Page 45 of The Immortal Covenant

He’s right, Sarilian realized. Among the dozen Celestials in their delegation, only a handful of the guards had bothered conjuring orbs of dawnflame to guide their path, and they’d invested far less energy into those lanterns than the blazing balls of light they’d used upon their first visit.

No Celestial could ever fully adjust to life in the Dusklands—Sarilian was proof of that. But consistent, repeated exposure obviously made the oppressive darkness easier to bear.

An image came to him then: Celestials and Infernals moving freely between the Dawnlands and Dusklands. Celestials browsing Twilight’s Market, perhaps even selling dawnflame goods of their own, while shifting duskflame murals adorned Daybreak’s grand spires. Then, the vision progressed even further, to an Immortal Realm where therewasno separation between Light and Dark—where all Immortals lived in united harmony.

Perhaps that had been the Progenitors’ original vision before disagreements over how to fight the Void divided the Immortals, and the Covenant in its current form came to be. How different would the war against the voidspawn have progressed had those early Immortals found a way to resolve their issues and unified rather than separating?

No one could know. But perhaps it wasn’t too late to find out.

Into the silence, Malorg spoke, his gaze returning to Sarilian. Something flickered behind his eyes that made Sarilian shiver as if a cool touch had brushed down his arm. “Surely,youof allpeople recognize the importance of braving the dark, honored Emissary?”

The words held a minor taunt, though Sarilian doubted any of the other delegates—save perhaps Darius—could tell. Sarilian struggled to keep his face impassive but couldn’t stop the corner of his lip from twitching in amusement.

Perhaps Malorg’s comment should have annoyed or even angered him, straying as close as it did to admitting dangerous truths. Instead, his nerves sparked at the acknowledgment, slight as it was, of their shared history.

Perhaps Malorg felt more than regret when he looked at Sarilian after all.

“I do,” he said, holding Malorg’s gaze. “Just as I am certainyourecognize the importance of nurturing the light so that it doesn’t flicker out when you allow it in.”

It might’ve been his imagination, but Sarilian swore he caught a slight darkening of Malorg’s eyes, an almost palpable hunger in their locked gaze. Something akin to a shared caress passed between them.

Malorg looked away first, clearing his throat. “Indeed. Let us discuss other matters…”

As the rest of their session progressed, for once Sarilian didn’t feel the long, slow crawl of hours. Plenty of disagreements still arose, of course. Each of them had their own agendas dictated by their respective councils. But there were also moments of compromise that had been sorely lacking in their previous discussions.

By the end of the meeting, they had agreed on tentative terms for a joint taskforce intended to bolster the Infernals’ lower numbers in defense of the Dusklands while also giving both sides a chance to fight together on a smaller scale. It was far from a finished revision to the Covenant. Nevertheless, if lastweek had been a kind of reset,thisfelt like the real start of the Accords.

Sarilian saw his own relief echoed on a few of the other Celestials’ faces as he followed Darius into the hall. “Good enough for the Dawn Council?” he asked the Aspect.

“Good enough,” Darius replied. He shook his head. “I’m not sure what changed, but if you can keep up this pace, you might actually have a chance at pulling these negotiations off.”

Despite his slightly begrudging tone, Darius’ praise washed over Sarilian. He straightened his back, feeling like he was glowing brighter despite the Dusklands’ oppressive shadows. He moved to follow the rest of the delegation down the hall when he heard a call echo behind them.

“Sarilian!”

A quick glance back found Malorg standing there, watching him uncertainly. Ripples of duskflame across the Infernal’s body implied uncharacteristic nerves.

Sarilian’s heartbeat quickened. “Go ahead,” he said, gesturing to Darius and Faeris. “I’ll catch up.”

Eager to depart, Faeris waved an acknowledging hand in his direction and kept walking. Darius, however, paused. The Aspect pursed his lips, considering Malorg before giving Sarilian a reluctant nod.

“Very well. But don’t take too long. You wouldn’t want to overstay your welcome…or to accidentally be left behind. Emissaries.” With a slight bow of his head to each of them, Darius set off after the others.

Sarilian waited quietly beside Malorg, neither of them speaking, as the Celestial delegation vanished around a corner and was swallowed by the darkness. The other two Infernal delegates strode past, along with the Infernal guards. Then, he and Malorg were alone.

Sarilian’s pulse thundered in his ears, tension wrapping around him like an ensnaring web. The silence stretched as they stood there looking at each other. They’d spent hours together these past weeks, but this was the first time he felt like he was really seeing Malorg since that initial meeting.

The Infernal had returned to his usual lightly armored tunic in lieu of his fancier attire. Without a darkvision enchantment, Sarilian could barely make out the tattooed lines on Malorg’s skin, but he remembered how they used to shimmer and dance. He was so caught up in his examination that he jumped when Malorg spoke.

“I won’t keep you long. I just wanted to apologize again. I know the past few sessions have been…difficult. But I meant what I said about a truce.”

An amused snort escaped Sarilian’s lips. “Difficult? They were a disaster. The Dawn Council has already discussed canceling the Accords.”

Malorg fell silent.

More than ever, Sarilian longed to see his face. “Can you give me a darkvision enchantment?” he blurted before he could stop himself.

Even in the dim light, he caught the surprised shift in Malorg’s posture. “Why?”

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