Chapter 37 - Chapter 37: Web of Tides

Lucien's PerspectiveThe harbor's calm is a prelude. From my vantage on the highest tower, the foreign fleet begins to move. Their ships glide through the morning mist—not like invaders but calculated predators surveying prey. Signals flash in cryptic patterns, the language of alliances and threats known only to them."Prepare the defenses," I order, voice steady despite the knot tightening in my gut. The city's walls, though bruised and weary, must hold against an unknown horizon.The council whispers through hidden channels—they will strike where our attention falters. I suspect the foreign fleet's diplomacy masks darker intentions. Numbers alone won't save us; we must act first, decisive and united—or not at all.Lysara's PerspectiveI feel the weight of past sacrifices heavier with each tick of the ward. The shard's faint glow strains against the rising tide of foreign magic. My memories flicker like dying stars; I clutch at the remnants with desperate fingers, fearing the loss of self as the city's final shield.Tonight, I must bind a new ward to hold the eastern walls, but every thread risks unraveling my identity further. The choice haunts me: secure the city or preserve the fragments of who I was.Rhea's PerspectiveThe council's emissaries press harder, exploiting every fracture in our fragile alliance. I hold the line among soldiers and civilians alike, rallying with a fierce calm born of countless battles. Yet beneath my armor pulses the uncertainty: how long before trust, like our battered walls, crumbles under the siege of fear and ambition?I convene a council of war, including the allied leaders whose ambitions now clash with our city's desperate needs. Politics has become another battlefield, where words cut deeper than swords.The Turning TideAs night descends, the foreign fleet launches a coordinated strike—ships fire arcane-infused ballista bolts while ground forces attempt to breach weakened gates. Lysara's wards shimmer defiantly but feel the pull of exhaustion.Lucien commands counterattacks from the walls, while Rhea leads a contingent to reinforce the faltering eastern gate, her sword alight with determined flame.Amidst the chaos, a betrayal surfaces—an ally reveals allegiance to the council, sabotaging defenses and threatening to unravel all.Cliffhanger EndingThe chapter closes with the city's fate hanging on a knife-edge: walls breach, alliances fracture, and the true cost of survival becomes starkly clear.Lucien, Lysara, and Rhea stand amid the turmoil, resolved yet wary, as the shadows deepen and the war's final act draws near.