the yelling,” Alchan growled, storming past Emerian and jumping down. “But I didn’t hear what it was about.”
“Seanev is at the northwestern guard post,” she explained. “Does that mean…”
“He’s going by our bad news protocol,” Alchan said, sighing. “Something happened and we need to brief him before he comes back.” Alchan turned on her nemari, who was still standing at the door. Rain was there now as well. “I need both of you to round up everyone and meet Mave and me at the guard post.”
“Yes, sir.” Emerian lowered his head before jumping off and flying out of sight. Rain went right after him, heading up the cliff.
“Let’s go,” he ordered. “I need you to come with me since I’m not allowed to leave the village without a guard. You.” Alchan pointed at the young male who had flown in. “Go inside my home and tell Lady Lilliana you need food and water at my order. You can return to your post when I am back.”
“Yes, sir.”
Mave jumped off first, knowing Alchan would be right behind her. He quickly overtook her and flew like he knew where they were going. Mave knew the locations of the guard posts but didn’t regularly visit them. She had helped review them over the winter but hadn’t needed to go near them since.
It was a long flight. The northwestern guard post was a day’s ride. There were several around the village, far enough away to give them advanced warning if the enemy was seen coming too close. Even more were scattered out farther, all part of an advanced warning system Senri developed to protect the center of the rebellion and the home of the king.
It was firmly night when they landed at the small camp with only two buildings. One was living quarters, and the other was both a supply building and a place for them to eat out of the cold. In the center of their claimed clearing was a large fire, built where Mave knew the guards spent most of their time when they weren’t perched in the trees or patrolling around the camp for any evidence of the Elvasi.
“Where’s Seanev?” Alchan asked the guard running up to them. Mave found it odd they hadn’t seen the army on their way in.
It’s beyond odd. It’s fucking troubling. It’s bad. This is bad.
“He and his warriors are a short walk away in a separate clearing. Please follow me.” The guard turned sharply and started jogging, Mave and Alchan rushing to keep up.
What they found in the next clearing was soul-crushing.
Mave didn’t see her brother immediately. She saw the warriors, so many of them, but so few at the same time.
So very few.
“Hey,” someone called softly. Warriors looked up at her and Alchan, their eyes sad, but unsurprised. They had known someone was on the way. Mave tried to find who spoke and inhaled sharply as she saw her brother.
He had a terrible scar on his bare chest, shoulder to hip, but that wasn’t even the worst of it.
His right arm was gone from the elbow.
Mave took a step toward him, but Alchan was there first.
“Seanev, what the hell happened? Your arm! Wh-what the fuck?” Alchan’s frantic words cut through Mave. She had never heard him talk like that before. He was supposed to be the one who took things well and made everyone believe he could handle it. And when he couldn’t do that, he got pissed off because he hated being stressed out without a solution.
Frantic was never a word Mave wanted to use to describe Alchan.
“We were about to hit our third location,” her brother started. “Everything was going well. We got into position. We killed their scouts and planned to hit fast before anyone could realize we were there. It had worked so well for the first two.”
“Of course, it did,” Alchan snapped. “You’re the most experienced general I have. Let’s sit down. You should sit down.”
Mave followed in silence as one of her brothers forced the other to walk. Seanev seemed empty. It was the only way for her to describe it. He’s suffered a terrible defeat, two terrible injuries, and he was probably still dealing with that. She knew the body healed, but the mind could take time.
She didn’t sit on the log with them, just stood quietly, wondering what she could do. Alchan was doing what she should have been doing. She resigned herself to listening from behind them, watching their backs.