Donal and Soli sat, dripping wet, on the edge of Donal’s bed. Fully dressed, their waterlogged uniforms drew what little warmth they had out of them.

  “Hey, you got some on my bed,” said Gluck. “Guys. I’m gonna be so cold tonight.”

  “Stop your whining,” snapped Habet. “It’s only a splash. It’ll dry.”

  “Or maybe it’ll encourage you to get up a little earlier. Who knows, maybe you’ll be on time for roll-call for once,” said Kennan. A ripple of nervous laughter spread through the dorm. Only a handful of cadets stood silently, unamused. Their silence did not go unnoticed.

  “It isn’t really fair though, is it?” said Habet, casting a mischievous glower over the room. “Poor old Gluck here, sleeping on a wet mattress while ‘Miss Perfect’ will be lying up there bone dry.” Jabbing a finger at one cadet that hadn’t laughed: “You. Fix that for us.”

  Kennan handed an empty bucket to the cadet - a boy by the name of Hamwe. Hamwe took the bucket with reluctance. His eyes took on a watery sheen. Turning his head away from Soli, he shuffled with haste to the washroom to fill the bucket.

  “Punish us if you must, Habet, but don’t drag others down to your level,” said Donal, shivering.

  Habet lunged toward him with a raised fist, and Donal braced himself. A moment later, his eyes opened and Habet was leering over him, his fist inches from Donal’s face.

  “You don’t get it. We’re all in agreement here. Isn’t that right?” There were murmurs of agreement. Not as many as Habet would have liked, but enough to show support. Whatever support Donal and Soli had was in the minority. “Tomorrow morning, we all go back to the routine. For some of you younger sprats, that might be ok. Some of us, though, are, basically, guards already. And for a time, we actually were. For a time. All too short, eh fellas?” said Habet.

  “Yeah, yeah,” cut in Kennan, “and not only did you munts bring that to an end, you denied us proper guards,” he looked at Soli, “the glory of catching that traitor.”

  “You should have tried harder,” said Donal.

  It was Kennan now who lunged at Donal.

  “You didn’t try at all,” said Habet as he held Kennan’s eager fists back. “You stumbled across him while you were taking a stroll on the beach.”

  Soli sat motionless throughout all this. She didn’t even seem to shiver, despite the bitter draught that cut through the dorm on such a clear night. Silent and staring, she had her eyes fixed on something beyond Habet and Kennan. Past the crowd of cadets, near to the dormitory door.

  Habet calmed Kennan, patting him on the chest like an obedient dog. “I think we broke this one, Hab,” said Kennan, thumbing at Soli.

  Donal looked at Soli with concern. “What did you think would happen, soaking someone with a bucket of water and making them sit there in the cold? I mean, even I’m starting to feel out of it.”

  Soli moved. She turned her cocked head toward Donal, eyebrows raised.

  “I mean… You know what I mean,” said Donal, fidgeting a chorus of squelching sounds.

  “There she is,” said Habet. “Welcome back. How are you feeling? It’s all a bit much, isn’t it?”

  Soli stared at Habet. A stare that stole the next few words from his mouth.

  “You know, they’re looking for a new cook in the kitchens,” said Kennan.

  Habet regained confidence as Soli directed her attention towards Kennan. “Right, right. And I hear old Hass wants a new maid for his quarters. Getting rid of that old trout, Madge,” he said. “You want to be the new trout?”

  “Come on, guys. Isn’t that enough for now?” came a voice hidden away in the crowd of cadets.

  “Who said that?” shouted Habet. Silence. “Enough? You looking forward to drills in the morning? To not leaving this bloody compound for a straight week?”

  “I’m looking forward to having a sleep,” said a timid cadet near the back.

  Habet sensed the tide turning, but his hackles were up. He swung round toward Soli and Donal, his hands balled up tight. “What are you looking forward to? Eh?”

  Donal flinched. Soli remained stone still and watched.

  “Forget it. Just forget it. You see, we spoke with Major Hass. He understands our strength of feeling about all this. He sympathises. That right?” Habet gestured toward Kennan.

  “Oh, yes. Very much so. He was very sympathetic,” said Kennan.

  “Thinks a couple of overachievers might need knocking down a peg or two,” said Habet.

  “Good for morale,” said Kennan.

  “That’s right. He said it’d be good for the rest of us.” Habet turned to the rest of the cadets, arms in the air, as though taking personal responsibility for winning them some sort of reward. The cadets were too tired to give what he said much thought. Their response to the idea was eager, even though none of them really knew what it meant.

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  A worried look crossed Donal’s face. “What about Hass?”

  Habet and Kennan shared a wicked smile.

  “What did he say?” said Donal.

  Kennan was eager to speak, but Habet cut him off. “He’s worried that you both might have fallen behind somewhat. You’ve both shown a great deal of aptitude in many areas, but you’re not quite Royal Guards. Not yet.”

  “I’m on course to graduate with honours! What are you talking about?” said Donal.

  “It’s about more than that. The Guard aren’t individuals. We don’t seek glory for ourselves. We are… well,” Habet looked at Soli, who was staring at him with intent. “We are brothers.”

  “I know that!” said Donal, ignoring the slight on Soli. “I am devoted to my fellow cadets, my fellow guards.”

  “You are devoted to yourself. You both are. We know that and Hass knows that,” said Habet. “That’s why he thinks you need more time.”

  “No,” said Donal, needing no further explanation.

  “He’s going to tell you both tomorrow, so try to act surprised.” Both Habet and Kennan were bursting with glee. “You’re being held back for an additional year.”

  “That’s not fair!,” said Donal.

  “Are you saying that the Major is behaving unjustly?” said Kennan, feigning shock.

  “A cadet that is held back can never attain a rank above private.” Said Donal.

  “Hmm. This is quite the learning experience. Very humbling,” said Habet.

  Hamwe appeared behind the crowd of cadets. “It’s done,” he called, tipping up an empty bucket.

  “Well boys, I think it’s time for bed,” said Habet. The relief in the room was palpable. The crowd immediately dispersed. Every cadet (except for Gluck) eagerly dove into bed.

  A bitter wind sliced through the dormitory. Donal sat shivering and staring at the floor, desperately wanting to be ensconced in a blanket, lost in a dreamless sleep. There was no chance of that tonight. He sat there beside Soli in silence until the rest of the cadets were fast asleep.

  Soli rose and walked over to the dormitory door. There, next to it, was a large brick that was sometimes used to prop the door open. She stared at the brick, fists clenched so tight they hurt. She could feel the brick in her hand. She could see the smiles drop from the faces of Habet and Kennan, hear their cries, feel their bones break. She could feel the bitter wind blowing through every smashed window in the dormitory. But the brick remained on the floor. She would not give in to base desires - she was better than that. She had to be. Hands unclenched, fatigue swept over her. She headed for the stairs to her room.

  Hamwe stood nearby, looking sheepish. Soli didn’t want to get him into trouble with the other boys, so she gave him a wide berth. She hoped that the smile she had mustered would assuage his guilt. The look on his face was a fearful one, and it remained fixed as such. He opened the corner of his mouth. “I don’t know what I saw. There’s something happening to the west, up on the ridge. This is a dreadful night. I hope you can sleep.” And with that, he scuttled off to his bed.

  When Soli reached her room, she wished she could have hugged Hamwe. Her bed was bone dry. He must have thrown the water out of the window. Sure enough, there was a puddle below her window at the base of the tower.

  As Soli leant on the windowsill, she thought about what Hamwe had said. On the ridge to the west, near the pass through The Narrows, there was movement. She dug out an old telescope her mother had given her and looked through it. Through the foggy glass, an enlarged ridge came into view. Three figures appeared to be dancing around a fire. Their movements alternately smooth and jerky, their hands raised to the sky. It wasn’t just a dance. It was more ceremonial, more determined. There was no joy to their movements, but plenty of passion. Her pulse quickened as she recognised who she was watching. It was the three sinister sisters that she and Donal had encountered at Firelime Bay.

  Later that night, Donal lay shivering in bed, trying to will himself to sleep. A hand shook his shoulder. His eyes sprang open, and a hand across his mouth suppressed a shocked yelp. Despite being awake, he hadn’t heard Soli approaching. This was impressive. The dorm’s stone floor would send a mouse’s footstep echoing around its high ceiling.

  Soli placed a finger across her lips and beckoned him to follow her.

  Donal tried to mirror Soli’s movements. She seemed to possess a preternatural ability to move silently. Donal squelched along behind, one eye watching the cadets as they slept, until they reached the dormitory door.

  Outside, Soli pulled Donal into a shadow at the base of the tower and handed him some dry clothes.

  “Where did you get these?” he whispered.

  “Kennan’s about your size, isn’t he?” Soli’s eyes were on the top of the perimeter wall where the night watch patrolled. “We’ll have to move. You can change once we’re out.”

  “Out where?”

  Soli pulled Donal further into the shadows. “Those odd women we encountered in Firelime Bay.”

  “What about them?” said Donal.

  “I saw them from my window. They’re up near The Narrows, up on the ridge. They’re doing something.”

  “So?”

  “You saw them. You heard what they said. They are up to no good. I don’t know what, but… I don’t feel good about it.”

  “Then we tell the Guard.”

  “Tell them what?”

  “Well…”

  “Right? No one else is going to do anything. It’s up to us.”

  “We can’t just leave.”

  “Why not? You worried about jeopardising your career as a lifelong private?”

  Donal’s face dropped as he remembered what Habet had said. Soli placed a hand on his shoulder once again. “You want a chance to have a proper career in the Guard? Become a major yourself? Show Hass how it’s done? Take the initiative. If they turn out to be up to something, we can be the ones to stop them. If not, what are we going to lose?”

  Soli wasn’t sure if Donal had stopped listening or was deep in thought. She was about to ask when he spoke. “How’re we going to get past the watch?” Soli smiled and held up a bunch of keys.

  “What else have you been up to tonight?”

  A raised eyebrow was her reply.

  The sun peeked over the horizon. It threw gentle shafts of light through the trees surrounding the Citadel. Amongst these old trees, at the base of the Citadel wall, a small door creaked open. Out stepped Soli and Donal.

  “What else can you open with them?” said Donal.

  “I’m not sure about all of them, but this one can get you in to the Major’s quarters,” said Soli.

  “No! How would you… What did you…”

  “It’s OK. I just helped myself to a couple of bottles of Hass’ Premier Cavay. Superb vintage they were.”

  “Are you mad?”

  “Ask me what I did with them.”

  Donal wasn’t sure he wanted to know. “What did you do with them?”

  “Poured them down a drain,” said Soli with pride.

  Words failed Donal.

  “I kept the bottles.”

  “You kept the bottles?” Donal looked about.

  “They’re not here, idiot. I gifted them to our good friends, Habet and Kennan. I have a feeling there will be a surprise dorm inspection this morning.”

  Donal calmed down. Then laughed. “Excellent. That is excellent. You’re amazing.” His cheeks flushed, and he cleared his throat. “I should get changed. I’ll go behind that tree.”

  “Be quick. We need to be clear of the Citadel before it gets too light.”

  Donal took a second to consider the uniform in his hands before giving a nod then vanishing behind a tree.

  “I hope you got some rest. We’ve got quite a way to go.”

  “Not really,” said Donal, “but I’ll be fine. I just hope we won’t be too tired to do whatever it is we need to do when we reach the ridge.”