When Kel made it back inside the camp, there was a messenger waiting for her.
"Congratulations, Kel," Daine said with a grim smile, "you did a good job. Goddess and Mithros bless the dead."
Kel nodded. "Thank you. What happened? I thought you said Raoul couldn't spare any men."
Daine shrugged. "I flew over when I saw them. Raoul only said he reassessed and realized that the Scanrans were probably just going straight through. He said he was going to have to deal with them at some point, it might as well be before they killed hundreds of his people and three of his best friends."
Kel grinned. "That sounds like Raoul. Come have something to eat. And tell Raoul I said thank you."
"Tell him yourself." She pointed over her shoulder to where Raoul was leading a stretcher with a now one-legged to the infirmary. "I'll speak to you later."
"Thanks." Kel said when she caught up with Raoul. He stood up, straight, having safely deposited the man in a bed.
"Not a problem," he said with a smile. "I'm sorry we weren't here sooner. I made a bad call."
Kel grinned. "You redeemed yourself, sir. Nealan," she said, turning away from Raoul, "only deal with the critical right now. There are two many men dying to worry about cleaning someone's wounds. We have supplies and other men who can help with that."
Neal nodded grimly, his face an ashen white. Kel tossed him her fresh canteen, which he drained. "Thanks," he croaked.
Kel smiled weakly. "Don't kill yourself with this, Neal. When you can't do any more, stop. You'll save more lives if you're still alive." Neal nodded, and Kel turned back to Raoul. "Keep an eye on him, will you?" Raoul nodded in response.
After about an hours work, Kel knew she had done all she could. The emergencies had been dealt with, and there was nothing really for her to do. Besides, she needed to rest. She had gotten about three hours of sleep the night before, with a lot of fighting before and after. When she finally got back to her room, though, she found Dom asleep on her bed.
"And what do you think you're doing?" She asked loudly, her hands on her hips.
Dom opened his eyes slowly. "I was waiting for you, what did you think I was doing."
Kel lay down beside him and fell into the warmth of his arms. Just as suddenly, she sat up.
"Was Perrin here when you got in?"
Dom frowned. "Are you kidding? I wouldn't sleep in here if she was in here."
Swearing, Kel sat up. "I have to go find her. She could be anywhere."
Dom sighed and sat up as well. "I'm coming. Give me a second to open my eyes, will you?"
Kel smiled as Dom slowly pushed himself off her bed. No one she asked had seen Perrin.
"I saw her," Eurgain said when Kel and Dom approached her. "She was in the infirmary."
"What happened to her?" Kel demanded.
Eurgain shrugged. "Nothing."
Sighing angrily again, Kel went directly to the infirmary. There, along with Neal and the other healers and the women and men who were not injured, was Perrin. She was holding a woman's hand as a healer stitched a gash on her side. Kel smiled. "Maybe she will fit in," she said to Dom, watching Perrin as she wiped the woman's brow, as instructed by the healer. "Let's go to your room," Kel said. "Who knows how long Perrin will be."
Both she and Dom collapsed onto his bed before they could say another word to each other, not even bothering to take their boots off.
Kel woke to the sound of the dinner bell. She knew she had only slept four or five hours, and she could feel the fighting in her muscles. She was sore all over. "Dom," she whispered, shaking him lightly, "wake up."
He groaned. "Why?"
Kel sighed and put her head down on his shoulder. "Because I have to make an appearance. Probably a speech. We did just lose a lot of people, you know."
Dom groaned again. "Fine. But why do I have to get up?"
Kel laughed. "Come on, sergeant, get up. That's an order."
Grudgingly, Dom sat up. He kissed her, awake finally. "You did an amazing job, Lady Knight. You should be proud."
Kel smiled. "I couldn't have done it without everyone else."
"There you go, a wonderful speech, wrapped up into two sentences." He kissed her again. "But they couldn't have done it without you."
Kel relished in the warmth of his arms for a moment, then knew she had to get to the dining hall. Besides, she hadn't eaten since the night before. She needed dinner.
She made a speech after the meal, as she had known she would need to. She found out from Neal that the mortality rate was very low. New Hope lost about ten men and women who had been hit with arrows. Raoul had lost a few men, about twenty in total, but he began with nearly two hundred. He had told her that when his men made it around the camp, the refugees had already killed almost half the men. There were not even two hundred men left when he got there. She knew every man had mattered.
"Today was a long day for New Hope," she began. "And as much as we all need to sleep and to mourn for those we have lost, we also must celebrate. Every man, woman, and child had a part to play, and every one played it brilliantly. It is because of the skill and determination of all of you, not me, that I am able to stand here and be the one to speak to you all today. Congratulations, and may we never have to test your skills again."
There was a scattering of applause. Kel could tell that while the refugees wanted to celebrate, they also wanted to grieve their dead. Kel understood that. She closed her speech and sat back down in her seat to finish her meal.
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well, it only took me three months to do it, but here is a new chapter! Hurray!
Mage Light: I'm glad you enjoy it!
Wake-Robin: you're damn right it's been a while!
FanFictionFantom: Treachery and ambition are good, too. I sort of have that in one of my other stories, though I'm not very good at it, so it didn't last very long.
Atlanta Enchanted: I do love Raoul. Hooray indeed.
Kings Lioness: squeaking? That's… interesting. Just kidding, everyone always makes fun of me because I squeak like nothing else.
Chaos Queen2.0: Of course! And I'm glad you like it.
Dragonseeker55: thanks!
Vimrcds: Yay, I love compliments like that!
Jtaandlca: why can't you give me advice before then? And you make a good point, I should have something with him in it again…
Dancer4eva: thanks! But it's not over yet…
"The fingernails grow after death, and before birth. The toenails, on the other hand, never grow." "You mean the toenails on the other foot never grow."
-unolimbo