Grey Kings Gambit 5

Once we were beyond the populated part of the city, I channeled King’s Gambit. By lightly imbuing the godrune with aether, I could activate it only partially. While it still glowed golden from my spine, it didn’t conjure the blazing crown atop my head—which seemed like a great way to start any number of unwanted rumors about me.

The result was an ability less powerful than what I’d used against Oludari but still allowed me to break my thoughts apart into pieces in a way that wasn’t possible without the godrune. I’d already found this invaluable as I outlined the many layers present in the plan I was attempting to put into place.

Sylvie and Regis followed my thoughts quietly, struggling to keep in tune as I considered my previous conversations, how the attitudes of everyone involved might impact the execution of this plan, and also outlining the conversations to come. There was a cold comfort to being under the effects of King’s Gambit; it was easier to strip away the emotion—all the fear and guilt—and approach the necessary solution objectively and logically.

With my plan still sitting in its box like a jigsaw puzzle divided into many disparate pieces, it was difficult to see it all without the godrune, and so I’d been spending every spare moment with King’s Gambit active.

As we crossed into one of the larger caves on the way to the deep workshops, a flash from Regis dragged all of my threads of thought back into alignment.