The plan should have worked. Jian had built it carefully around Yuan Wei's dispatch, every detail confirmed against three separate scouting reports before he committed his forces to the mountain pass where Ren Wei's command position was believed to be hidden a narrow valley two days' ride from Wren's Pass, chosen specifically because its terrain gave the attacking force every advantage and left the defenders almost nowhere to run.
It should have worked. Instead, the moment his vanguard crested the ridge overlooking the valley, arrows came from three directions at once, from positions his scouts had sworn were empty the night before.
"Shields!" Jian's voice cut through the sudden chaos, years of command discipline overriding the cold shock spreading through his chest. "Second column, flank left! They knew we were coming!"
