Page 7 of The Immortal Covenant

It was the Aspectof Justice himself who found Sarilian. After watching Malorg depart, Sarilian had begun retracing his steps only to run into Darius at the head of a Celestial search team. Though relief filled Sarilian at being among his own people, he couldn’t help thinking of the Infernal out there all alone.

He gave a silent prayer for Malorg as they began the trek back to the battlefield, then immediately felt foolish for asking the Light to keep an Infernal safe…no matter how mystifying the strange Immortal had been. How could he risk his life to save a Celestial he didn’t even know one moment while implying nothing mattered the next? Sarilian had experienced nothing like it in his years among the Celestials. Perhaps all Infernals were equally jaded.

But despite Malorg’s brittle edges, something about him intrigued Sarilian. From his sallow skin to his harsh manner, he was the opposite of Sarilian’s own golden light. And yet, they hadfound a way to fight together, their magic fusing and amplifying in a way neither of them could have predicted. That was a connection he wouldn’t mind exploring further.

And if I can help restore some of his lost faith in the Covenant, all the better.

“Sarilian? Are you all right?”

Blinking, Sarilian turned to find Darius studying him, his brow furrowed with concern. “Apologies, sir,” Sarilian said with a respectful bob of his head. “I’m fine. Just exhausted.”

The Aspect of Justice bore little sign of his own fierce battle with the draconic void lord, his radiant armor and golden aura as bright as ever. “Understandable, after fending off those voidspawn. Not to mention that void lord you slayed. Well done.”

Sarilian averted his eyes to the silver plateau. “The void lord was already heavily wounded. I merely finished what others began.”

“Humility may be one of the five Dawn Virtues, Sarilian, but there is no shame in accepting well-earned praise for your deeds. You handled yourself admirably today.”

Pride coursed through Sarilian at his mentor’s praise, and though he still didn’t feel entirely worthy of it, he forced a nod. “Thank you, sir.” Experience had taught him that Darius’s patience was limited when it came to what he considered false modesty.

Darius’ eyes fastened on Sarilian’s breastplate. “How did you come by that?”

Sarilian glanced down and nearly stumbled when he spied faint spidery cracks of shadow laced throughout the armor’s surface.Where Malorg grabbed me, he realized. His dawnflame must’ve reacted to the Infernal’s duskflame. He hesitated.

His first instinct was to tell the truth, but something made him falter. Though there was no law against Celestials andInfernals interacting—both, after all, were pledged to uphold the Covenant and defend the Immortal Realm from the Void—tensions between their respective factions ran high. If word escaped of an Infernal entering the Dawnlands without permission, it might exacerbate the situation, perhaps even land Malorg in serious trouble.

After a pause he knew stretched on a hair too long, Sarilian forced a smile and shrugged. “The voidspawn chased me all the way to the border with the Dusklands. Some duskflame must have leaked across and corrupted my armor.”

Darius studied him with a shrewd look that made him shift uncomfortably. Then, the Aspect nodded, his expression giving nothing away as he faced straight ahead. “I see.”

Guilt roiled Sarilian’s gut at the lie. It was the first time he’d been less than fully honest with his mentor, and he loathed betraying his trust. But Malorg had saved his life. The thought of him suffering any repercussions as a result was even worse. Better for their encounter to remain a secret.

They walked in silence for a time, Darius and Sarilian at the front with a half-dozen Celestial soldiers several paces back as an escort should they encounter any more lingering voidspawn. When the rest of the army resolved into view ahead, Darius finally spoke, his voice pensive. “Do you remember the five Dawn Virtues?”

Huh?Sarilian’s head whipped to the side as he fixed his mentor with a frown. “Of course, I do. They’re the first thing every new Celestial is taught upon arriving in the Dawnlands.”

Darius waved a hand. “Well then, humor me.”

Still frowning, Sarilian dutifully recited, “Justice—the pursuit of what is right. Hope—the belief in a brighter future. Humility—the recognition of what one lacks. Sacrifice—the giving of oneself to others. And Serenity—the acceptance of what one cannot change.”

Darius nodded as he gazed upon the army waiting for them ahead. “These are the tenets by which we fight—our guiding principles, embodied by the five Aspects that sit on the Dawn Council.” A brief smile flickered over his stern visage. “As I recall, a certain new arrival swore he’d earn one of those seats someday.” He glanced at Sarilian. “Is that not so?”

Uncertainty rippled through Sarilian.Where is he going with this? Did he see through my lie?He forced down his unease and firmed his shoulders, meeting Darius’ eyes. “It is.”

Darius held his gaze, and Sarilian resisted the urge to look away. “Your comrades tell me that you fought bravely. And not only in your stand against the void lord. By all accounts, you helped hold your line together, refusing to switch out so long as you had the strength left to fight. Such qualities of character do you justice.”

Sarilian held his breath when Darius’ eyes lowered to the lines of duskflame laced through his breastplate. “As you know, the Infernals follow their own set of supposed virtues. Wrath, Doubt, Pride, Ambition, Passion—all stark opposites to our own. None are bad in moderation, of course. Wrath can grant you the fury you need to smite your enemies, Ambition the determination to improve. But give in to their temptation, as our Infernal brethren do, and it’s all too easy for Wrath to turn to hate or Ambition to selfish greed. Do not forget why we fight, nor your own goals for the future, Sarilian. Such apathy is how the Void wins.”

“Y-yes, sir,” Sarilian stammered as Darius quickened his pace, moving to rejoin the host while shouting orders for them to prepare for transport back to the Celestial city of Daybreak.

Darius’ departure left Sarilian’s thoughts a confused jumble. He remembered the moment he’d first sworn to Darius that he’d ascend to the Dawn Council. Of course, that had been before he’d realized who Darius was. He’d been mortified afterward,but the Aspect of Justice had seemed pleased by his devotion to the Covenant. He’d taken Sarilian under his wing, and Sarilian had been training with him ever since.

Back then, the prospect of waiting centuries for a seat to open—perhaps even Darius’ own—hadn’t seemed like that big a deal. Not when Immortals potentially lived forever.

Now, however, all he could think of was Malorg. The Infernal claimed to have been here longer than he could remember—long enough that he was ready to give up. Would the same thing eventually happen to Sarilian?

If only there was a way for him to speak with Malorg again. Then, he could put his own worries to rest by helping Malorg do the same. Maybe he could even learn more about Infernals in the process. His exposure to the other half of the Immortal Realm had been pretty much nonexistent, limited to only what he’d been taught during his training. Malorg was the first Infernal he’d encountered in the flesh, and Sarilian couldn’t suppress his curiosity.

Perhaps if I snuck into the Dusklands, I could track him down.

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