Chapter 5

Sariana Yallimi's last view of her home country was through a hole in the cracked hull of a vessel bound for Steadfast, Tortall.

Sari awoke to the rumble of thunder and a flash of lightning. The small ship was being tossed about like a leaf in a gale. Water was poring through cracks in the hull. From the deck above came the sounds of battle and the screams of the dying. Confused and not entirely lucid, the began to stand when, with a crash, the body of a young sailor came crashing through the deck, his face distorted with pain and marred by innumerable wounds. As water began to pour through the gaping hole, Sari calmly, and without showing any emotion, stepped over the corps, cautiously making her way up the stairs. On the deck, a battle waged. Arrows came streaking out of the darkness towards the ship, their source an unknown factor in the inky black night. Unable to defend it's self against its invisible attackers; the ship was slowly beginning to sink into the welcoming, unforgiving waters of the river. Suddenly, an arrow cut past Sari, grazing her cheek and throwing her off balance. The ship heaved, and Sari found herself being thrown backward into the crushing embrace of the furious river.

Kel had come on the hunting party as a way to get away from the closeness of the fort, but, much to her surprise, she found herself feeling carefree for the first time in days. The men did not treat her as anything but another able body and among their rough, joking numbers she found herself able to relax. They were following the tracks of two deer, meandering along the edge of the Drell River. From around a curve in the river came a shout. One of the men had found something! As she rounded the curve, Kel saw that they were slinging the body of a girl over the back of one of the horses. One of the men told her that he had found the girl, half-drowned, washed up on the shore. Calling to the rest of the group, they abandoned the hunt and headed back up the river to Fort Steadfast.

Sari awoke. The first thing she was aware of was pain, followed quickly by the realization that she was lying in a bed in a long, low building filled with beds identical to the one she occupied. Her third was that their was a man standing at the foot of her bed gazing down at her with a slight smile gracing his lips. Sari leaped up, then nearly passed out with pain. Steadying her self, she groped for her stolen weapons, only to find, to her horror, that they were gone. At the sound of the man speaking she looked up.

"Don't bother looking for your daggers. I took them. Your lucky they didn't cut you to shreds when you took your little dip in the river." The man grinned at her as Sari looked around for a way out. As far as she could see, all the entrances were blocked. Appraising the man in front of her, she decided not to attack him. He looked harmless enough but there was something about his eyes and the way he stood that told her that he had seen his share of blood. " Welcome to New Hope." He smiled then added, "My name is Neal." He left, closing, and locking the only door behind him. Sari fell back onto her bed cursing and wincing as pain shot through her body.

Neal met Kel outside of the Infirmary. "She'll live." He told her.

"Did she tell you anything? Where she came from? What her name is" How she came to be here."

"Its too early. Besides, she looked more likely to attack me than to tell me about herself."

"She's definitely from the Yaminis, but how did she end up half-dead in the Drell?" Neal shrugged as Kel walked away, still muttering to herself.

A/N: R&R please! And thanks too all who have reviewed! I am trying to make the chapters a bit longer.