Page 105 of The Gods Veiling
To him and the others, mere milliseconds passed, while for me, minutes.
With a tight smile, we release hands and I peer over my shoulder at Riven. He’s giddy, but I jerk my head and he exhales dramatically.
His power washes over us and the bunched muscles around Brock’s shoulders relax. The Chancellors all make a noise of contentment before glaring at Riven.
“What was the meaning of that?” the High Chancellor asks.
By his scowl, he meant for it to be authoritative. Because of Riven’s power, it was gentle. I cover my snort with a cough and hold my hands out.
“We’re going to go into this amicably. Brock, explain what’s going on.”
He eyes the High Chancellor with unfiltered disdain, then focuses on me. “The attacks and attempts to break through the stronghold and barrier have been growing tenfold for the past month. The night before the Veiling, twelve Oblirians got through. If it wasn’t for our men on this side, there’s no telling how far they would’ve gotten. This side is holding strong with plenty of resources and rotations from the Godsdawn. My four Valtrues need help over there.”
He jerks his head back toward the barrier and my eyes scan the shimmering veil. Twenty gods aren’t enough to hold it together forever. Especially if they’re growing tired and constantly restless.
“But they did not get past these defenses. That is the most important part. Four completed Valtrues on that side are plenty enough and there is backup here whenever it’s needed,” the High Chancellor states calmy but completely fucking wrong.
“The twenty of us holding the line on that side isn’t enough. We split up and rotate shifts in twelve-hour spans. No one can fucking sleep, everyone’s always worked up, prepared for the next hit. We’re not enough.” Brock’s voice rises with his frustration at the High Chancellor.
I understand and agree, but talking to the High Chancellor like that isn’t going to work. He takes shit way too personal.
“Sir, what’s your solution or request to put these matters aside?” I ask and give Brock a pointed look when he narrows his gaze on me.
“They are doing a fine job as they are. We can’t extinguish any more resources from the Godsdawn. We already have a number of Valtrues assigned to a daily rotation from this side. Not to mention we send you all plus other Valtrues in when they desperately call. The pressure seems to be getting to them, but they need to remember they are gods. This is their responsibility.”
I hold my hand up to stop Brock from flipping his shit. “I agree, it is their responsibility. If I remember correctly, there are four other completed Valtrues whose daily responsibility is to man this side. By the definition of their role, they’re to protect this perimeter. Plus, the few others who are always on standby and in random rotation, correct?”
“Yes,” the High Chancellor agrees begrudgingly.
“Do the majority of the attacks happen at night?”
Brock nods once before speaking, “Almost all of them are at night. We’ve only had one daytime attack in the last three months.”
“I see.”
The perfect solution to this problem is already worked out in my mind. Now it’s a matter of getting the High Chancellor and his silent brownnosers to agree.
“We don’t want to pull any more gods from the Godsdawn. That’d defeat the purpose of their responsibilities here that they know are theirs and put too much pressure on us. You’re completely correct in that, sir.”
Brock bristles beside me like he can’t believe I just said that. If he gives me two seconds, he’ll understand. The High Chancellor, on the other hand, is preening with his premature victory.
“I am glad you see it that way, Kyzen. Do you see a solution for this so we can stop with the pestering request?”
“I believe so, yes. The four Valtrues that have a daily rotation on this side shall take the daytime shift across the line from now on. Brock’s group, since this is their responsibility and they’re the most experienced, will continue to take the twelve-hour night shift.”
The Chancellors accompanying the High Chancellor begin murmuring agreeingly behind him. He keeps his face impassive although his eyes tell me something very different. He won’t be able to reject this, though.
“And what of this side? That will still leave us providing additional support at night.”
“Not necessarily. Like we just mentioned, there are random rotations already manning this perimeter along with the resources on this side. So no additional resources are being provided, just moved around from daily roles to nightly ones.”
There’s a tense strain slathered all over the High Chancellor’s body. For whatever reason, he really wants to keep the protection on our side of the perimeter, but that simply can’t happen. We need Brock and the Valtrues he leads protecting from over there.
“Chancellors, do you agree?” he asks with barely controlled anger. His eye even twitches a minuscule when they all hum yes. “Fine. Kyzen, work out the finer details.”
Without even a glance in Brock’s direction or any notion to the other Chancellors, he starshoots away. It isn’t but a second and they follow suit. I roll my eyes and cross my arms over my chest.
“Gods, he’s a delightful piece of work, isn’t he?” Riven says sarcastically as he walks up to the barrier to run his finger down it.
