Fragments of War (17)

Just like the children of the King of Swords were locked in a bloody stalemate, so were the two great armies. 

Both the Greater and the Lesser Strongholds were refusing to fall. Despite the terrible battles that raged above the dark chasms, the Song Army stubbornly held out. 

Ash and blood covered the pristine surface of the sun-bleached bone. The toll of human lives was appalling, and worst of all, the deaths of countless soldiers felt senseless — neither side had managed to gain a decisive advantage, after all, and it did not seem like that would change any time soon.

Something had to break the dreadful stalemate. The ashen-faced soldiers felt a strange tension permeate the air, as if a sudden change was coming… or maybe it was just what they hoped for. 

Most people believed that the two great armies would unleash their Saints soon, changing the very nature of the siege and heralding in the final act of the harrowing war.