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Cal, having to travel the furthest, reached the cave last. By the time she arrived, the moon was past its midpoint, and she cast a long shadow that reached Dish and Dusty as they huddled together, excitedly discussing the attack.
“There’s no way it’s humans. I say they’re from the Forest,” Dish contended, sporting the same dark cloak he has always worn for their midnight adventures. As such, his body was nearly invisible, even with the light streaming from the entrance. Only his face, sharply contrasting his dark hair and the blackness behind him, could be clearly distinguished.
“We’re too far from any borders,” countered Dusty. The golden-brown hair on his neck and cheeks, almost thick as fur, radiated in that same light, and his riding jacket, a dull red, would have looked handsome at the previous night’s festival dance. But he would stand out like a donkey in a horse race, should stealth become imperative. “The attack must have come from bandits. No other explanation makes sense.”
“You know as well as I do it could not be bandits,” Cal interrupted. Her friends turned simultaneously, the relief shining on their faces.
“It seems unlikely,” Dusty conceded. “But no other explanation makes sense either. Who would want to attack a village as poor and far from anything of importance as Moon’s Thresh?”
“They aren’t attacking Moon’s Thresh. It’s the Temple they are after.”
“The Temple? A bunch of old monks and nuns? Who would attack them? The Temple of the Sun?” Dish laughed at his little quip, but Cal ignored it.
“Like you said, Dusty, no other explanation makes sense. Moon’s Thresh is remote, hard to reach, deep in the hills, and has zero strategic importance. Bandits have not been spotted in this part of Morena for ten years. It could be Fairy Folk, from the Eilleithisan, like Dish said, but why would they secretly pass through fifty miles of occupied land so they could launch a surprise attack on Moon’s Thresh?”
“The Temple, of course,” Dusty concurred. “I should have realized. There are countless rumors about the treasures it holds.”
“So what’s the plan, Cal?” Dish asked, flashing a smile.
Cal thought of her father’s instructions. “We wait. It’s too dangerous.”
“Wait? While our homes are being destroyed? We have to do something to help.”
“Dish is right, Cal,” Dusty agreed. “We can’t sit by with our families in danger.”
Cal should not have been surprised by her friends’ impetuous show of bravado, but tonight was not the same as stealing pies or rustling goats. “We aren’t playing games anymore. We could be killed.”
“I don’t believe you’re willing to do nothing. I thought you wanted to be a general?”
Dish was right, though her father had no idea it was her plan to study military strategy at university, not academics. And no, she could not sit by while the village was under attack. But she was still scared.
“Okay, but we have to be careful.” She stared pointedly at Dish.
“Always.” The smile flashed again.
“The first thing we need to do is get some reconnaissance. Here’s the plan.” With Dusty and his magical sphere providing the light, and her father’s sword laying next to her, she used a stick to quickly sketch out directions in the dirt of the cave floor. Her father would be angry with her, but really, he had only himself to blame. He never should have taught her everything he knows.