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She had thought everyone was getting along better, but hunger and mourning could cut a divide between even the closest of people. And between people who had been at odds for over a decade? It didn’t take much effort to rip them back apart.

A call, sent farther with the assistance of an air-forged whistle, had signaled through the valley early that morning. The New Omis post had fallen. It had woken her early, Hadima too. They’d exchanged a long, concerned look before quietly getting up for the day. She’d confirmed her clan passed on the signal, letting it carry into the mountains to reach the Sky Valley and eventually be carried all the way up to Lake Vrasho. But there was nothing else for them to do about it. They all had their own survival to contend with.

Still, she liked the Second of New Omis and hoped he and his clan weathered this.

Walking out of the kitchen with some overly tough jerky and a mug of water, Iryana didn’t make it ten steps before another fight broke out.

Darsha was practically growling. “You were the last ones out here! You shouldn’t have let the fire go out!” She was nearly nose to nose with a lean soldier with bags under his eyes.

“How was I to know you weren’t coming back,” the soldier scoffed. “You all walk around like you’re so damn important. Fussing over everything. Why didn’t you keep the fire going?”

Darsha, frail as she looked, still had quite the fire in her eyes. “I had to go to sleep so I could wake up early and make your breakfast!” She jabbed at the bowl in the soldier’s hand.

“Then maybe I don’t need handouts from you.” He shoved the bowl into the hands of someone walking by, who glared at them both in annoyance.

“Fine! Starve yourself if you’re too proud to accept my food.” Darsha planted her hands on her hips.

Iryana just wanted to knock their heads together and scream. But she couldn’t treat her clan like that, no matter how immature they were being. They needed her on their team. At least, that’s what Iryana told herself as she considered how to deescalate the fight.

Hadima reached them before Iryana could. “We can figure this out! We can have people assigned to tend the fires at night. It’s not a big deal!” Her voice was soothing, but it grated on the soldier the wrong way.

“I’ve been risking my life to keep you people safe!” he snapped. “And yet everything is our fault!”

“Everyone’s just really tense right now,” Hadima tried to explain, but the soldier spun and stomped away.

Of course, Darsha didn’t let it go. “People could have frozen to death! Try taking some accountability!”

“Let’s not fight!” Hadima rushed out, holding her hands up between them. “We just need to make this work…”

Now two different soldiers stood up. “If you want to make this work, little healer, how about you have the food rations dealt out a little more fairly,” one of them snarled.

Blood immediately boiling, Iryana stepped between the soldiers and her clan members, staring at the man who had spoken so disrespectfully to her sister.

“Unless you want my sister to sew your mouth shut next time she has to patch you up, I would recommend you reconsider how you speak to her.”

“If you want to tell me what to do, how about you crawl into the general’s bed and ask nicely after you suck his—”

Iryana smacked the man so hard that it silenced the room. He looked down at her, anger and shock coloring his features. She just squared her shoulders and leveled her best try me stare at him.

The soldier seemed to decide it wasn’t worth it and sneered before walking away.

Iryana looked at the high ceiling and let out a slow, tense breath, because she couldn’t scream like she wanted to. She had just made things worse, she was sure.

Hadima squeezed her shoulder before heading back to her rounds.

When she had herself mostly under control again, Iryana pulled her distant cousin aside.

“Darsha, we need to do our part to keep the peace.”

“Are you on their side?” Darsha demanded. “I was absolutely in the right.”

“No, but that isn’t the point—”

“How can you ask us to just ignore their clear negligence?”

Iryana knew if she pushed this, it would piss off Darsha, and Iryana didn’t want that. So instead of trying to make Darsha understand, like she thought was necessary, Iryana said, “You’re right. But we’re guardians, Darsha. We can try to be gentler of heart.”

“I’ll try,” Darsha sighed. But Iryana didn’t think she would.