They set up a temporary camp near the ruins as light began to fade. Fires were lit, watches posted, horses tended. The team shared a meal of dried meat and hard bread around the flames, stories flowing easier as the cold deepened.
Jakob told a ridiculous tale about a hunt gone wrong that had everyone laughing, even Tuva. Thorne added his own embellishments until the group roared. These moments mattered. Men fought better when they remembered what they rode for.
Later, when most had settled into their bedrolls, Thorne sat with his back against a rock, axe across his knees. The stars stretched clear overhead, brighter here than in Frostfang's shadow. Tuva joined him, offering a skin of warmed drink. She sat close enough that their shoulders brushed.
"You see a whole future here already," she said quietly. "Outpost, patrols, new life. You don't do anything halfway."
