War on Heiwa Book 2: At the Core of the World

At the Core of the World Chapter 4: Decisions

"Are you serious?" I stood up and slammed my fist on the table. "What the hell do you mean we're not going to search for Hanako?!"

"Well," Eliana took a deep breath, her tone keeping as quiet as possible in hopes of calming me down, which wasn't going to work. "Even with our combined power, we have no hopes standing up to the dragons, and we don't know their motives for sure. Whether it's Izanagi or not like you told us... We just can't jump to any conclusions and charge into the dragon's territory and start a war without knowing their motives. They could be on peaceful terms and only want to negotiate..."

"That's bullshit! Peaceful? They kidnapped the general's daughter! She could be dead or worse!"

"Or worse...?" Eliana mumbled mostly to herself.

"Sit down!" Attakai barked the order at me, and I reluctantly sat down and crossed my arms, clearly unamused by the way this meeting is going. The leader of the elves, fairies, satyrs, encantados, and the lammasus were here. The leaders seem to blindly agree with Eliana. These are our allies? Seriously? So far, I've hated every single one of them.

The room grew uncomfortably silent, and Attakai shifted in his seat. "Listen, we don't know where these dragons reside. Their headquarters has been a mystery ever since we arrived here. You suggest we just blindly wander Heiwa, into enemy territory, and expect to find them? We'd be doing more than starting a war, we'd plunge Heiwa into confused chaos!"

I gripped the edge of my table to distract myself from punching Attakai. "She's your daughter! How can you let this happen to your only daughter?! Do you understand how much she depends on you? You're her only family member, her only parent, and you're doing a shitty job of it! Get your gear together! Your wife wouldn't want a dead daughter because of her husband, would she?!"

"Enough!" Attakai slammed his fists down on the table. "My word is final! Keep your mouth shut, sergeant!" His eyes seemed like they wanted to murder me. I cowered slightly, feeling the cold eyes of the foreign leaders pressing down on my shoulders. I turned my head away from the table.

Their discussion continued with no changed opinions, even though the discussion was mostly between Eliana and Attakai since the other leaders looked like they wanted to leave more than anything else. Why did we want their help, exactly? My God I wish Fukuro was here. Where was he, anyway? He said he had important business and couldn't attend. All the leaders were invited, and where were they? Come to think of it, I'm the only lead that showed up.

"Alright, since we're all in agreement," Attakai shifted his eyes to the silent leaders, possibly annoyed by their silence, "We shall wait for contact  from the dragons. Until then, we are idle."

I stood up so fast I nearly knocked my chair over. "I'm sorry." My voice came out unnaturally raspy, dark, and disgusted like I just took a giant whiff of rotten cheese. "I can't stand to be in this room anymore. You all sicken me." I ran out of the room and slammed the door behind me. I asked soilders that I passed by for Fukuro, and I followed their directions to Fukuro's private room. I was slightly jealous when I knocked and entered Fukuro's room.

The walls were nicely bordered with dark mahogany wood that complimented the dark green wallpaper. There were two matching doors, that I guessed that led into the bathroom and closet. There was a table, two chairs, a mini-kitchen area, and a bed all designed for royalty. Why can't I get a room like that? It was fit for a king, even if it was a little bit small. I couldn't imagine what Attakai's room was like.

"How'd it go?" Fukuro asked as he fixed me a cup of coffee. I took a seat on the leather couch, trying my best to savor the comfort. "I'm sorry that I couldn't be there. I had a personal matter. The meeting ended quite quickly, didn't it? I'm sure it can't be good. You look a little bit pale."