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‘There was no indication as to their point of origin?’ Esyllt pressed.

‘None, sir. They were already anchored when we arrived. Though, their proximity to the Veil was concerning.’

‘You think they came through it?’

Kipp hesitated. ‘If I had to guess.’

‘You do.’

‘Then yes, I’d say they came through the Veil. We have manned watchtowers and scouts stationed all around the north and south coasts of Thezmarr, sir. We would have seen them coming had they sailed from elsewhere in the midrealms.’

‘And you carried out your orders to remain hidden?’ Esyllt asked.

‘Strictly speaking… Yes, sir. No one saw us.’

‘And not strictly speaking?’ the weapons master pressed, his eyes narrowing.

Kipp pushed his shoulders back. ‘We sabotaged all of the rowboats. Two sank before our eyes; the rest are stranded on the shore, completely useless. We also saw to it that their supplies were destroyed. They can’t get to the main ship, which is moored by the Veil. Nor do they have any rations to —’

‘So, you disobeyed direct orders?’

Panic spiked in Thea as she saw Kipp’s throat bob in surprise. He lowered his head in shame. ‘Yes, sir.’

Thea had to shove her hands in her pockets to keep from wringing them, but Esyllt seemed to study Kipp, something gleaming in his eyes.

‘Excellent work,’ he declared.

Kipp blinked. ‘Sir?’

‘Anything else to report?’ the weapons master asked, ignoring his shock.

‘I’d suggest sending a unit to mop them up, sir,’ Kipp ventured, clearly not quite recovered.

Esyllt nodded. ‘Agreed.’ Then he turned to Osiris. ‘You know what this means…’

A muscle twitched in the Guild Master’s jaw. ‘The hunt has begun. The Daughter of Darkness is coming,’ he said bluntly. ‘This means war.’

An icy chill raked down Thea’s spine. They had known it for a long time; the darkening days, the monsters slipping through the Veil, the reaper and wraith attacks… But all the same, the word carried a different weight, and there was no putting it back where it had come from.

War.

War was on the midrealms’ doorstep.

The silence that filled the council room was deafening.

Getting to his feet again, Osiris cleared his throat and addressed the Warswords. ‘You have your orders. And you’re to brief the commanders on the situation. Reach out to your sources, see if there are reports of any other forces landing in any of the kingdoms. Send ravens to Harenth, Tver and Aveum, and to our Guardians stationed throughout the midrealms. Make sure they know that we are no longer dealing with just monsters, but men as well. More of them than we anticipated.’ He threw a disgusted glance at the patch of cloth on the table. ‘They wear her sigil. They must be destroyed at all costs.’

A few murmurs of agreement followed, and before Thea knew it, everyone was leaving.

Hawthorne remained. His face was a mask of icy calm.

Cal and Kipp both offered her pitying looks over their shoulders before they followed after their mentors, closing the door behind them.

‘You left,’ Hawthorne said, his voice dangerously low.

She lifted her chin. ‘There was work to be done.’

‘You put yourself in danger.’