“What’s happening?” a man asked. “The Eyes are responding, my lord,” a younger man replied. “But… I’m not sure.” “She’s not being rejected,” a woman said. “She is being rejected!” a distraught man shouted. “Tell her to stop!” “You can’t stop the ritual,” the first man said in his calm manner. “We can only wait for it to finish on …

Minutes before the twelfth bell, an invisible phantom that stood atop Vultheras’ clockwork tower. From that brass-shingled roof, rattled by light rain, it watched the surrounding coast and waters; paid close attention to their formation, and most importantly, the arrangement of their large guns. There are more than I was counting on, Jessica thought. Motes of blue light flickered dimly …

Matteo bounced near the end of the 2nd platoon’s transport truck. They were third in column of ten vehicles, traveling along the hills to take position above Wenderguard. His youthful lieutenant, Lucas Benasso, sat beside him to his left, and the new radio operator Simone Meneghin sat on the last seat to his right. Sergeant Zanon and sergeant Medati sat …

When Atilonia’s Second Fleet passed through the King’s Strait, the four-mile wide channel through Bastilhas’ barrier mountains, they did so unopposed. The many fortresses that lined the cliffs were silent, their naval guns long since seized by their army. The Atilonians then entered the dark water surrounding Vultheras, colloquially known as the Brass Sea, and found it was empty. There …

Cid frowned as he crouched on the floor of a prison cell. Ahead of him was a prisoner whose hands were bound in manacles above their head. It was a young man, blonde, blue eyed, covered in bruises and despondent in pain. The prisoner’s half-lidded eyes stared into a corner of the dimly-lit cell, and didn’t appear to acknowledge Cid …

The 401st through 411th regiments were camped in the rolling hills overlooking Cohenburg. The fields and pastures that once fed the village had been cleared, pounded flat, and pegged with rows of ridge tents big and small. The smallest tanned-leather tents were fit for two soldiers, the largest ones contained the munitions depots, the mechanic shops, and the local command …

In the depths of the Clockwork Palace, behind fortified walls and guarded checkpoints, was the war room. It was a large center of operations, two stories high and crossed by metal catwalks. The first level housed both the Military Operations Committee, also known as High Command; and the Tactical Command and Control unit, or Tactics and Command, frequently shortened to …

Matteo winced from his restful sleep. People were talking nearby. ‘No,’ they said, ‘run the test a third time,’ they said. Men argued with each other and the boy opened his eyes. His bed had been concealed by a white curtain and a man in a doctor’s coat sat in a chair beside his pillow. They scribbled on a note …

It was midnight and rain fell hard over Vultheras. Its mana-powered streetlamps were dark, its roads were empty, and but for the sounds of the storm, it was silent. There were no late-night patrons to once-bustling taverns; no early-morning police patrols, searching for drunks or thieves. Rain plinked on brass gutters, struck the shutters of long-closed shops along Market Road; …

They say adventurers make ten-thousand silver Prints a month. They also say it’s dangerous work, but what would I know about that? I was a baby when my dad tripped and hit his head. He woke up in an infirmary, ten days later and a hundred miles from home; he felt funny, like he never had before. Momma told me …