Elade studied the map. She had never been trained as a tactician in her days as a shadow knight or her time with the Dawn, but even she could recognize how badly the Crell were outnumbered. “They must have some type of secret weapon,” she whispered. “Dragons hidden in the mountain, agents on the inside of the fortress…”
“If they do, they’ve hidden their tricks well.”
“Perhaps they’re counting on the Knights of the Last Dawn fighting with your people,” Tam commented. “The lady knight seemed pretty pissed.”
“She’ll get over it,” Darius said, waving a dismissive hand. “And once the Crell attack, they’ll have better things to worry about than petty politics.”
“The real question,” Gor said, “is whether or not I can trust your men not to shoot me in the back when the first waves of chagari slaves breach your walls.”
Darius chuckled for a moment before realizing Gor was serious. “The Crell aren’t getting inside the walls. Don’t worry about it.”
“Humor me.”
The general pursed his lips. “You won’t have anything to worry about. I’d like to stick you on the northwestern wall—all of you. Honestly, you probably won’t even need to draw your swords.”
“I’ll stand with your archers,” Sarina said. “I guarantee I’m a better shot than any of them.”
Tam made a face at her. “I thought warriors were supposed to be humble.”
“Not in Asgardia,” Jason said with a snicker. “I’ll stand with her. I’m not a great shot, but another crossbow can’t hurt.”
“I’ll be at the front gate,” Elade said. “Just in case.”
Darius frowned. “I was hoping you’d stay here in the tower with me, actually. I figured you might have some interesting tactical insights.”
Ectar raised his eyebrows at his commander. While it was clear he didn’t mind a few mercenaries helping defend the walls, it was just as obvious he did have an issue with one in the war room. “Are you sure that’s wise, sir?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Elade put in before Darius could respond. “I’m a fighter, not a strategist. I’ll be of most use on the front lines with the other cavalry.”
Darius eyed her for a moment, and she could tell he wanted to refuse. Distantly, she wondered if he actually wanted her tactical insights or if he just wanted to keep her farther from danger. Even in relatively enlightened human societies, males tended to be overprotective to a fault.
“All right,” he said after a moment. “You’ll all be assigned under the captain at each post, and they’ll be responsible for relaying orders to the surrounding troops. Let’s go over some of the basics.”
They spent half an hour going over the specifics of their defense plans and also the protocol of the Solarian military. Fortunately, most of them already knew the latter part pretty well, so it didn’t seem like there would be any other problems, at least before the fighting started.
Until the door cracked open and a youngish-looking man poked his head inside. “Sir? I’m sorry to bother you, but there’s someone else here to see you.”
“Can it wait, Selwin?” Darius said with a sigh.
“I’m afraid not, sir.”
Elade could tell from the gravity in the man’s voice that something had gone wrong, and she had a feeling she knew exactly what it was. A moment later, a familiar face stepped inside the room and confirmed her suspicions.
“General,” Belek Talroy said, glancing furtively to Elade. “There’s a problem, sir. Highlord Alric has informed us that we are to leave Garos immediately unless you turn over custody of Dame Devarath.”
“You can’t be serious,” Selvhara breathed. “What in the void has gotten into him?”
“This Alric guy sounds like a real asshole,” Tam said. “Er, no offense.”
“You have no idea,” Darius muttered under his breath. “I requested more knights from him earlier, and he never sent them. Now this…”
“This has to end,” Elade said stiffly. “I shouldn’t have come here at all; I should have gone straight to Alric in Celenest.”
“Forget him,” Darius said. “She’s not going anywhere, Squire. I’m not going to allow anyone, not even the Highlord of the Last Dawn, to dictate how I lead my soldiers.”
“His Majesty officially requests that you go along with their demands,” Selwin said from the doorway.
“I serve the Council, Lieutenant, not—”
“And you know they’ll agree,” the man interrupted. He might have been Darius’s adjutant, but judging from his uniform he was also a Bound in service of King Areekan. His priorities—and loyalties—were quite clear.
“I’m through running,” Elade muttered. “I’m not as valuable as a half dozen knights; let me go and they’ll stay.”
“You can’t really mean that,” Jason said, “not after the way they treated Tevek. Who knows what they’ll do to you?”
Elade closed her eyes and turned away. As much as she appreciated their protection, how could she end this without returning to the Citadel and facing judgment? She wasn’t going to harm the other knights, and she wasn’t willing to spend this war off in some distant, out-of-the-way country. No matter where she went in Solaria, the knights would be around, hounding her every move. Eventually Darius wouldn’t be able to protect her and they or the Solarians would drag her back.
“There’s no other choice,” she whispered.
“You shouldn’t go,” Talroy murmured. “I don’t know what’s happening to the others, but everything is changing.” He swallowed heavily. “I think they might even be willing to kill you.”
“What?” Selvhara gasped. “No paladin would ever dare strike another.”
“Lord Alric is capable of anything, and he has nearly full support from the Conclave. I wouldn’t trust any promise he makes.”
Selwin favored the other man with a confused glance. “I would take care what you say, Squire. Word of this might get back to him.”
“It doesn’t matter,” Talroy said. “I wanted to let you know what he said, but I’m not going to let them take you in, and I won’t leave with them either.” He turned towards Darius. “I offer you my sword, General, if you would have it.”
Selwin’s disbelieving gaze flickered between them all. “I can’t believe you would defend her like this. She’s an Unbound. She’s a heretic! Her very presence is an insult to everything we believe in!”
“If you want to be here tomorrow, I suggest you close your mouth, Lieutenant,” Darius warned him. “I welcome your service, Squire Talroy, and offer you a temporary commission as a soldier of the Alliance. You will stand with Elade at the front gates.”
“Thank you, sir,” Talroy said with a nod. “I’ll let Venaril and the other knights know.”
Selwin’s mouth hung open, and Elade wondered what he would do. What if the king ordered the priests to replace Darius? The Solarians couldn’t fight this battle without their Bound. Was Areekan willing to go that far to take her down, or was he just playing nice with Alric?
Hate and prejudice were a powerful combination, she knew, and not only in human societies. Even among the vaeyn, intolerance of other cultures ran deep. It was ultimately why she had left Maz’Belar in the first place. They hadn’t been able to accept her lover, Varess, for what she was…
“Go get yourself an ale, Lieutenant,” Darius told his adjutant. “I’ll meet you downstairs in a little while, and we’ll discuss the situation then.”
Selwin’s face twisted in annoyance, but eventually he nodded and left the room. Ectar eventually grunted and followed.
“I’ll go with him and make certain he doesn’t do anything stupid,” the colonel said. He tapped Elade on the shoulder. “As far as I’m concerned, you proved yourself at Serogar. This is all a bunch of bloody nonsense…”
He shut the door behind him, and everyone seemed to let out the same tired sigh.
“Now that we’re done squabbling with one another, perhaps we should focus up
on our real enemy,” Selvhara suggested.
“Yes,” Darius whispered, his hands balled into tight fists. “Let’s get to work.”
***
Krystia stood on her balcony gazing down at the sparkling city lights below. A late autumn breeze fluttered her nightgown and chilled her skin, and she could have easily wrapped herself in a protective barrier to block out the cold. But she was scarcely paying attention to the world around her; her mind was focused upon the once distant future that would soon come crashing into the present.
Everything was finally coming to a head. Her destiny was only a heartbeat away. It was so close she could taste it…and yet she wasn’t fantasizing about the glory of liberating her people or her coming Ascension. She wasn’t even lamenting all the innocent men and women who were going to die tomorrow because of the choices she had made.
Instead she was thinking about her wrist, and how good it would feel to have a marriage bracelet wrapped around it.
It was beyond foolish. She wasn’t a farm girl whose entire life would be determined by the man she married. Soon Krystia would be the queen of Solaria. She would be one of the most powerful people in Torsia and perhaps even the world. She didn’t need money or land to make a life for herself, and she wasn’t worried about growing old alone. She could have any man she wanted.
But she didn’t want any man; she wanted Darius Iouna, and she was going to get him.
Krystia smiled to herself at the thought. Of all the crazy things that had happened in the last few weeks, she had never expected Darius to actually propose. They were perfectly content as lovers, even if recently she had become aware of his…limitations. He wasn’t Unbound, and he could never share in her thoughts the way she shared in his.
But that didn’t matter. She still wanted to be with him regardless of how her powers continued to grow.
And tomorrow, in order to save her people and her country, Krystia was going to place him in mortal danger. She could have manipulated him to stay safe at home, but to do that she would have had to hurt him, and he never would have forgiven her for it if he found out. He was an honorable man of duty and principle, and he wanted to be there with the soldiers he commanded. He was just like Tevek in that regard, and as a younger woman she had gone crazy when he would write to her about the dangerous missions he’d been on.
Of course, there was no guarantee she would survive either. Her plan was dangerous and very fragile. Even with all the contingencies she had worked out with Ethan, something could go wrong and destroy it all. They could find themselves surrounded by an army of soldiers, and she would either be strung up in the gallows or sent to the Asylum. She would never get the chance to spend her life with Darius.
Krystia closed her eyes and sighed. As much as she wanted to be with him right now, it didn’t change what she had to do. She was going to free her people and destroy the Crell. She was going to be remembered as Solaria’s greatest ruler, a young priestess-turned-queen who changed the world itself. And she would do it all alongside her great and noble husband.
The shroud of nightfall had completely blanketed the city when she heard the secret passage inside her chamber slide open. Soft footsteps approached from behind, and she sensed the unmistakable hardened determination of her partner’s disciplined mind.
“The hour is nearly upon us,” Ethan said. “Are you prepared, my queen?”
“Yes,” Krystia said. “Yes, I am.”
Chapter Twenty-One
“Pray for peace but expect war. The battle between good and evil is eternal. Neither can endure without the other forever, and when they inevitably clash, it is we who are left to sift through the ashes, to rebuild what was lost so that tomorrow we may fight once more. It is our desperate struggle. It is our grim legacy. It is our sacred destiny.”
—Tevek Dracian at the end of the Ash War, 2003 AG
The Crell army came to a halt just outside the range of Garos’s archers and siege weapons. From this distance, Jason mused, it was surprising how small a force of ten thousand soldiers actually looked. They had originally marched in five neat columns, each encapsulated beneath a translucent, shimmering half sphere of Aetheric energy that shielded them against attacks from the griffon-riding priests swarming protectively about Garos. Now the groups started to break up and scatter, and the Crell Imperators merged their protective bubbles together, creating a single massive dome across their entire army. The majority of their forces consisted of infantry, both the lightly armored human variety and the much bulkier chagari and groll front-line forces. Behind them, two thousand heavily-armored cavalry units prepared for an offensive charge should the walls of Garos collapse. Their polished black armor and crimson banners flooded Jason with unpleasant memories of the end of his childhood and the day he had seen a force ten times this size surround Ashenfel and batter the city to rubble.
In modern warfare, ground forces were largely ancillary in siege battles. Even in ancient times before men had learned to breed and train flying steeds, it would have taken an army many times this size to batter down the fortress walls or scale them with ladders and siege towers. Today, the course of the battle would be determined by the aerial units of both sides. Either the Crell manticore riders could soften up the Garos defenses and cause a breach in the walls, or the Solarians would hold and force the Crell ground troops to retreat. Jason could make out several large siege catapults in the back of the encroaching army, but even their substantial range was too limited to be of much use without a victory in the skies. Hopefully they wouldn’t have a chance to even fire.
“This is wrong,” Sarina said from beside him on the fortress wall. She gripped her massive Asgardian longbow tightly, twisting her hand around the grip as she surveyed the encroaching forces in the distance. “The Crell aren’t stupid. They’re not just going to commit suicide.”
Jason nodded faintly. “My father once told me that overestimating an enemy can be every bit as dangerous as underestimating them. When you gave them too much credit, you start to second guess your decisions, and sometimes you even start to believe they are unbeatable. It cripples morale.”
“You don’t really think the Sovereigns are just throwing away their troops, do you?”
“No,” he murmured. “I’d like to, but I know better. Darius does too—he’ll be ready for anything.”
Sarina squinted out to the horizon unflinchingly as the enemy continued to deploy. “In this vision of yours, you never mentioned anything about me or Selvhara. Were we there?”
Jason pursed his lips. “Not that I recall.”
“Any idea why?”
“No, but I didn’t see Gor, either. I don’t know if it means anything, but the only thing the three of you have in common is that you can’t channel.”
“Sel can now, after you healed her.”
Jason shrugged. “Krystia said that true precognitions are so rare they’re almost mythical. And Malacross herself wasn’t convinced that everything she saw was true.”
“You could have mentioned that before insisting we all follow you out here.”
“It’s a little late for regrets.”
“The only ones who are going to regret anything today are the Crell,” Sarina said, scowling. She had applied streaks of green war paint beneath her eyes, and she had tied up her hair into a thatch of fresh dreadlocks. If he didn’t know her so well, he would have been terrified of her right now.
But he did know her…and he was actually a little terrified anyway.
Jason turned back to the horizon as a series of high-pitched shrieks echoed across the battlements. A moment later, a squad of Alliance griffon-riders lifted up from the courtyard and soared out over the walls. Darius wasn’t the type of commander to wait and see what tricks his enemy had in store. He would force the Crell manticore riders into combat to defend their vulnerable ground troops, and in the process hopefully draw them into range of the archers on the fortress. The captains on the wall cried out for their soldiers to nock th
eir bows, and Jason glanced down to his crossbow to make sure it was ready just in case.
As the golden griffons streaked into battle, the matching red blots of the Crell manticore riders took shape in the distance. Behind them, lumbering forward like flying fortresses, were several black-scaled dragons clutching massive crates in their rear talons.
“It’s just like Isen,” Jason whispered. “Except this time, there’s no Tevek here to save us.”
“This time, we shouldn’t need him,” Sarina told him, placing a hand on his wrist and squeezing. “You always knew this day would come eventually. And I think one way or another, you knew you would be here to see it.”
“I suppose so,” he admitted, turning towards her and smiling. “But I never thought I’d have you here with me.”
She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, well, apparently I can make stupid decisions too.”
Jason squeezed her back as his eyes drifted down towards the northwestern wall. The others were down there, even if they were too far away for him to see them. Whatever happened here today, his friends had to escape this place alive. He was the reason they were all here now risking their lives, and if anything happened to them he wasn’t sure what he would do. He didn’t regret the choice—he still knew that his presence here would be important—but he suddenly wished he had decided to leave all the rest of them out of it.
Off in the distance, the riders engaged. Flickers of orange-white light sparked across the sky as the channelers hurled fire and lightning at one another. Men and beasts shrieked and died, shredded by giant teeth or consumed in bursts of flame. Parachutes opened as riders tried to abandon their dead mounts, but in the midst of a heated battle neither side was overly careful about avoiding helpless riders, and few actually made it safely to the ground. After several minutes, a few dozen of the manticore riders broke through the Alliance lines and barreled down towards Garos. The wall and battlement captains called their archers to the ready.
The Godswar Saga (Omnibus) Page 78