Through Ulla’s touch, he sensed her confidence in him and her belief that they would get through this.That seed of calm took root in his heart, and he felt how he imagined he would upon leaving the island triumphant.
Worthy.
Then, she left, her shoulders and horns dusted in starlight, unhindered by the darkness.
“Everyone to your stations!”Nesrin barked.The guards and conscripted men jumped into motion, but Bastion was still staring at the place where Ulla had disappeared, fighting the urge to go after her, scoop her up, and leave all the danger and uncertainty behind.
He wasn’t a coward, but now he knew why some called love a weakness.
“Sir Bastion!”Nesrin appeared in his line of sight.Hywell stood just over her shoulder, both of them nearly invisible except for a faint glint of light in their eyes.“We’re going.Light a torch if you see any sign of movement from the ships.We’ll do the same.”
A grim familiarity fell over him.One he knew well.It came when the waiting was done and the time for action was nigh.Bastion stuffed his fear and anxiety down the well bubbling within him and let an iron lid fall over it.Now, there was only room for logic, rationale, and muscle memory.
He nodded and thumped his fist over his heart.Unprompted, a Varo blessing spilled off his lips.
“May Death overlook us this night.”
He heard her swallow.She clasped his shoulder, squeezing hard, before marching away.
Bastion turned to the dark sea.It crashed against the cliffs while the sky stretched in utter silence.He found his constellation, but it gave him no comfort.
Turmoil still burned within him, but Nesrin was right.Belief was a powerful thing, especially within a group.Bastion was but one man.It didn’t matter if he believed as long as everyone else did.
He dragged his attention back to the bay and waited for the moon to rise.
Someone brought him armor, but he waved it off, taking only a leather jerkin and a chainmail shirt.Anything more felt too much like a coffin.
Midnight came and went with the changing of the guards.Bastion wished for rest, but his mind wouldn’t have it.He was better off up here, pacing to keep warm, than lying still in hopes of sleep.
Around him, fragmented whispers fell like autumn leaves on the wind.
“...it’s so dark.”
“We’re safe inside…”
The roar of the sea went on and on, a maddening drone masking everything else so thoroughly that the men startled and jumped at any cleared throat or scuffed boot that rose above it.
Bastion gripped the hilt of his borrowed sword, wishing for the familiar handshake of his own blade.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited…
The stillness stretched on in a way that didn’t feel right.
Bastion looked up.He’d assumed the pirates would strike with the rising of the moon, but only stars lit the sky.
His instincts sparked like he’d been struck by lightning.
“The moon,” Bastion whispered.“There’s no moon tonight.”
Certainty gripped him, and his heart plummeted with the swiftness of a guillotine.They’d chosen a moonless night on purpose.
“Light the torches!”he shouted, startling those men nearest.“Hold your positions!”
He didn’t hear the strike of flint and steel, but suddenly, his shadow leapt before him.Bastion sprinted north along the ramparts.
