Li Xian collapsed just past midday.
She had been grinding fevergrass into paste when her vision blurred. She
swayed once, then fell to her knees, the mortar slipping from her hands and
shattering.
Sky shrieked and flapped around her head, calling, "Xian! Wake! Wake!"
Ren Xu and two soldiers rushed in. By the time Ren Xu caught her in his
arms, her face was pale, lips dry.
> "She hasn't eaten in two days," one medic whispered. "She's burning from
the inside out."
They laid her on her cot. Sky sat at her shoulder all night, silent and alert.
When Li Xian finally opened her eyes, the air smelled different — thick with
smoke and steel.
She sat up, groaning. "Where is everyone?"
A medic answered, "The rebels struck at dawn. A third of the camp was
already deployed… without you. Ren Xu went with them."
Panic didn't show on her face, but her fists clenched beneath the blanket.
> "Who's in charge here now?"
"General Yuwen is still recovering. Command is scattered."
She looked at Sky. "You're strong enough to fly?"
Sky chirped and nodded.
She tied a small scroll to his leg — a sealed letter for Crown Prince Zhao
Wen, who remained stationed at a nearby fortress.
> "Fly fast. Bring him here," she whispered.
Sky took off at once, vanishing into the sky.
Li Xian stood slowly, pain shooting through her side. She didn't reach for her
dagger or armor. Instead, she called the remaining medics to her.
> "Gather supplies. Bandages, salves, water skins. We go forward — not to
fight, but to save."
She dressed in her healer's robe, bloodstained but strong. She bound her
wound tightly and packed her medicine satchel.
The medical team assembled behind her: young, tired, but determined.
> "There are men bleeding without help. We go now. Before the screams fall
silent."
As they rode out, she looked once to the sky.
> "Bring him back, Sky. Bring him back in time."