A Forge of Valor by Morgan Rice

her mind off her father, off all the devastation around her.
    Dierdre paced, as she had for hours, wondering what to do next as she heard the entire city being destroyed above her. They could not stay down here forever, she knew that. Death was coming for them all.
    The more she paced, the more a burning resolve began to grow within her. She thought of her dead father up there, of the sacrifices he had made, and she knew she had to follow in his footsteps. It was the only way to honor his legacy. Her thoughts turned to Alec and she remembered the work he had done, forging those chains, those spikes and slowly, an idea dawned on her.
    Dierdre turned to Marco as she heard the cannon fire subside, who sat there, dejected, head in his hands.
    “They’ve finished the first assault,” she remarked. “That means their ships will be entering the canals soon.”
    He looked back at her, wondering.
    “Let’s not make it easy on them,” she added.
    He stared back, and slowly recognition dawned across his face.
    “The chains?” he asked.
    She nodded.
    “Are they in the canals?” she asked, wondering if their work was completed before the invasion.
    Marco nodded back with an expression of deadly seriousness.
    “Alongside the harbor,” he replied. “But not affixed. We did not have time before the invasion.”
    Dierdre nodded, feeling a sense of resolve.
    “Then let’s not wait another minute,” she said, finally stopping pacing, filled with a sense of certainty.
    Marco stood, too, a fresh look of determination in his eyes.
    “You’re mad,” said an old man, overhearing, standing and coming up beside them, his voice filled with concern. “You’ll get yourself killed!”
    “The Pandesians are already here,” said another. “Nothing can stop them. What’s the point of destroying a few ships?”
    “If we block the canals,” Dierdre replied, “it will kill hundreds of soldiers. It will clog the canals.”
    “So?” asked another. “Will that stop the million behind them?”
    “The city is already destroyed,” another added. “Why bother?”
    “Why?” Dierdre echoed, indignant. “Because it is what we do. It is who we are. It is what my father would have done.”
    “What is the alternative?” Marco added. “To stay down here and wait for our deaths?”
    “At least down here you are safe,” added another.
    “I don’t want to be safe,” Dierdre replied. “I want to defend our city.”
    Some people shook their heads, while others looked away, fear and cowardice in their eyes.
    “We will not risk our lives up there,” one man with a withered arm finally said.
    “I don’t ask you to,” Dierdre replied, cold and hard, not expecting anything from anyone. She was beyond that now. “I shall do it myself.”
    Dierdre began to walk toward one of the ladders, when she felt a hand on her arm. She turned to see Marco’s serious brown eyes staring back at her.
    “I will join you,” he said.
    Dierdre was touched.
    Before she ascended, she turned and faced the crowd of scared, huddled faces, looking over each one. They seemed terrified, and she understood.
    “Anyone else?” she asked, wanting to give them one last chance to join her.
    But they all looked away in fear and shame.
    “You’ll be climbing to your death up there,” one woman called out.
    Dierdre nodded back.
    “I don’t doubt that,” she replied.
    Dierdre turned and began to ascend the ladder, one rung at a time, Marco behind her. It was a long climb in the blackness, her hands trembling from fear. Yet she forced herself to suppress her fears, to rise above them.
    When they finally reached the top, they paused and looked at each other. Marco raised an eyebrow, as if asking if she were sure she wanted to do this. She nodded back silently, and they understood each other.
    They reached out and, together, they pulled back the bolts. They gave the heavy iron slab one big push, and a moment later they were flooded with sunlight.
    Ur.
    Their