Waning of the Sun Gods

Light Bouncing off a Blade: III

I wish for it to be known that under normal circumstances I would not attempt to defeat a dragon armed with only my natural powers and a rain-spirit. Despite what Yendai might think, this is not a sound plan.

I made Yendai spend the night thinking about whether this was something he really wanted to go through with to buy myself some time. The whole night is spent staring up at the ceiling and listening to the distant drip of water as I try to gather my own though.

Here was what I knew: there is no better plan I could think of. Even knowing where it is, soldiers that had gone up that mountain had obviously been overpowered by the beast before, and mortals in general would be more susceptible to the magical fear that rolls off of it. Not to mention the normal terror that I was afflicted with when I encountered it all those years ago with Ruatoy.

Holding the heart-shaped pendant in my hand, I let my power rush through it. A faint glow of rosy light shines in the otherwise dark room, my hands stained by it.

Whether or not the plan could be successful would be entirely dependent on my own power. My own death is unwise to risk – but at the same time, if Bay could somehow influence the awakening of other creatures from the war...

We barely scraped through with my father and sisters alive to help combat the worst of it. With me alone, the least of all of them in combat? It would be a bloodbath.

I grimace, and the pendant drops to the mattress as it turns to lifeless stone again. It seems like there simply are no good options, and I'm left with picking the least harmful.

I have no heir at the moment, but I've made it known that in the event of my passing Rital would be regent until the return of another of my family. My death, while far from ideal, could be manageable in the short term. Bay might not be.

Of course, I could both die and fail to stop Bay.

"I should not be making such important decisions past midnight," I grumble, tossing back onto my back.

There is a personal element as well. The chance to make up for my inaction during my sister's death is tantalizing. It had been so sudden and cruel that I'd never truly made peace with it, but a fire burned within me that desperately wished to see her avenged.

Maybe it was time to give into that feeling.

"Your Majesty, are you sure that this is a good idea?" General Ealshan is saying what part of my own mind was still screaming at me.

"I think it's the best idea that we have," I evade, avoiding looking directly in his eyes. There are so many ways that this could go wrong. But despite the now three hours I'd spent with him going over this plan, we can't think of anything better either.

Without Yoamjol, there is no foreseeable way to easily handle Bay, save maybe a particularly well-executed ambush. But then we would have to needlessly risk lives distracting him first. And if we dragged our feet and waited for her to come back instead of taking care of this now... well, more likely than not we'd just have two problems instead of one.

"And you're sure that you want to take this Yendai with you."

"If the plan he suggests gets me killed, I'm taking him with me," I mutter, quietly enough that the general's ears must strain to hear it. Then, louder: "Yes. I would rather risk a spirit's life than a mortal one – one of them shall return to us in time, while the other shall not. Not only that, but having someone around who isn't affected by the magical fear will be invaluable."

Ealshan still looks nervous, his fingers winding around each other as he worries at the base of his thumb. No one wants to go down as the general who let their empress walk into certain death, after all.