Eleven figures jogged along the wall beyond the Observation tower Lieutenant Amelian now watched from. The bobbing heads of the young soldiers made a relieving counterpoint to the slow, thundering march of the still distant Giant beyond the wall.
Valen's half of her platoon, the other half of the soldiers under her command, were already gathered on the top of the tower, trying to avoid looking at the Golem. All of them were armed, had eaten recently, and seemed as fresh and ready as they ever had.
"I wish we had a Valkyrie. Even just one. I could do some real damage to it with round-shot," Mia complained, fidgeting with the Salamander strapped to her back.
"If every soldier in the army could shoot like you, Mia, we would," Valen said. Amelian grinned, almost laughing. The statement would be bravado for most. For Mia, it was making light of the corporal's skill.
"You'll get a chance at it, before too long," Amelian added.
"Yeah, four walls in. And I'll be taking orders from some fidgety major who thinks round-shot can't reach eight hundred yards. Give me a Valkyrie and a Crafter, and I could end this part of the invasion right here," Mia insisted.
Amelian stepped forward, and deliberately put herself between the Golem and her soldiers. She smiled a little, and set the butt of her Salamander against the ground, in time with the distant thunder of the Giant's march. "It feels like the time to give a speech. Something heartwarming and inspiring, like in the plays," she said.
The squad grew quiet. Ten faces gazed at Amelian, all of them solemn and attentive. Only Valen, unseen by anyone but her, grinned cheekily.
"To which I say 'eat ash'. The brave don't need encouragement," Amelian scathed. She didn't tell them it was even odds she would butcher a speech. "Private Mitchelson, upon sighting the enemy, what do we do?"
"Run like hell, and torch the land behind us," Mitchelson responded, to the appreciative laughter of the squad.
Below, a latch clicked, and almost a dozen pairs of boots started taking the stairs that led up to the observation loft of the tower. The other half of Amelian's platoon, lead by her junior sergeant Harold Reeves, streamed into the crowd seamlessly, met with quiet and polite greetings until they were all silent again.
"That's everyone. Good," Amelian said, nodding her head. "We have confirmed the incoming invasion, and can report the incursion point to our commanders further into the City. Our only duty now is to ensure we set the fires as late as possible. I will accomplish this with a small squad, while the rest of you will take the Cable Car to specialist Spendel at the comm relay station. Reeves, make sure Spendel sends every report he needs to, then get everyone to the next wall. Captain Olgen will have deployment orders if I am delayed."
She paused, breathing deeply, and continued, "Sergeant Valen, Corporal Vascel, Private Reese, and the mechanic Madelaine Soren will accompany me to the junction point, to redistribute the flow. Everyone else with Sergeant Reeves. Grab ammunition and provisions, and be prepared to go in five minutes."
The entire platoon saluted, in spurts, and began dispersing to collect anything they were missing. Amelian's junior sergeant, Harold Reeves, took the opportunity to have a quick word, striding through the crowd and cutting straight towards Amelian.
He looked nervous, but not inappropriately so. Amelain tried to smile reassuringly and wondered if it had any effect. "Lieutenant!" he said, loudly, saluting again. She returned it and noticed Valen stepping close by.
Reeves was roughly six months younger than her and was three spots behind her in the recruitment line. Her commission was a source of chagrin for him, one that had taken almost three mugs of mead to smooth over.
Almost three, she reflected with a smirk.
"Ma'am. I was just in touch with Spendel. Reports have come in that four Golems have been sighted at the Western Walls, including this one," he reported. He looked quite a lot older than he had three hours ago, when she last saw him. His eyes had a sunken, grim appearance, and his speech was firm and confident. He would rise quickly if any of them survived the next few weeks.
"Four?" Valen hissed. "Flaming hell."
"It's hard to confirm. We lost contact with Lieutenant Trask's platoon twenty minutes ago. We can't confirm their whereabouts or their status," Reeves added. "Trask was reporting the strangest thing, though. He said he saw two of them."
There was stunned silence following that announcement. Amelian glanced at Valen, who looked as if someone had just struck him. He noticed Amelian's attention, and said, "If that's true, it's unprecedented."
"Trask might have panicked," Reeves said, in the same tone he would use to suggest the sun might not rise tomorrow.
"We're in no position to help him yet. Get to the next wall, and trust that Captain Olgen will be on top of that situation," Amelian insisted firmly, but she struggled to keep from staring down the length of the wall.
Lieutenant Algo Trask was only six miles away, a distance her platoon could make in an hour, even in full kit. But twenty-three soldiers with no heavy artillery would be no help against what Trask faced right now.
"Yes, ma'am," Reeves said, saluting crisply. She returned the salute, as did Valen, before they broke off.
Alone, Valen stepped up to her and leaned forward a little to avoid being overheard. "You should stop thinking about what you can do for him. If Trask is in over his head, all you'd do is drown us along with him."
She nodded, taking in his advice. "But two of them? So close that a single patrol can see both? Someone needs to confirm that."
Valen smiled, reassuringly. He was good at that, Amelian noted. She needed to ask him how he managed it. "Captain Olgen isn't an imbecile, and she's in a much better position to respond. After all, she doesn't have our problems yet. Best we can do is stall our Golem for as long as possible," he replied.
The old sergeant had yet to be wrong, about pretty much anything. "Then we should get moving. I'd like to have my hands on the levers before that thing starts hitting the wall," Amelian said.
"Yes, ma'am." Valen saluted, and turned away to gather the small squad that would accompany them.
As the Sergeant departed, she looked back at the slow march of the distant monster, and the rhythmic thunder of its calamitous footsteps. Even at this distance, miles away, she could make out the faint hints of warm, yellow light that outlined the granite-grey shape.
She followed the stairs down, taking the several flights as quickly as she was willing to. In private, away from her soldiers, she found her hands shaking. She clutched them together for a moment, forcing herself to breathe slowly and deeply.
Her heart started hammering in her chest, hard enough that she could hear the blood rushing through her ears. She stopped halfway down, setting a hand against her chest, and forcing herself to keep her eyes dry.
Abyss below, she was terrified. Golems at the walls; the terror used to hush children, the constant doom that threatened the City, on her watch. That thing would pound through even the high stone walls, and the Gloam would retake land that had taken centuries to conquer.
She glanced down the stairs, and she saw her old Sergeant leaning against a doorway. He looked peaceful, almost serene, his face unreadable as he stared up at her.
She started down the rest of the stairs and stopped in front of him. "Apologies, Sergeant," she forced herself to say, in a slow and measured tone.
Valen shrugged and said, "Part of being a good officer is hiding your fear from your soldiers. Never let them see how scared you are. Benden called it wearing 'brown pants'."
"Benden Tammerlane, The Lord Captain of the Wall?" Amelian asked. "He made a joke?" The shock was sufficient to distract her from her fear. For an absurd, perfect moment, she forgot the invasion.
"Yep. He took everyone in the room by surprise, during a meeting several years ago. I nearly died laughing," Valen recalled, chuckling to himself. "The Lord Captain of the Wall, Master of the Armies, Chief Defender of the City, making a joke about soiling trousers. I don't think he realised how funny he was."
Amelian started laughing, and couldn't stop herself. She had to lean against the wall to keep herself from falling and heaved air into her lungs. "Oh, burning ash, thank you, Valen. I needed that."
"Thought you could use a laugh. Helps clear the mind," Valen said, with a grin. "We have a long night ahead."
He then stood straight and saluted, right hand to chest. "Lieutenant."
She returned the salute. "Sergeant." Then finished, allowing him to lead them out.
Her platoon had mustered in front of the Cable Car. A few of them were spooling the engine, others had taken up guard positions at the ends of the Watchtower, and the rest were divvying up extra rounds for their Salamanders.
She smiled at the sight, proud of them.
"Special detail, to me," she shouted, and every eye in the platoon looked to her. Mia and Reese stepped close instantly, with Madeleine lingering with Sergeant Reeves for a moment. "Everyone else, with Sergeant Reeves to the next wall. Move out!" she added.
As one, her platoon saluted. The gesture tugged at Amelian's heart. Fear simmered in her stomach, threatening to make her legs shake. Anger and pride both bit at her throat, calling her to order a stand right where they stood, orders and Golem be damned.
Instead, she smiled, as an officer should, and returned the salute. She turned and gestured for her small task force to follow. They fell in behind her, and at a slow run, started away from the Cable Car, across the wall.