None Alone Five

5.

Cameron entered my tent. "Are you in there?"

"Present," I said. I stuck my hand out of my place behind the folding screen.

I heard her footsteps, her voice, closer. "You're still shaking." She touched my hand. I withdrew. "Is there something you want to talk about?"

"No, I'm fine. Or I'm going to be."

Cameron rapped on the wooden frame. "Okay, well, this regiment's got an assignment."

The last one was about a month ago. Between there's minor assignments for each of us. But they're all important.

 I emerged from the dressing area. "Already?" Cameron looked as baffled as I felt - I was still in sleeping garments. Still, I couldn't let that bother me. "Where? When?"

"He said it wasn't far. You should get dressed now. He's waiting."

"Like, now?"

"Leadership's already moving out."

"Shoot." And I internally kicked myself. Because of course I should watch myself and I should know better. How many times could I watch someone else take the blame without sickening myself. But if it was Him, He would already expect that. He already knew me, even before I met Him. Or knew He existed. Or knew anything, for that matter.

"I'll wait for you outside. That is, if you don't mind."

"I don't want to make you late."

Her eyes plainly said, "Go put something decent on." I didn't have to know her for a month to see that, but it might have helped in deciphering her moods. And amazingly, it wasn't anger, yet.

As Cameron stood outside the entrance, I put on the durable outdoor clothes. They are just like the sleeping garments, but with dust and less threadcount.  Then the belt snapped on and I felt my insides twist. It wasn't tight but the virtue of it was still...painful. And then the breastplate, His breastplate, the one He'd given me for whatever reason, slipped on over my shoulders and got secure. It was strong exactly where it needed to be: everywhere. Finally, I got around to finding both shoemates hidden around my bedding. One had ended up under my pillow. No idea how that happened. Strange to think that I would put a shoe under my pillow, even if it was soft and hefty enough to make the nightmares go away and keep me asleep. but I'd only slain them with a blade.

"Cam, where's my sword?" No answer returned from outside the tent. I found her fifteen paces away from my tentflap, drinking water from a ladle.

She glanced up. "With mine."

"And where is that?"

She took another sip before answering. "Didn't He tell you?"

"Tell me what?"

Both her eyebrows raised. "And you're sure you're alright. Yes, He told you, I heard Him tell you. Come on, we've got to catch up."

"Wait, aren't we forgetting something?" My hands illustrated the half-dressed ensemble of my battlewear.

"It's all ahead of us. We've got to keep close." She got me running, even through my scowling, and we went after the receding warrior line on the horizon.

When we were getting closer they disappeared. "Where did they go?"

"The place. Let's go." Cameron bounded into a shaft of late morning cutting into my eyes.

The problem was that she didn't reappear.

I caught myself muttering. And I knew I was being tested. Then my heart beat prayerfully behind my breastplate. And an unidentified inner prompting said, "Go." And I took a breath and leaped forward.

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