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“What’s Godfall?” Caelan asked.
“It’s an uninhabited island some distance off the coast of Zastrad. However, it stands between Caspagir and Uris-Oladul,” Rayne explained.
“It would make a perfect staging area for Uris-Oladul to launch attacks on Caspagir,” Shey snarled. “Ever since Uris-Oladul fell to New Rosanthe, I’ve been arguing that we needed to claim Godfall for ourselves just to protect us against an attack.”
“I know. When did you send the fleet and how much?”
“They were sent when Uris-Oladul sent soldiers through New Rosanthe to attack Caspagir. I sent all of the Western fleet. We kept the Eastern Fleet here, but they’re spread out. I don’t know how they got around our destroyers.”
“They hid in the ice,” Rayne grumbled. “No one has ships that cut through the ice like New Rosanthe.”
“Fuck!” Shey snarled, hammering his fist on the steering wheel.
“We need to protect the Wind Stone,” Caelan said softly when silence had fallen over the vehicle.
Shey’s eyes snapped up to the rearview mirror and met Caelan’s worried gaze. “You think that’s why they’re here? You think they know about the Wind Stone?”
“Honestly, I don’t know. I hope not, but I’d rather not let our future rest on hopes. They already have one godstone. We can’t risk them capturing another.”
“True.”
“We need to get the stone out of Sirelis. Find a place to hide it until the Empire can be defeated.”
Shey was already shaking his head. “The Wind Stone can’t be moved. I already asked my mother about moving the stone within the castle walls for better protection. The stone can’t be moved by any means. That’s why the lighthouse and facility were built around it.”
“Did anyone ask Kaes about moving the stone?”
“I—” Shey started and then his mouth snapped shut. He huffed a little laugh and met Caelan’s gaze in the mirror. “I would wager not.”
“When we get in the city, drop Eno and me as close to the stone as you can. Take Rayne and Drayce with you,” Caelan said.
Rayne twisted in his seat to look at Caelan. “What do you want us to do?”
“Help Shey. Find out how we can best stop the Empire and save these people. No matter what it takes.” He glanced over at Eno. “We will go see Kaes. I’ll try to convince him to let us move the stone. If we can, we’ll get it loaded on a truck and out of Sirelis as quickly as possible.”
“And if Kaes doesn’t want to move?” Eno inquired.
“Then we borrow some explosives, and we bring the lighthouse down on top of the Godstone, preferably in the middle of the fight so the Empire thinks it destroyed the lighthouse.” Caelan replied without hesitation.
“What? You’re going to crush the stone?” Drayce gasped.
“The stone will be fine,” Caelan stated, infusing as much confidence as he could into that statement. He had no idea if the stone would be fine, but if he had to choose between destroying the stone and allowing it to fall into the hands of the Empire, he was going to choose destruction.
“Hiding the stone under a pile of rubble will make it that much harder for the Empire to get to it if we’re forced to temporarily retreat.” Shey nodded. “I’ll make some phone calls so the path is cleared for you.”
“Thanks,” Caelan murmured, sitting back in his seat while his hand tightened on the handle on the door. They had a plan in place, but his mind kept tripping over their growing list of problems. Why was New Rosanthe making a move on Caspagir now? Did the emperor know about the other stones? Or was there another reason for him to attack now?
He wished he’d had more time to work on using the new gift he’d gotten from the God of Storms. He wasn’t ready for a fight with the Empire, but he couldn’t allow Sirelis to fall like his home. Caspagir had to be saved.
24
Caelan Talos
Cars filled the road heading out of Sirelis and into the countryside. Other people were loaded with overflowing packs and carrying more items in their arms as they hurried out of the city on foot. It was clear that an announcement had been made to the populace that Sirelis was under the threat of attack from New Rosanthe. After the news of what happened with Erya’s capital, no one was taking any chances. They were running to safety.
But all the fleeing people had slowed their own progress into the city, making it almost impossible to move in the large SUV, even with the royal flags and police officers shouting for people to get out of their way.
Time was slipping through their fingers. Caelan was struggling to sit still in the back seat of the vehicle as panic and fear swelled in his chest to the point of nearly choking him. He’d wondered what it had been like in Stormbreak when the Empire had attacked. Now he feared he was seeing it.
