“I have not,” I protested as Verin pulled out a chair for me then sat on my left; again, the side furthest away from the Witches. Darc took the chair on my right. “King Verin is here because a seer predicted that we'd need him.”
“I'm sure you will.” Glinda chuckled.
Vivian gave her a chilling look; as the Leader of Water, she was exceptional at it.
Odin cleared his throat. “Elaria, tell us about Slate and Gargo.”
“We've concluded that Gargo must have snuck into Slate while he was unconscious at the battle,” I explained. “He's been squatting inside Slate like a frog, gaining strength and waiting for the right time to jump up and make himself known.”
“So, he's been in Slate for a few months now,” Osamu mused. “Is Slate still there? I mean; do you know if any of the real Slate is left?”
“He's there,” I said with absolute certainty. “He helped me escape, remember?”
“True,” Odin agreed. “And Slate is strong-willed; he'll fight. That will help.”
“Do you have a plan to free him?” Vivian asked us. “I assume the Jinn were of no use since it's not a Jinni inside Slate.”
“No, the Jinn won't be helping us further, but we do have a plan. In fact, we were about to head to the Zone when you called,” I confessed. “I'm sorry we didn't return. By the time we were finished speaking with the Jinn Royals, we were exhausted and things kept snowballing from there. Still, that's no excuse for rudeness when you've been working to help us.”
“It's all right, Elaria.” Vivian held up her hand. “We've been distracted too. If we'd made any headway, we would have contacted you sooner.”
“Did you?” I asked. “Make any headway, that is?”
The Leaders exchanged grim looks.
“Well?” Darcraxis prompted.
“We believe we have a way to cast the spell,” Odin reported. “However, it will be excruciating for you, Elaria.”
I let out a long breath. “I can deal with pain. I have been.”
“When Odin says 'excruciating,' he means that you will wish for death,” Glinda said gently. “In order to get to the RS, we will have to seek her out and no matter what she says now, she will hide from us.”
“Our magic will metaphysically tear through you to find every speck of the Rooster Spell,” Osamu said blandly. “Although it will not be a physical tearing, it will feel as if it is.”
“Will it be worse than being burned alive?” I countered.
“Yes,” Osamu said instantly.
“No,” Darc declared just as quickly.
“Darc,” I said gently.
“No, my fire. I won't allow it. You've been tortured enough.”
“That's sweet; that you think you can stop me,” I teased him.
“Will she survive?” Torin whispered the question.
“It's likely,” Odin said as brightly as he could; which, for a stoic man with one eye, wasn't all that upbeat.
“Translation; there's a chance that she won't,” Gage's voice was just slightly stronger than Torin's.
“Yes; it's less likely but still very possible,” Osamu answered immediately. “However, if we're successful, the RS will cease to grow. You will never have to deal with this again.”
“When you say that you have to find every speck of the spell... ?” I trailed off.
“It may take hours,” Vivian clarified. “Once we start, the spell will likely fight us.”
I will try not to, but she's probably right, the new, gruff voice of the RS said, reminding me of other things.
I relayed what RS said then added, “And, you should probably know that she's not entirely herself anymore.”
“Go on,” Odin demanded.
“She's been altering herself so she could accept lust as emergency fuel. It's made her start to regress. She's not changed completely but one more incident will do it.”
“Then we need to act now,” Odin concluded.
“No, she needs Slate,” Glinda insisted. “They should free him first and bring him back to us.”
“It will go easier on you with all of your lovers here, Elaria,” Vivian explained. “You'll need to draw on their power to sustain yourself.”
“We can't wait for Slate,” Odin argued. “We've got a God and some very powerful Beneathers; they'll be enough. They will have to be.”
“You want to do this now?” I whispered, my voice catching.
“You don't have to do this at all, my fire,” Darc insisted. “We can find another way.”
I stared at my first love; the God who had built worlds with me and sacrificed his pride just to be with me again. I couldn't fail him now. I shifted my stare to my other men and felt stronger just from that glance. I wouldn't fail any of them. I'd endure so we could.
“We'll be stronger when it's done,” I said decisively. “Then we won't have to worry about the RS acting up when we free Slate.”
Darc hung his head as his jaw clenched.
I took his hand. “Don't worry, my darkness; I've survived betrayal, death, and separation from you. I'll survive this too.”
“If you don't, I'll scour the realms until I find you again and then I'll never let you leave my side.”
“Fair enough.”
Chapter Forty-Eight
I laid awkwardly on a table in the center of a circle of my husbands and the Witch Leaders. Verin stood off to the side, a silent and stoic observer. I had told him that he didn't need to be there, but he'd only grunted and followed us in. I think it was a “fuck off” grunt but I took it for the expression of concern I knew it was. The worktable serving as my bed had been made moderately comfortable by the addition of a padded mat and a pillow but if things went as planned, those comforts wouldn't make a difference.
“We'll need all of you to lay your hands on Elaria,” Vivian said to my men.
“And by that, she means that you'll need to hold her down when she struggles,” Osamu's honesty was getting on my nerves. “And prepare yourselves for a lot of screaming.”
My men exchanged grim looks before they placed their strong hands on me,
