Daughters of Fate Book 2 | An Original Fantasy Adventure

Chapter 15 (2nd of Vashi in the year 6199)

A word from divine lips shall seal the pact and send forth the armies of the Greater Goddess to defeat all evil upon the land.

Seer Dolastati, A Vision in Embers

"Daphney!" The urgent cry stung at her brain as she trudged back into the encampment upon weary legs. Alongside her equally exhausted horse, the cleric tried to focus as a young woman, not any old than she was, ran towards her.

"Sali? What's wrong?"

"It's Rwan." The woman tugged on Daphney's sleeve, begging her to follow as the de facto leader of the rebellion came to realize there was an abnormal amount of activity buzzing about.

Nothing could stop the cleric from finding renewed strength born on necessity as her legs churned under her. The hem of her dress pulled up to keep from tripping, Daphney took off leaving both Trast and Kilan in her wake and to piece together what she already knew was not good news.

"There's nothing you can do," she heard Kilan call after her. "Miss Crenst!"

She didn't care, pushing through the humanity that stood mulling around the ratty tent where she had left Rwan before departing on another mission to win over one more rebel faction. She'd abandoned his side, but only because his fever appeared to have gotten better. He'd been lucid, fully aware, and alert when she left a week ago.

But upon erupting into the tent, Daphney realized that he'd taken a turn for the worse. A man and a woman, both in common clothes, were standing over Rwan's still body. Their heads bowed, both started at the suddenness of her entrance. Neither were a cleric, as Daphney was, nor were they trained medics, but they were the best available option to take care of him while she was away and based on what training Daphney had imparted to them.

"Parker? Dilane?" The cleric could only manage their names as she closed the final distance. With every step, she hoped to see even the shallowest of rise and fall to Rwan's chest, or gather the slightest bit of sensation that there was an ounce of life left within him. But, as each stride led to the next, her hope sank. "When? How?"

Parker recovered his wits first and went to Daphney as she dropped at Rwan's side. "It happened last night. I was with him. He just stopped breathing."

Hands searching for anything other than cold clamminess to Rwan's fingers, Daphney could find no trace that her fears were not truth. Had she thought, even remotely, that this would have resulted from her departure, she would never have left. "The Rebellion is doomed." Sorrow leaked out of Daphney with those words. "Without Rwan, there will not be peace between the factions. All that I say will do no good."

"That's not what I would expect from you." Daphney didn't even turn as Kilan scolded her upon entering the tent, followed by Trast. "Definitely not from the woman who leveled Ubuer Yawin as though he was an oak before the lumberjack's axe. Not from the woman that just negotiated a new treaty with Gwen Havarston and the Estronian Faction either."

"Not now, Kilan."

"Not now?" He scoffed. "Then when? We can't give up. Rwan wanted you to carry on in his place. He had faith in you."

Angry words erupted out of Daphney, directed at her gruff bodyguard. "You want to point to two successes as proof that I am some sort of leader?" She turned and spun to face him, letting venom fly. "I'm not. Why don't we talk about all my failures? Sec Devar still refuses to come to table. As does the White Conclave and the Caucus of Westland. And there are more than a dozen minor cells that want nothing to do with the Rebellion without Rwan at its head."

Kilan breathed in once and let it out. Then in again. "You know, if you spent half of the energy you just did making excuses on actually convincing people that you were worth following, we wouldn't be having this conversation."
"Kilan-" Trast tried to intercede with a bit of calm.