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Hopefully he was up to the task.

Chapter

Thirty-Four

Merrik tilted his aeroplane as he peered at the battlefield below. Above him, the bulk of the squadron whirled and roared as they battled the wave of Mongavarian aeroplanes that had appeared in the skies at first light.

Below, the Alliance vanguard—a few units of skirmishers—moved cautiously forward, even as the artillery continued to bombard the Mongavarian positions. Four of the aeroplanes flew low over the troops, prepared to swoop into action, while Merrik and several of the elven pilots flew overwatch to spot trouble and radio either the ground troops or the low-flying pilots.

“There is a bunker that looks like it could have a machine in it.” The elven pilot rattled off the coordinates.

“Henry.” Merrik sent off the flyboy closest to that bunker.

“On it.” One of the four low-flying aeroplanes zoomed off.

Merrik scanned the battlefield below, his gaze catching on the dot of crackling blue moving toward the fighting. She didn’t have her magic extended as she normally did but kept it close around herself.

Still, his heart hammered at the risk she was taking, just using her magic that much.

Nor was she the only one. All along the lines, volunteers among the elves and trolls sent their magic over the ground, trusting that the Half-Breed Squadron would save them if they were caught by one of those machines.

This operation would demand the most coordination between ground and air forces that the Alliance had deployed yet. Merrik had fought alongside the ground troops before, but never this closely.

One of the swaths of green elven plant magic was yanked to the side, all of the diffuse magic centering into a single line.

“Lije.” Merrik gave the coordinates, even as he noted the blinking light on his dashboard that indicated someone was trying to contact him on the radio channel dedicated to communication between the air and the ground.

“I see it.” Lije dove his aeroplane in that direction.

Merrik flipped the switch to change radio channels. “This is Half-Breed.”

“One of the elf skirmishers is caught! One of those machines!” The radioman didn’t even take the time to identify himself, his words a breathless rush.

“I have already dispatched a flyer.” Merrik kept his tone steady, hoping that would reassure the man on the other end. He listed the coordinates to make sure they were talking about the same elf.

No sooner had Merrik finished than Lije swooped low and dropped one of his bombs. An explosion spewed fire and dirt into the sky, the debris nearly clipping Lije’s tail as he soared back toward the sky.

The radioman whooped rather than confirming the coordinates, which was confirmation enough.

“Is the elf all right?” Merrik circled, but he couldn’t see the green magic anymore. Had Lije gotten there in time?

There was a long pause. Long enough for Merrik to scan both the dogfight and the skirmish, checking on the state of both the battle in the sky and the one on the ground.

“He’s alive.” The radioman’s voice crackled over the radio once again. “Knocked unconscious and nearly drained, but alive.”

“Good. Half-Breed over and out.” Merrik switched back to the channel his squadron used, a burst of voices blasting his ears even with the volume turned down low. The Half-Breed Squadron was a chatty bunch, even in the middle of battle.

Merrik looped his aeroplane to soar back the other way, constantly glancing both at the sky and the ground.

Adry’s heart hammered as she crept forward, keeping low. She had her magic wrapped tightly around herself to prevent it being snatched by one of those machines. From all accounts, they needed either proximity or actual contact to take hold of magic, so she should be fine as long as she kept her magic away from any mysterious, trailing wires.

Her elite guard kept a tight formation around her with Yralissa and Aylduin taking the lead, their magic extended before them as if they intended to sacrifice themselves rather than risk Adry and her magic.

Uncle Iyrinder stalked at her side, his sword drawn, his jaw hard.

She swallowed and gestured. “I can include you in my shield.”

He shook his head. “No. Keep your shield close. I will be fine.”