by E A Hooper
The woman didn’t even seem to hear Embry. “You tried to kill my daughter,” Thelmia growled at Valx. “You attacked the mother of your child.”
Valx’s eyes stayed on the table.
“Say something,” Thelmia told him. “Tell me what you’re thinking, you monster.”
“You know Lilan is going to die anyways, right?” Pyre asked her.
Thelmia stared at him with wild eyes. “What did you just say?”
“Reaper didn’t tell you?” Pyre asked. “Lilan caught a blood disease from one of those slaves she practiced her power on. Bastion told Reaper it would kill her, but she’ll prevent it from reaching the child.”
Thelmia gaped at him. “N-No. He didn’t tell me that. I’m sure there’s a way to cure it.”
“Bastion told him that she’d die for certain,” Pyre said, gravely. “Valx has it too. Their fates are sealed no matter what happens with this war.”
The woman took a sharp breath. “You’re lying. Reaper wouldn’t let his daughter die like that. He’ll find a way to cure my Lilan.”
Pyre sighed. “I’m sorry to bring it up at a time like this. I just thought you should know the truth.”
Thelmia shook with anger. “You’re lying. You must be.”
“I’m sure he’s mistaken,” Eldsworth told her. “But if he’s right, at least you have other children. Bels, get over here and comfort your mother. You should be at our table anyways. You’re the wife of a lord.”
Bels lowered her head.
“I said get over here,” Eldsworth commanded.
Bels stood and approached the center table. She sat between Eldsworth and Thelmia.
The mother looked at her grim-faced, scrawny daughter. “Bels?” she said with a horrified expression. “Are you sick? Why are you so emaciated?”
“Uh, I’ve been trying to get her to eat more,” Eldsworth said, nervously. “She lost weight between her first and second miscarriage.”
“Two miscarriages?” Thelmia gasped. “My dear, I didn’t know. Eldsworth, why would you drag her all the way to Varsith in this condition? You’d treat Reaper’s most lovely daughter this way?”
“H-his letter said to bring her,” Eldsworth countered. “She was doing better until we got here. I swear. She must’ve caught a sickness during our travel.”
“Did Reaper see her in this condition?” she asked.
“He’s seen her with me several times.”
“And he didn’t say anything?”
“He’s focused on the summit. I swear I won’t leave Varsith until her condition has improved.”
“He’s lying to you,” Pyre interrupted.
Thelmia and Eldsworth eyed the thief.
“Eldsworth mistreated Bels the entire time I was there,” Pyre told the mother. “He’s a terrible man, and he’s destroying your daughter’s life.”
“You lying bastard!” Eldsworth shouted. “Can you believe this, Thelmia? First, he lies about your daughter Lilan, and then he lies about Bels. He’s trying to play games with you.”
“I’m the one who saved Lilan from Valx,” Pyre said. “You don’t know me, Thelmia, but you can ask everyone in the castle that I’m an honest man.”
“Oh, look,” Embry interrupted. “More of our guests are arriving. Let’s all put aside our arguments for now, please. You all must remember, this is a peace summit.”
A tall, older man in regal clothes approached from the direction of the Western Kingdom’s camp. A woman walked beside him, hand in hand, and a group followed behind them.
King Thod and Queen Silvina, Radu realized.
“Hello,” Embry said, standing from the table. “I’m Lord Embry. This is Lord Eldsworth, Lord Cyril, and King Radu.”
“I’m Thod,” the old king answered. “This is my wife, Silvina. A few of my generals and lieutenant generals. And Yahn, another old friend of Reaper. So, is my brother here?”
“Duke Yarlow will be held at the castle until we have an outline for the peace pact,” Embry replied.
The man called Yahn stared at Valx. “I didn’t believe it when news spread to our camp. You attacked Reaper’s castle by yourself? What the hell were you thinking? You could’ve ruined the entire peace summit.”
Valx remained silent.
“Shiver, please,” Thod told his friend. “The boy’s been through so much. Not to mention, there’s a time when both you and I would’ve applauded him for attacking Castle Titanweir.”
Yahn sighed. “I know. If anything, I’m angrier he gave himself up. Valx, why didn’t you fly away while you had the chance? Your mother wouldn’t have wanted your life to end like this.”
“Yahn, stop,” Thod commanded. “There might still be a chance to save him from this fate. Reaper killed our friends, but I’m still willing to make peace with him if it will save Ter’al from its fate. Reaper knows that stopping the Feyans is all that matters.”
“That’s right,” Embry said. “That’s exactly right. I’m sure we can make some kind of deal that works for everyone. Maybe Reaper will spare his life to use him to make more heirs between the fated bloodlines.”
“My surveyors heard Lilan was pregnant with Valx’s child,” Thod said. “Shouldn’t that child be the one from the prophecy?”
“No one knows for sure,” Embry said. “Besides, Lilan ran off after Valx’s attack. Lady Anabella, whose power lets her see across the city, saw her leave Varsith with a couple of servants. We sent people to track her, but they haven’t returned.”
“Well, if Reaper hadn’t killed my brother, we could ask him if that’s the destined child or not,” Queen Silvina said, her voice hollow.
“Bastion asked Reaper to kill him,” Embry explained. “Fate demands we all make sacrifices to save Ter’al. That was Bastion’s sacrifice.”
“It seems some of us are sacrificing more than others,” Silvina replied, choking back tears. “I lost my oldest son. Lost my brother all over again.”
“My husband has lost so much more than that,” Thelmia said, enraged. “He’s sacrificed more than you could ever imagine.”
“Are you one of Reaper’s whores?” Silvina replied. “You know he doesn’t love you, right? That man loves no one but himself.”
“You know nothing about him,” Thelmia shouted, rising to her feet.
“Ladies, please,” Embry said. “Everyone, calm yourselves. This is a peace summit. We’re here for peace!” He looked across the field. “Oh gods, here comes more people. Everyone, please try to get along.”
Thod, Silvina, and Yahn sat at the center table. The rest of their people spread out to the other tables as other groups approached.
Lord Embry greeted each party. He introduced the most important members at the center table and let the visitors greet themselves. The oldest prince of the Bay Nation had come on behalf of his elderly father. The middle-aged prince sat beside Thod and shook his hand, but he showed little interest in the members of other nations. The Islanders had only sent three representatives, a prince and two of his cousins, and they sat at the leftmost table from Radu’s point of view.
The small number of representatives from the Wetlands and Mountain Territories sat at the rightmost table, but some Mountain Men decided to stand. They stood with their arms crossed, eying all the people at the tables. They seemed intrigued by the nations they rarely interacted with, and a chieftain asked around to find out who was greatborn.
“And you, strange man with white hair,” the chieftain said to Valx. “You’re the white-haired demon we heard about, aren’t you? I thought you’d be bigger and stronger.”
When Valx didn’t reply, the chieftain frowned. “Nothing to say? How disappointing. I really want to see your demon powers.”
Vassal Lunori and his small entourage showed themselves last. They waited until sunset to join but found the five tables cramped. Lunori dragged a seat behind the center table and sat a few feet behind Radu where he could see everyone.
“Hey, brother!” Beldivare shout
ed at Lunori. “It’s about time you showed yourself.”
“Please, don’t embarrass me,” Lunori said with a sigh. “This is the most important event of our lifetime. You’re lucky to even be at the side table.” The vassal glanced at Radu. “For such a smart, young king, you really make the worst kind of friends.” He looked at Valx. “Why, hello again. It doesn’t look like you’ll be slipping away from the trouble you caused this time.” When Valx didn’t respond, the vassal flashed a puzzled look.
Radu sighed and tried to peak out from under the tent. “Is the moon red yet? I don’t understand the point of waiting so late to start a peace pact.”
“It’s a Northern tradition,” Embry said. “Many alliances have been forged under the Red Moon. The basic idea is to outline a simple plan, and then allow all the parties to sleep on it. That way, they can discuss their thoughts and feelings in the morning and go into greater details with the pact.”
“It looks red enough to me,” Lunori said. “Send for Reaper. He better not make us wait as some kind of power move.”
“Is that why you showed up last?” Beldivare joked.
“No, I came on time,” Lunori replied. “They said the summit would start with the Red Moon. The moon is turning red as we speak. Someone, send for Reaper already.”
“Yeah, get him out here,” Thod grumbled. “I’ve waited years to see him face to face again.”
“Oh, you mainlanders are such an impatient bunch,” the Islander prince mocked.
“I don’t want to hear from you Islanders,” Thod spat. “One of your magistrates recently took a Feyan explorer back to Shar’del. Your people are going to put all of Ter’al in danger. Surely, you’ve heard of Bastion’s prophecy by now.”
“We’ve heard of the prophecy,” the prince said, smiling. “That the nations of Ter’al will be destroyed by the Feyans. Technically, the island of Shar’del is separate from Ter’al. Why should we worry about some silly prophecy that doesn’t name us directly?”
“Fools,” Thod yelled. “You think the Feyans will spare you? That they’ll let you keep the cities you’ve stolen from Ter’al? Aren’t you bastards allied with the Northern Republic?”
“We have a saying on Shar’del,” the prince replied. “Make friends with whoever has the biggest sword.”
“We have a similar saying in my land,” the Mountain chieftain said with a smirk. “It goes: be the man with the biggest sword.” He grinned at his comrades. “We’ll see how far his people get groveling to foreigners from across the sea.”
“I didn’t come here to be mocked by savages,” the Islander prince said, standing.
“Sit,” a voice called from the entrance of the fort.
The prince looked at the figure as he approached.
“My apologies, Lord Reaper,” the Islander said, nervously sitting back in his chair.
The figure neared, and Radu leaned to his father. Like Radu had heard, the man really did look like himself aged twenty years. He approached in a long coat and stood behind Eldsworth and Cyril.
Reaper’s eyes scanned the tables before falling on Valx. The absolute hate that flashed in his eyes made everyone, even Radu, look nervous.
The furious, grieving lord revealed a hidden dagger from his sleeve. Several people at the table leaned back in shock, but most waited to see what he’d do. Reaper stabbed the blade into the table and then took a seat beside Thelmia.
“No peace will be made until that blade goes through that monster’s useless heart,” Reaper said, gesturing to Valx.
Everyone fell silent, and most the people there looked too nervous to speak.
“Reaper,” Thod said, breaking the moment of quietness. “You turned his brother against him and his mother. Your daughter killed someone close to him.”
“This is his mother’s fault,” Reaper bellowed. “She betrayed her husband. She raised this monster by herself.”
“You betrayed our friends first,” Yahn replied, choking back tears. “You killed our friends, you bastard.”
“For the sake of Ter’al,” Reaper countered. “Everything I’ve done, I’ve done for Ter’al. Valx killed my wives and children because he’s an animal. There was nothing to gain.” The lord’s hateful, sad eyes stayed on Valx, but the white-haired man still didn’t raise his head. “Look at me, you animal. Look at me and tell me if it brought you joy to kill my family.”
“It didn’t,” Valx replied in a quiet tone.
“Reaper, stop this nonsense,” Radu interrupted. “We’re here for peace. If you want war, I’ll gladly go back to fighting the republic. You can either have peace or war. It’s time you make your choice.”
Reaper glared at his son. “I told you. There’ll be no peace until that dagger goes through Valx’s heart.”
“And didn’t I just tell you to stop the nonsense?” Radu said, angrily.
“Brother, I thought Valx agreed to die for the peace summit?” Pyre questioned.
“He did,” Radu said. “However, I’ve decided I won’t let that happen. He’s my prisoner. His fate is in my hands.”
Reaper clenched his fists. “No, his fate is in my hands. Everyone’s fate is in my hands. I’m the one in control. Fate itself put me here to save all of you ungrateful, worthless fools. It’s no coincidence that Dragon and I were there for Bastion’s pseudo-ascension. That we were the only ones that knew this prophecy for so long. That the strings of fate delivered Bastion to me directly as a sacrifice. Fate put me in control.”
“You don’t seem in control,” Radu replied. “You couldn’t stop Amikah from killing Dragon. Or Valx from hurting your family. You couldn’t stop your daughter, who might be pregnant with the prophesied child, from running away. You can’t save her from fate. You can’t save anyone from fate in the end. There’re too many variables you can’t see, Reaper.”
“Is it true?” Thelmia whimpered at her husband. “Is Lilan truly fated to die?”
“We’ll discuss it later,” Reaper said. For a moment, Radu thought he heard sadness in the lord’s voice. “Radu, my son. Why are you protecting that monster? He killed three of your siblings. Two others are wounded.”
“You always defended Dragon, didn’t you?” Radu replied. “He did just as terrible things in the clan wars. You did too. It’s only different when the children that are dying are yours. Isn’t that right, Reaper?”
“He’s only doing what you’d have done to protect Dragon,” Thod noted. “Radu and Valx are what you and Dragon would’ve been if you had lived in their same circumstances. How can you love Dragon as a brother but see his son as a monster when they’re so similar?”
“Isn’t it obvious?” Yahn said. “It’s because Dragon was his monster. A monster he could control. Reaper, you must accept you’re not in control of everything. If you had realized it back then, the Silver Knights could’ve remained friends. We could’ve worked together to save Ter’al. Maybe you and Thod would’ve had issues because of the West and North’s history, but we could’ve figured something out. I’ve waited years to see you again because I wanted to tell you how much I hate you, but part of me has missed you all these years. That’s what makes this so difficult. If you’d accepted that you couldn’t control fate, hadn’t betrayed us, hadn’t lied to everyone for two decades—Ter’al could’ve already been at peace. We could’ve done it together.”
“Together?” Reaper said, looking at the table. “With our old friends? The ones that didn’t understand? The ones that were going to run back to Thod to tell him I was scheming? They were all so small-minded. All of you are. You’re naïve if you think the Silver Knights ever could’ve brought peace to Ter’al. You didn’t even bring peace to the North. I did it. I built this nation. I brought your kingdom to its knees. I brought together the largest representative of nations in Ter’al’s history. And now, I’ll end this war.”
Everyone tensed, and Radu checked to make sure he couldn’t use his powers. Powers are still suppressed. Then what’s he got up his sle
eve?
“Yesterday, as I was grieving, I received news from couriers that returned here on dragons,” Reaper told everyone. “They brought me the news that I’d been waiting to hear. News that your own couriers and spies won’t bring you for weeks. Thod, while you’re away from home, the Islanders and Embry’s remaining forces captured Direlight.”
“You lie!” Thod screamed, rising to his feet.
Reaper pulled a parchment from his coat and slid it across the table. “Hopefully, you’re familiar with your son’s handwriting.”
Thod grabbed the parchment, and he and Silvina looked over it with terrified expressions.
“As you can see,” Reaper started, “your children were unhurt in the invasion. General Tungosk saw the approaching army and offered an unconditional surrender.”
“That utter coward,” Thod said, his hands trembling.
“Your oldest living son and two of your daughters will be brought to me to keep as wards,” Reaper told them. “I’ll allow you to remain a puppet king, but your kingdom will belong to the republic.”
Thod held his wife in his arms as the queen whimpered. He looked at Reaper with defeated eyes. “Fine, I guess you win.”
Reaper turned to Vassal Lunori. “That brings me to you. While you were fighting Eldsworth on the Step, Lord Cire and Lord Lito were building an alliance with Vassal Tyunna and Vassal Xinto. The vassals realized the East could never stand against the North’s power and decided to help our lords capture Eyl’Bell.”
“You can fuck yourself with that dagger,” Lunori replied.
Reaper took another parchment from his coat and tossed it in front of the vassal. “You’ll certainly recognize Queen Zelbith’s handwriting and official seal.”
“I stand by what I said,” Lunori told him. “The East’s thousand-year history won’t end because of a couple of traitors and a piece of paper.”
“Like the West, your kingdom will be maintained,” Reaper said. “Your queen won’t be harmed, but the lords to the east have taken her children as wards.”
“I hope Lin’eisis herself strikes you dead,” Lunori growled. “No wonder you damn Northerners make deals at night.”