Chapter 29 – The Storm Before Dawn
The wind howled through the narrow canyon like a living beast, clawing at the cliff faces and whipping up spirals of dust that stung the eyes and clogged the throat. Somewhere high above, the moon was hidden behind thick, racing clouds, casting the land in a restless twilight. The air smelled of rain and cold stone, but beneath it was another scent—metallic, sharp, and unmistakable. The scent of danger.
Aaron crouched low behind a jagged outcrop, his fingers tightening around the hilt of his sword. His heartbeat was steady now, not from calm, but from the kind of focus that comes when one knows there is no turning back. He could hear the others moving into position—Kai's light, almost soundless steps as he slipped through the shadows; Mira's slower, deliberate movements as she set the crossbow and checked the bolts twice over; and somewhere farther up, near the ridge, the faint rhythmic scrape of Lena's climbing hooks as she scaled the cliff to get a vantage point.
The enemy was close. Too close.
He could hear them before he could see them—the low, guttural voices carrying on the wind. They spoke in the rough dialect of the border tribes, a language Aaron had learned just enough of to understand words like kill and take. There were at least a dozen of them, maybe more. Scouts, probably, but armed and dangerous enough to crush the four of them if they were careless.
"Three to your left," Kai's whisper came from the darkness, barely more than a breath. "Another five… closer to the bend."
Aaron gave a slow nod, though Kai could not see it. His mind was already sketching the battlefield—the narrow path that wound through the canyon floor, the unstable rocks on the right slope, the single tree growing out of the cliff wall like a stubborn survivor. Every detail could mean life or death in the next few minutes.
From the ridge, Lena's voice came, low and urgent. "They've got archers in the back. Two of them. If they see us first, we're done."
Mira's soft voice followed. "Then we make sure they don't."
The first drop of rain hit Aaron's cheek, cold and heavy. Another followed, and then the sky opened up, the wind driving the downpour into a stinging curtain. In a strange way, it felt like the storm was on their side—it would make the ground slippery, limit the enemy's sight, and mask the sound of movement. But it would also make aiming harder, footing treacherous, and mistakes more likely.
Aaron shifted his weight forward, signaling with his hand. Three fingers up—three seconds until the attack. He could feel Kai tensing, like a coiled spring. Mira lifted her crossbow. Lena, far above, had her bow ready.
Three… two… one.
They struck like lightning.
Kai moved first, a blur in the rain, his twin blades flashing silver as he cut through the nearest two scouts before they could even shout. Aaron followed a heartbeat later, vaulting over a rock and driving his sword into the third man's chest. The clash of steel and the scream of the wounded shattered the storm's rhythm.
Mira's bolt flew true, piercing one of the distant archers through the shoulder before he could draw. The second archer turned, startled, but Lena's arrow found his throat, sending him tumbling backward over the ridge.
The enemy reeled, disoriented by the suddenness of the strike, but they recovered fast. A huge warrior, his face painted in streaks of red and black, roared and charged at Aaron with an axe the size of a door. Aaron barely managed to deflect the blow, the impact numbing his arm. He slid sideways, the blade of his sword catching the man's ribs, but the warrior kept coming, fueled by rage and adrenaline.
Kai appeared out of nowhere, his blade slicing the tendons in the man's leg. The giant stumbled, and Aaron drove his sword up beneath the breastplate. The roar turned into a wet gasp, and then the man fell still.
Behind them, Mira reloaded, her hands moving with mechanical precision even as three more enemies closed in on her position. She dropped one with a bolt to the chest, but the other two were almost on her when Lena's second arrow caught one in the eye. The last man faltered—long enough for Mira to smash the crossbow into his face and send him sprawling into the mud.
The fight became a blur of motion—clashing steel, the hiss of arrows, the grunts and gasps of combat. The rain made everything slick, forcing them to adjust their footing constantly. Aaron felt the burn in his muscles, the ache in his shoulders, but there was no time to think, only act. Parry, strike, pivot, duck.
At one point, a blade came so close to his face that he felt the wind of it. He countered with a desperate slash that split his attacker's cheek wide open, buying a moment to breathe.
"On your right!" Kai shouted, and Aaron spun just in time to block a spear thrust aimed at his back. He caught the shaft, yanked it forward, and drove his elbow into the spearman's throat. The man collapsed, choking.
By the time the last of the scouts fled into the storm, the canyon floor was littered with bodies, their blood mixing with the rainwater and running in crimson streams toward the river.
Aaron leaned on his sword, panting, his hair plastered to his forehead. The others regrouped—Kai with only a shallow cut on his arm, Mira bruised but steady, and Lena climbing down from the ridge with a grim set to her jaw.
"That was… too many for just a scout group," Lena said, glancing at the dead. "They're pushing deeper into the pass."
Aaron nodded slowly. "Which means the main force isn't far behind."
Kai kicked over one of the corpses, searching for anything useful. "They had supplies. Dry rations, extra arrows. They weren't just scouting—they were preparing for something."
Mira's eyes met Aaron's. "Do we keep going forward? Or do we fall back?"
The rain had eased now, leaving behind a damp, heavy silence. Aaron looked down the canyon, toward the dark line of hills where the enemy's territory began. His instincts screamed that going forward was dangerous, maybe even suicidal. But if they turned back now, they would lose their chance to warn the others before the storm of war broke.
He sheathed his sword. "We keep moving. If they're coming, we need to know how many, and we need to know now."
The decision settled like a weight in the air. No one argued—they all understood the stakes. They stripped the fallen of anything useful and pressed on, deeper into the canyon, the wet earth squelching beneath their boots.
Hours later, the canyon widened into a plateau, and the four of them froze at the sight ahead. Below, in the shadow of the hills, lay a sprawling encampment—tents in tight rows, campfires flickering like embers in the dark, and the glint of countless weapons stacked in orderly lines. Even at a distance, Aaron could see movement—warriors patrolling, beasts of burden tied near the supply wagons, archers practicing in the rain.
It wasn't a raiding party.
It was an army.
Aaron's stomach tightened. There were hundreds, maybe thousands of them. Enough to overwhelm every outpost in the valley if they struck without warning.
"We can't take this back to the valley on foot," Lena whispered. "It's too far. By the time we get there—"
"They'll already be marching," Aaron finished.
Kai's eyes darted to the edge of the plateau. "Then we need another way. Horses, maybe. Or…"
He trailed off, looking toward a narrow trail that snaked down toward the camp. It was dangerous, but it might also lead them to the enemy's supply lines. If they could disrupt them—burn the rations, destroy the weapons—it might buy enough time for the valley to prepare.
Aaron looked at the others. They were tired, soaked, and carrying the bruises of the night's fight. But they were still standing. Still ready.
"Alright," he said, his voice low and firm. "We don't have the numbers to stop them, but we can slow them down. Tonight, we hit their supplies. And then we run."
The storm had passed, but the wind still carried the promise of more to come. Somewhere far to the east, the first faint light of dawn touched the horizon, but in Aaron's mind, the day ahead was already dark.
They moved like shadows toward the trail.
And the war began.