Unbound

Chapter Seven Hundred And Four – 704

Alister considered the knife in his hand. It promised escape and death all at once. The first was as compelling as the shine of the southern sun upon its length, and the second... Alister pressed the tip of the knife down and cut, stabbing his fork through the tender roasted loin before popping the lot of it in his mouth. He was surrounded by guards during his meal with the prince, and none of them so much as blinked as he ate. Had Alister decided to put the knife to a different use, he had no doubt that his death would be the only result.

"How was your night, Lord Knacht?" the prince asked. His voice was calm and pleasant, and his appearance was nothing short of immaculate. "Did you sleep well?"

"Of course. Your guest chamber is exquisitely furnished," Alister lied. He had stayed up most of the night, attempting to think his way out of his current predicament. "I only hope my soldiers have received equal treatment."

"Ah, such is the sad burden of leadership, Lord Knacht. Power must be displayed, or else it fades from the eyes of your people. Your soldiers are billeted with the Knights Ghreldan. And received a soldier's meals.

They feast in chains."

"No. Not yet, at least." The prince ate a small piece of crimson tuber and dabbed his lips with a linen cloth. "You still have not agreed to my request."

Alister fought hard to keep the scowl from his face and voice. "I do not find your request reasonable, Prince Tevin."

"Oh, your soldiers would do well under my command. Though few in number, their advanced Temper would be a great boon to the threat offered by my kin and the Hierocracy both. Surely you see that."

"I know the legion would do well against the Hierocracy. I have seen it time and again. What I cannot do is swear over their lives to you, the man who holds them hostage."

Tevin appeared thoughtful, though Alister doubted the man had ever once questioned himself. The prince seemed to be self-confident, bordering on delusional, but Alister couldn't deny that he'd caught him neatly in a trap. If Alister fought back or denied him too vehemently, his soldiers were at risk of death or enslavement.

"Hostage is a repugnant word, I think. I simply hold them as collateral for your legion's goodwill. It would do you well to remember that I am not forcing you into anything. I have treated you with the utmost courtesy and respect." Tevin folded the napkin across his lap, never once breaking eye contact. "I do not have to."

The table and its contents shook, silverware rattling against the fine plates. "What was that?" Tevin demanded.

Knight-Commander Lavin rushed up to his side, followed by two of her knights. "My prince, the Nagafolk have started hurling boulders at the walls."

Above the glass ceiling of the solarium, Alister saw the blue morning sky flash bright pink and yellow as the shield responded to every impact. They spread like waves over the shoreline. Alister thought it was quite beautiful, and put cheer back into his heart. The Deepking grows impatient. How can I use this?

"Bah," Prince Tevin scoffed. "Our shields held out against the flood and Fathom. They can hold out against pebbles and snakes."

The Knight-Commander bit back her words, a frown marring her features before she smoothed them to neutrality. "What do you wish us to do, my prince?"

"Your job. Load the ballistas. Youve often complained at how infrequently we train with the things. Now you've perfect target practice simply waiting outside our walls."

The Knight-Commander nodded to one of her officers who ran off, presumably back to the battlements. "If this continues," she said, "the shields will be depleted of power within the week."

"Then drain the Gallants and refill the core," the prince snapped.

"With all due respect, sir, the Gallants are not strong enough to refill the core without all of them taking part, and that will pull them from our defenses. It will also damage their channels and core spaces if they spend too much time draining their Mana"

"And?" the prince asked, spearing a large portion of roasted meat with his knife. "The Gallants only exist to provide magical solutions to magical problems. If they are broken in service, then they should embrace the honor. It is their very purpose.

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"Very well, sir." Another nod and a second underling went scurrying off, but not before Alister caught the rumble of disgust and anger wafting from their Spirit.

Prince Tevin dabbed his napkin at his lips once again. "Lord Knacht, my Knight-Commander is correct about one thing: this will be a dreadful waste of resources. These serpents seem intent on upsetting our pending alliance. Stop them."

"I have no control over the Deepking's people," Alister said, placing his own napkin over his plate. "His is a sovereign nation as much as yours."

The prince slammed the table with his fist. "The snake is a trespasser upon my Authority! A usurper of a temple rightfully mine!" The man's hair had come askew, his perfect presentation marred by anger and beads of sweat. "He pays deference to your Autarch. Make him listen."

"As you have pointed out, Prince Tevin, I am not the Autarch. The Nagafolk will not listen to me, especially not when you have their people locked within this fortress."

Tevin ground his teeth so hard Alister could almost feel the vibrations. "Fine, then since you will neither swear an Oath nor act to de-escalate your rabid allies, then their slaughter is on you. He snapped his fingers. Commander, take Alister and his people into custody, where they will remain until they have learned to see reason."

"I appreciate you doing this without manacles," Alister said as he was marched down one of the many ornate hallways. They ducked through an archway and passed through a garden. "You already took my rapier, after all. I am of little use in battle without it."

Commander Lavin didn't respond, but then Alister hadn't figured she would. He'd spent little time with the woman, but hed felt hed gotten her measure in Bogfeld. Alister had a lot of respect for how she had handled that entire situation.

That feeling had lost a bit of its shine in recent days.

They turned down a corridor for a time, and Alister noticed the commander was walking a bit slower than he expected. He'd almost outpaced her a time or two and had to slow his stride to match. The last thing he wanted was to seem like he was looking to escape, and he didnt want that; when he left this place, Alister aimed for it to be a surprise.

He needed to find a way out of there, and he needed to take his people with him. It was a puzzle that Alister had not yet solved, but he would. He had to.

Another hall, another ornate chamber leading into another resplendent indoor garden. Or was it the same garden? Alister thought he recognized a particular flowering shrub, but wasn't positive. Their journey was taking more time than hed expected.

Best make use of it.

"Where are my people being taken?" he asked, and couldn't help the heat that bled into his voice.

"To the quarry, same as the rest. Little else can hold all of you."

Alister frowned. That wasnt good. The quarry had little in the way of cover, and the guards posted on the ledges could stop any escape attempt in a few heartbeats. The Nagafolk prisoners were far worse off in their cages. Alister doubted they were ever let out. If his people were all put in there, hed never get them out.

Time for some calculated risks.

"Why do this?" he asked. "Even if you kill us all, this won't end well for you. Felix doesn't forgive people that hurt his allies."

Lavin stopped, mid-stride, forcing Alister to do the same. "I remember him well, you know." Alister looked back, and the woman was staring out a window, with a shield still rippled with flashing colors. "He infiltrated my Redoubt, sowed confusion among my convocation, and saved us from certain death."

Alister frowned, spotting that same flowering shrub again. "You're not taking me to a cell or the quarry."

"No, not yet," Lavin said. She reached up and took off her helmet. Her face was more gaunt than Alister recalled, and her eyes seemed haunted. "I know folly when I hear it. The prince paints an enticing picture, but what he has failed to mention is that he has already begun a conflict against his cousins, and they have led to catastrophic losses. Many of my friends and allies, those I swore to protect, are gone."

A deep tremor shook the fortress as something huge impacted the shields. Lavin gripped the sill, but her eyes werent seeing the shield. "I have lost faith in him.

Then why follow his command? Why do"

Lavin held up a hand, halting Alister's questions. "Your king, this Nevarre, I spoke with him only a little, but he was solid, and he cared for his people, and he was powerful." She shivered. "I told the prince what he did in Bogfeld, but heas I said, my faith is shaken."

"You wish to switch loyalties?" Alister asked. "Are you not Oathbound?"

"We are Oathbound to protect the life of our prince, but if he continues as he is, Tevin will perish along with everything I have built, and all that I have loved. I will not allow that."

She stopped Alister. "If the prince is incapacitated by wound, Status Condition, or instability, then his Authority would fall on his heirs. As the prince has not seen fit to sire any, it will revert onto my shoulders."

Alister could see where this was going, and he couldn't quite believe it. "You mean

I would broker a deal with you, Alister Knacht," Lavin said. "To save what is left of my province."