Myra's Point of View

Two months after Anniversary, Myra tasted joy as she flew through the winding peaks of the Hawk Mountains.

   The icy bite of the wind stung her face as she dived. Scales dug into her skin, but the discomfort faded as she gave into instinct. She breathed in lungful after lungful of fresh, pure mountain air. The freezing cold warred with the fiery song in her bones. No longer did she note the frigid temperature or the slapping of the wind on her face. Her worries fell away one by one. Rational thought and civilised mind disappeared, giving into muscle memory, war-gift and the pure ecstasy of flight. Cerulean's scales sparkled in the midday sun. His deep blue scales matched his rider's eyes. Powerful wings thundered through the air, creating great gusts of their own larger than his mother but smaller than his gargantuan sire, Cerulean had the swiftness, intelligence and burning-hot flame of Caelia with power and strength of his father to boot. A wyvern worthy of a War Queen.

   Myra gripped on tightly to him as they rose higher and higher.

   Everyone had a place they belonged. A place that felt right. For Myra, it was on a wyvern's back, breathing in Miras mountain air, gliding over the Northern ocean or swerving between the Bird of Prey mountain peaks. Flying over her country's verdant forests, icy rivers and wide, open plains. She might love Triad, but Miras was her home. It was the song that burned in her blood. The rhythm of her heartbeat. Myra was bonded to her homeland, and she felt its pulse within her, even when she ventured far away. Her tie to it had given her the strength to go to war again and again. Her love of it had been what kept her strong in the dark times of four years ago.

   And the flying...it felt right. Not instinctual, like battle and the clash of steel. Not natural, like wielding the war-gift she was born with. But right. As she took to the skies, she felt a bone-deep rightness that came with riding her wyvern and feeling its flame on her skin, with revelling in the wind in her hair, with gliding over the sea and turning and twisting and weaving through the air.

   She reluctantly guided Cerulean back toward the shore and the army training in the mountains. Her all-too short half hour break was over, and her presence was now demanded in the war council.    

   The moment they had rebuilt enough of Miras and Asriel to justify turning their attention to other matters, Myra had begun building the army. The Lost Continent might have been united and Medea might have vanquished, but she refused to be complacent. She refused to see her country fall again.

   The armada had been her first investment. The valkyrie navy hadn't rebuilt it since it was destroyed in the God-Born War. Despite their skill on the sea they still couldn't face Tidals, and WaterWeavers and couldn't see the point of trying to fight on the ocean again. But now they had elves on their side, Myra commissioned battleship after battleship. Valkyries made up the vast majority of the marines but elves were also included to control the waves and humans were welcomed for their experience with ships that didn't fly. Only the Asrieli had been willing to sail the ones that did.

   Afterwards she had turned her attention to the Aerial Legion. After their army had been so decimated, they had a surplus of wyverns and gryphons that the valkyries couldn't manage alone, so elves and humans were invited to join the ranks of the flyers. The valkyries had protested in huge numbers, so Myra had left the unpleasant business of dealing with them to Gemma, her War Heir.

   The calvary and foot-soldiers were then recruited, made of a roughly equal

amount of humans, valkyries and elves. Combining the forces of Miras, Asriel, Lysandria and Calore had made for a formidable army, despite the fact it had to stretch its resources across the continent. And that a huge portion had left to protest the inclusion of those from other nations.

   And the army hadn't been the only thing she'd been working on. She now had an Elite Guard, a  hand-selected combination of elves, humans and valkyries trained not only in protecting the rulers of each nation but also in assassination, spy-craft and a wide range of other delightful and illegal things.

   The entire army was sprawled across the Bird of Prey Mountains and extended into the Plain of the Peregrine. Whilst different outposts existed throughout the continent and the City Guard remained in their cities, most of their vast forces were deployed there. It was a tight squeeze but not an impossible one, as the valkyries had never used half of the room in the legendary mountain range.

   Myra circled the Hawk Mountains, where all of the higher-ranking officials converged. After landing Cerulean in the aeries, she made her way to the War Council, accompanied by the best of the Elite Guard. This frustrated her to no end. It was entirely unnecessary to send guards to a meeting of highly accomplished generals.

   Myra sat at the head of the table, dressed in highly impractical full armour. On her right was Scarlet Isidore, General of the Aerial Legion and Representative of Miras.  Myra would have filled her post—if she hadn't been chosen to head up the entire army instead.

   On her left sat Zara Montague, General of the Calvary and Representative of Asriel. She was familiar with the elf from their time working together in both Crimson Wars. In the first she had been idealistic, hopeful and one of few advocates for a united world. In the second she had been hardened, pessimistic and deeply suspicious of humans and valkyries. She seemed to have now reached some sort of balance, which was the main reason Layla had decided to have her representative the archipelago.

   Their third member, Radek, sat on Zara's left and had given no last name. He was extraordinarily antisocial, silent, pessimistic and generally a wet blanket on a gloomy day. Although technically part of Nala's parliament, his true role was as the general of foot soldiers and Calore Representative.

   Thorn—seated on Radek's left— had also given no last name and his extreme aversion to social interaction was only matched by the one person he tolerated: Radek. He was Lysandra's Executioner, the General of the Elite Guard and Lysandria Representative. Myra was pretty certain that Lysandra and Nala had choosen the pair to annoy her and were probably laughing hysterically over the thought of her having to deal with them.

   Mireia, their sixth and final major member, sat right of Zara. She was a valkyrie but not a representative of any nation. The young general led the Armada and was the unofficial peacekeeper of the War Council. Thankfully, she did a better job of keeping the generals together than Myra, who was just as likely as anyone to start throwing insults—and food.

   "Why do we have to do this daily?" Zara wondered aloud. "It's not as though we have a war going on." Myra's fists clenched in frustration.

   "Four years ago, our nations were in chains." She replied flatly. "I will take every precaution to ensure it never happens again."

   "And this threat comes from what enemy?" Zara replied harshly. "Miras, Asriel, Calore and Lysandria are united. What we should be focused is ensuring it stays that way, not preparing for a fight against a non-existent enemy."

   "There is still the Witch Queendom," Myra replied. Thorn snorted. Even Gemma, usually loyal to a fault, rolled her eyes.

   "Populated by one witch," Zara snapped.

   "Estra Godkiller," Myra replied. "The witch who, along with her sister, Sabran and their brother, Cyros—one of the few known male witches—is responsible for the murders of the four goddesses. The witch who has broken contact with Empress Lysandra and may be looking to have another try at conquering the world." She ignored the frustrated glances passing between her generals.

   "And that's not the only threat.You know the rumours." At that, a nervous silence fell over the War Council. There were plenty of rumours—rebel groups forming against their united approach, of Nala's election rivals being intent on war, of Elfin Lords and Lysandrian nobles plotting to split from the Alliance.

   "If such things come about, we must be ready for war. And if you aren't prepared to endure a few extra meetings to stop the continent falling back into the division that allowed the Empress' rise to power, then you can walk out of this room right now." No one moved. Even Mireia was speechless as to how to relieve the bubbling tension. Zara now slouched in her seat, properly put back into place. Gemma was smiling with satisfaction at Myra's response. Radek and Thorn watched with equally blank expressions.

   As close to consensus as this War Council ever got. She would have to be satisfied with it.

   "Now," Myra said sharply. "Let's start with today's reports."