Chapter 271
Chapter 271
Elara’s POV
“Which border burned first?”
:))
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“Fenreach,” Eden said, voice tight. “South granaries torched before dawn. Cragfen Ridge sent a hawk an hour later. Same flame pattern.”
I looked at the map spread across the council table. Red markers stabbed into Fenreach and Ridge. Black smoke symbols, drawn fast. Too close. Too clean.
Vessa leaned on the rail. “Two packs at once. Miela wants you split.”
“Not me,” I said. “The alliance.”
Thorne stepped closer, arms folded. His eyes stayed on the map. “She doesn’t care about grain. She wants trust ash.”
Cael sat behind me, still pale from the poison, wrist wrapped. He spoke low. “She is forcing your hand. Choose one fire. Let the other burn.”
“Or move faster than both,” I said.
Garron barked a laugh. “Arrogance.”
I met his stare. “Protocol.”
Mira entered with dirt on her boots. “Witnesses say the fire did not start from torches. Powder sacks rolled into barns. Smoke turned black before it caught.”
“Roguefire,” Eden said. “They learned to carry sparks in jars. Spread like oil.”
I nodded once. “Which means they left hands behind.”
Vessa grinned sharp. “We catch them before the ash cools.”
“Not yet,” I said. “We make them think we chase. Then we cut the leash.”
Cael coughed and pressed his hand to his side. “Say it plain.”
I tapped Fenreach first. “They expect us here. It is louder. Easier to bait. We send Dawn Wing with Bex to run relief. Smoke and buckets. Save lives, not land. They hold. They do not chase.”
I tapped Ridge next. “We ride for Ridge. Night Wing with me. Mira takes shield line. Jory runs messages. Thorne anchors the flank.”
Thorne’s brow lifted. “You are giving me her favorite path.”
“Then close it,” I said.
10:12 Thu, Sep 25
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Chapter 271
88
55 vouchers
He nodded once.
Garron shoved off the rail. “You cannot split. She will crush whichever side you weaken.”
I kept my voice flat. “She already burned barns. She wanted the food gone, not the walls. The fight is not fields. The fight is faith.”
Cael’s eyes sharpened. “You mean the council.”
“Yes,” I said. “If Fenreach thinks we abandoned them, the chain snaps. If Ridge thinks we chase smoke and ignore them, same chain.”
Mira’s shield thudded against the stone. “Then we cut her messengers. Break the chain from her end.”
“Exactly,” I said. “Vessa, take Dusk Wing north. Kill or capture any rogue runners between here and the river road. I do not want a single cry for help reaching the next pack.”
“Copy,” she said.
The horn sounded outside. One long, low. Outer scouts. Attack line sighted.
Eden’s bead crackled. “Gamma. Ridge barns still burning. Three rogues sighted pulling east. They left marks on trees. They want us to follow.”
“Alive or dead,” I asked.
“Alive when seen,” Eden said. “Dead when we reached the trail. Throats cut. Their own.”
Forced silence. I clenched my jaw. “They are puppets. String cut when the play ends.”
Thorne leaned closer. “That means the hand is near. She does not waste blood for drama.”
“Agreed,” I said. “We ride.”
The road to Ridge stank of smoke and wet hay. Ash clung to my boots. Children cried in doorways. Women threw water on beams that were already skeletons. No men stood in sight.
Mira raised her shield as we passed. “Where are their fighters?”
A bent elder pointed east with a shaking hand. “Chased shadows.”
Vessa’s voice came sharp in my bead. “Caught two rogues near the river. Both carried false banners. One had a Fenreach crest sewn backward.”
“Proof,” I said. “They want Ridge to think Fenreach burned them.”
Thorne spat into the ash. “Old trick. Make neighbors swing before you lift a blade.”
“Then we show them truth first,” I said.
10:12 Thu, Sep 25 d.
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Chapter 271
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We reached the square. Smoke still curled from the storehouse. Bex’s wing was already dousing flames. Myles, Fenreach’s Beta, stood pale–faced with water streaks on his arms.
“You came,” he said. Relief broke in his voice.
“Not for walls,” I said. “For bond.”
He nodded once, eyes wet. “Thank you.”
I pulled him aside. “Listen. They will show you banners. They want you to believe Ridge struck first.”
He swallowed. “We already heard whispers.”
I held his gaze. “Break them. Stand with Ridge in the square. Now. Loud.”
He looked at Thorne. Then at me. He lifted his chin. “I will.”
Vessa appeared, dragging one rogue by the collar. The man coughed blood. His sleeve carried a half–burnt scrap of cloth. Ridge crest. Freshly painted.
Mira spat. “Pathetic.”
I raised my voice to the crowd. “Look. They forged your enemies. They want you to fight your brothers. Not them. Not the rogues. Each other.”
Myles stepped forward. He raised the burned scrap. “We will not fall for their lies. We stand with Ridge.”
The square shouted with him. Loud enough to carry.
I turned to Thorne. “She tried to starve us. She failed. She tried to split us. She failed.”
He nodded. “So what does she try next?”
The rogue on the ground coughed out one word before Mira’s boot silenced him. “Water.”
I crouched. “Where.”
His lips cracked. “The well. Poisoned.”
Mira’s shield slammed down, stopping his next breath. I stood. “Seal every well. Pull from barrels only. Same order as Ashfang”
Eden’s voice cut in again. “Camma. Council chatter rising. Cragfen Ridge blames Fenreach for smoke. They are marching to the border.”
I hissed air between my teeth. “Miela did not want land. She wanted march.”
Thorne’s eyes darkened. “She wants the first blood to be theirs, not hers.”
“Not today,” I said.
10:13 Thu, Sep 25 d
Chapter 271
87
55 vouchers
I raised my arm. “Night Wing, form. We march to the border. Shields high. Mouths shut. We show them who lit the fire.”
The horns answered. Boots struck ash. The square watched us move east.
Vessa matched my pace. “And when we reach the border?”
“We put
truth in their hands,” I said. “And if they refuse it-”
Thorne cut in, voice low. “Then we cut lies with steel.”
I nodded. “Exactly.”
10:13 Thu, Sep 25 d.
