red hair catching the sun as he waited with his men and women at the edge of the practice yard. Among them were the three beasts on chain leashes—as if that would help if those animals went berserk.
To Shanti, Cayan asked, “Did you sense any Inkna?”
“None. The upper-tiered officers would usually be protected. Not this time.”
Cayan shook his head, marching onto the packed dirt of the practice yard. “This doesn’t make sense.”
“What are your orders, sir?” Sanders asked, standing in front of the army.
“Reinforce the gates. They don’t have enough to surround the city with any density. Our archers can easily take down anyone that nears the wall. Get women up there, too. The time for hiding them is over. Make sure we have men and horses on the ground in case they produce a battering ram we haven’t seen. Take down anyone that comes within range.”
To Shanti he said, “Station the Shumas and Shadow around the wall with the archers. I want immediate communication if anything comes up.”
“With the amount of power we have in the city, we can kill or cripple them with a single surge,” Shanti said, motioning Sonson over. “We don’t have to get our hands dirty.”
“That’ll severely weaken us. I don’t know how he moved this many people without word reaching us. I wouldn’t have thought it possible. We have no idea how many more are out there, and I don’t want to leave us defenseless against a mental attack.”
5
Cayan stood at the top of the wall, looking out at the lands beyond. He couldn’t see the enemy waiting out there patiently, but he could feel them. They remained out of sight, sticking to the trees and foliage. Their minds were watchful but at rest, not preparing for an attack or expecting one from the city.
What were they doing here if not waging war?
“Captain, we’re set.” Commander Sterling came to a stop beside him, forcing one of the dozen female archers along the wall to make room. “Commander Sanders has the ground forces ready, as well. Shanti is monitoring the mental workers. Maggie, the woman with the exploding devices, has teams set. We’re ready for the next move.”
Cayan clenched his jaw and shifted his weight. He didn’t like making strategies when the enemy’s intentions weren’t clear. It left too much up to guesswork.
He looked along the wall, eyeing those waiting. Eyes hard and bodies squared, his people were primed and ready. Not one harbored a spark of fear, not even the women or younger men. All were determined and ready to defend what was theirs. His people would not let someone invade again. They were warriors.
A swaying branch caught his eye. Nothing but the wind.
“We wait. They want us to come to them; I can feel it.”
“They are trying to draw us out?” Sterling braced his hand on the hilt of his sword. “Or maybe they’re trying to keep us put? Cut off our supplies?”
“With so few?” Cayan shook his head. “Doubtful. They have orders. I just can’t fathom what they are.” He turned toward the stairs leading down. “We wait. Let’s see if they make a move.”
“Yes, sir.”
Cayan nodded to ready the men and women as he made his way through the city. Commander Daniels was in Cayan’s larger office, bent over the maps of the land. Various points had been dotted in blues and grays, denoting known Graygual and Inkna forces. Other colors represented their various allies, minuscule in comparison.
“What do you think, Commander?” Cayan asked as he felt those with mental power moving around the city, shifting position. Shanti was using the opportunity to train them in mental communication. It was genius, though sometimes extremely hard to grasp, even with their Joining.
Daniels’ bloodshot eyes glanced up before he tapped the neighboring land. “I bet the Graygual have been collecting in the Mugdock city. They could trickle in there slowly until they had a large enough host, then they moved this way. That would seem the most reasonable explanation.”
It made sense. Since the Mugdock attacked all those months ago, they’d been unnaturally quiet. Cayan’s traders had remained unmolested; they’d had no more threats, and reported no real sightings. “You think the Graygual wiped them out after the Inkna made use of them?”
Daniels straightened up, wincing as he rolled his shoulders and massaged his neck. “There is no way to tell, but it seems likely. We’ve been so preoccupied with the larger issues, we haven’t checked in with our turbulent neighbors. Who’s to say