Chapter Six
Liria
Liria leaned back in her chair and ran a hand over her face.
Her husband of less than a day sat beside her, looking imposing despite his lack of wings.
Thaxvarien had lost his Aethari wings when he was taken captive by the same Nethren who had taken Liria's sister.
But the Source of Magic and the Source of Technology had both blessed Thax and given him back flight, if not wings.
Daylight was fading. The converged lamps were already on, hanging from the tent's crossbeam above them.
Thax and Liria should have been in bed, celebrating their destiny bond, their marriage, and the triumphant completion of the Star's Kiss ritual.
They were now bonded so deeply that no Aethari would ever think to dispute their relationship.
They were destra and destru—the first racially mixed couple with a destiny bond.
Thax even bore a shimmering blue star over his heart to identify him as a star-bound destru.
The mark was in his skin, placed there by the Source of Magic, and the color was unique, representing Liria.
She glanced at the Speaker of Icara, Thaxvarien's father.
Only a few hours ago, he had led the ritual of the Star's Kiss that bound Thax and Liria beyond this life and into the next.
Then, during the celebration that followed, her twin sister, Lena, had been taken by that blond bastard of a Nethren—a man Liria had visions of.
She knew he'd taken Lena by mistake. Liria had been his target, and that made her stomach twist. Gentle Lena was in the hands of that monster because of Liria.
They would get her back. As an ex-chief who had been stationed at Fortress 6, Liria knew of a hidden passage into the fortress.
Or rather, out of. It was an escape route, made for emergencies, but only chiefs and above knew of its existence.
Because of that secrecy, or maybe because of the suddenness of the Nethren attack, no one but Laroc and Rinna had made it out of the fortress, and even they hadn't used the tunnel.
The problem was, the fucking Nethren bastards had found the controls for the fortress ward.
The damn thing had never been used, not once during Liria's service.
It, like the escape tunnel, was meant for emergencies.
She'd forgotten it even existed and hadn't even noticed it until after she'd met General Caden and made her request to be included in the siege.
In her defense, the thing was transparent, only noticeable by the shimmer of displacement it created in the air.
Now, Liria sat in General Caden's tent, front and center in the Paradefense encampment that spread out before Fortress 6.
The general had invited Thax, his father, Evellor, Rinna, Laroc, Liria's father, and Liria to join him to discuss a plan to surpass the ward and enter the fortress.
The invitation had only been made because Liria declared that she knew how to get into the fortress and wouldn't share that information unless she was assured a spot in the infiltration team.
Liria had been prepared to argue over how big the team was and who would be on it.
She had not been prepared to face a magical boundary that she had no idea how to circumvent.
With the ward up, the secret escape passage was sealed.
The ward was made to enclose the entire fortress in a bubble that went through earth and air. It prevented any mining attacks.
“So, we have nothing,” General Caden, a Medean with a lot of gold on his uniform, declared.
“Not exactly, General.” Rinna, seated between Liria's father and Private Larocran Ader, leaned forward and peered at the map of the fortress. “I know where the ward tower is. It's this one.” She pointed at a tower that emerged from the center of the main building.
“We assumed it was that one.” The general grimaced. “It would have to be in a central position to cast the ward. That doesn't help us.”
“It does if you know where the convergence is and what frequency it uses.” Chief Rinna Jass grinned.
“I fail to see how that helps.”
Rinna blinked and then recovered. “I'm sorry, General. I forget that not everyone has my training. I've converged ward towers. I know their weaknesses. And I know this specific ward tower very well.”
“Now you have my attention.” The general leaned forward. “Can you dismantle it?”
“It will take time, but yes. Wards are made by vibrating molecules in the air. Frequency is measured by the number of oscillations per second. Each cycle is called a hertz—”
“Great Source, get on with it, Chief Jass!” General Caden snarled.
“I was almost finished, General.” Rinna grimaced and shot Liria a look that clearly said, “Men.”
The general motioned for her to continue.
“I know the frequency of the tower ward,” Rinna said. “I just need to converge a machine to mimic that frequency and magnify it. My magnified frequency will drown out the tower's and shut down the ward.”
“How long will that take?”
Rinna shrugged. “It's converging. It takes as long as it takes. And I'll need equipment.”
“You'll have it. Whatever you need.” The general nodded to his assistant, and the man hurried over to Rinna, pulling out a small notebook and pen. “Meanwhile, we hold the line.”
“What about Lena?” Yaru Drask, Liria's father, demanded.
“I can't do anything until that ward is down, sir. I'm sorry. Believe me. I want to get in there and drive these bastards back into the ground where they belong. The magic of Para depends on it.”
“As I said, General Caden, it does not.” Thax glanced at his father before continuing. “Magic will survive. But I'm still going to kill the monster who took my destra's sister.”
Liria took her destru's hand and squeezed it. Not if I get to him first, darling. The blond bastard is going to wish he'd never laid eyes on my sister.