Chapter 74

• The world was fire and noise.
• Reese stood in her command post, a steel box in the heart of a hurricane, and watched her kingdom burn. The roar of the battle was a physical thing, a constant, concussive pressure that shook the very air she breathed.
• `“They’re through the west gate!”` a voice screamed over the radio, the words dissolving into a wet, choking sound. `“Oh God, they’re…”` The transmission cut out, replaced by the hiss of dead air.