Page 5 of Lies That Bind
When Liana began her descent over the notorious base, nervousness flushed through my system, strong and fast. Sky Reach was where the baddest baddies in my father’s fleet—my fleet—went to serve. They took the most hits and delivered the worst blows to the Luska side.
I scanned the rows and rows of soldiers lined up in their wrinkle-free uniforms, stiff-backed and eyes forward. The lumps of dirt in the distance indicated underground bunkers,something Sky Reach was known for. Hundreds of creatures all lurked off to the side, standing as stiffly as their bonded in neat, coordinated rows.
Liana landed and not one head turned in my direction. These soldiers were well-trained.
“Empress.” Lead Commander Aldric Ledger saluted me as his tiger creature stood erect at his side. Hiro’s white fur was streaked with red ember marks. The tiger looked powerful and majestic as he peered up at me. He imbued the commander with extreme strength, enough to tear a man in half without breaking a sweat. I looked up at the sharp lines of the commander’s face, and my heart pinched a little. He looked so much like Jace, but Jace felt like a lifetime ago, and I’d made my peace with that betrayal.
“Commander Ledger,” I said, which was so weird because I grew up calling him Aldric. I saluted him back, remarking on the fact that I’d had dinner with him and his wife a hundred times. And in that moment, I was reminded of Jace’s admission that his parents were getting divorced. It shocked me now to even think of it. They were perfect, or had been, but nothing was perfect anymore.
“I’m sorry to hear about your father,” he said.
I nodded my thanks but was spared small talk when Elaine and Admiral Caruso exited the car they’d just rolled in on. Liana had been forced to fly slowly along the roads to keep pace with them at Elaine’s insistence. Otherwise, we would have been here in half the time.
“I look forward to this war meeting so that we can pay back these iceheads for what they’ve done,” Commander Ledger growled as Elaine and Caruso walked up.
“Me too,” I told him as Elaine and Caruso gave a small salute by way of greeting.
The commander was my father’s most trusted advisor. I knew that I would be expected to take his advice. I glanced around. “Where is the podium?” I asked.
The commander peered down at me from his towering height. “My troops don’t need some mushy speech. They need orders. When are we hitting the Luskins back?”
“Shall we just start the meeting, then?” Admiral Caruso asked. “I’m sure you are brimming with ideas.”
The commander nodded and moved to lead us back to a black brick building in the center of the base.
They didn’t need a speech, he’d said, but I didn’t want someone to just take orders from me without knowing why. I didn’t want them blindly following me just because I was my father’s daughter. The troops stood still in their rows, facing forward, their creatures off to the side as if awaiting instruction. I walked over to a park bench that was sitting off to the side. The metal scraped against the crushed rock as I pulled it over to the front of the troops, facing them head-on.
Admiral Caruso, Elaine, and the lead commander all halted their journey to the brick building in the center of the base as they looked at me expectantly. I leaped up onto the bench and faced my Imperial Fleet.
“Sky Reach!” I bellowed, having no microphone. “Youare the heart of the Imperial Fleet!” I let my words of praise wash over them and noticed how some of them stood a little taller, watching me in anticipation. I could show no weakness to these men, lest I lose their respect. “You are the crown jewel and the greatest weapon we have. I will need you in the days to come as I plot my revenge on the Luskins for what they’ve taken from us. For attacking our peaceful capital of Riverine, for the murder of my father, your emperor!” I screamed the last bit until my voice was raw.
The soldiers chanted then,Ha-rooh, Ha-rooh, Ha-rooh. It was a call to arms, something only the Sky Reach soldiers did.
“I grew up playing in Emberlane Park in Riverine. I’ve fished in the streams of Cedar Creek. I’ve collected shells at Marble Shores and hiked the Golden Hills! This land is my land,yourland. We have to decide now what we want to leave for future generations. Will we pass down this war to them, or will we conquer Luska for once and for all and end this?!”
The response was deafening. The soldiers broke rank, throwing their fists into the air and screaming so loud that spittle flew from their mouths. They were bloodthirsty, which is exactly how I wanted them. It was exactly how I wanted to set them loose on our enemies.
I stepped off the bench and walked over to where the commander, admiral, and Elaine were waiting for me. The commander appeared slightly annoyed that I’d given the speech, and I knew that with my father gone, he might treat me like some young juvenile who didn’t know what they were doing. We’d have to work that out. The soldiers were still chanting when I reached him. “Looks like they do enjoy a good speech after all,” I told him.
His nostrils flared, but he nodded. “Looks like they do.”
He led Caruso away, but I hung back with Elaine.
“I’ll have to take speech-writing lessons. I have no idea what I’m doing,” I told her.
Her eyes looked misty as she gave me a crooked smile. “Oh, Aisling, you don’t need speech lessons. You knowexactlywhat you are doing. I’m proud of you, and your father would be too.”
The compliment caught me off guard. Elaine always had some tidbit of advice; nothing was ever perfect for her. We could always improve.
With that, she led me across the courtyard to the famed brick building. A sign stood on a metal pole out front.
“Command Center: War Room. Approved personnel only,”it read. To the right of the building were a half dozen creatures, probably too large to fit in the room. A lion, an elephant, two wolves, a coyote, and I recognized Admiral Blade’s gorilla, Sahiri.
Only when I stepped inside did the chanting of the soldiers outside finally fade. I took stock of the command center and war room, my palms tingling with excitement. I’d only ever glanced in here. My father had intended, of course, to take me to meetings, but on our last visit, he’d said we were short on time, so I’d never officially joined one. The walls were covered in maps, and each map had colored pins or areas circled with notes. On the back wall were two phones and over a dozen handheld radios that squawked with constant information. Over a dozen advisors, ranging from generals to admirals, all stood around a large oak table, and the entire space smelled of coffee. I followed the smell to the pot brewing in the corner. A half dozen creatures stood near their bonded, while those in the room who stood without bonded were probably the ones I had seen outside.
‘I’m out here if you need me,’Liana said as if reading my mind.
“Empress.” One of the generals turned and saluted me as the rest followed.
