I couldn’t hide the quirk of my lips at his question. Trust my suspicious kitten to question everything.
I stopped myself. He wasn’t my anything. What the fuck was wrong with me? This strange attraction to him was driving me crazy. It couldn’t be our magic. This wasn’t like the reassuring hum I’d felt with Ri. That had been something warm, comfortable, like an old pair of jeans. Of course, I’d never been sexually attracted to Ri, either. He’d been like my brother. This? This was electric. I’d been shocked by an exposed wire once, and the feeling was similar.
“Hello?” Kat waved his hand in front of my face.
“Shit, sorry. I must have zoned out.”
“No shit,” he snapped, his eyes flashing angrily.
“I want your help convincing the other Mageia participating in the Machi Thanatos to join us,” I said. “Join Illyria in the war.”
They both looked at me in shock for a moment then at each other.
“That’s insane,” Kat said. “Mageia have a hard time trusting each other. You think we’re going to trustyou?”
I sighed. Like I said, Alexandrian Mageia were a pain in the ass.
“Look, have you ever heard the saying ‘The enemy of my enemy is my friend’?” I asked.
Vlakas nodded, but Kat just continued staring at me.
“Just because there’s a saying, doesn’t make it true,” Kat spat at me. “These Mageians have been trained for more than half their lives to believe their sole purpose in life is to earn a place serving an Elusian. How do you convince them to fight for you?”
“How do I convince you?” I retorted. “I figure if I can convince you, as fuckingparanoidas you seem to be, then maybe you can help me convince them.”
V smirked at his brother. “Well at least he’s a good judge of character.”
Kat ignored his brother.
“How do we know Mageians are any better off working with Illyrians than they are under the Elusians?”
“Well, it can hardly be worse, can it?” I demanded. I stood and began pacing, struggling to find the words that would sway these men to our side. Somehow it felt imperative that I convince them.
“In Illyria, Mageians are valued. Our Mageians are full citizens with full rights. Illyria doesn’t believe in slavery, in any form,” I said. I saw a strange glance pass between the brothers as if something I said was resonating with them.
“Why don’t Illyrians practice slavery?” Kat asked.
“Really? You can ask that, having been a slave to Elusians?” I said.
“Humor me,” he said, raising a mocking eyebrow at me.
I shrugged and answered, “Illyrians believe we were all created equal. Different, but equal. We value those differences because we each play a role in the balance of the world.”
“So in this utopia you describe, there has to be work that no one wants to do,” Kat said. “How does that work get done?”
“You mean like garbage and water treatment and the like?” I asked. Kat nodded.
“We pay people well. If fewer people want to do a job, we pay more to the ones whoarewilling to do the work. It’s supply and demand,” I said.
“So… youpaypeople to clean your sewers?” V asked, as if he was having a hard time wrapping his mind around the concept.
I nodded.
“That’s…different,” he said, sitting back on his heels, his eyes thoughtful.
“What, does the King charge the nobles for the service then?” V asked.
I smiled. They really didn’t know anything about Illyria.
