Dorias stepped forward, drawing a scroll from his belt and handing it to her. The imperial seal caught the morning light.
“Your itinerary and written permission,” he said. “We didn’t have time to alert the outposts in advance, but this will get you access and rest where needed.”
Katell frowned. Romilda could shift entire cohorts across battlefields in the blink of an eye using her shadows. She had expected to reach the final outpost within the hour,then continue on horseback—but it seemed jumping over long distances wasn’t so simple.
“Are you sure you can do this?” she asked.
Romilda arched an eyebrow, unbothered. “Well, if you’d rather ride to Achaea, be my guest.” Her smirk widened. “But you’d probably freeze to death before you even made it past Suebi territory.”
Without waiting for a reply, she turned and strode towards the shadowed edge of the watchtower, where the wooden beams met the barricade’s line of sharpened stakes.
Arnza stifled a snort until Pinaria jabbed him in the ribs. With a shared glance, the two grabbed their bags and followed Romilda, giving Katell and Dorias a moment of privacy.
Dorias stepped closer, handing her the saddlebag. “If you need help, send word, and I’ll do what I can to send the other Black Helmets. Be careful of the Twelfth. Legate Tarchun seeks glory like his brother, Tyrrhenus, and can be a hothead. Don’t rise to his provocations. Ignore him. Stay focused.” He paused, his gaze locking with hers. “You can do this. I believe in you.”
Katell swung both bags over her shoulders, her throat tight. She tried to keep her composure, to focus on the mission and path ahead, but a knot twisted in her chest all the same. She couldn’t shake the feeling that it would be a long time before she saw him again.
As if sensing her hesitation, Dorias leaned closer and murmured, “We will meet again in Kisra, my love. I promise.”
His warm breath caressed her cheek, and though their lips were only inches apart, she didn’t close the distance. Not with soldiers watching.
Instead, Dorias let his hand trail down her arm before giving it a subtle squeeze. “Go forth and bring us victory in Tiryns.”
Katell met his gaze one last time, then turned away. She caught up with the others near the base of the watchtower,where dawn light stretched long across the frost-bitten earth, casting half the barricade in darkness.
Romilda studied them all. “Ready?”
She raised one hand and pressed her palm to the wall of shadow. At once, a violet shimmer bled outwards, blooming in delicate whorls. The darkness rippled, distorting with an eerie fluidity.
Arnza muttered something under his breath as Pinaria leaned closer to him. Katell tightened her grip on her bags.
Romilda smirked and flicked her fingers towards the opening. “Go on, then.”
Katell stepped forward first. Darkness enveloped her, a sudden stillness and silence that felt like death. Her body clenched inwards, a violent shudder running through her as if her bones were being drawn too tight beneath her skin.
Then, cold wind struck her face. The familiar sound of rustling leaves and flowing water rushed back in. She stood beside a different watchtower, nearly identical to the last, its wooden beams dark with moisture. Below, a broad, deep river glided past, its glassy surface reflecting the cloudy sky.
Pinaria appeared beside her, looking slightly pale. “The Rhenus River.”
Arnza stumbled through next, bent double with a groan. “That was vile,” he gasped, pressing a hand to his stomach. “I feel like my guts were pulled out, rinsed in cold water, then stuffed back in.”
Pinaria grimaced. “Gods, Arnza.”
Katell let out a short laugh. “Don’t get sick on me now. We still have five more jumps left.”
Romilda stepped through last, not a single blonde hair out of place, looking as composed as ever. Without missing a beat, she strode along the outpost’s outer edge towards the second watchtower—an exact twin of the first. Her gaze swept thebarricade overhead, sharp and vigilant, but the ramparts were empty.
“Where’s she going?” Katell asked, adjusting the straps of her bags.
“She can’t use the same shadow twice,” Pinaria replied, already breathless beneath the weight of her gear. “We’d better move before someone sees us and demands answers.”
They trudged after Romilda, boots sinking into the frozen mud, breaths fogging in the cold.
Romilda didn’t slow. She pressed her palm against the wall where the shadows pooled thickest. “Let’s go,” she said, lips curling into a sharp, knowing smile.
Again, Katell stepped through first, clenching her teeth as darkness collapsed around her. The unsettling sensation of having her insides rearranged returned. She stumbled into daylight on the other side, gasping. An identical Rasennan watchtower loomed above. Her legs shook, and a cold sweat broke out along her spine.
Pinaria emerged next, pale and tight-lipped, followed by Arnza, who groaned and bent at the waist.
