War of the Princes 03: Monarch Read Online Free Page A

I possibly have?
    He ignored me, resting his palms on the railing of the new bridge. Tendrils of white steam licked up from the rail, between his fingers. “You want to leave this place, the Shadows within Shadows, and you want me not to invade your home and kill your people. Am I mistaken?”
    I ground my teeth together and admitted the truth. “No.”
    “ Ah! Good,” he said leaving the railing to disembark from the bridge. His boots, or whatever he wore on his feet, crunched into the gravel on the bank. “There's nothing I love more than honesty.”
    I tried to back away from him, and nearly tripped over the shadow chasers at my feet. “What do you want?” I asked again.
    He tipped his head, looking down at me. There were no whites to those eyes, no pupils, just an impossibly pure surface of silver. “I want you to help me find and kill my brother.”

 
    Chapter 5: An Impossible Position
     
     
     
     
     
     
    “ You want me to what? You're asking me to kill your brother? The other prince?”
    Why don't you ask me to sprout tentacles and ride a flying elephant while you're at it?
    “Well, I'd prefer to do the killing, if it's all the same to you.”
    “ Why me?” My life depended on keeping my face perfectly still. If he didn't know I had the Pull, I could not implicate myself. A long time ago, when I was a prisoner in Breakwater, I was told that Raserion loved using people who were gifted with it. I was also told that the last person with my unique Ability had killed himself while in the prince's employ.
    The tearing sound returned, and a herd of thirty warhorses charged down into the grass on the far side of the stream. Prince Raserion didn't so much as turn to look at them. He paced beside me and I spun to follow his movement. I didn't trust having him at my back.
    “You are Katelyn Kestrel, the Lodestone who posed as a Historian in the capital city of the Reedy Coast. It's a pity we hadn't met in Cape Hill. I've been told I departed upon your arrival. Shame. Shadows within Shadows is a fine place for a discussion, but it's no place for action. I would have insisted that you show me your other Abilities.”
    Something told me that “insisting” was a kind word for what he'd do. He'd probably Command me to use my Abilities the way Stakes had at Breakwater's Installment.
    The dark prince rounded on me. “If you could fool my own Margrave then you already possess the appropriate skills to walk among my brother's men in the North.”
    “ That was different,” I stammered. So far as I knew, Raserion was death incarnate. Why would I ever dream of helping him? “You're a monster. If you think I'd help you, you're out of your mind.”
    No filter. Just say whatever you're thinking. Good job, self.
    His voice was so soothing, so diplomatic. “We already share a potentially symbiotic relationship. I can offer you much, and more. You know of my Monarch weapon, but are you aware that I've built one in every major Installment across the West? I have.”
    I tensed at that.
    He swept a hand through the air between us, and a wispy map appeared. I'd seen this very image posted on the back wall at the helm of the Flying Fish. Four major sections were blocked off and labeled the Northern Kingdom, the Eastern Kingdom, the Western Kingdom, and the Southern Kingdom. The area where I knew Haven to exist was depicted as a solid mountain range like many others bordering the kingdom. I was careful to only look at the area as long as I looked at everything else.
    Prince Raserion pointed to his cities on the map, indicating those that housed a Monarch. When he pulled his hand away, each mark glowed. Thirteen. There were thirteen war machines. “Experimentation is complete, each Monarch is functional. All they need now are Lodestones to arm them. I know where the Lodestones have gone to hide. I have everything I'd need to permanently cripple the North and see my brother take his final breath at last.”
    I felt the Spark