The news of the surprise attack on the town of Arbour had thrown the dining hall into chaos. From what I could pick up straining my ears, it sounded like the larger town of Grand Chasm was already sending Valkyries to defend the dryad settlement, but there was a general sense of confusion – Arbour primarily produced fruits and wood, hardly materials crucial to warfare.

By the time the court had gathered in the open air around the throne my heart was racing. I had no idea where Arbour was or how close it was to Southtown – or the Eyrie. Ael saw me arriving, carried by one of her larger attendants who had been present at dinner, and waved me over before the proceedings began.

“Saf.” She wore a brave face, but her voice was grave. “Are you well? I imagine you’ve heard the news.”

“Yeah, I’m fine, but what’s going on? Is the Arbour really under attack?! And where is the Arbour anyway?”

The huge harpy patted my head with a finger. “Easy, Safkhet, we’re safe here. The Arbour lies to the Southwest, near the middle of the Cyclopean Bones. I would tell you more but the court has gathered.” She tousled my hair with a claw-tip, then turned to look out from her obsidian throne as the court was briefed on the news.

The report came from one of the Valkyrie generals serving under Arawn, Jagna, a noble-born warrior whom the princess had placed in charge in her absence.

General Jagna had subdued plumage, her feathers mottled brown and green like natural camouflage paint, but her figure made her hard to miss all the same – she was built like a bear, even more muscular than Arawn. At only half the princess’ height her absolute strength was surely lower, but that still made her an imposing giant to me.

Her voice was commanding and confident and she radiated an air of professional composure, but as she spoke her information turned out to be less than reassuring.

The Dryads of Arbour had fallen under attack earlier that day and messengers had flown at top speed to bring news to us in the Eyrie and to the nearest major Harpy town, Grand Chasm.

“Did the message say how the battle goes?” the aged advisor Masika asked, her visible anxiety mirroring my own.

“Likely already over,” Jagna said. “But Grand Chasm sent another messenger shortly after they got word – they dispatched two squadrons of Valkyries to help. If they made it in time then we can expect a resounding victory. If not there may have been more significant losses.”

“Then the enemy weren’t overwhelming the Dryads?” another asked hopefully.

“According to the report the attackers were nothing impressive, footsoldiers or scouts by the sound of it. The Dryads had already destroyed a dozen of them when they sent their report.”

Masika’s dull blue wings perked up at that. “Then we finally know what we’re fighting! Who is the enemy?!”

Jagna hesitated. “The Dryads weren’t sure. They said they weren’t even alive, just human-sized suits of metal armor filled with strange mechanisms and liquid.”

“Could they be possessed? Or some kind of enchanted weapons?” Masika mused unhappily. “Someone, send word to the witch laureate, she must investigate this report at once!”

“I agree, but there’s no reason for alarm right now. Whatever they were, only a hundred or so attacked – probably testing our defenses. Against the Dryads, on their home lands, I doubt the losses will be severe.”

“Why would these mysterious invaders be so far north?” asked Ventora, the copper-feathered noble’s already wrinkled brow furrowing deeper. “Our last information was that there was no sign of the enemy outside the South, yet now we hear they have somehow passed by the Ogres retreating from Southtown to attack the heart of our lands?”

“At this point it’s clear they’re moving underground, likely through old Dweomer tunnels.” Jagna explained. “This force may have been dispatched weeks ago to scout ahead.”

"Then why attack the Arbour?" asked Masika. "The dryads rarely leave their forests and they produce little of military value. Hightop or Echalia would have been more understandable targets... or even Grand Chasm, if it were not so well defended."

Another Valkyrie spoke, Berenike, a commoner with a square jaw and gravelly voice. "This attack could be a diversion, to lure defenders away from Grand Chasm and leave it vulnerable to a larger scale assault."

"Impossible!" Someone exclaimed, speaking out for the many noble harpies with scandalized expressions. Looking through the flock of nobles I saw it was the Lady of Ramhorn, a portly noble with red and pink plumage like a gown, who had been complaining over her waterfowl at dinner.

She went on. "Grand Chasm is my family roost! My sister’s stronghold hosts a full wing of Valkyries! No foe would be so foolish as to attack it directly!"

"Right now it's only got half a wing," Berenike retorted. "Two of the four squadrons are still at the Arbour. Even if the battle's over they won't return right away. They'll be securing the area and pursuing any retreating foes."

Masika spoke up again. "Captain Berenike has a point, but we must consider the distances involved. If our enemy is flightless and travelling via Dweomer roads they must have been dispatched many days ago, even weeks. Then there are the forces we've encountered - the enemy in the general's report would only be a danger to us in vast numbers. Would they really commit a force large enough to threaten Grand Chasm to this kind of expedition?"

Berenike gave a snort. "We don't even know who we're at war with; we have no idea what they're capable of. They could have armies thousands strong."

"Bah! Your small mind reflects your low-birth, Captain!" spat the ostentatiously feathered Lady of Ramhorn. "It's shameful to see such paranoia from our warriors. The Harpy Empire has nothing to fear from flightless surfacedwellers, let alone cavedwellers!"

The Valkyrie captain's face darkened, her plumage bristling. "Then will you be holding a spear or bow when those cavedwellers attack, Lady Tanit?! Or will you hide away in your high halls while we smallfolk fight and die?!" Clearly Berenike’s temperament matched her fiery red and yellow plumage.

"You wretch-"

Ael cleared her throat with a powerful ripple of mana. Tanit fell silent, glaring at the Valkyrie captain. Berenike ignored her, but looked sheepish as Jagna gave her a look that promised they would have words later.

The Stormqueen turned to her general. "Jagna, what would you recommend at this point in time?"

"Your majesty, I... think it's unlikely that the enemy will attack Grand Chasm. Our settlements have all been warned of the danger and seen to their defenses, but we only have so many Valkyries; if we wanted to send additional forces to Grand Chasm it would mean taking more women from the Eyrie. I can't advise leaving the capital and the royal family so poorly defended."

With victory seeming secure already, in the end Ael elected to wait for further news before committing more warriors – even if it was just word of a swift Harpy and Dryad victory they should be hearing something before the evening was out.

In the mean time many of the nobles returned to the dining hall for desserts and drinks.

~~~

At night there were few sources of illumination cutting through the shroud of murk over Grand Chasm. A human observer would never imagine that the gloom outside the window hid a vast gash through the mountains of the Spine.

The Ogres and Harpies had no need to imagine of course, both species requiring little light to see. There were other species living in the town without their excellent night-vision, but most went to sleep with the setting of the sun.

The main illumination then came from the local nobles, too important to sit around in the dark whether they needed the light to see or not. Not was the case of course as only harpies could be nobility.

The Shards were their preserve, huge jagged stone fragments floating like islands in the sky over the vast canyon crater. No-one quite understood what kept them up, but up they stayed, so presumably they at least knew what they were doing.

The young man staring out at the impressive sight wondered if the same could be said of their inhabitants.

“Roll the dice already, Gastores!”

He was brought back to the moment by the bark of his captain, Encheiro. She grunted irritably and cleared her nostrils, wiping the blotched skin of her brow with the back of her sleeve. The older ogre had violent red skin that bulged with muscle, but she had gained weight since becoming a guard.

Even so she had a fearsome look, made all the worse by the burns that had scarred her head down to her eye-line. The eye itself was unaffected, lucky since ogres only had the one to begin with.

“Damn dust. Gets everywhere when they open a new mine shaft. I thought quitting would mean getting away from it all – then they station me at a barracks in the blasted mining district,” Encheiro grumbled. Her burns were long healed but the web of scar tissue covered her head and one shoulder, leaving her with no hair or eyebrows. The lack of the latter made her particularly vulnerable to dust in the air.

Gastores rolled the carved marble dice and the other guards clapped and laughed in glee as he went over. They were gathered around a flat-topped stone that served as the table for their game, sat on smaller stone stools. Most Ogre dwellings and furniture used stone; it was a cheap and easily worked by-product of mining and farming after all.

Encheiro clapped one of four powerful hands on the younger ogre’s shoulder. “Just not your night, kid. Should have stayed on ten.”

“Hey, you there?” When her subordinate failed to answer she frowned. “Anyone see a young Ogre? Handsome fella, blond hair and brown skin, always got some girl on his arm. Dresses like a town guard and answers to Gastores when he feels like it?”

Ripides nodded, grinning. “Yeah, I seen him, lazing around the barracks most of the time, staring out the windows.”

“Sounds like our man, someone tell him he owes me his next fruit ration!”

“Alright, alright.” Gastores raised his hands. “Sorry. I was just thinking.”

“Not our job to think, kid.”

“Yeah, we’re muscle not brains” Ripides added with a laugh. He was the vice-captain so agreeing with Encheiro was at least a quarter of his job description – or so he seemed to think.

“Yeah well maybe you should give it a try some time anyway, you might learn something.” Gastores suggested, with more venom than he intended.

“Oooooh, back off, he’s out for blood tonight!”

“No he’s not,” Kimon corrected, looking confused.

Gastores groaned. “It’s an expression. He doesn’t mean I’m actually trying to get your blood.”

“Well he shouldn’t say that then.” Kimon looked almost affronted.

“You know I take it back, you really shouldn’t worry about thinking.”

Gastores despaired of men like Kimon – Ogres were known for being ‘down to earth’, practical and literally minded, but there was nothing wrong with having a little imagination. Of course on nights like this one he felt a cruel sense of envy towards the dullard. Kimon was too oblivious to even feel worried.

By the time the game finished up the captain had cleaned everyone out once again. None of them could match her in battle or in dice. She always said it was all in the wrist – for either activity. Gastores suspected it was a twist of fate rather than the captain’s burly arm.

Ripides and Kimon had left already – they stuck around after sunset for a few games, but it was Gastores and the captain who would be on duty until dawn. The younger ogre peered out into the darkness of Grand Chasm and the glittering islands overhead, wondering if that night would be as quiet as any other.

“You seem on edge tonight, kid.” Encheiro poured them both a hot cup of erdroot soup. “Something on your mind?”

He nodded as he sat and took a sip of the bitter broth, the acrid erdroot tingling in his mouth. It reminded him of growing up, of meals at home with his family.

His family was still only a few minutes’ walk away of course. His mother and father would be arriving back home soon from the erdroot farms, his younger brother already going to sleep after another day apprenticing at the forge.

There was a low rumble somewhere below them. Probably work in one of the mines that pitted the sides of the valley around the central fissure. They’d been blasting earlier, throwing up the dust that the captain so hated. But if not for the mines there’d have been no town there. There were rich veins of metals and gemstones in and under the vast crack in the landscape that was Grand Chasm.

“Ugh, that’ll be more dust in the air when I head home in the morning.” The captain groaned. “At least its good soup tonight, right? Drink all you like, the harvest’s good right now.”

“Yeah, dad said they can’t cut it fast enough. Some of the tunnels are growing over.”

“Nice problem to have.”

“Yeah, even after the Harpies take their share we still have extra.”

The captain sighed. “Wish we could say the same about the luxuries.”

“Now you’re just rubbing it in.”

She laughed, her barrel-chest booming. “No-one forced you to bet your fruit ration, kid.”

They were quiet as they drank, the Encheiro not pushing him to talk. He liked that about her.

“Captain,” he said eventually, setting down his finished bowl. “You see the Valkyries leaving earlier today?”

“Of course. Hard to miss that, right? I hear they’re going south to Arbour.”

“You know why?”

“I heard there was an attack. Something to do with what happened to Southtown sounds like.”

He nodded. “Yeah… I heard the same….”

“So, what, you’re worrying we’re next?” The captain poured herself another cup of soup, grinning.

“You’re not?”

“You’ve got too much imagination, Gastores. Always coming up with some imaginary disaster. No wonder you go through so many girlfriends – women don’t want to hear this stuff. I’d know.”

“Ever think that maybe you all have too little imagination?”

“Can’t say I did. Why worry about stuff like that? I have a job to do, and even if they’re all grown up now I have a family to look after. I focus on what’s important.”

“You don’t think war’s important?”

“That’s the Harpies’ problem, isn’t it? They’re the ones in charge so they’re the ones who have to worry about all that.”

“Not if we get attacked they aren’t. That’s everyone’s problem.”

“Who’s gonna pick a fight with the Harpies though? You’re probably too young, but I remember once the Stormqueen came to Chasm. Let me tell you, she’s not just big, she’s gigantic. And they say her real power isn’t even her size, it’s her magic! She can even summon storms! No-one’s messing with the harpies while they have monsters like her.”

The rumbling had started up again, louder this time. It almost sounded as if they were tunneling right under the barracks.

Encheiro growled. “All this noise at this hour… go fetch someone and see what they’re doing down there.”

Before he could leave the noise escalated, scraping and whirring sounds building to a crescendo as the room started to shake, even the air vibrating!

“Captain? I don’t think this is coming from the mines….”

There was a crack as the stone floor split, then shattered as some sort of shock blasted up from beneath them! Rock and dust scattered everywhere! Gastores covered his eye with his upper arms. Somewhere to his right captain Encheiro was coughing and spluttering, snorting the dust from her nostrils.

From the hole that hadn’t been there mere moments earlier armored figures were emerging with whirring, clanking sounds! They were human-shaped but moved with a strange stiff gait that was quite unlike any creature Gastores knew. Their faces were covered but their eyes had a sinister green glow.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Behind and beneath them larger forms were moving too, alien shapes that climbed the rubble towards the ogres on triplicate three-section legs, matching upper limbs rotating and grasping to move aside any debris impeding them. He might have made out larger humanoid shapes too.

The first of the small humanoids was almost upon Gastores when he came to his senses and snatched up his shield and mace. The figure swung some sort of halberd at the taller ogre, who blocked the attack confidently with his shield – only to find his guard almost torn open as the weapon hooked his parma and nearly wrenched it from his hand with strength far outstripping his enemy’s size!

He tightened his grip, adding a second hand to the shield. With the figure immobilized for a moment after failing to un-shield him the ogre he swung down his other two arms, bringing his mace crashing down on the attacker’s head!

The thing staggered back from the blow, but while the metal armor twisted and buckled it held – the helm was incredibly thick and tough, as was the wearer! A human would have died from the impact alone, even if their armor held.

With rapid yet stilted movements the thing unhooked its halberd from Gastores’ shield and stabbed towards his exposed leg. He was struggling to read the attacks it made but he managed to lower his shield in time to deflect the thrust.

A second enemy was upon him now, swinging its weapon overhead towards his face while his shield was lowered. He stepped back, then stamped on the polearm as it clanged against the floor. Strong as they were, the attacker lacked the strength to easily pull it out from under his weight.

The first opponent was already swinging again however, too soon after for him to block or evade! Gastores gritted his teeth as a hot flash of pain split his shoulder over his shield, the halberd biting deep! His grip on the parma weakened and the enemy hooked tore it from his grasp.

A boom shook the air as a warhammer shattered the damaged head of the thing and spread cracks through its chest! A second blow smashed the raised arm of the second attacker, sending twisted fragments of metal armor and a spray of green liquid scattering about!

Gastores was too shocked to question the lack of blood or brains pouring out of the ruined head or broken arm, but there were dozens more of the creatures to take the place of those two. Behind them were the six-limbed monstrosities.

“Go!” Captain Encheiro barked as another swing of her hammer pounded the one-armed figure down against the ground and it stopped moving, green liquid pouring out with a hiss of decompression.

“Get outta here, kid! Get to the Valkyries! Tell ‘em we’re under attack!”

He didn’t know how he got out of the room.

The last thing he could remember was the captain facing down against one of the huge tripod creatures… a lance from one of its arms spearing her chest through her shield….

After that he just ran.

Outside there were fires burning, armored invaders emerging from the mineshafts all around. People were fleeing, screaming, some few were fighting. He passed them all by as he ran.

His legs carried him without thought. Not towards the Shards as he was ordered, but along the streets they knew best; the familiar sloping roads that led up the side of the valley to his family’s home.

His mother and father would be arriving back home soon. His younger brother would already be asleep.

~~~

Aellope and I had gone back to her rooms for a few drinks after the unpleasant news about the Arbour – and for a break before the evening prayer Ael had promised to attend. I could tell she wasn’t looking forward to it, but I wanted to keep an open mind. Nemoi sounded like an admirable person, goddess or not, even if I wasn’t so sure about her current priestess.

The temple to Nemoi at the Eyrie was spectacular, even to a non-believer such as me. In this world being a non-believer didn’t exactly make sense in any case – having met a god I was confident in saying they were real after all; whether they were worthy of praying to was quite another matter.

Seeing the beautiful place of worship the harpies had built made me hope that Nemoi was nothing like Myr. Her temple put me in mind of someone very different – the masons had made the stone look light, even feathery somehow, evoking wind and flight in the stunning statues that spread out under the great dome overhead.

At the centre stood a statue of Nemoi herself, the Sky-Goddess, the white marble figure towering over even Ael and Thessaly, bathed in a warm golden glow. Apparently it was thought to be life-size.

As we entered all eyes were on the Stormqueen – and a few on the human in her hand. Thessaly smiled warmly at our arrival, the crowd parting as she approached.

“Welcome, cousin. I am so grateful that you made time to join us here this evening, despite the many demands on your time. Truly your presence is a blessing to us all, a reaffirmation of the three pillars of our society, the Monarchy, the Nobility and the Faith.”

“Yes, well I did give my word, Thessaly,” Ael nodded stiffly.

“It shames me that it took a promise to bring you here my queen, I fear have failed in my duty to tend to your spiritual needs. I pray that my inadequacy can be remedied in time, but if nothing else, your majesty, please be at ease here in the temple. We stand in a place of worship to the mother of us all, a place where all are welcome and loved.”

Given that even Agytha was present in the congregation I had hopes that her words weren’t all talk – however the handmaiden was standing with the other smallfolk at the back rather than mingling with the nobles and royalty at the front. It was a rather backwards arrangement to my mind, as anyone behind us would just be getting a view of Ael’s legs and back – although that would be quite a sight too.

The ceremonies began as Thessaly took her place beneath the towering statue of Nemoi, her white scales glittering gold in the light. A reverent hush fell over the huge domed chamber as she cast a tender eye across the congregation.

“I bid each and every one of you welcome to the Temple of Nemoi on this auspicious day, when our beloved Stormqueen has graced us with her presence. We, the Daughters of Nemoi, gather to give thanks to our flightmother, the Divine Sky who created us in her likeness.”

Her voice was soft, but clear and confident, with none of her usual modesty. The sound spread magically throughout the temple as if the priestess were speaking directly to each adherent, her words thick with compassion.

“It is fitting that her majesty join us tonight, in this time of strife for the Empire – I can imagine no more potent reminder of the ongoing protection that the Goddess has bequeathed us than our queen and empress. The Divine Sky, in her great wisdom and benevolence, saw to it that her daughters would always be protected by those who had most strongly inherited her blood – the royal line of Zephyrus and the great noble families.”

The only sounds aside from her voice were the low crackling of the torches and occasional rustle of feathers, every harpy present hanging on her words – save one. Stormqueen Aellope. The queen herself twitched her tail each time she was mentioned.

Priestess Thessaly was overflowing with warmth and love however, gesturing with an inviting open hand or wing to those whose eye she caught.

“The magnificent figures of our queen and her noble followers serve as proof of our Goddess’ divine will that they lead and protect our people. In these troubled times fear and doubt can be tempting, even seductive – too easily we can give in to our anxieties and betray the Goddess in our hearts. Thus I beseech you all to be strong. Do your duty to the noble ladies who protect and sacrifice for you as they do their duty in turn for our queen. Be strong for the Goddess and for the good of our people.”

The applause that filled the chamber as she finished felt painful after the calm quiet of her sermon, religious zeal evident on the faces around us. As a person of no faith their fervor was almost unnerving to me – no wonder then that Ael was uncomfortable with going to the temple.

After her sermon Thessaly invited the sick and injured to the centre to receive healing. It was just as the first woman stepped forward that the spiritual reverie was shattered, the doors behind us bursting open as Jagna, Berenike and a flight of other Valkyries entered the temple, weapons in hand!

“Your majesty!” the general called to Ael through the crowd.

It was Thessaly who spoke first, looking dismayed. “My dear General Jagna, what ever is the matter? This is a place of worship, so I cannot imagine why you should require arms here.”

The General addressed Ael rather than the priestess. “Word has come from Grand Chasm. We must convene the court at once.”

“If that is so then it may well be that every moment will count,” Thessaly suggested. “If I may be so bold as to make a suggestion; the courtiers are already gathered here in the temple so let us not waste any time relocating.”

Ventora jumped in quickly. “Well said, Priestess! Come, give us this report, General. We have nothing to hide from our people.”

Aellope looked like she wanted to object, but at Ventora’s words she nodded to the general to relay the news.

“Your majesty, Grand Chasm is under attack. The enemy began an assault with huge numbers just after dark. Lady Feme is calling for aid from the Eyrie and the surrounding towns.”

Her words were met with stunned silence from the crowd and confusion among the gathered courtiers. The Queen let slip no sign of fear or dismay, but I could imagine the surging anxiety she was keeping under the surface. I shared it.

I looked across to where Agytha stood, recalling her sister; the young handmaiden was pale as death.

“That… cannot be,” Masika murmured faintly, hand on her head. “Are you certain, general? What about the Arbour? We were supposed to defeat the attackers with ease!”

“Our fears have come to pass,” Aellope said. “Captain Berenike was correct to suggest that the Arbour was a feint to lure away defenders from the real target. We have taken the enemy too lightly.”

The stout Tanit thrashed her tail in outrage, waving her hands wildly. “If that’s true then this mistake could cost us Chasm! Worse yet my dear sister Feme could be in mortal danger at this very moment! Your highness, send out the Valkyries at once, my family roost is on the line thanks to this foolish blunder!”

“Watch your words!” snapped Ventora. “You address our queen, Lady Tanit, speak with respect no matter what mistakes she may have made.”

Tanit bowed her head. “As you say, Lady Ventora, please forgive me.” She didn’t look very sorry to me.

They were making it sound like this whole thing was Ael’s fault, right there in public, in front of everyone! I opened my mouth to cut in, decorum be damned, but Ael gestured with a hand to stop me. I could only settle for fuming quietly.

“And yet it’s true, we must send forces to save Grand Chasm,” commented one of Ventora’s lackeys.

“We don’t have the womanpower,” Jagna responded. “If we dispatch our remaining wing of Valkyries we would leave the Eyrie undefended. It was spreading our forces too thin that allowed this disaster in the first place.”

“Then you would recommend that we wait once again, general?” Ael asked.

“For now, yes. Based on the schedule discussed before she left, Marshal Arawn should commence the attack to retake Southtown tomorrow with three wings of Valkyries. If they are victorious as expected then she will be able to return north with most of those forces. We can also send word to General Thanya, escorting the refugees from Southtown. The Ogres will have to fend for themselves but that will add another wing to our forces.”

“And while you muster more troops Grand Chasm could be lost!” Tanit snapped.

“I regret to say that Grand Chasm may be lost already, my lady.” Jagna’s words had the exaggerated politeness of one making a great effort not to strangulate her conversation partner. “We are hours from the town so our information is hours old. Even if we left immediately we may not arrive in time.”

Fearful looks and anxious murmurs were being exchanged by the smallfolk, not normally privy to such details.

Ventora turned to Ael imploringly, bowing her head. “Surely you cannot mean to simply abandon the people of Grand Chasm to their fates, your majesty! Look at the faces of your loyal subjects, think of their families and loved ones now in danger! We cannot simply wait!”

“But nor can we leave the city defenseless,” Masika spoke, the old harpy looking distraught.

“Then we must split our forces,” Ventora insisted. “Send relief to Grand Chasm now and call back the others to bolster our defenses here. There are no Dweomer roads to Skycrown – no matter how skilled the enemy may be at tunneling they can’t reach us so easily!”

“It’s true there are none that we know of,” Masika began, “but records from that time are-”

“A half-measure isn’t enough!” Tanit insisted, shouting her down. The chamber was growing louder, other voices muttering or arguing in the background. “We should send all the warriors we have! My sister could die while you pontificate!”

“I tell you we can’t!” insisted Jagna, her patience exhausted. “Who will guard the queen and the people here?! You?!”

I could see Agytha’s distress plainly on her angular features. The girl was staring back and forth between Ael and the nobles with disbelief, as if her whole world was crumbling.

Her little sister was stationed in Grand Chasm, but there they were arguing, bickering about whether to send help.

She met my eye with a look of panic, mouthing my name through the noise.

“I’ll go!”

The voice cut through the hubbub, startling everyone, myself included. Ael had frozen, her mouth open to silence them all… but I’d beaten her to it.

She looked down at me, her face a mask of dread. “Safkhet… what did you say?”

“I’ll go to Grand Chasm - with however many Valkyries we can spare. We can’t leave the Eyrie undefended, but we can’t abandon the people in Grand Chasm either! This is the only way, Ael. We have to do something.”

“Absolutely not! You aren’t even a harpy, Saf, I cannot allow you to risk your life fighting on our war!”

I clenched my fists in exasperation at the predictable response. I loved how kind and caring she was towards me, but at that moment Aellope’s protectiveness was infuriating. Her Empire was falling apart and she was worrying about me instead of everyone else!

“You can’t protect everyone all the time, Ael! Someone has to take a risk, just like Arawn did, going south. So let me share the risk this time. I’ve been training, I know how to fight now and I’m not so stupid as to get surrounded and killed!”

“Four days of training, Safkhet! There are fledglings with more experience than you!”

“Your highness, perhaps Lady Safkhet has a point?” Ventora’s delight at my suggestion was clear as she came to my unlikely defense. It was an odd feeling for her to take my side, but everyone present wanted what was best for the Harpies. Ael most of all, she just couldn’t see past her overprotective fears.

“Unfortunate though it may be, it has not been… easy for some of our people to accept a human with so… intimate a relationship to our monarch. Many have questioned Lady Safkhet’s intentions and how she came so suddenly – but splendidly – into our lives. How better then could those short-sighted doubters be shown their error than if Lady Safkhet were to be the agent of our salvation?”

Some of her lackeys were slow on the uptake at first, but all were nodding by that point, chiming in with their agreement. I was pretty sure they were as guilty of mistrusting me as anyone.

“Surely as a personal friend to our Queen and an honored guest we should hear out her proposal. I think it’s a wonderful idea. A way for the Lady to show her thanks for our hospitality and demonstrate her good will towards we Harpies in coming to our aid.”

Aellope glared openly at the noble harpy, who met her eye with unflinching calm.

“Safkhet is not a Valkyrie, Ventora. She has never known battle, let alone war and death. She doesn’t know what she’s suggesting, and nor do you. The Harpies do not so callously consign our allies to fight and die on our behalf!”

Ventora was quick to nod her agreement. “Of course it is as you say, my Queen… and yet…. To have dueled with the Stormqueen herself and lived to tell the tale – who could be a greater ally in this time of dire need? I would never suggest that Lady Safkhet sacrifice herself on our behalf, but if the stories are true… could she not be the agent of our salvation?”

“An untrained human girl against an army, is that what you are proposing?!” As Ael spoke mana crackled around the tips of her wings, her imposing figure seeming larger still as her deep voice took on a physical weight, bearing down on all present. “Enough of this madness, all of you!”

Ventora gulped as the Stormqueen locked eyes with her. She could only nod silently.

I was about to give up hope when another voice spoke out.

“Cousin.” It was the dainty tone of the priestess, Thessaly, who had been silent until now. Her snow-white wings dipped gracefully as she bowed to speak.

“Please, I beg you, do not be wroth with your loyal servant Lady Ventora. I know I overstep my bounds, but I pray you will forgive my intrusion into these matters of court as it pains me dreadfully to see you so troubled. Your passion and care for us all is most beautiful to behold, and yet, as others have suggested, there can come a time when we must all make sacrifices for the good of others.”

The Queen looked almost fearful as Thessaly went on, but I was just glad that someone was finally talking some sense into her.

“While it is shameful that we must ask this of our dear guest, Lady Safkhet, I fear that none other can accomplish the task. I have foreseen great things in the Lady’s future, grand and valorous deeds. If anyone can save the people of Grand Chasm it is she.”

Thessaly was… stretching the truth to say the least there. Hadn’t she told me she couldn’t read my fate? If Myr was to be believed I didn’t have one in the first place. But she wasn’t wrong – with the power I had at my disposal I could save lives, including Agytha’s sister. I couldn’t just stand by and watch or tell myself it ‘wasn’t my job’.

But no-one could win against Stormqueen Aellope. She gave the priestess a cold hard look as she finished speaking.

“I recall now why I seldom join you at the temple, Thessaly.”

The silence that followed was worse than the shouting had been.

“Safkhet will stay at the Eyrie. General Jagna, you will send Berenike with two squadrons of Valkyries to Grand Chasm as soon as they can be mustered. You will also dispatch flights to recall General Thanya and Princess Arawn at once. The rest of you, send word to your territories and all outlying settlements to muster all available forces.”

There could be no further argument after that – Ael had spoken and the rest of us just had to obey apparently. I left the temple without her, disappearing into the crowds filing out. I admit I was still angry – the queen was so stubborn – I’d never met anyone so infuriating!

~~~

From the temple I didn’t know where to go. Ael had carried me there via flight so I had no idea how to navigate my way back to my guest room on foot.

It was Agytha who rescued me, the reliable young blue-grey harpy finding me as I wandered the hallways beneath the temple. I was grateful that she didn’t say anything about the very public argument I’d just started. With her help – and wings – I was soon back at my room.

It was only once we reached that relative sanctuary of privacy that she slumped into a chair, her façade crumbling. I sat beside her, taking her hand as it hung limply over the edge of her chair. Her slender fingers squeezed mine tight.

“Thanks for coming to find me, Aggy.”

She nodded, her jaw clenched shut.

“I know what you’re thinking, but are you sure that Ryta was there when they attacked? She’s with the flight corps, maybe she was making a delivery.”

Agytha shook her head. “She was meant to be going to Rivervale this week. After it was attacked the flight was cancelled. She… would have been in Chasm tonight.”

I wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Everything I could do or say was useless, empty words and gestures that wouldn’t help Aggy or Ryta at all.

“Thank you, for being here, Saf,” the girl said, giving my listless hand a squeeze as if she could read my mind. “And for trying to help.”

“I didn’t do any good though, I had a row with Ael in front of everyone and I’m still not going. If anything I think I just made everyone angry.”

“Saf, I’m grateful that you wanted to help, but I’m glad that you’re not going. The Queen is right, it’s too dangerous. But… it means a lot to me that you’d volunteer to do that. I know that the queen and the nobles have to think of the greater good, but you’re the only one who was thinking about Ryta.”

The door opened without a knock and Chione strode in, the snub-nosed handmaiden out of breath. She hadn’t been at the service but news travelled fast.

“Saf! You seriously just do what I heard you did?!”

“Oh, uh, hey Chione, what did you hear?”

Even I thought I sounded guilty. Chione and I had been getting along so much better too….

“I heard ya told off the Queen and had a shoutin’ match right in the middle of the temple! Everyone’s talkin’ about it!”

“Well we did have a disagreement, but I don’t think I really shouted….”

“What I heard is you wanna join the Valkyries and go fight in Chasm. You basic’ly told everyone you wanna risk your life for us Harpies!”

That wasn’t quite what I thought she would focus on, but I gave a cautious nod. “I wouldn’t say I want to risk my life, but better I take a small risk than someone else takes a big one.”

The heavyset redhead grinned her crooked grin and clapped a hand on my shoulder. “I guess you ain’t all talk, huh, Saf?”

“So you aren’t mad that I had a row with the Queen in public?”

“Oh no I’m pretty damn mad about it, you idiot. But sounds like you got a good reason. You were stickin’ up for Agytha, right? And her sis, Ryta.”

“I guess I was trying to, yeah.”

“Well you won’t believe who agrees with you. Serious. I know I don’t.”

“You mean Ventora?”

She blinked, looking disappointed. “Oh… guess you will then.”

I cracked a smile at the moment of levity, feeling relieved.

“Anyway, she wants to see you.”

“Wait, what?”

“Yeah, she’s on her way here now.”

My smile slipped as I realized she wasn’t joking. “Ventora wants to see me? What for?”

“Ask her I guess.”

The room I was staying in was too small for Ventora to enter so I met with her in a larger room down the corridor. She was already seated when I arrived, the 25 foot harpy still towering over me.

Agytha and Chione had gone to fetch my evening bath, hopefully a chance for Aggy to catch her breath and process what was happening, and Ventora’s servants were waiting outside. That made it just the two of us. I took a seat opposite her on a raised chair like those in the dining hall.

The old noble smiled, habitually smoothing her bronze plumage. “Thank you for seeing me, Lady Safkhet. I was hoping we might clear the air.”

She waited for my hesitant nod before she continued. “I apologize for my rude words earlier. I know that we don’t entirely align on some matters of ideology, but I pray you understand that I only want what is best for us all – as I have come to see you do also.”

I might have pointed out that what Ventora saw as best for all seemed very like what was best for Ventora and the other nobles, but then she probably saw the nobility as a necessary part of Harpy society. She was hardly alone in that, even if I couldn’t agree.

Regardless, despite her claim I doubted that she’d come just to clear the air between us. I waited for her to continue.

“I was moved by your earnest desire to help our people, my lady. In truth our situation is dire, but the Queen is kind hearted and protective, at times overly so….”

My frustration bubbled up like hot bile at the infuriating memory. “Yeah, you’re not wrong there. She thinks I’m helpless; too naïve and foolish to fight.”

“Try not to be too hard on her.” Ventora spoke gently, surprising me. “Ruling an empire is a great burden to bear. The responsibility for so many subjects can be overwhelming…. Of course you are not one of those subjects, my lady, are you? The Queen may prefer that you stay at the Eyrie, but she cannot order you not to go.”

I had an uneasy feeling that I understood her implication, but I asked all the same. “What are you suggesting?”

“You wish to join the relief force being sent to Grand Chasm, no? They are preparing to leave as we speak. They will take off any moment now, but if you hurry perhaps you could make it in time to… see them off? My handmaiden can carry you there.”

My fear was confirmed, but I hesitated to reject the idea all the same. Aggy’s sister was in Grand Chasm at that very moment, in mortal danger. Not to mention who knew how many other innocent people. Was obeying Ael’s wishes just an excuse to avoid having to face reality, a way to clear myself of responsibility?

Ventora placed a parchment and quill on the table between us. “There is precious little time before it is too late, but I believe you have just enough to write a brief note for the Queen to read tomorrow. Naturally I shall also tell your handmaidens what we discussed, once it’s too late for interference.”

There was no time to second guess myself. There were people in trouble and Ael wanted me to sit around in the palace doing nothing. I grabbed the pen and started to write. If I was going to go I had to at least explain to Ael that, as infuriating as she was, I was going for the right reasons. I had to do the right thing, just as she would in my place.

~~~

Safkhet ran from the room to catch the departing Valkyries, leaving Ventora alone. She collected the hastily-scrawled note the human girl was written, pinching it between two claws.

For a moment she wondered how the young human could write in Cycloan, but with luck the question would soon be irrelevant.

A murmured incantation and a flash of flames left no more than a wisp of ash wafting down to dust the stone surface.

~~~

Berenike and her Valkyries were already taking off when I caught them, both the handmaiden and I waving them down as they were dispatching from their barracks. Luckily thanks to their haste there was no official party present to see them off.

Berenike looked irritated to see me, perhaps understandably, but she did call out to halt her warriors.

“I was hoping you had more sense than this.” She said with a sigh.

“More sense than what?”

“Don’t play innocent my lady, we don’t have the time. Lady Ventora told us you were thinking about joining us – despite the Queen’s orders.”

I glared at her defiantly. “Are you telling me that I can’t?”

She smirked down at me. I was more than two foot shorter than she and less than a quarter her weight at a guess, a tiny human girl in a cute green dress, barefoot with her hands on her hips.

“I wouldn’t dare, I’ve seen you in the training arena.”

“Then take me with you – like you say, we don’t have time to waste!”

“Trust me, I know. But even if I wanted to bring you the Queen-”

“Aels your queen not mine, she can’t order me around! There are lives at stake here and I’m going to help, so either stop me or give me a lift so I can get there in time!”

“Fine. We’ll need the help if the reports are true. You just better not do anything stupid when we get there. If the queen’s girlfriend dies it won’t just be you who gets killed, got it?”

I didn’t waste time explaining that Ael and I didn’t have that sort of relationship – I was just glad I was going. I was also still too mad with Aellope to worry much about her reputation due to getting involved with me.

There were larger Valkyries present than Berenike, but it was the captain herself who would carry me. It was her way of taking responsibility perhaps. She hefted me easily in her arms and we took flight.

Soon we were soaring through the night over the mountains far below. The temperature plummeted when we left the magically warded area around the Eyrie, but the harpies and I were untroubled by the change.

Looking back over the captain’s shoulders I could see Mount Skycrown shrinking behind us, all the people I knew and loved back there in that island of scattered lights amid the sky. They didn’t even realize I was gone yet. They probably wouldn’t know until morning when Ael got my letter. Hopefully Agytha and Chione would understand. I doubted that Ael would.

“Hey, the fight’s that way,” Berenike joked, jabbing her tail forwards. Her arms were occupied holding me up after all. “Don’t get second thoughts now, or else you’ll have to walk back.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to change my mind. It’s going to be a while before we get there though, right?”

“If we hurry, which we will, we should arrive with the dawn.”

“Are you going to be okay maintaining the spell that long?”

I might not have weighed much to her, but she was already laden with her weapons and supplies. To make it easier to carry me she’d cast the same weight-reducing magic Shukra used to carry me around, a spell to loosen the hold of gravity. Unlike the witch laureate however, she wasn’t a professional sorceress – and she was going to need to maintain it through the night.

“Hmph, I’m not some pampered lady you know – I work for my food. I was raised in the flight corps before I joined the Valkyries, hauling deliveries all over the mountains.”

“That sounds rough.”

“Not worse than most have it. Life’s different outside the palace.” I wasn’t facing her so I couldn’t see her expression – being carried… bust to bust… would have been too embarrassing – but it sounded like she hadn’t expected sympathy.

“Probably the same for humans, right? You work hard every day just to keep you and your family fed and warm, while the nobles take a cut of everything you do and live in luxury.”

“I don’t know what it’s like for humans in Arcadia, but I guess that does sound likely. But I thought that the Empire didn’t use money, doesn’t everyone just get fed and housed for free?”

“We don’t have gold coins but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to work. If you’re a cleaning girl then your village hunters and herders aren’t going to take kindly to sharing their meat if you don’t do your job and clean for them. It’s the same for any job. If you’re not pulling your weight no-one’s going to want to help repair your home or make you tools and furniture.”

“Where do the nobles come into this then?”

“Simple, they do all the ‘leading’ and so they get the best of everything. Best food, best places to live, all of that stuff.”

“That doesn’t exactly sound fair. They get an easy life just because the Goddess chose them?”

“I dunno about what the Goddess might have chosen, I just know what they say goes. They’re not all bad though, I just like to grumble. Most of them are alright. A wise noble keeps things running smooth, keeps food on everyone’s plates. That’s what matters.”

“That does sound like an important job. But isn’t risking your life protecting everyone important too? Or raising the next generation of, uh, fledglings?”

“I guess, yeah. Why?”

“Well, it just seems to me that we all need each other to make this work, so shouldn’t we share things more fairly? And if not all of them are doing a good job then shouldn’t the bad leaders be replaced? In which case why have nobles at all? Why not pick our own leaders?”

“You’re a weird lady, Safkhet.”

It might have been a strange way to pass the time flying to the battlefield, but chatting to Berenike and sharing our perspectives kept my mind off what was to come.

I’d been so eager to join the Valkyries going to Chasm, then so infuriated when Ael high-handedly ordered me to stay, that I hadn’t really thought about what I was volunteering for.

But now it was really happening. There was a knot in my stomach that tightened with every mile we flew.

My plan was crazy – to fight invading enemies in a warzone without killing anyone or being killed myself. If someone else suggested it to me I’d have said they were an idiot. Maybe I was an idiot.

But even so, thinking logically I knew that I’d be alright – if I’d survived the Stormqueen herself then anyone powerful enough to kill me easily would have been an extinction-level threat to the Harpies – in which case hiding in the Eyrie would be pointless. I just had to be careful and stick close to the Valkyries. Run if I really did meet my match.

I recalled what Ael had said about the danger of numbers in combat.