Loki, however, had changed to a new Armani suit, which must have been a strain, snapping his fingers and all. At least he did not have the horns that sprouted from each side of his head when he went into full god mode.
Quinn yanked his sarcastic inner bastard back under control. Giving in to the frustration boiling his blood right now would help no one.
His people, Daegan included, depended on what he said next. This was not the time to go to war with a group of gods.
Justitia moved her head to face him though a blindfold covered her eyes. He often wondered if she ever got tired of holding those scales of justice and put them down to take a break. Probably not.
Hermes plucked away on his lyre. He usually plucked out a droll Muzak-like selection of tunes, but right now it sounded more like a riff from a popular band’s song about how the mighty gods smashed their adversaries into kindling.
So nice to have a soundtrack to impending murder.
Loki tossed a sparkling blue ball up and down from one hand. Light glittered in its trail. “Where is your dragon king?”
Quinn took a deep breath, ready to tackle round two with this bunch. “Tzader just informed me a European military force has captured Daegan.”
Loki caught the ball and closed his fingers tight until it poofed out of existence. “Someone captured his dragon?”
Quinn heard equal parts disbelief and excitement in Loki’s voice. “Tzader is on his way to find out if the force holding him is an ally of the United States. If so, he’ll work through diplomatic channels to have Daegan returned. I seriously doubt anyone captured Daegan’s dragon, definitely not humans.”
Tiptoeing around not lying in this place could be deadly if Quinn made a verbal misstep.
Saying he seriously doubted something was not the same as claiming his statement to be truth, sparing Quinn from an immediate consequence here. He added, “Knowing Daegan, he went along with whomever has him to keep from harming humans or outing his dragon. Tzader believes Daegan might be somewhere he can’t hear us call telepathically and it will only be a matter of time before he’s released. In spite of all that has happened, Daegan and every Belador is doing their level best to keep from exposing supernaturals any more than we are at this moment with the humans.”
Turning to Justitia and Hermes, Loki whispered something.
Quinn assessed Loki’s reaction to the news as confusing. Did the trickster god think to take advantage of Daegan being out of pocket?
Loki finished speaking with the other two and turned to face Quinn.
Justitia said nothing.
Hermes nodded and lowered his lyre. He cleared his throat and spoke in an angelic voice created for singing. “While the news of Daegan’s capture is unexpected, we still must deal with the prisoners.”
A nerve twitched beneath Quinn’s eye. He reminded himself that he was the North American Maistir over the largest supernatural force in the world. He had to restrain his anger and continue in a tactful voice.
“As soon as Daegan is free, I will bring him here immediately. In fact, our dragon king will want to address all of you himself. In the meantime, I think it only fair to stay any execution plans you have for our people in your holding cells as that would send the wrong message to your allies.”
Hermes never acted emboldened, but Loki must have said something to get the musician jazzed up. “We are not babysitters.”
Screw manners.
Quinn stepped forward, muscles tensing under his badly-rumpled suit. “No, you are gods and goddesses, who supposedly want to keep the human world intact. You have the ability to preserve life just as easily as end it. Not one of those Beladors locked up below VIPER did anything to incur your wrath or a death penalty. They were harmed while trying to protect the human world, which is where your followers live. You want followers, right? Then help us save this world.”
Loki interjected, “We take offense at your tone, Belador.”
Did Loki think calling Quinn a Belador instead of Maistir was an insult?
Hardly. He would always be a Belador first.
Squaring his shoulders, Quinn said, “I’m surprised you find my words offensive when I intended them as offering you the chance to realize we all have a common goal.” He was too damned tired and emotionally spent to verbally battle with any grace when speaking to immortals willing to end a life with so little thought.
He pushed power into his voice. “Daegan is putting himself at risk to protect all of us. Even you three and the other Tribunal deities. Daegan understands balance. He believes we will all need to work together to rid this world of Imortiks to protect the humans and supernaturals.”
Jaws dropped on all three perched on the lofty dais.
None of them considered themselves to be at risk.
Quinn had hit the point of no return, which happened when trying to have a reasonable conversation with three egotistical deities. “You’ll understand if my words have an edge. I am not immortal. I need at least an hour, maybe two, of rest every three days and food, neither of which I’ve had for some time now. Our teams need me present to help them stop Imortiks, plus protect supernaturals from humans out to kill anything that appears strange. Standing here takes me away from my duties. But I will stand here and use my last breath if that’s what it requires to get you to realize allying with Daegan and the Beladors is a huge benefit to everyone, including you. We will find a way to stop the Imortiks and put them back behind the death wall, or die trying. What other VIPER ally is offering as much?”
Justitia didn’t smile, but her face softened with what might be considered amusement. “What benefit? As you said, we are immortal.”
Quinn smiled, too, but not a happy one. His face would probably send children screaming at the moment.
All hint of humor vanished from Justitia’s face. Blindfold or not, she missed nothing.
“You don’t see a benefit?” Quinn asked in a chiding tone heavy with sarcasm. His shoulders bunched with the need to let out the anger tearing him up. He was good and fed up. “From what I understand, if an Imortik is powerful enough, he or she can take over any being. That’s why deities and dragon families came together long ago to stop the Imortiks. They saw the wisdom in joining forces for a greater good.”
Holding a smug expression, Loki shrugged. “I will admit we want those disgusting things out of this world and locked away permanently, but do not try to scare us with a threat to our existence.”
Answering in an equally smug tone, Quinn said, “And here I thought you might realize everyone has a weak spot. I had hoped you’d prefer to continue as the top of the food chain.”
When frowns puckered their foreheads, Quinn took advantage of his opening. “Let me put this in relevant terms. Did you not lose a grimoire volume from the VIPER vault? And to enter that vault doesn’t a being have to possess the ability to teleport? If that is the case, then let’s assume an Imortik entered the vault and is not one of your allies. If so, it would mean an Imortik overtook a body of someone capable of teleportation. The bottom line is that such an Imortik with that ability could enter this realm and other realms, which could be a threat to you as well, correct?”
Loki’s expression soured.
Hermes stared with a dumbfounded look.
Justitia’s lips twisted with a touch of temper.
Truth had a way of putting everyone on the same page. Quinn believed in the saying that misery loved company. He wanted every one of these three to feel his pain and that of all his people.