The Valkyrie Returns and Slays (Raven)

Chapter 31

Chapter 31

+5

"Ahem... Raven, listen, Brigadier General Grayson's getting old, and, uh, he's not all there anymore. I'll say sorry for him," Lorne said, rubbing the back of his neck with an awkward grin.

Then he even added. "And to make it real clear I'm totally against that stupid idea he had, I'm giving you a promotion."

"As of today, you're the military's fourth general!" he announced, his voice loud and firm.

The place burst into chatters.

The moment Lorne's words landed, it was like a shockwave hit everyone right in the head.

For a second, they thought they'd heard wrong.

The fourth general? Their minds buzzed with disbelief.

Vyrdenia's three current full-on generals were legends-people who'd fought hard

and spilled blood for the country's pride.

And in all of Vyrdenia's history, no one had ever made general before fifty.

But here was Lorne, handing the title to a girl barely past her teens.

He wasn't kidding-he was really doing this.

Next to Raven, Eddie just gaped at her, his jaw hanging loose.

He'd come from Regalhold to "lend a hand," full of himself and ready to play hero.

He'd thought he was the hotshot riding in to save the day-that's how he pictured it.

Yeah, Valhalla master, lieutenant general, whatever, he'd sucked it up and dealt with it.

But now they' were saying she was shooting up to a general rank he could only dream of? His head couldn't handle it.

Someone like that needing his help-he almost cracked up at the thought.

And since he got here, he hadn't done a thing.

telling Raven to run, he'd just stood there,

always been top dog among his buddies, wearing

he felt

done, he-a guy who came to

he was walking into this, he'd have told his grandpa to forget it, even if it meant getting

been scheming about calling her lieutenant general

hadn't really seen the badge Raven tossed in Rex's face earlier-assumed

Raven was a general, just like

military general, just the four words made her mind

would throw a whole welcome bash

1/3

16:22 Mon,

Chapter 31

written Raven off as some nobody from a nowhere town. The ridiculousness of it slammed into

at how she'd acted,

now, she realized she'd played herself-she let out a quiet

out of

a

down to colonel, and Lorne shot back by making her Vyrdenia's

was a straight-up insult, and

as a plank, Rex turned and glared at Raven, his resentment

nineteen-year-old snagging a general's spot was already too much, as far

at that age?

in a position he'd never even let himself

her take that general spot-he

now, as just a lieutenant general, she could still drop to major

she pulled some treason-level stunt or

about Lorne's earlier threat. Throwing all caution out the window, he leaned forward, his

words tumbling over each other before Lorne could shut him down. "Look, every general in

we've stuck a nineteen-year-old girl in that role, they'll think our military's a laughingstock. It could

sharp eyes boring

wasn't just annoyed-it was past

mouth shut, hacked him up,

Rex screwing everything up today, this would've gone smoothly-perfect timing, all lined up. He'd had at least

was toast, and Lorne was mad at himself for letting

stubborn Raven could be. Once she said no, that was that-no changing

was his third go at