Whispers of the Skyborne (Devices of War Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

scrambling out of my way.
    “El’Asim,” Jamilah said, her tone filled with chiding, “I thought today’s mission was to allow others to do their jobs.”
    I ignored her and fiddled with the dials and levers until the static and chatter had cleared. “ Maizah, this is the Layal. Come in.”
    After a brief moment, a deep voice came over the line. “Commander Mudar speaking, El’Asim. What can I do for you?”
    Three of my father’s commanders had survived. Mudar was one of them. He was not a war commander, but, as my father had told me often, sometimes, you didn’t need everyone to be a war commander. Sometimes, you needed someone who understood war and knew better than to join it. Mudar was that man.
    “Any word from Oki?”
    “Negative, sayyd .”
    “And the situation in Ino City?”
    Static clung to the line for a moment, then cleared. “Our scouts report that it does appear as though Ino City is under attack from strange, unmarked air vessels.”
    “Vessels?”
    “They are not all airships, El’Asim.” His deep voice rumbled through my ears. “You are not the only one making modifications to his ships.”
    “Where is Carilyn?”
    “I am here, El’Asim,” her soft voice said.
    My gaze drifted around the dome, catching the faces pointed in my direction as they waited. “What about your spies?”
    “It’s not good, Synn. According to my contact, Oki has just been arrested. Ino City breached to get word to you. Your sister will be executed tomorrow morning.”
    Four months ago, any hint of this level of betrayal would have been disbelieved. However, I’d done a great deal more than simply rebuild my fleet. I’d gone on information gathering missions.
    Just words. These were just words until she confirmed. Ploys to draw me out.
    “Get word to your contact, if her information is real—”
    “It is, Synn.”
    “—then tell them to gather their troops. I’m coming to Ino City.”
     

 
     
    Ino City: Chie
     
    C HIE HURRIED THROUGH I NO C ITY, her hands fisted at her sides, her steps clipped. The big bow of her blue obi bounced with each step at the base of her back.
    Synn was close. He knew Oki was in trouble. Chie just hoped he would arrive in time. She’d warned Oki so many times over the past few years of their friendship about Ino Nami, but each time, Oki’s laughed her warnings away. “No,” Oki’d said, “My mother would never do anything like that.”
    But Chie knew things Oki couldn’t. There was a certain brilliance to being a servant. A true-blood servant, so, in some ways, stronger in political standing than others, including Oki. But still, a servant, and, thus, invisible. As such, she was able to slip into places she shouldn’t be during meetings she shouldn’t even know about.
    Like the true-blood meetings.
    They’d been banned years ago. Shortly afterward, Ino Nami had joined her house with Kadar El’Asim and they’d produced children. On the outside, things looked great. It appeared as though progress was being made.
    Then, the true-blood meetings continued, without the El’Asim being present.
    The El’Asim tribe wasn’t pure. It was a blending of several different tribes. The only reason the El’Asim had been accepted into the Great Family ranks was because their Mark was consistent; lightning. Also, they were large and powerful. However, Chie had seen other “powerful” tribes wiped out of existence before. So, there had to have been something else that Ino Nami had been looking for.
    Chie had listened to the secret meetings. She’d heard Ino Nami proclaim that Oki, Ryo, Zara, and Synn were not her children and would never inherit. That left only Makoto who had obviously been fathered elsewhere. They talked of purging the Great Families of all the tainted blood.
    Tainted blood. Chie went cold just thinking about it. When they “purged” the ranks, the tainted were either turned out with nothing to call their own, or they were slaughtered. How far would Ino