“You want me to stay?”
Rethais nodded. “I do.”
“Why?”
“Someone needs to stay. In case things go wrong.”
Elkay frowned, not appreciating the situation he was being forced into. When the High General had come to them and offered peace, Elkay assumed that peace encompassed everyone, or at least all Rethavok. But as far as everyone else was concerned, Elkay wasn’t technically a Rethavok any more. While the rest of the town had regained their connection to the Secret, the hidden telepathic network that connected all Rethans, Elkay found himself… missing out.
Hence why he was being given the job of staying put.
“You do not trust Kenon?”
“Not at all. But I do not want to look untrusting, while at the same time having a backup plan. You are perfect for this task as you…” Rethais paused. “How do I put it? You are not… a conventional Rethan. I do not believe that Kenon even knows you exist. Which means we can stick you here, let you keep the town maintained and have everything ready to go should Kenon go back on his word.”
Elkay clicked his fingers together, hiding his annoyance. “So you want to leave me here on my own. Can I at least bring Teekay here to live with me?”
“Well… of course. Bring whoever you want. Make the town your own. Call it Thre-Elkaya if you wish. My point is that you are our backup plan.”
“You are putting a huge amount of trust on my shoulders. I am but one Rethan.”
Rethais sighed, leaning forward across the table in the dingy little office. “We shall get you assistance. Your Banikan friend will help. I will talk with the other districts and get those to help. It does not need to be perfect. It does not even need to be a functional town. Just do enough so the infrastructure does not collapse.”
“And how long do you expect me to do this for?”
“Six months, most likely. At most, a year. Until everything is as back to normal as I can make it.”
Elkay grunted, his annoyance no longer hidden. “I do not appreciate being left behind.”
“You are the best person for the job.”
“I know. And I do not like that. I am telling you now, I am going to do the bare minimum.”
“The bare minimum is all I want from you. I just need somevok to live here, to keep the claims we have over this territory.”
“And… what if you do not need this place any more? What if I am stuck here?” Elkay asked.
“Then the town will belong to you and you can do do whatever you want with it.”
Elkay grunted some more. While the idea of regaining a tiny amount of the political power he once owned seemed somewhat refreshing, he did not like the idea of being stuck here on his own. That being said, Elkay did have other… interesting thoughts.
“How long before you will allow me to have complete authority over Thre-Hertany?”
“You are only getting the town. The rest of the territories… Those are up for debate.”
“How long before I get complete control of the town then?”
“Like I said, six months. Maybe not even that long, depending on how things go with the… ugh… the High General…” Rethais spat those last few words. There was clearly a bad taste in his mouth from having said those words. “After that, when everything is clear… well, you can do as you please.”
“So I could make this place into a Banikan sanctuary if I so desired?”
“Yes. Although I do not know why you would want that…” Rethais tutted. “I just need a backup plan and frankly you are one of the few beings I can trust with such a task. Can you do this for me? This one, large yet final ask?”
Elkay sighed, giving in to Rethais’s request. “I can. I do not like it, but I will do this for you and our fellow Rethavok. After all, what you said is true, we do not know how things will pan out from here…”
“And afterwards, the town will be yours do to as you wish…” Rethais smiled as he got up. “I am sorry to leave all of this on your shoulders, but… you were always good at the diplomatic side of things. Better than I ever could be…”