“If Blount leaves for Carrickbrack today,” Ilain said, “he’ll arrive on the third of Radia. After waiting a week for his relief troop to arrive, he’ll leave for Olbury on the eleventh. From there, he’ll have to travel for a minimum of nine days, puttinghim in Virwoud on the twentieth. At which point, he won’t arrive in Olbury until the twenty-fourth.” She paused, brushing a few waves of hair over her shoulder. “If we leave tomorrow morning and head to Loclight, we should arrive on the ninth, possibly the eighth if we ride fast. Allowing for the worst case and two extra days for Ephren’s leisure, say we leave on the eleventh—when Blount himself leaves for Olbury. After thirteen days of travel, that puts us in Olbury on the twenty-fourth as well.”
Evylin’s lips parted in shock.
Ilain hesitated only a second before adding, “But that’s the worst case. In my personal opinion, removing the additional three or so days for error is quite feasible, which would put us at the Terrae Keep on the twenty-first, three days prior to Blount’s arrival.”
A sharp breath puffed out of Evylin as a flare of hope lit her chest. She set her hand on Deckard’s arm, looking up at him. “We can beat him there,” she said in an awed whisper.
Deckard’s brow was crimped tight, unconvinced. While his eyes searched her face, she gripped his arm more firmly. “Jonn,” she said, “we canbeathim.”
“Three days isn’t enough room for error,” he said worriedly.
“Either way,” Brea interjected once more, “it’s worth it. Three days early or right on time, we’d still have the Space Relic. We could still beat him.”
“And what if you’re right?” Deckard asked. “What if Blount’s entire plan is to go for the Space Relic first while we head for the Terrae Keep?”
Brea turned to Ilain. “How long would it take for Blount to arrive in Ephria City from Carrickbrack?”
Ilain’s brow furrowed in surprise, but it only took her a moment to calculate. “Oh... About eight days.”
“Thank you,” Brea said, turning back to Deckard. “So if he left for Carrickbrack today, arriving there on the third of nextmonth, then he wouldn’t arrive in Ephria City until the eleventh, which is when we would be heading for Olbury.”
“At the worst,” Thom added.
She smirked at him and repeated, “At the worst.”
“What if he doesn’t go to Carrickbrack at all?” Ethenn asked.
They all looked at him in shock.
Flushing, Ethenn ducked his head but kept speaking. “He knows he’s being watched now,” he explained. “With Highlady Freye’s betrayal, he’s aware that he has spies amongst his ranks. What if this is all a lie, another of his schemes? What if this supposed regrouping in Carrickbrack is a trick, and he’s actually going straight to Loclight from Keale?”
Instantly, everyone turned to Ilain for an updated timeline. She stared at Ethenn even as everyone stared at her. Tugging on the collar of her dress, she fumbled only for a second. “Keale to Loclight would be roughly a ten-day journey. Meaning that if he left this morning, he’d arrive on the eighth. Which puts him either at the same time or...possibly a day ahead of us.”
“So our true worst-case scenario,” Ethenn said, “is that Blount gets both Relics before us.”
The tavern fell silent as the facts weighed on them all. There were too many variables, too many potential pitfalls, and too many risks. Whatever choice they made could end in victory or defeat. They either obtained the Relics in order, risking the loss of the Space Relic and their inevitable defeat, or they went out of order, hoping to gain their ultimate victory through the Space Relic while risking Blount’s complete subversion.
Yet, despite all the variables, Evylin thought the choice was clear.
She took Deckard’s hand, drawing his attention. His green-blue gaze met hers with an uncertainty that pinched in her chest. “Brea’s right,” she said. “Blount isn’t going to follow the rules. Thus, we can’t either. We have to go for the Space Relic.”
“We can’t be sure it will work,” he argued. “And we’ll be risking our lives.”
“We can’t be sure any of this will work,” she returned. “And we’re risking our lives either way.”
He continued to hesitate.
“Jonn,” she slipped her fingers through his, “we need that Relic. Our odds of defeating him with Terrae alone are minimal. Our odds with Space are great.”
Deckard continued to frown. “And if Blount is headed for Loclight as we speak?” he asked. “If he beats us there and takes the Space Relic? What then?”
“Then we would have lost either way.”
His thumb brushed along the back of her hand. A moment later, he sighed. “I don’t think it’s a good idea,” he said. “I’m sorry, but we should stick to the original plan.”
“I disagree,” Evylin insisted.
“We’re doing this for the Alliance, right?” Rafferty said, an impish glint in his eyes. “Why don’t we do this their way?”
