Darius didn’t like it. He didn’t like it one bit and knew his fellow paladins felt the same way. The tension through the Order link was tangible. But Max had been adamant about meeting with the entire IDC and they were duty-bound to obey their liege. Despite the news Mordecai had shared about his encounter with the deceitful duo, Max was determined to give Garrett and Autumn a chance to explain themselves. Darius had always admired her deep sense of fairness and justice but in this instance, he feared her sense of fair-play was going to get her hurt. The many years of lies, the premeditation, and the degree of duplicity that went into maintaining their upstanding personas hinted at dangerously damaged psyches. And that scared the hell out of him.
Darius barely refrained from grimacing; walking into the Lodge felt like walking naked into battle. had his blade hand twitching. The Lodge was a place where he had always felt at ease, happy, and appreciated but that was no more, thanks to the lies that had been circulating throughout the ranks. The loss of comfort and familiarity as he stepped over the threshold was just another thing to resent in this whole mess.
He, Ryker, and Axel stepped through the doorway first with Max following, flanked by Diana and Cali, and Lark and Beyden bringing up the rear. Max was effectively in a very large paladin cage and although none of them had dispensed with their weapons as protocol demanded, Darius still felt as if Max was too exposed. Dex and Ivy followed close behind, presenting a united front despite the fact they weren’t technically a part of Max’s Order. But they were family and that’s all that mattered to Max – as well as the rest of them.
Despite the judgemental and critical looks they were receiving, the crowd nonetheless parted quickly and easily, and Darius was satisfied their reputation still held some sway. But then again, Ryker had his very intimidating ‘fuck you’ face on, and despite the absence of his sinister scar, it was still extremely forbidding. Not many people were courageous enough to mess with his Captain, he thought, with no small amount of pride. After his brother had turned into a chade and his previous Order had disbanded, Darius had thought he would never be serving under a Captain ever again. Darius had also been the second in command in the Order of Magne under his potentate, Henry. Darius had respected the man and followed his orders without question. But even after a thousand years of service, Henry hadn’t evoked the same level of dedication Ryker had managed to do in just a handful of months as his Captain. Darius knew why; he loved Ryker like a brother.
Clearing his head of the happy but somewhat distracting thoughts, he kept his eyes sharp as they entered the meeting room and took their place at the end of the large, central table reserved for council members at the front of the room. Darius heard the murmurs as Max took a seat, but his liege didn’t so much as blink. She was, after all, a member of the IDC whether the wardens and paladins surrounding her liked it or not. He placed himself behind her and felt the others spreading out behind in a horseshoe shape, effectively blocking her in from three sides. Darius wasn’t thrilled that the front of her was exposed to the room, but unless one of them stood in front of her, there was no way to prevent it. Opening his mouth to speak, Max cut him off;
“Don’t bother, Darius. How can you expect me to see people and talk to them if your big paladin butt is in the way?”
“But –” he tried again.
“Nope. Move on, Dare,” Max interrupted once again.
He heard a few snickers in his mind but no-one cracked a smile. They were all showing a united front as a formidable Order – one to be reckoned with. Giggling would not be conducive to their tough-guy image. Nor would kicking their snickering butts, Darius sternly reminded himself.
“Fine,” Darius grunted, resigning himself to his current position. Well, if he couldn’t place himself bodily in front of his liege, he would at least catalogue the rest of the room.
A quick but thorough look determined that Garrett and Autumn were the only members of the IDC yet to make an appearance. Blu, Cinder, Ares, and Ravyn were already seated along with Mordecai at the same table. They all looked tense and aggravated, even the usually calm and collected Water Warden, Blu. The only exception was Mordecai. The man had his usual aloof mask firmly in place – not that Darius was fooled by that anymore. He had seen evidence of a passionate personality beneath the frosty demeanour.
Scanning the table again, Darius noticed Mordecai was sitting in a different seat. He was now seated at the very end rather than directly next to Garrett’s seat in the centre. Darius was relieved. They’d had a hard time garnering assurance from Mordecai that he wouldn’t kill Garrett the moment he stepped through the door. The Death Warden had made no secret of the fact that he wished to fillet his one-time friend and leader of their society. Darius knew it was only because Max had been the one to demand no harm should come to Garrett, that Mordecai had agreed. Darius was pretty sure the man would do anything Max asked.
Although there was still so many unanswered questions and much healing to be done, Darius felt sure that Mordecai genuinely cared for his daughter. Max was still – understandably – hesitant about the whole thing and Darius sincerely hoped the two would be given a chance to forge a relationship. He would do anything to be able to be with his parents again and he would love it if Max got her own chance at that special form of relationship. He nodded his head ever so slightly when those intense green eyes focused on him, receiving a small nod in return. Darius then shifted his eyes to the four paladins standing as close behind Mordecai as Darius’s Order was to Max. He didn’t know the men well on a personal level but he knew they had been bound together for a millennium. Having been bound in his previous Order for almost that long himself, Darius knew the deep bonds that formed and knew they would do whatever it took to keep their liege safe. No matter what their liege had to say about it. And Darius had a sneaking suspicion Mordecai was as much of a problem-child when it came to his safety as Max was. Not that he would ever admit that out loud of course.
A small sting of energy plucked at his coat of arms and he cringed; seems he didn’t need to admit it out loud. Max had still heard him loud and clear. This time, the urge to smile was too great, and Ryker smirked from beside him. Darius had the sudden urge to punch his Captain in the face all over again. The man was just a little too pleased with Darius’s predicament. And I just called that man my brother, he shook his head at himself.
The room was beginning to get a little There was plenty of nervous energy in the room but also a lot of curiosity. And with well over fifty wardens and three times that number of paladins currently occupying the main meeting room, that was a lot of mixed emotions. It was also a lot of potential threats. Nope. I do not like this at all, he thought once again, He recognised Terran and Isaac as well as Stefan and his sizeable Order. Darius fought the urge to likewise shield Lark and Cali from their beady, malicious eyes. But he knew he would need to get in a very long line before he would be given the opportunity to have a go at the rotten men.
For every face he recognised, there was one he didn’t. So many of the Orders who had been recalled or who had shown up were unfamiliar to him. There were so many bodies now that people were forced to stand outside the main room and observe through the open doors to the recreation area. As the chatter became louder and the pointed looks longer, Darius wondered if the husband and wife duo were even going to show.
“They’ll show,” Max murmured from in front of him.
She sounded very sure, he thought.
“That’s because I am. They’re here,” she informed them, “and being accompanied by a Ranger Unit. A Ranger Unit that is not Nikolai’s.” Max revealed, even though they hadn’t stepped foot inside the door yet.
Not even five seconds later, Garrett and his wife walked through the parted masses, a group of five robed and hooded figures at their sides. Seven paladins also followed closely behind, being the bound knights in the couple’s Orders. They both had their trademark welcoming smiles and seemed to be in good spirits with no hint of worry. However, the fact they had no less than a dozen trained warriors with them, told a different story.
Murmuring increased as the crowd no doubt noticed the same thing. It was not normal to see so many paladins accompanying the council members. It was even less common to see them all heavily armed. The sight of five sickles and seven scythes, so blatantly displayed had Darius itching to reach under his shirt and draw his own weapon. But he knew that would be asking for trouble. Well, more trouble, he amended. At Max’s insistence, they were there to talk – not fight. He only hoped it stayed that way.
The five sinister cloaked figures were clearly news to Ivy. She was shocked enough to lose her steadfast composure, her mouth opening and brow furrowing with concern. She turned looked at Lark who promptly queried;
“Max …?”
“He’s okay. Pissed,” Max clarified, “but okay. They all are.”
Darius knew without being told that Max was referring to Nikolai and Ivy’s Ranger Unit. He knew Ivy and the Commander of the Rangers were close and her immediate concern for her friend made him appreciate the reserved woman even more. Darius saw the subtle look Lark quickly gave Ivy. It was such a small change in expression but Ivy clearly understood it because she immediately resumed her stoic, relaxed posture. It just went to show how quickly the two had become a unit.
He knew many people would think the two were an odd couple with no hope of making it long-term. But Darius had no such reservations. He thought the two were perfect for each other and he was happy his fellow paladin had found love with Ivy. It seemed to be catching, now that he thought about it, and wondered if Max was some kind of love pied piper. More than half of them were now blissfully in love, with only Beyden and Axel still single. He really hoped his friends would join them in the relationship ranks very soon. But first, Darius reminded himself, they had to deal with a traitorous villain.
“Well, it’s quite the turn-out. Welcome. I see a lot of familiar but not-often-seen faces here today. The IDC is grateful you could all make it,” Garrett began, as soon as he took his seat.
His easy words caused the room to relax a little. Wardens took their seats and paladins found places to lean casually against walls or chairs close to their lieges. Darius was grateful to a certain extent – they needed calm and rational minds to prevail. But he was also worried because it was clear the entire room – with the exception of a handful of individuals – trusted Garrett and took their cues from him. He knew the others were thinking the same thing and despite the need to remain professional, Ryker filled the two-inch space between himself and Max, placing a hand on her shoulder. Darius couldn’t blame his Captain; he wanted to snatch their liege up and make a run for it too. He also wanted to get a good hold on Diana and have her stay close to his side.
The feelings of protectiveness, loyalty, and love he felt for both his woman and his liege, hadn’t yet proven to be an issue within the Order or to his duties. The dual loyalties still played on his mind. It was hard to let go of a thousand years of thinking. His ideas and values surrounding his duties as a paladin were somewhat old-fashioned. But he felt like they had all managed to find a functional compromise. As such, his anal-retentive tendencies were satisfied. Still, he didn’t touch Diana like he yearned to. Max clearly had no such reservations because she easily placed her hand over Ryker’s, linking their fingers and bringing their hands down by her side.
She smiled at him, her love and devotion plain to see to all who bothered to look. And a lot of people bothered if the whispers were any indication. Committed relationships between a liege and their paladin were still strictly taboo within the general populace. The IDC had gasped and exclaimed about it at first but had then adopted a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy where Max was concerned. The same had also been the case with Max binding them all and their very odd sleeve-length heraldries.
Too easy, he thought, shaking his head. Lark had been right; it had all been too easy. And now they knew why. Garrett had an ulterior motive, a secret agenda for keeping Max happy and close. The thought had his guts twisting. As did the warm look Garrett threw Max right at that moment.
“A member of the council has requested this emergency meeting today. And as it was seconded by another member,” he tipped his head in Mordecai’s direction, “we are all more than willing to interrupt our busy schedules to be here.”
Darius gritted his teeth; had the man always been so passive aggressive? Had he and the others been oblivious? Or was Garrett’s mocking attitude new? How could they have been so blind, so stupid?
“Stop it, Darius. He fooled all of us,” Max’s reproach was soft but firm. “I mean, fuck! I can see into someone’s soul and I didn’t have an inkling.”
“That’s because you didn’t look – didn’t know to look,” Cali pointed out. “None of us did. Why would we suspect the man who has been running our society for a thousand years?”
The question was rhetorical on Cali’s part, but Darius still felt the self-flagellation throughout the Order link. They all felt guilty about their ignorance and likely would until the day they died. Who knew how much damage this one man had done to their species?
“Let’s find out, shall we?” Max asked, a second before she stood and narrowed her oceanic eyes on the man in question.
“Subtle, Max. Tread carefully, remember?” Darius quickly reminded his liege before she could open her mouth.
“Chill, Dare. I got this,” Max assured him, and he barely managed to suppress his groan.
Max cocked her head to one side, “Garrett, how long have you been plotting to destroy your own species and therefore, the whole world?”
Darius simply let his chin drop to his chest as the whole room erupted.