“At least they’re unlikely to go on to Demonai Camp,” Shilo Trailblazer said, tossing a bone onto a midden. “They’re flatlanders; they’ll want to take the cities and the farmland in the Vale.”

“We should have stopped them in the mountains, where we have the advantage,” Night Bird said. “Once they’re in the Vale, they’ll go all the way to Fellsmarch. We should have anticipated this. The queen warned us this might happen.”

“We did anticipate this,” Trailblazer retorted. “But we cannot be everywhere at once.”

“There are too many Demonai in the city, watching jinx-flingers,” Night Bird said. “That leaves too few on patrol in the mountains.”

“You don’t think the jinxflingers bear watching?” Trailblazer said, not looking at Dancer.

“Maybe they do. But that’s the problem—we spend our resources fighting with each other. If we don’t learn to work together, we’ll end up bowing to flatland kings.”

“At least the southerners might rid us of jinxflingers,” Trailblazer said, still staring into the fire. She and Nightwalker were flints chipped from the same source rock.

“Be careful what you wish for,” Night Bird said. “Remember that the flatlanders call us savages, and our queens, witches.”

“Anyway,” Dancer said, breaking into the argument, “the flatlanders have brought their own wizards with them.”

“How do you know this?” Trailblazer asked skeptically. “Flatlanders hate jinxflingers.”

“It seems they have found a way to work with them,” Dancer said.

“Which we had better do,” Bird said.

Dancer liked the changes he saw in his cousin. Though still fascinated with Nightwalker, she no longer repeated his opinions like a mocker bird. She was thinking for herself.

All the next day, the residents of Marisa Pines Camp waited for news, while the Demonai warriors scouted and harassed the advancing army. The scouts returned to report that the invaders were definitely Ardenine, plus the mercenaries working for them. As expected, the army descended from the southern mountains and marched straight for Fellsmarch.

Late that day, reinforcements arrived from Demonai Camp, Averill and Elena Demonai among them. But the riders who’d gone to Fellsmarch returned, saying they couldn’t reach the city. There was another army in the way.

“Where did it come from, this army?” Willo demanded at the improvised war council that had convened. “How did it get through, unseen?”

“It’s our own army,” Averill said. “General Klemath has turned traitor, and his mercenaries with him. They’ve laid siege to Fellsmarch Castle.” He paused, his face graven with worry. “So we have no army to counter Montaigne’s, save the Demonai. Briar Rose saw this coming. She meant to replace Klemath as general of the armies. But it seems she acted too late.”

“And the queen?” Willo asked. “Where is she now?”