Chapter 39 #3
“I take it back.” I glowered at North and he glowered at me, nearly walking into a wall as the corridor veered left. He cursed and swerved it, focusing on the way ahead as Ransom and I openly jeered him and Galomp guffawed.
North led us down a spiralling stairway and we soon arrived in a grand stone chamber where a long table was set out for us, filled to the brim with a feast.
Mirelle and Lazarus sat at each end of the table as if both showing they were equally deserving of the position and neither wishing to back down on the matter.
Along the length of the table sat the rest of our band of unlikely allies, Kaiser sitting near the middle while Vesper and Bastian sat opposite him. No one was speaking and I felt the awkwardness in the air as they all turned to note our arrival.
Calcifiend flew up from the back of Kaiser’s chair, whizzing over to whirl around me and lick me on the cheek.
I couldn’t help a smile as he landed on my hand and demanded tickles by nuzzling my thumb.
“Hello little lizard,” I murmured, giving into his desires.
He was too damn cute not to forgive for betraying me again and I knew I was a sucker for his game.
“Do join us,” Mirelle said, pointing to the empty seats.
North bounded over to sit beside Kaiser and I took a seat next to Vesper while Ransom went Rogue and sat on Bastian’s right so he was facing North. Galomp took the chair to my left and I found myself staring across the table at Kaiser over a bounty of bread and cheese.
His dark hair was swept to one side and he wore a black shirt that matched the sins in his eyes. His gaze dipped from my eyes to my lips and my body hummed with the feel of his unwavering attention.
I cleared my throat and looked to Vesper. “How are you feeling?”
“Perfect,” she said, though there were dark circles under her eyes and I got the feeling she wasn’t being entirely truthful.
Galomp tucked into the food even though no one was really eating, not seeming to notice the tension in the room.
“Oh, so crunchy.” He tested a bread roll in his fist. “This is fine bread, it is.”
“Thank you er– what’s your name again?” Mirelle asked.
“People call me Galomp, Miss Matriarch,” he said then placed a lump of cheese on the roll and took a big bite out of it. “I have heard lots of things about you, yes I have. I heard that you feast on the bones of your dead children, yes I have. Is that true, Miss Matriarch?”
“No, it is not,” she clipped, but Galomp didn’t seem to pick up on her tone, turning casually to Lazarus and addressing him instead.
“I heard your kind eat babies, yes I did. Is that true, Mr Lazarus?”
Lazarus only laughed, a dark drawling kind of laugh that only made the feast feel even more awkward.
“He is laughing now, Miss Everest,” Galomp whispered to me. “Does he find the baby eating amusing? I do hope not.”
“Just be careful, Galomp,” I whispered back.
“Well, baby eating aside,” North said with a smirk. “I’m famished.” He placed some food onto his plate and both he and Galomp proceeded to eat like there was no reason not to.
“Look at the peacock eating with his dainty knife and fork. Do you need your food cut up for you so you don’t choke on it, pup?” Ransom jeered North.
I noticed he’d cut his food into perfect pieces and was eating them one by one.
“There’s nothing wrong with the way I eat,” North growled.
“He likes his food a certain way.” Mirelle patted his arm and North pursed his lips, not liking the way she was mothering him.
Ransom grabbed a bread roll and took a savage bite of it, letting crumbs spill freely down onto his plate.
North’s left eye twitched like that infuriated him. “At least I don’t eat like a starved hog.”
Bastian sighed. “I find the bickering weary.”
“As do I,” Kaiser agreed and they shared a curious look with each other.
“So, are we going to make a plan? Or are we here to rip each other’s throats out?” Vesper asked. “I’m fine with either, I’d just rather be clear.”
“My coven and the others will cause a distraction at Never Keep,” Lazarus said.
“I’ll join you,” Mirelle added, then looked to Vesper. “We have a task for you in mind, Sky Witch.”
“Delightful. What is it?” Vesper asked dryly.
“Everest will likely need time to exert her Void magic on the blood moon. I doubt it will be a simple task,” Mirelle said. “Lazarus has done great research on the eschaton star and the possibilities of where its origins lie.”
“I believe mere elemental magic will not be enough to hold it back,” Lazarus said. “Its power is immense, unimaginable. There is only one magic in this world I can think of that may have a chance at affecting it.”
“Ether,” Vesper finished for him. “So you want me to use dark magic to tether it while Everest works on the moon? Sounds simple enough.”
“You nearly died breaking its connection to the ley lines,” Bastian growled. “We don’t know what this thing is capable of. It could kill you.”
“We’re all willing to die for this,” Vesper answered coldly, looking around the table. “Or we wouldn’t be sitting at this table, betraying our lands. Does anyone disagree?”
I looked to my brother, wondering if he might speak. If the gravity of this situation might finally scare him off, but he didn’t say anything. So I turned my gaze to Galomp, wishing he’d never gotten caught up in this but even he stayed silent, his jaw set.
“Vesper’s right,” I said. “Death is the most likely outcome of this plan. There are too many ways in which it could go wrong. But there’s just one way it could go right.”
“It will only go right if we are all in alignment,” Kaiser said, cutting a look at North then to Ransom. “We must put our hatred aside.”
“We must ensure Everest and…Vesper reach the eschaton star,” Mirelle said with a firm nod. “That is our only focus now.”
“Oh good, now everyone knows my name,” Vesper drawled, cutting me an irritated look and I shrugged innocently.
“You can’t seriously want everyone here to just keep calling you ‘Sky Witch’,” I said.
“Can’t I?” she asked curiously. “You know the last time my name became widely known I had to enact a massacre to hide it again,” she said and I flattened my lips against a laugh at her tone.
North laughed loudly then stopped. “That was a joke…right?”
“Was it?” Vesper asked him and Bastian grinned like he thought it was funny whether it was true or not.
“Well as enthralling as the subject of your name is, I think we should get back to our plans for defying the eschaton star,” Mirelle reminded us and Vesper nodded.
“After the final keystone is dealt with,” Vesper reminded her.
“You will go tomorrow,” Mirelle decided.
“I don’t want anyone with me this time,” Vesper said firmly and I glanced at her sensing she was hiding something. “Bastian and I will go alone.”
“I can help,” I offered. “My Void will keep us safe from attack if we’re discovered.”
“Can’t say I can remember a time when I needed someone to keep me safe, kitty-cat but I suppose I can allow for you to join us.
But no more. I have business in Stone Castle which I will see done before the keystone is dealt with and I won’t have my presence there discovered before I have completed it,” Vesper said firmly.
“You cannot seriously expect us to just let you go there alone? Everything relies on the final keystone being repaired,” Lazarus burst out. “Nothing else you may intend to do there matters beyond–”
Bastian slammed his fist down on the table so hard that plates leapt, cutlery juddered and several glasses of wine fell to stain the tablecloth.
“I don’t think you’re listening to her. She has business to take care of in Stone Castle and won’t be dealing with the keystone until it is done.
That isn’t a question or a point of discussion.
It is a fact. And if you don’t like it then you can find another Fae who is both practiced in the dark arts and sympathetic to your cause.
But you may wish to hurry – as you know, time is already running short. ”
Silence stretched, each person at the table seeming as likely to snap as the next, though as I glanced at Vesper I found amusement sparking in her grey eyes.
“North and Kaiser will assist you too,” Mirelle demanded finally.
Vesper’s jaw ticked as she stared down The Matriarch and Mirelle stared back.
“Fine,” she conceded. “But that’s it.” She pushed out of her seat and strode for the door.
I got up before Bastian could and ran after her, chasing her into the passage beyond the door.
“Vesper,” I called and she turned back with a darkness in her eyes. “You’re not telling me something.”
Vesper hesitated then drew closer to me, casting a silencing shield around us. “Cayde Avior is in Avanis at Stone Castle. I’ll be paying him a visit before we deal with the keystone and I don’t want The Matriarch breathing down my neck or Lazarus’s coven spying on me.”
I moved closer to her, seeing the pain in her eyes over the death of her friends. Cayde had caused her unimaginable pain. I knew that ache and seeing her agony laid bare made me want to soothe it.
“I’ll do everything I can to ensure you have your revenge,” I swore.
She assessed me, like she was surprised by my offer, but there was no point denying what we were to each other anymore. I cared for Vesper and I was pretty sure she cared for me in return.
“What about your own revenge plot?” She nodded to the door behind me. “You don’t seem so eager to kill Kaiser as the last time I saw you this close to him.”
My throat thickened and I couldn’t find the words to reply with. It was shameful that I hadn’t finished the job for my mother’s sake. I was so torn when it came to him and I despised myself for it. Why was there even a doubt in my mind?
“We have to work together for now. That’s all. Just until the eschaton star is dealt with,” I said, though the lie burned my tongue.
She narrowed her eyes at me. “There’s more to it than that.”
“Maybe,” I admitted in a whisper. “I still despise him. The problem is…I guess I know too much now. About his past. About the spell that kept his emotions subdued.”
“Those sound like excuses, kitty cat. You either want him dead or you don’t, so which is it?”
Bastian opened the door behind us and Vesper shattered the silencing shield, looking to him.
“You need to rest,” Bastian urged. He’d gathered up some food on a plate for her and she looked at it in surprise.
“Come on then. If you’re so desperate to coddle me, so be it,” she taunted, but there was a slight blush on her cheeks as Bastian took her arm and led her away.
I was left with Vesper’s question tearing me in two and no answer to give, except a silent apology to my mama. Because the fact Kaiser Brimtheon was still breathing was a strike against her. And that felt far worse than turning my back on my nation.