Chapter 1923.1: Treaty Terms (Part 1)
"Because I want you and Lith to witness in person how the Organization works." Zoreth stepped forward, tired of seeing her wife treated like a doormat. "This way you can study our methods and learn directly from us instead of hearsay.
"There's no telling how the negotiations with the Kingdom will end. The Royals may cut ties with you, but the Organization never leaves its own behind. No matter who wins the War of the Griffons, we would help you to keep your family safe and to reclaim your properties."
Lith pondered those words for a while. He knew about Vastor's role as the Master and of the Eldritches following him, but his goals and methods were still a mystery to him.
'I could keep living in the Desert, but the Kingdom is where my home and my friends are. If I accept this offer, I could understand if Vastor is trustworthy and maybe even learn something about my Abomination side.
'Bytra and Zoreth are powerful Eldritches and our powers are similar. I could learn a lot about our common bloodline abilities from them. Yet this is not a choice I can make alone.' He thought.
"Also, we have gotten wind of the position of the Mouth of Menadion." Bytra said, making Solus freeze in surprise. "We were planning to retrieve it for ourselves. It will be a great tool as it is, but after a bit of study, I'm confident we can make a better and modern version of it.
"Yet the Mouth is still a part of your mother's legacy and I didn't want to steal more from you. That's why I called you here."
"I already met the person who holds the Eyes and he's a good man." Solus lied through her teeth to hide Kalla's identity. "I didn't take it from him just like I don't plan to steal from one of Mom's apprentices. I'm not like you."
"Even if I told you that Vestha, the original holder of the Mouth is dead?" Bytra asked. "That he was betrayed by one of his fellow disciples, just like Menadion, and that now the artifact is being exploited by the culprit to enjoy fame and honors?"
The news was a punch to the gut to Solus, who was now reconsidering the Abomination's offer.
'Lith, can't we go recover the Mouth on our own?' She asked via the mind link.
'With no information about its position, no idea of the language they speak in Verendi, and just the two of us? Unlikely. This guy has centuries of experience, knowledge, and his house is bound to be a fortress.' He replied.
'We didn't conquer Kolga on our own, we had an army of Awakened at our back. The only reason we won is that nobody disturbed your fight with the King and the Forbidden Sun empowered hundreds of my Demons while the Awakened kept the army busy.'
'Yeah.' Solus nodded. 'There's no telling how long would it take us even to assess his defenses. I'm already wasting your honeymoon time and I don't want to put your life at risk just because of my pride.'
"What do you say?" Zoreth asked.
"Solus?" Lith looked at her since hers was the heaviest burden.
"I'm in, but I have a few conditions." She said.
"Name them." Bytra nodded.
"First, I want to make sure that this guy is as bad as you say. Second, I want your word that if the rumors turn out to be fake, you'll leave them alone. Third, I want this to be quick.
"Your presence sickens me and I don't want to spend one second longer than necessary with you." Solus said.
"Well, I have conditions too!" Zoreth snarled. "First, wash your mouth before speaking to my wife like that. If it wasn't for her, you wouldn't know anything nor would you have gotten your precious Fury.
"Second, we are not your servants. So get off your high horse or stay home for all I care. I understand your resentment but I won't tolerate any more harassment. I want us to be allies and if being coldly polite is too much for you then the deal is off."
Solus was taken aback by Zoreth's fury. In her outrage, she had forgotten that the same person that was a cold-hearted monster to her was the Shadow Dragon's loved one.
"I have conditions as well." Lith chimed in to ease the tension. "I can't give you my answer before I ask my wife's opinion. I'm still on my honeymoon and I can't just leave her like that. It would be a dick move."
"Does she know about Solus and your real nature?" Zoreth asked.
"Yes, she does and Kami proposed to me anyway. That's why I'm not taking a single step without talking with her first."
"Good gods, three times congratulations, then." Zoreth hugged him in joy, wishing that one day Vastor could say the same. "Once for your marriage, another for finding such a wonderful person, and the last because we are now twice related.
"By blood and in-law! If you ever make her cry, I'll kick your ass to the moon and back."
"Thanks, I guess." Lith replied, suddenly realizing how fucked up his family tree had become.
"Take your time and thoroughly discuss the matter with her. We can wait." Zoreth waved her hand and Chaos Warped away.
"I'm sorry." Solus stared at the ground in embarrassment.
"Sorry for what?"
"For freaking out like that, taking over your body, revealing the Fury to the Organization, and now ruining your honeymoon." She shook her head, trying to clear her vision.
"It's okay. I didn't expect you to be so brave. Standing that close to Bytra must have been- Are you alright?" Lith could hear Solus taking quick and shallow breaths.
At first, he had thought that she was using her breathing technique to recover from her earlier display of raw power, but then Solus had faltered on her feet as if the sand had turned slippery.
Lith caught her while she fainted, discovering that despite the scorching sun of the Desert, Solus was trembling and was covered in a cold sweat. Her eyes had rolled up and her lips mouthed gibberish non-stop.
"Fuck me sideways." Lith tower Warped back to the beach where Kamila was waiting for them.
After putting Solus to bed, he told Kamila everything that had happened.
"A bit of shock therapy is okay, but that was too extreme." She said with a sigh. "Solus demanded too much from herself."
"I know, but what could I have possibly done?" Lith shrugged. "I couldn't stop her. Not while she was fighting so hard."
"Do you want to accept Zoreth's offer?" Kamila asked.
"Honestly, I'm torn. On one hand, I want to help Solus and learn more about Vastor's Organization. On the other hand, I don't want to leave you." He took her hand, caressing it gently.
'I knew what kind of mess I was putting myself into when I proposed to him, but trouble came knocking on our door sooner than I expected.' Kamila inhaled sharply to calm herself.
'There are just a few days of honeymoon left, but that makes them even more precious. If the Royals make Lith a good offer, he will go back to the Kingdom and risk his life on the battlefield.'