Usually both parties in a marriage or mating would wear rings. I felt a Little left out.

“I also only want you and your Brothers," I told Damien firmly. If they were wearing rings, I wanted one too.

“We made you one," Christof said sheepishly. "It is not a slave band and you can take it off if you no longer wish to be our mate."

Damien took my left hand and slid the cool metal over my finger. The ring fit perfectly. It was etched with Damien's family symbol and each man‘s number.

I kissed each of them again in thanks. This was a very sweet gesture. In the middle of a war they'd been thinking of me.

The little ones watched us but they appeared slightly shell shocked. "Have they slept and eaten?" I asked Damien. "They don't look..."

I let the sentiment hang, but the men understood. The Little boys were stressed and they did not appear well. Life in the compound was based on pattern and repetition. Being trapped in the middle of a war and then transported a world away was too much, too quickly.

Damien took control and picked up his bag. The rest of the men did the same and the boys copied the men. Each boy had a small satchel of things. From what my family knew I understood it was a few things they'd grabbed before they were rescued from the compound.

“We will take our things back to our room," Damien said briskly.

“We have responsibilities today. There are Child Keepers we can leave them with until our job is completed. The little ones stay with us when we are not working. They are ours to protect.”

I Looked Longingly at Jonathan and wanted to be the one to take care of him, but that wasn't a good idea. The boys were not sure of me and needed to be Left somewhere they felt safe. The family mind settled and I knew we would slowly remind Jonathan, but it wouldn't happen this instant. At this moment he'd be better off with Child Keepers and the other children.

A low sound Like a horn cut through the air and everyone turned toward the center of the room. Men carried what were obviously the wrapped remains of our fallen men and women into the camp. We all stood still as the procession moved into the main area.

I watched the bodies pass and noted how different they all looked. The wrappings had obviously been hastily scavenged and were a variety of colors and fabrics. On the outside of each one was a family name and number.

It surprised me to see a family I knew carrying a body with their family symbol. The four men walked quietly with the remains of their Brother held proudly above them. Their grief was obvious, but I was shocked that they'd survived the loss.

“It is The Great Spirit," Damien murmured very softly.

“We are not alone when we have our friends and cousins. They are part of us and keep us strong. We are not alone on this world."

Men could survive losing family, they just had to have the protection of The Great Harmonious Spirit. I watched closely and noted many men carrying their deceased Brothers. They were not dying Like I would have expected. The men in the camp were made much more powerful by The Spirit.

I saw Gunth's five family members being carried in. The wrapped bodies were held proudly aloft. There was a charge that went through all of us as our fallen leaders went by. A sob caught in my throat and I started to tear. Gunth's family had been made up of great men and I would miss them.

My family was surprised at my reaction. Gunth was not dead in the simplistic way I thought of it. Gunth was part of The Great Harmonious Spirit now.

Gunth and his family had spent their Lives dedicated to the ways of The Great Harmonious Spirit. They'd taught countless men the meaning and importance of it. Once their bodies were consecrated back into the pool of Paterian fire they would finally be a physical part of it. Gunth had lost nothing and neither had we. His whole family was alive and well in all of us who followed The Spirit.

The men looked serene as they watched their fallen comrades go by. These men and women were not lost to us. They were merely in the place where there was no pain or fighting, only peace.

It was the Paterian equivalent of heaven and I had to smile. The concept brought closure to the beings here. I couldn't imagine how isolated the men must have felt on the compound when they were denied that. The Great Harmonious Spirit certainly gave them a sense of completeness.