Page 28 of The Moon Blessed King
Fen must recognize it too; she leans towards him, whispering: ‘You didn’t need to do that!’
But Cat replies, ‘Yes, I did,’ and Elician has no time to consider the morality of the deed.
‘Tell us about Altas,’ Elician beseeches.
‘They came at night. Dozens of them.Hundreds!‘ his voice breaks off in a hysteric screech. He gasps for breath before babbling out only a few more words. ‘The army fell in moments. Then…the city.’
‘Hundreds?’ Elician asks, far more sedate, as if to calm the situation by his voice alone. ‘How did the army fall to only a few hundred people?’
‘It was the dead, sir,’ the messenger says. ‘They sent thedead!’
‘Reapers,’ Marina translates. The messenger looks right at her. His wide eyes glisten brightly. ‘Alelune sentReapersinto Altas?’
‘There…there were so many of them.’ the messenger says. ‘It didn’t matter what anyone did. They kept coming. They kept coming.’
I just made that promise, Elician thinks wildly.That’s not possible. That’s not what I wanted.
Cat’s head snaps about to look at him; Elician can’t meet his eyes.
Lio speaks for him. ‘It’s against the law of combat. Reapers and Givers have no place on the battlefield. And why would any Reaper followGillage?’
‘For a chance to see the sky,’ Cat says. But Elician hears something else. The same broken statement that had been born of desperation and grief.
I took too long, Cat had said.
But it wasn’t just him. Elician’s promise had come too late.Theyhad taken too long. ‘How many?’ Elician asks the messenger, outmanoeuvred by a teenager who took the time Elician squandered to make sure Elician would have no piece left to play. ‘How many people are dead?’
‘All of them,’ the messenger replies. ‘The city is full of the dead. Not even the civilians were spared. There’s no one left alive.’
CHAPTER NINE
Elician
Elician gathers a relief force to Altas. He calls all his reserves. Decisions are made fast and without any room for compromise. Adalei assumes control of Himmelsheim and Elician spends no time waiting or questioning what plan is best. He has been chosen by the god of life. He commands the power to raise the dead, and though it is forbidden, he will see it so. No more people are going to die this day. No more civilians are going to fall to the crushing hand of Death in a war of attrition without end. If Gillage wants to use Reapers on the battlefield, then Elician will answer in kind. And he will ensure this horror is never repeated again.
He sends orders for Zinnitzia to go to Kreuzfurt and collect as many Givers and Reapers as possible to bring to the new war front. She argues with him; he does not listen. She leaves, furious, but she bends to his command. He is king. His word is law. Fen, though, is another matter. She is the only other Giver in the palace, and he needs her with them. He needs any Giver capable of raising the dead at his side, for there are going to be so many dead to bring back from their graves. So many withsoulshe hopes are willing to return. Zinnitzia may balk at the notion of resurrection, but he knows Fen won’t.
‘You’ll be riding with the main relief force,’ he tells her. ‘Get the armourer to have you fitted, and make sure your sword is sharp.’
‘I’ll be going into battle?’ she asks.
‘You’re sixteen. You’re of age,’ he replies. ‘You wanted this once, didn’t you?’ She nods, more dumbfounded than confident.
‘I never joined any of the cadets’ drills.’
‘I don’t need you in formation, I need you keeping people alive.’
‘You want me to use my powers…duringthe fight?’
‘If Gillage is going to be using Reapers, then we’ll use Givers.’
‘But…the gods forbade it…they’ve made it clear thatthatis not allowed.’
‘Yes,’ Elician replies. ‘They did. Get ready to go.’
She only hesitates a moment longer. Then she straightens her back, tilts up her chin and promises: ‘You won’t be disappointed,’ before running off to do her duty.
Elician catches Lio’s arm the next time he sees him. ‘Assign a guard to protect her,’ he requests. ‘Just in case.’
