Page 64 of The Lost Guard's Healer

Aldus’s eyes widen at the sight of me. The Grand General places himself in front of Aldus. He glares at me from beneath his plumed helmet. I wonder that he seems vaguely familiar, but I don’t think I’ve seen him before. The alley is wide enough to fit two men shoulder to shoulder, with little room to maneuver.

“I will dispatch him.” The Grand General steps forward, withdrawing his ornamented broadsword, but the alley is too narrow for him to fully release the blade from its scabbard. The Grand General’s eyes widen when he realizes how confined our environment is.

I dart forward, grabbing the hand on his sword hilt, and readying my sword for a slash. But he lashes out with an elbow to my brow, drawing blood with a flash of pain. I drop my sword with a clatter to better use both hands. We wrestle for a second before I manage to grab his arms as he attempts to withdraw his blade from a different position. I twist them and bring his blade across the gap under his helmet, slicing through his neck.

He had been expecting a show of swordplay, no doubt, but hadn’t anticipated my experience or desire to end the fight as quickly as possible. And the time it took him to adjust to our restricted surroundings proved to be his undoing.

The Grand General drops, his armor clanging against the brick wall as he gasps and sputters, quickly falling silent. Aldus stares at me, stunned, while I pick up the Grand General’s sword. A far superior blade to the one I had.

“You’ve been lying to me from the moment I met you,” I grit out, my muscles burning with hatred. “I thought you were a good man, Aldus.”

“I am,” he says defiantly, standing strong. “I swear it. I give you my word.”

“Your word means nothing.” I step over the Grand General’s body and Aldus backs away, but he has nowhere to go. There is a tall wall at the far end of the alley. The sounds of battle and chaos echo around us, though it feels like we are in our own secluded world.

“Thanek’s power,” I say. “It is the same power that flows through Galene.” It’s becoming clear now, the more I think about it. “The Dark King wields black magic while hers is gold. Pure. Untainted.”

Aldus scowls at me, his dark eyes flashing. “You are insane. You make connections where there are none.”

“I heard you speaking with the Grand General,” I say. “You wanted to bring Galene here. That’s what this is all about, isn’t it?” I regard him with a frown. “You know, one thing hasn’t sat right with me. The messengers from The Kingdom. The plea for help that had led to us coming here. There was no plea for help, was there? The Grand General sent a messenger for you to make up your story.”

A grim smile shifts Aldus’s beard. It makes him look predatory, like a cold killer. Something I’d missed within him this whole time. “You are good. Yes, the messenger was a ruse. Not that it makes any difference now. We are here, with Thanek and his army. And nothing can stop him.”

“You mean for him to rule,” I say in horror as it dawns on me. “You wanted this to happen. And you needed Galene here.”

I search his eyes for the truth. “Galene shares his blood. His power. You… Your family.”

“I underestimated you, my boy,” Aldus says. “Yes. My family is descended from Thanek. The heroine who had defeated the Dark King all those years ago, Irina Dashna, was not an opposing soldier. She was Thanek’s wife. She killed her husband and posed as a hero. Her magic passed down through the generations, staying pure with the females, and has now ended with my daughter, Galene. It’s a shame she never had a daughter of her own. That would be an even easier sacrifice.”

I raise my sword sharply, making Aldus flinch. “You’re a monster,” I grit through my teeth. My mind races with everything that’s happened lately, trying to put the pieces together.

“The behemoth attack,” I say. “It had come for Galene.”

“It was meant to take her to Thanek, yes,” Aldus says. “But you had to stick your nose into our affairs, like you’ve done this entire time. A new plan had to be made, to get Galene to Thanek. And as the Dark King was intent on taking over The Kingdom, I had to bring her here. It was surprisingly easy to manipulate the thoro-seer to make people see what I wanted, and to encourage our pathetic Shanti army to come to The Kingdom’s rescue. I still can’t believe any of you thought you would make it out of here alive.”

“They are good people. You wouldn’t know what it means to have a good heart.”

An explosion shakes the nearby buildings. I need to get back out there. We can’t give Thanek more time to wreak his devastation.

The attack on Galene’s mother. My father must have known of their family’s lineage. That’s why he had slain Galene’s mother. He must not have realized that she’d already had children by then. He had been trying to break Thanek’s family line. To cut his power and stop him from returning some day.

Once magic had been restored to the world, Thanek could return because his power was still in his bloodline. I have to wonder if anyone else in the Oathlands knew of Thanek’s lineage.

“You said Thanek needed Galene here,” I say. “He needs to connect to his bloodline. That means he has not yet risen to full power. He needs Galene. He needs you. You maintain his power in your blood.”

“That’s enough, Rourk,” Aldus cuts me off. “I’ve allowed you to meddle in our affairs for far too long.”

That freezes me. He said my name. He must read the shock on my face as he grins and nods.

“Yes, I’ve known of your identity this entire time. Rourk Bearon. General Commander of the Oathlands Military.”

He knew of me, and he still chose to keep me alive and befriend me? None of this makes sense.

“Why?” I ask. “Why would you want the world to fall? Why wish for the murder of your daughter?”

“You know nothing of me. Everything I’ve done has been for my family. For the future generations. We will all rule with Thanek. His rise was inevitable. Only a few of us in this world could foresee it. This has always been the way.”

He sounds like a cultist. Like a madman. “I really thought you were a good man. I’ve never been more wrong about anyone.”

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