Han saw the pattern before Yan did.
The beasts were not running at the soldiers. Each one turned toward the brightest ward mark, even when an open stretch of ridge lay between it and the light. The red inscriptions burned hardest on the eastern platform, where the repaired post had begun to hold. Two smaller beasts changed course toward it at the same time.
Yan saw the shift travel through the battle. One beast had been pressing at the center, claws scraping the spear points. It stopped, swung its long neck east, then crossed the slope toward the light. Another followed, stepping over fallen stones as if the soldiers in front of it were only posts in its way. The eastern mark brightened again. A pulse ran through the red lines, clear enough for Yan to see from the center.
Han watched the change and called the eastern squad captain to her side. “Seru, take the small ones to the stone shelf. We’ll draw the main body back here.”
Seru looked over the exposed platform. “The shelf is narrow. If the post goes out, there’s nowhere to fall back.”
“It will hold long enough for the archers to clear the approach. I’ll give the retreat signal before you’re cut off.”
