Dusk of the Realm

37

Vice watched with wide eyes as the general extended his arm toward Ambrose. She felt her heart beat once. Twice. Twenty times. Ambrose did not move, did not dare to breathe.

The general opened his hand, a clear offer, even if it was impossible to understand.

Ambrose raised what was left of his arm in supplication to his leader. General Wulf did not hesitate in wrapping his fingers around it and pulling Ambrose to his feet. Even when the man stumbled, General Wulf caught him and supported him to prevent him crashing to the ground.

Vice heard Birches and Dallin arrive just behind her and Vex, but she did not - could not - turn around. She was hypnotized by the scene in front of her, if only because she had no idea what had spurred it on. Ambrose was clearly more shocked than any of them as he stared at the general with eyes as wide as discs. He seemed to be waiting for something to happen. Maybe he thought the general was going to attack him.

Surely, he did not expect him to say what he said next:

"I know you didn't do any of it, Ambrose."

Even a human could have heard a pin drop. All of the Fae were holding their breath, but naturally, Ambrose did not respond. He did not have a tongue, first of all, which presented enough of a problem in itself. Vice also suspected that he just did not know what to say. General Wulf sounded morose, so it did not seem to be any sort of trick. But without any explanation, it was hard not to be nervous, even for Vice - and she had not been on the general's bad side to begin with.

The general aided Ambrose in exiting the cell then, and Vice could sense the exact moment when the Wolf's magic returned to him. Ambrose closed his eyes and inhaled through his nose, and she saw the tear that left the corner of his eye, though she was not sure if anybody else did. The general certainly did not give them much time to catch up to his pace.

"I have to be somewhere," General Wulf stated, turning towards his Wolves after passing the support of Ambrose on to Dallin. "But please listen to me carefully. There may be no night more vital than this one.

"Nobody can know just yet that I released Ambrose. Nobody can know that I have in any way changed my opinion of him yet. I'm in the middle of playing a very dangerous game, and any little thing that comes to light could tip the scales out of my favor. You all must understand that this is a game I cannot lose, for all of our sakes."

He paused, and Vice glanced at Vex. Her twin was smiling, and Vice guessed that it was only because they had been proven right: Ambrose had been innocent after all. While Vex could evidently focus on that piece of news and be gladdened by it, Vice was more distracted by the unanswered questions: for instance, if Ambrose was innocent, it meant that the princess had lied. Vice was very curious to know what could have made the princess come up with such an intricate lie, and what could have made her refuse General Wulf, her protector, of all people, the truth. However, she knew that now was not the time. She should just be content knowing that Ambrose would in fact not be executed, and hope that answers would come as soon as these more important matters the general was discussing were settled.

"What do you need us to do, Sir?" Birches asked, stepping forward to stand at Vice's side. "You know that we trust you, and will obey your orders without argument."

Vice noticed Vex nod curtly beside her, and so imitated the motion. She was sure Dallin did the same. They had all discussed their commitment to General Wulf with each other; it was a fairly common topic of conversation throughout all the time they spent together. They knew that while everyone was flawed, the general typically had amazing judgment and foolproof methods of achieving his goals. He had the ability to see all sides of a situation and twist them to his advantage, but could also end quarrels with a single-minded ferocity that allowed for no empathy at all. All the Realm knew that he was the most impressive warrior it had ever seen; and in a world of magic, that was really saying something. To serve under him was an honor they would all appreciate until they died - and if that happened sooner than later, at least they would go down fighting with the best.