Sacrifice (The Snow Queen #2)(24)

“So, what do you want to know? My favorite foods, or perhaps my life-long dreams and goals?” Crow asked.

“Cronius,” General Halvor warned.

Crow ruffled his clothes and had the grace to look guilty. “Right,” he sighed, and all of his inner joy left him. “In the Battle of Gaula, all the soldiers in the Verglas army were—as General Halvor said—either captured or slaughtered because of the Chosen leader—Tenebris Malus.”

Crow rocked back on his heels, and his eyes seemed to focus on the distant memory. “He sliced through the Verglas army with the use of his magic—the ability to curse. He cast a curse on nearly every Verglas soldier present. I estimate twenty-five percent of those cursed were killed. An additional thirty percent were horribly wounded. Probably five to ten percent of the soldiers escaped, and the remaining men—while technically healthy—were enthralled by his curses until they were individually captured. Do you agree, Ensign Topi?”

Ensign Topi nodded.

Phile balanced Foedus on the tip of her pointer finger. “What did he do with those he captured?”

“Some he sold as slaves, but the majority, he was—when my regiment pulled out of the south a month ago—conditioning.” Crow’s jolly voice was flat, and his lip curled up with disgust.

“Conditioning?” Frodi asked.

“Yes,” Crow said. “He was training them to be Chosen soldiers.”

“What?” Frodi sputtered.

“He cannot think any man would loyally serve his enemy—unless he means to gentle them and win them over?” Eydìs said.

“Tenebris Malus does not know the meaning of the word gentle,” Topi rumbled.

Crow nodded. “He rules through sheer power and dastardly intellect. He won over most of his magic user officers by rescuing them from horrible circumstances. In return, they went out and recruited magic users—saving some and luring others in with the promise of acceptance and safety, growing a magical army for him.”

“How do you know this?” Oskar asked with a calculating gaze.

“Ask any of the high-ranking officers why they stand with Tenebris,” Crow said. “They will all grow misty-eyed and emotional and recall how he saved them from some terrible fate. It is his pattern, and they were too stupid to notice, or too hurt to care.”

Rakel recalled Farrin’s loyalty to his leaders, even when he didn’t believe what they were doing was right. Crow is right…He said Tenebris saved him, and he couldn’t leave him.

“We have also received confirmation of Cronius’s word through scouting and reports of our own,” General Halvor added.

Oskar nodded, satisfied.

“The soldiers like me, he lured in with promises of fortune. Mercenaries don’t care whom they fight for, so long as they’re paid. He exploited that weakness, and he generously paid many mercenary groups—who forcefully recruited smaller mercenary groups to increase their numbers and enlarge their payments,” Crow continued. “They have no loyalty to him, and some would leave ’im if they could.”

“If they could?” Rakel asked.

“You just said they were fighting for Tenebris because of money. Why can’t they leave him?” Eydìs said.

“I said some, not all,” Crow said. “The large groups of mercenaries are in it for the money—particularly now that raiding is encouraged. They’ll leave only if they don’t get paid. However, the smaller groups would leave him now if the larger mercenary teams would let them go. Some might even join your cause.”

“Why?” Ragnar—a magic user—asked. “They were kidnapped and forced to fight, but that’s no reason to pick up the sword for us.”

Crow smiled unpleasantly, and his dark eyes glinted. “Many have comrades who were slaughtered—not by the hand of Verglas troops, but by Tenebris Malus himself.”

The library was silent.

Topi glanced at Crow—who still bristled—and spoke, his voice low and guttural. “In the Battle of Gaula, Tenebris needlessly sacrificed a large number of his infantry. When he attacked the Verglas army, he was positioned behind his officers and soldiers. When he cast his magic, some of the curses landed on Chosen troops.”

What? Rakel had to knit her hands together to keep from standing up. “And he didn’t pull his magic off them?”

“Perhaps he can’t?” Liv suggested.

Topi glanced at Crow, who shrugged. “No,” Crow said. “He simply didn’t care. He hadn’t cast his magic over his precious magic users, and he can remove his curses at will. He knew he was sacrificing soldiers to reach the Verglas forces, but it was the fastest way of reaching them and posed the smallest risk to those he really needed to keep happy—his magic soldiers.”

“That’s how your band was killed, wasn’t it?” Rakel asked. Her voice tightened in sympathy as she gained a new understanding of Crow’s situation.

Crow nodded.

The room was oppressively silent as they tried to come to terms with this new information.

“I cannot believe the magic users still follow him,” Phile said. “They cannot be that blind and stupid—particularly after witnessing the unnecessary decimation to their own forces.”

“The promise of power and safety can ease many a conscience,” Oskar said grimly.