“What are we going to do?” I asked. “The Mission is gaining power, and it appears the gods are falling. I can’t just sit here onmy throne in all this sunshine and laughter while people are out there dying.”
“You need not worry,” he assured me. “Our people are safe here in Ilamanthe. However, you must be told that in the past few days, The Mission has launched an attack against the fae. Our allies gave us this home, and now, we must protect theirs. I’m sending all the Elven soldiers we can spare to Malovia, to protect the fae borders and the residents still living there.”
“How can you be sure we’re safe here?” I believed my grandfather wanted to keep the Elves safe, but I was more than worried. I was almost petrified with fear that this perfect city couldn’t last, and that it would somehow be taken away.
“I would never leave my people in danger,” he promised. “We are well-guarded and have soldiers stationed at all times. Doctor Taurus doesn't know we’re here, and we intend to keep it that way.”
“But hewillfind us eventually,” I said. “He’s not going to give up. Once he does, how do we prevent him from destroying the city, like he destroyed Forevermore?”
“I have personally put up preventative wards around the city, to alert us immediately if any demigods besides the ones that are living here enter. The Warden is now a demigod, so we must be notified early if he arrives. We are also much more prepared than we once were. Our army is fortified and strong, and is able to hold the city under heavy attack. We weren’t prepared when Forevermore was sieged, and were caught by surprise, but we won’t make that same mistake again. I know the Warden has demigods on his side now, but we have demigods too, and I trust that you and your friends will be able to defeat them if the worst happens and we have to go on the offense. That is why I’m teaching you.”
“You don’t understand. The Warden is incredibly strong. I’ve seen him in action. Once he finds this place, he’ll burn it to the ground,” I insisted.
“We don’t just have Elves living here, Charlie. We have the fae, who are a formidable supernatural force on their own, able to stand up to angels and vampires, and we also have the witches and the elementals within our ranks. Even if the Warden was to show up here with his army tomorrow, we wouldn’t be easily defeated. The Warden won’t attack until he is certain he can win, and certainty is a difficult thing for him to attain when Ilamanthe is as strong as it is currently.”
“What about the dark gods?” I demanded. “He unleashed them on Earth. We saw him do it at the Institute, and we know they’re working for him.”
“Ava’s vision showed us that the majority of the dark gods are battling the other gods in the spiritual realm,” Cassiel pointed out. “Somedark gods roam among us, but you must remember that there is a potential for gods that are on our side to be living on Earth as well, either incarnated or in their true god forms. You think we’re outnumbered and overpowered, but if we weren’t strong enough to give the Warden a hard time, he would’ve already eliminated us by now. He can’t simply walk in here and destroy everything as he did in Forevermore. We can be just as strong as he is, and with enough time, we can be better. We just need to buy ourselves some.”
“I want to help,” I said.
“The greatest thing you can do is grow your powers, so that you may assist when the time is right. The demigods here are our greatest asset, but we cannot send you into battle until you are ready.”
“I’ve fought the Warden before,” I pointed out.
“And how did that turn out?” he questioned rhetorically.
He was right. I’d faced the Warden multiple times, but we’d never actually defeated him. Now that he had stolen our magic for himself, and had Esther and the other demigods on his side, he had a miniature army that was crafted to kill us.
“This war isn’t going to wait around until I’m ready,” I insisted. “It could be years until I’m properly trained. How many people are going to die before then?”
“In any war, there are going to be casualties,” he replied. “These soldiers know what they signed up for, and it’s their job to hold off The Mission until you are ready.”
“What about the civilians?” I questioned. “They didn’t sign up for this.”
“What are you suggesting you do? Go into battle and get yourself killed? What good are you to your people if you’re dead? You can’t help them. Bytryingto help, sometimes you hurt people more than you help them. Attempting to stop this now will hurt them in the long run, because if you get hurt, it will set the entire war effort back. A good leader amasses power to strike when the time is right. Don’t forget that the Warden has demigods fighting for his side, too. And may I remind you that one of those demigods you haven’t beaten in a proper fight yet.”
Fucking Deuce. He was always slipping right out from under my fingers. He beat me in fight club, survived the Darke Games, and nearly killed us while we were on the run. One of these days, I was going to send him straight to hell, and I would enjoy every minute of it.
But my grandpa was right. Next time I ran into this guy, I better be sure I could completely obliterate him.
“I guess it’s not enough to be the best out there,” I said. “I have to be the best anyone’s ever been.”
“Precisely. You’re strong, but you can become even stronger. That’s why I’ve summoned you here today. I’m going toteach you to utilize one of your greatest Elven powers— bond breaking.”
I leaned back in my chair. “I’m listening.”
“Bond breaking is very powerful magic that can be used for good, but it can also be used to destroy your enemies.”
“Breaking a magical bond sounds terrible. How can it be used for good?” I tried to imagine what it’d feel like for my bond with Ava or Oberi to sever, and I couldn’t do it. Our souls were one and the same, and breaking our bond would destroy me completely. There’d be nothing left, no point to me existing.
But I supposed, if I thought about it in a strategic sort of way, that was the point— to leave my enemies so broken there was nothing left of them to fight.
“Bonds are incredibly powerful, and most of the time, they help the parties who participate in the bond do better. But sometimes, bonds can be suffocating. In such cases, you must break the bond to allow each party to grow on their own. Take this plant, for example.” My grandpa placed a large pot on the table with a heavythud. “Go ahead.”
My fingers roamed over broad leaves, which crumbled at the ends. I reached a flower at the center with hard petals. My Earth magic tingled, but just barely. This plant was dying.
“What is it?” I asked.
