“His undead won’t be useful for interrogation purposes,” Sikras said, casually glossing over her inquiry. “Next time we face his followers, if you could secure one of his living soldiers, I may be able to access whatever information they have rattling around in their brain regarding our dear friend Vessik’s primary location.”
Helspira nodded. “Consider it done. I’ll let Banneret Rowan know immediately, and we can—”
“Banneret Rowan? The man who tried to kill Benjamin? That’ll be a bigno, thank youfrom me.”
“Well”—Helspira balked, face scrunching—“he’s abrasive, I’ll give you that, but he’s also effective and efficient.”
Relenting to his compulsion to grin, Sikras pointed an accusatory finger. “You can’t even say that without looking like you swallowed a rotten lemon.Youdon’t like him either.”
“Banneret Rowan is ...” Helspira shifted her weight, tugging at her red scarf, as if it chafed. “He’s not my favorite person, but he is my superior.”
“A superior asshole,” Sikras muttered.
A laugh erupted from her before she clamped a hand over her mouth and cleared her throat. “Look, we can’t do this without him. Vessik’s armies were far easier to hold off last year. Despite our efforts, their numbers remain consistent. He re-raises any dead that we don’t dismember. We need a powerful front if we want to end this quickly, and Banneret Rowan’s division is the best. I should know; I’m a part of it.”
Sikras crossed his arms. “Rowan may command the best, but have you considered that I hate him? That if he were lit ablaze on the battlefield, I wouldn’t even waste my piss to put out the fire?”
Helspira sighed. “Diplomacy may not be Banneret Rowan’s strong suit but not dying is.”
“Well”—Benjamin flopped into a nearby chair—“he’s got one up on me, then.”
“Listen, guys.” Helspira crossed the room and placed one hand on Sikras’s shoulder, the other on Ben’s. “I love this place. This is my home. I will do anything to protect it. We can be the heroes that Nyllmas needs. I give both of you my word; I will use everything in my power to help us see this through as successfully as possible.”
Sikras glimpsed Benjamin, who stared back with hollow sockets. Dammit. He knew that look. One dramatic sigh later, he waved his hand in surrender. “Fine. I’ll play nice with the banneret. But only because Benjamin can somehow give me the puppy-dog eyes despite his distinct lack of corneas.”
“You’re in? You’re in!” Excitement exploded from Helspira, her natural eye twinkling. She clasped her hands and freed a high-pitched squeal before pacing the floor like an excited scent hound. “I’ll give Queen Saelihn the good news. I—I’ll rendezvous with Banneret Rowan, and we’ll start forming a plan—”
“Helspira, please understand, I don’t mean to sour your joy.” Sikras fixed his unrelenting stare upon her. “I will be aiding Nyllmas as Sikras, not Catseye. On threat of imprisonment, I will do what I can, begrudgingly and probably with a lot of complaining, but I will not be doing anything that comes at the cost of Benjamin’s life.”
Her smile only grew, bright and hopeful. “I’m not worried. Casters are resourceful. At least, Cecil was.” A frown swiftly replaced her expression of mirth. “Not always in the best ways but resourceful, nevertheless. Either way, we’ll make this work. You’ll see.”
Damned if her naïve optimism wasn’t a little contagious. Sikras offered a nod and a small smile. “I admire your enthusiasm.”
Spine straight, Helspira inhaled deeply, fully. “I should get moving. Please let me know if you two need anything.”
“I’ve everything I need right here,” Benjamin said. “Oh, I wonder if that thing I hid under the bed is still there.”
As Benjamin vanished under the frame of his old, wooden bed, Sikras walked Helspira toward the door. “Before you depart,” he said, voice lowering, “there is one thing I need.”
“What is it?”
“Your solemn vow that no harm will come to Benjamin in this little excursion.”
Helspira flinched, rubbing the back of her neck. “I can’t promise that. People die in battle all the time.”
“I would neither trust nor burden you with this, but Benjamin seems to like you. You seem to like him. You know as well as I do, he and I are not topping the Red Sentinel’s list of preferred company, and allies for sentient skeletons and reclusive necromancers are difficult to come by. I’ll keep him safe from Vessik’s legion.” Sikras locked onto her gaze, unyielding. “I need you to promise you’ll keep him safe from Saelihn’s.”
“The queen told me that Ben is a dear friend. She’d never—”
“Never means nothing in desperate times.” Sikras stole a glimpse of Benjamin to ensure he remained distracted. The leg bones poking out from under the bed confirmed he was. “Saelihn adores Benjamin, but she loves her kingdom. A part of me admires her tenacity to do everything in her power to protect it, but a far larger part of me fears it all the same. You said you’d do everything inyourpower to see this through successfully. Successfully, to me, means no harm comes to Benjamin from the side of our supposed allies. Do I have your word or not?”
Helspira inclined her chin, skepticism lining her stare. “Are you always this distrustful?”
“You may believe in casters now, Miss Helspira, but once I walk onto that battlefield, unable to do the same things I once could ...”
A surprisingly comforting smile bloomed. “I won’t pretend what I saw in the Grand Hall wasn’t impressive. But I also know harder battles have been won with the mind rather than raw power. How about I believe in you enough for the both of us until you have the means to do it yourself?”
Had he heard her correctly? Sikras opened his mouth to reply, closed it, opened it again, but none of the swiftly formed responses in his brain felt right, accurate, appropriate. People believed in Catseye, but it had been a long, long time since anyone believed in Sikras Nikabod.
