The column scrambled into what defensive formation the terrain allowed, black trees too dense for proper lines, forcing Garrick's guards into a loose, staggered arrangement that would have to serve. Luna's pulse hammered as she drew her sword, six days of training settling her grip even as fear tried to claim the rest of her.
"Stay near the center," Kade said, close beside her, though this time it wasn't a command so much as a plea. "Not because I don't trust you to fight. Because if this goes badly, I need to know exactly where you are every single second."
"I'll stay near the center," Luna agreed, and watched something in his shoulders ease slightly at the concession — small, deliberate, exactly the kind of choice Maren's plan seemed to be asking of all of them.
The attacking force br
