Three Broken Kingdoms-Book 1 of the Lost Continent (Completed)

Chapter Twenty-Three: Hope & Betrayal

Nala's Point of View

They had intercepted a message for the other rebellion and sent her there to read it. It was coded, and they were hoping that she might be able to share some insight. Apparently, it was a code from a while ago, long out of use but might have been known by her at some point.

They had theorised it had been sent by the elves, which was ridiculous. How would they know a code from four years ago? Well, there were multiple ways for them to know, but why would they bother?

Nala entered the seemingly abandoned building that was the headquarters of Tarua Teris. It was the place where the chancellor and his court had hidden thirty years ago when the city namesake of the rebels fell. She nodded at the fellow insurgents she spotted in the buildings. She had saved many from prison wagons, former members of the other rebellion. Apparently they couldn't translate the message, which wasn't surprising. They were almost exclusively Northern and Southern rebels, no message-bearing Midlands amongst them. She had been Midlands though.

"Chancellor," she said as she went to see the familiar man. His time as a rebel had wearied him: he looked ten years older than he was, with scars across his face, one eye blinded and the other requiring glasses.

"Nala," he smiled. "A relief to see you survived the failed rescue." A relief to find any of them retuned from missions these days.

"You hid the truth about my nephew from me." No accusation, no anger. Just the plain fact, as it had always been with the chancellor.

"I did," he replied. "I was afraid of what it would do to you. Afraid of you becoming distracted with vengeance, or mercy." The plain, simple, harsh truth. Neither vengeance nor mercy was allowed. Only justice.

As Tarua Teris had learned over two decades, there could be no exceptions. No favouritism. They did what was best for the rebellion, not for the rebels. Nala nodded. She could have expected nothing more.

"He saved me." She told the chancellor. "He is the reason I came back from the failed mission."

"Did he?" The chancellor asked. "Perhaps he does have potential after all."

"Where is the message?" She asked him. He led her towards it and she recognised the code immediately.

"Can you translate it?" He asked hopefully.

"Yes." Nala replied, and took a quill, ink and paper. When she had finished the first lines, she was hardly breathing. The chancellor, reading the translation over her shoulder, froze.

"My nephew is not a traitor," she muttered to herself. "My nephew is not a traitor." Not working for a third rebellion at all, but for a whole other kingdom.

"This is our opportunity," the chancellor said excitedly. "Tell everyone! Send the messages far and wide. Pass the valkyries' message onto the other rebellion. It is time."

"It is time," Nala smiled at his side. "And despite what the valkyries must surely believe, we will not be puppets."

"Never," the chancellor vowed. "We will not just cut off the supply trains, my dear. We will destroy them so completely not the Empress feels the explosions we detonate from her perfect Marble Palace."

Of course, they had to remember that victory was far from close. The valkyries and elves would always create pressure that a new nation could crumble from. And that was just if cutting off supplies could win them the war, if cutting off supplies was possible. But it was a whole lot more than they had had for a long while now, causing trouble and paying for it with lives.

This was the beloved firelight to guide their way, the light at the end of the tunnel. She just had to hold onto it.

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