Yamara - Book 1 - Chapter 10

Chapter 10

"Yamara, please wake up!"

Brina's voice, hushed but filled with urgency, roused me from my slumber. No easy feat, considering the concussion I had suffered coupled with the blood loss due to the wound in my hip. I opened my eyes and looked up at her. My vision was blurry at first, but it focused within a few moments.

James was nearby, his sword drawn as he waited facing away from us looking up the side passage from which we had come down to find Brina. By his pose alone I could tell that something was amiss, even if the expression on Brina's face was not enough. I tried to sit up but pain and dizziness filled my head, making me settle back down and catch my breath.

"Are you okay?" Brina asked me, worry in her voice.

I cleared my throat first, then spoke. "Aye, just took a good whack in the head from a half-orc. I'm better now, just needed a nap. Still a little unsteady though, help me up, would you?"

Brina looked at me strangely, her expression telling me she knew I was lying and that it was foolish of me to do so. "What about your hip?" She asked me.

I smiled fiercely, "Just a scratch, I already took care of it, another scar to add to the rest of them."

She shook her head and reached down towards my hip. She gently pulled my pants down over the wound and pulled the makeshift bandage off of it, which was soaked through with blood, though it appeared to be mostly dried by now. "Have a look," she offered.

I glanced down at it and saw that it had changed. It was red and puffy, already clearly showing signs of infection. What impressed me more was the crude stitches in it, holding the wound closed so that it had finally stopped bleeding. "How long have I been sleeping?" I asked, surprised.

"James said about six hours, though how he can tell the time in this darkness is beyond me!" Brina said, glancing up at him where he kept watch. "I only awoke a couple of hours ago myself, one of those things smacked me in the back of the head with something after I nearly suffocated under the water. I never realized how deadly it could be!"

Six hours! I could not believe I had slept so long. Very irresponsible of me. Then again, considering the amount of blood that had stained my pants, I guessed that I had lost a lot more then I first thought. My hip burned and itched at the same time, no doubt reacting to the pain of the wound, the pain of the stitching, and the growing infection in it. I hated to admit it, but I knew that without a priest or a healer, I would be in dire trouble soon.

"Did you do this?" I clearly meant the doctoring up of my hip. She shook her head and glanced at James again.

"James did it. He had a sewing kit, of all things, tucked away in a container in one of his boots. Or at least, that's what he told me, I was still sleeping when he did it." Brina looked around for a moment before looking back at me. Her face was one of worry and fear. "Why didn't he leave us or kill us? And what are we going to do?"

I smiled wearily and put my hand on hers where it rested on my side. "He knows we're not agents of his enemy. We may not be friends, but I think he's curious enough now that he's more interested in learning from us." I thought for a moment as to what James' motivation could be before remembering our talk earlier, before I had passed out. "We may be in more trouble down here then we know of too, so perhaps he needs our help. He needs to get back up to the city, and we have no idea how to get out of here."

Brina nodded, fighting back the urge to throw her arms around me and hug me. She got control of herself and said, "So just like that, everything's okay? I thought you wanted to kill him? You certainly did act like it."

I smiled fiercely again. "I'm just getting started, Brina, I'm not done yet. As for us, well, he said he's not happy about Paul or the guards, but those are apparently lesser offenses in his eyes." I paused and slowly raised myself up some to test and see how I was feeling. The nausea was better this time around, though my throat was very dry and I felt quite weak. Suddenly I realized something that seemed amiss. "Wait a minute, if I've been sleeping for six hours, then why haven't the sewers flooded again and carried us away or drowned us?"

"James said we're far enough in them that the water has spread enough to not run over the ledge we're on."

I nodded, that made sense to me at least. The nodding motion made me feel a little sick, causing me to instantly regret it. Sighing softly, I decided that I had been lazy long enough. "Help me up girl, we need to get moving."

She looked ready to protest, but seeing the look in my face she bit back her words. She stood up and took my hands, helping me stand up. I was more then a little shaky, and a fresh spear of agony shot through my from my hip, but I managed to remain standing through grim determination if nothing else.

James glanced over at us, watching silently for a moment. Then he made his way quietly back to us. Seeing me swaying back and forth a bit, even with Brina's constant support, he reached down to his left boot and twisted the heel off of it. He pulled out a small flask less then half an inch in diameter and only two inches long. It was filled with a pale blue liquid. After replacing the heel of his boot, he handed it to me and said, "Drink this, it will give you strength."

I nodded and took it from him. I nearly lost my balance when my hands left Brina, but she held me up while I twisted the cork out of it and sniffed it carefully. The smile reminded me of own potions that had long since been lost in the palace while we were imprisoned. I swallowed it in one gulp, grateful of the cool soothing liquid that worked its way down my throat. The healing coolness spread out from my belly, renewing the strength in my body and reducing the pain in my hip to more of a dull ache.

"That won't last, it only serves to dull pain and provides little actual healing, besides its general invigorating effects," James explained with an almost apologetic shrug.

I nodded, knowing that I was far from out of trouble. "My thanks then. Let us use this borrowed time to get far from here then."

James nodded and looked back down the sewer tunnel he had been watching. "A few hours ago a couple of orcs, messengers I think, came down there and I had to kill them. I haven't seen any since, but I expect there are more where they came from."

"So how do we get out?" I asked, noticing that he sported some minor cuts himself that I had not seen before.

James grinned. "I tried scouting out the passage I told you would take you two up and out of her to the tanner's shop, but it's already been staked out by an even larger band of orcs. The next closest one is up that tunnel, where the orcs came from that I slew."

I nodded, expecting no less. "Let's get going then."

I took a few careful steps away from Brina, making sure I did not look at her because I knew she would be terribly worried about me. I felt fine, if a bit stiff. My hip was especially stiff, as was my blood encrusted clothing, but the anesthetic affects of the potion allowed me to function as I would not have otherwise been able to. I picked up my short sword and dagger and sheathed them, ready to move out. Brina readied herself as well, down to only daggers now that James had reclaimed his longsword from her.

I motioned to one of the broadswords the orcs had used, but Brina shook her head and said, "I'm better with a dagger or knife then I am a sword anyhow."

I nodded and followed after James. Brina came behind me, walking very close in case I needed her support. The magic of the potion was working fine in me, but I suspected that with each step my hip was getting worse. The tightness in it surely meant I was pulling and tearing the stitches, but time was more important then that. That, combined with the infection from the dirty water we had been wallowing through reminded me of my mortality.

We moved slowly through the water, trying to make as little noise as possible. Given the training Brina and I both had in stealth, it was a simple task. Living up to my growing expectations of him, James moved almost as silently as we did. It took us close to thirty minutes to reach a point where James shuttered the lantern he had been carrying. Now we crept even more silently, our visibility limited to only a few feet. We could hear the orcs muttering to each other from further up the tunnel. Now I could understand Orcish, if spoken slowly and clearly (which rarely ever happened), but this was to far away and too quiet for me to understand.

James stopped and motioned for us to close to him. Once we were there, he began whispering. "How do you feel?" he asked me first. I pondered my leg and general condition for a brief moment before I responded by nodding that I was ready.

"Good," he said. "We need to take them quickly, the way out is above them. There is no place for them to rest here, only the water. I suspect that this is a small group guarding this entrance while the rest of them were waiting for the order to join them and attack the city."

"The rest of them?" Brina asked quietly, glancing around nervously.

He grinned evilly, "Aye, the ones we already dealt with." Her mouth opened in surprise and then shut just as quickly, smiling as she glanced at me. James continued. "I counted 8 eight of them ahead a few hours back, counting the two I dispatched. They are straight down the tunnel then to the right when it branches off. Yamara, you take the lantern, you're a good fighter, but wounded like that is going to slow you down, whether you feel like it or not."

I nodded, annoyed at his knowledge of my condition, but forced to admit that he was right. "Can you handle a couple of orcs?" I asked Brina, knowing she'd have to do some serious fighting if we were outnumbered almost 3 to 1, nearly 4 to 1 considering my limited ability.

Brina gritted her teeth and nodded. She had both her hands on the hilt of the two daggers tucked into her makeshift belt. James had reclaimed his scabbard and belt from her, forcing her to make do with a piece of cloth torn from one of the orcs studded leather jerkins. James turned around and started forward quietly. I began to follow but Brina put her hand on my shoulder, drawing my attention. I turned back to face her and she leaned in suddenly, surprising me. Her lips touched mine and I felt the need in her. I returned her kiss with a surprising amount of passion from myself, then was against surprised by the sense of loss I felt at our parting.

"Just in case," she whispered, then was after James before I could say anything. I stood there for a few moments, uncertain of myself. That girl kept surprising me more and more. On top of that, I was surprising myself as well. I was not sure if I liked my behavior, but I had to acknowledge the part of me that liked her, even if it annoyed me to admit it.

I followed as quickly as I could and still remain silent. I noticed that in spite of the numbness surrounding my hip, I had begun to develop a limp. Looking forward, I strained to make out my companions in the darkness. I had always had better then average night vision, or at least as long as I could remember. I suspect it was another benefit of my special treatment among the Ornithrym. Regardless, while I could make out James ahead of me, I could not find Brina, and I knew she was much closer. I forced myself to not be concerned for her. She had proven time and again her ability to take care of herself.I remembered then of one of those times on Acathia, when we fought the Shissars and what had happened after. In particular, my encounter with Keeden. I had forgotten all about the latent psychic potential he had introduced me too (or that I had stolen from him). I wondered if it would still work, now that I was no longer on Acathia.

I reached out with my own mind for Brina and felt myself contact her. From what I had learned, such a thing was normally not possible unless I could see my intended target, but the level of familiarity and intimacy that Brina and I had shared made the link quite easy. I felt reassured, strangely, to know that she was indeed nearby and that I could contact her as easily. I knew she sensed that I had linked with her mind, so I sent her a simple feeling of contentment and warmth before breaking the link. She was pleased, I knew that much before I lost contact with her.

James came to the corner and stopped, and a few moments later I was there too. I reached out and touched Brina, not realizing that she was there until my hand actually rested on her shoulder. I was amazed at her ability to blend in. Normally rogues were skilled at hiding and moving about with stealth - and I was no exception to that - but her talent allowed made it seem more an art then a skill. James glanced back to make sure we were there. He did a double-take at how well Brina had blended into the wall beside her, but was able to find her from my hand that was on her arm. I nodded to indicate we were ready and he nodded back.

James stepped around the corner and rushed forward, splashing noisily through the water. We followed after, with me opening the shutter on the lantern as soon as I cleared the corner. I had already lost track of Brina, even with the full light streaming into the passage. I did see, however, the eight orcs that James had promised us. They were squinting furiously as they turned to face us and draw their broadswords.

Not all of them had broadswords though, two of them carried loaded crossbows. They struggled to pull the locking mechanism back and succeeded just as James reached them. He lashed out with his sword, cutting one orc down quickly. The first crossbow bolt was fired wildly, glancing off the stone ceiling of the tunnel and shooting harmless passed us into the water. The second quarrel was aimed a little more carefully, but James ducked to the side and evaded it. My wound prevented me from moving as quickly though.

The orc with the second crossbow grunted and fell to his knees shortly thereafter, before he could aim and fire his reloaded crossbow. Brina stood behind him, clearly visible now, a bloody dagger in each hand. The other crossbowman had reloaded and took more careful aim, firing again. James was distracted by the three orcs rushing towards him, and was then distracted anew by the barbed bolt suddenly sticking out of his chest, high up on his left side just below his collarbone.

The magical potion was still working good in me, I hardly even noticed the quarrel impaling my left thigh. It had hit high and towards the outside of my leg, perhaps six inches below the wound in my hip. I would have smiled at the irony of receiving another injury so close to my prior one, had I not know the potential severity of the wound. Nonetheless, I realized the potion was blocking the worst of the pain, so I used it to my short term advantage and set the lantern down roughly on the narrow ledge that ran along the side of the tunnel and drew my shortsword.

Brina cut the other crossbowmen down from behind, her daggers plunging simultaneously into his back. The other orcs became aware of her presence then, causing two of them to head towards her. Two of the three pressing James broke off and came at me then, for James appeared grievously wounded. James defended himself as best he could, trying to recover from the shock of the impact.

I had my dagger in my left hand and shortsword in my right by the time the orcs reached me. I feigned weakness and injury in my left leg, which was not really faking so much as pretending that I could actually feel how badly it was injured. The orcs came at me, trying to take advantage of my slower left side. To their surprise, I used my left leg and jumped towards them. My dagger blocked a surprise attack from the orc on my left, and my short sword took the orc on my right in the throat.

Brina threw one of her daggers at one of the orcs trying to reach her. It stuck in its side as it tried to dodge it. The wound was not serious, but it caused it more then a little pain and discomfort. The orc slowed to pull the dagger out and let it fall into the water. The other orc came on, launching an powerful swing at Brina with its broadsword. Brina deflected the horizontal swipe high, ignoring the jarring vibration in her arm from the parry, and sent her other hand straight out in a punch that hit the orc less then an inch below his sternum.

Gasping to recapture it's breath, the orc stumbled backwards, stumbling into its other companion as it tried to join the fight. Brina followed in closely, slicing across the orcs wrist of its sword arm and laying it open to the bone. The broadsword fell into the water and the orc continued to try and retreat from her as it rolled off its annoyed partner. Brina lashed out with her foot, connecting with the side of the orcs knee and hearing a satisfying pop. The orc crashed into the water, clutching its ruined wrist on the way down.

James had recovered enough of his wits to move from the defense to more of an offensive move. He kept his body twisted so that his right side was facing the orc in a duelist stance. The orc hammered repeatedly at him, using brute strength to try and overpower James in his weakened condition. Gritting his teeth, James forced himself to block each attack that came at him, not trusting himself to dodge or evade the assaults. Finally he ducked under a horizontal swing from the orc and lunged forward, driving his longsword deep into the bowels of the orc.

I stumbled back away from the remaining orc facing me. My leg, still feeling okay in spite of the serious injuries to it, chose that moment to go out on me. I fell into the water, my elbow connecting with the rocky floor under the water. Again, I was spared the majority of the pain, but the numbness that shot through my left arm told me I had just done some more damage to myself. The orc advanced on me quickly, certain that I was in trouble. He was more right then wrong.

Brina spun inside of the swing of the orc that attacked her. With her back to the orc she was unable to launch much of an attack, she stabbed downward with her dagger. It plunged deeply into the inside of the orcs thigh. She twisted her wrist, causing the dagger to twist inside the orcs leg. The orc dropped his sword and tried to wrap its rough hands around Brina's neck. Brina seemed to convulse as she bent over, sending the orc sailing over her head and onto the ground. She straightened up and dropped onto the orcs chest with her knee before he could rise up. Her dagger plunged into the orcs chest, finishing the fight.

I swing my sword across hard, knocking the orcs descending sword wide. It grated against the rocky floor, sparing me for a few more minutes. I scooted away and tried to get up. The water worked against me, making it very difficult for me. The orc had recovered by then, and prepared to skewer me with his sword. My back was turned to him as I struggled to get my knees on the floor so I could get up from there.

The sound of a crossbow firing and meaty thud behind me caused me to look back. The orc dropped his broadsword, which fell onto my back and then bounced into the water. My luck must have turned, for the sword managed to not cut me. The orc fell back away from me, his hands grabbing the crossbow bolt in his chest.

I glanced around and saw all the orcs dead or dying. James reached up to the bolt in his chest and gently pulled at it, wincing in pain as he did so. Realizing it was beyond his ability to deal with, he left it where it was. Brina ran over to me, sloshing through the water along the way. She helped me to my feet and looked at my impaled leg with the blood draining from her face. I smiled weakly and shrugged. My arm, at least, appeared to just have been stricken numb momentarily from the impact, because I could move it without any problems.

"Let's go," James said, his voice gruff with the pain of his injury. Blood had already soaked through most of his shirt from the wound, showing that it was serious. Crossbows were dangerous weapons, packing enough power at short range to punch all the way through a man's body. In James' case, his shoulderblade stopped the bolt from passing all the way through him. My leg, on the other hand, had the tip of the bolt sticking the back of it, and the feathers still poking out the front of it.

"Brina, hold on to me a second," I said to her, reaching down to the wooden bolt in my leg. I gritted my teeth and twisted my hand quickly, snapping the feathered end off just outside of my leg. In spite of the numbing potion, or perhaps it was wearing off, dull waves of pain emanated out from it through my body. Brina's held on to me from behind, bracing her body against mine. She held me up as I grabbed the barbed point and yanked it quickly out. My leg trembled as the muscles protested the abuse and I remained upright only because of Brina's support.

"Are you done yet?" James hissed, clearly irritated, though I suspected more from his wound then at me. I nodded, blinking back the tears from the pain overriding the magic of the potion.

James led the way up the ladder, having trouble using more then just his right arm. I followed, having trouble moving my left leg. Brina moved up directly behind me, helping me up the rungs in the wall. James managed to push a heavy iron grate off the top of the shaft, grunting at the effort. He pulled himself out of the sewer and collapsed on the ground of the alley. I came next, pulling myself slowly out and falling on the other side of the hole. Brina came last, the only one able to move freely of her own volition.

She helped me up first, and by the time I was standing - more then a little shakily - James had gotten to his feet as well. He led us through the pre-dawn city, getting out on the major thoroughfares of the city as quickly as possible to avoid the possibility of a early morning mugging. It took us close to an hour to reach the palace, and by that time I was in full agony of my injuries. Only my stubbornness kept me up, that and constant support from Brina.

The guards helped us into the palace. They intended to take us to the temple of Ban-Dayid located within the palace proper. James would have none of it though, instead demanding that we see King Avercrombie. I was not in the mood to agree, considering the severity of my injuries, but I lacked the strength to speak out. Brina was a bit overwhelmed by the situation, and did her best to keep me up and moving. We followed James and the guards into the King's office, separate from the throne room due to the early hour.

We sat down and rested as best we could. Sleep threatened the edges of my consciousness again, but I fought it desperately, uncertain of my ability to recover from the darkness should I succumb again. In a few more minutes, the King stepped through a doorway opened by his page. We tried to get to our feet to stand at attention, but the king waves us back, in light of our obvious injuries. James still stood, refusing to succumb to his wounds.

"Sire, I was exploring the sewers and came across several bands of the Dark One's agents, I believe they mean to attack any time now!" James said, once the King sat down. King Avercrombie raised an eyebrow at James and then looked at us.

"And who are these two?" He asked, his casual manner showing that the King and James had a relationship more familiar then lord and vassal.

James glanced at us, his eyes narrowing for a brief moment. "SET agents of mine, my lord, they went with me into the sewers and as you can see, we encountered opposition."

The King turned to his page then. "Squire, fetch General Andres immediately."

"Thank you Sire," James said, sagging visibly in relief. "I'll lead his men into the sewers immediately."

"No," King Avercrombie said, causing James to stiffen in surprise. "Jim, you've got a crossbow bolt halfway through your chest, most men would be dead or unconscious by now. Father Justin will be here in moments to take care of you. Andres can take care of this, he has enough men to thoroughly search the sewers and discover how the got in there in the first place."

"Not to mention," the King added, looking at us with a mock scowl, "you've managed to bleed all over my chairs. Those were a gift from the late elven King Thessanril, you know."

James smiled weakly in spite of himself. "My apologies, Sire. I'll see to their restoration myself when this is taken care of."

Further banter was cut short as Father Justin entered the office. He took a look at James and his face whitened. He hurried over to him and knelt in front of him to examine the wound.

"Father, please, check on her first, her injuries are more severe and longer lasting," James said, blocking the priests attempts to remove his shirt.

Father Justin glanced over at me, studying me carefully. I had to admit, I certainly did not look my best. My skin had a waxy pallor to it and my eyes were surely somewhat dull and glazed over in pain. Nonetheless, I did not think a couple of relatively minor flesh wounds could make up for the quarrel in James' chest.

"Father," I said through with a thick tongue. "Next time I'll tell the orcs to aim better, maybe they'll hit his lung and keep him from spouting nonsense."

I noticed Brina looking at me out of the corner of my eye. Her look was a mixture of worry, concern, and anger. She was angry with me for making light of my condition, I could tell.

The priest looked me over carefully, noticing the bloodstained state of my breeches. James had an impressive red splotch on his shirt as well, but simply due to the duration of my wounds, I had him beat in the category of gore and carnage.

"Don't listen to her, Father," James said. "She's had a potion of invigoration to keep her going."

If I did not know any better, I would have sworn the words the priest muttered under his breath was a most unpriestly oath. I had to chalk it up to delusions induced by my injuries though, for later nobody seemed to remember the specifics.

Things began to grow muffled and fuzzy again for me. Though this time the blackness clawing at the edges of my vision was not as warm and inviting as it had been before. It was cold and spoke of dark things hidden just beyond my vision waiting for me to let go my tenuous grip so they could pull me into the darkness with them. More of an overactive imagination, I am sure, but it sure did seem real at the time.

I think that the priest enlisted Brina to help him by shifting me to the side in the chair. He then tore away at the gash in my pants to get a better look at my wounds. He pulled away the makeshift bandage and made a face at the sight of my hip. I saw the look on Brina's face as well, and it was anything but good. It had only been a total of just over 6 hours since I received the injury, but apparently getting fresh sewer water in an open wound is not recommended by those in the know.

I remember him chanting and sprinkling something on my leg, but that was near the end of my recollection. Things got even fuzzier then, and the blackness nearly claimed me. I struggled against it though, and in the end, I managed to fight it off. A bit of clearness returned to my eyes, and I found myself resting in the chair a little easier. Neither Brina nor the priest was near me, but instead were watching over James. I heard a low groan that I wondered if it might have been me until I let my head roll over to the side facing where James sat.

Father Justin had his hands on either side of the quarrel in James' now bare chest, chanting with an unnaturally deep voice. Unlike the charlatan water priestess Sarya, Father Justin's chant had the resonation of true divinity and power to it. Meanwhile Brina had herself braced against James' chair and had both hands on the end of the bolt, steadying it or, I wondered with detached amusement, ready to pull it out. I ended up being right, for with a nod, Father Justin signaled Brina. She gritted her teeth and yanked on it, her strength surprising everyone present but me. The bolt was yanked free of the wound, the barbs on the tip tearing flesh on the way out. James' mouth opened and closed silently, like a fish gasping for air. Blood gushed out of the wound, spurting evenly in a way that told me he was not long for this world.

Father Justin's hands closed over the wound though, and his chanting continued. James passed out shortly, and I figured that he was on his way to those very same dark shapes that had just been after me. To my surprise, when Father Justin pulled his hands away, blood no longer pumped from James chest. Not only that, but the wound was closed. Still angry, red, and swollen, it was nonetheless closed and partially healed. I had heard of priest using their powers to heal, and had even seen a few lesser experiences of it in my time. Yet most of the priests I had known were devoted to fey Gods and prayers of healing and soothing were not quick to come to their lips.

"They will rest for many hours, for each has suffered grievous wounds," Father Justin said, turning to face King Avercrombie. His own face seemed drawn and tired, no doubt from channeling the powerful divine magic through him necessary to keep us going. "And this girl, her wounds are far lesser, but if My Lord wishes, I can have one of my acolytes sent to tend to her."

The King looked at Brina, who suddenly seemed quite small and anxious. "I'm okay," she said in a small voice. "Just a few scratches and a bump on the head."

"As you wish, milady," Father Justin said, bowing towards her.

"Guards!" the King called, gaining the attention of the guardsmen waiting in front of his office. "Fetch some stretchers, and have two guest rooms made ready immediately."

"Is that appropriate, young lady, or do you and the other have quarters nearby?" The King asked Brina softly. She blushed, out of her element to be in front of someone as powerful as the King was.

"You are most gracious, Highness," I said, forcing some energy into my weary body. "We would be most honored to accept lodging from you."

Father Justin's breath hissed in through his mouth. "How are you awake?" He stammered.

I shrugged weakly. "It's a bad habit," I confessed. "Insomnia."

"You must sleep and gather your strength, you were all but a corpse a few moments ago, lass," He lectured me gently, in a grandfatherly manner that did not seem to fit him for he appeared to have seen no more then 30 years.

"I look forward to seeing the three of you after you've recovered," The King said to us - or at least those of us still conscious to hear him. "Especially to learn about your interesting choices in clothing. But for now, I must bid you a goodbye, for your stretchers have arrived and so has my general."

I saw that he was right on both account, though General Andres hardly looked the part of a general clad in his nightshirt and boots, with his sword hastily buckled about him. Shorter then I, the general nevertheless appeared fully awake and alert. More then I could say about myself.

With Brina's help, I stood up and was prepared to walk to my room, but Father Justin would have nothing of the sort. Verbally lashing me in a way that only priests can, he reminded me that my leg was all but useless not twenty minutes earlier. Normally, I do not allow people to talk thusly to me, but given my condition, I relented and let Brina help me to lay down on the stretcher that the guards had fetched some pages to bring. James was likewise scooped up, but where he went was not the same direction that we were led (or carried, in my case).

I lapsed in and out of consciousness a few times during the trek, but always I came back awake quickly, fearing the dark creatures of my imagination would return for me. Finally, Brina and one of the pages helped put me in a bed. Brina shooed them away and undressed me. I tried to help as best I could but I think I hindered more then helped. In spite of my floundering, she succeeded finally and covered me up. It was easily the most noble and comfortable bed I had ever slept in, but I was several hours away from realizing that.

She watched me fight off sleep for several long minutes, a look of uncertainty on her face. Finally she turned to leave and head for her own room, which the pages had told her was next to mine. I dimly saw her leaving and was seized with an inexplicable fear. Somewhere deep inside of me, in spite of my condition, a part of me loathed myself for my sudden near panic.

"Brina," I managed to call out, though I suspect it was more of a croak. She was at my side in an instant, kneeling on the floor to put her face close to mine. "Stay with me," I whispered, already losing my fight with sleep.

She smiled in relief and in a matter of less then two seconds had her clothing stripped off. She took a little longer getting into bed, but that was out of consideration for me. She curled up next to me and happily wrapped her arms around me as best she could. Again a part of me hated myself, but another part of me reveled in the comfort and security. Another part of me enjoyed the raw sensuality of feeling her surprisingly soft skin against mine. Suddenly, the creatures of darkness that were waiting to pull me with them into a pit of eternal damnation lost some of their reality. They did not seem so frightening or so real anymore. Armored with Brina's care, I was able to at last lapse into a healing sleep, unafraid to do battle with them should they gain the strength to come for me.

Continued in Chapter 11

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