Chapter 491: Fighting Chance
After careful consideration and forcing Gandr to get adequate rest, the Emperor decided to allow the halfling to exit the city walls to carry out his plan. Not that Devrim really could have stopped him if Gandr wanted to ignore orders. But it was good to all be on the same page.
The grey-eyed man looked solemnly toward his magical friend with a tense expression.
"If these creatures can mortally wound a Fate, they can hurt you. Don't forget that. If things go wrong, send us a signal and we will come to your aid." The Emperor placed his hand on his chest to seal his promise.
"I do not want you to risk all that just for me," Gandr started, but he could see the plea would fall on deaf ears.
"We will risk what we have to." Devrim nodded decisively. "If you think your plan won't work, you can always come back and we will think of something else."
The Emperor knew his words would also fall on an unwilling recipient. In his years of serving Valiant, Gandr had never once turned down a mission he was given even though he could have.
But this was a mission which the halfling had taken upon himself. So he had no one to blame if things went wrong.
"Don't worry about me. I will see you on the other side," Gandr promised, his fist beating against his heart mimicking the Emperor's action. He paused, his face contorting in confusion.
Noticing his change in demeanor, Devrim furrowed his brow. "What is it?"
"I am not sure...h—have you heard from the Empress since I left?" Gandr's question immediately put the grey-eyed man on high alert.
"It is strange you should ask. A message ball limped its way into Oblivion day before yesterday. By the looks of it, it got caught by the storm, maybe even struck by lightning. It was a determined little thing with only a nub for a wing on one side. The message was garbled, but it did try to give us Mairwen's location before the lizards attack as well as let me know that Aurora thought she had found a clue..." The Emperor paused.
The message had brought him great comfort to see that his wife was alive and healed, but also great worry because the clue she had mentioned was not described. Since the message was meant for Junayd, and there was no guarantee that it wouldn't be overheard, Aurora had been intentionally vague.
It left the grey-eyed man with more questions than answers. Which only made him more anxious when Gandr asked about her out of nowhere.
"Why did you want to know?" Devrim held his breath.
"I suddenly felt happy in spite of the tension. No, happy isn't the right word. I felt hope. Of course the feeling wasn't mine, and I doubt it was yours or Nurlan's, so that really only leaves one option." Gandr smiled as he watched the man's face change.
"Are—are you sure?" Devrim choked back tears. While the message ball had been from days before—maybe longer—this was happening in real time.
"I'm sure. Our connection comes and goes, but right now it is very strong...which probably means..." The halfling trailed off. His face became tense.
"What does it mean? Tell me!" It took everything in Devrim not to reach forward and grab the shoulders of his friend to shake out the meaning.
"I think Her Majesty has crossed the ice barrier and is back in the land of the humans." Gandr was reluctant to say for sure, but the feeling of her proximity had changed in a meaningful way. He wasn't sure exactly how to explain it. Sometimes he could just sense things through their connection.
"Aurora must be chasing down that clue she mentioned. Crazy woman! I love her for it, but she was supposed to stay where she was." Despite the reprimand, there was an affection in the man's voice. "I do hope she at least had the sense to leave Nanny and Colvyr with the elves."
"The Empress may risk her own life for the sake of others, but she would never risk the prince's life. I am sure he is safely tucked away." Gandr did not have to guess about this. He was entirely sure that the baby would be as far from trouble as possible.
"Unlike us, who are right in the middle of the action." Devrim shook his head. "Are you still sure you want to go?"
"I'm sure." Gandr's skin, which he had left golden in order to gain back his magic as quickly as possible, began to turn onyx black and grow thick, luscious fur. The halfling seemed to grow taller as well, though only marginally. He was still not as tall as most of the abominations, but he was close.
Devrim unconsciously took a step back and moved his hand to his weapon. Even though he knew the monster before him was a fake, it did not stop his instincts from wanting to react.
"I must look like the real thing for you to have the urge to fight me." Gandr grinned fiercely, his sharp canines shining.
"I must admit you look good enough to skewer right here and now. I only hope you can fool them also. Good luck." Devrim shook the Halfling's mighty forearm. The fur felt strange, as did the claws pressing on his sleeve, reminding the Emperor that the further that Gandr pulled himself from his natural state, the more obvious the deception became. All magic had a limit.
"I shall be back." Gandr saluted.
The soil beneath the onyx wolf began to shift to make way for its guest. The halfling slipped into the ground with barely a whisper to speak of his passing. When he was gone, the earth returned like it had never parted at all.
Devrim chewed his lip, trying to decide if he should watch from the battlement or try to stay out of sight. He didn't want to tip Livie off that something might be occurring, but as he was often on the wall, his absence might also be seen as strange.
While he was still musing, a snow white wolf came barreling toward him, nearly knocking him to the ground as the advisor came skidding to a stop.
"Has Gandr left?!" Junayd searched for the halfling, but was disappointed.
"You just missed him. Is everything alright? Where's Eliana?" Devrim looked back down the lane. A long way off a young woman with curly blonde hair was running toward them. "Did she find something?"
"It works! What she tried brought back the soldiers from their madness when they went feral. We would have come sooner, but I didn't feel right about triggering someone on purpose. So we had to wait for a moment to naturally arise." Junayd was panting, but it seemed to be more from excitement than exhaustion.
Devrim couldn't blame the advisor for taking that route. As he was one of the abominations himself, Junayd knew just how volatile the fire in his belly was. If he wasn't going to willingly give into the madness himself, the former general could not in good conscience push any of the soldiers with them into a feral state.
But now three incidents had arisen and been put down by Eliana's method, which was enough for Junayd to believe that it could be trusted. He had left Eliana behind, hoping to catch Gandr before he left in order to give him the news.
Unfortunately, Junayd had been too late. "I should chase after Gandr and let him know!"
Devrim placed his hand against the furry man's chest as he began to move toward the broken gate. "You go and you will blow away the element of surprise. I highly doubt the enemy would forget you after you single-handedly took down their war-machine."
Junayd paused mid-stride. Deep down, he knew the Emperor was right. Seeing that he was convinced not to act, Devrim relaxed slightly.
"Now, please tell me. What is the miracle that can keep the wildness at bay?"
"Cold." Eliana came up behind them and answered before the advisor could. "Cold water or ice. It shocks the system enough for the person to regain control. Dania tempered the solution with so much heat that it gave me the idea that cold could counter it. I am glad I was right."
Devrim thought quickly. If the creatures inside the wall could fight without going wild, then they could actually battle against Livie's troops on equal footing. Or better than equal because they would have their wits about them.
"I need to see this for myself." The Emperor called for his horse.
"But Sire, what about Gandr?" Junayd looked southward as if he could see through the wall to where the wicked noblewoman was.
"Gandr's plan will take time to put into action, but you are right. We need to hurry." Devrim looked seriously at his advisor. "Prepare the troops. All of them. If what Eliana has discovered works how I am envisioning, then we may at last have a chance."
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