The world dissolved into fog and iron.
Kaelen’s sword jarred against another man’s blade, the shock rattling his shoulder. He shoved, turned, and drove steel into the gap at the enemy’s neck. Hot blood sprayed his hand. The masked soldier crumpled at his feet.
Another figure surged from the mist. Kaelen barely raised his shield in time, the blow reverberating through his arm. He staggered back into the press of his own men. The line groaned but held.
“Close it! Close it up!” Roran’s voice bellowed from somewhere to the left, raw with command.
Kaelen’s breath tore in his lungs. His body moved before thought, blocking, cutting, stepping to fill the gaps. He felt the men around him faltering, their shield wall breaking into jagged edges. The enemy knew it too. Every thrust hammered at the
