Commander Maria stood atop the Moonlight walls, her gaze fixed on the distant horizon. She hadn't moved from this spot since dawn, a silent sentinel watching for any sign of movement across the silvery plains that surrounded the kingdom. The eastern sun cast long shadows across her weathered face, highlighting the scar that ran from temple to jaw.
'Three days since Mika left,' she thought, fingers absently tracing the hilt of her blade. 'She should have reached the border by now.'
The fatigue of constant vigilance weighed on her shoulders, but she refused to leave her post. Not when so much was at stake. Not when the Veilwalker remained missing and Viva's fate unknown.
A flicker of movement on the horizon caught her attention—dust rising in thin plumes against the morning sky. Maria straightened, eyes narrowing as she focused on the approaching riders.
"Sound the bell," she ordered the guard beside her, her voice sharp with urgency. "Riders approaching from the east."
