by Rosie Scott
We all were quiet for a moment, and Cicero started humming, oblivious to any turmoil. Finally, Bhaskar broke the silence. “How is Hades tracking me?”
“Hades? I don't know! I've never met him. I'm sure he's swell!”
I heard Nyx chuckle despite herself behind me. I asked Cicero, “Vertun has used a method to track me. Do you know anything about it?”
“Oh, yes! He offered her to the Icilic, but they have to gain access to her first.”
“Her?” Altan questioned.
Cicero glared at the Sentinel. “I'm not telling you.”
“Who is her?” I demanded impatiently.
Cicero immediately grinned again, as happy as could be. “Aleyah! She lives here. She knows all sorts of things about all parts of the world!”
Aleyah. The goddess of communication and travel. “Where is here?” It felt like I was pulling teeth.
“Eteri, silly!”
“Where in Eteri, Cicero? If I'm going to cause lots of war and chaos, I need to know where she is.”
Cicero looked up toward the ceiling of the cell as if thinking. “In the highlands. In a hard to reach place. The gods protect her because they need her. Without Aleyah, they would not have eyes all over the world.” He burst into giggles. “But they don't, anyway! Where are all the eyes? They should be everywhere!”
“More than that, Cicero. We need more information than that,” I insisted. “North, south, east, west. Near which town? Which city? Does she live in a cave? A house?”
“Mm...Vertun said he could see Esen from the mouth of her cave. She has defenders there. Creatures made of rock. Vertun knows how to calm them, but he wouldn't tell the Icilic how while I was there. He didn't trust me, so I left.” Cicero's eyes glistened. “I don't like Vertun. Kill him!”
“Oh, I will,” Bhaskar muttered behind me.
“That'll be wonderful!”
I turned to Altan. “Where is Esen?”
“It's our farthest village to the north, sits on the curl of Eteri,” the Sentinel replied.
“There are highlands within view?” I questioned.
“Oh, yes,” Altan answered. “Two sets, one that runs along the northeastern coast and one on the western coast. If she has creatures made of rock, I'd have to assume her cave is in the western set. It's rockier and harsher there. Much rougher land than here.”
“That'll be our first move,” I told him. “We cannot hope to defend Eteri from two sides of attack if the gods are constantly on our trail. If Glacia does attack and gets access to Aleyah, they will have the same power Eteri always did, and they could ruin us.”
Altan nodded, though he said nothing, overwhelmed with new information.
“Thank you for your help, Cicero,” I told the prisoner, before taking a step back.
“No! No! Don't leave! We're just getting started!”
“Do you have any more information for me?” I asked.
“No, but I've been so lonely! I need someone to play with! Let us talk about your memories, Kai. Over tea! It'll be wonderful!”
“Maybe some other time. If I'm going to cause chaos, I can't be here.”
“...okay,” Cicero replied, sounding forlorn.
The group of us left the dungeons and made the climb back to the queen's throne room. When we re-entered it, we found Maggie in the midst of a conversation with the queen. The engineer had traveled with us back to Mistral, though she had been absent from our earlier debates. We waited quietly for her to finish her talk with the queen from the back of the room.
“...cannot continue working for ya,” Maggie was saying, her tone troubled. “I have done nothing but develop ship systems for ya for six decades, and ya were willing to sacrifice me out on the sea like I meant nothing to ya.”
“Oh, Magnilda, I simply let you live here free of consequence when you had nowhere else to go,” the queen replied. “You survived Bhaskar's sea attack, dear. If you hadn't, it would have simply been the fault of the systems you are so quick to flaunt around as being ingenious.”
“I wouldn't have chosen to go out there had I known what we were up against,” Maggie insisted.
“Then you would have been going against my orders, and need I remind you that you have nowhere else to go?” Queen Tilda's stare did not relent.
Maggie's hulking back slumped forward a bit at the reminder. “Well, I won't be going against your orders anymore, because I am resigning.”
“...yes, dear, you've said that.”
“I didn't think ya heard me. You're not taking it seriously.”
“I'm taking it plenty seriously,” the queen retorted. “You've resigned. Why are you still here?”
“I suppose I expected more from someone I've spent my life working for.”
One of the queen's eyebrows lifted. “You have dwarven blood in your veins, Magnilda. You are lucky to have worked for me at all. You've already developed the systems. I have your designs. You are no longer necessary. I should have fired you years ago.” She glanced up at the back of the room, her eyes falling on us. “Now, stop wasting my time. If you haven't noticed, my country is at war. I have no time for this pseudo-emotional nonsense.”
Maggie said nothing further and spun from the queen to rush out of the room. As the others moved forward, I waited for the engineer, reaching out to grab her arm. “Maggie,” I murmured.
Two moist blue eyes met mine from above, lost and overwhelmed. “Aye?”
“Wait for us at the High Rock Tavern tonight,” I offered. “You have places to go and options available to you.”
Maggie nodded softly, before leaving the room altogether. I turned to catch up with the others. The queen watched me in particular, having noticed the reason for my delay.
“You have spoken to the prisoner?” Queen Tilda asked, the question directed at Altan.
“Yes. He is Cicero, the god of chaos,” Altan replied, before nodding in my direction. “He really liked Kai and indicated that's why he's here. Most of the information we gathered from him was because of her.”
“So he told you of the Icilic threat.” The queen's eyes moved to me.
“Among other things, yes,” I said. “I am not willing to wipe Glacia off the map. Not yet.”
The queen huffed in dry amusement. “Excuse me? You have agreed to protect Eteri with your life from any threat. Not just Hammerton and Chairel—”
“Protect, yes,” I agreed. “And they have not yet attacked. Your information has been given to you by the god of chaos, and if you haven't noticed, he's not all up there.” I swirled a finger beside my head. “I'm not willing to wipe out an entire country of people based on the word of an insane god whose intentions are unclear.”
“I cannot risk letting them attack first,” the queen insisted. “In case you are not aware, they want my land. They have been so isolated for so long that they have masses of battle-ready mages on their little glacier. Their numbers mirror those of my own army. And that is not even considering our war with Hammerton and Chairel.”
“Again, that information was given to you by the god of chaos. Who desires war,” I pointed out. “And Glacia has never been one to jump into war. You know this. It will take them time to build their warships, and no matter their numbers, they will not be able to move their entire armies here on a handful of ships. They need time to move en masse.”
“Why give them that time?” The queen retorted.
“I'm not saying you should give them the time to build their armies. Let that time be yours. Prepare your defenses and keep an eye on their movements in the north. Do not throw your armies into a war you can't be sure is going to happen when they are needed elsewhere. Do you have any Sentinels near Esen?”
“Naolin Zeru and her army are moving there as we speak,” Queen Tilda replied. “She is scheduled to arrive there in early Red Moon.”
“Then you have a line of communication alerting you to their movements. We need time, even if we must go to war with Glacia. I promise you that as soon
as we receive word they are on the move, I'll be willing to go on the offensive. As I'm sure Bhaskar has told you, I have tested out alteration shields on your warships. Your army will not only be protected by magical attacks while on ships, but the shields will absorb their energy and make them stronger. In order to utilize this, your mages must learn alteration.”
“I suppose,” the queen sighed heavily as if it were an inconvenience.
“And you should start negotiations with the beastmen of the wildlands,” I added. “You have blocked them out—”
“I am not going to negotiate with a bunch of volatile brutes!” The queen insisted, appalled.
“Listen to me! You need them! Tal is gone. Its methods of obtaining wood to build your ships were archaic and inconvenient. Open up the border to the wildlands, and you have direct access to its rainforests. Also, in case you have forgotten, I am allied with them and the underground. There is a tunnel leading to two allied cities of the Alderi not far past the border. Opening the border would benefit everyone involved.”
“I am simply not willing to accept that,” the queen replied. “That border protects my people. We have had incidents with beastmen before.”
“May I make a suggestion?” Cyrus spoke up. “Perhaps opening the border completely is a reach, but we already have the watchtowers there. Open the border, but keep it patrolled and guarded. Vet those who come through. You need that wood, my queen, and Tal's massacre has depleted us of the people who import it.”
“There are always more people I can throw at the situation,” the queen reasoned.
“You say that as if you have a limitless supply of people, and you do not,” I replied. “Silvi is the city closest to your border. It is full of capable people, both beastmen and mercenaries. If you were willing to work with them, you would have outside help. Something you have never had before, given your refusal to work easily with others.”
The queen's nostrils flared with frustration and indecision. “I will think about it. I don't like working with insane brutes.”
“Think about it quickly,” I replied. “As you told Maggie, your country is at war. You should have no time for this pseudo-emotional nonsense.”
Queen Tilda glared at me, angry and offended. I stared right back.
“My queen...” Altan spoke up, before clearing his throat. “Cicero gave us information that the goddess Aleyah is living in our lands to the north. She is the reason Vertun could track people for us, and the reason Hades is finding where to head for Bhaskar. While we continue to prepare our armies, I'd like to suggest our next course of action be to find this goddess and destroy her. Vertun is working with the Icilic to give them access to her abilities.”
Queen Tilda hadn't seemed keen on the idea until Vertun's name was mentioned. She perked up a bit and looked at Cyrus. “Cyrus, I want you to collect Uriel and a small army of five hundred soldiers. Find Aleyah. Kill her.”
“We should go as well,” I said. “Cicero said she would be hard to find. There may be other gods protecting her that my powers will be helpful against. I have alteration magic which will help us find her. While we are on this quest, I can begin to teach the magic to your soldiers.”
The queen sighed. “Very well.”
“May I go as well?” Altan questioned.
“No. You are to stay here. You failed so badly on your last task that I must reconsider the extent of your involvement in this war.” Without missing a beat, the queen redirected her attention to Cyrus. “Be ready to leave in two days. Do not disappoint me.”
Fourteen
The High Rock Tavern was bustling with all manner of tipsy Vhiri patrons, so Maggie's gargantuan form was immediately noticeable at the bar where she stood. She was drinking her mug of ale extremely slowly, which seemed out of character. While my friends and Altan, Cyrus, and Uriel took seats at the inn's largest table, I went to fetch her.
“Join us,” I told the engineer, nodding back toward our group.
“Aye.” It was more of a burst of air than anything else. Nyx was in the midst of switching out one of the wooden chairs for a stone seat from another table, so the engineer didn't have to worry about breaking it. Maggie regarded the polite gesture with a nod before she sat down, staying at the end to have more room.
“Maggie,” Altan drew her attention from a few seats down at the table, from over dirty dishes and mugs left from a previous party. When the engineer caught his gaze, he went on, “Anything you order. My bill.”
“Ah, that ain't necessary, love. Ya did nothin' wrong,” Maggie replied.
“No, I didn't do anything wrong, but I think we can both bond over the queen's bullshit tonight,” the Sentinel replied. Cyrus sat beside him, and though he said nothing in response, one side of his lips lifted in quiet approval.
“Pretty tavern,” Bhaskar commented, his eyes moving around the establishment. The High Rock Tavern was carved out of the light brown stone of the second tier of Mistral and was kept lit with the golden glow of many sconces. It was little wonder why the god of the sun would be attracted to it.
“You've never been here?” Nyx questioned across from him, amused.
“I'm not usually one for social occasions,” the god replied, with a side-smile.
“Maybe you should be,” Jakan piped up. “You've got a very eager fan following you all over Eteri looking for your autograph.”
Bhaskar laughed heartily at that. “I suppose I do! Perhaps I'll start inviting him to parties.” The god switched his gaze to me. “By the way, Kai, thank you for not giving away my location. I'm sure it would have been easy for you to do at the time.”
“Nothing about that night was easy,” I said.
“Including you,” Cerin jested.
Nyx snorted from down the table. “What?”
“Didn't you hear?” I leaned past Cerin. “He apparently thought I was attractive.” I turned back to Bhaskar. “You were wrong about one thing. He didn't mind if I fought him because he knew I couldn't absorb all of his power without crippling myself.”
Bhaskar raised his eyebrows. “So even though you didn't kill him, you tried.”
“The energy I absorbed from him was enough to kill hundreds,” I replied. “He did not die. He didn't even seem to feel it. He just stood there, let me do it, and it almost seemed to turn him on. He wanted me to join him in finding you, and he gave me a gift.”
“A gift?” Cerin inquired.
“A spell. I have yet to try it out. Probably necromantic, so I will teach it to you if I can teach myself how to wield it.”
“Man, he really liked you,” Altan murmured. “If only he had entered the town at the same time as his vampires, maybe so many lives wouldn't have been lost.”
Bhaskar sighed heavily, his golden eyes watching absently as our table was cleared of dirty dishes by a tavern employee. “A whole town of people who didn't know any better...” He wiped his hand through the air before him. “Gone.”
“And you once teased me for caring about the so-called mortals,” I commented.
“No, I teased you for your loyalty,” Bhaskar replied. “I had no loyalty to those people, but who I am doesn't keep me from feeling guilt over their deaths.”
“Then how do you feel about the queen's plan for Glacia?” I questioned.
Bhaskar lifted an eyebrow at me with a budding smile. “I have to be honest, I find the whole idea to be utterly romantic.”
“You will not feel guilt over their deaths if you do this?”
The god shrugged lightly. “They are working with my brother. Take them out, I take out thousands of his followers. Besides, you have to realize, this mission will most likely kill me as well. I cannot feel any guilt if I am dead.”
Altan glanced over at him. “Why do you think it will kill you?”
“Because I'm not stupid, friend,” Bhaskar replied. “In order to melt all of Glacia, my power will need to be devastating. I will finally use what I've been saving up all these centuries. I don't know if
you noticed, but I need to shield myself from my own spell. I weakened my shield a great deal that day in Tal, and I only forced the sun's power into the ocean. If I am to take out all of Glacia, it would be ideal to be at its center and force its power below me so it ripples out in all directions. My power will take out everything. My brother, land, woman, man, child, and myself. And—” Bhaskar motioned to me. “Whatever ship Kai is on will need to be as far away as possible. Her shields are immensely strong, but so are mine, and my offensive skills are greater than my defensive skills. Kai's ship will need to be closest to the devastation because her shields will be strongest. But in killing all of Glacia, I may very well kill her if all does not go according to plan.”
“Well, we better make damn sure it does, then,” Cerin replied.
“You're all talking as if this will come to pass,” I said. “And I'm hoping it doesn't. I don't like the idea of taking out Glacia.”
Bhaskar's face only showed amusement. “Why?”
I waited to answer him since a waitress came to our table to take our orders. After she left again, I counted down my reasons one finger at a time. “It'll exterminate an entire country of people. Using your powers will put everyone in immense danger, including Eteri's navies. And let's not forget what your powers did to the ocean near Tal. You're talking about taking out an entire continent of ice. Do you have any idea what that'll do to the landscape of Arrayis? To the ecosystems of the ocean? To the weather? We are playing with fire here.”
“Literally,” Nyx jested.
“I'm serious,” I retorted, glaring over at my best friend. “This has the possibility of changing Arrayis forever. Who knows how long it took for Glacia to form? How long will it take for it to reform, if it ever does at all? Every coastal town and city will be at risk of being destroyed, if not put underwater entirely.” I looked over to Cerin. “Thornwell is closest to Glacia. I remember how close it was to the Servis. It'll be wiped off the map. Scirocco, Makani, Al Nazir, Narangar, Silvi, Dagmar, Caspi, Llyr...every coastal location will be put at risk.”
