Bastial Sentinels (The Rhythm of Rivalry: Book 5) (33 page)

“You cannot win this fight!” Jek yelled. “Convince your men to retreat.”

The man’s expression hardened. He charged at Jek.

After a despairing sigh, Jek said to his mages, “Now you can cast.”

The enraged officer was struck down by fire, and this time he didn’t rise.

Chapter 31:

CLEVE

When the battle began, Cleve couldn’t find an opportunity to go on the offensive. Overwhelmed by enemies, it was a constant struggle just to protect himself. He managed to kill some overaggressive men as they lunged confidently, often paired with another skunk in their attack. But Cleve continually was driven back in his defense, nearly tripping over frogs facing the same dilemma.

Pushed away from Reela and Vithos, he lost track of them. But he didn’t let himself worry. The Elves were the most capable force on the battlefield. They stayed together and tore through skunks like a hurricane, leaving bloody bodies in their wake.

Now night was approaching, shrouding the outer reaches of the battlefield. The numbers had turned in their favor, and Cleve relished the constant two-on-one advantages.

By the time he found the Elves again, spotting Reela safely beside Klaiya in the heart of the hurricane, enemies were just starting to flee. Rather than chase them, Cleve covertly aided their escape as best he could. He
accidentally
tripped two frogs running after a skunk. He
clumsily
fell into an ally archer about to shoot his arrow through the back of a black tunic. Then he saw Oster fighting off two swordsmen as he backed away, searching for an escape.

As Cleve ran, all he could hope was that his allies wouldn’t kill him when he came from behind and tackled them.

The Elves had adopted the same plan as Cleve. Rather than casting psyche to disable skunks through pain, they were flooding their minds with a terrorizing fear of death, convincing the enemy troops that their lives would end in a moment if they didn’t flee. Unfortunately, there were some skunks so stubborn in their resolve that even powerful psyche did nothing to deter them. Soon they fell like their comrades.

Reela surprised Cleve by jumping out in front of him and using her psyche on the two frogs he was about to tackle. “Let them escape!” she shouted, as she took her allies down with pain.

They tripped, both falling hard. She let down her hand, and they jumped to their feet. With faces red with rage, they started toward her.

“Traitorous bitch!” They pointed their swords. But their arms fell the moment Cleve stepped in front of Reela with his Bastial steel blade.

The men looked around to find Elves everywhere stopping frogs from chasing skunks. Cleve glanced at Oster, who looked over his shoulder gratefully.

“What is this?” one frog asked.

“Why let them escape?” the other added.

More frogs spat the same questions at Elves all around them.

“They’ll be your allies soon,” Cleve explained. “The battle is over.”
This battle, at least.
“Klaiya will explain everything.”

Frogs everywhere seemed to be ignoring the Elves, looking for answers among their own instead. There was no cheering from the victory, just scowls and squints of confusion. The frogs huddled around their officers, some pointing at the Elves like children telling their parents of another misbehaved child. By then, the only skunks left were dead.

The Elves came together in a group, like the frogs. Klaiya stood between the two groups and waited. The air was heavy with aggression. Cleve could hear the angry murmurs of frogs claiming the Elves needed to die, others agreeing and adding that the Elves couldn’t be trusted or that they’d already served their purpose.

“Cleve.” Jek was waving his arm to get his attention. The mage came out of the array of soldiers to meet Cleve between the groups.

“Glad you’re not hurt,” Cleve said, offering his hand.

Jek clasped it. “What about Reela and Vithos?”

“They’re fine. Calvon and Peter?”

“Peter’s fine. Calvon got a gash in his arm, but otherwise he’s unharmed. Did you notice they only had one siege weapon?”

Cleve nodded.

Jek let out something between a laugh and a scoff. “I can’t imagine what it would’ve been like if they’d been hurling two boulders at once. I’m glad you made your shot.”

“Me as well. What happened to the rocks that landed up where you were? It looked like they exploded.”

“I managed to catch them with Sartious spears.”

“Spears? I’ve never heard of such a spell.”

“It’s not a proper name, but I don’t know what else to call it. I can shape Sartious Energy into anything, and spears were what I chose.”

He’s going to do well when we face the desmarls…all that Sartious Energy he can use,
Cleve thought
.

Jek sounded worried when he asked, “Why did the Elves stop us from killing more skunks?”

“Because they won’t be our enemies much longer,” Cleve replied.

Jek showed confusion, but at least he seemed to believe Cleve. “How’s that possible?”

Cleve was reluctant to say more. He wasn’t prepared to lie to Jek, nor could he think of a way to reveal the truth that wouldn’t damage Jek’s trust. Luckily, Klaiya took everyone’s focus by raising her long arms and shouting.

“Rather than speculate whether it would be wise to attack us—your proven allies—why don’t you ask whatever questions you have?”

An officer came forward with a snarl. “No one’s speaking or moving until Raymess gets here. That includes your Elves. Stay back there and wait, and keep your psyche to yourself.”

People began turning to the mountain as Raymess, Micah, and Tobkin navigated down the now-damaged paths. The trip looked treacherous, and twenty men started up to offer their assistance, not that Cleve understood what they could do.

In fact, when they reached Raymess and his two high-ranking councilmen, they offered their hands for balance, only to be denied. So they kicked rubble from the broken paths instead, looking back with protective glances.

It was eerily quiet. Nearly a fourth of the skunks had survived, and they must’ve been deeply hidden in the forest by then. Not even half of the frogs had fallen. They waited in silence for their next orders.

There were three challenges that Cleve feared coming to Lake Mercy: convincing the frogs the Elves were their allies, fighting off the skunks, and now this—revealing the true purpose behind not only their visit, but everything Fatholl had done up to this point.

Raymess and Tobkin were encircled by officers when they reached the ground. Micah split off and walked toward Jek and Cleve.

“Did you and Raymess witness any of the battle?” Jek asked.

“We saw the end.” Micah’s dark eyes were set on Cleve. “I always assumed there would be cheering after any victory.”

There usually is.

“Too many frogs want to attack the Elves now,” Jek said. “I don’t know how we’re going to stop them.”

“Changing their minds is the only option,” Micah said. He and Jek were speaking to each other, though both didn’t look away from Cleve. His reticence made him feel like he was eavesdropping. He had to say something.

“We need troops from Waywen and Presoren—as many as can fight,” he said.

“Need them for what?” Micah asked.

“For the desmarls.” He eyed Klaiya. With folded arms, she stared at Raymess impatiently. “Klaiya will explain everything, though it might take some convincing.”

“Why are you being so cryptic with us?” Jek sounded insulted. “You’re making it hard for us to trust you if you won’t trust us.”

I’m only making things worse.
This is why Cleve didn’t want to answer any questions. He looked around for Reela, knowing she was far more skilled in easing other people’s suspicions.

Perhaps called by his thoughts, she emerged from the crowd of Elves. As she locked eyes with Cleve, he knew she understood.

She greeted Jek and Micah, and they nodded and smiled in return. “I saw what you did with all that Sartious Energy, Jek,” Reela said. “I’ve never seen anything like that. How did you make such an enormous block of it?”

Cleve didn’t know what she was referring to. He made a mental note to ask later.

Humbled, Jek’s gaze fell to his feet. “Practice, I suppose. I gathered as much as I could and did what I knew how to do, just at a greater scale.”

“I’m sure thousands of skunks noticed it as well,” she said. “The battle changed right after. They knew they were going to lose. You realize that you probably saved many lives with that one spell? It would’ve taken much longer for them to start running.”

“I hadn’t thought of that.” Jek still had trouble meeting her eyes.

“I didn’t see the spell,” Micah said. “You’ll have to show me.”

“As soon as I figure out how to do it without nearly killing myself, I will.”

After a quick chuckle, Reela brushed her hair from her face and became serious. “I’m sure you and the rest of your men are confused and wary because of how the battle ended.” Her strong voice grabbed their gaze as they straightened their backs. “We wish to explain everything, but we fear how some will react. It’s a delicate matter, and Klaiya knows better than any of us how to handle the dialogue appropriately.”

Reela stopped herself, her mouth twisting. “I’m afraid I’m sounding grim. My point is while you may have reasons to distrust these Elves, you shouldn’t. Cleve and I came here with my brother from Ovira. We held Fatholl and his Elves in the same regard as you do. Our minds didn’t change quickly, and we expect it’ll be a hundred times more difficult for Raymess. Please help him think logically while he speaks with Klaiya. I believe that’s a fair request.”

Micah regarded her with an unreadable expression. He had a face made for playing cards. “Will any harm come to the surviving Takarys or any of Goldram’s citizens with whatever Fatholl has planned?”

“That’ll be up to Raymess,” Reela answered.

“What does that mean?” Jek asked.

But Micah lightly placed his hand on Jek’s shoulder to turn him. “It means there’s a right answer and a wrong answer that Raymess can give. Come on, Jek. Let’s go make sure he gives the right answer.”

Although the young mage still seemed confused, he followed Micah without reluctance and joined Raymess, Tobkin, and the officers where they waited, too far away to be heard.

Chapter 32:

JEK

Raymess soon made a decision. He would hear why the Elves believed Waywen and Presoren would become allies with Goldram and Zav. “And depending on what the Elves say,” the King added spitefully, “they might not be leaving Lake Mercy alive. Make sure the men are organized for battle,” he instructed his officers. “But don’t attack unless I say so.” He strode quickly toward Klaiya, looking almost as if he hoped she would say something that would spark conflict.

For two steps, Jek chased after the young monarch. But he stopped when he realized there was nothing he could say to calm Raymess. Although Raymess was Lisanda’s older brother, right now none of that mattered. He was the sovereign over every man here. Jek’s gesture would be utterly disrespectful. And from the way Klaiya lowered her head as he approached, it seemed that even the Elves knew they needed to act subordinate.

“Thank you for speaking with me,” she began. “I understand there’s confusion after seeing us aid your enemies in escaping.”

“There’s been confusion since the moment you came here with food,” Raymess spat back. “Aiding our enemies has only made things more clear. Out of respect for the help you’ve provided, you’re still standing here. But that could change in an instant. If you value your safety, it might be wise for you to leave without saying anything.”

“Can you talk with him?” Jek whispered to Micah.

“Look at his eyes. My approach would just insult him.”

Whatever Micah saw in the King’s eyes, Jek didn’t. He just saw an angry man with too much power, a sight he’d seen more than enough for one lifetime.

Klaiya stood tall and confident, forcing Raymess to look up at her if their gazes were to meet. But he refused to lift his head. He twisted it sideways and glared from the corners of his eyes.

“Events have been set in motion that cannot be undone,” Klaiya announced loudly, no doubt meant for the ears of every man rallied behind Raymess. “The war of man can be over if you and the other leaders let it be.” As if surprised by a sudden foul odor, she stepped back with a grimace. “But you and many of your men aren’t ready for it to end. You’d rather destroy your enemies than have them join your ranks. Don’t you see the trouble with that? There will be no peace this way.”

“I don’t know what you think you can sense, Elf, but you know nothing about us,” Raymess said. “For too long my men have fought, starved, seen their comrades killed, and lived in insufferable misery. No one wants this war to end more than they do. But what you’re proposing is idiotic. Neither we nor our enemies are ready for peace. You can’t simply call someone an ally and make it so.”

“I see my mistake now. You’re not eager for more war; you’re eager to kill those who’ve opposed you. The need for blood burns within you and your men. But to wish for the end of war in addition to the death of your enemies is to wish for both night and day at the same time. You can’t hope for both. You must choose: peace or war, vengeance or progress.” She looked hard at Raymess, daring him to oppose her. “You must decide between a peaceful future or complete obliteration.”