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‘They were a tad unkind about his nose,’ Wren pointed out helpfully.

Thea held out the drawing for Wilder to see and a laugh bubbled from his lips. ‘Only a tad?’

Shaking her head, Thea turned back to Talemir. ‘What does this mean?’

‘Thezmarr’s resources are dead to you,’ he replied. ‘The remaining rulers won’t ally with you. You’re a known heir of a kingdom that fell to darkness. Your word means nothing.’

‘Wonderful,’ Thea muttered.

‘But there are fewer rulers than there were yesterday,’ Talemir continued. ‘King Leiko of Tver has bent the knee to Artos.’

Thea’s gaze shot up. ‘What?’

She wasn’t the only one shocked. Several gasps sounded from around the table.

‘Has Artos declared himself for the reapers, then?’ Wilder asked.

Talemir shook his head. ‘Not yet. The official word is that after the battle of Notos, Tver was weakened, to the point where Artos has been carrying the kingdom with his own resources and rebuilding efforts. Leiko’s statement outlined all this, and how Tver would prosper under Artos’ rule, as Harenth has.’

‘The fool,’ Audra scoffed. ‘Aveum will be next… It’s already teetering on the edge of collapse, with Queen Reyna confined to her rooms, bereft with grief. We must convince her to fight. Artos will be on her doorstep before long.’

‘Can we assassinate Artos?’ Drue asked. ‘Cut off the head of the snake before the war begins?’ She looked around. ‘Have we tried?’

‘Countless times,’ Adrienne replied, cracking her knuckles. ‘He’s guarded too closely. His empath magic seems to sense anyone with ill will towards him. He’s rooted out several of our best spies, and spiked their heads to his gates.’

Thea shuddered. Harenth had seemed so beautiful when she’d visited. It was hard to imagine severed heads adorning its walls.

‘So it will definitely come to open battle,’ Wilder said.

‘Unfortunately,’ Talemir conceded.

‘How firm is Artos’ hold over Thezmarr?’ Audra asked. ‘Will the Guardians rally to defend the midrealms?’

‘It depends who makes the call,’ Kipp said thoughtfully. ‘Thea and Wilder are fugitives. No one will answer to a shadow-touched Warsword.’ He gave Talemir an apologetic glance. ‘Vernich is widely hated across the lands… It would have to be Torj the Golden Bear Slayer, and Esyllt the loyal weapons master, if we can find him. If they can convince the shieldbearers and Guardians of Thezmarr to fight against Artos, we might have a chance.’

A beat of silence followed as the company read between the lines of their strategist’s words. Their chances were slim. They always had been. They needed to unite people from all walks of life, all different backgrounds, with all the prejudices that came with them, in order to defeat their common enemy. An enemy that most of the common folk didn’t even know of yet.

It was Wilder who spoke next. ‘We need to be mindful of where we place Warswords on the chessboard,’ he said slowly, clenching his fists before him. ‘Including Tal and Thea, there are five of us now, and whether we’re declared fallen or not is irrelevant to Artos and the reapers’ plans. In the tower…’

He trailed off for a moment, and quiet settled over the room.

Thea slid her hand beneath the table, resting her palm on his thigh, feeling the muscles tense there. She heard him exhale before he spoke again.

‘In the tower, they had plans to make a monster out of me. Something beyond shadow-touched, something to wield against the world… “A general of darkness in Artos’ growing forces”, the Archmage there said. Though the tower is gone, it won’t have been their only site for such experiments. We need to be prepared that they’ll want to capture some of us alive. That they’ll sacrifice a good many of their own forces to do so.’

‘What are you saying, Hawthorne?’ Dratos demanded.

‘Well, for one, that we need a measure in place so that if we’re taken, we can ensure we’re not taken alive.’ He gave Wren a pointed glance. ‘I’m sure you and Farissa can come up with something for us?’

A bitter taste filled Thea’s mouth as she realised what Wilder was asking of her sister, of all of them.

But Talemir gave a stiff nod. ‘A precaution,’ he added.

‘We need to alert Torj and the Bloodletter,’ Anya cut in. ‘If there’s a hunt for Warswords, they need to be on their guard.’

‘A Warsword is always on their guard,’ Wilder said gruffly.

‘And yet you wound up in chains in that tower all the same,’ Anya replied.