Discordant Note: Crescendo | TBATE

Chapter 278: Revelations

Thank you to my beta reader and editor, GlassThreads!

Arthur Leywin

I winced with every laborious step. My body—still aching over half a day since my battle with the Wraiths—protested every shift.

But my mind was clear. Terribly, horribly clear.

"Reports say that Burim has been struck by a lavatide," Alanis Emeria said, her blue eyes, rimmed by a ring of pink, flashing. She mechanically shifted through half a dozen communication scrolls in her hands as she followed after me. "The true extent of the aftermath is inconclusive, however."

The elf—who had devised my training regimen and had a stickling ability to organize things—continued to robotically list off what was known about the Rogue Hero's attack on Burim. She had been an invaluable asset in restructuring my information divisions. With her objective and orderly mind, I'd been able to truly take control of every speck of knowledge flowing throughout Sapin and Elenoir.

I suppose I have that phoenix's name now, I thought darkly. Chul Asclepius. Not the Rogue Hero.

"What word do we have on the surviving figures of the Alacryans?" Sylvie demanded, marching in furious lockstep with me.

"It is likely that the Scythe, Seris Vritra, yet lives," Alanis replied simply. "Multiple sources claim she was seen in the aftermath of the clash between the Rogue Hero and Spellsong. Whether the Hero or Spellsong survived their battle, however, is another matter. In the same vein, the former Lance Balrog may also have perished."

Alanis shifted her blonde hair slightly. "Keep in mind that our reports are rudimentary. Many are contradictory or confused as well. This is all speculation on my part based on the available pieces."

"Thank you, Alanis," I said sharply. "You are dismissed."

The elf bowed, her hair drooping over her face. "Of course, King Leywin."

She walked away without the barest change in her steps. I'd learned long ago that I needed to be explicit in my commands and orders with the woman. She did not comprehend implicit social cues.

"This is bad," Sylvie said, fidgeting with a lock of her wheat blonde hair as we continued to walk toward our destination. "You were so close to working something out. For Virion to be healed, before that brute charged in and ruined everything."

I kept my eyes forward, receiving nods of respect, reverence, and awe from the servants and guards we passed. The whispers of "King Godspell" and "Commander from Epheotus" rang through my ears, but I filtered them away.

Sylvie's anger was palpable as her aura radiated from her, dark wisps of energy sparking and popping with the force of a nascent asura. Her fists were clenched tightly at her sides as she trailed me. She tried to restrain her emotions over our bond, but it was impossible.

"Nobody could have predicted this," I assured my bond, sensing her quiet guilt. "The phoenix intentionally laid those trails for you to follow. And none of us could have guessed his intentions with the information we had."

Hell, we didn't even know the 'Rogue Hero' was a phoenix until I'd sensed his flexing of power. The mage had some sort of artifact that made his asuran signature hard to detect, but my manasight had pierced it once he'd revealed more of his power.

"But our only chance to see Virion healed is gone," Sylv snapped. "All because I couldn't track down this... this foolish child!"

My thoughts were immediately drawn to Cylrit, barely healed by Sylv's arrival. He was currently locked in the deepest of our dungeons, far from conscious and shackled to a bed. I would have wished for better accommodations, but the only place in the castle that could hold the Retainer was the deepest levels.