Runner Belzi sighed as Cane stepped into the TOC. "Captain… the runner is supposed to come to you, not the other way around."
"Right," Cane deadpanned. "I'm after your job."
Belzi gave a theatrical groan. "You know how hard I worked to get here? Maybe the pub is hiring bartenders."
Across the room, Commander Terok set aside the latest scouting report and gave Cane his full attention. "Did something happen, Captain?"
"We intercepted and neutralized a group of mid-tier mages investigating Topoc Hill," Cane reported. "We also managed to capture a drake—and its rider. She was tracking them from above."
Terok's eyes flicked to the battle map, where three Legion pieces remained unassigned on the Zuni side. "Any intel on who they were?"
"Nothing substantial. The rider seems high-ranking. I used the time dilation to treat her wounds—she's recovered and under guard now."
Cyphus entered the TOC, a smile already forming. "I'll take charge of the prisoner… and the drake."
"I'm keeping the drake," Cane said flatly.
Cyphus chuckled. "Worth a try. Did she carry any insignia?"
"None I recognized. You can see for yourself."
Cane accessed Ringworld, and the captive appeared before them. Her uniform was ragged but clean, her wounds healed. She was barefoot, shackled, and silent.
Cyphus studied her, brow arching. "Scout Commander. First, the Zuni operative, now this. Topoc Hill's becoming a magnet for their elite."
The woman raised her chin. "Scout Commander Wena. I'm invoking my Prisoner of War rights under the ROW agreement."
Cyphus's smile never wavered. "Of course. Please, come with me."
As they left, Gadira's voice echoed from the ringworld. "I've recovered something. Bring me out."
Cane waited until Cyphus and the prisoner were gone, then turned to Terok. "Secure the entrance. I'm bringing in my information broker."
Terok motioned to the runners. "Clear the room. Double the door guards."
Once the room was sealed, Cane summoned Gadira. She appeared in a shimmer of light, standing still as she cast a spell on a glowing stone cupped in her hands.
"These images were retrieved from the familiar we captured earlier," Gadira said. "As suspected, the operative identified Cane as a priority target and made an independent move. But I also recovered a fragment of the moment Zabi received her orders—straight from their headquarters."
A glowing image bloomed above the stone—an overhead view of the Zuni map room. Clear markers showed the location of three full enemy Legions, all positioned directly north of Topoc Hill.
Terok's eyes narrowed. "They kept them in place. Ready to spearhead the invasion."
He turned, voice crisp. "Pull back our feelers. Move the 3rd and 4th Battalions east of Topoc Hill. Keep 1st, 2nd, and 5th to the west."
The runners filtered back in.
Cane watched the map shift. "You think the fight's coming to Topoc Hill?"
Terok nodded grimly. "I need you to hold it just long enough to snap the trap shut."
Cane gave a short nod, dismissed Gadira back to the ringworld, and turned to go. Moxie fell into step beside him.
Time to dig in.
Zuni Command Center
Field Marshal Havoc stormed into the TOC, his stride sharp, his dark face rigid with disbelief. "The Northern Front has fallen. Three Allied Legions are marching on our capital."
Locust stiffened. A cold pulse shot down his spine. They copied our strategy. The Alliance had gambled everything—leaving only a token defense to launch a full-scale assault on the Zuni heartland.
"Havoc…" he began, but the Marshal cut him off.
"Report," Havoc barked. He loomed in rune-carved plate armor, every inch the battlefield general.
Locust hesitated. "No word yet from Dark Shadow Legion."
"What?" Havoc's voice dropped to a deadly hush. "They were not to move. My orders were to hold position."
"I redirected them west of Topoc Hill," Locust said carefully.
Havoc's eyes narrowed. "And why don't we hold Topoc Hill?"
"Shadow Battalion has not reported in."
Havoc's glare was molten. "You fool. The enemy's only fielding one Legion here—the rest are north, marching on Kra'lor. Dark Shadow is gone, and with them, Shadow Battalion."
Locust gritted his teeth.
Havoc turned to the map. "All remaining Legions forward. We take Topoc Hill, then push for their capital. They must've suffered heavy losses. If we strike hard now, we can at least force another stalemate."
Topoc Hill – 1st Company Command
Back on the ridge, Cane stood before his platoon leaders and sergeants in the command tent, the wind tugging at the edges of the map.
"We're going to full alert," he said. "Expand the defenses, reinforce every existing position. I want updated scout reports every two hours. No sleep shifts—we'll rotate people through the ringworld. Ten hours inside will give them what they need. But out here, I need their best."
He looked each officer in the eye. "We hold this hill."
Teek crossed his arms. "We're one company. Can we expect reinforcements? Two more companies would go a long way."
Cane shook his head. "They're being repositioned for the pincer. We're the anvil. Let the Zuni roast themselves trying to break us."
Ringworld Interior
Cane stepped into the ringworld. Months had passed here, thanks to the dilation. A small village now sprawled across the interior—tents, gardens, even a smithy. Barns and stables flanked the path, the scent of cut hay and bread on the air.
This was no war camp. Laughter drifted between canvas walls, birds chirped, and metal sang from the forge. Life had taken root.
The cottage near the stream housed Gadira, Sophie, Clara, and Dhalia.
As Cane approached, Sophie looked up from the front steps.
A warmth bloomed in her chest. When Cane tapped her for help with the drake, it had shaken something loose—something bright. He had trusted her. She'd chased a Zuni rider through enemy lines, turned the tide of a dangerous mission.
Cane's smile spread when he saw her. "Thanks, Sophie." Without hesitation, he wrapped her in a hug, strong and warm.
Sophie's face lit like sunrise. "Thank you for trusting me."
Meanwhile, near the smithy.
Brammel checked the measurements again, brow furrowed. "Alright… I'll have my students handle the assembly. You focus on the projectiles."
Jonas flexed his hands, sore from long days at the forge. They'd designed two compact catapults for Topoc Hill—not the hulking siege engines meant to topple walls, but fast-firing launchers built to scatter cavalry and break momentum.
Nearby, Fergis sat cross-legged on a boulder, sketching fire runes onto prototype projectiles Cane had forged. The metallurgist could shape them faster than any blacksmith, but he was already stretched thin.
Jonas picked up one of the rounded hollow shells. It was light—hollowed out and filled with sulfur to serve as both accelerant and payload. "Looks solid. How many can you make?"
Fergis grinned. "With time dilation? As many as we need. Let's shoot for a few hundred."
Jonas stared. "That'll take weeks."
Fergis shrugged with a cheeky smile. "All I've got right now is time. Cane already set the schedule."
On the summit of Topoc Hill, Cane studied the map as Selene Morva and Chanzi stood beside him.
"A what?" he asked, blinking at Chanzi's plan.
Teek turned pale, rushed to the edge of the overlook, and scanned the valley below. "Stars above… they're right. That lowland—goodness. Can you really do this?"
Cane traced the contours of the terrain with a fingertip. "Chanzi and her students will have to reshape the stone. We're short on time."
Chanzi nodded, smiling in a way that would have been alien to her before this campaign. "We'll manage. Might need a dip in the ringworld afterward—psi-mana burns fast under strain."
"Pick up a copy of the dilation schedule," Cane said. "We'll rotate your team as needed."
The ringworld's time dilation had become their greatest advantage—extending hours into days. But more than that, its interior was soaked in wild mana, an unstable but potent energy that accelerated magical recovery. Elemental mages normally needed days of rest or mana crystals to recover. Here, they could recharge in hours.
Selene reached out, placing her hands gently on either side of Cane's head. A soft pulse of water magic flooded his senses, washing away fatigue and tension. "Count on me, too."
Cane exhaled slowly. "Thank you, Selene. Before this ends, I have a feeling we'll need everyone."