Page 109 of An Honored Vow

I laughed. “I have more gifts and scars than I could ever need.” I cleared my throat so there was no taste of humor in my words as I said them. “You have always had the best interest of the Halflings stitched into your heart, and you have always used all your strengthto fight for them. I can think of no one more deserving to receive this gift.”

I stood and Syrra stepped beside me.

“Rise, Warrior Vallaqar.” Syrra lifted her palm to her eyes and then her chest.“Elverinth il niikir Ganawiithir zaabi.”

May the world see you and call you Protector, forevermore.

CHAPTERFORTY-ONE

ICHOSE THE SETTING FOR THE DREAM. The white stone wall that circled the outer banks of the capital glistened under my boots. I washed the stone of its bloodstains so it was as pristinely white as it would have been in the days before Aemon or his foul son had ever stepped foot upon our shores.

Damien gasped as he was pulled into the dream. I didn’t know how I’d done it—I had tugged at some unknown magic in my mind as I fell asleep and demanded his presence. I could see it from his red and puffed cheeks and open shirt that he had not been expecting the call. A moment earlier, he had likely been strewn over his bed or chaise, sipping the wine I could smell on his lips. Now he was standing along the top of the wall, not safely tucked away in one of the towers but forced to stand sideways on the narrow stone just as the Shades who had guarded the city had done. His arms flailed outat the sides as he took in the high plummet. His body still panicked even though we both knew that no harm could come to either of us here. Unfortunately.

“Surrender.” I brandished no sword. I didn’t even dip the word in malice before I said it. I cast the image of our army of Elverin out into the grasses that surrounded Koratha. After Volcar, Damien’s forces were no match for a fresh and seasoned army.

“Surrender,” I said again as Damien straightened the sleeves of his shirt and turned to me, his legs twisting underneath him as he tried not to shake.

“I will never.” Damien’s black eye glowed from its amber pupil.

I extended my arm over the wall, pointing at our forces, while taking slow, masterful steps toward Damien. “You cannot win this siege.”

“Perhaps not.” Damien’s tone was too calm, too even for the loss he faced.

My eyes narrowed. “So why not surrender? Spare your soldiers and your people the need to die for you.”

Damien lifted his chin. There was nothing warm about him, his pale skin was flat and sallow, his sharp cheeks and pointed lips had been unsheathed of their beauty in the past months. Now they were only weapons.

Damien’s lip pulled back over his teeth. “I will not spare a soul.”

My blood turned to ice. There was still a spark of hope in Damien’s eyes. He had not completely given up. But the numbers were against him now. Even if he had some secret weapon to use against us, it would be no match for our legion of Fae.

Unless …

“You cannot control them,” I seethed.

Damien’s nose twitched. “I would rather play a game of chance with thewaateyshirakthan surrender myself to you and my brother.” He spat the last word from his tongue.

I shook my head. “But they will wipe out just as many of your forces as they will ours. Endless blood will be spilled on both sides.”

“But not mine.” Damien’s smile was cruel.

I fought the urge to hurl him from the wall. “You mean to stow yourself away while the beasts you conjured feast oneveryone—your people, soldiers, and your enemies—with no distinction.”

Damien tucked his arm behind his back. He stepped along the wall, his muscles tensing as he attempted to be as graceful as a Shade and failed. “How many times must you learn this lesson?” Damien tilted his head to the side, a gleeful smile anchoring his balance. “I play for my opponent to lose, Keera. That is the difference between you and me.”

“Brutality.”

Damien nodded. “You could never stand back and watch your rebels fight thewaateyshirakwithout you. You could never order your newly made Fae to stay away from the field of battle to ensure you had magic left to defeatme.The first cry of terror would have you and Riven and all your loyal followers marching into battle. You may kill a few of the beasts, but thewaateyshirakwill kill your people too. We will see which side holds the greatest numbers then.”

“You would sacrifice an entire city just to keep yourself in some chair?” Venom dripped from my lips.

“I would send every man, woman, and child to their deaths if it secured me your defeat.”

“And be a king of no one?”

Damien shrugged. “There would be some survivors.” He jutted his chin toward the sea. “And there are always men from other realms who hunger to discover riches and treasure in worlds unknown to them.”

I gritted my teeth. Damien wanted to do exactly what his father had done. Except this time, he would ensure that every Fae, Elf, andHalfling was dead before he oversaw the rebuilding of his kingdom. He would be the only one with any knowledge of magic. He would set himself apart from the rest not merely as a king, but as a god.

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