize my safety.”
“Perish the thought,” he sneered, then sighed. “Listen, Krystia: things are in motion now that we no longer control. The Crell are going to invade soon, far sooner than even your general thinks. When that time comes, I need to be in Celenest to assist you.”
She frowned. “How do you know this?”
“As I said, you don’t have all the facts. But it doesn’t matter—the point is that an invasion is coming, just like Iouna has been warning the Council for months.”
Krystia pursed her lips and thought back to her earlier conversation with Darius about the Council. “Darius told me that the Crell’s so-called ‘invasion force’ is far too limited to pose a threat to any of our border garrisons. The Council knows this too, and they’re reading it as defensive posturing.”
“That’s the general idea.” Ethan paused for a moment and seemed to steel his expression. “I leaked our plans to them.”
Her face fell flat. “You what?”
“Not the specifics, of course, just the general plan. They know a coup is coming—they know someone is going to try and eliminate Areekan.” He leaned back in his chair. “The Sovereigns are counting on it.”
Krystia tried to respond, but her throat had gone so dry she couldn’t speak. If he had been standing here in front of her, she would have been tempted to crush every bone in his body with Aether. Why would he have done this? Ethan despised the Crell more than anyone she had ever known; he had spent the last decade sacrificing his friends and even his soul to destroy them. How could he possibly do this to her? To them?
“If you let your anger subside and think it through, you will see this is the only solution to our problem,” he told her calmly.
She nearly melted the crystal into slag with her glare. “You’re very lucky you aren’t here right now.”
Ethan grunted contemptuously. “I know how irrational you can be; I wouldn’t presume to deliver this news in person.”
Normally she was quite adept at ignoring or countering his barbs, but this time…this time all she could think about was burning that arrogant little smile off his face.
“Then you better not come here at all,” she warned.
“Krystia, listen to me. We don’t have much time. When winter comes, Areekan will risk a Rite of Ascension, and our opportunity to seize power will be lost. Whoever he chooses to succeed him will be just as weak and just as single-minded. He won’t free the Unbound from the Asylum, and he won’t be willing to risk war with the Crell. He’ll sit there comfortably on his throne while the Imperium wipes out the Resistance and then rebuilds its forces to crush the Alliance.”
“If we kill Areekan during an invasion, we’ll be handing the Alliance over to them!”
“Don’t be foolish. The Crell don’t want a prolonged war right now, either. They’re weak and they know it. They may be self-important despots, but even they realize the value in a quick war. They believe a coup is the perfect opportunity for them to end an inevitable conflict before it ever really begins.”
“Of course it is,” she hissed. “Without a king, our armies will be helpless.”
“Which you’ve known all along,” he reminded her.
“Yes, but if the Crell know in advance, they’ll be ready for easy victories and push much harder. We won’t be able to recover in time.”
Ethan shook his head. “What did you think was going to happen? We both knew from the beginning this plan involved a war. Areekan has to be occupied coordinating his Bound if this is going to work.”
“I expected a war, not a slaughter,” Krystia snapped. “We want to be the ones on the offensive by persuading the Council to launch a preemptive strike. It will fail, but that’s far less devastating than letting the Crell crush our border defenses and walk halfway across the country before we’re ready for them!”
He remained expressionless for a long moment before a thin smile crept across his face. “I admit, you surprise me.”
“Because I’m not a fool?” She shook her head and laughed caustically. “I’ve told you before you don’t know anything about me.”
“Maybe not,” he conceded, “but in this case you’re going to have to trust me. The Alliance is not going to start a war no matter how much we prod the Council. That means our only choice was to provoke the Crell.” He paused meaningfully, his image shifting as he leaned towards his own crystal. “I’ve found the only solution here, and we have to work with it.”
“Your ‘solution’ will cost thousands of lives, probably tens of thousands,” she pointed out. “If the Crell push through Garos, they might even be able to threaten the capital by first snowfall.”
“Possible, but unlikely,” he mused. “At most they’ll take a few outposts before the winter snow locks them in, and in the meantime you will be able to rebuild your forces and add in the strength of the Unbound. That is what you’ve wanted all along, isn’t it?”
Krystia winced. “I never wanted to be queen. I never wanted to rule. I just want my people to be free.”
“We all have to make sacrifices to get what we want. Just be thankful that yours involves transforming into a god.”
She shot him another glare. “There are times I wish we’d never met.”
Ethan shrugged. “With a strong Ascendant in control of the Alliance and a strengthened Resistance in Lyebel, we’ll be able to split their northern forces. There’s also an excellent chance that you can ask the Asgardians and even the Talishites for aid.”
“That’s a lot of implied ‘ifs,’” she murmured.
�
�It’s the only way to get what we both want, Krystia,” Ethan told her. “Sooner or later you’ll have to learn to accept that.”
She unfolded her arms and placed her hands on the nightstand. As her rage slowly faded, she realized he was right, at least partially. They had maybe a month and a half before the roads became impassable. Tevek himself said that’s all the king was waiting for to transfer power. She and Ethan could use that time to rebuild…and perhaps she could even convince the Unbound to fight at their new savior’s side.
“You should have told me about this,” she murmured.
Ethan grunted. “You weren’t ready to hear it earlier, but I know you are now. You’ve seen how the king treats your kind, and you’ve seen how the Council would rather play politics than do what is necessary.”
She slowly shook her head. It was all moving so fast. Her time at the Asylum, her conversation with Sovan—and her realization of the importance of her role in all of this. The destinies of millions rode on her decisions…
“I need time to think,” she whispered.
“I will be in Celenest in three days,” he told her. “We can speak again when I arrive, but we’ll need to start the plan in motion. If we wait too long, the opportunity will pass.”
Krystia nodded fractionally. “Fine. Just make sure Elade doesn’t catch you on the way out. It would be a pity if she was forced to run you through.”
“I’ll be at my safe house three mornings from now,” he went on, ignoring the jibe. “Then we shall make our final arrangements.”
“Very well,” she replied, and deactivated the calling crystal.
Krystia wasn’t sure if she could ever make sense of all of this or truly appreciate the importance of what was happening. Speaking with Darius last night, she had finally started to achieve some certainty in her life. He was right about her powers; they were a gift, not a curse, and Solaria would be a much stronger nation if it understood that. Beyond that, it could be a shining example to the rest of the world about the virtues of the Unbound.
But the cost was so high. No matter what happened, the blood of thousands would be on her hands. The Imperium would score many victories before the Alliance recovered, if in fact it ever did. How many villages would fall as the Crell marched across the border? How many homes would be burned? How many lives would be ruined? How many would she sacrifice for the future of a few hundred students?
Pressing her eyes shut, Krystia sank to her knees and cried.
***
“It would seem she is smarter than you thought, master.”
Ethan turned his head and glared at the demon in annoyance. Unlike Trz’yel, his previous demonic supplicant, this new servant was human size and rippling with muscle. His name was Mak’vel, and he was a draeloth, a savage and destructive demonic breed empowered with superior strength and agility.
In other words, just the type of creature Ethan required to spearhead an assault upon the Crell garrison.
“I’ve never doubted her intellect or her power,” Ethan replied evenly. “But she is also naïve and impressionable, and that makes her easy to manipulate.”
The demon’s face—if the swirling mass of muscle and teeth at the center of its torso could really be called a face—writhed with anticipation. “You should allow me to take her, master. I could make her even stronger.”
Ethan grunted. “She would kill you before you got close. Besides, I don’t need to control her directly. Her passion will be of great use to us in the war.”
“You really believe she will murder her own king?”
“Yes, she will. It’s the only way to get what she wants. She’s finally realizing that.”
The demon paused for a moment. “You play a dangerous game, master.”
Ethan shrugged. “Not really. Everyone is driven by their own personal interests. The key is to identify them and then figure out a way to align them with your own. On that note…”
Ethan reached into his desk and pulled out another calling crystal. It was more elaborate than Krystia’s version, but it served the same purpose. The main difference was security—the Aetheric enchantment keyed the crystal to a specific individual, so even if it was stolen the thief would find it useless.
The Zarul had their moments of true ingenuity. Even he couldn’t deny them that.
He tapped the stone. A few seconds later the face of a middle-aged woman with black hair and green eyes materialized on its surface. She offered him a faint nod.
“It’s good to hear from you again, General,” Sovereign Alexandra Damir said in a heavy Crell accent. “I trust you bring good news.”
“Events are proceeding as I predicted,” he told her. “I will be out of contact for a few days while I travel to Solaria and make final preparations.”
She smiled. “Exactly what I wanted to hear. I will be sending you an agent to assist you as required.”
“That won’t be necessary,” Ethan assured her, making certain to put a trace of serious concern in his voice. “I am quite capable of handling the situation on my own.”
“I’m sure you are, but unfortunately I must insist. There’s too much at stake for me here to risk an error in the final moments. Once I deploy our troops, there is no going back.”
“As you wish, Your Eminence,” he replied with forced exasperation. “How will I make contact with this agent?”
“Don’t worry about that, General. He’ll find you shortly after you arrive.”
“I would recommend he not expose himself to anyone else in the city. My other contacts would not understand his presence.”
“He’s not in the habit of leaving footprints for others to find,” she said. “You have nothing to worry about. I’m sure his skills will come in quite handy to you.”
“No doubt,” Ethan replied stiffly. “I’ll contact you again when I’m settled inside the capital.”
“I look forward to it.”
The image faded, and Ethan relaxed his face. He reached behind his head and tried to massage out some annoying kinks in his neck.
Mak’vel made a type of gurgling sound. “She seemed convinced by your concern.”
“The Zarul are used to everyone being terrified of them,” he said. “Breaking expectations only serves to raise suspicion.”
“I’m surprised you haven’t tried to hide your true identity from her.”
Ethan shrugged and stood from his chair. “There’s no point in lying; she would find out eventually anyway. Besides, in this case my reputation is actually an advantage. She knows I loathe the Alliance, and she knows how desperately I wish to channel the Aether again. She believes I’ll sacrifice anyone and anything to get what I want.”
“Will you?”
Ethan grunted. “We shall see.”
The demon stirred, the spiked, arm-like appendages stretching out from its back twitching. “Are you certain you don’t wish me to accompany you, master? I could be very useful.”
“I’m sure you could, but there are plenty of others where you came from,” Ethan told him. “No, you’re going to attack the garrison and die in the process.”
Its mouth twisted. “You could resummon me when you reach Solaria.”
“I might. It all depends on how well you perform in this task.” Ethan smiled darkly and clenched the warm crimson jewel around his neck. If only he had this much control over his human subjects, history would have turned out much differently.
“The Crell shall bleed rivers in your name, master.”
Ethan grunted and stood. He had some packing to do before leaving and wanted to get on the road as soon as possible. With any luck, he could have preparations finalized within a few days of his arrival, and then Damir could send in her forces. All told, it wouldn’t be more than a week until the fighting began, and then he and Krystia could finish what they’d started.
And once she had restored his powers, the real war could begin.
***
“You really have at thing for heights, don’t yo
u?”
Sarina didn’t bother to turn. “It’s peaceful when other people can’t reach you.”
Tam grunted. “Aidan said you’d probably be up here. I’m half surprised you’re not lurking around the city.”
“I was earlier.”
He slid up next to her and plopped down just a few feet away. “It’s not quite the majestic view it used to be, but it’s better than just after the war when the only things left were burned out buildings and flaming piles of rubble.”
Sarina nodded idly as she swept her eyes across the dozens of ships desperately trying to squeeze into this section of the harbor. She sat perched upon Lyebel’s great clock tower, a lasting monument whose survival might have been the most unlikely miracle of the war’s final battle. It loomed over every other building in the city, and from here she could see virtually the entire docks and a hefty portion of the governing district at the center of the city. All things considered, this probably wasn’t the safest place to sit with one’s legs dangling over the edge, but that was probably also one major reason she loved it so much. When she had first come here to join the Resistance, she had spent several hours a day sitting up here memorizing the roads and studying the people.
“Jace will make it,” Tam murmured after a few minutes of silence.
She felt her cheek twitch. “Probably.”
“You really shouldn’t blame yourself, you know.”
“For what?”
“For him using that damn cube. I knew he was going to do it sooner or later.”
“He was going to take it to Solaria.”
Tam frowned. “What makes you say that?”
“Because it was the right thing to do,” Sarina muttered. “It would benefit the most people.”
“Maybe,” Tam replied neutrally. “I know that’s not what you wanted to do with it.”
“It belongs here with us,” she told him. “We’re the ones still fighting this war. The Alliance hasn’t done a damn thing to deserve something so powerful.”
The Godswar Saga (Omnibus) Page 48