Chapter 5
He sighed. "Breakfast?"
He wasn't sure who, but he got whapped in the back of the head.
"Okay, so how did they get in here, past the wards? I'm going to take a guess and say one of those two was a silence talent, which is why we didn't hear anything until he died. But who was the other? Is there a magic sucking talent?"
Sally said thoughtfully, "No. Perhaps a mage could have done it, and left once they got them in here. What I am wondering is who Trina is."
He shrugged, "Does it matter? We probably could have taken them anyway, but she did just save our lives, at least in intent. We'll have to be more careful though, not to accept people at face value."
Nora growled, "It is odd though, it doesn't make any sense."
He nodded, "Let's talk over that breakfast I mentioned..." He was really hungry, especially after that nice morning wakeup.
Nicole snorted. "Feed the man, I hear they get grumpy when their hungry."
Sally and Katrina snickered.
Nora sighed and said, "Fine, I'll take care of the cleanup."
Nicole said, "Wait, let me try something."
He watched in surprise as a ball of flame appeared, then it went corpse to corpse, incinerating the flesh in seconds. The part that freaked him out was Nicole was in the kitchen while most of that happened.
He sniffed. "We probably should have taken the bodies out first, let's get the doors and windows open and air this out."
Nora helped with wind, and the faint smell of burning flesh was cleared quickly. They all ate in the kitchen, deciding what they needed to do next. There were three options as far as they could determine. Stay here and hope they give up, go to the palace where it should be safe, or go after the ones behind it.
The last one they considered if they should ask the king to help with troops, or just go it alone again. He was pretty sure the king would say no, although Egeria was currently in turmoil, they had lots of troops. If someone got a firm grasp on the kingdom while they were playing in Uleni, Abelaweth would be wide open to invasion.
They also had no solid idea what to do when they got there. Just assassinate a king and say he started it? Would his replacement be any better? Hiding seemed like a bad idea too, he would have to live in the palace his whole life to avoid them. That wouldn't be a life at all, merely survival. So really, it was either stay here, or come up with a reasonable plan and go.
He was also thinking about Trina. Who had she been? Was she another assassin? If so, why did she end up saving them? It just didn't make sense. Sara could pick up lies a mile away, and he thought she would be willing to question the next person that came to make sure he or she was who they said they were. He knew he was a little too trusting, so he would have to get used to asking for Sara's opinion.
Sally said, "It would be a lot harder to infiltrate on our own in Uleni, they have more mages than the handful we faced in Egeria. I'd have a lot of trouble blocking a storm and lightning from four or five attacking at once from outside your range Justin."
He frowned. "I won't run for protection, I refuse to live that way. If we can't attack that leaves staying here. Which... isn't good. Eventually we will be caught off guard, they will succeed, at killing me or one of you. So what does that leave us?"
He heard steps outside the kitchen and turned. Sara shuffled in looking like she just woke up. She had a confused look on her face.
She asked through a yawn, "What happened?"
Her eyes widened as Nicole caught her up, he was still trying to think of another alternative when Sara interrupted.
"She's back, Trina I mean, coming through the front door."
They all felt tense as the woman dressed in black simply came in the kitchen and served herself a bowl, then joined them at the table. Nora looked ready for a fight, so did Katrina. The others simply looked wary.
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Trina considered she might have gone over the deep end. That morning she had been fighting with herself. Deciding which way to jump so to speak, kill a man who didn't deserve it, or risk her life. She had thought she had plenty of time as she sat in the common room, deciding if she wanted to kill him in his sleep, or turn the other way, and go out the door.
The assassin team had come in, hours earlier than expected. She considered running, or simply telling them she was about to take care of it. She hadn't thought at all about what she actually did, she attacked them. In hindsight, she realized that she couldn't kill the Flame of Cytherea, and if she was on the run for not doing so, she wasn't going to let them do it either.
Otherwise, what was the point? She knew her reasoning was a little crazy, but then so was she.
She almost started laughing at the looks on their faces as she sat down. Granted, she thought she was a little crazy herself, but it was still funny.
"Got a plan yet?" she asked innocently.
Nora growled, "What do you want, and who are you?"
"Who am I? I am Trina, ex assassin and on the run from my government," she glared at Justin, "Why couldn't you have just been an asshole, it would have made my life easier you know."
Justin choked on his drink and asked, "Why did you help us? Why are you here?"
She said sharply, "My reasons are my own for the first, as for the second, I'm not sure. Uleni will be after both of us now, we stand a better chance working together. Besides, you need me."
Nicole asked with derision, "Why would we need an assassin? How could we trust you?"
Justin just said, "Sara," with a questioning tone in his voice.
She looked at the young woman who said, "She is being truthful, and she really believes we need her and she needs us. As to if that will change in the future? I can't say for sure."
She said with a devilish look on her face and merriment in her eyes, "The answer is obvious, we give them exactly what they want..."
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Justin was extremely uncomfortable and tried to lie still. He was in the back of a cart, laid out in his nicest clothes. He thought the plan was crazy, but Trina had convinced them to try. The worst part was he basically helpless right now.
Trina had told them her plan.
"It's easy really, the best way to get the assassins to stop, is to be dead. So we fake it, put him in the back of the cart, and take him to the temple for internment."
Nora said caustically, "They won't believe it with you traveling with us, and his magical aura is ridiculously bright, any mage would know at once it was a trick."
Trina just smiled and said, "But I won't be travelling with you, not exactly, I'll be the evil bitch assassin that killed your love, tied up and helpless in the back of the wagon. When the spies see that, they'll race back to pass the word, afraid I will give up information to you about the coming invasion. Their haste will be their downfall.
"As for his magic... he would have to exhaust it enough that your witch can mask it. Once the invasion starts and the armies are committed he can come out of hiding from the temple and kick their ass."
Nicole objected, "You are saying the best way to avoid assassination attempts is to help start the war? He might be safe but so many others would die."
He hadn't liked the sound of that either, hiding behind dead soldiers, he wouldn't be able to do that, but he hadn't found a counter to Trina's return argument.
Trina shook her head, "No, we would be saving soldiers. You see, the war is inevitable, king Talmon wants your kingdom, and his advisor, mage Riese, is even more bloodthirsty and power hungry. If you try and hide here, Justin will die eventually, then your kingdom will be conquered and all your soldiers put to the sword or magic.
"By fooling them into starting it, by playing dead, you will all be there to help counter the attacking army. It is not at the cost of soldier's lives though it may feel that way, you would be actually securing the lives of those soldiers that survive the inevitable war, not to mention the kingdom and people."
So there he was, power exhausted, lying in the back of a cart, playing dead next to a crazy tied up assassin who for some reason of her own was helping them.
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Sara was using her ability almost constantly as they made their way to the city. It was a two hour trip at the pace they were going, and she had sensed a couple of people in range so far. All she got from them were surprise before they faded away.
