Beauty in Ashes (Phoenix Rising #7)- Harper Wylde Page 0,72
formed.” He huffed out a breath, shaking his head. “This part is open for interpretation,” he cautioned, glancing at us, “and with it being so long ago, it cannot be verified. Some believe the Council was meant to be an electoral body, not a ruling one. A legal system, if you will. Shifters are respectful of power, no matter their lineage, and so a war was fought in order to determine the strongest amongst us who would be fit to lead us and handle the strife that was plaguing our kind and threatening exposure to the humans. They became the first Council.”
“Maybe if they had focused on those wisest or most compassionate things would have been different.” The bitter words had fallen from my lips before I could stop them, but I wasn’t willing to take them back. It was the truth. The Council ruled by strength and fear, not by empathy and knowledge. If anything, they buried those, attempting to maintain their strength above all else behind walls of lies and pain that blinded their people to the reality of what they were and could be.
Drake inclined his head. “That, dear girl, is the issue. It is also what Gaspard believed.” His voice cracked slightly on the name. “Some say it occurred over time, others believe the Council has been corrupt from the beginning,” he continued after a deep breath, settling himself farther into the large leather chair. “Some believe they grew drunk on power, on the riches they accumulated, while others believe they had plotted their own rise to power from the moment they arrived here.” He shrugged, the movement almost helpless. “None of us can know the truth.”
Anger burned like acid in my stomach, and I shook my head. “So they are basically taking us to some kind of religious site to try to reclaim their power by destroying me there?” I’d figured the area was strategic for the battle they had planned, I just hadn’t realized the strategy was mental as well as militaristic. If they won against the rebellion, doing it at The Landing would send shockwaves through the supernatural community and make it easier for them to squash any lingering seeds of opposition against them.
“Yes,” Drake replied simply. “The land is also easily accessible for all kinds of shifters as long as they have a tolerance for the cold.” I shot a worried look at Joshua, who merely smiled softly at the concern I knew had to be blazing from my eyes. He understood I was terrified of him being exposed to the cold and his body shutting down as it had before. “It also gives them a chance to stake out the area themselves. The Landing is divided as it was before the battles to determine Council leadership. There is a literal line running across the battleground, a division carved into the very earth that is not to be crossed by air, water, or land.”
His attention turned to Damien and Theo now, his face hard. “Do not forget the line,” he warned. “The legends of the magic it holds have been deeply buried by the Council for a reason. If you cross that line before the battle begins, then your magic will be turned against you. I assume it is why they are forcing you there, they expect you to cross and to handicap yourselves before the battle has even started.”
Damien’s jaw was set, his dark eyes flaring. “That’s not something we were aware of.” His voice was as stiff as his shoulders. “I thank you for the warning.”
Drake nodded. “Of course. It does, however, offer you your own protections. Just as you cannot cross, neither can they. They will have already arrived to settle in, entrench themselves, and train in the area. Use aerial scouts with distance vision. Ensure you know what side of the line they have chosen and lead your troops to the other side, even if it means going out of your way.” His eyes were hard, his fingers digging into his thighs as he shook his head. “Do not give them any advantage against you.”
“Dad.” Joshua reached out, squeezing his father’s hand, releasing the bruising grip he held against his thigh before he settled back into his seat, letting Drake compose himself so he could continue.
He huffed out a breath and tried wearing a small smile for Joshua’s sake. “I assume I don’t have to tell you they won’t fight fair and to be on the lookout for