Season of Sacrifice (Blood of Azure Book 1) by Jonathan Michael (ereader that reads to you txt) 📗

Shadow. You will do my bidding and no others. You answer only to me.” I open my arms with a welcoming gesture. “The choice is yours, of course.” The alternative choice being death.

“Thank you, Taoiseach, sir.” Her response is flat and dutiful.

I continue to feel lightheaded, so I spill the savory contents of my tumbler down my throat. “Now, to business. Come closer. There’s no need to yell across the room. I would like for you to send two of your elite Hiberneyts and two elite Sprhowts to each of the uninhabitable regions. We need to check the Cypress Marsh, the Broken Forest, and the Thunder Bluffs. We will hold off stretching to the Blood Plains for now, as I have my suspicions we’ll uncover more than we desire. That will be our final reach, if necessary.”

“Are you sure, Taoiseach? The Cypress Marsh has been known to swallow men alive, the Thunder Bluffs are sheer cliffs not even the sure-footed mountain goats call home, and the Broken Forest is swarming with the malevolent Cryptids that can rip a man in half just as easily as you dropped the General. Most men wouldn’t survive a half dozen nights in any of these locations. It’s highly unlikely a young girl would survive a full rotation of seasons.”

This woman, my newly appointed protégé, dares to question my authority. I respect her courage for doing so, but I must devour any notion she may have for believing she can direct me. This is my world to mold to my liking. She knows nothing of what must be done to control it. She is just a tool for me to use as I see fit.

I snap up from the edge of my desk and, in one swift motion, lay the palm of my hand across her face of near perfection. She falters back a step, releasing her tense stance, and bounces back quickly. She looks at me with the gaze of a shameful puppy while a bead of blood forms in the corner of her mouth.

“You underestimate this girl’s talent. You were there the day she escaped. She broke down that ironwood barrier, one of the densest organisms on this moon, as if it were a thin sheet of paper. A girl of that potential, despite her youth, will not fall down and die so easily.”

“My apologies…”

“You are weaker than I thought. Do not apologize, and do as I say. You are afraid. You are afraid your men will die. You are afraid you will fail me and end up like him.” I point to the degrading pile on the floor. “Well, let me make this simpler for you.” I stride closer to her and place a hand upon the almond-colored skin at her shoulder, offering false comfort.

“Ugh.” She moans in pain but maintains her integrity by remaining upright in her hardened stance.

“Don’t fail me like your predecessor, or your fate will be the same. Remember, you are my Shadow now. You’d do best to keep me a ray of sunshine.” I pull my hand away, leaving a faint black print of my thumb and forefinger. “Is that clear, Ellia?”

“Yes, Sir. I will have you a complete list by the end of the season or sooner. If that will suffice, Sir.”

“Yes. That will suffice.”

“May I suggest…” She pauses, sensibly contemplating her next words, I presume. “That I send only one fire team, Sir. A fireteam of one—myself.”

Ambition. A good start for my new protégé, but let’s see if her actions fulfill her tongue’s promises. Otherwise, I might have to relieve her of it. “Hrm…bold. Why?”

“Sir, excuse my tone, but I don’t function well having to wipe the backsides of others. Cleanup is not my forte. I work alone. And I work fast. I am going to personally find your girl, your number-one public enemy, or…” She cocks her head, stares intently, and shifts to a persuasive tone. “…possible ally?”

“Ally?” Could she be? She has the talent, but can she be trusted? Does she have the intellect? It’s worth finding out, I believe. “Make sure you bring her back alive, then.”

“And, Sir, of the other threats you’ve dispensed while I’ve been training for this, what of them?”

“They remain threats.”

“I would suggest, for matters lacking urgency, it is best to leave that to a third party. Someone not causally linked to you, Sir. I am not proud of it, but I have good connections in low places. The guild I have in mind are an honorable bunch, very skilled at what they do, and will not fail. They are equivalent to, or even more skilled than, the Solite and the Noxelite. They just so happen to use their talents in taboo ways, not highly regarded in today’s moral society. They are a trustworthy resource for this type of trade. I can assure you they will accomplish the task at hand.”

She refers to the Celestial Cloaks, a secret guild of misfit dropouts who have the skill and training in the Solstice and Nox Sciences, but never finished their time at the Academy for various reasons. The fact they didn’t make commencement limits their choices in how they earn a living. I’ve managed to recoup a small percentage of the failures by introducing the brutal sport of Ironball countless seasons ago. The rest…they remain uncontrolled.

“Ellia…imagine the disappointment of a trained soldier who will never be accepted into the Crimson Guard nor the Solite or Noxelite.” I pause to coat my throat in scotch. The ice thumps my upper lip as I get to the bottom of the glass. Utter disappointment. “Their only other choices are to be humiliated by joining an apprenticeship, become mercenaries with rewarding payouts but inconsistent work, or join an elite class of assassins utilizing their hard-earned skills while maintaining a sense of appreciation and loyalty among comrades. The latter is the clear choice for