‘Your Majesty?’ Riordan’s muffled voice cut through the fog that enveloped my mind. Yaran was always meant to be an example. His death here would have a smaller but more meaningful audience.
‘The royal council will stay seated, or will share his fate.’ My voice rang out, rising above the sound of scraping chairs and panicked voices. I turned, throwing the thrashing Yaran onto the table, but not before my fingers grasped his voice box, ripping it out of his neck. Blood sprayed across shocked faces. Everyone stayed glued to their seats, and for a long moment, Yaran’s gurgling and flailing was the only sound in the room.
The council members stared at me in utter terror, their gazes darting from the body to my bloodied hands. Then I saw it: the realisation that was that I was done dancing to their tune and that I had made my stand. I was the Beast of Dagome. If this was the price of saving my country and the woman I loved, I would gladly pay it.
‘The woman he called a bitch is Roksana Regnav, Poison Master of the Dark Brotherhood, Vivamancer, and your future queen.’ My voice was cold, calculating, and final. It cut throughtheir panic and muttering. I looked at those who governed my country, and my nostrils flared when I proffered my ultimatum. ‘Your choice is simple: respect her or die.’
I want to meet her.Cinared’s voice in my head threw me off balance, and I blinked, taking a step back from the table. In the stunned silence, Tova’s voice was loud and flippant.
‘So where do I sit?’ he said. I looked at the dwarf, who grinned at me as if I’d suddenly become his best friend.
‘Wherever you wish, Master Orenson. Several seats will be vacated soon.’ I gestured to the captain of the palace guards, who already knew the names of those he was going to arrest.
After the gruesome execution, there was no resistance. Those whose names were called left peacefully rather than remain in my presence. At the end, the servants removed Yaran’s body. They wiped the table clean of the marquise’s blood, while the remaining council members stayed seated, as if someone had nailed their backsides to the chairs.
Of the thirty royal council members, only twenty remained. I trusted several of them; others maintained neutrality, and a few I would never trust, even if I had no proof of their complicity.
I turned to the chancellor. ‘I have filled three vacant positions. I leave it to you and your compatriots to recommend six trustworthy replacements for the rest.’
‘Seven,’ he said, flinching when I looked at him.
‘Six. One is for Lady Roksana. Ensure those chosen are worthy to be here. I don’t care who they are, but if I find out coin played a role in your decision, I’m sure the new chancellor will make better decisions.’
The man sat down heavily, and for a moment, I felt a pang of guilt. He wasn’t a bad official, but he was set in his ways and struggled to adjust to how I handled things.
‘Yes, sire.’ He didn’t look me in the eye. Nobody did, and I exhaled slowly. The purge was completed, and I had the utter and undivided attention of the remaining council members.
It took them a long time to mould me into a tyrant,I thought, their fear scratching over my skin each time I shifted position.
Cinared’s presence, his silent approval, had been lurking at the back of my mind, easing my conscience.I see your heart, Reynard.His whisper was warm, like an autumn fire, and I liked what I saw.
Is that supposed to make me feel better?I asked, but deep inside, I was grateful. I couldn’t hide who I was from the dragon, and found both comfort and clarity in our bond. If I’d known as a child how it felt, I would have begged my parents to throw me into the Cavern of Choosing together with my brother.
‘We have weeded out the rot in our ranks. Now it’s time to discuss an urgent matter,’ I said, pausing to let the noblemen focus on my voice. ‘Many of you haven’t heard the newest discovery involving the Wey Gates, but it is a threat that lies dormant under our very noses.’
‘What threat?’ a minor noble asked, swallowing hard when my gaze locked with his.
I nodded towards Tova. ‘Tova, Riordan, please detail your findings.’
Tova nodded, slapping his hands on the table. ‘Right, so! Noble lords and ladies, in a few short words, my now deposed king was working alongside Lord Tivala and a fae spy to create a portal humans can operate.’ He described the portal mechanics, tapping his stubby fingers on the table. When his explanation was met with empty glares or disinterest, he said, ‘Listen to me, you clueless dimwits. Tivala isn’t creating a new wonder, he’s using them to bring Tangra onto our land, so maybe you should pay attention.’
I leaned back in the chair as he detailed the construction and appearance, before Irsha made them gasp by revealing what he’d seen and experienced around Tivalaran’s srebrec pillars.
‘Does that mean… the mages are powerless?’ The chancellor’s hands were shaking as he reached for a drink, and I nodded solemnly.
‘Not just mages; even dragons cannot get close. Not until someone disarms them. I will need to conscript regular soldiers to bring them down while fighting a winter war. Until they do, Tangra are free to create an unassailable beachhead in Tivalaran,’ I said, giving the council a moment to digest my words. They murmured to each other, but ultimately declared their unanimous support.
‘Will this be enough?’ asked the man I remembered shared a border with Tivalaran. Before I answered, Inga interjected.
‘No. Not if my father can use the gates to bring enough Tangrean soldiers here. We are working on stopping them, but those plans and their schemata are still in my father’s office.’ She sighed, then squared her shoulders, bracing for a barrage of questions.
‘Then we must retrieve them. Or the Brotherhood should!’ a man shouted from the far corner.
‘There are plans in motion, but until we get them, our research is pure speculation.’ She looked at me, and when I nodded, cold calculation entered her eyes. ‘I can return to Tivalaran. I’ll tell my father the Brotherhood kidnapped me, but I escaped.’
‘No. If anyone has to go, I will. At least I know what we’re looking for,’ Tova said.
When I looked at the dwarf, his expression was so thunderous that I had no doubts, even if I tried to send Inga back, this argument would end up on the blade of his axe.
