Page 97 of Cheating Fate

Gavin huffed. “To breed with them, according to Dread.”

She laughed. “That’s true. But also because we are kindred.”

Vahl glanced at me.

“Do what your heart says,” he said in a gentle tone.

He didn’t have to say twice. My healer instincts had been torturing me with unbridled fury. I moved swiftly to resurrect more than half of them. The others had already been too far gone by the time we arrived.

“Good choice, soul whisperer,” Svira said with approval but also something deeper like gratitude and hope. “The scales tilted again in your favor. I will pray to the Goddess that you all continue to prevail for the entire galaxy’s sake. Until we meet again.”

As soon as she finished pronouncing that last sentence, all three Draylians vanished, having apparently teleported out the same way Rhadames did with us. Did they all possess that power or did someone else whisk them away? We would probably never know.

Chapter 20

Gavin

We warned Kamala not to attack the Draylian ship as it took off. Naturally, she had many questions as to why we would do such a thing. However, her hands were already way too full to argue about it. Despite informing the Dantorian control towers of her entry into their airspace to intercept the attackers’ ships, things almost got ugly.

Their air defense assisted with capturing the Zolian and human ships. But they seriously balked at attacking a Dantorian vessel. It turned out that Gotia, her mother Zolina, and Ralan had attempted to flee the planet during the battle. We currently had no evidence tying them to the attack. As much as the timing felt highly suspicious, it also happened to be the first time any of us had come to Dantor. Therefore, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to assume it was merely a coincidence.

We helped clean up the crazy mess left behind. Rhadames removed the corpses of those he had partially embedded inside walls, teleporting them onto hover stretchers to be taken to the morgue. Sylvius and Lenora use their kinetic powers to repair all the physical damage from the battle. This included the holes poked into the walls by ice and metal darts, the charring caused by Trehvus’s flames, and the twisted doors caused by us needing to get to the Basilica.

We ended up staying five more days on Dantor. We held many talks about providing protection and patrolling the Dantorian airspace. But we made it clear that Dantor had to step up its own defenses. Neither the Vigil nor the Sentinels could act as their personal army. We could only patrol the area, which also included nearby friendly planets. For now, Kamala’s crew would keep watch for the next couple of weeks.

“As per the directives General Praghan gave me before our departure, the Sentinels will increase their presence in the region for the foreseeable future,” Vahl said.

“That’s wonderful news,” Coron said carefully. But what about the Vigil? Will you also patrol our space?”

“Occasionally, yes. But I must remind you that we are still forming,” Vahl cautioned. “We cannot pledge our resources to a single planet at this early stage. Also keep in mind that we are intergalactic peacekeepers. Unlike the Sentinels, who are partially bound by both Xelix Prime and the Galactic Alliance, we are completely free agents.”

“What does that mean specifically?” Coron insisted.

“It means that whether a planet is a member of the Galactic Alliance or not has zero influence on us. We do not owe our support but also won’t deny it because the Alliance forbids it,” Vahl explains. “We will focus our efforts protecting those who are a part of the coalition we’re building to face the Great War. But that will not prevent us from offering our aid to neutral parties.”

“Right. Well, recent events have made it clear that no one can remain neutral anymore,” the Primus swiftly stated. “Dantor gladly wishes to side with your growing coalition. Furthermore, we would like to pledge funds and goods to help the Vigil. We’re a very wealthy merchant planet and can provide almost anything you need.”

“That’s a very generous offer, Primus Naelus,” Vahl said in a controlled voice. “However, and I say this with the utmost respect, we do not require payment in exchange for the protection we’ll offer. We’re aware of how certain groups operate. We’re not one of them. Any aid is always welcome, but it’s not expected and will not influence our level of commitment to your safety.”

It filled my heart with pride hearing him speak with such calm and conviction. This was always the part where good intentions tended to fall by the wayside. The lure of easy credits and great power had a way of corrupting even the best people.

“And that’s exactly why we are gladly offering,” Coron said with an approving smile before taking on a grim expression. “Yesterday’s attack has opened our eyes as to how deep the corruption was running right beneath our noses. We have a lot of clean up to do. And then, we have to make better decisions when it comes to who we decide to put our faith in. If we are to win this war, we need to support those who will do it for the right reasons and not just to enrich themselves. You have our pledge.”

And the Primus was not jesting when he said they had a lot of cleaning up to do. He implement an extensive crackdown of the other corrupt dignitaries, officials, and staff. That explained why Gotia tried to run rather than attempting to overturn her banishment. The self-dealing, manipulating, blackmailing, and bribing truly ran deep. Now that she had gotten exposed, Gotia knew that once they started digging, all would come to the light. If not her, another person in their foul circle would start talking once the heat got a bit too intense.

Both her and her mother got stripped of their titles and lands. Their family—once hailed as near royalty on Dantor—was covered in shame. It would undoubtedly grow even worse once the trial began.

The Divine went on an epic purge now that his hands were no longer bound by the puppet masters keeping him isolated. His previous complaints had all conveniently died in some administrative labyrinth. Like his attempts at communicating with the outside world, his filings against the growing corruption within the divine court had intentionally gone nowhere. Now was the time for reckoning. The Conclave faced a massive shake-up with more than two-thirds of their members dismissed and the others tried in a court of law.

I seized the opportunity of our extended stay to bond with my Grappa. He had known an attack would take place but not that it would be to this extent. His Draylian friend had warned him. But as was always the case with Oracles and Seers, they only provided the strict minimum of information as to not derail the paths that you would naturally follow. But that changed everything for him.

He thought he would spend months—maybe even years—fully dismantling the cage he’d been trapped in. But Cicarus’ collusion with the attackers helped crack everything open, including his own cage. That completely changed the timeline as to when he could finally get to see my mother.

On the third morning, Zhara and I were making our way to the dining hall for breakfast. Instead of just our crew greeting us, I ended up face to face with my parents.

“Mom?! Dad?!” I exclaimed, flabbergasted as they stood next to the dining table, a big smile plastered on their faces.

My mother ran towards me and threw herself into my arms. I caught her and twirled. She laughed and gave me a bone-crushing hug. Ancestors, how I had missed that maternal hug that nothing could rival! As soon as I put her down, she patted my chest and frantically examined me, trying to make sure I wasn’t hurt or wounded.