"Alaric," Dhiren gasps as the dragon enters his tent.

"Yes, let me see her." Alaric demands and takes a look at his granddaughter.

After examining her and looking over the wound in her side that makes him purse his lips in a soundless whistle he stands up straight. "Feed her this. She won't be waking for some time. Her dragon side has put her into a healing sleep, but she will need the nourishment of this soup. I know you elves prefer less heavy meals and less meat, but she will need the meat to heal."

Dhiren takes the container thankfully. "You think that she will heal then?"

Alaric shakes his head, "I am no more certain than your healer. She did a fine job by the way." He notices the ragged whole in the mail shirt and shakes his head once more. "He must have been incredibly strong to put that hole in a mithril shirt. None of his blood made it into her wound did it?"

Dhiren shakes his head, "Not that we can tell. From what Kallen reconstructed Jessa managed to strike the killing stroke just as he hit her with that wound. Had the wound happened before Jessa would be dead, but with Jessa's strike he was sent backwards from her. I doubt much if any of his blood made it into her wounds."

There are many minor cuts, nothing worrisome. They had just needed to be cleaned up. They had already stopped bleeding by the time the healer had gotten around to them.

"Good, because his blood added to her wounds would mean her death at this time. She isn't strong enough to make the transition. It's likely that his blood would be too strong for the dragon blood she carries and so she would die an agonizing death."

"Could not you heal her wounds?"

Alaric shakes his head. "If your healer was unable to remove all the metal from her wound then it needs to heal naturally so that it will cause less damage when the wound would need to be reopened to clean it out once more."

"How will we know?" Dhiren asks sickened.

"You will know with out a doubt since she will be running a fever as an infection spreads throughout her body. Her body will try to eject the foreign object inside it and will have little luck doing so. If she were full dragon her body would remain in the healing sleep until the last of the metal was ejected from her body. For her, we must wait and see.

"Bring her to me in Castlerock as soon as you can, prince. Once she is able to make the journey I will make sure that she heals correctly. She will need to remain bed bound for some time. I will give her a reason to remain in that bed. Should she remain in Silva she will go crazy from boredom."

Dhiren lets his protest die without being voiced at Alaric's words. It's true, Jessa would soon go crazy with nothing to do but sit in bed and sleep. Alaric would be able to continue his lessons. He suspects that Frosnak will as well.

"I'll bring her once she is able to sit upright and tolerate traveling for more than a few hours." Dhiren assures Alaric.

"Good, now feed my granddaughter," Alaric wishes to watch Dhiren as he struggles feeding the unconscious female.

After getting a good chuckle he explains the best way to feed her while she's out like that. Dhiren holds back his glare and just does as Alaric suggests and finds it much easier and less messy for Jessa. With that Alaric leaves the struggling prince and returns home.

Once Jessa is fed and cleaned up, Dhiren is as exhausted as he believes Jessa to be. He falls asleep holding her hand. His head laying on Jessa's unhurt side.

Kallen spreads a blanket over him when he comes in to check on his daughter. He had already sent in messages to Sorid and the king telling them both what happened and Jessa's state and that of Dhiren as well, for the king.

He fully expects Dhiren to take Jessa to the palace and knows that Sorid will be waiting there as well. He knows that Sorid won't allow any one beside her to take care of Jessa.

He cringes at the thought of Sorid going against Jenna as they fight over who has the right to nurse Jessa to health and where.

He feels for the prince since he'll be the one in the sights of both Sorid and Jenna.

He thinks it far more likely that Dhiren will have Jessa kept at the palace and have Sorid move in to watch over her and Jenna used as a relief. That, at least is what Kallen hopes. Sorid needs to rest, the pregnancy is really pushing things with her, she is exhausted even without the weight and worry of Jessa's health.

As for Jenna, as senior healer she has other duties but Dhiren will demand the best care to be given to Jessa.

Sorsha makes her way into the tent and urges Kallen to rest. "I will remain awake and wake you both up and get Jenna should Jessa wake or worsen. You need sleep, please, general. Jessa will need her father when she wakes up. You know how much she cared for Nathan."

"Yes, you are right, but I don't think it will be me that she turns to for comfort." Only then does Kallen realize that Sorsha's eyes are red and swollen as if she's been crying. "You've never cared much for humans and barely think better of Jessa. Why have you been crying?"

"Jessa's friend, Nathan? Well, we celebrated the rites when he was in Silva last. I became pregnant. I was going to tell him next time he came through."

Kallen doesn't know whether to be angry or happy for Sorsha. Females aren't to go into battle situations if they are pregnant.

"Before you get upset, Kallen, it was just confirmed earlier today. By then it was too late for me to return to Silva. I was needed for the possible fight."

"I am sorry, Sorsha, that you lost the father of your child. What are you going to do?"

Sorsha gives out a bitter laugh. "Do? I have no idea. I spent my life training for the chance to be the prince's guard. It has been my dream. I have nothing else I wish to do. I never thought to be a mother at such a young age. And I always thought that when I did become a mother that I would be with the father of the child, not just a one time partner."

Kallen thinks about what she said, "Why did you perform the celebration with him?"

"He heard Lady Zira's music. He started dancing and although I didn't hear her music I danced matching his steps. He indicated that he would like to finish the dance and so we did." Sorsha gets a far off look to her eyes. "I've had many partners to the celebration, but none of the elven partners were as good as Nathan. Perhaps it was because he was favored of her and heard her music, I don't know, but I don't regret it." That last was said almost defiantly to Kallen.

"Good, you carrying his child might be what Jessa needs to help her when she finds out about Nathan dying."

Sorsha looks uncertainly at Kallen, "You think the princess will be pleased that I'm carrying his child?" Sorsha asks then bites her bottom lip.

"Yeah, I think that she will be pleased and likely be more than a little excited about it. You won't be alone, Sorsha. I can guarantee that much. Jessa and likely the prince will be helping you out."

Sorsha bows her head and can no longer hold back her tears. Her family had been killed in the same attack that killed the prince's fiancée. She had hated humans at first, then reluctantly started admiring Jessa even as she bullied her. Finally letting go of her bitterness and hatred she has learned to fully admire Jessa and started to emulate her to the best of her abilities.

Kallen takes this time to slip out of the tent and return to his tent to get some badly needed sleep.

There is no knowing just how long Jessa will be sleeping, but he knows that she won't wake before morning. He just hopes that she won't be getting worse either.