Chapter 7 #2
Dawes stood just behind her, broad frame blocking part of the light as he leaned in, muscled arms crossed. Silver threaded his beard and his hair, the latter pulled back into a tight knot, his expression steady and seasoned. He eyed Alethea carefully.
“Well, I’ll just come out and say it,” Dawes voiced. “The fact the princess is with us will bring complications. If we can keep her identity a secret, we may be able to outrun it... but if the news she’s here gets to the queen, we could be facing her forces imminently.”
Nakir crossed his arms, his fingers on his chin as he added, “We may be facing her forces soon regardless. Zenobia knows we’ve assembled against her, and we know how she deals with threats.
” He stood at the center of it all, leaning back against the middle tent post, arms folded loosely as he observed in silence.
He was utterly still, grounded, his presence anchoring the space without effort.
“We should strike her now,” Kerrigan suggested boldly.
She stood apart from the rest, leaning against one of the tent poles several paces away.
Tall and lean, she looked carved from muscle and impatience, red hair cropped close at the sides.
Soot already smudged one cheek, her weapons at her side and within easy reach.
“She doesn’t know we’re close. We could take the whole city of Hyelea in a matter of days if we bring in reinforcements. ”
Nakir turned to his spymaster. “Balthasar, you spent time in the royal guard. What are your thoughts?”
Alethea eyed the large man, who hadn’t spoken since he greeted her upon his arrival. He didn’t answer right away, and her anxiety rose with each passing second.
Balthasar was lounging against the short side of the desk, umber skin catching the daylight, pale blond locs falling loose down his back. His dark eyes traced the map, but his attention felt elsewhere. “It would be bloody. We might be able to take it, but I don’t know how long we could keep it.”
Alethea winced, hands clasped tightly in her lap. Bloody. Most of the citizens in Hyelea didn’t even know how to fight and had no way of defending themselves.
“What about the citizens?” she found herself asking, and all eyes turned to her.
“Our forces know who they’re fighting and what they’re fighting for,” Dawes assured her. “They’re not going to be attacking people in the streets.”
Despite his promise, a swell of panic tightened her chest.
“If we don’t strike now, Zenobia will have time to go to the Empress,” Ker added. “She’ll get reinforcements from Rai’Sharr in a matter of weeks.”
“She’s already made her plea to the Empress,” Alethea stated, the words tumbling from her lips before she could stop them. She could feel Nakir’s stare from behind, and a flush colored her cheeks.
“It’s a risk to try to take Hyelea right now,” Nakir said. “But it would be a decisive ending.”
Dawes sighed, running a hand through his hair. “What other option do we have?”
Balthasar quietly turned to Alethea, his expression dark and inquisitive. His intense gaze bore into her, eyes searching for answers in the depths of her own. Alethea hesitated, her mind racing to find a response that could satisfy her beliefs and the pressing need for a solution.
“Do not pressure her, Balthasar.”
Nakir’s command took her by surprise.
“I’m not asking for her to prophesize. I’m curious about what she thinks.” The spymaster fully turned to her. “Alethea, what do you think?”
“I...” She swallowed, glancing at her lap before forcing herself to lift her chin.
“There must be another way. A way that doesn’t bloody the streets of Hyelea.
That’s how... that’s how my father did it, isn’t it?
Showed up with an army he bought from Setta’s gold mines.
” Alethea turned back to Nakir, whose jaw was firm as he listened.
“What about the other Great Lords?” she asked. “Have they responded to your letters?”
“How the fuck does she know about the letters?” Ker’s tone was charged with suspicion as she shot her words across the room.
“You didn’t think we could write treason to the other Great Lords and Ladies without the Queen of Lenorea finding out, did you?” Nakir dismissed. After a moment, he added, “They haven’t responded.”
“They’re afraid,” Alethea told him, remembering her prophecy from interrogating Goran Arranil. “Maybe... maybe you could go to them. Speak with them face-to-face. Negotiate an alliance.”
Balthasar glanced at the map in front of them. “Well, we can count the Great Lady Osman of Setta out. That’s the queen’s sister and the former province of the Onasises.”
“Not to mention, she’s filthy rich,” Kerrigan added. “She could probably buy an army.”
“From where?” Dawes asked. “We have all the mercenaries worth a damn from Wolfecrest.”
“Azmarin?” Kerrigan guessed.
“No,” Balthasar said, shaking his head. “The Delaneys wouldn’t get involved unless it were personal.”
Azmarin’s technologically advanced army would certainly tip the scales in any conflict, but Balthasar was right: they wouldn’t engage unless they were attacked directly.
Emi stood and moved next to Balthasar to see their map, bringing their attention back to the provinces of Lenorea.
“Well, that leaves the provinces of Meseira and Edysos. What do we know about them?” She turned to the spymaster, whom Alethea suspected knew nearly everything about everyone important in the kingdom.
“Myron and Yara Imanras of Meseira have more military forces than any province and the supplies to keep those forces for years. But they sided with Aikat during his coup, despite a history of friendship with the Hasans.” Balthasar tapped the map at Edysos, the northwestern province.
“Emre Volkan of Edysos is an incredibly powerful mage... He has a teleportation circle in his castle that he commands, which could prove invaluable. If we can convince them to ally themselves with us, it could make a significant difference.”
“If we can get them on our side,” Ker added, shaking a few stray red hairs out of her face. “That’s a big fucking ‘if.’ If we can’t convince them, we waste time, and any one of them could betray us, capture us, kill our people, and cut off our heads.”
Dawes cleared his throat. “It’ll take at least two days to get to Meseira, and another three to travel to Edysos if we move at full speed. We’d better hope they receive us without hostility. We certainly can’t face Meseira’s forces with ours.”
“Not to mention, I’m not exactly the Great Lady of Ephesus,” Ker added. “I heard the title went to some Leandro Gregor fuckhead. Too bad for him, we already have all of Ephesus’s forces ready and waiting.”
“But if we can convince them to support Nakir,” Alethea tried, “then maybe there won’t need to be a battle at all. Maybe if she sees she’s outnumbered, the queen will surrender.”
Ker snorted from the corner of the tent, and Dawes gave a skeptical look. He took a deep breath and pursed his lips, and she sensed he was going to tell her exactly how ignorant she was.
“Listen, Princess, I appreciate the idealism. But this is a war. There will be bloodshed, one way or another.”
Alethea searched the faces around the room, hardly willing to concede that the best way to take back the throne was through senseless violence against a city full of innocent people. She sighed, staring at the parchment laid out on the desk in front of her. “There’s one way to know for certain.”
“Alethea, we had a deal,” Nakir growled, coming over to stand beside her. His presence was a force of its own, and it was a challenge for her not to be moved by it.
A large, gentle hand took her own, and she peered up at Balthasar, who met her gaze. “No one expects that of you,” he promised.
“It wouldn’t hurt,” Dawes added, which earned him a smack on the shoulder from Emi.
But Alethea didn’t have their experience or knowledge. This was the only way she’d ever been useful in her entire life. So she closed her eyes and forced herself to imagine the scene that would unfold if Nakir’s army marched on Hyelea.
Immediately, her head rebelled, throbbing as she dared to dip into her volatile magic.
Her stomach rolled uncomfortably, and she gripped Balthasar’s hand tighter.
She was still weak from her visions with Goran, but even so, she plunged into the depths of her powers and tried to wade through the murky waters in search of the truth.
When her eyes opened, they were pure white. She heard Kerrigan swear from across the room, but it was faraway, at the end of a long tunnel.
Alethea turned to where she remembered Nakir standing, a sweat breaking over her brow. When her white gaze fell on him, his face was suddenly clear—the only thing she could see in the room. “Ask me,” she said to him, chest tightening. “Ask me what will happen.”
Nakir’s entire body was tense as he stared down at her, his expression unreadable.
“Alethea...” Balthasar squeezed her hand. I’m here, his touch reminded her. Grounded her.
“Ask me,” she demanded. “I need you to ask me. Be specific.”
Nakir’s jaw was hard as he spoke. “What will happen if we march on Hyelea now, with our current forces and reinforcements?”
The room spun as she summoned the magic, pulling at it while it clawed back, scratching and drawing blood.
“If you march on Hyelea now,” Alethea said, the words filling her up and pouring out of her, “the death toll will be in the thousands. Blood will flow down the streets. Your victory... complete. Your loss... beyond comprehension.”