The Cracks Beneath the Walls (2)

The cavalry rode out at first light, hooves spanking the dew-soaked grass until the ground trembled beneath their weight. Raine and Surena led the column, their banners snapping in the wind: Astellian blue edged with silver. Each banner bore the rising sun emblem, a promise of new beginnings—and of inevitable doom for those who would stand in its path.

Raine's lungs burned with exhilaration as she urged her steed forward. The cold morning air sliced across her cheeks, but she barely noticed; her focus was on the glint of armor before her, the swirl of cloaks behind. She reveled in the surge of power, the synchronized dance of twelve hundred horses learning to think as one. Freedom and fury churned in her blood.

Surena's shout carried like thunder over the ranks. "Push them back! Show them the folly of standing in our way!"