Chapter 17
"How is that possible?" Fiyero asked.
"She is the daughter of two worlds. Only she can communicate with the dragon," Altan told them.
"So Zixi was right. A dragon still exists," King Tahir couldn't believe it.
"It would seem. I cannot bring her out of it. Only the dragon or Elphaba can end what has begun. Since we have proof of a dragon, I may suggest that the lower town start the evacuation process. The weather has not gotten better but having the civilians caught outside the palace walls will be dangerous," Altan said.
"Get Lieutenant Ash. Tell him that the evacuation of the lower town must begin immediately," Queen Ayla told the solder nearby. He quickly nodded and rushed off to find the Lieutenant.
"Fiyero, we must begin to prepare the troops and warn Glinda," Tahir said.
"Yes we must," the Prince agreed but he knew that he must leave his wife to do both tasks.
"I will watch over her, my Prince," Kelebeck let him know.
"Thank you," he smiled at the young Griffin before standing from his seat. He leaned over and kissed Elphaba on the temple before moving toward his parents. They left the infirmary and Altan followed, offering his help in any way that he could. Doctor Magi patted Kelebeck on the shoulder and then returned to his other patients.
Glinda paced back and forth in her office. The Council had been upset that they had been infiltrated and demanded that the Quadlings be held responsible for the betrayal. The blonde had reassured them that the correct people would be held responsible. Captain Khalil had instructed the Gale Force troops located in Quadling country to conduct an investigation and they had the authority to arrest anyone found to have been helping Lake. They were then told to bring them to the Emerald City for trial.
"You're going to wear a hole in the floor," Lieutenant Balfour was standing in the open doorway.
"We've had a spy in our midst for a long time. At first, I figured there might be a Wizard sympathizer, lurking nearby, but I had no idea that they would be for some threat outside of Oz," the blonde said.
"Well you can't blame yourself. We've been a tad busy. Cleaning up the Wizard's mess and all," Balfour moved into the room, closing the door behind him. He wrapped his arms around the petite woman and pulled her close.
"The people who still believe in the Wizard are waiting for an opportunity to point out my weaknesses," she reminded him.
"Then you remind them that Lake was on the Quadling Council for ten years before he started working for this Council," he reminded her.
"I may be able to blame them for that but we don't need to be upsetting our allies in a time like this," the blonde said.
"Speaking of which, Khalil has troops gathered for departure to the Vinkus," Balfour told her.
"Good. We will leave as soon as possible. There is no way to tell when the enemy will rear its ugly head," Glinda frowned. That's when they heard a shout from the hallway. The two quickly opened the door and were met by Basheer.
"A message from the Vinkus!" He announced.
To Be Continued…