Leon stood at the head of the large wooden table, his eyes scanning the faces of Rourke, Gorak, and the other leaders of the village. The mood in the room was tense, the air thick with the urgency of the situation. The makeshift war room had once been a storage building, but now it served as the center of all strategic planning in Vekara. Maps were strewn across the table, detailing the village, its surroundings, and the possible routes the king's forces might take to find them.
Leon's hands were planted firmly on the table as he spoke, his voice low and commanding. "We don't have time to wait. The walls need to be finished within the next few days, no exceptions. I want every able-bodied person working on the defenses, and we'll need shifts around the clock. If the king's men find us before we're ready, everything we've built will be gone."
Rourke nodded, his arms crossed as he stood beside Leon. "The north wall's nearly done, but the southern side is still too weak. We'll need to divert some of the workers to reinforce it. If they come from the south, we'll be exposed."
"Do it," Leon replied without hesitation. "We don't need perfection right now. We need speed. Get the wall secured, even if it's temporary. We can reinforce it later."
Gorak, who had been silent, finally spoke up. "We'll also need to start training everyone. Not just the mercenaries. Every man and woman in the village needs to know how to fight. If the king's soldiers come, we need every pair of hands armed and ready to defend this place."
Leon nodded, his expression grim. "Agreed. No one goes untrained. From now on, everyone is part of the defense. We'll teach them the basics—how to hold a weapon, how to stand in formation, and how to defend themselves. Rourke, you and your mercenaries can lead the training."
Rourke grinned, though the seriousness of the situation didn't leave his eyes. "Consider it done. We'll start tomorrow. Some of these folks are soft, but they'll learn fast enough when survival's on the line."
Leon's gaze shifted to the map before him, the weight of their reality pressing down on him. They were fighting against time, and time was not on their side. The walls would be finished, the villagers trained, but the looming threat of the king's forces was a shadow that hung over everything.
"One more thing," Leon added, his voice hardening. "From now on, no one leaves the village without authorization. We've been too lax with people coming and going, and that ends today. If anyone is found outside the walls without permission, they'll be detained. We can't afford any leaks, and we can't risk anyone being captured and giving away our position."
Gorak and Rourke exchanged glances before nodding in agreement. It was a harsh order, but necessary. The survival of Vekara depended on keeping its secrets hidden, and the fewer people who knew what was happening beyond the walls, the better.
The meeting continued for a few more minutes as they discussed the finer details—how to rotate shifts, how to ration the supplies they had, and how to ensure that every villager had access to a weapon. It wasn't a perfect plan, but it was the best they could do under the circumstances.
As the meeting began to wind down, Gorak stood and motioned for Leon to follow him outside. The sun was starting to set, casting long shadows across the village, and the distant sound of hammers and saws echoed in the air as the villagers worked tirelessly to build their defenses.
Gorak led Leon to a quiet corner of the village, away from the prying eyes and ears of the others. His expression was serious, more so than usual, and Leon could tell that something was weighing heavily on his mind.
"What is it?" Leon asked, his voice low.
Gorak hesitated for a moment before speaking. "I spoke with Jerik."
Leon's eyes narrowed. "And?"
Gorak sighed, crossing his arms as he leaned against the stone wall beside him. "He told me something that changes everything. It's not Grig who sold us out. At least, not entirely."
Leon's jaw tightened. "What do you mean?"
Gorak explained what Jerik had told him—the guards who had fled the camp the night of the attack, how they had been hunted down by the king's men, and how they had given up everything they knew about Vekara before they were executed.
"The king already knew about the village before Grig started making his deals," Gorak said, his voice grim. "The guards who survived the attack—they were the ones who gave us away. Grig's a rat, sure, but he wasn't the one who brought the king down on us."
Leon's mind raced as he processed the information. It made sense, in a way. They had been so focused on Grig's underhanded deals with outlaws and brigands that they hadn't considered the possibility that the danger had come from somewhere else. If the king's men had already known about Vekara, then they were in more trouble than they had realized.
"Why didn't Jerik tell us this sooner?" Leon asked, his voice filled with frustration.
Gorak shrugged. "He's been playing his own games, as usual. But now that he knows the king's men are closing in, he's willing to share what he knows. He doesn't want to die any more than the rest of us."
Leon clenched his fists, anger surging through him. They had been fighting against time, against an invisible enemy, and now it was clear that the enemy had been watching them all along.
"This changes everything," Leon muttered, his voice dark. "The king's already moving. We don't have as much time as we thought."
Gorak nodded. "We need to act fast. If the king's forces are already looking for us, we need to be ready for war."
Leon's mind raced as he considered their options. The walls would be finished soon, and the villagers would be trained, but was it enough? Could they truly stand against the might of the king's army?
There was no other choice.
"We'll be ready," Leon said, his voice hard with resolve. "We'll finish the walls, arm the villagers, and prepare for the worst. If the king's men come, we'll meet them head-on."
Gorak gave a nod of agreement, though there was a heaviness in his expression. "And what about Grig?"
Leon's eyes darkened. "I'll deal with Grig. He's not innocent in this, but if we're going to survive, I need to know I can trust him."
Gorak didn't argue. He knew as well as Leon did that trust was a luxury they couldn't afford to give lightly.
As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the village in shadow, Leon and Gorak stood in silence, the weight of the coming battle pressing down on them. They had made their choice. They would stand, they would fight, and they would defend Vekara with everything they had.
The king's forces would come.