“We have a place to start, at least.” I stood to leave the room. “Sir Henry kept a diary, and there are hundreds of books in his library. Surely one of them will teach us about Endrean magic.”
At first, I thought I would be going to the library alone, but seconds later, Gabe caught up with me. Then Trina leaned out the door and said, “Basil is tired and needs to return to his room. I’ll stay there to watch over him. But he asks if the two of you will bring a stack of books for us to go through as well. If a solution lies in this home, we will find it.”
A solution to Kestra’s corrupted magic was not in this home. That had been confirmed at least seventy books, three burned-out clearstones, and two full days ago. And yet I continued to scour page after page, hoping a solution would somehow appear amidst useless descriptions of philosophy, languages of foreign nations, and theories of leadership.
Obviously, the answer wasn’t here, but still I held out hope that it would magically appear.
Magic. The irony lingered in my mind.
Around me, Gabe, Trina, and Basil were equally frustrated. Nothing we had read offered the slightest hope for a solution. Not only did the books and diaries fail to mention corrupted magic, they failed in any mention of Endrean magic whatsoever. Either no one truly understood it, or more likely, no one dared to write about it. Not with Lord Endrick watching.
Basil was on his feet by now and watched every day for any sign of his Reddengrad armies to appear on the horizon. Gabe and Trina did the same for any sign of the Coracks, or the Brill. I watched too, wondering if Harlyn would have any success in bringing the Halderians. I had my doubts. Only five days ago, Commander Reese and other leaders within my cavalry had been part of a plot to expel me from the kingdom, by force or by my death. Why would they fight for me now?
Harlyn. They would at least fight for Harlyn. And so I continued to watch.
At the end of two days, Tenger must have completed his negotiations with the Brill, for their leaders entered Woodcourt’s gates, though they came with narrowed eyes and upturned noses. At their head were Captain Tenger and a woman who had to be one of the Brill. Brillians were known to be highly intelligent, with superior eyesight and hearing capabilities, and I was sure this woman was no exception. While her hair normally would have been nearly translucent, it had recently been shaved, as were the heads of all her army. Still, she remained as beautiful as all Brill were, and whether this woman was my age or three times it, I couldn’t tell for sure.
Basil and I met her and Tenger in Woodcourt’s gardens. Undoubtedly, Gabe and Trina were nearby to watch and listen.
I offered a hand to the woman, but she only stared at it as if it were filthy. And judging by the stern expression on her face, that was her kindest opinion of me.
Tenger greeted us more warmly, then stepped aside to gesture at her. “Simon, Basil … this is Imri Stout, acting head of the Brillian army, and of its government.”
“I lead only until other arrangements can be made,” Imri said. “After everything is settled here in Antora.”
I bristled at her implication that the affairs of Antora required the Brill to be involved, but I remained silent. The truth was that we needed help fro
m as many people as possible.
“Imri is the one who trained Kestra to use her magic,” Tenger said. “She knows what Kestra is capable of, and where her limits are.”
“The student betrayed her teachers.” Imri ran a hand over her bare scalp. “This is our sign of mourning for all those we lost on the day Kestra left Brill. But we are dedicated to putting an end to your Lord of the Dominion, despite our recent troubles.”
Recent troubles was a polite description. Something had happened in Brill between Endrick and Kestra, resulting in the explosion of their royal palace and everyone inside. It was amazing that any army was here right now; whether they would be a valuable asset was still in question. They clearly believed Kestra deserved at least partial blame for what had happened there.
Imri finally stretched out a hand to Basil, who apparently was considered less filthy. “I know your father, and he is a good king. You will be an equally valuable partner to Brill, I hope.”
“Reddengrad always proves its loyalty to its friends,” Basil said, clapping a hand on my shoulder.
Imri’s attention shifted to me. “I understand you are the new king of the Halderian clan. Brill keeps watch on all rulers in this region. How is it we did not know about you?”
I smiled. “Perhaps in the same way I did not know about you … er …”
“I require no titles. You may call me Imri Stout. I have also been told that there is some connection between you and Kestra Dallisor.”
I kept my expression even, or tried to. “There is, though I have no way of describing it.”
She arched her neck. “It is not necessary to describe it. All I need to know is if you are on her side or ours.”
“I hope that her side is our side,” I replied. “Are we not all here to bring an end to the reign of Lord Endrick?”
Imri’s piercing blue eyes narrowed. “Are we, Simon?”
Tenger cleared his throat. “Perhaps we should settle these matters in a more private place. Hugh will help the Brill set up a more permanent camp outside Woodcourt’s walls.” He gestured to Basil. “You should join us.”
I grunted my approval and led our group into Sir Henry’s library, as good a place as any for the conversation we needed to have. We set four chairs around his former desk. Tenger was to my right and Basil to my left with Imri Stout directly across from me.
She began. “Captain Tenger has insisted that Kestra Dallisor was not responsible for the destruction of the palace in Brill. However, that does not mean she is no threat to us. I’ve seen what she can do, but I also know what she cannot do. The Brill are uniquely qualified to stop her, and the boy.”