Page 79 of The Queen’s Shadow

“Bold of Mr. Brown to insinuate that we have failed as a collective, when it seems he is nearly directly responsible for such an insidious tip in the scales of balance, wouldn’t you agree?” He asked the audience. The blood drained from my face at the soft roll of reluctant agreement that ebbed through the crowd.

“Thank you, Sorcerer General, nothing further.” He smirked at me, his blue-grey eyes flashing, before resuming his seat next to The Siren. It was my turn to glare at them, the unfamiliar burn of hatred raged through my core. I suddenly felt a moment of understanding for Raven and Rycon.

Anger was dangerous, my grandmother had always told me. Unlike other destructive emotions, like sadness and anxiety, anger felt good. It was easy to lean into it and lose perspective. I took a deep breath and forced myself to relax. I would not let him get to me. If I lost this, it would not be because Trenton Blackwood was successful in forcing me to lose my temper.

The Siren was watching me, and I felt her power curl across my aura again. I had half a mind to block her out, as she had done to me before Trenton’s challenging argument. Curiosity got the better of me, and I let her in.

‘Your move, Obeah Man.’ She sneered, and I narrowed my eyes at her. If she thought this was over, she had no idea who they were up against.

I still had a few tricks up my sleeve.

Conrad

After a two-hour recess, we were back in our seats. Trenton had been able to flip my opening requisition on me, but I was allowed one more requisition before we went into deliberations.

Sofia slammed her gavel down as the members of The Board took their seats, calling for order. Once the room had fallen silent, she called me forward to present my second and final requisition. I moved forward, tugging on my linen collared shirt to straighten it. Despite my efforts to ignore it, Trenton’s constant posturing and insinuations that I was less than, was making me wish I had worn a suit.

This too, was baseless. My grandmother had never come as anything other than herself, and she had been one of the most respected members of The Board in a millennia. I shoved down my unfounded insecurities and forced myself to focus.

“Honorable Members of Di Board,” I began. “Mr. Blackwood make some accusations out of context. Allow me to rectify dem...”

Trenton snickered. “I protest. Irrelevant.”

“Recognized.” Sofia replied, though I could have sworn I heard a hint of regret in her tone. “Stick to your requisition, Conrad.”

Well, it was worth a try. I switched tactics.

“‘Aight. Honorable Members of Di Board, mi could come up here, and ask to approach challenging council, asking what der is to gain, from aligning ourselves with a proven dictator such as Ash Nevra. Instead, mi plan to show yuh, what aligning with her really means.

“Di Flute is just one small reason to fear her reign. Before Di Flute came to be in har possession, she already show us who she is. She show us she a threat to our kind and every other being who walk dis planet, as well as di one beyond Di Veil.

“Do nah let yourselves lose sight of di reality at hand. Ash Nevra is a slave owner. She has perverted di natural way of tings, and has enslaved her own people. Dis is a grave sin that goes against everything wi have ever stood for.

“What makes yuh tink dat she will stop with just har own people? Perhaps she has not breached Di Veil in her conquests up until now because she did not have enough power… she does now.

“It is nah productive, to point fingers, and place blame. Mi cannot change di past. All wi can do, is make di decision to make a positive change now.

“Sorcerer General, permission to call Dossidian, General of Di Court of Pride, to recount his experience as a slave beneath the reign of Queen Ash Nevra.”

Curious whispers erupted from the audience. I had not missed the looks the magick folk had been shooting in both Dossidian and Nytara’s directions. Many of them had never truly met a daemon before.

“Granted.” Sofia replied, with a curt nod.

I approached the bench.

“Can yuh state yuh name for Di Board?” I asked, and Dossidian nodded.

“I am Dossidian, son of Sirocco, Prince of Wrath. I serve as Commanding General under Prince Amon in The Court of Pride.”

“Dossidian, can yuh tell us, how it is yuh became enslaved by Queen Ash Nevra?”

“I was the first daemon she enslaved, after her and the Nightshades banded together to freeze The Origin in stone. I beheaded Anjoili and in punishment, I was to be the first daemon that Ash Nevra and the Nightshades tested the slavery bond on.”

“Can yuh explain how di slavery bond is different from di natural way dat daemons bond to other beings?”

“Despite what the magick folk may have heard or believed, daemons do not make the decision to bond with other beings lightly. It is normally something that is done with the other being’s consent and is a mutually beneficial arrangement for both parties.” He smiled kindly at the audience. “Bonding is, as you all know, permanent. Unless we are killed, there is no limit to how long a daemon may live. Most daemons do not wish to attach themselves permanently to beings who are not willing or interested in their eternal company.”

I thought of Rycon and Raven and shuddered. It was good that they seemed to have found a way to co-exist, as what Dossidian said was true. The two of them had a rocky start, but things seemed to be getting better.