Restart Again: Volume 2 by Adam Scott (best adventure books to read .TXT) 📗

to see.” I rolled my eyes as he took a dramatic pause. It was clear he wanted to lead us to a shocking revelation, and his theatrics had already begun to wear on my nerves.

“Tell me, Commander. You’ve been our most formidable opponent in every Kaldanic endeavor we’ve taken on, so you must be familiar with our Company’s operating procedures. Do you honestly believe that a group of disgruntled citizens could gather enough coin to hire an arm of our business, let alone the whole Company?” He tipped his head to one side and watched Val expectantly. “Every noble in this city combined couldn’t afford that.

“Now, who do we know that has both the significant sums of money required to purchase our services, and the motivation to overthrow the Attetsian government?” He made an exaggerated show out of stroking his chin in thought. “Perhaps the ruler of Attetsia’s biggest rival?”

“I am growing tired of your lies,” Val barked sharply. “Your slander will not—”

“Valandra, I respect you far too much to lie about such things,” he said with a gracious bow of his head. “I know how difficult this must be for you to take in, given your unwavering dedication to the Golden Throne, but you must view it from a purely strategic perspective. It is in everybody’s best interest for this coup to proceed uninterrupted.”

I bristled as I reached the conclusion he was lazily approaching. It wasn’t necessarily a surprise that Virram would orchestrate a coup in Kaldan’s most stubborn neighbor, but the idea that he sent Val on a mission intended to fail just to cover his tracks bothered me more than being sent on it myself. I underestimated Virram, too.

“It’s not best for all the people you’re sending off to fight!” Lia shouted at him angrily.

“Oh, my dear, it certainly is,” he replied in a soothing voice. “Our army will gather at the plaza in the morning and march straight to Yoria, where Virram will already have massed a defending force. Under the guise of the wise leader, he will put a halt to the bloodshed before it begins by demanding to negotiate. The terms are rather simple: Virram saves Yoria without a single life lost and puts to rest the centuries old feud between Kaldan and Attetsia, while we gain control of the most powerful trading port in the world.” He waved a hand dismissively in the air. “The exact details were...painful to hammer out, but after months of deliberation we finally reached an accord.”

“You’re just lying to trick us into letting you go,” Lia retorted. “You would never tell us your real plan!”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” he said, grinning devilishly. “It’s my one weakness, you see. There’s just no fun in it for me if you die without knowing the truth.”

“No…” Val trailed off. It was the first time I had seen her so completely shaken; she stood statue still apart from her eyes, which scanned vacantly around the floor in front of her. “He would not...he would not have sent me. If this is true, he would not have sent me here.”

“Valandra, Valandra,” he pouted, leaning forward on his elbows. “No one is more trustworthy than you. Were you to arrive in Attetsia and discover the Elta’sahn Company plotting Yoria’s downfall, it would give Virram enough time to plan his defenses and negotiations. Should you die valiantly on your mission, well...how did he put it? ‘To honor her memory, I will shield the city as she once shielded me. No blood will be spilled while I still draw breath,’” he recited in a clear mockery of Virram’s voice. “It was quite touching, really.”

My jaw clenched as I tried to process the information. The supposed agreement between Virram and the Strategist was elegant, and from what I had observed, it was certainly in character for both men. I could follow the logic to a certain point, but a single detail always put a wrinkle in the plans. Why is the Dominion here? It was possible the Strategist intended to renege on his backroom dealings with the King and storm the city with their added might. Perhaps he didn’t know what he had done in summoning them, and was unaware of the chaos about to be unleashed on the world.

Val let out a loud hiss as she looked away in defeat, and the last of my patience ran out all at once. “I know you think you’re incredibly clever, but your plan has one large error: none of your dealings will matter when the world is destroyed.” I stepped out to stand in front of Val, blocking her from the Strategist’s line of sight. “Tell me how you contacted the Dominion, and where the Conduit is. If you tell the truth, there’s a chance I’ll let you live.”

The Strategist screwed up his face in pure puzzlement, looking back between his two stoic companions in confusion. When he found no answers there, he turned back to me and stood, clapping his hands. Shrewd grey eyes sparkled down at me from beneath his massive hat, and a wicked grin curled his thin lips. “I must say, I did not expect this. For the first time in my life, I find myself at a loss for words.” He pointed at me, shaking his finger up and down as he thought to himself. “You’re a confounding individual, my friend. It is my job to know everything about everyone, and I do that job quite well, but you...I don’t know you. Where are you from? Did Virram contract a—”

“I’m well out of patience for your mind games,” I snapped, “and your time is wearing dangerously thin. The Dominion. The Conduit. Answers, now.” My sword flashed into my hand and pointed up at the man.

The woman in white gasped and the General drew his swords for battle, but the Strategist held out his hand. “You will wait for my command,” he snapped quietly at the pair. He cleared his throat as his companions