CHAPTER 8

COMMANDER RYATT

Being a new commander has its difficulties. But being a new commander when you're suddenly being invaded is just bad fucking luck.

With Slade, Lu, and Judd gone to Ranhold, and Osrik caring for Rissa, preparing our army has been assigned solely to me. It's a title I've wanted, a role I've been waiting to step into, but I'm questioning if I'm ready.

If I truly deserve it.

I'm doing everything I can to make sure our army is prepared. Now, they await orders. Mobilize or fortify.

It's one of the orders I'm going to have to give, as soon as I get a messenger hawk from Slade letting me know what the fuck is happening at Ranhold and if they've gotten Fifth's army ready.

A message I should've gotten by now.

That thought has been plaguing me since yesterday. I know how fast Argo can fly. Slade should be at Ranhold. But I'm trying not to think that something is wrong. There could be a lot of reasons why I haven't heard from him yet.

I just need to be patient.

"Ho, Commander."

I turn away from watching drills, where I've been waiting for the lieutenant to finish so I can go over some more preparations with him. I see Keg walking toward me, his army leathers pristine, boots polished.

"Keg, everything alright?"

He stops next to me at the fence around the training area, his twisted black hair swinging with his movements. "We got word—shipments that were in transit arrived in the city. With this amount and the next ones on schedule, we won't have to ration anymore. City or barracks."

I let out a breath of relief. "Good. But we need to prepare for a siege as well. I hope it doesn't come to that, but just in case."

"Don't worry." Keg nods as he straightens the brown leather strap crisscrossing down his chest. "I hear those Premiers know what they're doing." He juts a thumb in the direction of the castle. "They're storing extras for that reason, in case the nearby cities need to take refuge here."

"Your parents have been working even harder than I have."

"They love this kingdom. They're not going to let anything happen to it on their watch."

"Isalee certainly wouldn't stand for it," I say wryly.

He grins. "Nope. Fae would shake in their boots if they had to face her."

"She can be formidable."

"I've never won an argument against her. Stopped trying when I was about five years old."

I smirk. "Smart."

He taps his head. "Runs in the family," he replies before offering a salute. "I'll get started on inventory so you have clear numbers."

"Thank you, Keg."

He walks off just as the soldiers start dispersing from the training yard. My lieutenant gives me a nod, letting me know he's ready for our meeting, and we both move in the direction of my office building.

As soon as we're walking side by side, he starts in. "Morale is up. Though I won't lie to you, half the soldiers don't believe the fae are invading, and the other half have become consumed with a rumor that our previous Commander Rip was a fae in disguise and that he's led the army here to take us over."

Well. That's not fucking good.

I shoot the lieutenant a look. "Where did these rumors come from?"

"I don't know, sir."

As we continue making our way through the barracks, I note the hesitation on his face. "Just say it, Lieutenant."

He's a dry man with thirty years of combat experience. Not once have I ever seen him crack his stoic expression with so much as a sneeze. He's always been solid, serious, and straightforward. Very good things to have in the higher ranks. So to see him hesitate is slightly unsettling.

"Some of the rumors also say that it's actually our king who's fae, and that's why he's left."

My movements halt and he matches my stance immediately as we turn toward one another. "King Ravinger left because he's leading the Elite to help prepare Ranhold for attack."

He nods sharply. "Of course, sir. I'm just reporting what's being said."

I swallow back more words that would only sound defensive and nod instead. "Thank you, Lieutenant. I expect you're helping to quash those rumors when they've cropped up?"

"Yes, sir."

"Good."

We reach my building, and I walk up the steps to enter when someone rushes over, all lanky limbs and hurried feet. "Twig," I say, nodding at the boy.

He gives a hurried salute. "Permission to interrupt, sir?"

The corner of my mouth twitches. Twig does runs all day long, helping out wherever it's needed. He has a whole barracks full of soldiers who treat him like their little brother, and already, he's gotten leagues better at his self-defense training.

"Permission granted, Twig. What do you need?"

His stance relaxes slightly. "Thank you, Commander. I was told you're needed up at Brackhill Castle, sir. You've received a missive."

My heart thumps.

Finally .

"Thank you, Twig."

The boy salutes again and races off. I turn to the lieutenant. "Our meeting will have to be postponed for now."

"Understood, Commander."

Hopefully, the fae rumors about my brother will die out. Otherwise, it could be bad fucking timing if it catches on enough that it affects any of the men when it comes to fighting.

Just in case, I say, "If the rumors turn into grumblings, make sure all the lieutenants know to intervene. The last thing we need is for our soldiers to get this idea stuck in their heads and spread enough fearmongering that others threaten to defect. Fourth's army is better than that. Orea's safety is the priority. We are soldiers, and we fight whoever tries to invade or attack. Fae or Orean."

The Lieutenant gives a sharp salute. "Absolutely. No soldier of ours would betray our own cause. We will always defend Fourth and Orea."

"Yes, we will."

With a nod, I pivot and head for Brackhill, wondering what news the message from Slade will bring. My stomach tenses and my thoughts ricochet. Will we prepare to march or prepare for siege?

Everything hinges on this.

When I get up to the castle, I waste no time entering Slade's office. Isalee, Warken, and Osrik are already here.

"When did it arrive?" I ask as I stride into the room.

"Not long. Fifteen minutes at most," Warken tells me.

Osrik closes the door behind me and leans against the wall next to the door. He looks ready to bolt and return to Rissa as soon as he can. I pass by the Premiers where they sit in the high-backed chairs facing the desk, and make my way to the window behind it. A messenger hawk awaits on a delivery perch just outside the open pane. I take the vial from its leg and unscrew the top to pull out the message. As soon as I return the empty vial, the hawk takes flight, and I yank the window closed.

Turning toward the desk to face everyone, I quickly unroll the small piece of parchment, but a frown instantly drips down my face.

This message isn't in Slade's handwriting. It's in Lu's.

My eyes scan over the hastily scrawled words, and my stomach drops. And drops. And then crashes into an obliterated broken mess of bile. "Fuck. Fuck !"

Normally, Isalee would rebuke me about the coarse language, but she doesn't this time, maybe sensing the severity of the situation. The corners of her lips turn down, her sharp eyes fanning over me. "What is it?"

I shake my head, warring with worry and spinning thoughts. "Slade never showed up."

Osrik jerks up from the wall. "He never fucking showed up to Ranhold?"

"No. No one knows where he is. Lu and Judd never caught up to him in the air with the other Elites. They assumed Argo had gotten him to Fifth. But he never made it. Nobody has seen him."

"Not good," Osrik mutters.

No, not good at all.

A jab of fear slices into me.

Where the fuck is he? Did something happen to him?

And then the rest of this message… I read Lu's words again, every sentence hooking its nails into me.

"You don't think he simply…changed his mind?" Warken asks carefully.

"No," I say with certainty. "He gave us his word. He gave me his word. If he didn't show up to Ranhold, there was a reason for it."

I'm not going to let my mind plummet. Not going to even consider that he was killed or captured.

"There's something else, isn't there?" Isalee presses, her attention homed in on my face. "What is it?"

I look up at her and open my mouth, but nothing comes out at first. My heart is beating so hard it hammers in my ears.

I finally drag the words out of me, weighed down with dread. "Ranhold is lost."

She and Warken jump to their feet. " What ?"

"By the time our Elites arrived, the fae had already marched on the walls. They breached it within minutes. Ranhold wasn't ready." My eyes meet theirs. "It's been overtaken."

Osrik curses under his breath, his entire body gone tense.

"What about our Elites and the captains? King Thold?" Isalee questions.

"Lu said they all tried to search for survivors in the city, but it was just like Highbell. Completely overrun."

She covers her mouth as horror pools in her eyes. Warken sits back down, like this devastating news has taken away his ability to stand. No one speaks for a moment as this realization settles in. It slices through the room with bloody shock, leaving an open wound I'm not sure how we can bind.

We were supposed to have time. To be able to get our Elites there, both Thold and Slade, to prepare Fifth to fight.

Now, Ranhold is lost, and so is Slade.

"If the fae have already taken Ranhold…" Isalee begins, trailing off with a shake of her head.

"What's their plan?" Osrik asks.

"She said Judd and Digby are going with King Thold and his Elites to Fifth Kingdom's port at Breakwater. They're going to try to cut off the fae's access to the ships. Otherwise, the fae will board them and have a clear shot at getting to First, Third, and Second Kingdoms by sea. It's imperative we get to the port first and get rid of the ships so the fae can't use them."

"But the fae could still march into Fourth and then Third," Warken says.

My fists tighten, anxiety tensing down my limbs. "Lu left so she can try to head off any of the fae who branch off toward Fourth's border."

His eyes widen. "She's going by herself?"

"She's taking a few Elites with her. But it's not nearly enough. Which is why I need to leave with a small contingent immediately to meet her."

"I'm going too," Osrik states. When I open my mouth to argue, he shakes his head. "No. We're going. We're not leaving Lu alone to deal with them. These fae are fucking Orea right up the ass, and now, we've got no clue where Slade is. We need to go."

My mind starts working, looking for solutions, figuring out strategies. Everyone watches me in silence, waiting for me to speak.

I feel the threat of despondency creep in. Of hopelessness.

But I refuse to give in to that. There has to be a way we can hold them off. Has to be something we can do. And with Slade missing, it's up to me. With Sixth and Fifth taken, it's up to Fourth.

Resolve stiffens my shoulders. "Alright," I finally say, looking at the Premiers. "There's no point in mobilizing the army. With how quickly the fae are moving, we wouldn't get to our borders in time."

Dread weighs as much as a stack of bricks, but we can't be in denial. This is what's happening, this is the situation we're in, so we have to face it.

"We prepare for a siege," Warken concludes.

I tip my head. "Alert the neighboring cities and villages now. Get everyone here to Brackhill. Fill the castle, the city, the barracks, whatever is necessary. I'll alert the army and give orders to the lieutenants and the other captains. They'll answer straight to you. We'll lock Brackhill down. Make the fae come to us, let them tire. We'll use our walls and our territory to our advantage."

I look to Osrik, and the tension of what's to come ropes between us. We've been leading our soldiers and defending Fourth together for years, but we've never faced a threat like this. Never had to do it without my brother.

"Osrik and I will take only as many soldiers as we can carry in the pannier between our two timberwings. The other handful of timberwings we'll leave here, just in case they're needed for retreat."

"No," Isalee says. "Take them. Take more soldiers with you."

"But if the fae breach Brackhill—"

"Warken and I are not abandoning Fourth Kingdom," she says fiercely, her brown eyes growing watery as her hands twist in front of her. "We don't need the beasts for retreat. Take them."

I hesitate for a moment, but the firm set of her jaw tells me it's moot. "Fine, but we'll still leave you with four, and extra panniers. Just so you can get citizens out if things turn dire."

My chest tightens. I hope to Divine it doesn't come to that. Hope that Os, Lu, and I can somehow stop the fae fuckers from getting into Fourth.

Somehow.

Turning, I open the top drawer in Slade's desk and shuffle through some pages before finding the one I need. I pass it to Osrik. "That's the schedule for the soldiers who should be at our outpost at the border. See how many are stationed at Cliffhelm right now and what their strengths are."

He comes forward and takes the paper.

"We need to leave immediately. I don't know how far behind we'll be from Lu. Dusk is in five hours. Can you make it work?"

"I got it," he says before turning and striding out of the room.

I search the next drawer down and then yank out a file before looking back to the Premiers. "I need you to send urgent missives to Second Kingdom. Warn the prince," I say. "Hopefully, Judd and King Thold can destroy the port ships before the fae get to Breakwater, but Third will need to be alerted too. I don't have any faith that Queen Kaila will actually help, but her people should be told of the incoming threat. In the meantime, we'll get down to Cliffhelm and do everything we can to keep them from breaching Fourth's border."

"And we'll prepare for the event that they do," Warken vows solemnly.

But Isalee shakes her head, ignoring her husband and looking at me. "How can you expect to stop an army that has already wiped out two kingdoms?" she asks with a shake of her head. "You're brilliant soldiers, but it's going to take more than three members of a Wrath to stop them. They don't just have thousands, they're also fae . Which means they have far more magic than us, and our king is nowhere to be found. They could have him for all we know."

I swallow hard. "If they have him, there will be hell to pay," I say darkly. "But we'll have to defend Orea as best we can without him."

She pulls in a tight breath, and I can practically feel the turmoil emanating from this proud woman. Hardly anything ever ruffles her, but this time, even her indomitable bearing has been shaken.

" How ?" she presses again. "How can we stop them?"

How? A fucking miracle.

I glance down at the folder in my hand. Inside is a roster of every one of our soldiers who has magic, including a detailed report of how that magic can be used offensively and defensively. "I don't know yet," I answer her honestly, gaze flicking back up. "But I'm going to try to figure out a way. And if I can't…we'll delay them for as long as we can."

Going around the desk, I take Isalee's hand and give it a squeeze and then pat Warken on the shoulder. Out of everyone, even the other Wrath, I feel as if the Premiers and I share the same level of dedication and unflinching loyalty to this kingdom.

We have given our hearts to Fourth, so this threat is crushing.

It's one thing to defend our land against other Orean kingdoms. But a fae army isn't one we ever anticipated, and yet, we have to face it head-on. All of us. Every kingdom.

Orea, as divided as it may be, has to do this together.

The three of us exchange a heavy look, with worry filling up the spaces between us. We know that this might very well be the last time we see each other. After this, our kingdom—our world —might be overtaken. But I'm going to do everything I possibly can to try to prevent that. To come up with a plan to stop this.

I asked Slade to give Orea a chance, and now I have to figure out how to give it one too.

Looking at them both, I give a firm nod. "For Fourth."

Their answering voices are solemn but resolute. "For Fourth."

When I head back for the barracks, that vow repeats in my head over and over again. Everything I've ever done, ever strived to do, was to protect this kingdom. To defend our people. And I will do that. I will find a way, even with these odds stacked impossibly against us.

I will do it, even if it costs me my life.

For Fourth.