“How rude of me,” she said, closing her eyes again.
“How do you feel?” I asked.
“Mm, tired,” was all she said.
I reached for her hand and gave it a squeeze. “You had me worried. You went under hard and haven’t moved in hours.”
Her eyes slitted open. “Did I drool?”
I chuckled at her teasing question. “Oh absolutely. Snored a few times too.”
She rolled her eyes, then gently shoved my chest. I caught her hand with mine and pressed it over my heart.
“Help me up,” she said.
“Always.” I leveraged her into a sitting position and waited while she rested her head on my shoulder for a moment. Then I helped her stand with my palm placed against the small of her back.
Eliza approached the two of us. I instinctively stiffened, and her eyes darted to me. “Hey, girl. Rough night, eh?”
Lily hummed a response, then glanced between the two of us and frowned. “What’s up? You two seem all bad-moody.”
“Nothing,” I assured her. “We were just discussing the terms of the little arrangement you two came up with.”
Lily had the grace to look guilty, but eventually she just shrugged it off. “Ah, well. Guess we couldn’t keep that a secret forever.”
“We’ll discuss it later,” I muttered.
“Can’t wait,” she drawled.
She took a step, then swayed, her knees kicking out from under her. I caught her before she fell, and steadied her weight, my brow wrinkling as I stared at her. She’d said she was still tired even after many hours of sleep. Was that another PTSD thing?
“Lily?” I asked.
She gripped my other arm and shook her head.
Her colour looked better, and she wasn’t sweaty, so that was a marked improvement. But the bags under her eyes and the weakness in her grip was alarming.
Once Lily regained her balance, she gestured at her army. “Can you get everyone ready to go? I just need to freshen up a bit before we head out.” With her next step, she released my arm, and thankfully, walked on steadier legs toward her pack.
I left her to her hygiene care, then faced the army, gaining their attention with a quick shout.
“Time to prove yourself useful!” I called out. “And to show us all why Lily brought you back! Today, we take an outpost. There’s blood to spill and resources to steal! Then tonight, we celebrate!”
A cheer shot up from the entire army, and Eliza practically jolted out of her skin.
I laughed at her bewildered expression. “Hellspawn love a good fight. Raiding an outpost is one of their favourite pastimes.”
A group started stomping their feet to an imaginary beat. It didn’t take long for it to roll through the army. Even less time for the ranks to start thrusting their fists in the air and chanting their excitement.
Without any instruction, they formed into their separate battalions, and their leaders began barking out orders. They might have been dead for ten years, but it seemed they hadn’t forgotten how to operate.
After a few minutes, Lily passed by me, dressed and armed, and cut through the crowd, her pace stable now. She traded nods with the soldiers she passed, patted a few on the shoulders, smiled at the battalion leaders.
I quickly armed myself, then followed after her, ready to take my place at her side at the front of the horde. Once the last row of soldiers fell into place, she grabbed Inferno’s Kiss, thrust it to the sky, and released a roar that would make any hellspawn proud.
Anticipation hummed in the air as her army cheered back.
Without a word, she pointed her blade toward the outpost and began to march.
