Page 97 of Destiny Redeemed
“Always the optimist,” Anderic drawled, but his eyes remained fixed on the battlefield. “We need to draw them away from the walls.”
Maxwell nodded. “A diversion.”
“I volunteer to not be the diversion,” I muttered.
Anderic’s plan was insane, but it had a certain elegant simplicity. Half our forces would create a diversion at the eastern flank, while the rest of us would slip through the northern gate to reunite with the city’s defenders. Simple. Except for the part where we’d be hopelessly outnumbered either way.
“Stay close to me,” Anderic ordered as we prepared to move out.
I patted the daggers strapped to my thighs. “Trust me, Your Highness, I have no intention of wandering off for a picnic.”
His hand caught mine, squeezing briefly. “I’m serious, Ilyana.”
The intensity in his eyes made my stomach flutter. I squeezed back. “I know.”
The horns sounded, and everything became chaos.
* * *
The diversion worked almost too well. Maxwell led three thousand men in a frontal assault against the eastern flank, drawing Darian’s forces away from the walls. We watched from our position as they engaged, the clash of steel and screams carrying across the field.
“Now,” Anderic commanded, and our contingent galloped toward the northern gate.
The gates opened just enough to let us through, then slammed shut behind us. Inside the walls, the city was a fortress preparing for a siege. Soldiers manned every battlement, while civilians hurried to reinforce barricades or evacuate to inner sanctums.
Lennox met us at the gate, his normally stoic face lined with exhaustion. “Your Highness,” he saluted. “Lady D’Arcane.”
“Report,” Anderic demanded as we dismounted.
“The walls hold for now. Prince Callum’s siege engines will be in position by nightfall.” Lennox’s gaze shifted. “Lord Noah leads the western defense. Lord Sebastian has been organizing the citizens into auxiliary units.”
My heart leapt. “Sebastian is alive?”
“Very much so, my lady. He’ll be pleased to see you.”Thank God.
A thunderous crash shook the ground beneath us. The eastern wall had been breached.
“They’ve broken through!” A guard shouted from the battlements.
Anderic’s face hardened. “Lennox, secure the royal family. The rest of you, with me.”
We raced toward the eastern breach, swords drawn. The scene that greeted us was chaos incarnate—Chancellor Darian’s men poured through a smoking gap in the wall, engaging with the city’s defenders in a brutal melee.
I caught sight of Sebastian in the thick of it, his blade flashing as he fought back-to-back with Noah. Even in battle, they moved with the synchronicity of men who had trained together their entire lives.
“Sebastian!” I called out.
His head snapped up, green eyes widening in shock. “Lya?”
That moment of distraction nearly cost him his life as a mercenary lunged. I threw one of my daggers without thinking, catching the man in the throat. He dropped, gurgling.
Sebastian stared at me in disbelief. “When did you learn to do that?”
“Funny, coming from the person who taught me to throw,” I replied, retrieving my blade with a grimace.
Noah finished his opponent and turned, blood splattered across his handsome face. “Ilyana? What in the cursed skies—”
“Explanations later,” Anderic cut in, joining us. “We need to seal this breach.”
