The
spray of black blood grew as it flew into the air, spreading like
a shadow; like darkness, covering everything in Edrin’s
view. No sound now. No wind. Just darkness and silence and the
smell of blood.
“Prince!”
Something was shaking his dark world. Edrin heard a voice,
and then felt a great pain coming to the surface of his mind,
like the rising of a great whale for a new breath. He screamed,
and the world lit with sunlight.
A hand clamped down on his mouth, stifling his cry. “Sorry
your highness, but I’m not sure there aren’t more
of those beasts.”
Edrin focused on his protector, and nodded his head to let
him know he had control of himself again. The hand was dropped
instantly, and Heilan bent to look at he wound on his side.
“How …” Edrin croaked and cleared his throat,
“How bad is it?”
“I would be surprised you were alive if I didn’t
grow up with you.” Heilan said, pouring more healing liquid
on a rag and pressing it against the wound. Edrin stiffened
as he felt the magic of the liquid embrace his body.
Healing was painful. There was no magic that was going to help
that. Magic could speed up the healing, but could not remove
the healing pain of growing flesh and knitting bones. Most of
the time the healing was more painful than the wound, and many
older soldiers refused healing liquids and ointments swearing
they were better off without them. There were potions and plants
that could remove the pain, but they also removed the ability
to think, and no warrior was willing to do that on the battle
field. Clerics and healers often used pain draughts in hospitals
or where the injured could rest for a day or two while the effects
wore off.
“Two broken ribs, most of the muscles on your right side,
and some tears on your back as well. A little deeper and it
could have taken your spine and lungs. The right arm was dislocated
as well; I had to set that before I woke you up.” Heilan
said. Edrin knew he wasn’t over stating the damage, he
could feel all of these things growing, scabbing, scarring,
and knitting as he listed them off. He clawed the earth with
his left hand.
“Looks like the Penumbral got you in the leg before you
were able to take his head.” Heilan said, a tone of disappointment
haunting his words.
“No.” Edrin managed. “Did that myself when
I collapsed.”
Heilan visibly brightened. “Good. I didn’t want
to explain to Sorlaya how I didn’t notice that earlier.”
Edrin looked around, “Where is she?”
Heilan didn’t bother to look around, if his sister was
hiding somewhere close, he wasn’t going to see her anyway.
“Not sure. I know three of those things came out of the
portal, and only one of them was on us when we reached the woods.
She might have taken down the other two as they came out of
the tower.”
Edrin thought about how fast the creatures were, and raised
an eyebrow. Sorlaya was fast, and deadly with her arrows, but
even she had limits. He looked down at his wound. It was closed
for the most part, his fair skin was blued and swollen now,
though there were still three open wounds under his arm seeping
blood. He took the bandage from Heilan, soaked more healing
liquid into the fibers and pressed it on the wounds. Instantly
the wound burst into burning pain. Edrin bent over, clamping
his mouth tightly shut, pressing his right arm against the wound
as well, unwilling to take the bandage away until it had closed
the wounds this time.
Heilan’s palms came to rest on his prince’s back,
not as a gesture of compassion, but as a command to remain bent
over. Edrin forced himself to breath slower, and concentrated
on the sounds around him. It wasn’t difficult to hear
another of those beasts coming through the under brush into
the small clearing, where the other beast lay decapitated. Heilan’s
left hand gripped him slightly harder, telling Edrin to roll
to his right, when Heilan moved to grab his sword. Edrin dug
his left boot heal into the soft forest soil and prepared to
leap from the ground.
The creature roared. Heilan’s hands were gone from his
back. Edrin pushed off the ground, seeing his swords leaning
against a tree to his right. He snatched a long blade with his
left hand and slung the scabbard clear as he spun to meet his
attacker.
The creature was charging across the clearing, over the dead
body of the other. Then it collapsed. Edrin thought at first
it somehow tripped over the other’s body, but this wasn’t
the case. The creature was dead. Three arrows protruded from
the base of its skull, no more than a coin’s width from
each other, severing the creature’s spine. Edrin recognized
the arrows, they were as unique as the archer. The three silver
fletching and the reed shafts were Sorlaya’s craft; Heilan’s
sister and partner.
