Page 54

"Lily," I rasp, my eyelids fluttering open. She's hovering over me, her lovely face drawn with exhaustion and worry.

"Shh, don't try to talk," she soothes, her fingers combing through my hair. "You need to rest, love. Let the healing do its work."

I shake my head stubbornly, ignoring the answering throb in my temples. "Can't," I grit out. "Need...need to tell you..."

"Tell me what?" She leans closer, her eyes searching mine.

I swallow hard, the words like shards of glass in my parched throat. "Saw it," I whisper. "When I was...drifting. A future for us, Lily. A way...to bring our peoples together. To end...all this bloodshed."

Her breath catches, her fingers stilling against my scalp. "What do you mean, Grok? What did you see?"

Haltingly, feverishly, I tell her of the visions that sustained me through the worst of the pain—fragmented glimpses of ogre and human standing together, bound by ties stronger than hatred or history. Of ruling with wisdom and compassion, building bridges instead of barriers.

"It won't be easy," I rasp when I've finished, searching her face for a reaction. "We'll face opposition from all sides. But Lily...I believe this is our chance. Our one shot to break the cycle."

For a long, agonizing moment, she's silent, her gaze distant and thoughtful. Then, slowly, she nods, a smile breaking across her face like a sunrise.

"Okay," she says softly, fiercely. "Okay, Grok. I'm in. We'll do this together, come what may. We'll fight for a better future, a real peace."

She leans down and kisses me, long and deep and full of promise. And in the heat of her mouth, the conviction in her eyes...I feel something kindling in my chest. Something bright and bold and brave, uncoiling from my very bones.

Belief. Hope. The certainty that together, she and I can move mountains. Reshape worlds.

As I heal, that certainty only grows, tempered and honed by long conversations with Lily and Thane, bent over maps and missives. We argue, we plan, we dream...and slowly, painstakingly, a strategy takes shape.

"We'll need allies," Thane says grimly one evening, jabbing a finger at a crumbling map. "On both sides. People who are tired of all the killing, ready to consider another way."

Lily nods, her brow furrowed in thought. "I have some ideas about that," she murmurs. "Sympathetic ears in Thorn Hall, and beyond. If we can get them to the table..."

"It's a start," I rumble, squeezing her hand. "A foundation we can build on."

"What about the other clans?" Thane asks, his eyes sharp on mine. "The Bonechewers, the Skullcleavers? They've always been the most...reluctant...to entertain notions of peace."

I sigh, rubbing a hand over my face. "The Bonechewers will follow where I lead," I say slowly. "Their warlord, Krug, owes me a blood debt from way back. He'll grumble and posture, but in the end...he'll fall in line."

"And the Skullcleavers?" Lily prompts gently, sensing my unease.

I'm silent for a long moment, old memories playing behind my eyes. Memories of vicious border skirmishes, grudges nursed like poisoned wounds...

"Brokk is proud," I say at last. "Stubborn. He won't be easily swayed from the old ways, the old hatreds." I shake my head. "But we have to try. Have to at least extend the olive branch, see if he's willing to grasp it."

Thane nods, something like respect kindling in his gaze. "You're a good man, Grok," he says quietly. "A good leader. I didn't always see that...but I do now."

Lily squeezes my hand, her smile soft and proud. "He's the best of us," she murmurs. "The very best."

Humbled, I duck my head, clearing my suddenly tight throat. "I'm trying," I manage. "Trying to be worthy of the faith you've both placed in me. The faith I'm asking my people to place in this...new path."

"You are worthy," Lily says fiercely. "Worthy and then some, my love."

The conviction in her voice, the fire in her eyes...it bolsters me, straightens my spine. Gives me the courage to face what comes next—the hard conversations, the harder concessions. The slow, oftentimes painful work of changing hearts and minds, one stubborn inch at a time.

It starts with the clandestine meetings in our cramped cottage, watching with bated breath as old enemies break bread, trade cautious words. It's tense, halting work, generations of fear and fury crackling like lightning in the air.

But through it all, Lily is a beacon, a tireless champion for our cause. Her conviction never wavers, her charisma a tangible force as she cajoles and coaxes, soothes and persuades.

"I never knew you had such a silver tongue," I tease her one night, after a particularly grueling session. "You could charm the scales off a dragon, I swear."

She laughs, the sound warm and bright against my chest as she curls into me. "You're not so bad yourself, Warlord," she murmurs. "The way you spoke tonight, about honor and healing...I think you really reached them."