Phelan walked quietly out into the anemic light of dawn, out into the silence broken only by the sound of the wind whispering through the trees and the sound of his boots on the snow.\u00a0 Marin and Thom waited for him back at the edge of camp, bundled against the chill of the wind and the snowflakes that drifted down from the ash-gray clouds above.<\/p>\n
The vote had been a near thing, but they were taking Cariocecus\u2019s offer of peace, though Phelan half wondered if the godling would balk at the terms set by his friends.<\/p>\n
We\u2019ll just have to see.<\/i><\/p>\n
He leaned against his staff as he stopped in the place where Cariocecus had met him the day before and waited, staring at the trees, letting the snowflakes catch on his eyelashes and in his hair.\u00a0 Cold or no, there was something revitalizing about the snow coming down on a winter morning\u2014to him, at least.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m almost surprised you came,\u201d Cariocecus said a few moments later as he emerged from the trees ahead of Phelan, moving stiffly and wrapped in a dark cloak, the hood pushed back.\u00a0 \u201cI didn\u2019t expect it to actually happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m a man of my word,\u201d Phelan said evenly, looking the other man up and down.\u00a0 \u201cWhat would you have done if I hadn\u2019t shown up?\u00a0 Stormed the walls like some kind of marauding thug?\u201d<\/p>\n
Cariocecus shrugged slightly.\u00a0 \u201cI hadn\u2019t decided.\u00a0 I\u2019m still slightly addled from blood loss and the shock of betrayal.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan didn\u2019t miss the bare traces of sarcasm in his voice.\u00a0 He just shook his head slightly.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019ll accept your offer of peace so long as you agree to their terms,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cName them.\u201d\u00a0 Cariocecus crossed his arms, meeting Phelan\u2019s hard gaze head-on.\u00a0 There was no guile in his gaze, his jaw set firm and his body rigid\u2014nerves rather than a man tensing to strike.<\/p>\n
By all that\u2019s sacred, he\u2019s nervous.<\/i>\u00a0 Phelan brushed the thought aside and stood a little straighter.\u00a0 \u201cYou guard the ways in and out of the area,\u201d Phelan began.\u00a0 \u201cFailure to warn of something coming that you should have seen is grounds for a termination of the agreement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cariocecus frowned briefly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd how is \u2018something I should have seen\u2019 defined?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you see something, you tell us,\u201d Phelan said flatly.\u00a0 \u201cAnd woe be to you if we discover that you\u2019ve lied about something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI assume that none of this is truly negotiable?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNot if you want peace with us\u2014or our leave to stick around.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cariocecus sighed and nodded.\u00a0 \u201cAll right.\u00a0 Go on.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSecond, you\u2019ll swear not to harm any of them for any reason.\u00a0 If you do, your life<\/i> is forfeit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAre they going to forgive my past sins in exchange for that?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
Phelan\u2019s lips quirked into something close to a smile.\u00a0 \u201cMostly.\u00a0 After you and I are done here, the Seers want to talk to you.\u00a0 You\u2019re going to tell them everything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cEverything,\u201d Cariocecus echoed.\u00a0 \u201cJust like I\u2019m going to tell you<\/i> everything?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s the idea.\u201d<\/p>\n
His lips thinned and he looked away.\u00a0 \u201cWanderer\u2026there are some truths that should only be for your ears.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan\u2019s brows went up even as he blurted, \u201cI have no secrets from them.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was a lie, of course, but Cariocecus didn\u2019t know that.<\/p>\n
Or did he?<\/p>\n
He smothered a frown as Cariocecus gave him a long, hard look.<\/p>\n
\u201cVery well.\u00a0 If you want them to know everything\u2026\u201d\u00a0 he paused, then frowned.\u00a0 \u201cYour original negotiations indicated that you wanted to hear what I had to say alone, though.\u201d<\/p>\n
They did.<\/i>\u00a0 Phelan frowned slightly.\u00a0 \u201cWhat would you possibly tell me that I might not want them to hear?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cPerhaps why I spared your life on the battlefield.\u00a0 What your sister could bargain for your life.\u201d<\/p>\n
A shiver shot down Phelan\u2019s spine.\u00a0 \u201cWhat did she bargain?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cInformation,\u201d Cariocecus said simply.\u00a0 He fell silent for a moment, then looked Phelan in the eye.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeamus the Black is alive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan decked him.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Phelan walked quietly out into the anemic light of dawn, out into the silence broken only by the sound of the wind whispering through the trees and the sound of his boots on the snow.\u00a0 Marin and Thom waited for … Continue reading