Loyalty and War

by Devon Vesper

  “How are you going to—”

  Two riders crested the hill. They pointed and shouted at the trail of melted snow. Valis shored up their shield, added soundproofing as an extra parameter, and kept moving.

  “Once they get close enough, I want to take them out. I’ll try to get them at the same time.”

  “We could help,” one of the scouts said.

  Valis shook his head. “I don’t want either of you getting caught in any of the traps.”

  The two Qos adherents somehow rode atop the snowdrifts, and Valis wondered why he hadn’t thought of that for his army. But then he dismissed that thought because he already used too much magic by keeping the army hidden from view. Making it so that they could ride atop the snow might drain him too much.

  They closed in, and the moment they got close enough, Valis threw them both into stasis. As they fell off their horses, Valis drained them as he drained the traps around them. Their horses, now without their riders, stopped moving, one pawing at the ground in agitation.

  “You’re going to leave them in stasis?”

  Valis glanced back. “No.”

  With another thought, he sent a black spike of magic into their brains, and once they were dead, he drew the stasis spell back into himself.

  “Grab their horses,” Valis ordered.

  He rode between them, draining traps along the way. When they crested the next hill, Valis gasped. Ahead stood a complex of buildings surrounded by a wall and locked by a gate and a shield spell. There seemed to be a mass of traps between where Valis and the mercenary scouts stood and the entrance to the garrison.

  Valis turned his mount around. “One of you head back to the army and have them come here. We need to take this garrison. We can’t leave it. I refuse to let the enemy pin us down from both sides.”

  “Agreed.”

  One of the two rode off, both of the Qos adherents’ mounts tethered to his saddle and galloping along behind him. The other stared at Valis expectantly, and Valis said, “In case I fall to a vision, I need you behind me. Stick close. I want to make the most of this time and get those traps taken care of.”

  Valis stopped at the base of the hill and took a survey of the way ahead. The traps surrounded the garrison, but he didn’t have to worry about most of them. However, he could use the extra power.

  Are you—

  Yep.

  Gods, child…

  Valis chuckled and dismounted. He walked to the edge of the nearest trap and knelt down. With a deep, fortifying breath, Valis touched the edge and, with a pulse of power, linked all of the traps, both surface level and those hidden below ground.

  He took his time, following where his magic led with his mind and found that they extended as far as Valis had already gone, but in all directions, circling the garrison and extending out in concentric circles.

  “What have you found?” his escort asked.

  Valis started the drain, drawing from those the farthest out, and working his way toward himself so he could keep the connection. He murmured as he worked. “Concentric circles. I’m draining them all.”

  “Shit, boy…”

  Valis huffed a laugh but said nothing until he had the entire field of traps drained and had absorbed their power. When he stood, his back popped and cracked, and when he turned, Tavros and his army stood at the base of the hill. Tavros, though, came closer. “Is it done?”

  Nodding, Valis stretched and mounted up. He turned Rasera around and found the two scouts. With a thread of thought, he placed invisibility shields around them with the parameter that Valis and Tavros would be able to see through the invisibility parameter. Once he had it done, Valis motioned toward the garrison.

  “Go scout the garrison. I want to know how many entries there are, if there are any weak spots. And if there are any sentries, try to take them out without raising the alarm.”

  “Sir!”

  Both men clenched their fists over their hearts, bowed, and set off at a good clip, only barely flinching when their horses rode atop the snowdrifts instead of having to plow through them.

  With them gone, Valis took a deep breath and reached for his husband’s hand. “You ready for this?”

  “What are you going to do?”

  Valis gave him a small smile. “I need Jintas.”

  “I’m here,” Jintas said from behind him. “What need have you?”

  “I need your best assassins. I’m taking a small but powerful team inside, and we’re going to clear out the Qos nest. Once someone raises the alarm, the rest of the army is to descend on the garrison like a plague.” He grinned. “I want to make sure to take out as many as possible before that happens, and your men and women are some of the best assassins I’ve seen.”

  “You flatter us,” Jintas said. “But it will be done.”

  “Then we head out as soon as your scouts return,” Valis said. “Be ready.”

  Chapter Eight

  They waited for about an hour before the scouts returned. Valis had started to worry, but the relief he felt when they returned did spectacular things to his heart and mind. He cleared his throat and adjusted his shirt-scarf so he could speak without eating fabric.

  “What news do you have?”

  They both bowed over their horses, and the one on the right spoke, “We took care of the sentries. None had time to raise the alarm.”

  “There is only one entry point that we’ve seen,” the scout on the left said. “There didn’t seem to be any hidden ways out.”

  “Good.” Valis shifted in his saddle and looked out over the expanse of snow. The garrison looked almost identical to the one Valis had been in when he first arrived in Arlvor with Kerac and Darolen. It seemed so long ago.

  Valis shook off the thought and turned to look behind him. When he turned back around, he had a plan. “Get the rest of the assassins ready.” He nodded when they bowed, and as soon as they left, Valis turned to Shyvus and Phalin. He motioned for Tavros to join them.

  “What’s the plan?” Shyvus asked.

  “I’m going to put individual invisibility shields on everyone with the parameters that everyone in our army can see others shielded by my magic. I’ll be using my black magic. Hopefully, that will keep us from triggering their inner and outer defense shields.”

  He rolled his neck to drop some of his built-up tension. “I’ll also add a parameter for one-way soundproofing to silence our footsteps. They can’t hit what they can’t see or hear, or at least that’s what I’m hoping for. I want them running, mad with confusion, and easy targets.”

  Shyvus nodded and rubbed the back of his neck. Apparently, Valis wasn’t the only one tensing up. “Well, let’s get this underway. We should have this nest cleared before dark, or that’s my hope.”

  “Mine, too,” Valis said.

  He turned around and looked out over the army. They all were just barely hidden from view from the garrison by a rather steep hill. With a breath, Valis lowered the shield he had over the army and let it splinter to cover everyone in personal shields of darkness. Once he added the parameters to keep them safe and hidden for as long as possible, he turned toward the center line.

  “I need a team to stay with the horses and carts,” he told Shyvus, glancing at Jintas as he rode up with his team of assassins.

  He motioned the mercenary leader to join them once he finished his assessment of the men and women who followed Jintas in a tight group. “You lot will be going ahead of the main army. Sneak into the dormitories and kill any you see who are asleep or alone and not paying attention. Your shields will keep you from being seen or heard. And make sure not to create a mess that will alert the others. I want this to be an in-and-out mission.”

  “This will be hard,” one of the assassins said. “We will have to open doors to the dorm rooms, which will alert the occupants. Not all will think the doors opened by themselves due to drafts, if any do at all.”

  Valis nodded and turned his gaze back toward the garrison, unable t
o see it due to the hill now that he backed away from the hill’s crest. He was, however, able to feel the dark haze from the garrison’s main shield. If it worked like the one over the Arlvorian border garrison, anyone who tried to breach the garrison’s defenses would be violently expelled. He only hoped the parameters in the shields would keep that from happening to any of his men and women.

  “If there are no doors open, just take out those who are easy targets.” Valis turned back to those who surrounded him and gave them a tense smile. “Soon after you infiltrate the garrison, the main army will follow you into battle. Use our mayhem as a distraction if you can.”

  “Sir!”

  Valis took a deep breath. “We’re all going in on foot.” He motioned toward the crest of the hill. “Your shields will allow you to walk atop the snowdrifts without leaving footprints. Be swift, but more importantly, be cautious and safe.”

  He motioned toward the back of the army where the carts were located. “Leave your mounts with the carts and head out now.”

  “Sir!”

  Once they left, Valis dismounted and led Rasera toward the carts, too. Everyone followed his lead soundlessly. The only ones remaining ahorse were those staying with their carts and herding the horses.

  Then, with a kiss from his husband, Valis spoke softly, amplifying it into each person’s shield, so he didn’t have to shout, “Get into formation. We leave in fifteen minutes.”

  Valis again filled himself to bursting with his gold magic, making sure to keep it invisible as he found his skin glowing with a soft golden shimmer. Tavros looked at him with a perked brow. “You okay?”

  Valis nodded and tucked close to his husband. “We should use this time to get into our armor.”

  He made sure his army heard that and when the sounds of all the Aesriphos getting their plate armor out reached him, Valis gathered his and started the process of shedding enough layers to wear his padding and armor comfortably.

  Between them, it only took five minutes to get their armor on, and when he looked, everyone wore theirs, too. Once he made his final assessment, Valis led his army over the hill and down toward the garrison with the swift assassins leading the way.

  When they breached the main gate, Valis murmured to his army, amplifying his voice into their shields, “Be smart about this. I want you all to evenly split up to take out the dorms. Try to put everyone in stasis rather than killing them. I’d like to drain them before they meet their end.”

  He led the way to the main structure that held the common areas, leading his team to where he hoped the enemy leaders congregated. It was too easy. Valis felt it in his bones and all the way down to his soul. Something was wrong.

  “Do you feel that?” Valis glanced over at his husband, who marched beside him, always at his right. “Something feels off.”

  Tavros groaned softly. “I thought it was just me being paranoid.”

  “No,” Valis said. “Something is really wrong.”

  “What do we do?”

  Valis took a deep breath and stared at the front door to the main structure. “Keep me safe. I’m going to dreamwalk in there.”

  “Like fuck you are,” Tavros growled. “No, Valis. No.”

  Sighing, Valis conceded. “Fine. Let’s get in there. Everyone be alert. I’m adding the parameter for your shields so you can see the shimmer of hidden magic. If you see the shimmer, avoid it at all costs. They’re probably traps.”

  “Sir!”

  Valis also added the parameter that if they were attacked by black magic, even the traps, the shields would absorb the magic and funnel it into Valis’s reserves. They needed every advantage they could get.

  Now that he felt a little more confident, Valis opened the door as quietly as he could. The moment it swung wide, a streak of black lightning exploded out and hit Valis’s shield. It was so potent that Valis staggered backward a few steps. Someone behind him caught him and steadied him on his feet.

  Another strike hit his shield. Valis rooted himself down with magic, keeping himself from falling over or skidding backward. He got a good look at the man attacking him. Could he see Valis and his army? Or was he just attacking blindly?

  “Show yourself,” the man ordered. “Or are you a coward who must hide behind invisibility shields and trickery?”

  Valis didn’t answer the goading question. Instead, he put out his right hand. Golden light exploded from his palm. The first blast shattered the man’s shield. The next put him in stasis so fast that the man probably hadn’t registered that his shield failed.

  “Spread out,” Valis ordered. “Use the hallways as choke points. Shyvus, take a team outside in case any escape through windows or back doors.”

  “On it,” Shyvus said. “Be careful, Grand Master.”

  Valis nodded and took the right hallway. He motioned to his team to block it off as they marched through.

  As Valis opened the first door, someone shouted. Two men were spread out on the bed mid-coitus, the one on the bottom looking blissed out as he trailed his fingers through his cum and licked it off. He glanced at the open door, confusion hardening his face just before Valis cast the stasis spell on both.

  “That was almost not even fair,” Brogan said. He stood behind Valis, looking over his shoulder. “Do we separate them, or leave the dick in that one’s ass the entire time until they meet the pyre?”

  Valis shook his head and went to the next room. “Act like an adult, Brogan. At least for today.”

  Brogan grumbled something that Valis didn’t catch. Knowing Brogan, Valis brushed it off and continued systematically opening doors and throwing the stasis spell before any of the occupants realized what was happening.

  By the time they made it through the entire building except for the dining hall, Valis felt optimistic about the situation. Maybe they didn’t need to go into a full battle. Gods, let that be the case.

  I wish it, too, Roba murmured in Valis’s mind. But stay sharp. You are not done yet.

  Yes, Dad. Promise.

  “Are we still invisible to them?” Rylas whispered.

  “Yes,” Valis said at full conversational volume. “They also can’t hear us.”

  “Handy.”

  Valis nodded and headed to the dining hall. No one inside seemed to realize what had happened all throughout the building. No one seemed tense or on guard.

  Perfect.

  With a breath, Valis centered himself. Another full breath, and he lifted his right hand. Then, with a third breath, Valis cast a blanket stasis spell. Everyone standing toppled over. Those in chairs either smacked their faces on the table before them or fell out of their chairs and knocked their heads on the polished wood floor.

  “Showoff,” Brogan muttered.

  Valis shrugged and lifted his left hand. With a thought, he started the drain, siphoning black magic from everyone in the building at once. After a few minutes, Valis fought off the giddy feeling of absolute destructive glee. It didn’t help that he’d accidentally let the gold magic that had filled him up before recede back into his magic well, unused.

  “Love?”

  “Give me a moment, Tav. I’m working on it.”

  Tavros stood at his side and took Valis’s hand. Neither could feel the physical connection due to their gauntlets, but the act and Tavros’s beautiful, earnest look of concern helped Valis to reach back into that well and fill himself with the gold again. At the same time, he shoved half of the black magic into the well, and the other half, he turned golden with just a thought so that both light and dark were once again equal within him.

  As soon as he was done, Valis pulled Tavros close for a chaste kiss. Then he glanced behind him and nodded toward the exit. “Let’s get going. We need to see how the other teams are faring.”

  Nearing the door, Valis heard the sounds of battle. He grabbed Tavros by his vambrace, pulling his forearm close to make sure he wouldn’t lose contact. Then he phased them both to the front of the team and half-dragged Tavros as he spri
nted toward the main doors. They didn’t stop until they made it outside.

  There were more Qos adherents left than Valis thought was possible. A full-scale battle waged before him, and Valis didn’t know how the dorms could hold such a force.

  “Where did they all come from?” Tavros asked, confusion clear in his voice. “There’s no way they could all be from the garrison. Did they summon more forces here?”

  “I’m wondering the same thing,” Valis muttered. “Steady me. They can’t see us, so I’m going to try and make this swift.”

  “Ready.”

  Valis took a deep breath, and in the next exhale, he lifted his right hand above his head. He flooded himself with gold magic until his skin grew radiant. The next inhale, Valis added the parameter to only place the stasis spell on those with black magic.

  On the exhale, he let loose his power, and all those with crimson tabards and black magic fell to the ground, limp and useless under the stasis spell.

  When Valis looked up, he chuckled. His men and women looked so confused and lost until they looked up toward the main building and focused in on Valis once he dropped the invisibility parameter in his shield.

  “That…” Jintas cleared his throat. “You could have led with that, you shit.”

  Valis shrugged, unrepentant. “It’s done now.”

  While the men stepped over bodies, Valis started the drain, siphoning the black magic from all those in stasis. When he was finished and calmed from the influx of darkness, Valis motioned to the bodies. “Let’s get these men and women ready for pyres.”

  “You’re going to burn them alive again, aren’t you?” Tavros accused. “That’s sick.”

  Valis just gave him a shit-eating grin. “It’s not like they’re going to know the difference unless I remove the stasis spell while they’re burning. Though… that’s an idea…”

  Tavros narrowed his eyes at him. “No, Valis. No. No playing with your captives. It’s rude.”

  “And cruel,” Valis mused.

  “Wait,” Tavros peered closely at him, “did you take care of the black magic? You’re sounding a bit evil there, love.”