Anarchistic Knights-a serialadventure Chapter 25D-Tobal Challenges the Ox by Joe Bandel

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Chapter 25D-Tobal Challenges the Ox
"Tobal!" She threw her arms around him in a big hug. "I'm so glad you're here."

She led him over to the cot where Becca lay and he sank down on his knees by her bed. He reached out for her hands. She smiled weakly at him. Her face was horribly bruised and there was a look in her eyes he didn't recognize. He didn't know for sure if she really knew who he was. It was like she was looking through him. As he reached to move a strand of hair away from her eyes she flinched away from him.

"Becca, it's me Tobal!" He implored but her uncomprehending eyes remained the same. She was in shock. Part of her soul was gone somewhere else and he didn't know how to get it back. He stayed with her and Melanie stayed with her but she remained unreachable. In anguish he grabbed her hand and placed it over the scars on his face.

"Becca, it's me, remember me! My face. Feel the scars, it's me, remember!"

She slowly looked at him and tears began to form in her eyes.

"Tobal."

She softly traced the scars with her fingers. "I'm sorry." She whispered and her arm dropped back on the cot.

He pulled her hand toward him gripping it hard and trying to bring her nearer. Something broke inside his heart and he cried, violent spasms shaking his body.

"Becca, I love you, I love you. Come back to me."

Her fingers tightened in his. "I love you too." She whispered.

Two days passed and Becca seemed to improve but something was still wrong. The rape and beating was still fresh and her experience made her both fearful and angry. She wanted to withdraw at times into her own space and be alone and at times she pushed both Melanie and Tobal away. Other times she needed them close to her.

It was the afternoon on the third day that Llana showed up at sanctuary concerned about what had happened. When Tobal hadn't showed up for their meeting she had gotten worried and gone looking for him. She checked at the new medic's base and was told that he was here.

"You've got to get Crow." Tobal told her. "Crow told me that he would be needing to do another soul retrieval. He is the one that is meant to help her."

"Both Crow and I will help her together." She told him softly.

A few hours later both Crow and Llana had finished the soul retrieval and done spiritual healing work on Becca. She was sleeping peacefully. Crow, Llana, Melanie and he could not talk openly about things at sanctuary because newbies were there and clansmen were also showing up to get the newbies. Crow and Llana left and said they would talk with him later. Before they left Tobal warned them that the General's men were teleporting into areas without warning and attacking clansmen.

They stayed at Sanctuary as Becca gradually improved. Both Becca and Melanie were looking forward to their Journeyman initiation and joked about it. The bad food at sanctuary was finally too much and they decided to make a leisurely journey to the caverns.

It had been two weeks and was just before the new moon. Physically Becca was pretty much healed but there were still deep emotional scars that were raw.