The Matrix Opal opens Stella Atrium’s Duchy Wars. Bybiis is captured by frightened villagers who tattoo her with skin wards meant to suppress her gift with animals. Instead, the wards sharpen it. Rescued by her tribe, she must decide whether to use immoral compulsions on creatures or follow the warrior way.
Ariseng, a gifted ward-maker, joins the escape on one condition: the matrix opal is hers. When a foreign power that exploits women of talent separates them, both must learn to combine their abilities to resist.