Chapter 278 — Quiet Conversations, Quiet Orders
The Hollow moved with its usual rhythm, but Kael could feel the shift beneath the surface. Rumors, punishment, new faces at the gates — every day, the stakes of his decisions stretched further. He carried it all, and today he decided to bear it not with steel or fury, but with words.
In the healer's tent
Kael found Azhara hunched over a cot, carefully binding a wound with steady, practiced hands. Across the tent, Zerathis sat with a sour expression, a length of cloth in his hands as he tried — and failed — to wrap a boy's arm without nearly snapping it. The boy winced, and Azhara clicked her tongue sharply.
"Gentle, Zerathis. You're not binding a warlord's blade, you're tending a child."
The daemon grumbled, but his molten eyes lowered, and with visible restraint, he eased his movements. His fingers — claws dulled by care — tightened the knot with something resembling delicacy. The boy flinched again, then whispered a timid "thank you."
It was the faintest shift, but Kael caught it. Zerathis didn't sneer, didn't boast. He merely nodded, as if the gesture were foreign but not unwelcome.
When Kael stepped closer, Azhara's gaze lifted, relief and exhaustion mingling in her face. "He's rough," she admitted quietly, "but he listens. That's more than I expected."
Lyria stood nearby, her arms folded but her tone softer than usual. "I'll say this much: he doesn't frighten them anymore. The recruits talk about him like he's a storm they've learned to live with." She gave Kael a sideways glance. "He might not admit it, but he's learning."
Kael allowed himself the barest smile. "Good. I don't need him gentle. I just need him to understand why we protect as much as why we fight."
Zerathis's gaze flicked toward him, molten fire tempered by something like grudging respect. "You're asking me to be less than I am," he growled.
"No," Kael corrected, calm and firm. "I'm asking you to be more."
The daemon said nothing, but his jaw worked as if the words had lodged there, stubborn and unwilling to dislodge.
Later, in the council chamber
Night found Kael with Varik and Zerathis across from him, the chamber lit low with lanterns. Maps lay sprawled on the table, lines of ink showing roads, rivers, and the uncertain borders where the Hollow's reach ended and other powers began.
Kael traced a finger across the parchment, eyes sharp. "The punishment of Edran won't stay quiet forever. If one merchant carried word, more will follow. And the wrong ears…" He paused, the thought weighing. "The wrong ears will mean war."
Varik leaned forward, voice low and practical. "You want confirmation. Proof of who's watching us."
Kael nodded. "I want to know if any kingdoms, guilds, or churches are moving against us. If they are, we cannot be caught blind. You two will go separate ways, different routes. Zerathis south, toward the border markets. Varik north, toward the old trade towns."
Zerathis tilted his head, the fire in his eyes pulsing with something dangerously close to excitement. "You want me to hunt."
"I want you to listen," Kael corrected, his voice sharpening. "This is not a raid. No scenes, no bodies dropped unless there is no other choice. If you draw too much blood, you'll make noise, and noise will bring soldiers. I need silence. Precision."
Varik nodded without hesitation, already mapping the journey in his mind. Zerathis, by contrast, looked irritated, almost insulted. But Kael held his gaze until the daemon let out a low, rumbling growl of reluctant agreement.
"You leash me," Zerathis muttered.
"I guide you," Kael countered. "And if you can't handle that, then you're not ready to walk freely in this world."
For a long moment, the air was taut with the threat of defiance. Then Zerathis broke into a dark grin, sharp and dangerous. "Fine. I will walk your quiet road, and when I return, we will see if your fears were worth it."
Kael leaned back, satisfied but unrelenting. "Good. Both of you leave within the day. And remember: the Hollow doesn't need martyrs. It needs eyes and ears. Return alive, and bring me answers."
The room held its silence for a breath longer before the two shadows — one of flesh, one of flame — departed in opposite directions.
Kael remained, staring down at the map, feeling the weight of all the unknown roads pressing in around his people.
The game was spreading beyond the Hollow now, and every move mattered.