Page 122 of A Game of Monsters

“As are the Nephilim.” Duncan followed suit, placing a hand atop his heart, regret creasing his strong brow. “They’ve been freed to change the fate of this world. I follow you, darling.”

Do you?

“You’re the Saviour,” I said, the title souring on my tongue. “Isn’t the world yours to save?”

“I have put the parts in play as the Creator asked.” Duncan shook his head, swashes of dark hair falling over verdant eyes. “And as you pointed out, my purpose was to unify the Faithful and right the wrongs of the Creator. Not to fix the world. I, like you, cannot do that alone.”

“Okay,” I said more to myself than anyone else. The wheels of my mind were moving, speeding through. “Okay…”

The room suffered in silence. It was so quiet my heartbeat sounded like thunder in my skull.

It was incredible how quickly a plan could come together when one knew there was no time to hesitate. I felt it form inside of my very core, fixing together into a solid iron, with very few chinks in the armour.

“This is what we’re going to do,” I said, sweeping my eyes across the room. “Cassial wishes to learn from previous mistakes in history and prevent a war again. He wants his domination to be through the path of least resistance, otherwise he would’ve attacked by now. So, I say we bring it to him. Erix.” I fixed my eyes on him. “I need the gryvern to sweep through any human settlements near Cassial’s encampment. He will have set himself up in a built-up area. The more humans who die in the crossfire, the more it will benefit his attempt to vilify the fey. We need to evacuate the area. Whether the humans listen to the gryvern or not, they must be moved. Scare them out if asking nicely does not work.”

Erix bowed his head to me. “I’ll see that it is done.”

I looked to Duncan next, finding his full attention fixed to me, pride glittering in his verdant eyes. “What do you need of me, darling?”

Only the truth, but how could I request such a concept that even I had put to the wayside for months?

“Show Cassial the full might of those his campaign punished. Set upon him the full force of the Nephilim at your disposal. You want to go straight to him, then do it.Killhim.”

Duncan’s shoulders rolled back, as though my command offered him some relief. “Better Cassial fights against his own. Keeping the fey out of this mess will only benefit the mess we will have to arrange after Cassial is dealt with.”

I agreed. If Cassial was waiting for an excuse to use Duwar against the fey realms, we had to make sure he was distracted enough not to act. At least delay it.

“Our first step is showing both realms the truth. No more betrayal. No lies or further deceptions. If we can show the humans through the veil of Cassial’s lies, then we may find they come to our aid. It will take the full might of both realms, the effort of humans and fey, Nephilim and monsters, to ensure the new world we were promised becomes a reality. One no longer threatened.”

“And what of Duwar?” Rafaela asked. “That is still a power on the game board that we must ultimately deal with. I hate to say this, but there is a chance that killing the host will not also destroy Duwar. There has never been a recorded possession before Duncan.”

A seed of doubt spread roots as soon as Rafaela stopped talking.

“Then we find another way,” I said. “We bind him in labradorite, we make sure both Cassial and Duwar are wiped from the face of the realms.”

Erix cleared his throat, demanding attention as he said. “Seraphine mentioned something in the texts she was reading. About Duwar and the Sleeping Depths.”

He was right, and with his words those roots of doubt ceased their spreading.

Immediately, my mind went back to the story Duncan had shared with me. The story of Altar first calling upon Duwar, drawing the power from the earth, stealing it from its resting place. The Creator believed it was unfair, how Altar stole the power and used it to create the fey. His feelings were justified. Just like the use of power, Altar or the Creator were not inherently good or bad. Duncan passing his judgement had proved that. It was what we did with power that mattered. And Duwar – the demon god, the source of chaos, whatever we wanted to believe it was now – was an issue our gods created, and one we had to solve.

No one deserves to hold power such as Duwar. Not a fey, nor a human.

We couldn’t lock it away like the gods had done when they called a truce. But I could return it home. And I had a hunch of where it all began – but to give my plan a chance, I needed to get Cassial away from his army.

“We stop using it, and allow Duwar to be free,” I answered. “It is time for Duwar to return to its place of rest. Chaos does not belong in the hands of mortals, or gods. No prisons, no more gates and keys. We give it up – just as Altar should’ve all those centuries ago.”

“I’m sorry, Robin,” Duncan said, tracing his hand down my cheek. “I should’ve told you everything, but I trusted that a change was coming. Ihadto put faith in Seraphine and Gyah. Selfishly I’m trying to protect you, doing a duty that I haven’t been able to do for months.”

I looked up at him, aware of the crash of waves that sounded at his back. The sky was clear, the sun unbearably hot. As much as I wanted to hate Duncan for holding the truth about Cassial’s plans back, I had to believe it was for a reason.

“Save your apologies for when this is all over,” I replied with a smile that didn’t reach my eyes.

Duncan noticed and sighed, his gaze falling to our hands held between us. “Wewillsee that new dawn. Together.” He looked over my shoulder, to Erix who stood watching at a distance. “All of us.”

I swallowed, forcing down all the things I longed to say. Except one statement that was far too demanding to hide away. “I don’t want to leave you.”

“But you must,” Duncan replied, wincing at the dark thoughts harbouring behind his verdant gaze. “And it will not be for long. The path ahead is full of trials, but I trust that we will make it to the end. I have to.”

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