Darius's POV
Dawn was still far off when the assault finally collapsed into a jagged silence. The last strays slipped back into the trees; only groans, orders, and the iron-thick scent of blood remained. I knelt beside Sera, pulled off my cloak, and folded it under her shoulders so the damp earth wouldn’t leech the heat from her skin. I was naked, shaking from neither cold nor shock—only from the terror of how shallowly she breathed.
“Keep the pressure, Darius!” the healer barked as they slid inside, already unpacking their bag. “Here—on the long tear along her left side. Cassian, light!”
Cassian shoved a torch through the flap and moved back to the perimeter. The healer’s hands were quick: clean cloth, potion, needle, thread. The bleeding stopped under pressure—then started again.
“He
