Ashleyien smiled at Dawn, “Good work. Let’s see what I can come up with.” She thought about all the prayers she knew off by heart, all five of them, and dismissed each as not appropriate for the situation. Suddenly, one that she had never heard before entered her mind. “This is the best I can do for now. I believe that it’s called ‘A Prayer in Desolation’, but I’ll substitute all the ‘I’ for ‘we’.” She closed her eyes and bowed her head.
“Lord, listen to our prayer,
turn your ear to our appeal.
You are faithful, you are just; give answer.
Do not call your servants to judgment
for no one is just in your sight.
The enemy pursues our souls;
he has crushed our life to the ground;
he has made us dwell in darkness
like the dead, long forgotten.
Therefore my spirit fails;
my heart is numb within me.
We remember the days that are past;
we ponder all your works.
We muse on what your hand has wrought
and to you We stretch out our hands.
Like a parched land our souls thirsts for you.
Lord, make haste and answer;
for our spirits fail within us.
Do not hide your face
lest we become like those in the grave.
In the morning let us know your love
for we put our trust in you.
Make us know the way we should walk;
to you we lift up our souls.
Rescue me, Lord, from my enemies;
we have fled to you for refuge.
Teach us to do your will
for you, O Lord, are our God.
Let your good spirit guide us
in ways that are level and smooth.
For your name’s sake, Lord, save our lives;
in you justice save our souls from distress.
In your love make an end of our foes;
destroy all those who oppose us
for we are your servants, O Lord.”
Ashleyien opened her eyes. There was a look of utter confusion on her face. “I have no idea where that came from. Sorry that it’s a bit long.” She shook her head and sat down on the floor, feeling a little tired but strangely at peace. “I hope that helps. For some strange reason I feel more confident that we can pull off this crazy scheme.”
The young Warrioress sat quietly, slightly shaken by the prayer that had suddenly came to her. ‘What’s going on?’ she wondered. ‘I do hope that it helps. Oh Lord, please let everyone get through this safely. Please make this rescue go off without a hitch.’
((The prayer is called A Prayer in Desolation – Psalm 143. I found it in a book my grandmother gave me. It seemed to fit the situation better than any of the others, even if it’s a little out of place. As for Ash’s sudden knowledge of it…who knows, maybe it was divine inspiration 
))
