Chapter 1

"Are you ready?"

Jelenna gave me a fierce look, her eyes flashing and her dark brown hair pulled back tight, emphasizing the severity of her face. Lean and muscular, my second-in-command could be intimidating when her warrior personality revealed itself.

From the top of the dam, I had a good view of the sea of people, hundreds of the citizens of the city of Greatfalls, bows strapped to their backs. They were the most accomplished archers in all of Fyr, gathered in the morning sun. The first rays of dawn burst over the top of the wall behind them, painting bright stripes over the tops of their heads.

Many had their arms crossed, some worrying at a weapon or a leather tie. I could see the doubt on their faces. They'd heard the rumors. I was here to alleviate their worry.

"Skye?"

I turned back to Jelenna. She smirked at me.

"Want to get started anytime soon?" she asked.

"Shut up." Jelenna was an old friend and one of the few people I could be unguarded around. I was thankful for it, especially today.

"It will be fine." Jelenna's voice took on a comforting tone. "They trust you."

"Do they? How many of them see me as nothing more than the spoiled grandson of the Prime? A kid who was selected to replace a veteran of five decades at the age of twenty-four because of his family connection. That's why they're questioning themselves now."

Jelenna rolled her eyes at me. "None of them think of you like that. You've been Commander for four years. You've trained the Archers well."

I shook my head. That didn't matter, if I lost their support. Making sure they could fight wasn't my only job. Their morale was my responsibility.

"None of them have seen combat. Until now, war was only an idea. Hell, how many of them have traveled even fifty leagues away from the city? I haven't. Our isolation is a strength, but it makes the unknown that much more terrifying."

"So you'll show them how confident you are in their abilities. Give them some fire! Convince them of the righteousness of your cause, and they'll follow you anywhere." She winked. "Even if I know you're shaking in your boots."

I chuckled. She loved to take me down a peg, but she'd always had my back. Jelenna wasn't just an excellent leader and tactician, she was also my best friend. It didn't matter that I was the youngest son of the Prime Family of Greatfalls, I would have never become Commander of the Archers without her support.

I had been a short, scrawny, tawny-haired kid when I'd joined the Archers, determined but untested. She had helped me grow into the solid commander I was today. Strong in body and spirit. Even if I was still fairly short.

I nodded. "It's time."

She turned out to the crowd and gave a high-pitched yell. The conversation among the troops died down to a low murmur.

"Archers of Greatfalls!" I let my voice ring out. It was a half a league from the dam to the outer boundary, and the soldiers filled the space in between.

"You have come to me. You've told me of your worry over our uneasy dealings with the capital at Ashfuror. You've heard the stories of your great-grandparents, of the lives lost defending Greatfalls from the assault of the Dark Lords. You've heard rumors of an army on the move, making its way toward us."

They stared up at me, some shifting their weight back and forth uneasily. I could see the distrust in so many of their eyes.

"I am here to tell you that those rumors are true."

The whispering burst into full on conversations as the Archers reacted to my words. There was a tone of arrogant bluster in some of the voices, but most had an undercurrent of fear.

"Commander Skye!"

My eyes went to the source of the yell. It was an older Archer, a scruffy middle-aged man with the weathered skin of someone who'd spent their life in the sun. I wasn't surprised he was the first to speak. He was never shy about making his opinions known.

"Gyles." I locked eyes with him.

"Commander, my great-grandfather spoke of the last war." Gyles' voice shook with barely-concealed panic. "He lived through it. Greatfalls almost didn't survive, and we had many allies then. There's no one to come to help us now. If they breach the walls, we will fall."

"We will not!" The blood rushed to my face. I took a breath. It wouldn't serve me to lose control.

"We will not fall," I continued, keeping my voice even. "The Archers of Greatfalls are legendary. Your skill and your fervor keep us safe. No one will breach the walls, because you won't allow it. You'll cut down any that dare to come against us."

"But Commander—"

"No." Although Gyles had voiced their fears, my words had broken through the cloud of dread that dampened the spirits of many of the Archers.

"Greatfalls is different from the rest of Fyr." I scanned the faces of the soldiers as I spoke. "It is our great strength, and why we must keep ourselves separate. Our commitment is to Family, and theirs is to their shadowy figurehead. It is why we do not suffer from the drought, and why our walls will always hold. The ties of family hold us together, each of you with your own unbreakable bonds forming the foundation of our lives."

Resolve crept into the faces of many of my Archers. I continued. "They do not have the same commitment to family, to each other, to human life. That is why they will always fall."

My eyes found Gyles once again. His face had softened, although the worry still lurked underneath. That was fine. This was only a beginning. The other Archers would rally the most fearful among them.

"Shall I continue?" Seeing the nods and raised fists, pride burst in my chest. They may have been untested in combat, but they were still the legendary Archers.

"We do not know the intentions of the Dark Lord of Ashfuror, but his troops are traveling in our direction. Our scouts are out there now, infiltrating the battalions. Soon we will know more."

Some flickers of fear returned at the mention of the Dark Lord, but I had laid the foundation. They might have arrived as individuals, but they would leave as a single unit.

"But I will tell you this." I unstrapped my bow from across my back and hoisted it above my head. The sun glinted off the polished silver embellishments.

"For hundreds of years, the Archers have protected Greatfalls from the assault of the Dark Lords. We have kept our families safe. We will continue to do so."

Jelenna's hand squeezed my shoulder. The strength of her certainty energized me.

"But if the Last of the Dark Lords thinks that he can take us, he will discover the knowledge his forebears gained with their lives. The Archers of Greatfalls will hold the line."

"Hold the line!" Jelenna's voice pierced through the cold morning air. Some of the soldiers started at the sound.

"The Archers of Greatfalls will push them back!"

"Push them back!" Now Jelenna's voice was not alone. The oldest veteran Archers had added their voice to hers. The growing energy thrummed through the crowd.

"The Archers of Greatfalls will show our strength!"

"Show our strength!" It was more than half of them now. These were my people. We would always protect our home.

"The Archers of Greatfalls will keep us whole!"

"Keep us whole! Keep Greatfalls whole!" To a person, my Archers held their bows aloft. I saw the tears running down the faces of a couple of the old timers who were nearing retirement. They had twenty years on Gyles even, and it wasn't a story to them. They were children during the last conflict, and could remember the fear and desperation, and the triumph.

"And so we will. Stay vigilant, Archers. If we are needed, we will be ready. Now to your posts."

Determination shone on the faces of the Archers. And then Erik, the youngest of them, just eighteen and newly joined, cried out with youthful exuberance.

"For Greatfalls!"

The cries echoed as I turned to leave. Jelenna followed behind me.

"I hope that was enough," I said, not looking back as we walked.

"It was more than enough. They trust you."

"I hope so." Doubt still flickered inside me, the very thing that I'd been trying to eradicate in my Archers. "I sometimes feel a strange distance from them."

"They respect you." Jelenna said, then paused before continuing. "But they don't love you. Yet. You could fix that."

"What do you mean?"

"Spend time with them. Drink with them. They've been asking you for years."

My jaw clenched. People kept hounding me about socializing. "That's not what a military commander does. I have to keep a clear head."

"Who says you can't take a night off?" Jelenna's tone stayed teasing, but I could tell she was frustrated with me. "A little carousing and they'll see that you're an actual person."

"Absolutely not." My voice was getting louder. I tried to calm myself. Jelenna had to be honest about what she thought. It was essential to our relationship, as friends and officers.

"Why?"

"Because I can't lose control around them. They need a steady-eyed leader, not a sloppy drunk."

She shook her head. "If you let them see that you're human, not one of them would think it made you less of the commander that you are."

"A commanding officer doesn't fraternize. It's as simple as that."

"Skye—"

"Any word from the scouts?"

Jelenna let out a grunt of exasperation at my attempt to change the subject, but I knew she would let it go. I had made up my mind. She might call it stubborn, but I was certain about some things. More arguing wouldn't do her any good.

"I haven't heard anything from them," she said, "but your brother would know for sure."

I stopped and let out a sigh. I didn't say anything, but my face must have read volumes.

Jelenna gave me a pitying look. "Yes, he's an ass, you can say it."

"That may be," I replied half-heartedly. "But he is my brother. Family is the most important bond. And he will be Prime of Greatfalls one day, when Grandmother moves on."

It was hard to prize that familial bond when Athard was everything Jelenna was not: arrogant, pretentious, and utterly lacking a sense of humor. Which I supposed I'd been accused of occasionally, but he was worse.

Jelenna pressed her lips together, and then spoke. "May that not be for decades to come."

"Hopefully by then we'll have come to some sort of peace," I said. "It won't do to have the Prime of Greatfalls and the Commander of the Archers at each other's throats."

My stomach tightened with anxiety as the words left my mouth. Once he was in charge, Athard wouldn't hesitate to pull rank. I was sure of it. I was glad that he would be Prime and not me, because I sure as hell didn't want to rule. Managing the Archers was more than enough. But I also didn't want to kowtow to his ego and poor decisions.

Jelenna winked at me. "I'll say a prayer to Vazzart tonight for your grandmother's long life."

We reached the end of the dam and the flat plain of the outer fortifications, the path curving around the edges of Safehold reservoir. The trees grew more dense as we made our way to Prime Hall. Grandmother would be there as would Athard, but I could put up with him to find out if the scouts had returned.

The way was smoothed with years of footfall, curving through the groves of oak and cedar until it reached the top of a mound where the hall stood. A sturdy building of intricate carved wood, Prime Hall had been there for generations, housing the leading family of Greatfalls. For the last seven generations that had been the Adfelds. My family.

As I entered the building, I felt the weight of those generations on my shoulders. As commander of the Archers, it was my duty to keepsafe the history and lineage of Greatfalls. Prime Hall was a symbol of that history.

Jelenna fell back as I entered the main meeting area, where my grandmother leaned over a rectangular table, poring over maps and documents, her long silver hair pulled back into a braid. Although quite short, she exuded a sense of calm power that set everyone at ease.

Off to her side stood my brother Athard, leaning against a wall with a bored expression on his face. His blonde hair fell over his eyes like a petulant teenager's, and he wore a cape that was embroidered in gold. It was ostentatious and ridiculous, but he had it made for himself several years ago, and he was never without it. His hand rested on the rapier strapped to his side.

The weapon was an unusual choice in Greatfalls, where most were trained in archery and defensive hand-to-hand combat with daggers. Athard had always been a terrible shot, and my own facility with the bow enraged him. That didn't explain his choice of a weapon mostly associated with the long-dead aristocracy of Fyr, but I'd given up trying to make sense of my brother.

"Grandmother." I bowed my head. Out of the corner of my eye, Jelenna sank to her knees. "Athard." I did my best to hide my disdain as I spoke my brother's name.

"I see you're back from calming your unruly troops." His words dripped with sullen sarcasm. "I hope we won't have any more trouble from them."

My shoulders tensed at his words. "The Archers are the backbone of Greatfalls. They deserve to know they are valued, especially when so much is uncertain."

" We are the backbone of Greatfalls." He gestured to Grandmother and himself. "Your loyalty is to the family. We shouldn't have to coddle the Archers like toddlers with toy bows and arrows."

Harsh words sprang to the tip of my tongue when Grandmother raised her hand to silence us.

"Enough, Athard."

He glared at me, and then bowed his head. "Yes, Grandmother."

"Please rise," Grandmother said, gesturing to Jelenna, who got off her knees. "You mustn't let Athard get to you, Skye. When he is Prime, the two of you must work together. You will be all that's left of the Adfelds, at least until one of you has children. "

"Yes, Grandmother." Athard had deliberately provoked me, and I was annoyed that I'd let his words get to me. I glanced at him out of the corner of my eye. He wore a spoiled pout. "When he speaks of the Archers like that—"

"I know, my love." Grandmother smiled. "When your parents died, you found your purpose in the Archers and the defense of Greatfalls. Athard had other pursuits."

I nodded. It took a small effort not to say out loud what I thought, that his pursuits were foolish and selfish. More fighting would be pointless.

"Would you rather you were heir?" she asked.

Athard sputtered at Grandmother's words. He opened his mouth to speak, but Grandmother silenced him with a sharp look.

"Commander of the Archers is all the title that I want." Jelenna placed a hand on my back. I was lucky she was so often there to calm me. "I'm not interested in politics."

"Then as his family, his most important support system, we must help him grow into his role as Prime."

Athard mumbled something under his breath, but I ignored it. Grandmother was right. Our strength was as the Prime family. I wouldn't do anything to undermine that.

Grandmother stepped back from the table, sitting down slowly in a large wooden chair. "Now tell me why you are here in the middle of the day. Shouldn't you be with your company?"

"I come from them. And although I wouldn't call them unruly," I said, glaring at Athard, "they were unsettled. Any word from the scouts?"

"No." Her face was inscrutable. "The last report said the Dark Lord's troops were thirty leagues to the southeast. They have stopped advancing on us."

"We aren't his target, then." Athard had shrugged off his petulant mood to participate in the conversation. At least he could take things seriously when it was required.

"Who do you think the target is, if not us?" Grandmother asked. "Between Ashfuror and here there's only wasteland for a hundred leagues in either direction, and behind us are the mountains. No Dark Lord has crossed the mountains since long before I was born. Who knows what lies on the other side."

"He's coming here," I said.

"Yes."

I was suddenly aware of the sweat sticking to my palms. I was not particularly prone to fear, but the last of the Dark Lords was something else. He was a figure of terror, and he was responsible for the great tragedy of my life.

Athard reacted to the alarm on my face. "Don't be such a coward."

I didn't respond. He wasn't wrong. I was a military commander, not a milkmaid. But I was overwhelmed with flashes of memories from when I was young.

"Skye," Grandmother said. "Do not let your emotions be ruled by grim rumors of the Lord of Ashfuror."

"The death of our mother and father is not a rumor, Grandmother. He killed your son and took our parents from us. To murder diplomats on a peace mission…" I wrestled my voice under control as it threatened to crack with childhood grief. "I can't even remember their faces. He took away my chance to know them."

"I know, my love." Grandmother stood, coming to me and enveloping me in her arms, the top of her head brushing my chin. It was always astonishing to me how this tiny woman could exude such strength. "I miss them both, every day."

Athard grunted and stomped out of the room. He was impossible.

Grandmother broke from me and stepped back, her hands on both of my arms as she continued. "Pay him no mind. You know he cannot stand thinking about your mother and father. Someday he will learn that there is strength in confronting the past head on. But listen. We have always stood against the Dark Lords, and we will against Cyrus as well."

"Cyrus? That's his name?" Jelenna's voice cut through my anxiety with her curiosity.

"Yes, dear," Grandmother answered. "His father is the one who killed my son and his wife."

I blinked in confusion. I had always assumed that the current Dark Lord and the killer of my mother and father were one and the same.

"How did he die?" My voice wavered as I spoke. As an adolescent I had imagined leaving Greatfalls, riding beyond the wall and into the wasteland to Ashfuror to track down my parents' murderer and mete out justice. I had let that fantasy go years ago, but a small part of me held onto the idea that one day I might get revenge.

"You were so young at the time." Grandmother closed her eyes, as if conjuring a memory. "After your parents were murdered, we were able to get an assassin through to Ashfuror. He managed to take out the Dark Lord, although he lost his life in the process. It's not something I've spoken about much. The people of Greatfall can get…upset about the realities of political rule."

It made sense that she wouldn't have told me at the time. I was only six, after all. Still, it brought up questions. Would the current Dark Lord have a vendetta against us for the murder of his father?

"Do you think…"

"Do I think that the Dark Lord is coming back for revenge? It's always possible, but I doubt it. By all accounts Cyrus did not mourn his father particularly, and that was twenty-two years ago."

I nodded. I wasn't sure how I felt. Maybe this Dark Lord was not my parents' murderer, but he was still responsible for so much suffering in Fyr. Greatfalls was one of the last holdouts from his rule. The skill of the Archers was legendary, and the tales of their endless bravery kept away most would-be conquerors.

The Dark Lord, though, did have the strength for a siege if he decided the time had come. It would cost him dearly, but throw enough men at us, and who could say how long we'd hold out? Five years? Ten?

"Don't worry about Cyrus, love. I'll let you know when we have more news from the scouts. For now, we stay ready. The outer wall must hold. We have to protect the dam and Safehold reservoir. They are all that stand between us and the drought that ravages the rest of Fyr."

"The Archers will be ready." Pride bloomed in my chest as I spoke. "They are strong, Grandmother."

"As are you, my child. As are you."

She opened her arms once again, and I wrapped her in a hug. There was a sense of home and safety there that I had never found elsewhere. My memories of my parents were only fond flashes of kindness and love, of smiles and soft words. They died too young for anything more. Grandmother had been the foundation of my life.

She was the Prime of Greatfalls, and I was her grandson. I would always keep our home safe.