The lamp lights ahead moved rapidly, a sign of unrest. Uneasily, we stopped.

“What should we do now?” Octavia whispered, leaning around me to look ahead. Ahead, the light dimmed as the lights were blown out, downing the forest in near-total darkness. I debated. If the attackers were rouge chimeras, as I suspected, then going ahead now could easily lead us to get caught. If we left, we could find help. In the meantime, however, it was quite possible that everyone would be dead by the time we returned.

But what could we do? Nero and Drusus had long since proven that making up for the lack of night vision was near impossible. Chimera eyes were incredibly sensitive.

In the end, there was only one reasonable decision. “Continuing would be suicide. Let’s head back and find some help.”

We turned the horse around, looking uneasily over our shoulders as we rode back, jumping at every rustle in the woods. When we felt safe, we hurried the horse into a sprint, pushing it as fast as possible. The gated city rose agonizingly slowly above us, a beacon of hope in the dark.

Two guards stood on gated walls, eyeing us curiously with crossbows aimed at our heads.

I yelled as loudly as I could at them, “The guard was ambushed in the woods! They need backup!”

They exchanged uneasy looks at each other, then the woods we’d come from. They spoke, too far away for us to hear, before one ran off. We shifted in our seats as we waited, with as much patience as we could muster. He returned a few minutes later, his lamp flickering on the other side of the gate, the shadow of his superior officer at his back. He hand waved us forward, and we moved closer to the gate until we were within a comfortable speaking range.

The superior office stored forward, standing at attention inches from the gate. “What happened?”

Octavia answered this time. “The guards–the ones that just rode through here–were ambushed in the woods!”

Uncertainty crossed their faces. Octavia’s nails dug painfully into my side at the sight. Unwilling to give them time to question us, I continued, “We were still a ways behind them when a fight broke out ahead. We couldn’t get a good look before the torches were blown out. I’m sure it was the rouge chimeras thought. They have good night vision–the guard will be slaughtered!”

The supervisor rounded on the guard next to him. “The princess is with them. Gather up a century.” As an afterthought, he added, “And let these two in. They’ll ride with us when we leave.”

“Yes, sir!” The soldier saluted before running off.

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The supervisor scanned us, then said, “Normally, I’d tell you to stay back. But we don’t have the time or the men to waste on keeping you from following.” We cringed at that. Despite our best efforts, it was abundantly clear he’d figured out what we’d done and disapproved.

The gates creaked and groaned open, allowing us entry into the city. We rode through the gate, coming to a stop by the superior officer.

Picking up a train of thought I’d started earlier, I asked, “By the way, do you happen to have anything or anyone we could use to capitalize on the chimera's sensitive eyes?” He looked at me, unregistering. I explained, “They can see clearly in the dark, meaning their eyes are sensitive to light. That also means sudden, bright lights will be even more disorienting on them than it is us.”

Recognition clicked into place on his face. “I’m sure we can figure something out.”

Recalling both instances of dead torches, I added, “Oh, and It looked like they had at least one wind mage to put out the torchlights. You might want to think of an alternative.”

He nodded, showing he understood. The guard returned moments later, panting. “They’re getting ready, sir.”

The supervisor rounded on the guard. “Have Cicero report to me. Instruct the rest of the squadron to pack incendiaries.” He looked back towards us. “You two wait here.”

While they were gone, the drumming rain lightened, thinning to a mere drizzle. Once again, I was impressed by the speed by which they moved. In minutes, we were marching out of the gates, the infantry splitting itself into four lines led by scouts who scoped out the trail ahead. Octavia and I were forced near the back of the innermost infantry line for our protection. We rode under the moonlight to keep the chimeras from spotting us as long as possible. Our pace was slower than it would have been otherwise, but we still made good time. When we’d gotten close to where we’d last seen the chimeras, Octavia whispered a quiet warning to the nearest guard, who silently sent the word forward. Our pace slowed to a crawl, and we kept our eyes peeled.

There were shouts from the side, and Octavia and I strained to see what was happening. The line rumbled, the centurion next to us whispering, informing us that the century had come across people who’d escaped the attack. We breathed a sigh of relief at the news, grateful that someone, at least, had survived.

The first round of chimera attacks began only seconds later. They started their pickings at the edges of the century, hiding in the trees before swooping down on the infantry. The world was oddly still, for us in the center, despite the echoes of battle from every direction. Bright light flashes bloomed in the distance, a magic equivalent of a flash bomb. Cheers echoed down the line as we redoubled our efforts, the light disorienting the chimeras and making them vulnerable.

The infantry exploited every second of their adjusting eyesight, the four lines able to divide and cut through the chimeras with ease. The fighters ahead of us were organized and efficient, the chimeras disorganized and clumsy.

Completely outclassed and outmatched, the chimeras retreated deeper into the woods. The sound of battle died down far quicker than anyone could have dreamed. Octavia and I glanced at each other, then nodded in solidarity. We slipped from under the watchful gazes of the infantry, spurring ourselves ahead to figure out what was going on. They made a few half-hearted attempts to capture us, but we pressed on.

Whispers of our arrival carried up the lines, and the supervisor waited for us, disapproving. A frowning Faust stood next to him, blood splattering his clothes. He looked uninjured, so it must have been from his enemies.

“I thought you were going to stay back at the palace,” Faust said as we approached. Somehow, I got the impression of a kicked puppy when looking at him.

“Actually, my exact words were, ‘We understand.’ I made no promises.” I said, unapologetic. Faust ran a hand through his hair, clearly irritated. Used to the far worse princess, however, he quickly gave up at any semblance of a lecture.

A sigh escaped his lips. Begrudgingly, he said, “You’re both adults who can make their own choices, so I’m not going to lecture you like children. I will also not reward either of you for going against orders.” He paused for a second, letting his disapproval sink in. Octavia and I made an effort to look properly chagrin. “I will, however, let you know that we were in dire straights before you showed up.”

Octavia and I exchanged victorious grins from up on our horse. They quickly fell at Faust’s answering grimace. Something was wrong.

“The princess’ party still hasn’t been found. We were tracking them when the chimeras ambushed us. We’ve sent a few men to scout the tracks ahead, but we’ve no word. If the same thing happened to the princess as to us….” He trailed off, shaking his head.