Then Vor had put his arm around her, and their gazes had met as if they were lovers. It was utterly insane. As was the way he treated her. The last thing she had expected when he put her in his erial was kindness. It was twisting her stomach. Baffling her. This had to be a game or perhaps a mind-controlling technique. Mental warfare. Vor was trying to break her like a horse. Well, she'd be damned if she let that happen. Lena may not be as brave or as strong as her sister, but she would not give up without a fight. So she had jerked away from him.
And he still reacted with patience. The bastard.
As Lena followed Vor into the room full of Nethren soldiers—their bodies partially formed of metal, each in different ways—she pushed down the trembling that threatened to take over. Holding her head up, she met the curious and then astounded stares of Vor's soldiers.
Cacher screens dominated one wall, each one showing a different scene outside the fortress. Desks stood below the screens, Nethren seated at them with their hands on the control panels. A huge, metal table stood in the center of the room, papers spread across it, featuring the specifications of the fortress. Every soldier was armed, and only one was female. She narrowed her dark eyes at Lena.
“Commander!” A dark-haired man with a metal tube running up the side of his neck stood up and approached them, his gaze going back and forth between Vor and Lena. “Sir, we're relieved you've returned. Uh, who is this? Shall I have her transported to the stockade?”
Lena stepped back. She knew what a stockade was. Military prison. And she was a prisoner. It made sense, but after Vor's speech, she hadn't expected to be tossed in a cell.
“No,” Vor said so sharply that the man retreated a few steps. “This is Lena. She's mine. Notify everyone in the fortress. She is not to be touched or harmed.”
“Commander?” The man frowned.
“The Source led me to her. She's vital to our mission.”
At the mention of the Source of Technology, every Nethren in the room went still. Then they dropped their stares from Lena. She gaped at them. They really believed that the Source of Tech had led Vor to her? And what was all this about her being vital to their mission? Lena wouldn't help the Nethren. She couldn't even conceive of how she might.
“Understood, Commander.” The man inclined his head.
“Good. Call a cease-fire.” Vor strode to the central desk and lifted a hinged lid to reveal a lever.
“A cease-fire, Commander?” The LC looked from Vor to the lever. “Uh, what's that?”
“Tech gave me a vision. I believe this activates a ward.”
“A ward?” The LC blinked and then rushed to another panel. He pushed a button and spoke into a microphone. “All troops, cease fire! Stand down and prepare for warding.”
The dull thud of projectile weapons slowed to a silence, and Vor pushed the lever. The hair on Lena's forearms lifted, and she heard a low humming. Then there was a great cheering coming from outside. It was soon echoed by the Nethren in the room with her.
Lena looked around at the Nethren and then at one of the cacher screens. A shimmer hung just beyond the fortress walls. The ward. It would keep everyone and everything out of the fortress. It would also keep everyone in. Lena wrapped her arms around herself. She had just been doubly caged.
“Praise Source!” The lieutenant commander said. “You are truly its chosen one, Commander.”
“It leads us all,” Vor said. “Now, I want a return fire randomized throughout the day and night. Lower the shield using this lever, fire, and raise the shield. I want Paradefense constantly on guard, waiting for our attacks, never knowing when one will come.”
“Yes, Commander!” The LC grinned. “Brilliant tactic. Anything else, sir?”
“Has the general's quarters been cleaned for me?”
“Yes, Commander. Corporal Shensar can escort you there.” He motioned at the female Nethren.
The woman stood up and inclined her head to Vor. “Commander.”
“Good. Begin the attacks within the hour,” Vor said to the LC.
“Yes, Commander.”
Vor motioned the woman out of the room and then looked at Lena. “After you.”
Lena stepped around Vor and out into the hallway where the corporal waited. The woman glared at Lena again, but Lena didn't care. Glares were the least of her concerns. Vor, however, didn't approve.
“Corporal!” Vor snapped. “Do not look at my guest like that.”
The woman flinched and gaped at the commander. “She's the enemy, Commander.”
“No, she isn't. Lena is the key to our returning to the surface, and you will give her the respect that her role demands. Understood?”
