I don't strike you as a nice guy? The dunalino murmured, amusement in his voice. Rehoboam only smiled faintly, and said nothing. He wasn't entirely sure what to make of Psychedelic, but he found it hard to believe that a brother he'd never met would take it upon himself to personally free him from Nyimara's clutches. Rehoboam had learned the hard way that altruism and higher morals were rare finds in the Lagoon, especially for long-term residents. It was every man (and woman) for themselves here, no matter how hard they had all tried to change it.
You shouldn't have been left there, Psych was saying, and Rehoboam would have agreed in the beginning, before Rhaenys. He'd tried to free himself at first, but his heart hadn't been in it. It was bad enough learning that Celestine was gone and out of his reach, but to then go and abandon the one child he might have any shot at raising? Criminal.
"It was personal." Rehoboam said simply with the equivalent of a shrug. Nyimara had wanted him not only because of his connection to Solomon, but also because of the way he'd interceded when she'd tried to steal Shenzi. The fact that he was a ranked member of the Lagoon had only been a bonus for her.
And of course, he and Frey - the Lagoon's General - had held a grudge against each other for years now, which was why, when Nyimara came for him, there was no one else to defend him except for Orphiel, a brand new recruit. Frey had stayed silent. Just as he'd stayed silent when Temblor came for Celestine, who was known as Rehoboam's companion. If it were not for the fact that Frey had finally stepped in to protect Azizi, Reh might have believed him to be gone from the islands entirely.
Learning that Psychedelic had been born here shifted a few things into perspective and colored the stallion's next words with the damning brush of history. For as long as Rehoboam had been alive, the Lagoon had been reviled as the default island villains. The ones who stole, plundered, raided and destroyed herds for the sake of their pleasures. To know that Psychedelic had presumably been raised in a time where there were few rules for the Lagoon and fewer limitations to curb their indulgences raised alarm bells in the back of Rehoboam's mind.
On the surface, Psych's words were not that bad, but when viewed with this context, Reh felt a chill trickle down his spine.
What then? Selfishly, he wanted his freedom back. It would be enough power for him to free Celestine and then he could tuck his tail and go home, or to the Arch and raise their child safely among his other family. Perhaps even enough of an excuse to target Nyimara until he was able to rescue Rhaenys too, as well as enough political freedom to even search the islands for Titania and Shenzi and Azizi.
Could he stomach the loss of honor that would come with it?
"That depends," he said evenly, despite the way his heart hammered in his chest.
"Restore me to full member so I can fetch my mare and child the Lagoon also failed to protect and I won't cause any trouble for your plans."
A betrayal of Rade and Tyr and all of the change he had once sought to bring to the islands, but a necessary one, he thought. It wasn't as if they had managed much change at all anyway, apart from turning the "brotherhood" into a petty popularity contest.
"I'd even consider giving you my support," he began, the words ashen on his tongue,
"if you agree to let me leave with them once I have them back." By itself, Rehoboam's support probably wasn't worth much. He'd been captive for months and had a few enemies even within the Lagoon itself... but his opinion wasn't worthless. There were still some here, softer-hearted men like Orphiel and Vadim and Jabari, that would listen to his testimony. And with them on his side, there were few that could stop Psychedelic.