Chapter 39 #3
“Give him something small,” I told Sylaira.
A long moment passed while she considered what to do. “I Saw Isra.”
Oshenai stilled, as did the rest of us. “Go on,” he encouraged, leaning forward in his chair, his full attention on my mate.
“On a battlefield in the mountains. She was among the masses surging uphill toward the wall. Somehow, she saw me and stopped, telling me I wasn’t supposed to be there,” my mate explained.
The chieftain exhaled a long breath. “Isra has an interesting future. You have all witnessed how the others treat her now. Yet our Seer has had many visions of her. It is quite strange. Though in the last, Isra knelt before six thrones.”
My brows furrowed.
Six thrones?
Lightning shot through the sky, highlighting the library purple.
Sylaira flicked her attention toward me as the flash receded, the corners of her mouth dipping.
We’d planned to install ourselves as the rulers of the Angel Realm.
But four more? Maelsar would outright refuse one if I offered it to him, and there was no one else I could think of who would be a fine, fair monarch.
So why had the Goddess shown that to this Hathi Seer?
“That is most interesting, Chieftain,” Sylaira mused, returning her focus to Oshenai. “You do not force her to See?”
He shrank back like the idea was abhorrent to him. “Of course not. Whatever our Radiant Mother wishes to show, She does.”
“Do you know what the Korona forces the Seers to do once they are under her control?” Sylaira gritted out, the storm inside her thundering in my ears.
“I have heard whispers. But something tells me you would like to share,” Oshenai said, cocking his head to the side.
Sylaira scowled, the expression threaded with hatred toward my sister.
“She plies us with drugs. Anything to force us into our Sight. My best friend was a Seer too.” Her voice broke, and her nails dug into the arms of her chair like they were the claws she’d like to dig into Iaoth.
“We were not doing enough for the Korona, so she insisted on sharing her power to amplify the visions.”
Oshenai sucked in a sharp breath. “You’re lying.”
“I wish I were,” she said, her tone bitter. “Because if I were, Heraphia would still be alive.”
Oshenai dropped his head to his chest, blowing out a long breath and a quiet prayer. “I am so sorry for the death of your friend, Seraelth.”
“Sylaira,” she corrected him.
He lifted his gaze, glancing behind him at the open door like he was searching for anyone who might overhear our conversation. “Power sharing and a trial by light you were told to lose. And these are the people ruling our realm?”
I exhaled, threading disappointment into the sound. “I’m glad you see things the way we do, Oshenai, because we could use your help.”
“Ah, you want the Hatha Islands to back you.”
I lifted a shoulder and let it drop, trying to appear calm and casual while my heart raced against my ribs. “You’re a smart male. What do you think would happen if we didn’t attempt to end the war outside of the way the crown wants?”
“Why do you think we have kept to ourselves all this time?” he volleyed back.
“What was the real reason you left?” I questioned. “Did your Seer have anything to do with it?”
“She might have,” he mused, fingers tracing across the spine of Keleti and into the Demon Realm.
So we’d both been gauging the other during our first meeting.
“Does this mean we can count on your support?” Maelsar asked him outright.
A long moment passed while the chieftain’s gaze flicked around the table. “Tell me this…” He trailed off, and cold slithered down my spine. “Will you give the islands independence if you are on the throne?”
What he was asking…
It was possible, yes. But practical? Surrendering land, having another potential adversary off our coast, was a risk. I weighed my next words carefully. “You are Angels, are you not?”
“Aye, but we live a very different life from the mainlanders. Our lands are far more peaceful than yours. I don’t want my people to be dragged into a future conflict because we are bound by those obligations that come with being part of the realm.”
“I understand your point.” Truly, I did.
And I knew that without his support, we couldn’t manage to both hold back the horde of Demons and remove Iaoth and Stadiel from the throne simultaneously.
I blew out a long breath. “If we succeed, the Hatha Islands will have their wish. Though I hope we can remain good friends.”
“Then we have a deal,” Oshenai said.
We rose, meeting halfway and clasping arms in time with a rumble of thunder.
“Thank you, Chieftain,” I said.
“And I thank you, Issaraeth.”
Triumph crashed through me like lightning.
Yet the mention of thrones plagued my thoughts as we revealed all our plans to Oshenai and decided what needed to be done before we departed Eloi.
Sacrifice. Six seats of power. Shifting Sight.
Somehow, the more information I gathered, the murkier the path forward became.
I only hoped that my mate might See our way out of this.
And toward peace.