Page 121 of Sunsplitter

“Hey, Antal?” she whispered. “I know you’re doing this all for Thomaskweld. You say you don’t want to be on the DuskCouncil, but… I think you’ll do a lot of good there.”

His head tilted. A wary, “Good?”

“Someone who cares about humans. Who’s willing to fight for change. Give those crotchety old daeyari a shake up.”

He made a low humming sound. Not an answer. He didn’t need an answer now.

They settled against each other, lulled by hot water and tired muscles, hand and tail intertwined. Just a passing storm. They’d keep trying. They had to.

“But whatever happens,” Fi said, “together?”

“Together,” Antal agreed.

Part Three

The beasts bleed gold, and smell of sun

A searing sweet, a burning bane

Woven not of endless Void

But dust and salt, wrought of the Plane

Beware the wings of scorching light

Be wary of the features shown

Warriors, wield gilded blades

Magicians, never face alone

Expect no mercy from your foe

Savor the feast, their gold ichor

Honor goes to those who hunt

To fell the beast, fierce Sunsplitter

—The Beast That Bled Gold, poem from the Twilit Plane

“Are you… sure you want to be here?” Fi asked.

Kashvi’s wolverine scowl was answer enough. She hummed dissatisfaction and leaned back in her chair, propping boots onto her paper-strewn governor’s desk.

But truth be told, it was the crossbow that really drove the point home. She cradled the mechanism in her lap, stroking the polished metal stock.

“Why yes, Fi. I’m delighted to host a daeyari meeting in my city. Inmy office. It will be the highlight of my week.”

Sarcasm, noted. And unappreciated.

Luring Antal to this plan had been tedious enough. They’d vowed to be a team again. No more holding each other back. No more dividing lines between their two worlds.

So why not start by inviting the other daeyari to Thomaskweld to plan their next move in the aedari hunt?

A peace offering. A fresh start at working together, rather than whatever raised hackles bullshit they’d been doing. Fi thought it was an excellent idea. Antal had agreed after a tremendous amount of teeth gnashing.

Kashvi had immediately reached for her crossbow.