Page 264 of The Cradle of Ice

The other warship fell to the front of the wave and rode it toward Kysalimri for a stretch, then toppled sideways and was spun around and around, its gasbag flailing and beaten flat.

Ahead, the Klashean ships fled out of the way, given enough warning and buffeted higher by the blast.

Another spin and he caught a glimpse of the Hyperium high above, rocked by the force of the detonation under it. It tipped along the edge of that concussive wave and slid north, heading for Hálendii.

A new explosion shuddered their ship and brightened the skies.

A final flip revealed its source. The wave-swept warship had struck the docks. The impact must have ignited its Cauldron. Fire and rocks and sections of pier with boats still tethered to them blasted high—then the rest of the wave drowned it all away. The surge rode up into the city but was thwarted by the first tall wall. It crashed against it and washed back.

Saekl finally got their little leaf of a ship back under control, leveling their flight. She turned them around to witness the aftermath as the wave receded back to its source.

The bay washed back and forth several more times as Saekl aimed them toward Kysalimri, passing over the wreckage of the Hammer’s fall.

Kanthe despaired at the lives lost, but he knew if the Hammer had fallen upon the Eternal City that the devastation would have been a thousandfold worse. While the water of the bay had turned deadly, it had also helped insulate the blast.

A small blessing.

I’ll take even that.

* * *

AALIA STOOD AT the window of the strategy room of the Blood’d Tower.

The spire had earned its name this night.

After surviving Mareesh’s attack—a betrayal that still wounded—she had gathered all she could. With the imperium still threatened, she had no time to mourn her brother Jubayr. She would bury him with their father’s cloak. It was all she could decide this night.

She had lost her Wing and her Shield—two more men she must mourn. The only respite from this misery was that Sail Garryn had survived. She had leaned heavily on him this long night. Along with Tazar, Llyra, Rami, and all others willing to offer counsel. She heeded everyone, knowing only by working together could they survive.

Their forces had managed to destroy one of the Hálendiian warships earlier in the night, but Mareesh’s betrayal and his swaying of a section of the Wing to his side had weakened their line. Two more Hálendiian warships had made it through Tithyn Woods, along with the kingdom’s flagship.

Still, determined to fight, she had set a hard line before the city.

Then something had happened—both miraculous and tragic.

She stared down at the ruins of the lowermost tier of the city. The bay still rocked, washing even now into the city’s edge, but the worst was over.

From this window, she had watched the massive bomb drop into the bay. She didn’t understand why the Hyperium had discharged its weapon like that.

Had it been a mishap? A bit of providence from a god?

The flagship had fled afterward, leaving its shameful devastation behind. A warship’s Cauldron had also exploded at the bayside piers. Yet, as devastating as that blast had been, the massive wave had dealt a far deadlier blow. The Cauldron’s blast did little more than disturb what had already been destroyed.

She stared down at the wreckage.

She tried to find her fury, but all she felt was sorrow.

Anger will come later.

She closed her eyes, but she knew she could delay it no longer. She took a deep breath and cast her gaze farther across the bay. Half, if not more, of the Stone Gods lay toppled and broken. She spotted the raised arm of one, thrust crookedly out of the water, as if drowning and begging for help.

With a wince, she moved her attention to the north, to the town of X’or. The wave had swept as high as those cliffs and washed across the top, but not as fiercely. Lanterns still shone from those heights, sparking some hope of survivors. She had dispatched skrycrows there before the first wave had fully receded.

A commotion drew her attention back to the room. It was in a shambles after the long night. Sail Garryn stood, leaning on the table, his head hanging low. Tazar stood to the side, giving her this moment alone, respecting her enough not to intrude. Others murmured in groups, still struggling with the aftermath.

Rami burst into the room with Llyra. His eyes shone brightly, his breathing hard from more than just the climb. “Word from the Paladins, from the high mooring of the palace.”

Aalia clutched hard to her hope.