Threshold of Annihilation (The Firebird Chronicles #3) - T.A. White Page 0,90

that little girl is the answer to the riddle they've been struggling with for centuries?"

The Tuann were powerful, but they had one primary drawback.

It took many, many decades for them to fully mature. Trying to build up their military strength took centuries—especially if the former masters of the Tuann had to start with new stock.

Elena had many of the Tuann benefits but aged as fast as a human.

Kira could see Wren’s struggle as he wrestled with rage, agony, horror—but not fear.

"How badly were you and the rest treated?" Wren finally asked in a hoarse voice.

"Torture is the proper term. There's a price for everything. The Tuann want their children back so badly they've never considered that their children might have become like the very monsters the Tuann fear."

The things they'd done and had done to them—they weren't easy things to brush under a rug and forget. All of them carried the scars.

"Can the Tuann still love their children if they aren't entirely Tuann anymore?"

Kira knew what it was like to have people's regard. To have them fawn and celebrate her. She also knew what it was like when that adoration was gone—to be reviled as a monster.

That sort of thing had a tendency to leave a mark on your soul, no matter how much you told yourself that you didn’t care.

She wouldn't let Elena suffer that fate. Not even from her grandfather.

Wren didn't speak for long seconds. Long enough that Kira was already considering how to extract Elena from this situation.

It'd likely mean burning bridges, but Kira had always excelled at that. Himoto liked to say Kira didn't just burn her bridges, she broke them into tiny pieces and soaked them in gasoline before lighting the bonfire. Afterwards, she’d pull up a chair and roast marshmallows in the resulting blaze.

"I feel I should inform you that you're no longer my only yer’se." Wren carefully turned and poured himself another glass of keeva.

If he had a purpose for that statement, Kira couldn’t see it.

"It's unusual to have two yer’se at one time, but the potential you both hold can’t be denied."

Kira’s eyes narrowed. He was changing the subject.

"I expect you to make every effort to get along with him."

Kira looked around feeling like she was in some alter dimension. How did they go from talking about Elena's lineage to this discussion about another yer’se she couldn't give two craps about?

Kira forced herself to play his game. "And who is this yer’se?”

Wren set his glass down, his face composed again as he met her eyes. "Raider."

Kira blinked in confusion. “My Raider?”

"I'm not sure he would enjoy being called that."

Probably not. It was more likely he'd try to separate her head from her shoulders.

"I saw your race in the preliminary rounds. It was impressive," Wren said in another lightning fast subject change. "In the future, you will not be so reckless."

Hold on a minute.

"It's only reckless if you get hurt or die," Kira said defensively.

Neither of those things had happened, so from where she stood, all was well that ended well.

The way Wren frowned at her made her feel like he was trying to determine the level of her stupidity.

Despite how it seemed, Kira always had a plan. Granted, those plans were often loosely defined with a high tendency to go wrong at the last minute, but she always came through in the end.

To prove it, she pulled up the hem of her shirt, exposing the under layer she still wore. "I knew this could take the impact. I never would have crossed the finish line that way if there had been risk of serious injury."

Wren regarded her with serious eyes. “You're trying to argue that the balial Roake gifted you would have prevented your death if you had miscalculated your descent on the tower.”

Kira winced. "Not exactly."

Wren gave a short nod. "Good. Because I know the ballistic resistance of that material. Every bone in your body would have been crushed. If you hadn’t pulled out of your dive in time, you would have died."

"But that didn't happen," Kira pointed out.

Wren's face was expressionless as he studied her. "I don't know how you're used to doing things, but you're one of my responsibilities now. I will not allow you to take such reckless actions again. Next time, find a safer way to win."

Kira didn't get a chance to argue before he switched topics again.

"I assume your board was destroyed. Do you need help procuring another one?" he asked.

Kira shook her head. "It's handled."

"Very