Page 69 of Mystique of the Fallen
There was a small smile playing around his lips, but Ellery cleared his throat. “Should we begin our meeting?”
“Is everyone here?” Ignis Superus Reese Arturus asked, his blue eyes surveying the round table.
“Yeah, thanks to Elf, we’re the lucky thirteen in charge of this thing,” drawled Ducblanc Zane Draconis, the man tasked with guarding His Majesty.
“I thought we should begin with a date for the parade,” Ellery suggested. “I am a novice at parades, so I will need your input on how long of a timeline we should aim for.”
“Since I could hardly remember our last one, I had my sentinels dig up some information,” Chander said. “I was apparently on that committee too, so we have the entire file. Some of it will be beneficial, but there were too many people and far too many opinions involved. It was postponed twice. Had there not been so much bickering, we could have done it in a few months. Instead, it was a full-year project.”
“You met with this group every week for a year?” Tyvalis asked, shocked.
“It was probably of little note to Chand; he serves on every committee,” Alaric stated.
“Of course he is invited often; his expertise in invaluable,” Chieftain Kalthekor Valzadari remarked. The elf ruler was seated next to Temolvi, and though his skin was blue like Chieftain Indrenakas’s, it was many shades lighter and resembled the spring sky to Grant.
“Agreed,” Ellery said. “Would four months be sufficient?”
“I think so, unless anyone can think of a reason to extend it,” Chander commented. “Grant, do you have security concerns that will take longer than that to resolve?”
“Honestly, I don’t know,” Grant replied. “But I have Alaric and Tyvalis to help me with planning to keep everyone safe. I’m assuming I can add harpies to the mix?”
Tyvalis hesitated for a moment before nodding. “We would be honored. Your invitation was unexpected.”
“I figure since you work so closely with the sentinels, it’d make things run smoother since the Lich Sentinel has made it clear he has issues with the fallen knights.”
Alaric’s glowing chartreuse gaze slid to Grant’s face. “Only certain fallen knights.”
“I am sure that between the three of you, security will be flawless,” Ellery said. “You can also use Draconis Dukes if you need them.”
Grant chuckled. “Pretty sure everyone would object if we allowed a parade that will include our Emperors and we didn’t plant plenty of dragons along the route.”
“Put dragons where you need them,” Zane responded. “We won’t interfere with your planning. Just give me numbers so Damian and I can assign people.”
“No problem, I want this safe for everyone,” Grant replied. “My plan is to err on the side of caution. I’d rather have too many dragons, sentinels, harpies, and fallen knights than too few.”
“Excellent. Let’s discuss our route. That is what will determine how many people and vehicles can take part in the parade. Is that correct, Chand?” Ellery asked.
“Yeah,” Chander replied.
Le ministre Etienne Bellerose, the ruler of the enchanters, lifted a hand and created an illusion above the table of the entire part of Las Vegas that the Council owned. “I thought a little map could aid us.”
“Thank you, Etienne,” Ellery replied. “That is very helpful.”
Grant pulled out his phone to record as Etienne created several lines and the committee members peppered out ideas about which streets made the most sense to include. To Grant’s amusement, Chander held out his hand and wiggled his fingers. Alaric rather reluctantly put his phone in his mate’s hand, and Chander set it up so the Lich Sentinel could record too.
“Works like a picture,” Chander murmured. “Just hit the button when you want to stop recording. Tyvalis, pass your phone to Grant. He can set yours up too.”
Tyvalis patted her pocket and sighed. “I left it with Evanthia.”
“I’ll email my video to Evanthia,” Grant promised. Commander Evanthia Athanasiou doubled as one of Tyvalis’s most trusted guards and her eldest daughter. “Next time, bring your phone and I’ll help you record it.”
Zane leaned close to Tyvalis. “Or bring Evanthia. Elf won’t mind.”
“I will bring Evanthia and Sephine,” Tyvalis replied. Sephine was Evanthia’s mate and another commander rarely seen far from Tyvalis’s side.
Grant unconsciously relaxed as everyone around the table discussed options good-naturedly, and he realized his nerves about being on the committee were at least waylaid. It was a relief, as this project was of great importance to not just the Council, but Grant personally.
The last thing he wanted was to embarrass the fallen knights. With such a cooperative team, he was positive he could give his absolute best to the committee and everything involved in planning the security for the event. Especially now that he had the help of both Alaric and Tyvalis—two of the fiercest people to ever draw breath.
