Madren smiled and let out a short sigh. “I do at times, Neph. Besides, you aren’t the only one that knows how important this city is. Goswin and Delvay have been allies for a very long while if you remember correctly and it’s not just your Grandmother that cast the spell to contain the Veyetta, if you recall. My Grandfather helped with that as well and I know what must be protected.”
Neph stared at him gape-jawed and tried to pull his thoughts back into order. Just when he had been mastering his own confusion, Madren had sucker punched him with another wave of shock. “I thought only Delvay knew about that,” he admitted quietly.
“And I never thought I would have to admit to knowing,” Madren replied with a shrug. “But here we are, and from the looks of things we have a lot to do. I have to admit I expected you to have your people released by now.”
“I couldn’t face them yet, and I really didn’t see the point in forcing them to die beside me when Rivasa showed up,” Neph said quietly. His own gaze moved slowly around the room and then back to Madren. Slowly he shook his head and smiled faintly. “I can’t believe how much I have underestimated you.”
“Probably not nearly as much as I have underestimated myself in the past. Thanks to Anthe, I think I finally have it all together.” Madren glanced over his shoulder and then back to Neph. “I’ve brought five thousand with me, but most of them are guarding the border. Anthe is in charge there and she has promised that the Rivasans won’t pass without paying dearly for it. That should buy us time to get the city repaired and get your own people situated.”
“Thank you, Madren,” Neph said quietly. After the way he had treated Madren in the time he had known him, he couldn’t believe that he had moved to help at all. Had he been in Madren’s place, he doubted he would have.
“We are allies, Neph,” Madren replied with a smile. “And if we work quickly enough we might manage to get this done before your sister arrives,” he added quietly with dark eyes locked on Neph’s.
“What?” Neph stammered once more. Madren had certainly grown adept at keeping people off balance in the short time he had been in Goswin.
“In Anthe’s visions, Zyi returned to Delvay and woke the heroes. Anthe is very rarely wrong, and even though I am confused as to how your dead sister will arrive I can see there is a chance of it by the expression on your face,” Madren explained.
Memories surfaced in Neph’s mind of his last days with Zyi and her tear filled words the night she left home. Maybe one day you will lead here, and I can come home again. The words had seemed unbelievable at the time, but now they echoed clearly with truth. He was the High Lord of Delvay now and Zyi was finally coming home. His throat tightened at the thought. “I don’t even care if she can awaken the heroes. It’s enough to have her home finally.” Neph spoke softly and wiped his face before the first of the tears could form. Looking up, he smiled at Madren and bowed his head. “Thank you, Madren. I was on the brink and if not for you I don’t think I could have pulled back.”
Madren nodded once and gazed around the room. “That’s what friends are for, Neph. I know you have never considered me a friend, but I hope that changes in the future. I have enough enemies in life and there are too many people that simply don’t care. What I need is a true ally and Delvay has always been just that.”
“And always will be,” Neph promised quietly. He looked slowly around the room once more and calculated everything that needed to be repaired. There was so much, but with Madren’s help he could probably have it done within a week. Nodding once, he summoned his traveling bag and dumped it on the floor in front of him. The storage gems clattered noisily to the cobbles and Neph stooped to pick one up. He paused before opening it and grinned at Madren. “I have to warn you. They still don’t think much of me as a leader and they most likely won’t be in a very good mood.”
“I’ve dealt with you when you were pissed, Neph. I doubt there is anything they can say or do that will shock me,” Madren replied with a smirk.
“Well here we go, then,” Neph murmured as he cracked the first gem.
“All hail High Lord Nephondelvayon,” Madren said softly and bowed in Neph’s direction.
“Words I never thought I would hear,” Neph muttered quietly as he cracked gem after gem. For the first time since Jala left, he felt a glimmer of hope building in his chest. The first step was securing Delvay. He wasn’t sure what would come after that, but perhaps Zoelyn would offer suggestions. She had always been wiser than he. He had just never truly listened to her before. It wasn’t until after she was gone that everything she had said made sense, and now he finally had a chance to prove that he understood her. The Delvay he rebuilt would be a place just like she had dreamed of, where you could speak the truth without fear and no one was forced into a life he didn’t believe in.