Page 163 of The Iron Flower

The Gardnerian soldiers come to an abrupt halt.

Commander Grey narrows his eyes at Commander Vin, clearly taken off guard by the level of resistance he’s encountering. He quickly composes himself, relaxes his posture and smiles coldly. “We have no issue with you, Commander Vin, or with your people, for that matter. Our concern lies solely with the Lupines. We received word yesterday that they were planning an attack on our sovereign territory, and we were forced to take the unfortunate steps needed to protect our people. Hand the Lupines over, and we will leave peacefully.”

Commander Vin snaps into fighting stance and pulls out her sword, a hum filling the air as blue light flashes from the runes on the blade. “We will not let you have them, Lachlan.”

“Be careful, Commander,” he warns. “You are a guest force on sovereign territory. Territory that is aligned with the Holy Magedom.”

“Aligned with, perhaps. But there has been no Verpacian Council decree regarding who should take custody of the Lupines.”

“A technicality that will soon be resolved.”

“But not as of yet.”

“Kamitra,” he counters with cloying pleasantry, “what you are doing could be seen as a blatant act of war.”

Commander Vin remains unmoved. “View this as you see fit, Lachlan. We will not let you take them.”

Commander Grey’s smile creeps wider. “One thing I have never taken you for, Kamitra, is a fool. Things have changed. I think you know that. The balance of power has shifted. It would be best for you and your people if you hand the Lupines over to us and begin adjusting to the new reality you are faced with.”

“You have never been shy about pressing your advantage, Lachlan,” she calmly rejoins. “If the balance of power is truly as altered as you say it is, you would not beaskingfor my cooperation.”

He laughs. “Oh, come now. Does common courtesy need to die along with those who oppose us?”

Commander Vin shakes her head slowly. “No. You have used up whatever advantage you had last night when you moved against the Lupines, and you can’t afford an all-out war with us at the moment. Especially when you take into consideration the fact that we are allied with the Amaz, who, last I checked, were not feeling especially friendly toward you.”

Commander Grey’s smile disappears. He’s now glaring at her with barely concealed fury. “Do you think us fools?” he snarls. “Do you honestly think we will allow you custody of the Lupines? To raise an army of shapeshifters that you can use against us?”

Commander Vin tightens her fist around the hilt of her sword. “And we will wage war with you before we let you do the same.”

Lukas’s father fumes silently for a moment. “It seems, then, that we are at an impasse.”

“Indeed.”

He regards her for a long moment, a calculating glint in his eyes. “Then I propose the only possible solution.”

“And that would be?”

“Joint custody of the Lupines under a combined guard—part Gardnerian and Verpacian, and part Vu Trin, with a doubling of the guard during the full moon, to keep the Lupines from being used to create more shapeshifters. And to keep them from...conveniently disappearing.”

“They are scholars, Lachlan, not prisoners.”

“They areweapons, Kamitra. And very dangerous ones at that. Weapons we will not walk away from.”

“Weapons we will not let you have.”

He waves away her concerns with his hand. “We can sit down and hammer out the details, but first, we need to see the Lupines. To verify for ourselves that they really are here.”

“They are quite distressed at the moment.”

“That is no concern of mine.”

The air around Commander Vin suddenly seems to vibrate with blue light. “They just found out their entire family was murdered.” Her tone is venomous.

Commander Grey steps forward, furious in turn. “Perhaps such unfortunate things would not have come about if the Lupines had simply ceded the land that is rightfully ours. They were given every chance to avoid this fate.” He shakes his head at her. “Really, Kamitra, my patience is wearing thin. Show me to the Lupines, or you will force me to take action.”

He gives a small nod, and a guard of six Level Five Mages behind him all pull their wands from their sheaths. The Vu Trin, in turn, whip out silver stars ready to throw, their swords raised, ready to deflect all magic.

The two commanders are silent for a long moment, assessing the situation.

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