Page 246 of Interion

“What's going to happen after the test? I mean, with you and me. Your vacation is ending and I still don't know where I'll be accepted. What are we going to do about the distance or the lack of time?” I asked, unsure if this was the right moment.

While the fire crackled and the snow fell outside, Zion raised our hands, holding them suspended above our heads. I compared my palm to his—mine was small, freckled, paler and thinner. A stark contrast to his, which was much larger, tanned, covered in scars and calluses.

“We'll figure it out,” he said, lost in thought. “If you stay within the walls, it'll be easier. As a general, I can spend some time at home.”

“And if I'm only accepted in another nation?” I asked, trying to push the thought away. “What will we do?”

He lowered our hands and laced our fingers together over his chest.

“We'll figure it out,” he whispered, trying to calm me. “I hope Elitium pulls some strings and keeps you within the walls. Otherwise, they'll lose their best doctor and their general.”

I shifted in bed, propping myself up to look down at him.

“Are you crazy, Zion?” I asked in disbelief. “You have a life here, a career, a job to do. You and Serguei are the pillars of the descendants.”

“We were,” he replied calmly. “I've already fulfilled my role. Serguei made me his pawn and I didn't mind, because I was fighting for something greater, but it's been three months since we found another breeding camp. The squadrons have conquered all enemy territory up to the gorge and are running one final sweep. Apparently, it's over. We freed everyone.”

Hearing that filled me with happiness and relief.

“And now? Is the war over?”

“No. For Elitium, this is far from over. Beyond the gorge lies Valmar, the central Drutes city. The king is pushing the army to keep going—he wants to take control of the city and the forests to expand our farmland. Interion's population has grown significantly in recent years, the human quarter is packed with people, and the gorgons keep charging more and more for food grown outside the walls. Not to mention we're the only nation that exports food and profits from trade, which is what allows us to maintain alliances with Vinturis, Ampér, and Yonser. This is forcing Elitium to expand its domain by building another wall around the city—something that would be extremely expensive and would make the gorgons unhappy. The second option would be to take Valmar and start farming there, which would be cheaper and more profitable, because Drutes, besides being the largest nation on the continent, is also the most fertile. For that, Elitium still expects me to be their pawn. I've already told Serguei I won't be part of this genocide.” He sighed with concern. “Now Drutes has started moving all their armies into Valmar. Either they sense danger approaching or they're plotting something bigger.”

“And what are you going to do?”

“Right now, I'm trying to prevent the cities from going to war directly. The squadrons are surrounding the gorge, but from a safe distance. We still don't know what's going to happen, but we can't retreat or we'll lose the territory. We also can't advance, because a war would shake all five nations and the king still hasn't woken up from his delusions about conquering Drutes. He thinks we'll march in and conquer everything in a week. It's not that easy—they know the terrain better and we don't even know their total number of warriors. It's a shot in the dark; we could lose more than half our troops in an offensive like that. Not to mention civilian deaths, because there are people there who didn't want any part of this war. You know, Kay—you lived in Drutes with your family and with Joan Sanos. There are families and children who have nothing to do with the war. If we go in, the order will be extermination or enslavement, and then what will I do? Let the squadrons descend on them? This war will breed another war, because one day those children will grow up and try to answer blood with blood. It's an endless cycle.”

“If you were the king, what would you do?” I asked, my eyelids heavy with sleep.

“A difficult question,” he replied, settling my head against his chest. His fingers ran gently through my hair. “First we have to break the cycle of death, but for that, we need the Drutes' cooperation. I think I'd try to negotiate with the queen first, even though that's already been offered and she refused. But before, they had the advantage—now they're on the verge of collapse. Maybe she'd listen to us. Then I'd try to establish agreements, but for that, we'd need to put a more sensible leader on the throne. The queen is strong and has a good psychic at her side, which is why we haven't been able to reach her—we don't know her name, and we don't have a clear picture of what she looks like. She's probably the paranoid type, like Elitium, and hides behind her armies. After Lagherta, we've never been able to infiltrate spies again…” Zion stopped, as if he'd remembered something, and looked at the clock. It was midnight. “Enough talk. We need to sleep—your test is in four hours.”

“I like listening to you. I'll be three days without hearing your voice—I'm trying to soak it all in.”

“You're going to spend three days without sleeping properly. You should be getting rest, not listening to me.” He smiled, caressing my hand where it rested over his heart.

“You're more important,” I insisted sleepily. We were quiet for a while, just watching the snow fall outside. Then I added, “As a last resort, I could work as a medic for the squadrons. I bet after what happened, they need elmedics on the frontlines.”

It was a possibility. One I didn't like, but I'd do it if it meant staying close to him. Zion seemed to weigh every word.

“When we met, you said you didn't want to join the military, that you didn't want to leave the walls.” He started playing with a little bow on my blouse. “What changed?”

“You,” I replied with a smile. “I don't like the forests, but I'd go if that were the only way for us to be together. Now that I know the basics of fighting, I can keep up.”

“You'd do that for me?” His war eyes fixed on my face with new intensity.

“I'd do anything for you, Zion.”

He smiled, then pinched my nose, which made me laugh.

“I'd never ask that of you. Especially after the massacre at the frontier medical facility and with the chimeras on the loose.”

I fell silent, now playing with the bow myself, anxious about the conversation.

“It's strange, planning for the future.”

“What do you mean?” Zion asked. “I like planning.”

“Yes. I'm discovering I like it too, because now I can afford that luxury. When I was a...” My voice faltered. Sometimes it was hard to talk about the past. I tried again: “When I was a slave, there wasn't much to plan. My goals were to finish the day alive, manage to eat something, and hope to sleep next to other slaves, because two bodies together kept each other warmer. Nights are cold on the forest floor.”