Fall of Sky City (A Steampunk Fantasy Sci-Fi Adventure Novel) (Devices of War) (45 page)

LATER, AT THE TOWER OF SWORDS…

Queen Dyna
and her Swords escorted me to her tower. The city was in complete chaos. People were scrambling, still trying to find a way off the city as it drew closer and closer to the turbulent ocean below us. They watched us warily on their way to safety, loved ones’ hands clutched along with hastily stuffed travel bags, rain pouring all around us.

They weren’t staring at me. They were staring at her, regarding her with fear. It didn’t take much for me to remember why. She’d stood behind Nix as she burned children in order to prove a point, burned people for speaking words.

They saw me as nothing more than a pawn.

The closer to the heart of the city we got, the more deserted the streets were. I had no idea how many people would remain, how many would succeed in escaping. The city’s power had slipped.

Nix was going to be pissed.

Queen Dyna led us into the wide entrance, through the throne room, and opened a smaller door at the back. She motioned me to enter and held her hand to stall her guards. “Wait outside. Ensure we are not disturbed.”

Her lead Sword nodded, clicking his heels in his salute.

She shut the door firmly behind her.

I didn’t know what to expect. She had steel-like cunning. I could see that in her blue eyes as she studied me. Was she going to try and keep me, a treasured pet, like Nix? Was she going to beat me, imprison me? Did she want me as her lover, too?

She closed her eyes as fatigue washed over her expression. She walked to the recessed window and leaned against the wall, crossing her arms over her chest and staring out. “I have a proposition for you, Synn, and I understand if you do not accept.”

I narrowed my eyes and tipped my head, water dripping from my hair and into my eyes. What was she up to?

She laid her head against the stone wall, her blue eyes studying me as water pooled at her feet, soaking into the blue carpet. “I understand why you’re wary, but know this. I am not my sister.”

“No, you just stand behind her.”

“She has a great deal of power.”

“And you don’t?”

Her eyes stayed on me for a long moment before she blinked them toward the window. “I do.”

“What is your intention?”

She was quiet for a long moment. “I want to remove her from the throne of power.”

My interest was piqued. “And replace her with whom?”

Queen Dyna pushed herself off the wall and walked toward her desk, her pale blue dress swishing wetly in the eerie silence. “Who would
you
see rise to power? Which of the Families?”

“Who says that one person has to have power over the entire world?”

She stopped, her fingertips splayed against her dark metal desk. “Who, indeed?”

I didn’t know how to respond.

“How do the Families work? How did society function before the Hands?”

I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”

“I was born to the Hands, Synn. I know nothing else.”

She seemed genuine. “Well, we have leaders and elders from each Family, and if there is a decision that needs to be made that will affect all the Families and the lesser tribes, we call a council so a decision can be made.”

“And when a decision can’t be made by committee?”

“That becomes the decision.”

She took in a deep breath, her shoulders bowed, and nodded. “I used to believe in the Hands, but of late, I have lost faith.”

I didn’t think she was looking for a response.

“Will you help me?”

If she was serious. “What do you need?”

She licked her lips and came to stand in front of me. She was a tall woman with a demanding presence even with exhaustion blanketing her eyes. “You can leave. I will instruct my Swords to give you clearance and to provide you with a safe route to the edge of our city, but you will be hunted. There will be no safe harbor for you.”

I raised my chin, my heart beating within my chest.

“Or you can stay here. I cannot promise you protection. You will largely be on your own, but I will do what I can when I can.”

“To what end?”

She raked her top lip with her teeth. “You will need to become the Knight of Wands.”

I blinked, letting that thought settle over me.

“You can bring her down, temper her commands, curb her insane justice as no one else can.”

I somehow doubted that.

“And you can protect your Families. I will assist you in leaking valuable information.”

That sounded tempting.

But could I truly become the Knight of Wands?

I guess I was about to find out.

GLOSSARY

Terms

centirit:
a large, hundred legged creature

Festos:
the name of one of the rocks in the asteroid field

giraficus:
an amphibious giraffes

glyryvil:
a twelve legged, webbed creature that eats small birds and fish

hana:
Sakin – for flower

horndon:
a rhinoceros type creature, but red

Indellas:
a group of islands the El'Asim stay close to

Ino Sensei:
Yotaka's title

Kala:
the large orange sun

Kel'mar:
the name of their planet

Kiwidinok:
the wildlands

Koko Nadie:
the islands that surround Peacock Rock

lethera:
a jellyfish large enough to house an entire city. (Plural: letharan )

musuko:
Sakin - for my son

octoartus:
an octopus- like creature

ocwhal:
a large whale-like creature

Okaasan:
Sakin - for mother

optiscope:
the large telescope for star charting on the Yussra Samma.

Sang:
the small blue sun

sphynktor bug:
a very large bug with pincers that lives in the desert

Yotaka-san:
Teacher Yotaka

Families

Bahrain:
Landsmen, their elemental Mark is hearth and home

El'Asim:
Airmen, their elemental Mark is storm

Ino:
letharan
, their elemental Mark isfire

Leblanc:
Watermen, their elemental Mark is water

Shankara:
letharan
, their elemental Mark is air

Umira:
Landsmen, their elemental Mark is spirit

Languages

Adalic:
similar to Arabia (El'Asim)

Keltak:
similar to Celtic (Bahrain)

Nefertarian:
similar to Egyptian Arabic (Umira)

Sakin:
similar to Japanese (Ino)

Yetyan:
similar to French (Leblanc)

Time

Season:
A season is how long it takes for the, moon, Illona to travel through a quadrant of its orbit around Kel'mar and Kel'mar's orbit around Kala. Seasons are also affected by Kala's rotation around its neighboring sun, Sang. With this in mind, seasons can last months or years.

Spring:
This season generally lasts about three months.

Summer:
Summer lasts over a year. The apex of this season is the two months of constant sunlight as Sang and Kala both share the sky and never set.

Fall:
Fall is very short in comparison to the two major seasons. It lasts for two to three months depending on the type of winter they're transitioning into.

Winter:
Winter is the longest season as Kel'mar travels along it's orbit around Kala and on the dark side of Sang. This season lasts anywhere from three to five years. Kel'mar's orbit is oblong, as is Kala's. That leaves a very long window for the terrible winters this little moon experiences.

Minutes:
There are seventy-two minutes in an hour.

Hour:
There are thirty-six hours in a day.

Day:
This is how long it takes for Illona to rotate on its own axis.

Year:
A year is how long it takes for Illona to travel around her planet, Kel'Mar.

Turn:
The time it takes for Kala to complete its rotation around the blue sun, Sang.

Centurn:
A centurn is a hundred turns

Distance

decameter:
10 metres

hectometer:
100 metres

kilometer:
1000 metres

megametre:
1,000 kilometres

SM Blooding
lives in Colorado with her pet rock, Rockie, and Ms. Jack, who’s a real bird. She’s still learning to play the piano and the guitar, which is going marginally better, and for those of you looking for an Arabic update, she has successfully learned one word, “
Yalla,
people,
yalla!”

She’s dated vampires, werewolves, sorcerers, weapons smugglers and US Government assassins. Yes. She has stories.

She’s also an investigator with a
local paranormal investigation group, Colorado Paranormal Rescue
!

Find out more at:
www.smblooding.com

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