Crave To Conquer (Myth of Omega, #1)(14)
Drocco said nothing. Without a deeper understanding of the Talent, he had no idea if that was true or not but he wouldn’t be coerced by empty statements aimed to stroke his ego.
“All I’m asking for in return is some of your warriors and training practices,” the king continued, observing Drocco.
“My warriors are with me by choice, Malloron,” Drocco said, dropping the formal title. He noticed Malloron stiffen very slightly—clearly he didn’t like it. “I don’t force them to stay and I will not force them to go.”
“They stay with you because of your ridiculous vow to give each of them an Omega,” Malloron snapped. “The only way you would even be able to do that is to make use of the Talent.” He glared at Drocco. “All I want is your process of creating such a formidable army. It is an excellent trade considering the multiple uses of the Talent.”
“Yes, unless you build an army to rival mine and decide to cross the White Ocean,” Drocco shot back. “Then it would be a shit trade, wouldn’t it? I would be handing you the potential knowledge to overthrow me.”
Malloron’s mouth tightened as he glared at Drocco, both of them remaining locked in a hot gaze.
“Eventually your army will leave you and you will be vulnerable, Drocco,” Malloron glowered, rising from his seat. “All I need to do is wait until that day. You would be a fool to wait until then also. I’ll give you a month to reconsider.”
The portal shimmered brighter and then faded into nothing.
Drocco turned to Torin and watched the Talent-crafters release their hold on each other and begin to discuss. He had never truly considered using the Talent to aid him in ruling his Empire. In fact, the Lox had been ordered to cut down any and all Talent-crafters until Torin had pointed out that he would need them to defend against Malloron’s sneaky intrusions. The most skilled Talent-crafters in the Eastern Lands had been offered the chance to pledge their loyalty to the Lox, which involved offering the life of a family member as a sacrificial gift, but Drocco had no idea how skilled they actually were. According to Malloron, skill was everything.
After speaking with the crafters, Torin approached him.
“Did you get what you needed?” Drocco asked.
“Yes,” he said. “They say they have enough information now to find a way to block the Talent in a specific enclosed area.”
“How long will it take?”
“A week or two. Where would you like them to set it up?”
“The Great Hall.”
Torin raised an eyebrow. “For the celebration?”
“Exactly. We will have visitors from all territories. It’s the perfect time to test loyalties. They only have five days to do it.”
Torin nodded and was silent for a moment. “Do you want to discuss Malloron’s offer?”
“I need to know more about how the Talent works before I can make any decision.”
“From what I understand from our Lox crafters, the Talent is the ability to affect and manipulate the magic that surrounds and penetrates everything that exists,” Torin explained. “The magic responds to ‘spells,’ which can be formed using certain words in the Ancient Tongue or certain actions of the hands, but is most powerful when bent by will. The mind has to reach a certain level of thought vibration to affect it by will.”
“Thought vibration…” Drocco muttered. “This is why most Talent-crafters go insane at a young age.”
Torin nodded. “The most skilled ones tend to, yes. And it’s why most tend to use word or hand spells.”
Drocco nodded, deep in thought.
“Would you like to meet with the Talent-crafters? They can explain it better than I can.”
“Not right now,” Drocco said, turning away from him. He hadn’t been to see Cailyn that morning and a pressing urge to visit the research room had risen. “Make sure they are working on protecting the Great Hall by the time of the celebration.”
CHAPTER FOUR
CAILYN
Cailyn was pleased that a plan had been arranged for her to leave Ashens.
Initially, she had been worried that the Records Keep staff would know that she wasn’t Miss Lefroy, but she should have known that the Mothers would have assistance in every area of the Eastern Lands. An Omega male she knew from a prior job worked at the Keep. Of course, he had blocks too and came across as a Beta in every way. He was one of the ‘dynamic variants’ the head keeper had referred to and, for him, it was just as dangerous to reveal his true dynamic as it was for her.
Male Omegas were rare, and even more so since their families tended to murder them after discovering their dynamic. When the female Omegas began to disappear, the birth rate of male Omegas seemed to slow, and many had thought they were taken too, but in fact, they were simply being protected by the Mothers until they could protect themselves. Most of them led peaceful lives throughout the Lands assisting the Mothers however they could.
Her Omega contact at the Keep had been awaiting her arrival and had already put in place a plan to assist her cover. He had been sure he could arrange an exit strategy for her and had been in the middle of explaining it when Drocco had stormed over like the savage he was.
His need for control was stifling, as was his distrust of anyone who was not Lox. He watched her in the research room for hours every day, his imposing presence making her acutely aware of him. And then, when he wasn’t there, the room had an imposing absence that she didn’t like either. The day after the visit to the Records Keep he hadn’t been in the room much and the wide, heavy chair in the corner he normally sat in remained empty. More than once, Cailyn caught herself standing in the room with files in her hands staring at it and… thinking about him.