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Nereid ran over to where the other clerics were tending to the injured.

"Tirion. You tend to General Jerico, focus all of your attention on him. I'll take care of things over here, all right?" she asked, looking concerned for Jerico.

"I'm fine," the general said quietly, "Fire cleanses the infection, and it will stop the bleeding. It's more important that we get these bodies taken care of; I wish we had time to bury them, but a funeral pyre will have to do." He laid the body in the wagon and went for another, "Besides, medical supplies are best reserved for the soldiers, they have loved ones to go home to. I'm not pretty enough to be worried about scars, and I won't ask anyone to do anything I won't be doing along side of them. My treatment comes after the dead are at rest." The general hefted a dead calvary man, grunting under his weight as he started taking the body toward the wagon.

Returning for the next body, he came by at just the right moment to see Ryu trying to escape with the supplies. he crossed the tent in a few steps, snatching up the poultice. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" His purple eyes narrowed in anger, "Wait . . . I recognize you. You're the one, camping out on the fringes of the grounds, keeping to yourself. You're Ryu Haybusa, the loner, the myrmidon who stalks around swinging his sword wherever it suits him. General Felnor spoke in great measure about your discharge."

Jericho withdrew the minimum supplies Ryu would need to treat his injuries, then handed the rest of them to Nereid. "Here's the goods to patch you up, but that's the end of your freebies. If you expect to share the supplies, then share the work; the army isn't just about fighting the bad guys, it's about supporting your brothers and sisters, and about honoring those who died to support your freedoms." The general's hand rested lightly on the hilt of his sword, the enchanted blade that hung always at his side, "Get up and start helping, or get the hell out of my camp."

Jericho laughed, "What a self-righteous man. If it weren't for the army, you wouldn't have a home at all, or a family. Our enemies force people into the service, force them to die, to forego everything to serve their lords. You're here because if you weren't fighting alongside us, you'd have been sitting at home when their forces took our kingdom, took the women in your family to slave away, and forced the men to fight for them, or against them and die on the spot."

Jericho turned his back on the man, "You have supplies, you have food. Now start hauling dead bodies, or go home. See who welcomes you there." The general walked away, hauling another dead soldier toward the pyre.

"Well, fine then. I know when I am beaten." Ryu said, picking up a body disdainfully. He carried it over and threw it on the pyre. He looked away, he could not watch their bodies burn. He did the same with two more bodies, he didn't even want to touch them, but needed supplies. "So, you think that I am basically worthless to the effort here?" Ryu said coldly, picking up another body. He did not like the general, even when they were in the army togeather. They never really met each other, but he became a rival for the man, without realizing it, even if the general was higher ranked than him at the time. "or is it that you are still angry about my discarge? My grand "escape", so to speak?"

Jericho threw the body onto the wagon, "Worthless? No." He turned to stare down at Ryu, "I know you're not worthless. I've seen you fight, you're one of the better men here. As for your discharge, for stealing, whatever your motivations are I don't care." He stepped closer, lowering his voice so that only Ryu and Tirion could hear him, his violet eyes glowing beneath the shadow of his hat. "My problem with you, Ryu Haybusa, is that you're too busy trying to make everyone see that you're 'too strong' to need anyone's help, to help anyone who might need you. Your family, at this moment, is being forced to worship a nation of bastards and cruel monsters, just like the family of every other man and woman here. Everyone here has lost alot, everyone here is scared, and all they can do is turn their eyes inward and rely on those next to them to bolster their strength, to CARE about them."

He crossed his arms, "Sure, you fight well. But we need more than glorified sell swords right now; we need men and women who have the courage and conviction of character to help rebuild our army, and our nation. The soldiers need to believe that every body here is as devoted to the army and to the nation as they are, because at our darkest times we have only the light of our hope. You eat army food, you fight army foes, you use army supplies, but you turn your nose up at the soldiers and say 'I'm not part of the army, I'm just here to fight', like that makes you better than them. This war will not be won by steel or strength, but by conviction; you may be a damn fine swordsman; but I'd rather have a mediocre swordsman at my side who loves his country and is willing to be selfless enough to help his brother soldiers, than an excellent swordsman who thinks it's more important to stand alone and try to look 'mysterious, or cool, or enigmatic'."

The general sighed at Tirion, "Fine, but let's be quick about this, Miss Tirion. If people need to look up to me for some stupid reason, I want it to be because they think I'm a brother to them, not some superhero soldier. It's a waste of time anyway. He added quietly, "The real heroes of this war are the soldiers who fight and the clerics who keep them walking, not the scarred-up piss-poor strategist behind them." He allowed the cleric to lead him back to the tent; once inside, he sat on a stool, somewhat removed from the rest. He unbuttoned the heavy coat and extracted the damaged arm, keeping the jacket on his other side. The olive-tanned skin was a map of scars and runic tattoos, looking as if it had once been a tapestry of artwork, now mauled by an angry beast and forever ruined. From his calloused hands, to the parts of the arm where the splint mail under coat failed to cover, his arm showed signs of ancient damage, enough so that the limb might nearly have been lost.

Jericho kept his head down, using the hat to shield the now uncovered right side of his face. "No offense Miss Tirion, but let's be quick. My only real use to anyone is in motion, getting things done."

Tirion smiled inwardly at Jerico's words and happily lead him into the tent. She was shooked when he removed his coat; but showed no outward signs. She got over it in a split second; she'd seen much worse. She was a bit annoyed that he covered his face; she felt that she needed to treat people as induviduals. How could she do that with out a face? She didn't say anything about it. "Sir, I'm going to apply some healing magic to the wound, to get things rolling." She placed her hands over the injury and focased her energy. When she removed her hands, the skin was in a clean cut- no jagged edges. All bacteria had been killed. She then rubbed a clear on the skin she would use stich him up. "For the pain," she said. She threaded her needle and before piercing the skin said, "Tell me if it hurts too much or you feel something is wrong." She began to stich the wound closed. She made neat stiches, one at a time. When one was complete she cut the tread and began a new one. She did not condone the zig-zag method. "So, I see you added to your tattoos," she said referring to his handprint. Tirion finished stiching and put a gell upon her work, "This will harden into a flexible covering. I know you're not going to listen to me when I say don't do any heavy lifting or extraineously use this arm, so this will help the stiches stay together." She helped him into his coat and, being much shorter than him, peered under the brim of his hat and into his eyes, "Come to me for anything you might need."

"Well then, I..I am going out to hunt. Fresh food and water is important to the soldiers we still have. I think that taking care of them is more important than burning and carting off the dead, no offense. Before I go, do we need and herbs for healing, cleric? I can gather them while I am out." Ryu said with a sound of defeat in his voice. Arguing with this man was depressing him, he needed to get away. "If not, then I'll be on my way, after I get a short bow to shoot these things with. I don't think I can run as fast as a deer or any animals around here for that fact."