novelxo Chapter 0813
Rafe sighs, frustrated and tired of waiting for his father to finish his sentence. "Or," he says, continuing where his dad left off, "Ariel did some serious damage to their forces in that battle before they took her, and Atalaxia is forced to treat with our ambassadors because they're no match for us in war. Or, they're buying time to rally their forces again."
Dominic turns his head to look at his son with pride, pleased that Rafe put that all together.
"Did Ariel really do that?" Mark asks, his eyes going wide.
"Yes," Ella murmurs, a bit of pride in her voice as she continues to pet Mark's hair. "Big Sis destroyed their entire air force and damaged a large portion of their ground troops and supplies."
"It's the reason why the physical battle has come to a grinding halt," Dominic says. "Ariel is...incredibly powerful, especially with Jackson at her side. If they hadn't managed to take her when they did, it's likely that she would have ended the war that night. Which is...insane.'
Mark shakes his head in disbelief even as Rafe nods, assured, guilt rolling through him. Because he should have protected her - both because she's his sister, and the best weapon they have to protect their people.
"So," Mark says, tilting his head back to look up at his father. "The war isn't going forward?"
"Not right now," Dominic says with a shrug. "We're in the rare position of having the tables turned for the moment, where our military has all the power. For now, they won't attack, because they now we'll take them out."
"So, why don't we just...go shoot all of them?" Mark asks, his face twisted with confusion. "Because they have my baby," Ella says, her voice soft. "And if we do, they might hurt her."
"Yeah, it's one hell of a stalemate," Dominic murmurs, running an anxious hand through his dark hair. "It's not a stalemate for long, though." Rafe murmurs, angry. His family turns to him with surprise. Rafe frowns around at all of them, not really understanding why they've let a week pass with Ariel in Atalaxian clutches. "Don't you guys get it? They're not just going to keep Ariel in a cage somewhere - they know what she can do."
"What are you saying, Rafe?" Mark asks.
"I'm saying," Rafe says, his teeth clenched, "that us biding our time like this just gives them more time to figure out how to control Ariel, how to use her as a weapon against us."
"But Ariel would never," Ella whispers, pressing a hand to her chest.
"No, Rafe is right," Dominic murmurs, shaking his head and looking down at his feet. "The Atalaxians have strong magic, just as we do. We have no idea what kinds of things they could turn Ariel towards."
"Or," Rafe snarls, angry. "How long it will take them to do it."
"This way, please," the young Atalaxian man - a boy, really says, bowing deeply to the delegation from
Moon Valley. "It will be great pleasure to show you to your chambers."
Ben starts forward but Haversham, an old and experienced negotiator who is also their lead on this
mission, casts a hand to the side, blocking anyone from Moon Valley from stepping forward.
"I don't think so, young man,"
Haversham says, his voice deep and serious. "We will not be going anywhere without first speaking to someone of authority to begin our negotiation and set a schedule for future conversations."
"Oh, I am so sorry," the boys says, bowing low again, his voice squeaky both with puberty and apology. "But I've only been given clearance to take you to your rooms.
Ben inhales a deep breath through his nose, considering this move on the Atalaxian part. They've been let inside the castle but have been greeted not by force or authority, but instead a single boy?
"Then we will stand here," Haversham says, crossing his arms. "And wait for someone with authority to appear."
The boy raises from his bow, looking
at Haversham with wide eyes. "Then I'm afraid you'll be waiting forever, sir," he says, shaking his head, worried. "This is as the King wills it. If you wish you may stay as long as you like in this chamber, but he will not meet you here."