There was no song of victory that night. No celebration. Once the adrenaline of battle had faded, they faced the terrible facts. The ground was littered with the dead. The walls were shattered. The roads were stained with blood. The smell of burnt niter, smoke, iron, and the first stages of decay hung over the city. The cries of the wounded were a chorus that echoed into the sky. There were few who were unharmed from the battle.

Anyone and everyone who could help came forth, and Edinmire united to clean up the aftermath of the nearly successful siege. Pain was a constant for Keiren. No matter where he looked, he saw another wounded person, another fallen soldier, another broken house. At least the civilians were evacuated. If they hadn't left, there would be so many more dead. Humans, Keidrans, and Basitins worked side by side, wolves next to humans, foxes beside basitins. The dead were moved outside of the city, where there were mass graves, for the dead were many.

The watchful night came, and the city fell into a stupor. Quiet cries from those who lost everything, grief over the fallen, and the groans of those still wounded were the only sounds. No one moved unless they had to, for the shock was immense. Keiren did not sleep well that night.

When dawn came, he pardoned himself from the city, and went with Trace up to the estate. As they approached, the door flew open, and Flora rushed out with Maeve right behind. Their eyes were red with tears, their fur stained where they fell. "We were so worried!" Flora cried as she held Trace. "I was… I though you…" she mumbled as she tucked her head into him.

"We're alright." His voice was soft and clear. "Everything is going to be alright."

"Uncle Kei! Did you make 'em run away?" Maeve said, leaping up onto him.

"We sure did, kiddo." He was sore, but that all washed away when he saw her smile. "They are still cleaning up the city, so you're going to have to stay here for a while. But… I did bring you this." From within his robe, he pulled out a pad of paper and a few pencils that he had on his desk. "I know you've probably got a lot to do already, but-" He was cut off as Maeve threw her arms around him, beaming. He hugged her back, tears rolling down his face.

Keiren didn't stick around, going back to Edinmire, but Trace didn't. He followed Flora inside, but pulled her to the side, away from prying ears. "How are you?" he asked, looking down to her belly. "Anything?"

Her hand went to to where his gaze was, and she sighed. "I can't feel anything yet, but it's only been two weeks. We have to give it time."

"I know. But as soon as you know, please don't keep it a secret like last time."

"I promise."

…

"So much death." Keith said, taking a break. It was almost noon, and the piles of the dead were immense. Everyone who went there felt an overwhelming sense of dread, as if the bodies would bring about their demise.

"It's a shame, really." Zen leaned on the gateway next to him. "There's hundreds of Keidrans in that pile, and they won't get their proper funerary rites."

"To do that would take months." Keith looked over to the pile. "This is at least better than letting them all rot in the open. Once they are covered, it will become a mass grave for everyone to see when they enter the city." The two backed up as a cart full of metal rolled past. They were stripping the fallen of their armor and weapons, before taking them to the Basitins to be melted down and reused.

"I know that. It just… hurts. There's going to be a lot of families who won't know what happened, who won't have closure."

"They will. If they come, they will know that their loved ones died in battle, defending the innocent against all odds."

"That doesn't make it hurt any less." The two were quiet for a moment, but… "Natani. How is she?"

"Frustrated that she got hurt in the first place, but she'll live."

"Good. I saw her get hurt, and I've been wishing that we still had the link, just so I could check on her."

"You would bind yourself to her again, knowing the trouble it caused?"

"In a heartbeat. Tell me you wouldn't do the same if you were able to."

Keith was quiet. "It… has crossed my mind. Just to know she's safe, just to know she's alive, that she's alright. But I can't, so I have never dwelt on it." An empty cart rolled past them, pushed by Mike and Sythe, who had come down to help clean the city. Kathrine and Maren were helping the wounded, and Evals was helping to coordinate the cleanup. Keith sighed. "I should get back to work. Go check on Natani for me, will ya?"

…

Richard stood on top of the northern gate, leaning heavily on the battlements. His side hurt from where a spear had caught him, his left arm was in a cast from a nasty sword slice, and his head pounded from where a helmet had flown off of someone and hit him. The battle was won, but he was still alone. Every day, he thought about packing up and going north. Leaving everyone behind to find her. But he was needed here. "Brooding again, master Richard?" Lynn asked, walking slowly up the stairs.

"I'm not… yeah. Yeah, I am."

"There's no shame in hiding it." The old goat hadn't been part of the battle directly, but had helped to coordinate the defenses from behind the front lines. "Even a blind man could see that you have feelings for young Silverlock. She will be back, you'll see."

"How can you be so sure? You speak like you know what's going on. Did you give her something that lets you see where they are?"

"A sound guess, but no. I found out shortly after you did."

"Then how do you know she's going to come back?"

"Because I have hope." Richard stared at him.

"Hope?"

"Yes. Hope. I have found that in the darkest times, there is always light to be found in hope. You can always find it, you can always have it. All you need is the courage to see it. Hope is a powerful tool, young master Richard. A wise man who has no hope will fall against anything that comes his way, but a fool who has hope will be strong, and endure everything that batters against them. So, how do I know she will be back? Because I have hope she will."