CHAPTER FIFTY-FIVE #3
Deckard’s chest constricted, but he let the young Warrior finish his plan.
“Send Thom, Ilain, and Raff with Evie as a negotiation party. Blount will bring them right into the throne room to boast about his victory.” Ethenn raised his brow.
“Meanwhile, the rest of us will go with you, Colonel. You’ll jump us past the walls and shroud us through the city, and we’ll make our way onto the palace grounds through the same secret passage we took to reach the Space Keep.
We’ll work our way through the palace via one of Ilain’s secret entrances and through the passageways. ”
Evylin met Deckard’s gaze.
“The Bond will lead you to her,” Ethenn continued. “And together, we will all defeat Blount, take back the Relics, and raise Allund.”
“There are too many things that could go wrong,” Deckard said. “Blount has his Mages in the city. My control over Night magic isn’t that strong. Any Night Mage will recognize my shroud the moment they see it. It’s costly to my magic, and I will weaken faster the more I use it.”
Ethenn brushed the worry off. “You’ll only need to use it if we run into trouble. We’ll also have Vayden with us. Worst case, he’ll pretend to be Blount long enough to cause them to hesitate while the rest of us take them out.”
“Two Mages and two Warriors,” Brea jested. “That’s a rather appropriate guard for His Royal Highness.”
“I’ve overthrown two countries now, naladar,” Vayden said, his voice shifting into an imitation of Blount. “You may call me ‘Your Majesty.’”
Ignoring their banter, Ethenn faced Deckard. “While Blount and his men are focused on the negotiation party, we’ll sneak into the palace, sight unseen.”
“We flank him,” Thom surmised. “In a roundabout sort of way.”
Deckard didn’t like it. They’d be risking their lives.
He’d be separated from Evylin, handing her over to the very man who was obsessed with Bonding with her.
Yet, what choice did they have? The alternative was to go in together, putting everything on the line and hoping Blount didn’t end them in one strike.
Or they could divide, distract, and pray they lived to see another day.
Either way, Deckard thought, there will be casualties.
One option just provided the opportunity to lessen their losses.
“Might I mention,” Thom said warily, “that the negotiation party will be putting themselves at Blount’s mercy? Why wouldn’t he just kill Ilain, Raff, and me and keep Evie for himself?”
“He won’t want me dead right away,” Ilain said. “He’ll make my execution public. Pyra’s Heiress at the mercy of his power paints a potent picture.”
“That doesn’t improve our odds, dear lady,” Rafferty quipped.
Ilain smirked. “If it comes to it, I’ll save you.”
“Blount won’t want to kill you right away,” Vayden confirmed.
“He’ll want to prove his power by lording it over you.
He’s been slowly succumbing to the Deep over the past twenty years, driving him to irrational and cruel actions.
Killing you too quickly will take away the joy of his victory.
He’ll be far more likely to torture you to death over time. ”
“Mm. We have such stunning choices before us,” Thom grumbled.
Sighing, Deckard pinched the bridge of his nose. “Is this really our best option?” he asked. “Divide our party and hope that Blount’s narcissism is enough to overcome his good sense?”
Evylin rested her hand on his arm, her touch comforting.
“We’ve been preparing for this moment from the start,” she said.
“You, Ethenn, and Brea are completely unknown to him. If you come in with the Relics, there’s no chance he’ll defeat us.
But if we’re all together, if we fight as one, he’ll know your powers.
And we’ll have lost our greatest asset, the element of surprise. ”
Ilain stepped forward then, the early evening sun beaming through the trees in shafts of light, making her hair look as if it were on fire.
“This is our chance,” she said. “I can protect them, Jonn. Together, Evylin and I are strong enough to free all four of us if things fall apart. And with the rest of you together, you can be our support.”
Deckard’s heart was in turmoil. He didn’t want this—any of it. If he had his way, he’d take Evylin, return to Olbury, and sail across the sea to Audis on the southern shores of Matteire, where they could walk along the white sandy beaches, and he’d teach her to swim in the crystal blue waters.
The sunlight caught in her gaze, shifting the brown to amber. “We can do this, Jonn,” she promised. “Blount has used us from the start. He’s manipulated us, tricked us, trapped us. I’d like to use him and his arrogance against him for once.”
Her fingers tightened on his arm, but her gaze softened. Despite her confident demeanor, he felt the anxiety rippling around her. Nonetheless, it blended with determination. “Together,” she whispered, “you and I are stronger than he could ever be. We can do this.”
Deckard shook his head, not sharing her surety. “I’m not strong enough without you.”
A gentle smile brought the dimples to her cheeks.
“You’re never without me anymore,” she said, lifting his hand to kiss his moonstone ring.
And he knew it was true. They were Bonded.
She had become part of his very soul. Even if they were miles apart, he could feel her.
And he knew if all else failed—if he felt a surge of fear and panic too strong from her through their Bond—he could teleport straight to her.
It might drain much of the energy he owned, but he could come to her rescue, even at the expense of the others.
Deckard’s conscience twisted his gut. Could he abandon their friends to save his wife? Was that even laudable?
He prayed he wouldn’t have to make that choice.
In his lingering indecision, Evylin reached up.
She slipped the Space Relic out from beneath her coat, bringing the chain over her head.
Then she placed the pendant in his palm.
A thrill of magic shot up his arm, but unlike many times before, it stayed contained, like a greeting rather than a compulsion.
“You are strong enough,” Evylin promised. She closed his fingers around the Relic. “You always said one man can make the difference.” Deckard’s heart stuttered as she looked up at him with pride shining in her gaze. “You are that one man,” she said.
He wanted to deny it, to reject the weight of such responsibility. How could he be that man? How could he—a mere farm boy from Nettershire, a nobody, a failure of a soldier—be anything of significance?
But as he looked into Evylin’s eyes, he realized: He was significant to her. And perhaps that was all that mattered.
With a deep breath to gather his courage, Deckard gave a single nod. Then he turned to the troop.
“Today,” he said, “we do what thousands before us couldn’t. Together, as a team, we will enter the city, stop Blount, and bring peace to Allund. Today, we will end the Centurial War.”