“Of course we know where the items are.”

Everyone gaped at Tayla.

The Water-Weaver shrugged. “Amneris told us where she hid them a few thousand years after the matter.”

She shared a knowing look with Ethan who nodded in agreement, hands resting behind his head.

Leo felt his spirits rise. Finally they were getting somewhere! Tara would have to search for the items while they had people who knew their exact locations. “Well?” Leo exclaimed. “Where are they.”

“We can’t say.”

What?

“What do you mean by that?” Carmin asked, seeming just as frustrated as the others despite her calm nature.

Ethan answered this time. “We made an oath not to say. And what I mean by that is we physically can’t speak.”

The room exchanged confused glances.

Ethan continued. “The items are at–” His voice cut off, making him look like a gasping fish.

Leo noticed Nikki struggling to hold in a laugh despite what the news meant.

The Light-Bender cleared his throat. “We can take you to where they are and help you get them. There was nothing said about that.”

“Thank the Gods for loopholes,” Jay laughed.

“Do the rest of the Old Court know where the items are?” Leo asked.

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A nod.

That was something, at least. He turned to Nikki. “You’re in charge. What do you think?”

“You’re the General,” his friend countered, crossing her arms. “What do you think?”

Leo glance around the room. He knew they’d have to split up in order to get the items before Tara. Since the Old Court knew locations, it would only make sense for them to take the lead on this mission.

He sighed, having decided rather reluctantly what they would have to do. “We play by the rules of the game this time,” he said. “Tayla, Ethan, you guys are the experts. You can decide who goes with who and where.”

Taya spoke first, a small screen having appeared in her hand. “Jay and Kayla should come with us. Hathor and Zoe would be best to go with Ray,” she said as she typed.

“Carmina and Dan should definitely go with Zane,” Ethan added. “Nikki, Lvaane should have one of them hidden somewhere in the Palace but I’m pretty sure he knows where it is.” He leaned back, resting his hands behind his head. “I doubt we can get the others. Tara probably has them by now.”

“Speaking of Tara, we still need to find what she did with Amneris and Colt.”

Everyone turned to Dan.

“We know neither of them are dead,” he said. “We just need to find where they ended up and rescue them.”

“At the same time, we can’t let that distract us from getting the items and defeating Tara.”

Leo growled at Jay.

The Fae male raised his hands before continuing. “I’m not saying we should leave them stranded. I’m saying we should look at the big picture and think about what will happen to the multiverse if we fail. Besides,” he added, “those two are beyond capable of taking care of themselves.”

As much as Leo hated to admit it, Jay was right. They had the entire multiverse to think about, not just their missing Queen and the Terpolite.

“All right,” he eventually muttered. “We split up.”

“Leo will stay here with me,” Nikki said. “If we hear anything, we’ll let you know, and keep you updated on the situation here.” She faced Tayla and Ethan. “I hope you’re right about this. We already lost our most powerful member.”

“We know what we’re doing,” Ethan assured her.

“Agreed,” Tayla said, “and if we hear anything about them in our travels, we’ll let you know.”

Leo nodded. He wanted to find his Queen – his friend – more than anything. But that wasn’t their priority. The only thing he could do was gather information. Assuming there was any information to be gathered.

Nikki kissed his cheek. “It will all be okay in the end. Promise.”

He smiled. “I know.”