The night was as dark as ink, and flames soared into the sky within the Imperial City.
The rebel forces retreated step by step. The Black Feather Guards and the Imperial Guard advanced like an iron wall, their blade-light and sword-shadows filling a battlefield littered with corpses. The Prince of the State Guard galloped at a desperate pace, followed closely by a ragged band of battered troops. Their armor was stained with blood, and their breathing came in heavy gasps.
"General! The Black Feather Guards are pressing us too hard; we can't make it to the palace!" shouted the deputy general, his shoulder still seeping blood from a bone-deep saber wound.
Chapter 128