He took some reassurance from the fact that the Circlian army was not yet fully formed. So far it was made up of only three nations: Hania, Somrey and Genria—the latter had joined them a few days out of Jarime. The Toren army was due to arrive in a few days, the Dunwayans were not much farther away, and the Siyee…the Siyee were due any moment.

Turning his back on the army, Danjin gazed at the southern sky. It was cloudless apart from a dark smudge near the horizon. She said they had reached the plains, he thought. So where are they?

He stared at the sky until his eyes began to water from the brightness. Looking away, he dabbed at his eyes with a sleeve. Footsteps brought his attention abruptly back to his surroundings and he turned to find a soldier approaching. The man was one of the many guards patrolling the hills around the camp.

“You all right, sir?” the man enquired.

“Yes, thank you,” Danjin replied. “Just the brightness of the sky.”

The man glanced southward then stopped and shaded his eyes. “Will you look at that cloud?”

Danjin followed the man’s gaze. The dark smudge had grown larger and…fragmented into many tiny specks. He felt his heart skip a beat.

“It’s them,” he muttered.

Danjin left the soldier looking puzzled and hurried down the hill. It seemed a longer journey back to the camp despite being all downhill—though it didn’t help that he kept glancing behind, worried he wasn’t going to make it in time. When he reached the first of the tents he slowed. Soldiers watched him pass, always alert for signs of nervousness among the army’s leaders and their advisers.

Reaching the main thoroughfare, Danjin saw that Juran, Dyara, Rian and Mairae were already standing outside the white tent, their attention on the sky. The elderly Genrian king, Guire, stood nearby with his advisers and attendants. Meeran, the Moderator of the Somreyan Council, stood with the Circlian elder, Haleed. A Dunwayan ambassador, Jen of Rommel, stood beside the Dunwayan priest who always accompanied him, and whose main role appeared to be to provide the White with a way to communicate with the absent Dunwayan leaders.

Danjin quietly joined the small crowd of advisers. He noted that the new Dreamweaver adviser was present. Raeli rarely attended war councils, and when she did she remained aloof and apparently uninterested. Sensing him looking at her, she turned to meet his eyes. He nodded politely. She turned away. Danjin suppressed a sigh.

I think I may actually miss Leiard. He wasn’t much more talkative than this woman, but he was…what, exactly? Approachable, I suppose.