Galaxy of Hyperion: Mystic Heir

Chapter Thirty-Nine: Improvised Alliance

After Valdez left, the area was heavy and eerily silent for a few long moments. Everyone was fully aware of how awful of an idea it was to tempt Valdez when he got to be this way, so there weren't even any attempts to talk him down once he had set his mind on the goal at hand. Besides, he most certainly had a point in the fact that they knew what had to be done. The next big step would simply be putting it into motion for better or worse. 

"I'm glad that we all understand each other," Tuila declared with a sigh. "Zelda, you know how to work with teleportation magic. I'm sure that you'll be able to take both yourself and Jay to the area outside of the battlefield and then pop up and kill Alba for us. Even if you can't kill them, you need to do what you can to injure them. That's what matters most right now, and I have every confidence that you can do this as long as you both put your minds to it. You can work well on your own, and your power will undoubtedly only increase together. I'm wishing you both luck. For the time being, we all have to focus on the defense of the castle, so I only have one request of you both... Don't muck this up."

Nobody had the chance to say anything before Tuila had left the room, and her departure clearly marked the meeting as over. It had been a brief encounter, but that was seemingly all that they needed. The Skylian Mages all looked to one another, and Jay's eyes made it clear that she was silently pleading for help in the wake of this unfortunate decision. She knew that there was no way to worm her way out of this, but she was going to be upset about it regardless, it seemed. After all, this was the last thing that she ever could have wanted in terms of a fighting partner. 

Tavi gave one last glance over his shoulder to Zelda before leaving the room with Liathine. Zelda watched him with a detached glare even though it wasn't specifically targeted at him or his actions to push her to the forefront of attention during the meeting. The Skylian Mages wound up leaving when Jubilee started to nudge them out, though Arian and Ronan spared Jay glances of pity before they were pulled back to their regular positions to prepare for the next part of the battle to come. 

Jay forced herself to meet Zelda's eyes for the first time since the meeting had begun, doing her best to keep her expression as even as possible even though it felt like she was screaming on the inside. Being petty wasn't going to help anyone, and it was the last thing that either one of them could afford given the circumstances. Tuila was right in saying that there were others in the castle counting on them, and the same applied to what Valdez had communicated. They had no choice but to follow through with this even though it was clear that they wanted nothing more than to protest. 

"Let's get this over with," Jay muttered under her breath. She was trying her best to not seem too spiteful, but she knew that she wasn't succeeding. Being paired together for this mission was the start of being rolled down a slippery slope, and Jay was fully aware of it. Being around Zelda for this one important series of events was going to mean that they had a reason to speak from that point forwards. Zelda would undoubtedly approach her to ask about the tension that had been hanging in the air between them. Even if Zelda knew the cause, there was no longer a way for them to run away from the truth because they didn't want to confront the awkward heaviness that thrived when they were in the same room. There would always be another mission, after all, and they had to be ready for it as soon as possible. 

"Alright," Zelda murmured, though her tone was much more neutral than Jay's had been a few moments prior. She reached out with one hand, ready to take Jay's fingers between her own. For a long moment, Jay just stared at Zelda's upturned palm, wishing that there would be some way for her to not follow through with this. Jay liked to think that she was strong when it came to keeping her emotions out of important matters, almost to the point that it was a fault like it had been when she first met the Skylian Mages, but this was one time where her weaknesses were starting to show. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't just leave the past in the past as far as Zelda's actions were concerned, and even if everyone said that it was understandable, Jay knew that she couldn't hold onto this forever. It wasn't a matter of if her opinions were justified or not; they were always in danger because of the nature of their work, and being petty and irritated with one another was only going to complicate matters in a way that they simply couldn't afford.