The first arrow struck before anyone had time to breathe. It punched through a shield, split wood like it was nothing, and buried itself in the shoulder of the man behind it. He dropped with a strangled cry, fingers clawing at the shaft as though he could rip the pain out with it.
Then the sky filled. Edmond's army roared as arrows poured down in a dark wave, the sound sharp and endless, like rain hitting iron. Maria's front line buckled almost instantly. Shields came up too late for some. Others held, but barely. Men staggered under the force, boots sliding against wet wood as ships rocked beneath them.
For a fleeting second, it looked like the fight might collapse right there. Like everything Maria had built would break in one clean strike.
A soldier beside her jerked backward, an arrow lodged deep in his throat. Another screamed as two more found his chest. The line thinned. The noise changed. Not just battle cries anymore, but something tighter, closer to fear.
Maria did not move. Her eyes stayed on Edmond. He stood at the front of his ship, unmoved, the sword of Odin glowing faintly in his grip. Arrows curved toward him and died before they reached him, cut cleanly from the air as if the world itself bent to his will.
For a moment, just a moment, Maria felt it. The weight of him. The brother who had once taught her how to hold a blade now stood across from her like something out of legend. Untouchable. Unbreakable.
And her men were dying. Another volley came. Closer this time.
A man to her left dropped to his knees, clutching his stomach, blood slipping through his fingers. Someone behind her shouted for retreat. Another voice screamed for formation.
It began to fracture. Just slightly. But enough.
Maria's fingers tightened around her sword. Not yet. Not like this. Then something cut through the chaos.
A sound. Different. A sharp whistle, followed by fire. Edmond turned. So did Maria. Another ship had appeared behind his fleet.
No, not one. Several. Small, fast, cutting through the water like knives. And then the arrows came from them.
Precise, and relentless.
They struck Edmond's men from behind, slipping past shields not raised in that direction. Fire followed, clinging to wood, licking up sails, spreading faster than commands could contain.
Maria's eyes narrowed. Helen of course.
Through the haze of smoke and movement, she saw them. The maiden warriors. Fewer than she would have liked. Maybe three hundred. Maybe less.
But they moved like they had already accepted death and no longer feared it.
And that changed things. Edmond's formation faltered. Not fully. Not yet. But there it was. A hesitation. A turn of heads. Orders overlapping, voices clashing for space.
"Shoot at them!" Edmond roared. His command cut through the confusion, but it came just a heartbeat too late.
Arrows shifted direction. Men turned. And in that turn, something broke.
Maria saw it. Not clearly. Not in any way she could explain later.
But she felt it. The rhythm was gone. That perfect, suffocating coordination that had crushed her line moments ago, it slipped.
Just enough.
Her breath steadied. There it is. "Black water!" she screamed. Her voice tore through her side like a blade, but it carried.
Men turned to her. Some hesitated, still caught between commands. "Now!" she roared.
That did it. They moved. Sachets were grabbed, hands shaking but fast. Soldiers stepped forward, stretching their arms, aiming toward ships that were no longer fully protected.
Because they couldn't be. Half of Edmond's men were still firing at Helen.
The other half were trying to hold formation. They could not do both. "Cover the ships!" Maria barked, though she already knew it was too late for some of them.
"Loose!"
The black water flew. It arced through the air in uneven lines, some falling short, others striking clean.
A few ships were covered almost instantly.
Maria did not wait. "Fire!"
The archers didn't hesitate this time. Flames sparked to life at arrow tips, small at first, then furious as they were released. The first impact was almost quiet.
Then everything changed. Fire met black water. And the sea exploded.
One ship went up in a burst of flame so sudden it looked unreal. Men vanished inside it, swallowed by heat and light. Another followed, slower, the fire crawling before erupting outward.
Screams tore across the water. Real screams now. Not battle cries.
Not orders. Just pain.
The sailors lost control. Burning ships drifted, crashing into others, spreading chaos faster than commands could reach. Flames leapt from wood to wood, from rope to sail.
Men jumped into the water. Some on fire. Some already dead before they hit it. The sea turned red.
Maria did not look away. She couldn't. This was the moment. This was where it turned. She raised her hand again, steady now.
"Again!"
Arrows rained. Fire followed. And Edmond's formation collapsed. Completely this time.
Where there had been order, there was only survival. Ships turned into each other. Commands went unheard. Men fought to climb back onto decks that were already burning beneath their feet.
Edmond stood still in the middle of it..For a second too long.
Maria saw the change in his face. Not fear. Never that. But something colder.
Understanding.
He knew he had lost this one.
Slowly, deliberately, he raised his hand. The trumpet call cut through everything. "Retreat! Retreat! Retreat!"
The sound carried across the water, heavy with something no one there had ever heard from him before.
Defeat.
Ships began to turn. Clumsy at first, then faster as the surviving sailors caught hold of the order. Men in the water reached out, grabbing onto ropes, onto wood, onto anything that floated.
Some made it. Many didn't. Maria's hand remained raised. Her soldiers waited.
Every instinct in them screamed to finish it. To chase. To end it completely. "Seize fire!" she shouted. The words came out sharp, and final.
And just like that, it stopped. The arrows ceased. The fire, however, did not. It continued to burn, feeding on what it had already claimed.
Edmond's ship turned last. Of course it did. He stood at the edge, his gaze locked onto her.
The distance between them felt smaller than it was. Like no one else existed in that moment. "You are no longer my sister."
His voice carried. Clear, and unshaken.
Maria felt it land before she allowed herself to react. "You will no longer be treated as a Woodland."
The words settled into her chest, heavy and unmoving. Around her, no one spoke. No one dared.
Edmond swallowed once, his grip tightening on the sword. Then he raised it slightly. Not in attack, but In declaration. "As the Warden of the North and occupier of the Ice Throne, I declare you an enemy of the name."
Each word was measured. Deliberate, and final. "When any Northern sees you, he or she will kill you."
Maria did not move. Did not blink..Inside, something shifted. Not breaking.
No.
That had already happened..This was something else. Something quieter.
"When next I see you," Edmond continued, his voice lowering just enough to feel more dangerous, "I will not fail to kill you."
A pause.
"And your girls."
His gaze moved briefly, taking in the warriors behind her. Marking them. Condemning them. "You are enemies of the Ice Throne."
Then he turned. Just like that. No hesitation. No looking back. His ship moved, following the others, disappearing slowly into distance and smoke.
Maria stood there long after he was gone. The noise around her returned gradually. Cheers first. Then louder. Then overwhelming.
Victory.
It rolled through Cliffland like thunder..Men shouted Drexo's name, voices rising higher with each repetition.
"King Drexo Dragarian!"
"King Drexo Dragarian!"
Wine was lifted. Swords raised. Laughter broke through the remnants of fear.
On the other side of the river, Robert's forces had already begun their retreat. Drexo's men barely needed to push. Fire did most of the work for them.
It was over, but yet she wasn't happy. She saw the hate in her brother's face.
"I can't believe you did that."
Evelyn's voice came from beside her, sharp with something between awe and disbelief.
Maria exhaled slowly. "You have handed Edmond his first loss in battle."
That hung there. Heavy, and important.
Something worth celebrating. Maria's grip on her sword loosened. Just slightly. "That is not something I am proud of."
Her voice was quieter than she expected. Almost lost beneath the noise around them. Evelyn frowned, as if she wanted to argue.
But I didn't. Because she saw it. Whatever sat behind Maria's eyes at that moment.
Maria drew in a breath. It felt different like the air itself had changed.
Or maybe she had. "I have gone too far now," she whispered.
The words barely left her lips. No one reacted. No one needed to. Her gaze drifted back to the water.
To where the ships had burned..To where her brother had stood. "There is no going back now."
Another breath. Slower this time. "Only forward."