Chapter 147:
“I’ll kill those bastards!” Verona clenched her hand, pulling the blood blade from Anton’s face. “Every last one of them! A bunch of ingrates and degenerates that dared to try and kill…”
Verona’s teeth audibly cracked. “I’ll strangle their stubby little throats, I’ll-”
“Can we please talk about this when you don’t have a blade close to my face?” Anton reached out to Verona. Her legs continued to shake in a mixture of anger and fear.
Verona sighed and closed her eyes. The red light permeating through her body, shining through the red tattoos covering almost half of her body, flashed brighter for an instant as she resharpened the blade in her hand, made from his blood. She sat next to Anton’s side while he lay on the grass, so the spilt blood wouldn’t need to be cleaned, right by his head while holding a thin blood blade in her hand. So far she had removed half of a line of cubes from his face. But there were still many more to go.
“When I saw that…” Verona loudly exhaled, flexing her free hand. “I don’t know what I was thinking. Nothing good, I know that.”
“I thought you might have lost your magic,” Kal spoke softly, fighting back a sniffle. She hadn’t cried but had spent quite some time on the verge. Only when Anton told her to sit by his side, and demonstrated that he could still use his magic, did she begin to calm down.
“Me too. If it was my other hand…”
“I did my best.” Cetina stood to the side, keeping her attention firmly planted on the locked door back into their house, the only place someone could come through. “There were just so many.”
“I’d never blame you for this.” Anton looked to the bloody pile of white cubes. These were cleaner than those removed by Cetina but there was no way to remove them without eliciting some blood.
“I can’t believe this happened in the first place.” Verona began cutting again, constantly glancing to Anton for any sign that she was inflicting too much pain. “Leo, King Leo, whatever he wants to call himself, is a pretty shitty king. If what he’s done so far is anything to go by.”
Anton hadn’t told her about Leo’s inquiries about her. And he probably wouldn’t either.
“So far he’s doing alright.” Anton kept his face from moving much. That alone gave Verona some comfort that she wasn’t hurting him. “I don’t think he’s pressed people into his service or stolen from the people. So far we’ve had a string of victories…Except for this little incident.”
“Little?” Verona and Kal asked simultaneously.
“I’m alive. Aren’t I?”
Verona shook her head and continued her work in silence, muttering silent words under her breath.
Anton couldn’t have this surgery performed in Qaiviel; King Leo’s army continued to march hard on Clausonne, not only to deal with Harold and The Church of The Holy Father before they could create and unleash more creatures like Caiden, but Anton felt that it had more to do with her sister. Lila, Queen Lila, apparently had made confidence in taking Clausonne, a city that even Leo, with vastly higher numbers of soldiers and Knights, and with Anton’s assistance, had to create extensive plans while taking subterfuge actions to weaken their defences. Perhaps it was a bluff of some sort, but Anton doubted she would just wait until Leo took the city first. She wanted her half of the Kingdom for herself. And it sounded like she had the forces and will to do it. Anton didn’t like the chances of a second civil war not erupting the moment Harold was defeated.
“So…” Kal coughed, her exposed Beast-kin hands gripping tight on top of her legs. “Are they all dead?”
“More or less.” Anton received a concerned look from Verona. “Some cooks managed to escape, but they were just goons. More or less. I doubted they were told anything more than to make a lot of noise when they were given the signal.”
Kal held Anton’s hand tight. Though the inside of her hands were rough pads he could feel her warmth leaking through. “How…How much did it hurt?”
“I’m fine, Kal.” Anton returned the light squeeze. Thankfully it was his original hand, otherwise he would have undoubtedly pulled a strange face as the sensation of his new bones, cubes grinding against one another, wasn’t pleasant. “I’ll admit it hurt a lot. But I was only hit with a single crossbow bolt. When I lost my hand I didn’t feel a thing-”
Verona stopped cutting and gently held his mouth. “Please stop moving if you have to talk. I’m worried about cutting too deep.”
“None are on my throat. Besides, it was you that cut my beard before.” Anton rubbed the long hairs covering his face. “Probably need another one.”
“Whatever did this it also cut through those.” Verona sighed. “Damage that Tethra and even Ferula can’t fix…It’ll be a great weapon. If you can master it and not hit yourself.”
“Or us,” Cetina added quietly.
“Yeah…” Verona leant close, inspecting Anton’s scar. “But I’ve got to say, that this is kind of handsome. Makes you look tough, like you’ve been…Well, you have been in a battle.”
“Not just me though.” Anton smiled at Cetina. “Someone took a lot of bolts intended for me.”
Cetina was about to mumble something, probably that she wasn’t a meat shield, but she held her tongue and smiled.
“Thank you.” Kal bowed her head. “Thank you for keeping Anton alive.”
“I’m just sorry that I couldn’t save all of him.”
“Bah.” Anton waved down Cetina’s concerns, not that she looked overly. “I’m still alive. We’re still alive. And that’s what matters most.”
The room fell silent as Verona continued her bloody work. Anton lay perfectly still as cube after cube came free while Verona watched him for signs of pain and discomfort. It was painful, extremely so, but Anton had never had a problem with pain. When he told Cetina that the intent of the pain was important that was only partially true. Being stabbed or shot didn’t bother him, it hurt but he didn’t ever feel the need to scream and roll about.
Why is that? Did…Did I cry when I lost my finger to that dog?
A wave of static laced memories tried to consume his thoughts. Verona immediately stopped, noticing his increased heart rate. Anton smiled and motioned for her to continue.
That’s ‘sealed’ away too? What isn’t? Is my name actually Anton? I don’t even remember the year that I was born…No. Stop thinking about this for now.
Anton spared a glance to Verona, every ounce of attention focused on the knife cutting through his flesh.
Especially when I’m being cut apart.
After what felt like an age Verona finally removed the blood blade and nodded to Kal. A quick chant later and Verona patted his chest. Anton brought his right hand, the hand that didn’t feel like it was somehow made from tiny cubes, and ran them along the new scars running lines across half of his face. While he didn’t have a mirror he wondered if it actually looked like he’d been in a fight; perhaps a fight with a wild animal that took a swipe at his face and lived to tell the tale. Perhaps that would change the impression he gave others, not that he thought his current face was that bad.
“What do we do-”
“I can’t believe this even happened.” Verona cut Anton’s question short. “I mean, why didn’t King Leo give you like...A hundred guards?”
Verona sighed, directing most of the controlled blood away, removing most of the blood from his face, and relinquished her control. “I know that we’re still posing as mercenaries but, since we’re so important to his reconquest…If it weren’t for us he probably would have lost nearly everything against Caiden. Did he even thank you for that after I left?”
“We got a suit of armour for Cetina.” Anton pointed to the shield and sword resting against the door. “But that was from-”
“Not him?” Kal raised a brow, her ears drooping down.
“Sort of. But I’m sure that we’ll get something good from it.” Anton pulled himself upright. “Beyond the money we’re receiving as mercenaries. Besides, to him at least, we’re only doing our job.”
Verona scoffed. “And a damn good job of it too, if you don’t mind me saying. And I will anyway.”
Verona stood up, brushing away the loose pieces of grass. “Save his entire army and not even a decent thank you. No point in regretting about what happened. Right?”
“That’s one way to look at it.” Anton forced a smile. “But I don’t want this to happen again.”
Anton readied to stand up but Kal stopped him, resting a hand on her shoulder and pulling a worried face.
"You still have blood on your face." Kal's voice was almost a whisper. "A lot of blood."
Anton had, half-jokingly, told Cetina that Kal would descend into panic and worry. He didn't mind being fawned over but not when they were so clearly distressed, in their own way.
Then again, if I saw either of them like me I'd be in a panic too...Probably quite angry. Too angry, just like before.
Anton glanced to Cetina as Kal began to dab away the stray flecks and dried lumps of blood. Cetina didn't understand and simply gripped her sword tighter. Her original sword, gifted by her father and containing a Ghlyirl key, was still with King Leo's army.
"Your wedding ring is gone?" Kal asked, gently holding her own as she continued to clean. Anton saw Verona do the same.
"I'm afraid so. That's why Cetina had to contact you. Since it wasn't a part of me, and I have no idea which of the cubes belong to it, I can't bring it back."
Kal stopped trying to clean away the blood and rotated the ring on her finger. Slowly a smile crept up the corners of her mouth. "It's just a piece of metal. What matters are the feelings behind it."
Verona folded her arms, closed her eyes and nodded seriously.
"Speaking of cubes." Verona lightly kicked the bloody bundle at her feet. "Do we really want to keep these?"
"Where are the others?" Kal turned to Cetina. "The ones you removed earlier?"
"Still with the army." Cetina appeared unnaturally stiff. "Wrapped in cloth and stashed at the bottom of a small barrel. I-I didn't know what else to do with it."
Kal nodded once before turning her attention back to Anton. Cetina visibly relaxed, a reaction Anton felt was a little unnecessary.
"Do they burn?" Verona asked. "The other ones just blew away in the wind, into a billion little pieces and disappeared. But not these."
"I'll give it a go. If not we'll just have to stick it into that barrel and hide that somewhere in Atros."
Anton pulled himself to his feet, staggering to one side. Immediately six hands rushed to his side, all belonging to extremely worried faces.
"I'm fine." Anton smiled. "I think my foot fell asleep."
"Has any of that changed?" Verona looked down to his legs. "Those scales had travelled quite far..."
"I've checked and everything is the same as it was before, after I touched that stone. You've still got that hidden?"
Cetina nodded, taking a step back. "It's still inside that box...In my room."
Anton gently pushed the girls back and created a small fireball. The flames consumed the small pile of cubes but they resisted his magic for some time. Slowly, very slowly, the white cubes began to blacken and char, cracking and fragmenting before finally shattering. Along the fissures the tiny black fragments were caught in the updraft and carried away in the wind. Nearly three minutes later and the entire pile was gone, only an oily charred puddle remained as evidence of their passing.
“No wonder it took so long for Caiden to die,” Verona mumbled.
Kal nodded. “I…I’m almost a little glad I didn’t see that. Just a little. I don’t think I would have been much use.”
“Me neither,” Cetina mumbled. “If Knights couldn’t do anything against it what could I do?”
Kal smiled. “Cetina?”
“Yes?”
Kal lunged at Cetina, grabbing and holding the Bebbezzarian in a tight embrace. Cetina twitched still as she quickly realised why Kal was holding her so tight.
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“Thank you.” Kal gave Cetina a final squeeze. “Thank you for keeping him alive.”
Kal wiped away a solitary tear. “I don’t know what I’d do if he hadn’t…”
Cetina bowed her head, not wanting to ruin the moment. Verona stepped forward and hugged Cetina as well, without the intensity and surprise. Verona tapped on her arm and brought Cetina’s head down, whispering something into her ear. Cetina nodded earnestly but refused to share. Verona smiled as she parted and returned to Anton’s side. It didn’t feel like her usual interference but she still seemed very happy with herself.
“Now that you’re…Mostly healed.” Cetina scratched her armoured elbow, moving the inner cloth to rub against her skin. “What’s the plan now? Do we return to the army? I’m sure the Dwarves would like to return home…I mean, to Atros.”
“I’m sure they’re being solicited for their smithing skills.” Anton mused. “But they’re definitely riding in the carts, they don’t seem like they walk, let alone run, fast enough to keep up with a human.”
“So…”
“We need to stop this.” Verona held Anton’s scarred wrist. “From happening again. We need people that can actually come with us…Rasha’s going to be basically impossible to get through, not that you aren’t tough, Cetina.”
“With you two, as well as Cetina, of course, I’m not that worried about more of those assailants. Not that I don’t think that extra help wouldn’t be amiss.” Anton held his chin. “Our…”
“What?” Verona tilted her head.
“Our involvement is going to be widely recognised.” Anton smiled. “It’s going to be hard to hide our presence; wearing our different clothes, close proximity to King Leo and our magic. Someone’s going to talk. And if it’s just us four then they’re not going to be able to figure out anything. We're just a bunch of vagabonds. But if they see a bunch of Dark Elves or Dwarves with us…”
“They could ask questions.” Kal held her chin and gently nodded, slowly her brows began to furrow. “But is that really going to be a problem? The Dark Elves are extremely…isolationist? And the Dwarves don’t really leave their Isles. So then they'll ask more difficult questions.”
"Like why Dragon Guard Dwarves are fighting in Qaiviel." Verona murmured.
Anton nodded. “I don’t want them to, firstly, get killed in battle for humans. I promised them safety and a place to live beyond the reach of their fellows, and that doesn’t mean throwing them into battle in a war that still might not actually make it to Atros. In the battle for Clausonne I don’t think they’re going to be much use to us other than a meat shield. And that’s not what I want either. I don’t want to have to explain how I managed to lose a hundred Dark Elves or Dwarves after bringing them so far. Besides, us four is going to be more than enough. If our magic can’t deal with the walls then a few dozen archers or lightly armoured Dwarven soldiers isn’t going to help. And…We have the Qaiviel soldiers to act as our shield, distasteful as it sounds.”
“Well.” Verona shrugged. “It is their war. But I do think that we should still make a little effort to strengthen your guard.”
“Can’t take a few hundred Dark Elves through Graterious or Bebbezzar.” Kal murmured. “Though we wouldn’t be attacked by bandits we’d attract other problems.”
“Indeed.” Verona smiled devilishly. “It is a bit of an issue. Thankfully, I have a good idea who can join your bodyguard, people that we might be able to trust, or perhaps earn, and can actually come with us on adventures in human lands. And not start a riot.”
“Calo and Sheso?”
“Oh…” Verona’s shoulders drooped slightly. “You’ve already asked them?”
Anton smiled. “Not yet. But Cetina had a similar thought before we were attacked.”
Verona pretended to pout, throwing her head back as Kal suppressed a laugh. “Well then, if it’s such a good idea then you can ask them. I’m sure those cute little twins will agree if you ask them nicely enough. More than happy enough to chat and flutter their eyelashes at you.”
“So long as they’re strong enough.” Cetina tapped her sword. “The assailants weren’t weak. Physically weak. And, last time I saw them, they were thin, young women that have been starving in their fortress for over a season. Would they be up to the tasks? Everything a bodyguard would need to do for you?”
Verona laughed. “That’s…I’m not even going to finish my thought.”
---[]---
“You want us to come with you?” Calo asked, glancing at her sister.
“Both of us.” Sheso scratched her long brown ear, jutting out from underneath her wavy jet black hair, a true rarity amongst the Dark Elves. “Into the lands of humans?”
“Absolutely.” Anton ran a hand over the fresh scars covering half of his face. “Dark Elves shouldn’t have a problem…although, because of the Green Moon Clan’s activities-”
“That wasn’t us!” Calo slammed her foot down hard, startling everyone present, mostly herself. “We’ve never attacked a ship or raided a fishing village before. Not that-”
“I understand.” Anton smiled. “I know that, and I’m sure that beyond the coast’s that might have been raided most people would only regard you with curiosity.”
Anton turned to Kal, standing to his side. “Rather than outright hostility.”
Rasha had not joined them; she was busy helping some construction work, she was the strongest person in Atros, and they wouldn’t be staying for long regardless of the outcome.
“Apart from your longer ears, you could pass as humans. Not that…” Anton coughed. “I was wondering if you two wanted to come with me, with us, as bodyguards.” Anton pointed to their waists. “I can see that you’ve each got two very impressive swords. And we watched you both, while you were training by yourselves, you have some impressive moves.”
Cetina nodded, she would know best. Calo and Sheso grew a little flustered, the tips of their brown ears took up a shade of red before both shared a quick glance and quickly calmed down.
“Are we really the best?” Calo asked, nervously scratching the back of her head. “I’m sure there are better, more experienced, warriors in our clan.”
“Or the humans.”
“Or the Beast…Oh. Right.” Calo winced slightly at Kal.
Kal blinked but her face remained unchanged.
“But us?” Sheso tilted her head. “Our clan are pirates, even if we’ve promised to change. They aren’t the most reliable...people.”
“Perhaps.” Anton shrugged. “But I need people by my side that I can trust.”
“Us?”
“Yes.”
I suppose I could use Tethra’s abilities to force it out, but then they probably wouldn’t trust me. I know my trust would be diminished. Perhaps a way for bad thoughts to enter my mind, corrupt my thoughts.
“Anton?”
Anton didn’t know which twin asked him, their voices were essentially identical.
“Sorry.” Anton rubbed his scars. “After getting this I’ve been a bit distracted. Having a near-death experience will do that to you.”
“Well,” Calo shrugged at her sister. “I’m sure that Leran and Cagec would agree. They want us to see more of the world. And this will be a great way to do that.”
“Especially since we won’t be a burden.” Sheso laughed. “We know how to handle ourselves in a fight.”
Haven’t actually seen you fight seriously. Getting surprised by that Goblin really doesn’t count now, does it?
“If I may.” Cetina stepped forward. “As the captain of your bodyguard, I hope I’m not overstepping my authority by saying this…”
Verona and Kal shook their heads.
“But, though you may be skilled with twin blades, I don’t know how strong you are.”
Calo frowned. “We’re strong. Strong enough to wield two swords at once.”
“But against another warrior, a soldier wanting to kill you?” Cetina pointed to their arms. “You don’t have the strength of a man…”
“Are you saying that we aren’t strong enough?” Sheso frowned alongside her sister. “Once we’ve been trained with the bow-”
“You still can’t?” Verona raised a brow.
“No…” Embarrassment drenched both of the twin’s faces.
“Perhaps we should-”
“Let us prove it.” Calo pumped her fist into the air. “We don’t have magic but I know that we’re strong enough. We’ve practised and trained for many winters. We’re more than ready.”
Some of that you spent starving, which would have set you back tremendously in the raw strength department.
The twins drew their short swords, twirling and spinning the shining blades effortlessly around their fingers. Verona looked rather impressed, Kal less so while Cetina kept her face flat.
Cetina moved close to Anton. “Their swings look very impressive but I don’t think they’ll do well in actual combat. If they fought any of those assailants, like that and with what I think their strength is, their weapons would be thrown out of their hands and killed. Their fingers are very slim.”
“We can hear you.” Sheso frowned angrily. “Our ears are very sensitive.”
“Leran says they’re almost as good as Beast-kin ears.”
“My…” Cetina coughed to hide her embarrassment. “My point remains. You might have the skill, but I still don’t think you have the strength. I struggled against some of the assailants...If it weren’t for my trance…”
“I’m sure we do.” Calo sheathed her blades. “I’m certain. Our instructor says we’re doing very well.”
Being Leran and Cagec’s children probably skews their impression. If they say you’re terrible they’ll get on their bad side…
“Well, we can’t stay much longer. Perhaps a quick demonstration would be best.”
The twins were quite happy with the idea, Cetina slightly less so. She had just survived a life or death battle just a few hours ago.
“Let’s get a few practice swords and see how they do.” Cetina tapped the pommel of her sword. “I don’t really want to draw this again so soon after that.”
---[]---
Anton partially expected the outcome. Cetina stood victorious, a wooden practice sword resting on her shoulder while Calo and Sheso lay sprawled on the ground, thoroughly beaten. He felt a pang of sympathy for the two; he too had been beaten multiple times by Cetina, though he managed to land a single hit only after multiple rounds. The twins had managed a few but Cetina’s concerns rang true.
They simply weren’t physically strong enough.
Though they had worked together, attacking Cetina from either side to divide her attention and avoid her single sword, Cetina could simply grab their weapons and rip them free. Anton had never seen such a face of stupefaction before.
“I…” Calo lay sprawled on the ground, wiping away the fresh sweat from her face. “How are you so strong?”
“Felt like I was hitting a stone wall.” Sheso pulled herself upright. “How are you so strong?”
Cetina shrugged, though she smiled at their perseverance. She stepped forward and took their hands, pulling them to their feet. The twins staggered up to their feet. Though thoroughly beaten they retained their dignity in the face of overwhelming defeat.
“I thought we might actually have a chance.” Calo’s ears dropped. “But I guess we’re just too young.”
“And weak.” Sheso looked to Cetina. “Dark Elves are normally quite thin and lithe, especially compared to humans-”
“And some Beast-kin,” Verona added very softly.
“-So I don’t think we’re going to be of much use as a potential bodyguard. At least for now.”
“Cagec wouldn’t let us go either.” Calo sighed, turning to the small crowd of Dark Elves that had gathered to watch their brief battle. “Especially after he hears about this.”
“Perhaps not.” Anton began. “But the Dark Elves have always fought lacking the raw strength that other races have. Even women, who are naturally more slender than men. Most of the time. I’m pretty sure lacking testosterone makes it harder to put on muscle.”
Everyone returned blank looks to Anton. The idea of hormones would be a truly alien notion.
“Anyway, your attacks are skilled enough, they just lack the strength to do real damage in a life and death fight. They’d probably just bounce off armour…But I have a solution to that.”
“You do?” Kal asked incredulously.
“I do. Lots of sleep and food, alongside vigorous training and rest.”
“Th-That’s it?!” Calo’s eye twitched. “That’s a way to get as strong as Cetina?”
Cetina raised a brow at Anton. “I didn’t eat that well during my travels, Anton. You saw how much I ate.”
“Yeah…Not much.” Anton held his chin, slowly nodding. “But my words still stand true. You can’t become strong unless you eat and rest enough. Your body simply can’t repair and improve if you don’t.”
Calo and Sheso shared a glance.
“We…Actually, we are eating a lot better now.” Calo began. “I can’t believe you have so much meat…Do you have a Razor Pig ranch in Atros? I haven’t seen one.”
“Just a pen of Chiroks.” Sheso snidely added. “And they eat a lot of meat too.”
“We hunt,” Anton said. “But I told Bertram to start something like that. Regardless, we can now buy food straight from Graterious and Seocuria. Not so much from the second.”
Kal glumly nodded.
“I suppose then we’ll keep training.” Calo shrugged, rotating her shoulder, eliciting a significant wince. “But maybe not against Cetina.”
“Or the Minotaur.” Sheso sniggered.
Anton approached the twins, resting his hands on their shoulders. Both looked confused as Anton chanted the healing prayer. They smiled, realising their aches and pains had vanished. Anton was glad to know his new hand didn’t impede his magic, as did that neither of the twins noticed anything different with his hands.
“Thanks!”
“Not a problem.” Anton ruffled their hair, much to their feigned annoyance. “But tell any Dark Elf that’s injured to see one of us. No point in waiting the long way to get better, especially when we have magic to spare.”
“Ask me too.” Kal raised her hand. “I need practice…And I’ve done a lot of work healing the Dark Elves in The Shadow Isles; many will live and recover back to normal, even those that had lost limbs. I have a good understanding of Tethra’s healing magic. At least…I think I do.”
Anton kissed Kal’s forehead, much to her tails’ enjoyment. “Of course you do. I’m just a novice compared to you.”
“You’re just saying that.” Kal’s tail swirled. “After being away for so long, just to try and swoon me at every opportunity…”
Anton kissed her again. Kal playfully pushed him away but he knew she wanted to continue, however, there were far too many people present.
“It’s probably time to head back.” Anton flexed his restored hand, drawing a curious eye from the twins. “The battle for Clausonne won’t be far away now.”
Verona nodded, folding her arms. “And after The Shadow Isles are safe finally safe there’ll be some time to relax. But knowing Anton that’s probably not going to be the case.”
Anton smiled. “Probably not. But, if you’re up to it during the winter, would you two be willing to come with us? We’ll be travelling far beyond the continent, though we should always have the opportunity to return to Atros every night.”
“Sounds like a great idea.” Sheso slapped her forearm. “We’ll get stronger by then, maybe even know how to use a bow.”
“Perhaps you should try one blade at a time.” Cetina offered. “That way you’ll have more strength, and probably enough to hold it properly. If you two worked as a team with just a single blade…”
The twins shared a nod.
“We’ll ask Leran if we can have more training,” Calo said. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to learn that we’re…”
“That you’re what?” Anton asked, Verona took a step forward.
“That we’re doing something other than just waiting in our camp!” Sheso forced out. “That’s why Leran and Cagec wanted us to go with you, to see those Chiroks, right? See more of our new home. And that we wouldn’t dwell on what happened our fortress, with the Goblins. Right?”
“Right…”
The two smiled but even Anton knew there was a certain level of panic in their eyes.
I wonder if their grandfather is wanting something from them and me? Who am I kidding? It’s pretty obvious what direction the conversation was heading before the Goblins started attacking in force.
“By the way.” Anton raised his hand. “Didn’t your grandfather mention that you knew how to-”
“Manage a home?” Sheso smiled. “Of course. Well, we know how to cook and clean, keep things in order. Things like that. We…”
Sheso was about to say something else but shut her mouth tight. Calo gave no indication she knew what she was about to say.
“I’d like to have someone to maintain our house.” Anton sighed. “There’s not much there but I don’t like seeing it covered in dust every time we come back. Kind of a letdown, after travelling the countryside and seeing it in such a state.”
“That won’t be a problem.” Calo smiled. “We know what to do, can’t be that hard, right? We might need a few things but I’m sure that won’t be a problem. You can buy things from Qaiviel and Graterious, right?”
“Ah.” Verona sniggered. “I like it. I’m imagining them wearing those maid outfits from Graterious. Yes, very nice. A very nice look.”
The twins smiled but knew something was amiss. It was Verona, after all. An image flashed through Anton’s head; it was rather nice.
Anton clapped his hands before any more of Verona’s thoughts could corrupt his.
“Just one more battle, then we can focus on The Shadow Isles…” Anton frowned. “Still, I don’t like the presence of those humans in the midst of the Goblins.”
“You’re worried about some crazies after what you two just fought?” Verona asked.
Kal shook her head. “At least the presence of that Caiden creature makes some sense. Only some sense. I don’t understand those humans. What do they want? Beyond that liquid silver stuff. And what could they possibly want with that?”
“One thing at a time.” Anton smiled. He rotated his hand, feeling the bones grind against one another. “We’ve already seen what happens when we divide our forces too much.”