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Vino exhaled through his nose. "I don't think there'll be nothing," said Vino, "but if I'm wrong, then, well. At least I won't have to listen you saying 'I told you so.'"

Linus just shook his head. He couldn't understand how Vino could be so casual about it.

Though, at the same time, a small part of him had to admire the man, too. All these years, Vino had told him over and over again that he believed in an afterlife. Linus had never entirely thought that he was serious. He'd always sort of suspected that Vino might've just been posturing. Trying to convince himself as much as Linus.

But listening to him now?

Linus couldn't think that way anymore. Vino was really putting his money where his mouth was.


Chapter Two Hundred Sixty-Seven: 'Thy strongest bonds...'
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Warrenhold hadn't felt this empty in a while. With so many of the Rainlords having ventured off to join the fight in Vantalay, there was a certain tension in the air that Hector couldn't quite describe.

Maybe it was just him, though. The remaining Rainlords didn't let any nervousness show. Even with most of their warriors away, they managed to look quite calm and collected, like it was just business as usual.

But it wasn't, of course. No one knew that better than Hector.

The fight could come at any time, and more than ever, he wanted to be ready. The reconstruction effort had shifted, partly because half or more of their helpers had gone off to fight and partly because Hector felt that there were new architectural priorities to focus on.

Hector had been making more shields again. The storage room full of Amir-9 prototypes was a good start, but he needed more. He intended to line the whole castle with them--or at least the important choke points, if nothing else.