"...I, too, would have done anything for my warriors."
Kendryx may be accustomed to protecting women, not fighting beside them, but in Chrissy he comes to recognize more than just a soldier, a leader who cares about her people... and those who follow her, and like her were betrayed by the powers that be who sent them to Thyre in the first place.
Chrissy was prepared to die rather than betray her people. On a humanitarian mission to rescue colonists, she is beyond shocked to discover (in the previous book) not only do they not need rescuing, the people who sent her both knew that, and had ulterior motives she can't respect or support.
This done in one book draws some of its strength, and charm, from Chrissy, and Kendryx each being the kind of leaders we, as readers, would want to follow. They struggle with hard choices, and Chrissy works hard to identify who is truly an enemy, and to only fight/harm those who are the enemy. There are several places in the book where a beautiful job is done differentiating individuals, or subsets/groups from a larger group it ward easy to react to based on assumptions or prejudice.
I hope Rae gets a story, even if only a novella, and I hope some of those who traveled across the dark sea with Kendryx and Chrissy get a story as well, as this is a rich, vibrant Universe I look forward to spending more time in.