The accusation birthed a flicker of hurt in the queen’s eyes. “How dare you. I’d never harm Benjamin. Not physically. That you’d even imply such a thing is gutting. Much as you fail to see it, I am still his friend. Stillyourfriend. But I will see him taken away. Confined to another cell far from yours. I will strip his legacy from the history books as well. No Sentinel Champion Benjamin Reese. Just two lost souls, heavily indebted, who died a purposeless existence.”
As the threat died away and as whispered incantations moved Catseye’s lips, dark shadows swirled around his feet. Smog slithered around his legs in coils of black smoke, beads of sweat appearing on his forehead, as he lurched from a snap of magical recoil. Fists clenched, words rasping, arms shaking, he said, “He gave everything for you and the R.S. You wouldn’t dare—”
“Ahem. Sikras? A moment?” Ben tapped the necromancer’s shoulder. “It’s just, you’re doing the thing. The creepy thing with the shadow blades and the ominousness, and, if you don’t stop now, all that magical backlash will wreak havoc on that fragile little body of yours. Let’s take a break, yeah?” Without waiting for an answer, he shoved Catseye toward the door, severing his concentration on whatever spell he was casting. “Pardon us, Your Majesty. I’m sure we’ll continue this conversation later, but, in the meantime, if you need us, we’ll be in my old quarters.”
Queen Saelihn hesitated before nodding. “Perhaps that’s for the best.”
“Still down the hallway and to the left?” Ben asked.
“Indeed. The same as the day you left it.”
Ben dipped into a half-assed bow, trails of smoke wafting after them, as he pushed Catseye out of the room. “Good. Great. Swell. Off we go.”
The snap of Catseye’s hands against the door frame kept him in the Grand Hall as he turned, pointing. “Saelihn, listen to me, because what I’m about to say is very important.”
The queen arched a brow as she awaited an elaboration.
Catseye’s eyes narrowed. “Those flyers count as a business expense. Kindly factor that into the equation while your people are tallying my debt.”
“Oh, come on,” Ben muttered, giving him a final shove out the door.
Stricken by the sheer awkwardness of—well, everything—Helspira stood in silence. She tore her focus from the door when the queen’s movement caught her eye.
Collapsing into her throne, Queen Saelihn sighed and sank into the cushioned seat, looking more like a defeated peasant than a graceful noblewoman.
Helspira bit her bottom lip. Aside from accepting the quest to acquire Catseye, and the brief moment the queen had shouted at her to fetch Ben’s stone and thread, she’d never spoken directly to the noblewoman before. Helspira didn’t know whether to fawn over her, babble about how grateful she was for the kingdom offering her family sanctuary, or to simply vomit from the nerves. “Are, um, are you all right?”
Queen Saelihn exposed her confusion after lifting her head from her hands. “You’re still here? Dear. I’m sorry you had to witness all that.”
“It’s fine,” Helspira said in a voice far too high-pitched to be convincing. “I mean, it’ll take way more than that to traumatize me. I’ve seen worse in Chthonia. Not that this was bad. I mean”—gods, was she rambling? Why couldn’t she stop?—“it’ll be fine once Catseye steps up to face Vessik. I was suspicious at first. He didn’t exactly look like hero material to me, but I can see now why he’d be an asset. Those spells were so powerful, and the magical backlash from casting them didn’t even seem to faze him. I mean—”
“He will be no asset,” the queen interrupted, rubbing her temples. “With the power of the Cat’s Eye, Sikras is formidable, but he uses nearly every ounce of that power defying death, defying the gods’ will, all to sustain the many spells that tether Benjamin’s soul to his remains. So blasphemous and complex are those enchantments that even with all the power of the Cat’s Eye, his body has little left to spare. Were he to aid us in his current state, the magical backlash from the simplest of spells would eventually destroy him.” She shook her head, eyes closing. “As long as Sikras refuses to let Benjamin rest in peace, he will remain a hollow shell of who he used to be.”
The ability to defy death? Helspira shuddered at the thought. That was powerful magic, indeed. Not even her former lover, the renowned wizard Cecil, commanded that kind of talent. “I saw a lot of fear in him when Ben collapsed. It’s hard to let go of the ones we love.”
“It is. Yet it pains me to say, Nyllmas would certainly be better off if Benjamin was well and truly dead. Banneret Rowan knows this well, as evidenced by his impulsive display, but his simple solution is not a viable one. As you witnessed, anyone responsible for Benjamin’s demise would feel the full force of Sikras’s wrath. If I could just get him to join—with the anticipation that hemightinvoke the Catseye, even just to be a beacon of hope—the people would benefit from the illusion of his participation. His methods weren’t always favorable, but at least Nyllmas’s citizens felt safer knowing Catseye walked the battlefield.”
The queen looked so vulnerable. So defeated. It wasperfect.Well, no, not perfect—Helspira didn’t relish the woman’s air of defeat, but the opportunity to aid both queen and kingdom made her heart pound like the hooves of a thousand running horses. This could be it. Her moment. Her chance to rise as Nyllmas’s hero. Her chance to give back to the land that had taken her and her family in when they had fled Chthonia. Her opportunity to prove not all demons were bloodthirsty monsters. Swept up in the moment, her statement came out in a frenzied garble, and, for some reason, she raised her hand. “I can convince him to join the fight.”
“Pardon?”
“I can persuade Catseye to join the fight against Vessik. I promise.”
Hesitation delayed the queen’s response, but her tilted head showed consideration. “You seem awfully sure.”
“When I was seven, my village in Pio Chamila was under siege. The only reason my parents and I weren’t slaughtered with the rest of the clan was because I managed to convince one of the devils who attacked us that we’d be useful assets.” Helspira forced an uneasy smile, hoping against hope that it somehow shielded her muddled half-truth from being exposed. “Compared to that, convincing Catseye to aid us should be a breeze. I mean, he seemed amicable enough. I got him to appear for your summons when others before me failed, right?”
Of course, she conveniently omitted the part that Catseye had come willingly, with little to no effort on her part, but that didn’t seem like necessary information.
Mulling, Queen Saelihn rubbed her bottom lip. “I remember having quite the discussion with Banneret Rowan about whether a demon had my blessing to join the Red Sentinel. I don’t doubt you’ve overcome your share of challenges.”
Helspira bent into an awkward pose that must have looked like the hybrid of a curtsy and a bow. “Banneret Rowan said you were the one who approved my admission despite his wariness. I only wish to show my appreciation. Nyllmas is everything that Chthonia is not, Your Majesty. I would sooner die than watch Vessik turn my new home into a reflection of the wasteland my parents and I fled from.”
A look of burdened knowing wilted the queen’s expression. “I shudder to think what a seven-year-old must have said and done to convince a devil she’d be of use.”
The memories stabbed Helspira before she blocked them out. “I did what needed to be done for my parents and I to survive. I will do the same and more for Nyllmas if you give me the chance.”
The queen tapped her finger on the chair’s arm. “We could certainly use all the help we can get. If you’re up for the challenge ...”
