“Tevonale,” Jala answered simply.
“The cursed isles? While I agree that is a fitting place for Blights, I doubt you are going to convince them to stay there,” Havoc observed dryly.
“I raised Tevonale. The territory is no longer cursed,” Jala informed them quietly and the room fell silent.
Neph shook his head slowly and rubbed his face. “When?” he asked a bit sharper than he intended. So much was going on that he had absolutely no idea about that his frustration was hard to contain. The Jala he knew before never kept so many secrets from him, and yet here he was finding out everything at the last moment.
“After the council meeting last night,” Jala answered gently.
Jala watched him for a long moment and Neph could see the pleading in her eyes. She needed him to support her, but she was making it damned difficult for him. Neph nodded silently and motioned with his hand for her to continue. He couldn’t summon appropriate words at the moment. In all honesty, he wanted to shake her until her teeth rattled for all of the vague and cryptic behavior she had shown him recently.
“I understand the harsh feelings the other High Lords have and I, too, felt the same way about the Blights at one time. I was wrong and so are they. I knew the moment I left that council that the Blights must have a land without borders to another country. Tevonale is just that. They will be isolated until they find acceptance.” Jala’s voice rose with her conviction and she let out a long sigh. “We have to have peace and we need the Blights as allies for the exact reason that Arjuna argued we should kill them. They are strong and their numbers will grow swiftly and by all of the Divine we need them. We are so weak right now that another push from our enemies and we will be gone.”
“And if the Blights grow too powerful and turn on us?” Neph asked. He couldn’t understand Jala’s complete reversal on the creatures. She had explained about the Barrier threads, but that didn’t change the basic nature of the creatures. They might be innocent in the same way an animal was, but that didn’t make them good allies.
“I have already proven I know how to bypass their natural immunity to magic. If they do turn on us. I will eliminate them all,” Jala said firmly.
“It required you to destroy your own body to achieve that ability,” Neph snapped.
Jala nodded slowly and met his eyes with a look of pure resolve. “Hemlock visited me four days after I returned from the Barrier. I was ready to kill him on sight. You know how much I hate him, Neph. The first words out of his mouth gave me pause, though. He sm iled at me and motioned toward the sky and said. You saw it didn’t you. The reason you have suffered so much. I didn’t have to ask him what he was talking about. I knew. He said that everything I have been through has been nothing more than honing the blade. He said that the trials that are coming will make this war seem like sitting down to tea. He said Myth is going to win unless I act.” Jala paused and tapped the table before her. “I’m acting and Myth isn’t going to win. The Barrier isn’t coming down and Sanctuary will not fall. I am honed and I am ready, and if you aren’t willing to help me save this wretched world, then bugger off.”
“And saving the Blights will save the world?” Zach asked quietly, his expression thoughtful.
“It’s a common tactic to turn your enemies’ strength against them. If you are fighting a dragon, you use its size against it. The Blights are one of Myth’s strengths,” War said with a smirk as he finally joined them at the table. “I would guess that you are asking yourselves why Jala believes anything that Hemlock would say. The answer is simple. She believes him because I agree. Sanctuary has many secrets. There is more locked away in this prison than any of you know. The Guardians built this world to lock away all that would destroy the worlds beyond and not all of it is awake. History tends to repeat itself, gentlemen. We have fought these evils before. The difference was, we weren’t locked down when we faced them. We could retreat and we could hide. On Sanctuary, neither is an option. When we fight here it is to the death. You might make peace with your current enemies, but you won’t find peace with what Myth awakens.”
“What exactly is coming?” Havoc asked softly, his gaze moving from Jala to War. There seemed to be a bit of concern in his expression, though the Firym were typically fearless.
“I wish I had a single answer for that,” War said wistfully and smiled at them all. “Until Myth is stopped, the question isn’t what is coming, it’s what is coming first. As I said, there are many secrets on Sanctuary and not even I can say what we will face first. All I can say for fact is Myth wants you all dead and Kali has failed with her creations. Myth’s next step will be a more drastic one. Myth is arrogant enough to believe she will survive the ancients if she wakes them. I’m not.”
“The only option we have is to pool our strength. My army proves that we can work together if we try. Now all I have to do is get everyone to put their differences aside before it’s too late. I am preparing, gentlemen, and I have no idea how much time I have. So, to put it bluntly, my boot will be up your asses until I have you exactly where I think you need to be.” Jala smiled at War as she settled back into her chair. “I’m so glad you chose to join us at the table, Grandpa,” she added with a wink.
“So, tell me where Delvay needs to be. I’ve seen how pointy your boots are,” Neph said with a sigh as he settled more comfortably into his chair. From what he had heard so far, it was going to be a long night. “I don’t understand half of what you are saying, Jala, but, as always, I’ve got your back.”
Chapter 6
Merro