146 Veiled Threa (1/2)

The response I wanted to give him was, \”F**k you!\” or, \”Go eat turd, slimeball!\” Perhaps even just the finger would have sufficed. Unfortunately, his standing in the council meant I couldn't be rude to the fairy who was so obviously being rude to me.

\”You will hand over the chosen one to me,\” he repeated, his hand out like he'd expected Ty was some small thing I could literally hand over.

\”I can't do that, sir,\” I answered. \”Tiberius Cruz isn't just some prize. He's my friend, and I mean to bring him home to Mudgard.\”

If anything, this just made Kairon's eyes narrow even more.

\”You will do no such thing,\” he hissed. \”With the power he displayed tonight, it is the height of foolhardiness to think that boy will not be stolen again when you return him to Mudgard.\”

I frowned. Kairon had voiced out the exact thought I'd been thinking in my head, and that was the fact that Ty was no longer free regardless of who rescued him.

Kairon shook his head.

\”No, his only chance at an acceptable existence is serving the clan,\” Kairon insisted. \”So, you will hand him over to me.\”

\”If he's to serve the clan like you insist, then why can't he stay with my Foolhardies?\” I asked.

\”You would not know how to use him,\” Kairon scoffed at me. \”You would be weighed down by your human sympathy and guilt. In your hands, he cannot be the weapon we need him to be.\”

\”Ty isn't a weapon,\” I growled. I was beginning to lose my cool. \”He's a human being.\”

\”Sentiment,\” Kairon sneered. He stepped forward and invaded my personal space. \”Very well, you leave me no choice but to pull rank.\”

He stood to his full height, which for a spriggan was considerably tall.

\”Five-hundred Man Commander Dapper,\” he began. \”In my capacity as Chancellor of the Moon for the High Council of the Trickster Pavilion, I order you to relinquish your rights over the human, Tiberius Cruz, to me. He shall serve the clan's greater cause.\”

I expected this underhanded bastard to pull off something like this, which was typical of spriggans, a fairy race known for being mischievous and thievish people. Why this kind of creature served on the council was beyond me. But I wasn't about to let him have his way.

Shaking my head, I said, \”No.\”

\”You would disobey a direct order from a member of the council?\” he snarled.

His three lackeys behind him began to draw the shadowblade knives they'd hidden in the folds of their robes.

In response, both Shanks and Aura stepped forward. Shanks cracked his knuckles menacingly while Aura had raised a hand that was glowing at the fingertips.

\”You will call off your attack dogs now, Commander Dapper!\” Kairon yelled, his eyes widening.

\”Chancellor Orryn was the one who sent me here with the blessing of the Patriarch,\” I said calmly. \”It seems they're fine with me taking Ty under my wing.\”

Technically, this wasn't a lie. Orryn didn't order me to go, but he didn't stop me either even though he knew exactly that I was going. At least, that was the message I understood from Grimthorn. Besides, I figured he'd let this slide if it meant foiling Kairon's plans.

\”Lies,\” Kairon hissed. \”I would have known about this.\”

\”Like they know that you're here, you mean?\” I asked. \”I was under the impression Chancellor Orryn had sent me without backup.\”

Kairon's eyes narrowed into slits. \”Careful, human… you do not want to make an enemy of me.\”

Um, that was too late. We were enemies the moment he stole my brother from my world. But I feigned politeness nonetheless.

\”I mean no disrespect, sir, but I am here under orders relayed to me by Great General Grimthorn, and I'm sure both the Chancellor and Patriarch will back me as well,\” I said, smiling impishly, a trait I'd learned from Thom.

The mention of the Patriarch along with Grimthorn changed Kairon's tune somewhat. He knew I already had Darah's and Aura's backing. If Grimthorn sided with me too, then I was someone even he couldn't boss around.

He raised a hand to his lackeys, and they sheathed their shadowblades.

\”Besides,\” I shrugged. \”This was a joint venture between the Tricksters and two neutral clans… Would you even have the funds to repay them for Ty's sale?\”

Aura said he was rich, but even a rich fairy would have to think twice about shelling out that much from his own personal coffers, and Kairon didn't strike me as someone who was fast and loose with his cash.

\”You play a dangerous game here, young commander,\” he said. \”I say this again, give me the boy… and I will forget this exchange ever happened. You do not want to cross me…\”

This time, it was me who stepped forward, putting us within inches of each other.

\”You crossed me the moment you stole my little brother away,\” I growled. \”Go away now, Kairon… or you find out why the other council members think I'm worth their time.\”

This was obviously a bluff. Not only did I not have my cheat of a sword, but I couldn't even activate my cheat of a fairy gift. But I imagined Kairon had heard enough about me to be wary of the young visere from Starlight City.

Kairon raised a hand in an action that might have ended with slapping my cheek, but the Chancellor of the Moon stopped himself before all hell broke loose.

Instead, he leaned down so he could whisper a threat in my ear.

\”Be careful, Dapper. Not all of us are enamored of you, and not all of us will stand by while you attain power beyond your station,\” he hissed into my ear. \”The nail that stands out will eventually find itself hammered back into the wood.\”

With his threat finished, Kairon turned around and walked away from me. His lackeys followed after him, but not before giving me the evil eye.

I breathed a sigh of relief when they were finally gone.

\”I'm sorry, Dean,\” Aura said with a shake of her head. \”I should have stepped in before he got a chance to try and intimidate you.\”

I shook my own head at her. \”This isn't the time to reveal yourself to him… that would cause more headaches for us, believe me… Besides, if he didn't recognize you when he was this close to you, then that's his own fault.\”

\”I believe he was too focused on you to even consider the princess,\” Kallista interrupted. \”That is one powerful enemy you've made, Dean.\”

\”He was always my enemy. Now he knows it too,\” I said, shrugging. \”So, how about we go pick up our prize now.\”

We'd made it all the way down to the first-floor lobby when we were waylaid by another visitor.