The drums kept beating, faster now, rolling across the valley floor like something alive.
"Positions!" Rennick's voice cut through the chaos, guards scrambling along the ramparts, torches catching the first glint of movement below as Vesk's forces began forming into ranks.
Doran released Kestrel's arm, both of them moving toward the wall despite the unfinished conversation hanging between them. "How many can we actually hold against."
"Not two hundred," Rennick said grimly, grabbing a bow from a nearby rack. "Not for long."
Talven took position along the barricade, sword drawn, breathing hard. "What's the plan."
"Hold the wall as long as possible," Rennick said. "Buy time for anyone who can't fight to fall back toward the tunnels beneath the storehouse."
"And if we can't hold it," Fe
