The Great War: Chapter 22
A tangled web of promises and history
“Well, then,” Devin sighs, folding his arms. He and Ezra stare at the closed door before them, where the king and his son talk in private. Or, at least, they think they’ll be conversing in private. He turns to the Creationist beside him and cracks a slight grin. “Want to listen in?”
Ezra turns his head towards him, his eyes wide. “W-What?”
“You heard me. Do you want to listen to the conversation?”
Surprise, shock, curiosity, and fear race across Ezra’s face, and his mouth drops open ever so slightly.
“I-Is that-”
“Well, of course we’re not supposed to, but I do it all the time. It’s my job to be in the know. Do you want to or not?”
Ezra stands there wordlessly for a spell longer. Then, slowly, a smile spreads across his face, and he nods. “Sure.”
Devin places his hand on Ezra’s shoulder, his mind then turning to where he wants to go. Teleporting is shockingly easy, simply going to places he’s previously walked that he can visualize. And then with the slightest nudge of his will, pop, they’re there. In a tight, dark corridor, hidden in between the castle’s ancient stones. As it expanded over the centuries and generations, more and more hallways were cut off, leaving these small spaces behind as echos of what once was. Some are higher than others, and very few times they ever line up with the modern rooms. This is one such example, where Devin and Ezra are standing slightly above the room below them, that of which they can see and hear through a small hole that’s crumbled open over time.
There must be a catch to his teleportation. He just hasn’t found it yet.
“Whoa…” Ezra breathes aloud, the amazed word barely an audible whisper.
“…like the terms,” Samuel speaks from below, his voice stern with a slight edge of panic.
“I don’t like them, either,” Cero sighs in agreement.
“Can they be negotiated?”
“I would have to go meet them to find out.”
“Why not just write-”
“These are the Guardians, son,” Cero interrupts sharply. “Simply writing letters back and forth hold no weight.”
“But going to Etrerr…” There’s a pause, and Samuel lets out a soft huff. “I just don’t like it.”
“It is the duty of the king to go and face the enemy,” Cero reminds him.
“So you accept their terms?” Samuel accuses.
“I am willing to try and negotiate them,” Cero replies just as harshly.
“There’s no negotiating…” Ezra mumbles next to Devin.
He can’t help but scowl and whisper back, “Why?”
The light that illuminates Ezra’s face reveals his troubled frown. “The Guardians have done this a lot in the past. They offer a peace treaty to the ruling class to get them alone so they can be killed. It’s a large part of how they won the Battle of the South Sea, for example.”
“So it’s a trap, then,” Devin hisses aloud, astounded. In all of his time learning battle tactics, never has such a concept crossed his mind. It’s underhanded to the highest order.
“More than likely,” Ezra replies, “if they continue to uphold their pattern.”
Fort Etrerr. That’s probably where Samuel was talking about. It’s one of the few islands that is shared by the Guardians and wizards for times such as this, for negotiations. Many important trade treaties were signed at Fort Etrerr.
This is bad.
“I know this is upsetting, Samuel,” Cero speaks again, calmer this time. “And with what you were told by the Spirit, it might feel like you weren’t given time. But you weren’t the one that started this war, son, and I will try and keep this family together, if not for my sake then for yours.”
Samuel is quiet.
“I’ve asked Killian to charter a ship,” Cero continues after a moment. “If you would like to join this voyage then I won’t try and deter you.”
“I’ll think on it,” Samuel finally speaks, his tone dark.
“We should return to the hall,” Devin tells Ezra, who still peers down at the hole with a troubled gaze. He only nods, and Devin places his hand on the Creationist once again, bringing the two of them back to the castle’s main halls. Not a moment after they appear, the door to the room opens, and Samuel emerges with an expression of hopelessness. His eyes meet Devin’s.
“We have to talk,” Devin tells the prince.
”A trap?” Samuel breathes.
Ezra nods back. “It’s one of their more popular tactics, though not necessarily their favorite, I guess. With the Battle of the South Sea, they lured the different tribe leaders to a ‘neutral’ island to discuss a peace treaty, but the moment they arrived on the island they and their entourage were slaughtered, leaving the tribes leaderless while believing their leaders were still alive. Then they used the leader’s ships to storm many of the islands.”
“I knew about the storming, but…” the prince trails off, baffled.
Ezra can only nod once again. The popular narrative describes similar events, although the offer of a peace treaty was never mentioned. Simply that the Guardians, somehow, took over the tribe flagships and used them to approach many of the islands in the South Sea and take them over.
“They try their best to keep such a tactic a secret,” he says. “Though, of course, the books that do outline this specific tactic the Guardians have been trying to ban and burn for centuries.”
“Do you think he knows about this?” Devin asks Samuel.
Samuel shakes his head. “No, I don’t believe so.”
“We should warn him, then.”
“I… don’t think that will change his mind.”
“Why not?”
Samuel folds his arms and shifts his weight from one foot to the other. “Fort Etrerr. It’s small and fairly easy to spring sudden attacks. The fact that it’s supposed to be a negotiation point doesn’t negate the fact that it’s still dangerous. No doubt he already expects some sort of foul play to erupt from the Guardians.”
“Will you go with him?” Devin asks next.
“Hm,” the prince hums thoughtfully, his eyes closing for a moment for him to think. “Possibly, but not without a condition.”
“Being?”
“I would like to bring Ezra along, of course.”
Ezra’s heart leaps in his chest. “Me?”
“Why not?” Samuel replies. “I think you’d make for a good scout while we’re out there.”
“U-Uh… thanks?” Ezra stammers back.
“Besides, we’ve hardly had time to get to know each other. I’d like to have that time before… well, anything else happens.” Samuel cracks a soft grin. Ezra can’t help but mirror it. He’s not really had many friends himself, either, mostly due to all the turmoil when he was still on Mirage.
“If I may comment,” Devin speaks, his expression stony, “I don’t expect this to go well.”
The grin on Samuel’s face fades in an instant as he lets out a heavy sigh. “No doubt. I don’t think Korodon would have said what He did if the war was going to end here.”
“That prophecy, right?” Ezra asks, vaguely recalling the lines the royal spoke his first night at the castle.
“Exactly,” Samuel nods.
The prince of lightning, the guard of death, a creationist’s library… That’s the three of them. The next line is the pirate who left. Assuming that the lines are going in order of whoever they should be looking for - historically, that’s how prophecy’s have played out - then the next being they should find will be out on the ocean with the Guardians.
His mind begins to turn faster and faster. Death and Storm are the royals, he’s the Creationist. Demons are often associated with Fire, and obviously Life will be a healer. That means that the last two wizards are Illusion and Ice…
“Anya…” Her name slips from his lips. Instantly, the royals look at him with confused frowns.
“Anya?” Devin inquires.
“Yes,” Ezra nods, coming to a realization. “I want to bring Anya with us as well.”