Contents
Chapter 4
Overview
The unit lands at devastated Espalle and marches their war-corvids through traumatized crowds, revealing the town’s ruin and the birds’ intimidating power. The narrator encounters her eldest brother Migaéd, a feckless sixt-general, who abuses rank to halt the column until she quietly defuses him. The episode underscores strained loyalties, the army’s desperation, and rising internal frictions with Vega.
Summary
The troop ship enters Espalle’s deep bay, passing a burned fortress and ancient cliff-carved faces. Alisenne identifies them as the Fishers of Espalle. The unit docks roughly and forms up amid gibbets, wounded soldiers, and desperate townsfolk, while Nouva breaks the nose of a harasser to clear their path.
The corvid column advances through the streets, the war-birds’ armor and spurs gleaming. Townspeople, gaunt and unwell, stare in wary hope. A small girl tries to touch Bellu; the narrator restrains the bird and the mother retrieves the child. The narrator silently prays to Sath for her brother Amiel’s safety as they move deeper into the scarred city.
They witness goblin-spite vandalism—ruined symmetry, felled trees, and debris—confirming the occupation’s cruelty. In a burned inn’s courtyard, the narrator spots her eldest brother, Migaéd dom Braga, drunk and gambling with the Scarlet Company. He invokes his sixt-general rank to halt the unit and invites her to drink and play cards, challenging Nouva’s authority.
A glimpse of their grandfather’s famed springwood shield stirs the narrator’s memories and foreboding. She quietly pleads with Migaéd to release them. Reading her seriousness, he relents with a jest, and Nouva marches the unit on. The narrator takes comfort from Bellu’s nearness while noting Vega Charnat’s festering resentment—over lost bird, class envy, and rivalry—signaling future conflict within the lanza.
Who Appears
- Narrator (daguera of the corvid unit)Leads Bellu and Dalgatha into Espalle; manages civilians; prays for Amiel; defuses Migaéd’s interference.
- Migaéd dom BragaEldest brother, drunken sixt-general; halts the unit to summon his sister, then relents after her plea.
- NouvaCommander who protects the column; breaks a harasser’s nose; resists Migaéd’s attempt to commandeer the unit.
- BelluWar-corvid; nearly approached by a child; steady under handler’s control during the march.
- DalgathaWar-corvid; restless on tether; part of the intimidating column through Espalle.
- AlisenneArcher and translator; explains the cliff-carved Fishers of Espalle; experienced volunteer.
- InocentaComrade who jokes about the birds; amused by Nouva’s handling of a pest.
- Vega CharnatResentful lanza-mate; envies narrator’s two birds and skill; potential internal threat.
- AmielYounger brother absent this chapter; the narrator worries and prays for his safety.