The Beast That was Promised ✔

TWO: Ending It

Nerin stood in the war room, which he had never seen before. Harudan and their father had never allowed him in there and he hadn't found a single secret passage that led into it. But with Harudan in Minisia and him in charge of Brenmar, the war room was a place he would frequent more often as the days wore on.

Fentir was the only other person there with him. It wasn't a formal visit, but rather one to get him up to date on what was going on in Vishera. His travels with Rina and Isiah had made him fall behind and ever since Harudan had left, Fentir had made an effort of getting him to catch up.

If only what he was learning about had been theoretical, he would have felt a lot better about how close both parts of the army were to Ziya. But it was all real and within the coming days or weeks, Ziya would be under siege, attacked by the God of Flame. Not even the Warriors of Ziya could withstand such an assault. Their training had never prepared them for the wrath of Harudan Oshana.

"What about the middle?" Nerin asked, interrupting Fentir in the middle of his explanation of why Harudan was heading south.

The army had entered Minisia through the middle and south of the border, General Juna's part had continued south while the other moved to the north, leaving the middle of Minisia free of soldiers. It seemed impractical and allowed the Askari to mount a force without being caught. If someone like him could see that, then surely the general's had been able to as well.

"There's nowhere the Askari can go without running into our forces. The entire idea was to keep them spread thin," Fentir explained but he sounded like he wasn't entirely sure himself. "I believe there are supposed to be patrols sent out between each portion of the army to make sure the Askari aren't attempting to fight back."

Nerin frowned down at the map table. "What would happen if they did?" he asked. It was a logical question to ask for someone learning about it for the first time, but there was a voice in the back of his mind that whispered to him about how good it would be if the Askari attacked and won. He ignored it as best he could.

"There are soldiers stationed all across the border to stop that from happening. If they did attack, it wouldn't last long. They've nearly reached Ziya and once Harudan takes it, there will be no point in continuing an attack here," Fentir explained, sounding far too nonchalant about it all.

Of course, Nerin had expected Harudan to be completely prepared for anything the Askari might throw at him, but it didn't stop the wave of disappointment that washed over Nerin. He couldn't help it. He didn't want Harudan to win, but he didn't even know what his brother would do if he did.

He'd only been King for a year and the biggest thing he had done was declare war on Minisia, which only furthered the opinion that Harudan wasn't fit to be a good King. When Nerin and Ishin had asked, he said he only wanted to make Minisia a better place but was that the truth? What things did he have in mind to make that happen? Nerin had never questioned it, but he should have long ago. He'd gone along with his brother's plans without once questioning anything, but why? What did he have to show for it?

Absolutely nothing except guilt. If he hadn't worked with his brother, it would have taken far longer for Ishin to be freed, maybe even long enough for Isiah to get all the stones and win, but because of him, it was happening far too soon. He had no contact with Isiah, had no idea where he was or what stones he had, if he was even still alive.

If Ashera was telling the truth, and he was sure she was, she'd successfully sent the letter to Maeve via raven. The day before, he had requested that she become his personal servant. It was getting too dangerous for her to spend so much time with him when she was only supposed to bring him his meals. He didn't want her to get in trouble, not when it could jeopardize any plans he made. He needed her help. She was free to move about the palace without being watched, she would be his eyes and ears.