By the time the wagons had moved on, the men and women of Winter’s regiment had fallen out all over the road and the surrounding fields, and had to be rounded up by their sergeants. Winter was obscurely pleased to see that the Royals were no better in this respect than the Girls’ Own, although she had to admit they got themselves together a bit faster. The column got moving again as the sun reached the horizon, and it was well into twilight by the time they arrived at the campsite, marked out by pegs in a broad expanse of empty fields. Winter’s tent stood all alone in the center, with a flag planted beside it. Before long, the designated space was a mass of confusion as the long column straggled in and more tents started going up.

Bobby was waiting with a pair of younger girls. Winter dismounted, wincing at the soreness in her muscles, and handed over Edgar’s reins. The girls saluted—they were noticeably better at it than many of their older compatriots—and led the gelding away.

“Sir!” Bobby said. She offered a Winter a folded scrap of paper. “From the general. Marching orders for tomorrow.”

Winter broke the seal with her thumb and glanced over the short document. “We’re to stay in camp until noon, and follow on after the Sixth and their artillery. Another six miles.”

Compared to the trek across Khandar, moving the Army of the East was a terrifyingly complicated endeavor. With more than ten times as many men, moving in a single column would have left the army hopelessly slow and strung out. Instead, Janus had organized a complicated progress by multiple parallel roads, with a cavalry screen protecting the whole unwieldy mass from enemy ambush. In lesser hands, it easily could have collapsed in a mess of snarls and confusion, but so far delays like that afternoon’s had been rare. Winter sensed the hand of Fitz Warus—now commanding the Colonials—in the meticulous allocation of march routes and detailed orders.

“Better to wait here than on the road, I suppose,” Bobby said. She looked tired, Winter thought, with a pang of guilt. Ever since her promotion, she’d pushed a great deal of work onto Bobby’s young shoulders. “Shall I pass the word to let the rankers sleep in?”

“No. I want you to take a rest, but the regiment should be up and breakfasted as usual. We’ve got some drilling to do.”

Bobby raised her eyebrows. “The girls aren’t much used to drilling, sir.”

“It’s about time they had a taste of the real military life.” Winter flashed Bobby a grin she didn’t feel. “Just like we did, eh?”

“Yessir!”

Bobby saluted again, and Winter waved a hand. “Go find your tent.”