The great hall of the Up Pack fortress was louder than Nila had ever heard it. Three long oak tables stretched from the heavy entrance doors all the way to the raised dais at the back of the room, packed with vanguard officers, household guards, and the gray-haired elders of the valley. Hundreds of candles flickered in the iron chandeliers overhead, casting a warm, amber glow over the platters of roasted venison, thick winter squash, and silver tankards of spiced ale.

Nila sat at the center of the high table, her chair placed directly to the right of Kaelen’s heavy carved seat. She was dressed in a gown of deep...