She waited respectfully at the perimeter until he completed whatever ritual he was performing.When his eyes opened, they fixed immediately on her, recognition and resignation mingling in his gaze.
"The barrier is failing," he said.Not a question.
Thalia nodded."Hours at most.Perhaps less."
Naj rose in a single fluid movement that belied his age, dismissing the younger Wardens with a gesture.They dispersed to various tasks, many checking weapons that hung at their hips—hybrid blades produced in the Howling Forge, their surfaces gleaming with threads of storm energy.
"Thrum'kith will not survive," Naj stated, grief evident despite his controlled demeanor."The vessel of our people, consumed like all the rest."
"I'm sorry," Thalia said, the words feeling wholly inadequate."We tried—"
"Yes," he interrupted gently."You did.More than most would have.But some things cannot be prevented, only endured."His gaze shifted toward the chamber's single window, through which a slice of the blackened fjord was visible."The barrier was always temporary.A gesture rather than a solution."
Rissa approached them, her tattooed arms bearing fresh markings that Thalia hadn't seen before—intricate swirls that pulsed faintly with contained storm energy."The stormcallers are ready," she reported."Thirty-seven of us, positioned as requested along the main defensive line."
Thalia felt a surge of gratitude for the woman's efficiency despite the circumstances."Thank you.Your people's knowledge of the Deep Ones has already saved countless lives."
"Knowledge is not enough," Naj said quietly."The darkness adapts.It learns.Each time we drive it back, it returns stronger, more determined."He fixed Thalia with an unnervingly direct stare."You know what comes next."
Before Thalia could respond, a horn blast shattered the relative calm—three short bursts followed by one long, the signal that had been drilled into every defender's memory over the past days.Enemy sighted.First wave advancing.
Rissa tensed, her hand dropping to her weapon."Sooner than expected," she murmured.
"The Deep Ones aren't bound by our expectations," Naj replied, already moving toward the door."Gather the others.We take position at the main gate as planned."
As the Wardens mobilized with practiced efficiency, Thalia fought against the surge of panic that threatened to overwhelm her rational mind.The first attack was beginning, and despite all their preparations, all their hybridized weapons and reluctant alliances, they remained pitifully ill-equipped to face what came for them.
She pushed past the feeling, focusing instead on immediate needs."I need to find Kaine," she told Naj."He's coordinating weapon distribution from the main armory."
"We'll see you at the gate," Naj replied with a nod that carried the weight of unspoken understanding—they might not meet again after today.
Thalia hurried through corridors that had grown more chaotic with each horn blast.Another signal echoed through the stone halls—the distinctive pattern that indicated void-creatures emerging from the water, taking physical form.The Deep Ones were no longer content to remain in the fjord; they had begun their assault on Frostforge itself.
The armory bustled with controlled urgency when Thalia arrived, soldiers filing through in organized waves to receive weapons.Kaine stood at the center of the operation, his massive frame towering over most as he distributed hybrid blades with brief instructions to each recipient.His expression remained stoic, though Thalia could read the tension in the set of his shoulders, the tightness around his eyes.
He caught sight of her as she approached, a brief flicker of something softer crossing his features before the mask of efficiency returned."Thalia," he acknowledged, passing a blade to a Northern soldier who hurried away immediately."The barrier?"
"Failing," she confirmed."Hours at most.The void-creatures have already begun to emerge on the shoreline."
Kaine nodded, unsurprised."Then this is it," he said, his voice pitched low enough that only she could hear."Our last stand."
The words struck her with physical force, though she had been thinking the same thing herself.Hearing them spoken aloud made the reality inescapable."Don't talk like that," she replied, fighting to keep her voice steady."We're going to make it through this."
A sad smile touched his lips."With a hundred blades and five hundred hybrid arrows against an enemy that can't be permanently destroyed?"He shook his head slightly."The weapons work, Thalia.You proved that.But they only disrupt the Deep Ones temporarily, and we don't have enough to sustain a prolonged defense."
"We'll find a way," she insisted, though the argument sounded hollow even to her own ears.
Kaine's ice-blue eyes studied her face for a long moment."Even if we drive them back they’ll regroup and return.And we'll have fewer weapons each time, fewer fighters..."He paused, choosing his next words carefully."The Deep Tide hasn't been stopped anywhere it's touched.Not the archipelago.Not the coastal fortresses.What makes you think Frostforge will be different?"
Thalia had no answer that wouldn't sound like desperate fantasy.Deep down, she knew he was right.The hybrid weapons gave them a fighting chance, but not a solution.At best, they could delay the inevitable—hours or days of resistance before the darkness consumed them all.
"I can't let myself think that way," she said finally."Going down fighting is the only option we have."
Kaine's expression softened momentarily.He reached out, his large hand coming to rest briefly on her shoulder, the touch gentle despite his strength."I know," he said simply."And I'll be fighting beside you until the end."
The moment stretched between them, weighted with everything they hadn't said, everything they might never have the chance to say.Then another horn blast shattered it—five short bursts, the signal for all fighters to take defensive positions.
"I should join the others," Thalia said, reluctantly breaking away from his touch."Are they all in position?"
