Chapter Seventeen
We stood on a ridge overlooking the valley Edinburg Manor was built in, but there was little cover in the desert landscape to hide our approach. They would know we were coming from any direction. We couldn’t get around them, so it looked like we would have to go through the entire army to reach the Duke of Edinburg in his bunker.
I furrowed my brow with concentration as I tried to count the sea of white tents, but it was a fruitless endeavor since there were more on the other side of the manor out of my eyesight.
There were a lot, to say the least.
Fortunately, I had some of the most amazing companions in all of Sorreyal at my back, so I wasn’t going to face the army alone. I knew there had to be some way to get the advantage, so I made a new save point before I continued any further.
“Well,” I sighed as I turned to my companions and Ozmand. “It looks like we are going to have a fight on our hands. I’d hoped to keep all of you out of harm’s way, but I’m going to need all hands on deck to tackle this problem.”
My friends and lovers were dismounting their horses, and they eyed the army ahead with obvious concern.
“That’s a lot of men,” Ako said, and he let out a low whistle. “How many can you take alone?”
“Bash single handedly defeated Lord Lucian’s army of fifty men,” Elissa informed the shapeshifter in a proud voice, and her emerald eyes filled with love as she gazed up at me. “All to win my hand in marriage.”
“My brother was well-trained in the art of war,” Eva added. “It would have been no easy feat to defeat him.”
“Bash always makes everything look easy,” Mahini said with a wry smirk. “I remember the day we met… I was going to throw my life on the line to save Addington before he showed up and killed all the kobolds, with my sword no less!”
“Truly?” Ako’s honey-colored eyes widened as he listened to my women’s stories, and his gaze leapt to my face in search of confirmation.
“It’s true,” I laughed. “I can’t stand idly by while there’s a damsel in distress, now can I?”
“Is that how you win so many hearts?” Ako chuckled. “I’ll have to remember that next time I’m on the prowl.”
“There’s no way you can take on an army this size alone,” Ozmand insisted with a shake of his head. “Even the immortal have their limits.”
“You doubt me?” I raised one eyebrow as I gave the bastard a hard stare. “I’ll forgive you this once because you have yet to see my full power, but remember your words so you can eat them later.”
The God of War was here, and he didn’t tolerate doubt among his team. I would need them all to follow me without question if I were to succeed at eliminating an entire army. Now, I just had to figure out how I was going to do that.
Caelia’s frightened voice cut through my thoughts. “What about me? I-I-I can’t fight an army!”
“Don’t worry, Caels,” Eva hurried to reassure the shopkeeper. “Bash has a plan, right?”
“Definitely,” I lied.
I would have one soon, but first I needed to brainstorm. I could always reset back to my save point and come up with all the ideas myself, but I liked hearing my companions’ input when it came to facing challenges.
“Why don’t you girls water the horses while Mahini, Ako, and I scout the road ahead,” I suggested to Elissa, Eva, and Caelia. Then I nodded to Ozmand. “You can just relax for a minute while we discuss our next steps.”
“Very well.” The bastard dipped his head, and he turned to find a comfortable place to sit down.
The sun was high in the sky by this point, and there was nowhere to hide from the blazing rays, but the duke’s son sat cross-legged on the side of the road out of the way of the horses’ hooves.
I jerked my chin to Mahini and Ako, and the two followed me a little ways away from the others. It didn’t matter how I approached the topic since I already knew I was going to reset, so I got straight to the point.
“I have no idea how I’m going to conquer an army with seven people,” I confessed. “I was hoping we could come up with some ideas, and then I’ll go back to save us time.”
“Go back?” Mahini asked with a curious tilt of her head.
“Never mind,” I said as I flapped my hand dismissively. “Focus. Big army, seven people. What do we do?”
“But…” Ako frowned. “You’re a god… Can’t you kill them all with a thought?”
“My powers don’t work like that,” I explained.
“How unfortunate.” Ako’s tail twitched as his honey-colored eyes turned thoughtful.
“The army we face doesn’t know there are only seven of us,” Mahini said, and she worked the muscle in her jaw. “Maybe there’s a way to make them think they’re the ones who are outnumbered.”
“Excuse me,” Ozmand said from behind us, and we all whipped around to face him. “I couldn’t help but overhear. If I may offer a suggestion, Great O--, er, Bash?”
“Sure.” I nodded.
I could use all the ideas I could get.
“There is a servant’s entrance on the back side of the manor,” Ozmand explained. “If we can split up, we may be able to distract them away from the back door.”
“Then the rest of us could slip inside and get to the bunker,” I said. “Not a bad idea, but who would go where? I hate to leave the most vulnerable among us unguarded, and I don’t like the idea of splitting up for very long…”
“We can do it, Bash,” Mahini said, and her ice-blue eyes were bright with battle lust.
Fuck, she was sexy.
I shook my head to dispel images of Mahini moaning while I fucked her, and I reminded myself there would be plenty of time for that after I brought the duke back to Vallenwood.
“How many men can you take alone, Ako?” I asked as I turned to the shapeshifter.
“No more than twenty.” Ako shrugged.
“Mahini?” I turned to the desert goddess.
“I’m not sure.” Mahini bit her lower lip as doubt crept into her voice. “I’m sure I could handle at least ten on my own.”
“I am not trained to fight,” Ozmand confessed. “I fear I will only be dead weight.”
“You’re our guide.” I shook my head. “That’s more than useful by itself.”
“At least you’re not pregnant,” Elissa added as the other girls joined our conversation. “Then Bash would be even more protective of you.”
“I take it you want to fight,” I chuckled. “I have to admit, I could use all the help I can get.”
“I can help,” Elissa insisted with a firm nod. “You aren’t alone, Bash.”
“Far from it,” Eva added, and she twirled one of her throwing stars around her fingers. “I still have plenty of stars.”
“How can I help?” Caelia asked with a nervous smile.
“You don’t have to fight,” I said. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”
“I chose to follow you on this adventure knowing full well I would have to fight eventually,” the not-so-timid shopkeeper insisted with a stubborn lift of her chin, and her chocolate eyes burned with determination. “The others have been helping me train each night, and I want to show you what I’ve learned.”
“Practicing with friends is completely different than killing a man,” I pointed out. “Are you sure you’re ready?”
“I will do what needs to be done in order to serve Sorreyal,” Caelia promised.
There was no denying the strength she showed in that moment, and all I could do was grin like an idiot.
“So, it’s settled,” Eva said. “We all work together to get Bash and Ozmand inside Edinburg Manor.”
“But how, exactly?” Elissa questioned, and she cocked her hip to one side. “It’s not like we can just waltz in the front door.”
“Maybe not.” I shrugged, but then a devilish smile split my face. “But we can act like that’s what we’re going to do.”
“Ooh, a ruse!” my wife giggled and clapped her hands with excitement.
“So, what do we need to do?” Mahini asked.
“Hmm…” I turned to gaze at the manor on the edge of the valley before us, and I was reminded of a scene from one of my favorite movies. I decided we were going to storm the castle like we were the Dread Pirate Roberts from Princess Bride, except the monster would be the God of Time. Then I looked over my shoulder at my companions, and my smile widened even further. “I need a large cloak, a torch, and something to make into a funnel.”
“You got it.” Mahini nodded curtly, and then all my companions leapt into action.
I wasn’t sure if they would be able to find the items I needed for my plan on such short notice, but I would see what they turned up with first. I had a pretty good idea of how I was going to distract the entire army while we made our way to the backdoor, but I could always try other methods if it didn’t work out.
Being a master of time was fucking awesome.
A short while later, Mahini approached me with the cloak in her hands, and it looked like it was long enough for what I had in mind. Elissa carried a torch triumphantly over her head as she returned to my side, and then Ako crossed the distance between us with a piece of hollowed out bark.
I grabbed the bark first, and I turned it over in my hands as I analyzed it. It was a cylinder with empty space at the center, but it wasn’t rotted to the point of crumbling in my grasp. I held it up to my lips and whistled through it experimentally, and the tunnel amplified the sound.
“What are you going to do?” Elissa asked with a curious tilt of her head.
“How is a piece of a tree going to destroy an army?” Caelia questioned in the same breath.
“Relax,” I chuckled. “All things will be revealed in time. Now, who wants to be the monster?”
My companions all stared at me in utter confusion, and their blank expressions cracked me up. I flung back my head and let out a deep belly laugh, and then I wrapped my arms around Mahini and Elissa’s shoulders.
“I’ll be the monster,” Caelia volunteered with a brave lift of her chin. “I’m not sure what exactly that means, but… I’m up for anything.”
“Perfect.” I grinned. “You’re amazing, Caels.”
The timid shopkeeper dipped her head bashfully, but her chocolate eyes held a hint of longing when they met my gaze again.
Soon, Caelia would be mine, but first, I had to focus on my mission.
I questioned my companions on where they’d retrieved the items I’d requested from, and once I had all the information I needed, I reset back to my save point.
Chime.
I pulled my companions over to the side of the road long before we spotted the field of white tents surrounding Edinburg Manor, and then I laid out enough details of my plan for us to get into position, but I wanted to wait until night time to use my idea to its full advantage. If this was going to go off without a hitch, then I needed the cover of darkness to disguise our actions.
“It’s a brilliant plan,” Mahini complimented, and her ice-blue eyes shone with battle lust. “It won’t be long before we are headed back to Vallenwood.”
“I never doubted you,” Elissa breathed as she squeezed her arms around my midsection. “You’ve always got a plan.”
“And a pretty decent one at that,” Ako said. “The duke’s men won’t see through the ruse until it’s too late.”
“By then, we’ll be inside the manor,” Ozmand pointed out.
“Exactly.” I grinned, but then I nodded to each of the women. “As soon as we give the signal, get away as fast as you can. There’s no point in fighting a losing battle, and I don’t want any of you to get hurt.”
“We can handle it, Bash,” Caelia said with a confident gleam in her chocolate eyes.
“You can count on us,” Eva added, and she wrapped her arm around the shopkeeper’s elbow. “I’ll stay close to Caelia and keep her safe.”
We passed the time by setting up a small camp far enough away from the manor to be out of sight of the soldiers, and we scouted their perimeter while we still had some light to work with. There were guards every fifty paces or so, but they weren’t the most observant since we managed to sneak past them with little effort.
I got a good look at what we were up against, but it seemed the Edinburg motto was quantity over quality. Most of the men were occupied with gambling or napping, but the few I saw training moved like novices. A couple acted like they’d never held a sword before, and I shook my head in wonder at the army the duke had amassed. Little did the duke know, his army was about to be defeated by a handful of people.
I supposed Edinburg hadn’t had much time to organize and train them, but he would have been better off surrounding himself with fewer, more experienced men.
We stealthily returned to our campsite to begin the next phase of my plan, and we waited for the sun to finish setting before we leapt into action. Then we strapped the armor I’d taken from Evyn to my saddle on Goliath’s back before we draped the long cloak across the shoulder guards. If anything happened to the armor, I could always reset, so I wasn’t worried about it. Once our distraction was ready, we all scanned the field of tents in the valley below us with an anxious air.
“That’s a lot of soldiers,” Mahini observed with lifted eyebrows. “If you were anyone else, I would be worried.”
“Thankfully, I’m me.” I grinned. “Don’t worry, beautiful, we’ll be headed home before you know it.”
“We better get there before they hold the wedding without us,” Eva joked.
“They wouldn’t dare,” Caelia gasped, and we all laughed.
“I’m sure everyone will be excited to have us home,” I said, “but first we need to finish our quest.”
“Time to split up.” Ako nodded.
Mahini and Ozmand would go with me inside the manor while Ako, Elissa, Eva, and Caelia distracted the main force of the army. We would still have to fight our way inside, but with any luck, all the soldiers would direct their attention toward our distraction.
I was nervous about leaving my women and friends without my protection, but I wouldn’t make a new save point until everyone was reunited.
Besides, I couldn’t coddle Elissa and the other girls forever. If they were going to join me on quests, then they needed to be able to hold their own, and I had to let them. That meant not running in at the slightest sign of danger to save them, or coming up with ways to keep them away from the fight.
The three of us left on foot and skirted around the army under the cover of darkness, but I paused where we could still see the others in action since I wanted to make sure the distraction would work before I continued with my plan. The others led Goliath toward the army, and the decoy me was strapped onto the saddle covered in the long cloak.
Then a loud, male voice rang out through the clear desert air, and shivers ran up my spine at the ominous sound.
“Beware mine enemies! I am the Great One of Legend!” Ako made for a pretty intimidating God of Time, I had to give him that. He spoke clearly through the bark funnel, and his voice was amplified loudly enough for the majority of the army to hear. “Any who stand against me shall perish upon my blade! Approach me if you dare!”
A spark of light bloomed in the darkness as the cloak attached to the empty armor on Goliath’s back was lit from the torch, and screams echoed across the distance from the direction of the troops. Goliath nickered and reared before he took off at a dead run, and I could see soldiers dashing out of his way from my vantage point.
Still, there was no harm in upping the ante a little, so I focused on casting a few spells. I’d learned more than enough during the summit of nobility to take out an entire army without even trying hard, so I shook out my arms before I aimed the palms of my hands at the tents in the distance.
First, I shot out a few massive fireballs, and several tents ignited when they landed among the white sheets. Then I summoned as many vines as I could, and while small, they were mighty. Even from a distance, I could sense them tripping soldiers who ran in every direction, and the tiny plants caused even more chaos. Finally, I sent a gust of wind toward the decoy strapped to Goliath’s back, and the air whipped the flames licking the armor beneath into fresh life.
A few more fireballs later, and the scene before me was completely different. Screams pierced the air, and the fires spread from tent to tent with loud whooshes. Horses nickered, and over everything came the ominous sound of Ako’s voice.
“I am the Great One of Legend!” the shapeshifter shouted through the funnel, and his voice seemed to be coming from every direction. “I can smell your fear!”
“It’s the God of Time!” a voice screeched. “Run!”
“He’s coming for us!” another voice wailed.
“Let’s get out of here!” a third urged.
Everywhere Goliath ran, chaos ensued. The cloak burned brightly like a torch of retribution, and the men scattered in every direction in an effort to avoid the trampling hooves. The trained warhorse was more bothered by the flaming decoy on his back than he was by the soldiers running around his legs, but he carved a path straight to the front entrance of Edinburg Manor.
It would be easy enough for my companions to follow in the warhorse’s wake in order to reach the front door, but it would be up to us to meet them from the other side with the duke in tow. I waited until I saw the rest of my companions waiting a safe distance behind the galloping Goliath before I signaled to Ozmand and Mahini. Even though I knew the plan was for them to stay far away from the army of men while the decoy wreaked havoc, I couldn’t help but worry about Ako and the other women. With an army of men standing between me and my most treasured possessions, I would be holding my breath until I saw them safe and sound again. Still, they were under strict orders not to engage with the soldiers unless absolutely necessary.
The three of us crept around the edge of the army tents toward the back side of the manor, but I spotted a handful of guards at the servants’ entrance. With five total soldiers, we would still have to fight our way through, but Ozmand was no warrior, so it would be up to Mahini and me.
I was tempted to make a new save point, but I wanted to wait until I had all my companions safe and sound first, so I resisted. No point getting stuck in an unfixable situation if I didn’t have to.
“Mahini, you go left,” I instructed. “I’ll go right. Ozmand, stay here til I signal you.”
“Happily,” Ozmand sighed, and relief washed over his face. “I am useless with a sword.”
“You’re our guide, remember?” I said. “I’ll make sure the path is clear, and then you show me the way.”
“Got it.” The duke’s bastard son nodded, and he set his chin at a determined line.
I was satisfied he would stay put until the coast was clear, so I nodded to Mahini, and the two of us approached the guards from either side. I pulled my dagger free with my left hand, withdrew my feather sword with my right, and stood up behind one of the soldiers in my next breath. I dragged my blade across his throat swiftly, and I was ready for the next guy to turn around to face me. Then, with a quick stab of my feather sword, I punctured his throat with the tip of my blade before he could even open his mouth to raise the alarm.
Mahini downed two guards just as quickly, and then we turned to face the final one together. The man dove toward my warrior woman, but that left his back open for me, and I lunged forward with a quick slash of my sword across the nape of his neck.
My blade sliced through the gap between his chest plate and his helmet, and he gurgled out a pained cry. The soldier toppled a few paces short of Mahini, and the desert goddess jumped back to avoid his falling body.
I whistled under my breath to signal the coast was clear, and Ozmand joined us at the entrance an instant later.
“That was fast,” he observed with wide eyes.
“Let’s get inside,” I suggested as I shot a look around. It wouldn’t be long before other soldiers came to replace their fallen comrades, and I wanted to be out of sight before that happened.
Ozmand pushed open the door and led us inside, but we had to pause to let our eyes adjust to the brightly lit interior. Thankfully, there were no soldiers in the hallway immediately inside the threshold, so we didn’t have to rush into another battle just yet. Then the duke’s son motioned for us to follow him, and he trotted down the hallway at a brisk pace. There were more soldiers ahead when we turned down a connecting corridor, and we quickly backpedaled before they saw us.
“There’s a servant’s tunnel straight to my father’s living quarters down the hallway up ahead,” Ozmand whispered as the three of us squatted behind the corner. “If we can get past those soldiers, then we will be able to go to the bunker without anyone else knowing we’re here.”
“Maybe they will pass by in a moment, and the way will be clear,” Mahini said.
“We don’t have time to wait,” I argued. “The others can only scare off the army for so long before they find out we duped them.”
“How many are there?” Mahini sighed.
I peeked carefully around the corner and took a quick head count. “Six.”
“Too many to eliminate without making some noise,” the desert goddess mused.
“Then let’s make some noise.” I shrugged.
I stood up, shook out my neck and shoulders, and then marched straight into the hallway without another word. Mahini scrambled to catch up to me, and she flashed me a playful glare as she pulled her sword free.
The soldiers turned and spotted us in the same instant, and the hallway erupted into chaos. I parried the blow of a sword, and then I shoved my dagger under the man’s helmet just beneath his chin. Mahini twirled her blade, knocked her opponent’s weapon aside, and then buried her sword to the hilt in his gut. We moved in sync, and we covered each other’s weak spots while we mowed through the six men like a hot knife slicing through butter.
It was a dance I normally danced alone, but having Mahini by my side made it even better. I stole a quick kiss in the middle of the fight, and her cheeks flushed bright red. The warrior woman was so flustered she almost missed the next attack from her opponent, but I lunged forward just in time to block the sword aimed at her head.
While I had the man’s sword caught against the hilt of mine, Mahini reached under my arm and stabbed the man in the foot. He cried out as he lost his balance and stumbled backward, which gave me the perfect opening to toss my dagger at the crack in his helmet’s visor. My aim was true, and the blade slid between the metal opening like a key into a lock. The soldier collapsed backward, and a pool of blood began to form around him.
It was only then I realized Mahini and I were alone in the hallway, and I resisted the urge to pump my fist in the air. Instead, I reached up my hand for a high five, and the desert goddess obliged with a smile tugging on the corners of her lips.
“You did it!” Ozmand gasped as he joined us. “You… You… It was like it wasn’t even hard for you…”
“Show me this secret tunnel,” I said.
Ozmand dipped his head apologetically, and he rushed down the hallway. He stopped in front of a panel on the wall, and I eyed it closely for signs of an opening, but I couldn’t see any. Then the duke’s son pressed his fingers into the edges of the trim, and he slid along the side until I heard a distinct clicking sound.
The panel swung backward, and a narrow corridor was revealed.
“This way,” Ozmand urged, and he ducked inside the small tunnel.
Mahini and I exchanged a glance before we followed him down into the shadowy hallway, and I wrinkled my nose at the smell of the stale air. It reminded me of a crypt, but if it would take me to the duke, then I was all for it.
“After you,” I said to the duke’s son, and then I summoned a flame to my hand. “Fur.”
“Whoa.” Ozmand’s eyebrows rose in surprise, and he looked like he was about to say something else, but then he just shook his head and turned down the hallway.
Mahini and I followed him in silence, and my thoughts wandered to the others. I hoped they were doing okay against the army, but I knew it wouldn’t be long before they would need my help. Still, our first priority was to retrieve the duke from his hiding place, and then I could get him to call off his men.
We made our way down the twisting, turning path, and Ozmand stopped at a couple of junctions. He would look both ways and then mutter to himself before taking a different direction. I was trusting him not to get us lost, but with each passing moment, I grew more anxious.
Then Ozmand stopped at what was obviously another doorway, and he felt all along the edge of the frame again. This time, I wasn’t surprised to hear the telltale click, and I helped the duke’s son pull open the portal. We emerged in a richly decorated bedroom with a massive four-poster king-sized bed taking center stage. The dark-green bedspread looked softer than a cloud, and I resisted the urge to rub my face on it.
The room was dimly lit by candles, so someone had been in here recently to light them, but it could easily just have been a servant.
“Is this it?” I asked.
“No, this isn’t the actual bunker,” the duke’s bastard said. “But we’re close.”
“Where is it?” I asked as I looked around like I could find the entrance labeled on the wall.
“This way,” Ozmand instructed, and he crossed the room to a small door.
The duke’s son held it open, and I peered inside to find a closet full of expensive looking clothes. I shot Ozmand a confused glance, and the bastard chuckled before he pulled apart the hanging outfits to reveal an even smaller door.
“It’s well hidden,” he said, and he pulled open the door to reveal another tunnel. “But it’s down here.”
I had to duck my head to fit inside, and the walls brushed against my shoulders. Once Mahini and Ozmand crowded inside as well, I began to feel a little claustrophobic.
“It gets a little wider near the entrance to the bunker,” Ozmand assured me. “Watch out for the steps, though, they come out of nowhere.”
“Noted.” I nodded.
I supposed I was in the lead now, so I inched my way down the hallway as quickly as I could. A part of me wondered if Ozmand was tricking me, and this was a trap of some kind, but I had a save point far enough back that I could avoid any disasters from a mile away.
Then the floor dropped away into stone steps, and they curled around like they were going down into a tower. I followed the stairs down to the bottom with the other two close on my heels, and the stairwell opened into an annex of sorts, but there was only one door.
This had to be the bunker.
I’d admit the Duke of Edinburg had done his best to avoid jail time, or whatever else the king saw fit as punishment, but now his time had come to an end. There was nowhere else to run to.
“Open the door,” I instructed, and Ozmand nodded.
I braced myself for anything as the portal slid slowly open, but then out came a handful of soldiers and a man wearing shimmering gold plated armor.
“Halt!” The golden-geared man held up his hand. “You must get through me first, God of Time.”
“Aww, you’ve heard of me I see.” I smirked.
“Eurikson!” Ozmand shouted from my side.
“Little Ozzie the Spoiled,” Eurikson snickered. “I’ve been waiting years for a chance to kill you.”
“Well, now’s your chance,” Ozmand replied with a stubborn lift of his chin.
The family love in the air was palpable, but the bastard was crazy if he thought he could win this fight. Not only was he outmatched, Ozmand wasn’t even wearing any armor.
No, I had to save him from this fight, even if it meant prolonging my quest a little.
“Eurikson,” I said. “Try someone your own size for a change.”
“It would be a privilege to take out the supposed God of Time,” Eurikson sneered, and he drew his sword in a slow dramatic arch. “Prepare yourself.”
I already had my sword and dagger in my hands, so I shrugged. “I’m ready.”
“Die, scum!” Eurikson cried out as he lunged forward with his fancy sword raised.
If any of the duke’s sons deserved to die, it was this asshole. He didn’t even know me, and he was calling me scum. Pathetic.
I blocked his blow easily, and I batted his sword away with practiced ease. Then I darted in with my left hand, and I stabbed into his gut with my dagger with all my might. The blunt force of my attack dented his armor, but then my blade sliced through the metal to puncture his flesh.
Blood seeped from the crack in his breastplate, and his eyes were wide with shock through the slits of his visor.
I rode the momentum forward, and I yanked my dagger free while I brought my feather sword around in a circle. The movement wrenched his blade from his grasp, and the ornately-carved weapon clattered to the floor.
Ozmand leapt on it and grabbed it faster than I could blink, and then Eurikson was left defenseless. The soldiers behind him stiffened anxiously, and all eyes were on the lord.
“Kill them!” Eurikson wheezed, and his guards rushed forward.
Luckily, all three of us were prepared for him to do exactly this, so I shoved the asshole lord to the side while I blocked the sword of one of his soldiers in the same breath.
Mahini and Ozmand parried blows with their own swords, but I kept a close watch on the bastard with my peripheral vision. He wasn’t a seasoned fighter, so I didn’t want to let him get hurt. Even though we’d already made it to the bunker, he would still prove useful as a witness during the trial, so it was important I kept him alive. Then Ozmand drove his half-brother’s sword through the gut of one of his father’s soldiers, and I knew we were going to be okay.
I killed three men in as many seconds, and then I spun around in search of another enemy. My breath came in ragged pants, but the only people I found were Mahini, Ozmand, and Eurikson. The duke’s eldest son watched me warily, and he cowered away from me when I strode toward him.
“Stay out of my way,” I commanded in a menacing tone. “Or else I will not hesitate to kill you.”
Eurikson glared at me with a rebellious glint in his eyes, but then he dropped his gaze to the floor.
“Fine,” he huffed. “Just don’t kill him.”
“That will be up to the king,” I said.
Then I marched toward the entrance to the bunker with my head held high. If there was one thing I had learned from this adventure, it was that I was going to be a way better dad than Eurik Edinburg could ever dream of being.
Mahini and Ozmand followed me inside, but they came to a halt just inside the entrance.
Inside sat the Duke of Edinburg and his wife, and the two looked pretty comfortable on their thick cushioned chairs. They were surrounded by chests and safes, and I wondered if the king would mind if I took a little of the duke’s wealth for myself.
A small fee for my services, perhaps?
“You’re under arrest,” I announced without preamble. “You’ve evaded the law long enough, Edinburg. Time’s up.”
“You… You ruined everything for me!” the duke hissed as he scowled up at me, but he didn’t make a move to escape. “I was supposed to be the most powerful man in all the realm! I was going to be better than the king! I was going to be sultan!”
“Yeah, yeah, well, all that’s behind you now.” I grinned. “Time to go.”
“You think you can get the better of me, but just watch,” the duke muttered like he hadn’t even heard me. “I’ll find a way to come back, stronger than ever before!”
“Is he going to do this for long?” Mahini asked with a coolly arched eyebrow. “It could get old fast.”
“Yeah, I’m already sick of it,” I agreed. “Let’s shut him up, shall we?”
“What are you going to do?” Ozmand questioned, and he furrowed his brow in concern.
“Just put him to sleep,” I assured the duke’s son.
“Ozmand!” The duke finally noticed his bastard son was standing before him. “You betrayed me!”
“You betrayed me first!” Ozmand countered, but then he nodded to me.
I nodded back, and then I approached the duke with my sword raised. Edinburg cowered away from me, and his wrinkled face filled with fear, but I merely brought the hilt of my feather sword down onto the top of his skull. His eyes rolled back into the back of his head, and he slumped onto his wife.
“What have you done?” the Duchess of Edinburg wailed as she grasped her husband’s head against her shoulder. “Where are you taking him?”
“To the king,” I replied. “To face justice.”
“What about me?” she whimpered.
“The king didn’t say anything about you.” I shrugged before I scrutinized the old lady. “Unless you were helping your husband with his treasonous plot?”
“No!” she squeaked and blanched. “N-No, I didn’t.”
“Okay, then I’m not here for you.” I nodded before I bent over to scoop the duke up onto my shoulder. “But it’s time for your husband to go.”
The duchess sniffled as tears streamed down her face, but she didn’t say a word as I turned away from her.
I could hear shouting in the distance, but I couldn’t tell if my companions were okay or not, so I was eager to rejoin them. I jerked my chin toward the door, and Mahini and Ozmand both got the message. They trotted out the entrance and up the stairs, but I stayed close behind them the entire time.
A short while later, we burst into the hallway near the servant’s entrance, and Ozmand led the way to the back door. The duke didn’t weigh much, so he didn’t slow down my movement at all, but Ozmand kept eyeballing me over his shoulder, so I knew he was worried about his dad. The corridors were empty except for the corpses of the soldiers we’d killed, and a few moments later, we were outside the manor.
Then we made our way through the shadows around the edge of the tents, but many of them had been trampled over or knocked down. Food crates and barrels were scattered everywhere, and it looked like the entire army had ran away.
My footsteps quickened toward the rendezvous point where I would find out if my women and friends were safe, and Ozmand and Mahini hurried to keep up with me. I held my breath as I approached the meeting place, but then the shadowy figures of my companions came into focus.
“Oh, thank god,” Elissa gasped when she saw us. “I was beginning to worry.”
“Is everyone okay?” I asked as I quickly took a head count.
“We’re fine,” my wife assured me.
I insisted that Eva, Elissa, Caelia, and Ako twirl so I could inspect them for injuries all the same, and Mahini chuckled while she watched me scrutinizing our companions.
“The mission was a success,” the desert goddess declared. “You can relax a little.”
Mahini was right. We’d accomplished our goal and captured the duke. Once I had him tied up on a horse, I would feel much better, but he wasn’t going anywhere for now.
We’d worked as a team to bring down one of the most powerful enemies I’d ever faced, and I knew I couldn’t have done it nearly as well without my lovers and friends at my back. It just proved how much more I could rely on them in the future.
The future was looking awfully bright from where I stood.
The Duke of Edinburg would soon be behind bars, and Sorreyal could be at peace again.
I’d left Vallenwood as the God of Time, but I was coming back as the God of Justice.