The War With Audin (Ebook)

Illsa Watt fumbled to connect the final mithril linkage in the Mark V armor’s upper front plate. Upside down, arms fully extended into the chest of the thirty-meter-tall armor, she couldn’t quite reach it. Outside, muted thuds and booms made it nearly impossible to concentrate.

Didn’t those idiots know how important her work was?

She kicked her legs and inched a little deeper into the Mark V. The tips of her fingers finally made contact with the linkage. Ether surged out and fused them together. Energy flowed from the power crystal, coloring the mithril blue.

Good, it should be working now. 

She pushed against a reinforcing strut and wriggled around, trying in vain to push herself back out. Nothing doing. She’d gotten totally stuck. If she were capable of feeling embarrassed, being stuck upside down, her bare legs and smallclothes visible to anyone that walked by, would certainly have left her red-faced. Of course, she didn’t care in the least what anyone thought, but she did care about getting out of here and calibrating the control system.

“Little help!” she shouted.

The armory had been nearly empty since one of the assistants had helped kidnap Lord Shenk’s apprentice. They were doing another round of interviews to make sure there were no more spies lurking about. And while Illsa approved of the increased security, the lack of help annoyed her to no end.

Especially now.

“Hey! Can anyone hear me? I need some help!”

A strong hand grasped her ankle and pulled. She popped out and nearly landed on her butt. Someone caught her at the last moment.

Illsa brushed the hair out of her eyes and found the familiar, youthful face of Curtis Yates looking back at her. Curtis was only twenty and already the finest armor pilot in the Audin military. He’d been assigned as the Mark V 1’s primary operator. Standing nearly six feet tall and sporting short blond hair and a scattering of freckles across the bridge of his nose, Curtis looked like he should still be in school.

“Thanks,” she said. “And good timing. I’m ready to calibrate the controls. Get in.”

An especially loud crash sounded, drawing a grimace. “Could they keep it down out there? This is hard enough without all the noise.”

Curtis stared at her. “Are you joking, Illsa?”

“About what?”

“An invasion force has Audin surrounded. They’re working on smashing through the wall now. Didn’t you hear the other armor deploy?”

She did her best to process that as she looked around at the empty armor stalls. That explained the earlier racket that nearly caused her to mess up a different, but equally vital connection.

“I’ve been busy. Now get in the cockpit. We need to get the Mark V calibrated so you can go fight.”

Curtis shook his head but obediently climbed the ladder and eased into the control chamber. He slid his hands into the arm slots and his legs into their slots. When he was locked into place, a helmet descended and covered his head. Power surged through his body as he became one with the armor.

She never tired of watching the process.

“How does the link feel?” Illsa asked.

“No issues. The right eye is a little blurry, but that’s it.”

Illsa reached through the ether and adjusted the flow to the right eye.

“Better?”

“Perfect.”

“Okay, stand up and take a few steps.”

He did so. As always, the first step was wobbly. Suddenly having a fifty-foot stride took a second to get used to even for someone as experienced as Curtis. The stone floor vibrated when his metal foot hit it. By the third step he moved as naturally as if he was using his own body.

“Any problems?” Illsa asked.

“No, I’m all good.”

“Okay, get out there and fight.”

“Lord Audin wanted both Mark Vs deployed. John should be here soon for number two.”

“He’d be better off fighting in one of the Mark IVs. I’ve got at least a week’s work to get number two ready for battle.”

“I don’t think we have a week. Best get to the castle. If the invaders breach the wall, that’ll be the safest place for you.”

She waved him off and went right to the second Mark V. She appreciated Curtis’s concern, but if the enemy made it inside the city, she could trot over to the castle in half a minute. Until then, she’d keep working.

The massive suit of armor clanked out of the armory and she turned her focus to its twin brother. The mithril Lord Shenk had provided made it so much simpler to complete her babies. Especially after he showed her how to smelt the mithril properly. Such a simple spell, yet she’d never even thought about using magic directly to enhance the effects of heat or any other natural phenomenon.

Just went to show you how much there was to learn.

The more she thought about it, the more Illsa wished she’d taken Lord Shenk up on his offer to return with him to his empire. It would’ve expanded her horizons far more than anything she might accomplish here. But as she’d said, Lord Audin would never let her leave.

She shrugged and considered what needed to be done to number two.

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