They entered the vimana-kal. Sidona quickly put the key in place and pressed her hand to it, her eyes going blank for a moment as she shaped the planet’s invisible forces. More crystals around the room glowed brightly. The fortress was crippled, but its child was in perfect condition.

She withdrew. ‘How will we know where to go?’

‘There is a place where many lines of force meet,’ Gadreel told her, ‘a place of great power – it must be Tartarus. The tracker will guide us.’

‘If you can trust the human.’

Beyond the windows, he saw Zan struggling to carry the machine across the throne room. ‘If he wishes to stay alive, he will obey. He has betrayed his own people – there is nowhere else for him to go. Now, ready us to leave.’

He ran back out into the throne room to address his people from the central altar. ‘The world has changed,’ he said, raising his voice so those in the chamber below could hear. ‘Our persecutors are gone – but they have been usurped by the beasts who bore us, the humans. They became powerful while we slept, but we can still defeat them!’

His words had the desired effect, rallying the warriors. ‘We will reclaim our place and free our people,’ he went on. ‘But it will require sacrifice. The fortress is crippled. Our only hope is to use the vimana-kal to reach the hidden prison – but it is too small to take us all. Some must remain here. I am sorry.’ He briefly bowed his head, then continued: ‘Defend the fortress to the last. Your lives will not be wasted. We will free our daughters and sons, our sisters and brothers, all those who were taken from us by the People of the Tree. They will remember you for a thousand generations!’

Some of the newly woken entered during his speech, listening with excitement – or alarm, wondering if they would be the ones asked to give their lives. He made eye contact with each of them, reassuring them that he had not taken this decision lightly. ‘We have little time left. We must make good use of it. Lady Sidona and I will give each of you your tasks. Then,’ his voice rose to a crescendo, ‘we will take back the world that is rightfully ours!’

The throne room erupted with cheers. Gadreel granted himself a moment to bask in the long-missed adulation of his people, then gestured for silence, ready to begin the difficult task of choosing who would escape – and who would be left to fight to the death.

Major Wu’s team split into two groups, flanking the fortress. Those heading left had the more dangerous approach, as they would be within the firing arc of one of the big guns at its front.