Page 79 of Taloned Heart

And that was... it.

Not an army. Just a band of people who had no idea what they wanted or how they were going to take their kingdom back. Just a handful of nobility and those who thought they might be able to help.

It wasn’t what she’d hoped for, that much she knew. Algor and his people were at least useful. The dwarves could fight well, and the Ashen Deep were powerful allies. She’d seen them fight and had fought beside them. Their grimdags made a significant difference, along with their ability to fight like the best of the elves.

But it still wasn’t enough. It wasn’t nearly enough.

Standing at the table with the few leaders surrounding it, she eyed the four humans, two dwarves, and three elves who stood around it with her.

“I want to fight for this kingdom,” she started, trying very hard to not look behind her at Zephyr and Beauty. “I want to take back what is ours. I know some of you do not trust me or any of us because we are magical creatures. Because we once stood by Margaret, but I need you to understand. This is not how it was supposed to go.”

“How was it supposed to go?” The tall gentleman who stood behind Beauty’s father was a general in his day. The others looked at him with a significant amount of awe, so she knew she had to get his trust first.

“The rebellion was never meant to harm the mortals in exchange for them harming us. We only wanted equality. That was the reason for starting all of it.” She met his gaze and did not flinch at the hatred in his eyes. “What shall I call you?”

“Baron Edgerton,” he replied.

“Baron. I understand you have good reason not to trust me. But we all have good reason to not trust each other here. Do we want to pull out all those bad memories and feelings, or do we set them aside for the good of our kingdom?” She arched her brow. “I, for one, would rather fight and get back all that we have lost, then let it fall between our fingers because we yet again cannot work together.”

She’d put him in his place, certainly. But it hadn’t won her any friendships on the mortals side.

Algor cleared his throat and said, “The dwarves are more than happy to fight. Margaret’s behavior toward us has become disturbing. I fear it is likely that she sees anyone who is not an elf to be lesser, and that is of great concern to my people.”

Lore nodded. “I’m certain that you are right, my friend. The elves have always held themselves in higher regard than the rest of the creatures in Umbra. I fear the same fate as you if we continue along this path.”

And what a dark path that would be. Margaret would ensure that no other magical creatures had as much as the elves. For no matter what they had given the world, the elves were always the same. Prideful, boastful creatures who wanted to control all that they could.

The Matriarch stepped in, her milky eyes seeming to follow the movements of every person in the room. “The Ashen Deep will fight at your side. We have ties to you that we cannot break now. And if the dragon wishes us to fight, then we will do so.”

Ah, of course. Because the Ashen Deep would have done nothing without their ties to Lore’s family. That was not reassuring, and it made her fear that if Abraxas could not bring back the dragons, or if Nyx or Draven had not come with them, that the Ashen Deep would pull away. Such a situation would result in not only the loss of the war, but a significant amount of lives.

Shaking her head, she pressed her fists into the table. “We need the humans to stand at our side on this. If you do not fight with us, then we are fighting for you, yet again.”

“We have given you enough, have we not? Thousands of humans all disappearing,” Beauty’s father snarled.

Lore peered through her hair at Beauty’s father, who glared down the table at her. “Do you think I’m not aware of that? I saved a band myself. Who knows where they ended up? But I gave them a few more days. I am fighting for them. Besides, we know where your humans are kept, or perhaps where they might be kept. But I need your leaders to stand beside me or I am doing all of this for you.”

“Are you not a goddess?” he asked. “Were you not sent here to do just this? Why do you need us to risk our lives when you could snap your fingers and be done with all this?”

Rage moved through her whole body until she couldn’t think or breathe through it. These people. They wanted her to do everything for them, gift them a kingdom on a golden platter and then whisper in their ear what is the right thing to do.

She was not just a goddess, she was a woman who had lived in these streets and who had begged them for any amount of attention or care, and they still were not willing to see that.

Lore kept her head down, speaking to the table as she chose her words carefully.

“If you wish me to win this kingdom back, Lords of Men, I will do so. I will slay all those who stand in opposition to me. I will stack their bodies in a pyre that will burn so brightly everyone in Umbra will see its flames. But if I do this, I will not do it for you. And you will have a woman sitting on that throne who has no weakness. This kingdom will be mine and mine alone. I will do what I wish with it. You will have no say, no power, no ability to change anything for your families. And trust me when I say this, if you think to betray me at any point, I will take over your minds and you will lick my boots clean.”

She looked up at the horrified expressions on their faces. Because they could hear the truth in her voice. That she wasn’t lying. Lore would never lie to them about the darkness that laid within her and the truth that she could destroy whatever she wanted.

“Or,” she lightened her tone, “you could take back your kingdom on your own. Together. With the creatures who do not enjoy what has been done. This is your choice. Whose kingdom is this, Lords of Men? Talented Dwarves. Deadly Elves. You are the people who must choose, right now, whose kingdom this is.”

They all stared back at her, silent with their tongues tied and incapable of understanding what she was suggesting.

Lore prodded them and added, “Because if this kingdom is mine, then I will take it. I will lay waste to everything that stands before me and I will sit on that dark throne. But I cannot promise you that you will like what I do with that power.”

Finally, she heard a scrape of a chair behind her. Zephyr had stood, limping over to her side because he was still too weak to stand on his own. He placed his hand on her shoulder, both for balance and in solidarity as he stood before the Lords of Men who glared at them both.

“I am Prince Zephyr. It is my bloodline that has sat on the throne of this kingdom for hundreds of years. I stand beside Lorelei of Silverfell, of Tenebrous, the Lady of Starlight who gave her life for our kingdom. If she wishes to take this for her own, I will still stand by her. But I believe this kingdom is ours. All of ours. And so I will fight as a mortal beside her. If I am the only one of our kind brave enough to do so, then so be it.”

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