Read Bloodletting Part 1: The Affinities Cycle Book 1 Online
Authors: Mark Ryan
Bloodletting Part 1: The Affinities Cycle Book 1 (9 page)
Chapter 20
Tetra Bicks
Damn fool boy.”
Tetra lurched awake, flailing an arm for balance. Doctor Alma leaned over him, scowling. A young woman stood nearby, looking pensive. At Alma’s wave, she ducked out through the door, leaving him alone with the healer.
Tetra glanced around. Back in the infirmary. Torchlight flickered in from the windows, tantalizing him, mocking his failure. They must’ve hauled him there themselves after he collapsed. But how did they …
His gaze fell onto the hound sitting by the bed. Its tongue lolled. With a quiet bark it stood and came forward to lick his hand. He pulled away, not wanting sympathy from anyone, much less a dog, right then. Especially a dog that had given him away.
Alma finished pulling the sheet back over his lower body. He straightened and laid a hand on the hound’s head. “If Kafa here hadn’t led me to you, you might’ve frozen out there overnight. Even so, you just made your back worse, despite my catching you and immediately healing the new damage.”
Tetra frowned. “You always set guard dogs on your patients?”
“He’s not a guard dog, just a loyal pet. And he’s obviously smarter than you, lad. What were you thinking?”
Tetra patted one of his dead legs. “Just wanted to go for a walk.” It wasn’t easy, feigning nonchalance in the emotional and physical maelstrom he was in, but he refused to give ground. Refused to acknowledge what the doctor had said. He
would
walk again.
The healer shook his head. “Not even a day aware of your surroundings, and already you’re trying to get yourself killed again. Pretty sure I checked your skull for any cracks, but maybe I overlooked something.”
“I’m not stupid or insane,” Tetra said, firming his back to make it stop twitching. “I just know I can do this. I need time. I need practice.”
Alma sighed and plopped into the nearby chair. “Look, lad, there’s hope and then there’s hoping for the impossible. You already survived what should’ve been one impossible injury—”
“Then why can’t I beat another?” Tetra choked on the words, struggling to maintain his façade. Tears threatened to burst forth.
“Aspects give me patience.” Alma scrubbed his forehead. “Are you a Geist? Hm?”
“No, but my sister is.” He felt for the small knot of her presence in the back of his mind. She was there. “I’ve seen her deal with all sorts of injuries and illnesses, and I know the body can heal itself over time even without magic.”
“Not the same thing,” Alma snapped. “Just because you’ve felt her affinity at work doesn’t mean you have any idea of its limits or those of the body. Nor would I believe she has the lifetime of experience I do in treating wounds, nor in dealing with corpses. I’ve done what I can for your wounds, and I’d rather not see you become a corpse after expending that effort.”
Tetra made a fist. “Are you me?”
The healer frowned. “What? No, what’re you talking about?”
“Just because you’ve seen limits in others doesn’t mean they apply to me.”
Alma leaned over, forearms on his knees. He blew out a long breath. “I’ve been looking over you for weeks now, do you realize? Ever since Sergeant Reynolds brought you in, practically dead. He’s the one who rescued you, did you know?”
Tetra stared quizzically at the old man. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“You should be grateful. Your life was saved. Others have placed great effort into making sure you live. And gratitude means giving your elders a measure of respect and authority.”
“So what does this Reynolds think about my chances of walking again, then? Does he think I should be bedridden the rest of my days?” Tetra knew he was being ungrateful, and mean. It didn’t stop him though. Fear about the loss of his legs far outweighed his upbringing’s demands of civility.
Alma’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not in the habit of asking soldiers their opinions on medical matters. He trusted me with your life, and so I’m asking you to trust my insights. Your condition is still incredibly fragile. Strain it too much now, and you could lose control of your arms as well. Or worse.”
“I know what’s worse,” Tetra said, clenching his jaw. “Giving up. Surrendering. Letting my sister and the others be oroc slaves.”
Sorrow deepened the lines on the healer’s face. “I’m sorry, Tetra, but there’s no evidence your sister or any others from your village are still alive.”
“I know she is, at least.”
“How?”
Tetra licked his lips, trying to think of how he could explain the bond twins had, his ability to sense her and even tap into her affinity across the distance between them. Would the healer believe him or just see it as another sign of his being knocked a little crazy? “I just do. And I have to find a way to rescue her.”
“Even if she lives, you’re no good to her like this,” Alma said. “And you will be even worse for her if you kill yourself dragging yourself around the castle.”
“Then let me work to get better!”
Alma stood and thrust a finger at him. “The only way you’ll get better is to rest, eat, and nothing more. That’s an order.”
Tetra turned his face away, knowing he sulked, but unable to stop. “You can’t stop me from trying.”
That raised the healer’s brow. “Can’t I? Hear me on this, Tetra Bicks. If I catch you trying another stunt like tonight, I’ll tie you to the bed, set Kafa on a real watch, and post guards outside the infirmary. I have Lord Drayston’s authority on such matters, and I doubt he’d appreciate it if I let you die because of your own foolishness.”
Tetra started to say what he thought of Lord Drayston. The man who’d let the orocs slaughter the village without resistance. Who was supposed to have protected those under his rule. He caught his tongue, recognizing the foolishness for what it was. Insulting the healer’s master wouldn’t make it any likelier for him to get permission to continue training. On top of that, it wasn’t the Lord’s fault. That was just anger ruling Tetra’s mind.
Looking relieved at the lack of protest, Alma checked him over once more, muttering about children and silly notions. “I am an old man, Tetra. I am going to sleep. Do the same. You need to heal.” He left the room, taking the lamp with him. Starlight and flickering torchlight from the courtyard filtered in through the window, softly illuminating the darkness. Kafa snuck a last lick of Tetra’s hand before following.
Left alone in the dark, Tetra focused on his legs. He was exhausted, true, but wasn’t ready to give in and sleep. He prodded, pinched, and slapped them all over, desperate to regain any sensation, any control. If they wanted to be stubborn and refuse to obey him, then he just needed to be more stubborn and disregard what his would be overseer ordered. H would walk again.
The trick now lay in figuring out how to accomplish this without the healer turning him into a prisoner of the infirmary.
***
Chapter 21
Halli Bicks
Halli huddled in a corner of the cage, arms wrapped around her knees as she fought to keep from shivering. More than a month had gone by since their capture, and she still couldn’t make any sense of their situation or surroundings. The weather continued to cool, signaling the encroaching winter. While the thick forest shielded them from the brunt of the chilly weather, the vines and tree roots of the cage still let in every brisk breeze.
The girls had moved their makeshifts bed closer together, and at night they slept huddled together. For now it was working, keeping them alive, but Halli was not sure they would resist the elements much longer.
Kat remained unconscious, barely breathing, no matter how much Halli plied her affinity. The other girls could use their affinities to help the sick girl drink and swallow their daily gruel, but nothing changed her condition. Halli still felt her spirit living in the body though, and refused to give up. It was as though some other force was lending her strength, firming her will.
While Halli felt stronger than ever, the other girls were showing signs of growing illness—from uncontrollable coughs, to fevers, to skin discolorations. With the strength of her affinity, Halli should’ve been able to keep them all well, but more of them slipped into sickness each day. How could she be failing them like this? The obvious answer was that the orocs were underfeeding them. Without the strength and sustenance to do more than sit around all day, using an affinity was difficult. Just like any other exercise, it required energy.
Healing took a toll on both the Geist and patient, drawing from the body’s stores. The orocs fed the prisoners, but just enough to keep them alive. But Halli was strong. Beyond strong. Growing up she had heard the whispering that she might grow up to be an Archmage, an opportunity stolen from her brother with his childhood accident. Even the low food rations shouldn’t keep her magic this weak. It was as though a layer of ice separated her from her affinity.
She’d fallen into the habit of studying their captors. Her natural curiosity distracted her as she puzzled out what went on around them. Distraction was not all she sought though. If there was hope of escape, or even of survival, it lay with understanding their situation.
Their cage sat near the middle of the settlement, with massive trees rearing all around and a leafy canopy blocking out most of the sunlight, casting the area into a golden-green hue. Halli knew there were six other cages, though they were not in her line of sight. A nearby ridge held a series of caves, which the orocs used for storage and communal gatherings. Other than that, they lived in the trees themselves, with vines and branches woven into sturdy platforms connected by ropey bridges and swings.
Halli didn’t fully understand why the orocs lived up there. With their strong earth affinities, using magic to craft homes from the earth should be a simple task. The taboo on fire she understood, at least. If she lived in a tree, she’d be wary of fire as well.
Several hundred orocs lived within the settlement. At first, she found it difficult to distinguish between male and female, or even the young and old. Much of the tribe distinguished itself more by their roles, with warrior-hunters coming and going almost every day, while artisans and crafters remained within the village. After a while, Halli figured out that the vines, leaves, and mosses covering their bodies weren’t actually part of them. Instead, they carefully cultivated these living adornments, which acted as the equivalent of human clothing.
She also began to note how those she determined to be female wore far more of these foliage decorations, including leafy headdresses over otherwise bald scalps. Once she figured that out, she counted more female members of the tribe than male. Yet they shared the same roles as the males, with many women going on hunts, constructing new shelters, or training their young in combat.
The orocs possessed powerful affinities, most of them connected with the earth. This let them mold tree and stone and dirt to their will, using the environment like a natural tool as they forged a life from the forest. Somehow they were able to use Geist to mold and move plants as well. That was well beyond anything Halli had ever learned, but she studied intently as the days and weeks went by.
Another shiver ran down her back, returning her focus to the present. She didn’t know if studying their captors would actually help anything, but she was tired of being ignorant and feeling helpless. If any scrap of knowledge she gleaned could better their situation, then she’d keep her eyes open and mind active.
One of the girls started coughing in her sleep. Halli looked over as the coughs turned to hacking, until the girl sounded close to choking. It sounded like there was something wet in her lungs. The other girls drew back, expressions terrified.
Halli hurried over and laid her hands on the choking girl. When she started to buck and writhe, Halli spoke quietly to the rest, “Hold her down! I need her still.” She wanted to scream, to yell, but she was afraid of attracting the attentions of their captors.
Girls huddled around, as many as could fit, helping to keep the girl pinned. The rest got up and moved to the edges of the cage, trying to shield Halli from the rest of the camp. Halli probed through her body and spirit, searching for the problem. She had a light fever and aching stomach, but it wasn’t until Halli studied her chest that she spotted the problem.
Water in her lungs? That wasn’t right. Not water, but it was some sort of fluid buildup. How to heal it? Halli cast her affinity deeper, using it to restore balance to the girl’s body. She worked on instinct, feeling for the broken elements and encouraging them to heal over. To her relief, the liquid dispersed back into the girl’s body. Her coughs eased and her breathing steadied. However, Halli sensed an illness still rooted in her flesh, one she didn’t know how to cure. Given enough time, the fluid would return and threaten her life again.
Hands shaking from the effort, she withdrew and tried to gather her wits. All around her, the other girls sniffled and coughed, or whimpered and wept. Despite their fears, they shifted position to protect Halli, concealing her from the orocs as she recovered. Halli couldn’t sustain them all forever, not with her faded strength. They needed help.
At least one oroc guarded their cage at all times. Halli motioned for the girls to disperse. Standing up, she edged over until she caught their current guard’s eye. A female holding a stone spear, the oroc squinted at her with gold and brown flecked eyes the color of autumn.
“Please,” Halli said, “could you bring us some more water and food?” She mimed eating and drinking and pointed to the others. “We need more.”
The oroc trilled in her own language and shook the spear. Not a promising response. Halli gripped a stiff vine and pressed her face against the cage side. “You don’t understand. If we don’t have more to eat or drink, some of us are going to start dying. Do you understand
die
? Death?” Reaching through the cage she grabbed the guard’s hand, pushing as much healing through the contact as she could. Maybe the gesture would help the oroc understand.
It didn’t. The oroc shouted in alarm. Halli jerked away as the guard jabbed the spear at her stomach. Falling onto her back, she pushed back up and fought to keep her voice from quavering. “Please, you have to help us! Don’t just let us die.”
The oroc took a step further from the cage, out of reach, and turned away. No further amount of pleading made her so much as glance Halli’s way. Giving up, she squared her shoulders and set her jaw before turning back to the other girls. Leesa and Laney were watching her with wide eyes. Halli scooted back into a corner and hunched in on herself, grasping at every desperate thought. Something had to change, or she’d be forced to watch the others drop way one by one.
She started as another oroc came up by the cage, and studied her. A large male, he had dark eyes and wore an assembly of purplish vines over his mud-colored skin. He crouched to her eye level.
“You are … Geist?” he asked. “Healer?”
She nodded, trying to hide her astonishment at being spoken to by one of their kind. In all their weeks here, none of the orocs had shown any sign of being able to understand their language. “I am. Yes. I am a Geist.”
He shifted his gaze to the other girls. “Saplings are sick. Make dying sounds.”
Saplings? That must be how they referred to children. “Yes. They are. We … we need more food and water to get better. And better shelter. We will die if we don’t get warm and dry.”
The guard said something to the crouching oroc in their native tongue. He replied and waved a huge hand at the kids around Halli. His lips peeled back, exposing surprisingly white teeth as he looked back to Halli. “I bring, you heal?”
Halli rose onto her knees and bowed her head submissively. “I’ll try. I will. Yes. Please help us.”
“You heal, you serve Gnarrl.”
His name? And what did he mean by serve? It didn’t matter, though. She’d sworn to do whatever it took to keep the others alive. “I’ll do anything you want. Just give me a chance to help my friends.”
He pondered this for a moment, and then rose and strode away. Leesa and Laney rushed over to her, excited, but scared to speak. Halli remained kneeling, head bowed and waiting, hoping beyond hope this might be the change they needed to survive.
And praying it didn’t come at too high a cost.
***