The Truce - 13. Chapter 13

Kade was alone in the shop for the first time in several days, owing to the fact that Adrian was making a few preparations. He had left to catch up on business at the local aviary, where he had a small stockpile of letters that had been forwarded there and another pile that he needed to write. Kade had wondered why Adrian seemed to have so much free time, but it appeared that he had been neglecting his duties to spend time with Kade.

Well, I guess it wasn’t a full neglection, Kade thought. I am a duty myself. Kade still didn’t know how he felt about that, despite the fact that he had always promised himself he would take any chance he got to rise to power and wealth. I mean I guess I’m not hurting anything by saying yes… but is this really for me?

Kade had always thought of himself as the type to make his own way, and fight to receive everything that he had. And now… I’m just another spoiled kid born with privilege. There’s no honor in getting to where I want to be without having to put in the work for it. True Nabians climb to new heights on stacks of bodies, and I have very little bloodshed on my hands. I’ve certainly accomplished plenty in the way of thievery, but that’s completely dwarfed by the wealth that Adrian has. What’s the point in earning money for yourself if privilege comes along and makes you rich anyway? I’ve just… I’ve accomplished nothing in my life.

Kade sat at the counter of his shop deep in contemplation for a few minutes, pondering the next stage of his life as he had been doing since Adrian had asked for his hand. He thought about the fact that he really hadn’t been privileged because he didn’t know who he was, and his biological father had never provided him with any favors. As a matter of fact, he did quite the opposite. When Kade was excelling at the academy, Devan had been the one to intervene and pull him out. Kade knew that it was for his own safety, but it was still disappointing.

But now, I suppose it all comes around. We’ll announce who I am, and I’ll get to be a prince. Kade wondered which name he would use. Should I still be Kade Hawkins? Or do I take the Di Coteau name now? Or maybe Adrian will want me to become a Fray. That’s probably the most likely scenario, but I have no idea if they even do that in the Illjard. He sighed, strumming his fingers on the counter.

And does it even matter? Do I want to be a Fray, or a Di Coteau? He thought of the two families that had inspired their people for countless generations. While he knew very little about the Fray line, he was sure that they were nowhere near as ruthless and talented as the Di Coteaus. Kade had always admired the ruling families of Nabius for their unrelenting strength, and doubted whether the Frays could stand up to that. They are a weaker family overall. Most likely.

Kade thought of how kind Adrian had been, and how gentle his mannerisms were. He wore his emotions on his face in a way that the average Nabian did not, and this sometimes confused Kade. Is he truly strong? He’s almost too nice… Kade thought again of having stolen from Adrian at their first meeting, and didn’t like confronting his guilt about that. A real Nabian would never admit to that, but he’s borderline asking to be taken advantage the way he acts. Adrian had jumped into bed the moment Kade had made a move – the seduction felt easy. Adrian had also offered to pay Kade’s adoptive parents’ way into retirement, which they took immediately.

You can’t just give everything away. That’s no way to lead. Then again… maybe the ideals of Nabius will change too. Kade thought of Alexandre, who he had recently discovered was his cousin. He’s a Di Coteau, after all. Maybe there’s a way to apply strength to a more forgiving rule of law. Kade wasn’t sure, and did his best to push these thoughts out of his head when a customer entered the shop. It was his last day working there, and he was glad for the distraction to help make the time go by.

“Welcome, sir,” he greeted. The figure that had entered the store was tall and powerfully built, much like Kade himself. He wore a plain gray cloak with a hood that obscured his face, but Kade could tell by his boots that he had money.

“Hello,” said the stranger awkwardly.

“Hello.” Kade waited a few seconds, but when he got no response he felt a little strange. The figure just stood there staring, as if waiting for Kade to do something. “Were… you interested in anything specific?”

“Ah. Forgive me. No.” The figure stood a little taller, and removed his hood. Kade recognized the man instantly as if he were looking into a reflection of his future self.

“General,” he breathed out in a barely audible whisper.

“You do not need to call me that,” said Devan Di Coteau.

“What should I call you then?” Both men hesitated at that.

“You may call me whatever you like.”

“Okay.” A long time passed as father and son sized each other up, neither saying a word.

“I’m sorry it’s taken so long for you to find out. And for me to come down here.”

“I understand your reasoning.” Devan nodded curtly at this response.

“And now you will finally be safe.”

“Will I? Be safe.”

“I can’t guarantee that, but much safer than here. Your existence is evidence of a failure by a Nabian general. He will not tolerate it for long.”

“So he’ll come after me.”

“Maybe. General Clarion has no reach in the Illjard. Most don’t – there has never been a need for us to interfere with Illjardi politics.”

“Let’s hope I don’t change things.”

“Let’s hope indeed.”

Kade was in awe, but at the same time felt dizzy. He hadn’t faced the fact that he was adopted yet, and somehow it didn’t seem real until his father had walked through the shop door. There was now no denying it, and the thought of his life being upended made Kade feel slightly nauseous.

“Are you… okay?”

“Yes, General. I’m fine. Thank you. It’s nice to meet you for the first time.”

“Kade…” Devan began, “I wish that things had turned out differently. I wish that I hadn’t been such a coward, and challenged Yago the moment I found out what he had done. But my brother urged against it, and I was unable to bring myself to act in my grief. It is my biggest regret.”

“Why?”

“Had I killed Yago, I could have reintroduced you to the world and raised you.”

“It’s alright. I made my way.”

“So you did. Aside from that, I probably would have been a terrible father anyway.” Kade didn’t want to say that he thought that was most likely true, so he didn’t agree.

“I’m sure it would have been suitable. I’ve learned many valuable lessons in my time with my parents that I wouldn’t have had I grown up rich.” Devan raised an eyebrow at that.

“Humility is not a common trait amongst Nabians.”

“Running away isn’t common for Nabians either.” Devan’s face grew cold at that, and his mouth pressed into a thin line.

“I didn’t mean you,” Kade rushed to say. He didn’t want to disrespect the general, or harp on his failings as a father. “I’m sorry, General. I was referring to myself.”

“Oh?”

“Isn’t that exactly what this is? My marriage? I’ll be hiding. Now that I know who I am… it feels like I’m turning my back on myself. It’s shameful.” Devan chuckled, and his face relaxed.

“I see you’re a Nabian through and through. You will make a fine edition to our family.”

“Not from the Illjard I won’t.”

“Do not shy away from your duties too soon. The bridge between the Illjard and Nabius is important.”

“All due respect General, who cares if we have good relations with the Illjard? The only things that come from there are ice, expensive seafood, and crystals. Only the rich can enjoy that. We give them what they need to survive. To be honest, it seems like they benefit from trading with us a lot more than we benefit from trading with them.” The general outright smiled at that, and nodded his head.

“An astute assessment.”

“So then you agree?”

“Economically, yes.”

“Does much else matter?”

“Absolutely.”

“Such as?”

“I’ll leave it to you to determine how Nabius can benefit from this arrangement. Great people make their own paths. This is an opportunity for you, young man.”

“I…” Kade had never thought of it that way. He knew it was an opportunity for himself, yes; but, he could still aspire to be something greater than himself too. “Thank you. You’re right.”

“You are welcome. This is a bigger chance to make something of yourself than I could ever give you. Make sure that you do something with it.”

I will, thought Kade.

***

Carl returned to his room in Laura Nandra’s estate late at night completely exhausted. Among his itinerary was to inspect all of the troops that were stationed up and down the length of the territory, and make several appearances amongst the Nabian troops that were uneasily situated there. He had gone from camp to camp giving speeches and interviewing the leaders of each platoon. While doing so, he had also been quietly probing about the most recent attack on Nabius. To his chagrin, he had not been able to turn up any more information than he already had.

When he had made it to his room, he opened the door as quietly as he could. Across the way, he saw Alexandre’s pale back standing out amongst the black covers in the bed. He’s sleeping. Carl rapped on the nearest wall, careful not to startle Alex out of his sleep – it was a lesson that he had learned the hard way.

Instantly, Alexandre shot up and had unsheathed a knife from beneath his pillow. When his eyes met Carl’s and focused, his body language relaxed and Carl knew it was safe to approach. “Sorry to wake you,” he whispered.

“It’s alright. How was your day?”

“Long. Tiring. Yours?”

“About the same.” Alex yawned, and put his knife away.

“Did you find anything out anything new?”

“Not a bit. You?”

“No.” The two sighed in unison, and Carl took his shirt off to get into bed. He had taken off most of his protective clothing earlier, with the help of onsite guards and house staff.

He climbed into bed, and put one arm around Alexandre’s shoulders. “We’ll get to the bottom of it. It’s good to visit the camps too. We have been long overdue for coming out to the east.”

“I agree,” said Alex. “I just wish we were having more of an impact.”

“We’ll get there.” They relaxed in silence, but despite the dark and the warmth under the blankets, Carl had a tough time feeling sleepy. Alexandre seemed like he was about to doze off again, but Carl kept him awake with another line of thought.

“I can’t help but think about the order.”

“The Hallowed Order? The one that your parents and Jared told us about?”

“Yes. Do you think it’s connected?”

“I don’t know,” said Alex honestly. “I don’t know enough about them to say. Jared certainly seemed to think it was. And your discovery of stolen mail from the group by Chamberlin corroborates that.”

“Yeah. I know it’s Chamberlin – there’s no one else that could pull something like that off. My Mom and Dad have cut off contact with him by the way.” Alex nodded. “But I can’t see the connection between him, them, and the attacked ships.”

“Me neither. We just need more information.” Suddenly, Alex drew his knife again and threw it across the room into the doorway. Carl hadn’t noticed it open again, and was stunned when he realized that he hadn’t heard anything. Almanita Nandra stood in the doorway, holding the hilt of the knife with it pointing directly between her eyes. She had caught it as it came towards her, and it looked like she hadn’t even flinched.

“Good throw,” she commented. She lowered the knife to her side, and began walking towards the bed.

“Almanita! I’m so sorry. I didn’t realize that it was you,” apologized Alex.

“That’s quite alright. I intruded on your space – please don’t apologize.” She got closer, and sat on the edge of the bed.

“I couldn’t help but overhear.” Carl resisted the urge to roll his eyes at that.

Why is she listening in on us? I definitely trust her, but good grief… is it too much to ask for a little privacy?

“It’s about time that you’ve been read in on a little bit more information. I’d like to tell you all about the order, to see if that information is helpful to you at all.”

***

Talia had caught wind of Yago’s return to his palace and knew he was furious at his inability to catch her. He had killed the first servant that welcomed him home, and it was all the talk of the house staff. He would be back towards his private quarters and office soon, and Talia was ready. She had broken her schedule and almost gotten caught on the way to her perch in the windowsill, but had successfully evaded a patrol of guards. She was halfway up the curtain when they passed by, and she had been forced to pause mid climb. While they talked, she held herself by grabbing thick folds of the fabric. The strain on her biceps was intense until they left, and she was able to get up to the top shortly afterwards. Almost half an hour passed while Talia waited, but she eventually heard a distinctive set of steps that clued her in.

Talia’s pupils widened, and every hair on her body raised. She went as still as possible, and controlled her breathing. That’s him. It has to be. Here and now, I’m going to end this all. Talia closed her eyes, listening and feeling every inch of the room. She would be completely silent. Leaning out over the edge, she dropped two full stories to land on her target.

Die! She fell at precisely the right angle, knife held to pierce flesh down through the side of the neck. Talia knew the jugular would split, and Yago would only have minutes before life ran out of his body. When she was just about to hit, Yago tilted his head up slightly and fell to one side. No!

She landed with a crash, and her knife dug straight into the flesh on Yago’s shoulder. He yelled out in pain, while at the same time laughing maniacally.

“Got ya you little bitch!” The pair rolled onto the ground from the momentum of Talia’s fall, and immediately sprung into action.

Shit! How did he sense me? Talia was certain that she had been completely silent, and that she should have completed that kill. She kicked off of Yago’s chest to roll backwards onto her feet, and tried to strike again. Much to her surprise, her uncle had gotten to his feet faster and had already launched a punch aimed towards her head. Talia turned sideways and leaned back to dodge the punch, striking up at his elbow. Evidently Yago saw the move coming, and swept his arm away. This transitioned his punch in a backhanded swipe, which Talia had to bend over into a momentary bridge to dodge. She only bounced a hand of the ground for a moment before springing back up to unleash a series of blows at Yago.

Each strike she threw, Yago parried with his one arm. Talia’s feet work was also countered in that each time she swept at his legs or tried to kick, there was another leg raised to block it. When she went in for an aggressive combination, Yago surprised her by using his injured arm and striking out with it. She was slapped across the face, and Yago laughed.

“You think you can hurt me with this?” he asked while he pulled the knife out of his shoulder? Blood began to flow more freely, and Yago licked his own life force off of the blade.

He doesn’t feel the pain. He’s still under the influence of the demon.

Yago now began to fight with the knife, but his new stance gave Talia the advantage. She blocked a downwards stab with a sneaky wrist grab, and was able to twist his arm so that the blade fell off. She launched a merciless kick to the knee that would have blown out the joint, but Yago was able to lessen the impact by going with her motion.

“Very good niece, very good.” Talia was beginning to feel desperate now, and lost some focus when she noticed one of her arms start to tingle and go numb. She broke the fight and her concentration to inspect herself, and noticed a needle sticking out of her forarm.

Oh no.

“But I’m afraid you’ve been a bit callow.” Talia looked herself over more, and saw several more thin needles stuck into her in various places. They were in her shoulders, forearms, and there was even one or two in her thighs.

How?

She gave a frustrated cry of rage, and jumped at Yago in a full body tackle. She hit him in the torso and they both went down, but Yago didn’t bother defending himself. “Fuck you!”

“Talia, Talia, Talia…” Yago said in a condescending tone. He held her wrists off of himself with ease, and Talia felt less and less control over her muscles. “Surely you’re better than that. You’ve got to pay more attention when you fight your betters.” A few moments later, the paralytic had set in and Talia could hardly move. When she fell off of him frozen, Yago picked himself up off of the floor.

“You,” he said to a nearby guard that had arrived, “fetch the package that arrived for me this morning. It’s a gift for my niece here.” The guard went to do as he was told, and several other guards ran up to take his place. The short, brutal fight had made a commotion, and some guards and a few servants ran up to see what was happening.

“Now,” said Yago as he grabbed a fistful of Taliai’s hair. “I must say you were the best hunt I’ve had in years. Where did you get the idea to leave so many false trails and come back here? Quite clever, I must admit.” The general dragged Talia by the hair across the floor, heading down the hallway that lead to his office. Talia’s hiding spot wasn’t far from it, so it was a short journey. She was tossed into the corner while Yago walked to a table against one of the walls. He grabbed a cloth, and began wrapping his arm with it to stop the blood flow.

“But your final stand was a bit weak. You should have perceived that you were being stuck during your attacks. These,” he said while he plucked a needle out of her, “are pretty potent. You would have needed to remove them immediately to have any chance before the toxin set in.” Talia made to lunge, and her body made a small rocking movement.

“Ah. Still fighting I see. I’m afraid that’s pointless – but don’t worry, the effects won’t last forever. A few hours, and you’ll be good as new. As for me… you’ve given me a new scar to remember this hunt by. I’ll wear it as a badge.”

This is the most despicable piece of shit I’ve ever met.

Yago gave her a condescending stare, and the guard that he had sent out arrived with a wooden box. “Thank you. You are dismissed for now – please prepare to have this one restrained once more. Bring the razor wire.”

“Yes, General Clarion.” The guard gave a bow, and disappeared again.

“You know, you would have noticed it had your senses been truly enhanced. The key to unlocking all of your potential is right here, in these very lands. It’s trapped in the body of every human that walks this continent… all you had to do was say ‘yes, Uncle Yago.’ But instead you decided to play games.” He rubbed his hands together in an excited fashion. “And I won those games, fair and square. Your true potential will be unlocked eventually.” He walked around Talia’s limp body with the box in hand, and knelt down in front of Talia.

“We can start with your first consumption as soon as the poison wears off. I thought you might like to see the source of your first time too.” He opened the box, and pulled out a human head. “Jezebel so generously donated it to me.” He turned the head around, and placed it on the floor next to Talia’s face. She stared into the eyes of Mikhail, and managed to keen out a heart wrenching sob even through the paralysis.

Talia’s rage grew stronger than she had ever known was possible. Tears rolled out of her eyes, and all of her thoughts melted into a messy slurry of anger, heartbreak, and hate.

I’m going to fucking destroy you, she thought. I’m going to make sure that every second of your death brings you agony and that you know everything that you care about is stripped away before you die.

Yago laughed as he got up, and walked away. As he left the room, a set of guards entered the room to restrain her.