The voice startled her mid-swing.Her hammer completed its arc, striking the anvil with a flat, unsatisfying clang before she turned to face the entrance.Kaine stood there, his tall frame silhouetted against the staircase, with Roran and Ashe flanking him like guards.
Thalia lowered her hammer, suddenly conscious of her disheveled appearance—sweat-dampened shirt clinging to her back, hair escaping its tie in wild tendrils, cheeks flushed from heat and exertion."The meeting's over, then," she said, her voice rough from disuse.
"Hours ago," Ashe confirmed, stepping forward.Her eyes scanned the forge, taking in the scattered tools and the formless lump of metal on Thalia's anvil with a raised eyebrow."You've been busy.Is that some odd new design, or are you just pounding iron?"
Thalia set down her hammer and wiped her hands on a nearby rag."Did they declare they’re going to sit behind the walls and wait for the next attack?"she asked, unable to keep the bitterness from her tone.
The three exchanged glances—a silent communication that made Thalia's heart skip.There was something they weren't saying, something important.
"Not exactly," Roran said, moving closer until the forge's light illuminated his face."They authorized a mission to Verdant Port."
The words hit Thalia like a physical blow.Her knees weakened, and she gripped the edge of the anvil to steady herself.“They… they did?”
"Reconnaissance and rescue," Kaine replied, his eyes never leaving her face."Very limited in scope, focused on gathering intelligence about the prison camp and extracting high-value targets if possible."
"High-value targets," Thalia repeated, the formal, clinical phrase catching in her throat.As if her mother and sister were military objectives rather than people she loved.Still, it was more than she had dared hope for after her dismissal."Thank you," she whispered, the words inadequate for the wave of gratitude that threatened to overwhelm her.She looked between Roran and Kaine, understanding dawning through her exhaustion."You defended my position after I was dismissed."
Roran's smile was small but genuine."We merely expanded on the strategic advantages of disrupting the Wardens' operations."
Fresh hope bloomed in Thalia's chest, pushing back the despair that had gripped her since learning of Verdant Port's fall."When do we leave?"she asked, already mentally cataloging what she would need to pack—weapons, supplies, maps of her home city's labyrinthine streets.
The silence that followed her question lasted a heartbeat too long.Ashe stepped forward, her expression carefully neutral."Kaine, Roran, and I will be leaving at first light tomorrow," she said.
The hope in Thalia's chest curdled into dread."And me?"
Ashe's gaze flickered away, then back, steady and apologetic."No.You, Brynn, and Luna have been explicitly forbidden from joining the mission.The instructors cited your recent desertion from the Northern post and concerns about your discipline."
Anger flared white-hot beneath Thalia's ribs."Mydiscipline?"she repeated, incredulity sharpening each syllable."What does that matter?It's my family, my home.I know Verdant Port better than anyone here.How can they—"
"Thalia," Kaine interrupted, his voice low but firm."Think about what you're saying.You already deserted your post once.You were lucky to receive probation rather than a court-martial.If you disobey direct orders again…"
"The consequences would be severe," Roran finished."Wolfe made that very clear."
Thalia turned away from them, her hands curling into fists at her sides.The anger was back, roaring through her veins with renewed intensity."What consequences could possibly matter now?"she asked, her voice barely above a whisper."What could they take from me that the Wardens haven't already stolen?"
She had feared losing her position at Frostforge once, had worried about how her family would survive without the stipend her service provided.But if her family was gone—if her mother and Mari were already dead—then what did any of it matter?What did rank or standing or reputation mean in the face of such loss?
"I have to try," she said, turning back to face them."Even if it means risking everything.I can't sit here while you fight my battles for me."
The three exchanged glances again, and this time Thalia caught something in their expressions—a knowing look, as if her reaction was exactly what they had expected.As if, perhaps, they had planned for it.
"We thought you might say that," Roran said after a moment, his voice dropping to barely above a whisper."Which is why we all agreed that if you decided to come with us — to stow away in the hold — we wouldn’t report you.”
Thalia stared at Roran, hardly daring to believe what she'd just heard.A way to join the mission despite direct orders—her friends were willing to help her with this insubordination.The air in the forge suddenly felt insufficiently hot, a chill creeping up her spine despite the blazing furnace at her back.
"You'd risk that?"she asked, voice barely audible above the hiss of cooling metal."All of you would risk court-martial?"
Ashe crossed her arms, her expression resolute."Not if we're careful.If you're found, we maintain ignorance.You snuck aboard without our knowledge."
Roran leaned against the workbench, his casual posture belied by the intensity in his dark eyes."We will leave from the northern dock just after dawn.They’ve given us a clipper for the mission.The hold has storage compartments beneath the deck planks.They won't be checked before we depart; we’ll be casting off early."
“If you intend to join us,” Kaine said, “we’ll see you there at first light.”
CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT
Dawn crept across the fjord in hushed shades of pearl and slate, its gentle light barely enough to distinguish water from sky.Thalia pulled her woolen cloak tighter around her shoulders as she moved between shadows along the dockside, each breath forming ghosts that faded into the frigid air.The pendant against her chest seemed to beat in time with her racing heart, a steady rhythm that echoed her purpose.Find her family.Save her home.No matter the cost.
The schooner waited at the end of the northern dock, a sleek vessel with trim lines and dark sails furled tight against its masts.It was smaller than the academy's standard patrol ships, built for speed rather than confrontation.Perfect for slipping unnoticed into enemy waters.Thalia paused behind a stack of supply crates, studying the deck for any sign of instructors or other witnesses who might report her presence.
