LYRA POINT OF VIEWThe sound reached me before I saw anything.

Metal rang against metal, sharp and relentless, carrying across the open grounds in harsh bursts.

Men shouted as they moved, boots thudding into dirt, breath forced from their lungs as commands cut through the air. It was the sound of warriors being driven hard, past comfort, past pride.

I slowed as I stepped closer, the smell of sweat and iron thickening around me, and then I stopped.

Kael stood at the center of it all.

His ...