ALL NOVEL ARC 7-Cursed Fates-126
Things are…different since we resolved ourselves to war. No. Since we learned that Talia and Yulia were taken. The air is tense and a gloom hangs over the estate as we prepare to commit grim deeds. There’s an emptiness in my chest, a gaping hole in my emotions that swallow up everything and leaves behind a numbness. The only thing that can escape its pull is my anger. Anger and resentment. Traces of it twist my lips into a frown that hasn’t left my face since the relief of the children’s safe return faded.
Alana and Kierra wore similar expressions when they left the house in the morning, both working to preserve innocent lives. My future knight went to a scribe and printed missives that we, the Tome clan, were officially declaring war on the city. The plan was to pass them out alongside the estrazi. To shop owners, to hunters, to random passersby, anyone that would take it. That way, none could say they didn’t know.
Kierra went to the Hall. She had the best chance of getting an audience with Dunwayne. I don’t expect the Hall to intervene, they are famous for their neutrality after all, but people will listen to Dunwayne if he tells them the danger is real. Hopefully, that’s enough to get people moving. This is all I can do. It’s all I’m willing to do. My sympathy is exhausted.
I can’t even muster a smile for my lovers once we’re gathered around the dining table in the evening. Geneva serves dinner but it somehow doesn’t taste as good. “How did things go?” I ask.
“It went,” Alana answers, her tone just as numb as my own. “We handed out the declaration, slipped them under doors when people stopped taking them. Their fates are in their own hands now.”
I nod before turning to Kierra. Her lips turn up but there’s no happiness in her smile. “Dunwayne was willing to meet with me. He called a meeting with several instructors. I told them the circumstances. It is up to them whether they act.”
“What do you think?”
“He is a hero, no? He will not be able to ignore a situation where many people will die.”
“…will we have to fight him?”
“No. Dunwayne is a hero, not a martyr. He will not throw away his life for a pointless conflict. More over, he runs a school, not an army. His students are not his soldiers. Even if he were willing to fight, I doubt he could command them to die for Quest. I expect their interference, if they choose to get involved, to be restricted to aiding noncombatants.”
Honestly, I expected far less. Bell shadowed Alana as I was pretty sure that the hunters would ambush her and I wasn’t sure Kierra would even be allowed to set foot on the Hall. It’s good but it doesn’t matter. Casualties are unavoidable at this point. The difference between three hundred and three thousand innocents is nothing but semantics. Either way, I’ll be the worst villain the kingdom has seen in generations. Maybe in all its recorded history. “Then it’s time we get to business. Geneva, join us.”
The succubus appears at my side, tail swaying back and forth. She wants me to know she finds this amusing. The sight causes a spike of annoyance to surge, but I ignore it. It’s my loss if I let her games get to me. “It’s time to discuss our preparations.”
The hunters were given three days to preserve lives but that doesn’t mean we’re going to twiddle our thumbs during that time. We can fight the hunters no problem but efficiently taking them out is a different matter. Those of us capable of large, widespread destruction are Geneva, Bell, and me. Bell will be out of the city protecting the children and I can only throw one or two spells of that level before my mana is exhausted. Considering she would have to break through the defenses of a city full of master casters, a direct magical assault is a poor answer to the problem.
“The question is, how do we destroy an army?”
Alana leans back in her chair and crosses her arms. “An opponent with overwhelmingly powerful area magic, larger numbers, and bad weather. Those are the worst things for an army to encounter on a campaign.”
“My people have not fought a large-scale battle in a long time,” Kierra adds. “Our conflicts are tests of strength. The weak are suppressed and routed.”
“Sickness. Disease claims more lives than any natural disaster or monster,” Geneva comments.
“Overwhelming power is doable.” That’s my part of the plan. I’m the natural disaster that will turn the city to rubble. “But it’d be a simple thing for them to run away from me and regroup outside of the city. The hunters aren’t going to be an organized force that marches toward us in columns. If we’re going to get them all, it has to be something that can wipe them out in an instant or something that catches them by surprise. Since I don’t think we can arrange something as terrible as the northern blizzards—"
“It’s possible.”
I turn to Geneva. “Seriously?”
“Mm. Changing the weather in such an extreme way suddenly is beyond even me but if we were to influence the temperature slowly, inducing the phenomenon rather than creating it, with the aid of the right enchantment, it’s feasible.”
“How long would it take?”
“I could create the enchantment in a night and if I added my own power to it, I guarantee I could create a storm with the power to swallow the whole city. The problem would be finding the materials. I would need affinity stones of the water, fire, and air affinities.”
“Then you can forget it. That leaves…”
“Disease.” Geneva’s grin worries me. Why’d she even mention the storm if she’s so excited for this option? Cheh. Did she want to make sure I didn’t think it was her idea?
“Judging from your expression, I’m guessing you can handle that much easier.”
“Oh, yes. It is one of the finest ways to use the physical affinity. Do you know what causes sickness Lou?”
“Is this the time for a lecture?” I grouse before changing my mind. Learn. Grow. Become so strong no one ever dares to do this again. “Tell me.”
“Creatures, my summoner,” Geneva says with growing excitement. “Tiny creatures so small you can’t see them with even your eyes. Smaller than even a drop of blood. Once they enter a body, they use it to propagate, devouring it to grow and spread.”
“I know of this,” Kierra says, further horrifying me. “There are those in Twilight that dabble in the study of illness. They believe that overcoming strong illnesses is a viable way to power. They are feared fighters, as no death they inflict is gentle.” She eyes Geneva. “I suppose I am not surprised you have knowledge about this.”
“Oh, I only know the basics. My, hm, I suppose the best word is sister, is the true artist.”
“…you have a sister?” I ask, awed.
“As I said, sister is the best word that you can understand. A fellow don of the same…bloodline. When a succubus evolves beyond a virtue, our growth becomes incredibly slow. It’s common for us to focus on improving our skills and each don normally focuses on one affinity. I chose the mental affinity. I can use the others adequately, but none are close to my mastery over the mind. My sister chose the physical affinity, particularly on improving what she calls nature’s greatest killers.” The succubus chuckles. “What I know of them is information I’ve bartered for, but it’s enough to handle the guilds.”
“Am I the only one worried that we’re talking about unleashing a plague?” Alana asks with a scowl. “There’s no point in warning the city if everyone is going to die coughing up blood.”
“It doesn’t have to be deadly,” Geneva coaxes in an unnervingly sweet voice. “A little bug that will weaken them, making it hard to run and harder to cast spells. It’ll spread quickly and pass in days.”
It’s almost too perfect. “Can you guarantee me that it won’t kill anyone and will be contained to the city?”
“My summoner, this is not a ball of fire or wave of water. It is a living thing. I have plenty of data pertaining to its behavior, but life has infinite capacity to surprise. I can guarantee nothing but I’m reasonably sure I can control it. That is the best anyone can hope for.”
Hah. “Better too much than too little. What would you need?”
“Only your permission.”
My head feels heavier than usual as I nod. “Do it.”