“Yeah, it went pretty well,” he said softly.
There were dark bags under his eyes that upset her, but she didn’t comment on those. Alchan would get a piece of her mind later, but she would leave it until the mission was over. Rain was a young male who needed rest to continue healing his wings, which were progressing slower than she liked. It didn’t help they had to continuously cut the edges of the holes and slowly sew them closed every couple of weeks. They were in a war group, and that probably slowed it down further.
“Have you seen my father?”
“He’s fine. Barely a scratch on him, don’t worry. I checked him myself.” She dared to ask the question plaguing her. “When do you think you’ll be airborne again?”
“I should have been after the last procedure with Leshaun and the healer this week, but with everything going on, Alchan and I decided it would be best to wait for this mission to be over before continuing the process. At this rate, I should be flying a little again by winter.” He shrugged. “We haven’t needed our wings. That was the reason we thought it safe to wait. There’s no reason to risk infection on the road. I can wait to get back to base like so many others with wing injuries.”
She bit back a growl. “I’m glad you know where you are in the healing. Keep me posted, please.”
“Can do, big sister.” He smiled wearily. “Thanks for the information on my father. I’ll find him later. I’ve got to get clean water from the stream and—”
“Go,” she ordered, waving him along. He jogged off, leaving her alone in the camp. Even with all the warriors wandering around, tending small injuries from the day’s events, she was alone. She stood out from the rest, her position and her past keeping her separate, as it always did.
“Um…Champion?” a male called quietly from behind her. She turned to see the young male holding a bandaged arm, but it didn’t seem serious.
“What can I help you with?” she asked, eyeing him with curiosity. She didn’t know his name, and that wasn’t unusual. She knew very few names of the warriors in camp. There were several dozen of them and only one of her.
“Do you know if we’ll be breaking down camp tonight to travel, or tomorrow morning?”
“I don’t know, actually. His Majesty is with some of the rescued hostages right now. I’m sure once he’s done debriefing them, he’ll send word.”
The young warrior nodded and scurried away before she could ask if there was anything else he needed, like a hand with his gear. An injured arm slowed a good warrior down.
“Did he just run away from you?” Mat asked, stepping up to her.
She shrugged indifferently, not betraying the deep sadness she felt. “Yeah, that keeps happening. Honestly, I think our people are more scared of me than they are of Alchan.”
“Possibly. Come on, let’s get something to eat and celebrate how perfectly this mission went.”
“Do you know when we’re packing up to leave?”
“We march out tomorrow morning,” he answered. “Nevyn and Varon took the lead on that when they got back to camp. Most people will be packing non-essentials all night before camp is officially broken down.”
“Good.” Mave crossed her arms and took in the camp around her. Another day, another mission, another blood splattered set of armor, and more Elvasi left dead in their wake. “How many did we free over the last three weeks?”
“Two hundred. Those big farms have a lot of Andinna ready to run if given the opportunity. It was a good couple of hits.” Mat wrapped an arm around her waist. “But it’s only step one.”
“It’s a damn good step.” She smiled to herself as she watched warriors wander around the camp, packing away things they wouldn’t need for one more night of camping. “Now, let’s help them so we can get home. Maybe tonight Leshaun and Alchan will have word from Bryn.”
“Let’s hope,” Mat agreed, kissing her temple.
It took most of the evening, but eventually, Mave felt like she had done enough and found a seat, listening to warriors whoop and holler at their victorious day. The energy of the camp was high, even if they were tired and hungry.
“Are you going to party?” Zayden asked as he sat next to her. “Sen and the boys have been asking for you to join them in celebrating. They’ve convinced Alchan to let them stay up late tonight.”
“I take it you found Rain, and he passed along this news?” She lifted an eyebrow as Matesh sat down on her other side.
“You’re right—”
Suddenly, drums began playing, a loud beating rhythm from the other side of the camp. A second set quickly joined in, then a third.
“Ah, the females are having a good time,” Mat said lightly, elbowing her. “Should teach you the drums.”
“Only if you convince Bryn to dance for me,” she reminded him. That was their deal. Until then, she knew how to play the flute and enjoyed it.
“Kind of hard to convince him since he’s not here,” Mat retorted. “But I’ll get back on him once we see him again.”
“There she is!” Sen yelled over the ruckus going on around the camp. She laughed as the mutt ran over and wrapped his arms around her. “I’ve heard one of your men is off on some important mission. Does that mean there’s an opening for a salty sailor who needs some love?”
“That means I miss him, but salty sailors who are going to leave for months on end are not my type,” she answered, hugging him back. “But it’s really good to see you. In the rush of that night, I didn’t even have a chance to consider how to save any of you. None of us did, but I’m glad we have you now.”
“Ah, well, it’s fine,” Sen said, pulling back a little. His hands held her shoulders as he looked her over again.
“How bad is it, really?” she demanded softly.
“Lost half my crew in the water that night. Lost a few others after we were captured. Poor dwarves lost Bodie, the patriarch of their branch. The twins and their mother are still alive.”
“Damn. I’m sorry—”
“No need to apologize. Alchan’s done that enough, and even so, we knew what we were signing up for. I knew who I supported and the possibilities.” Sen patted her cheek. “You look good.”
“You look like shit. Have you eaten?” She smiled as he coughed at her bluntness. “Really, sit down and eat something. Mat, Zayden, do we have anything?”
“I can find someone with some wild stew going. I’ll be back,” Zayden offered and jumped up to find them something to eat.
“So, this rebellion, huh?” Sen sat in the place Zayden left open. Mave took her seat back, leaning into Matesh as the Elvasi-human mutt spoke. “Seriously?”
“Mostly we’ve been setting up in the Spine and preparing for the coming winter,” she explained. “Alchan probably said all of this.”
“No, I didn’t give him a chance. Told him all about what me and the boys went through, then left him to figure it all out. Anyway, you’ll tell me more than he ever will.”
“Yeah.” She chuckled. “So, we’ve been hiding out on the northern edge of the Dragon Spine, making a home. We’ve been on the road for weeks now, preparing for this. We freed around two hundred Andinna east of here, in an effort to distract everyone from our real objective—getting you back. It worked, and here we are.”