Dawn shattered over the world as the last vestiges of the storm cleared\u2014ice coating every ounce of snow, every flat surface slick with it.\u00a0 The sun peeked through the iron gray clouds in shafts and tendrils, one such glimpse so abrupt and dazzling that Matt stepped back from the rail of the watchtower with a curse.<\/p>\n
His fingers were numb from the long night on watch and his nose was painfully cold, cheeks hot and stinging from the ice that had lashed them.\u00a0 He scanned the horizon as he tried to rub warmth back into his half-frozen fingers.<\/p>\n
Nothing.\u00a0 Not yet, anyway.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cMatt!\u00a0 Ready to come down?\u201d<\/p>\n
He grinned at the sound of Davon\u2019s voice.\u00a0 \u201cYou bet.\u201d\u00a0 He clambered down, almost slipping as his fingers struggled to grip the ladder\u2019s rungs.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m surprised that Thom\u2019s not out here with you,\u201d Davon said as Matt stepped aside of the ladder.<\/p>\n
\u201cI sent him to bed five hours ago,\u201d Matt said.\u00a0 \u201cTold him there wasn\u2019t any point in both of us freezing ass out here if the weather wasn\u2019t going to break.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut now it has,\u201d Davon said, already starting to climb up.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd I\u2019m on my way to wake him,\u201d Matt said.\u00a0 \u201cBlow the whistle if you see anything.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnything like what?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cLike anything,\u201d Matt said.\u00a0 He slipped the first step before he caught his balance on the icy snow.\u00a0 \u201cWe just know the attack\u2019s coming.\u00a0 We\u2019re not sure what it\u2019s going to look like yet.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cRight.\u201d
\nHis boots crunched against the crust of ice over snow as he headed back into the warmth of the sheds and tents.\u00a0 He didn\u2019t stop for coffee like he usually would, instead headed straight for where Thom and Marin would still be sleeping if he judged them right.<\/p>\n
They might still be busy.\u00a0 I should probably knock.\u00a0 Five hours would be a long time for them to be <\/i>busy, though.<\/i><\/p>\n
He split the difference, rapping on the door and then simply walking in.\u00a0 \u201cSun\u2019s rising and the storm\u2019s broken,\u201d he said as he crossed the plank floor to their bed and reached down to shake their shoulders.\u00a0 \u201cTime to get up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marin swatted him and Thom cursed him, then sat straight up.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe storm broke?\u201d he said, traces of sleep disappearing from his voice as he asked the question.\u00a0 \u201cHow long ago?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cJust now,\u201d Matt said, stepping back from the bed to let them both get up.\u00a0 He half turned away\u2014while he wasn\u2019t squeamish about barging in on them while they were in bed, he still had no desire to see what they looked like beneath the sheets.\u00a0 \u201cTrust me, I didn\u2019t hold off on waking you.\u00a0 Storm broke and morning came at the same time and Davon relieved me about four minutes later.\u201d<\/p>\n
The bed creaked behind him\u2014one or bother of them getting out of bed.\u00a0 \u201cAny sign of attack?\u201d\u00a0 Thom asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing yet,\u201d Matt said.\u00a0 \u201cBut you\u2019d both better hurry, just in case.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll meet you by the fire inside of five, Matt,\u201d Marin said.\u00a0 \u201cFigure out who else is up and ready for whatever\u2019s about to hit us.\u201d<\/p>\n
The muscles in his back tightened, scalp prickling at her words.\u00a0 \u201cDid you see something?\u201d he asked.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d Marin said.\u00a0 \u201cBut I don\u2019t need to see anything to know that something\u2019s coming, now do I?\u201d<\/p>\n
I guess not.<\/i>\u00a0 Matt nodded and ducked out into the darkness of the hall, jogging back toward the tent and the cookfires.\u00a0 Tala would probably be there despite the date and time, despite the fact that she was supposed to be getting ready to hunker down in the steam tunnels and wait for the fighting to stop.<\/p>\n
As he\u2019d suspected she would be, she was there, making bacon and giving Phelan and Thordin a sly, knowing smile as she teased them.\u00a0 She threw a glance over her shoulder at Matt as he joined them and smiled briefly.<\/p>\n
\u201cLooks like the storm broke,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnly took all night,\u201d Matt answered, snagging a coffee cup from a nearby shelf and stooping to pick up the coffee pot that sat on a warm piece of flagstone near the fire.\u00a0 \u201cGlad it held off on breaking until morning.\u00a0 At least most of us will be well-rested when the attack comes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt won\u2019t be long,\u201d Phelan said.\u00a0 \u201cGive it an hour, maybe a little more.\u00a0 Cariocecus has to feel the battlefield first.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d ask how you know so much about it, but I\u2019m not sure I want to know,\u201d Matt said, pouring his coffee.\u00a0 \u201cIt\u2019s safer for me not to ask, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n
Phelan\u2019s shoulder hitched in a shrug.\u00a0 \u201cThis isn\u2019t my first time on the battlefield, Matt, and I\u2019ve heard tales from those who\u2019ve faced Cariocecus\u2014enough of them to know that he\u2019s not going to walk into this until he\u2019s ready.\u00a0 He\u2019s calculating, strategic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Well, we knew that.\u00a0 He\u2019s tricky.\u00a0 He never would have found a way to crack our defenses the first time if he hadn\u2019t started manipulating Leah.<\/i><\/p>\n
At least the wards would hold this time\u2014he hoped, anyway.<\/p>\n
Matt gulped down some of the coffee and glanced toward the clouds, slowly growing lighter as the storm cleared and the sun rose.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019ll be a bloody morning,\u201d he predicted quietly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHopefully not as bloody as we fear,\u201d Phelan said, his voice just as quiet.<\/p>\n
All Matt could do was nod and pray his ancient friend was right.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Dawn shattered over the world as the last vestiges of the storm cleared\u2014ice coating every ounce of snow, every flat surface slick with it.\u00a0 The sun peeked through the iron gray clouds in shafts and tendrils, one such glimpse so … Continue reading