Greg was giving a speech, he used the pointer as a sword, like a general drawing the lines for war. 

“And we will use the king as bait.”

“I am not sure I like your plan”, Elias interrupted. 

Greg looked at him as if he just now realised there were others in the room, listening to him. He brushed Elias off with a shake of his head.

“That’s the best part of it all. We will not have to fight the queen. She will come to us and by free will enter the trap.”

Sasha mused, it was a real good plan they had come up with. The queen was arrogant enough to not even consider them being able to hold her in a trap. They would fight her using the king. It felt poetic. 

Greg continued to present the details of the plan, ensuring everyone knew exactly what to do, and when. 

“We will need to get the pigs delivered in advance. You knew a farmer that could transport them discreetly Isaak?”

“He will transport them from one farm to another. It is not the first time he takes a break on the journey for a day or two in the city. He likes the pints. The halting-place where he uses to let them room around when he is drinking is perfectly located.”

“If we have them there three days in advance. We will need at least twenty”, Greg grimaced. “You’re men up to the sacrificing part?”

“Don’t you worry about it”, Isaak said, “And the farmer is already paid. He will definitely be stone drunken.”

“We have prepared a slow-burning brew that will drain the king”, Greg said. “For authenticity, we have done what we can to make it strong enough to at least have a good shot at killing him.”

“With enough time he will die”, one of Greg's older colleagues stated. “It will be authentic.”

Sasha eyed the grey man. He was short, the silent type, and she had never talked with him before. His statement intrigued her. Had she searched so long for an orb in vain? Greg eyed the man as well, a slight surprise seen in his eyes before he nodded. 

“Well, it needs to frighten the queen. She will not part with her magic by free will”, Greg coughed. “She is, by all means, a cold-hearted bitch.”

“I don’t like it”, Elias said. “What if you make a mistake?”

Greg shrugged. Isaak rolled his eyes and Sasha sighed. She looked towards Ivy, but she pretended not to have heard Elias. 

“No one else doubts in the plan”, Sasha pointed out. “It will work”, she added more gently. Some of Isaak's men nodded, trying to convince Elias about the plan. Elias rose from the chair, looking around in the room at Greg's and Isaak's people. His eyes were shining bright yellow, his knuckles white. 

“No one else actually care about them”, Elias spitted. He walked forward and took Sasha in the arm. “Come on princess. We need to talk, alone.”

He was not gentle, the anger of her betrayal obviously still burning in his veins. Sasha kept back the reply she wanted to toss at him, and forced herself to not wriggle out of his hold but instead following him out of the room with her head kept high.

When they were out of the room she freed herself, looking angrily at him, but kept the pace along his side. Elias was leaving the university, heading towards the forest. Well, they needed to talk, so why not now.

“Both you and I know what you had in plan for that orb Sasha”, Elias said eventually stopping when there was no longer risk of them being overheard, there was an edge to his voice. “We need to come up with another plan. I am not going to be fooled by you again.” 

Sasha leaned back towards a tree, looking around and feeling the calmness of the forest. It was soothing, a suitable surrounding for Elias's hurtful words. She could almost feel the ghosts in the ground. They would wake up, emerging from the dense moss. And by the clarity of their gift, she knew she had chosen the right path, that the sacrifice she would do would be the only solution. She smiled at Elias. He stomped around, fists tight. 

“I don’t like Greg's plan, Sasha. We could just visit mother. With the death queen's mark on you, she will know what the price is.”

“And you think she will part freely with her magic? Are you sure she will choose your life over it?” Sasha laughed bitterly. 

She saw Elias open his mouth, and then shut it again. He looked puzzled as if something was just out of reach. 

“It is me that bears the mark Elias, she will not believe your life is in jeopardy and I promise you that she will not choose to save me.”

“The king tried to kill you”, Elias massaged his temples, trying to get the fog in his brain to clear. “I can't remember what happened next.” He shook his head. “The queen will make the sacrifice, I know for sure that if we do not succeed I will die. When I merged with the orb I felt the death queens will. I have no doubt.”

He shuddered and Sasha stepped closer. She wanted to hug him, but his body stiffed and she froze on the spot.

“You know she will not lift a finger for me.”

Elias looked like he wanted to disagree, but he said nothing. Whatever the queen had done to his memory, he still knew that she would protect the king and her magic over her daughter. 

“Know this, I have no magic left Elias. Neither the king nor the queen is risking their life”, she pleaded with him. They needed his help. He had to take reason. “There will be no risk for either of them. I am a weak witch once again.”

Elias looked at her as if trying to dig the truth out of her, or desperately trying to remember the missing piece of the puzzle. Then he seemed to relax, taking her hand in his. 

He let his fingers run along the veins. 

“I cleaned the orb, and it cost me, Elias, I have no longer any of her magic, I lost the elemental. I did it because of you.” She wanted him to replicate her feelings, but he said nothing, his fingers just softly brushing her hand. “You need to help us, your life depends on it.”

“It's true”, Elias admitted, “I can feel it. You are purer now.”

Sasha sighed. She did not need his heart, she needed his cooperation.

“I will not hold back against her, but you know as well as I do that without the orb, and without her magic, I can not kill any of them. You have nothing to fear.”

“But with Greg's help, the old man almost confirmed they actually could kill the king.”

“Have some faith in my Elias”, Sasha asked.  

“Why should I Sasha?” His eyes were slit of yellow. She wanted to pet him, to stroke his chin, but she stood still, the coldness in his voice hurting her. “I need you Sasha, and I want you, but I am not foolish enough to trust you.”

Isaak

He had left her in the forest, briskly walking away towards the university again. Sasha sat down on the moss. Elias remembered her betrayal, but not his own, and there was nothing she would do about it. She was sure her mother could clean the foul magic of the queen, but why bother? Elias would come around and help them, and then. Well, then it wouldn’t matter what he thought. Maybe the queens curse was a blessing in disguise. 

The king would be free, and the queen would get her punishment. Maybe then Elias would remember how dearly he had missed his father?

“You are not coming back?” 

“Denise”, Sasha nodded. “No, I have no intention to smoothen it out. Isaak will see to that Elias comes around.”

“Are you sure?” 

The pink dragon twirled around on the spot, and then laid down beside her.

“He trust Isaak with his life, I do not need to convince him”, she said and stroke the dragons scales. Denise purred slightly and Sasha smiled. She liked sitting her, listening to the sounds, looking at the birds. “Its a good life not having to care about politics.”

Denise chuckled. 

“It is”, she agreed. “But you have the dragon in you. We can enjoy the fine moments, the stillness, but eventually.”

“Yeah”, Sasha said, “eventually we would need to go kill something.”

“That’s my assassin”, Denise chuckled. “I haven’t roasted a magician for a while. Care to go on a quest with me?”

“As much as I like hunting the bad people, today I just want to rest”, Sasha said.

Denise nuzzled closer, and the pair of them looked at the tree creeper searching for food on the birch stem, none of them feeling the urge to catch it today.