Broken Veil (Harbinger #5)(87)

“I’m real, Durrant,” Sera said. The prime minister was still gazing in shock at her disheveled and injured state.

“My lady, you are . . . an answer to prayer,” he said. He gesticulated and turned almost in a full circle. “There is literally not a moment to waste in niceties. Montpensier’s fleet will arrive within the quarter hour. We’re stranded, helpless, and unable to move or flee. Lord Welles, to make matters worse, has commandeered our hurricanes and taken them to the City. Admiral Grant is coming, but it will be impossible for him to arrive in time. My lady, moments ago, I was certain all was lost. And now”—he wagged his head in disbelief—“you are here. Save us, Sera. Lockhaven will not obey anyone else.”

“There’s much to tell you and little time, Durrant,” Sera said, touched by the look of need on his face. “But do not lose hope. Warn the privy council that I’ve returned.”

“How exactly did you return?” he said.

Sera looked at him curiously. “Did you not see her? The woman who brought me here?”

“You are the only one I saw standing in the waters,” he said, shaking his head.

His words bewildered her. There was magic at work that was incomprehensible, but there was no time to wonder at it. She needed to focus her attention on saving her people. “Go, Mr. Durrant. I will deal with our enemies.”

He nodded vigorously, smiling for what was probably the first time since her abduction. “You are here. I’m still in a state of shock. It is so truly good to see you again. We will speak of what happened to you . . . later.”

“Go,” she said, nodding, and he hurried out of the room to go to the privy council.

Sera, exhausted as she was, felt a surge of vigor and reached out and touched the Command Leering that bore the face of Empress Maia. The affinity she felt for her ancestor had grown immeasurably. Part of her felt as if she herself were Maia. Memories that weren’t her own seemed to flicker to life in her mind. How many times had Maia sat in this very room during her war against the kishion of her days? The empress had lost her husband during that war. It pained Sera’s heart to think the same would happen to her.

Are you with me, Empress Maia? Sera thought as she closed her eyes, caressing the Leering’s smooth stone.

She felt a flush of warmth rise in her chest. The Leering activated, and she called forth the view from the eyes of the Leering embedded in the rocks at the bottom of the floating city. Waves undulated beneath them, interrupted by seagulls winging their way beneath Lockhaven’s shadow. She could sense, through the Command Leering, the fear and panic of Lockhaven’s citizens. Those who could escape by their own personal zephyrs already had. But the floating city was also home to many refugees from the war. She felt their bewilderment, the dread of the news they’d heard. They were preparing for death, trapped in the sky.

She turned her attention to the water, and she saw the hulking form of General Montpensier’s ship, gliding beneath the surface like a massive whale. There were dozens of support ships with it, forming an underwater armada against her people. She imagined General Montpensier in that lead ship.

She remembered the uncomfortable dinner parties she’d attended in Kingfountain. How the general would always goad and try to upset her. All the while, he’d been plotting to betray his king and seize the throne for himself. His ambition and dissatisfaction were unlimited. He thought to rule both worlds. Now he would pay the price for his lack of loyalty.

Part of her cringed at the thought of destroying so many lives. But it was her duty as empress to protect her people. She hadn’t started this war.

But she would end it.

“Come, General,” she whispered. “I’m waiting for you.” She would wait until they breached the water before she attacked.

Several minutes later, the massive sea ship finally burst above the waves. White foam crashed against its hull as it reached the surface. Sera narrowed her eyes, watching to see what they would do. The other ships surfaced as well, forming a ring around the main one. Then she saw ant-like men scrabbling on the deck of the huge ship. Partitions were opened, revealing immense cannons that had been hidden in holds belowdecks. Sera squinted, using the magic of the Command Leering to amplify her vision. She saw the cannons being loaded with huge bags of what seemed like powder. Soldiers carried heavy iron balls. These were cannons built to destroy Lockhaven, to break apart the rocks supporting it. The ships had been positioned to fire at the floating city. Even the smaller ships had cannons attached to them. It would be a relentless barrage.

How much of their flaming powder had they brought on the ships to feed the greedy cannons? She imagined the ships were full of the stuff.

“Well, General,” Sera said dispassionately. “It’s unfortunate that your powder is so vulnerable to flame.”

She invoked the Command Leering again and compelled the city of Lockhaven to start gliding toward the fleet, closing the distance between them. Then she invoked the defensive Leerings beneath the city to rain lightning down from the underside. She heard shrieks of fear as fire arced down toward the ships and the sea. The ships could not submerge with the panels open, lest they be flooded.

They’d doomed themselves.

The arcs of fire came closer to the command ship. One of the smaller ships launched a huge cannonball at Lockhaven with a deafening boom. The cannonball smashed into the underside, causing a slight tremor. Sera retaliated with a blast of lightning, one that exploded the small ship with a flash of bright light.