As it was almost customary after several weeks of their travels, and especially true since the fateful run-in when they lost their equipment, Anh took most of the guarding duties for the night, only getting a short reprieve just before the bivdawn. Brandt specifically requested to be awakened early to procure food for both of them. That day this obligation was expanded to three people. Anh’s short break from the nighttime’s vigilance was the brief period between being awakened and heading out. Usually, he extended that until Brandt was back with food.

Today however the circumstances were a little different. Brandt headed out, as usual, but instead of wandering about, Anh turned his attention to Olaff.

-* I didn’t really notice when he fell asleep * - mused Birdekk -* I wonder if this means is well, and recovering, or the contrary *

-* I say he is doing fine * - scoffed Thernohh.

-* Why the hostility? * - asked the eldest.

-* Picking him up slowed us down. *

-* It was a right thing to do *- Greoo joined the conversation -* He needed our help. *

-* It also considerably slowed us down *

-* Are you willing to forego tanaian principles just to follow a goal *

-* yes, although, irrelevant * - kin’s questioning of her motives served to annoy Thernohh further -* we already committed to helping this man *- Greoo growled slightly * so we better devise a way to get him going on his own*

-* We were doing fine yesterday? *

-* Not a long term solution * - quickly replied the youngest - * We need to get him a crutch. I see quite some material around us, so we better get our corpse in motion *

Anh assumed an upright position and took a look around. They were in a forest of mixed composition, although it seemed that it was being overtaken by beech. There were also maple and pine trees scattered about. These didn’t grab his attention, as nearby stood a bunch of trees he had never seen. Their bark with its bluish tint contrasted with the brown or grey hues of other trees and looked out of place. Naturally, he immediately decided to start the search for the crutch material within this odd grove. It took them a few moments to reach it.

The trees were fairly slender. Not as much as nearby pines, but almost a third taller. The trunk was smooth except a few knots and knurls here and there. Branches exploded off the main trunk at about two-thirds of the trees’ height and were crowned by a thick and lush canopy of black leaves.

-* Do we know what are these called *- asked Birdekk

-* Not the faintest idea *- mused Tow -*notice how secluded this grove is from the rest of the forest*

Anh took a long look around.

-* It looks like a tumor growing inside of a healthy tissue, note that even the fleece is different around these *-

-* It is also tinted blue, and the leaves… *- Anh leaned over the carpet of last year’s fall -* ...are greying as they rot.*

-* I have never seen them of this weird, six-pronged shape *-

Anh grabbed one off the ground and presented it for all the kin to witness. It was quite a bit larger than his palm. Each of the leave’s extents was about twenty cemers long and three wide, shaped like a dagger. It was thick and had a slightly grabby texture to it.

-* Extraordinary.. *-

-* I’m again going to be the voice of reason in this varunity.*- Thernohh interrupted the rapturous exchange between Birdekk, Tow, and Anh -* We have a job to do. If you folk stopped pleasuring yourselves, it would go a long way to finishing it.*-

-* No need to be crass about it.*- replied Anh, annoyed -* But you are right*- He sighed.

-* If you all are so keen on these, let’s search over them first. This wood might be enough, and we’ll get a glimpse of their internal structure as well. Let’s find a branch that may fit our purpose and chop it off! *- Thernohh commandeered -* The tree over there! Let’s check it out. *

Anh floated towards one in a group of three nearby and took a long look at it, top to bottom.

-* Don’t just stare at it. Fly up! I imagine what we seek is going to be up there.*

-* Ok, fine! Don’t rush me, why are you so rude today? *-

Anh casually floated up, along the trunk. Not too fast, to give anyone an opportunity to study the specimen, but also not too slow, as to avoid angering Thernohh further. It took a few drips to achieve but finally, he was about twenty mers up between the branches of the three trees.

-* found anything you like? * - Birdekk asked Thernohh after a short while.

-* Yes *- the youngest replied, absentmindedly -* the one on the… Anh, please allow me to move our hands * - the dominant complied, and soon Thernohh grabbed one of the branches with an unsteady grip -* this one. Now concentrate, we’ll perform the Korr-Yotle maneuver to break it because you know, no tools and I don’t want to break any fingers *- other kin nodded abstractly in agreement. Soon, a slight scent of hexergy emanated below their fingers clutching a branch. Drip or two after, the wood started to squeal and shake violently and with increasing frequency. Then, suddenly, it broke and hung entangled on the other, intact branches.

It took a triskol or two to drag the branch to their camp.

-* To everybody who thinks hexergy makes things easy *- said Anh to his folk, when they were finally by the fire, with their branch, sweaty and panting heavily -* I swear, they don’t know what they are saying. *-

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-* And now we are going to mince our hands, don’t we *- sighed Birdekk helplessly, perfectly aware of what was going to happen next, as just like it required an almost direct touch to rip the branch of the tree, it would require the same to change it into a usable crutch.

-* I’m not looking forward to it either *- said Thernohh -* but we have to do what needs to be done. What I said. I don’t like this, but we’re committed. And you did it to ourselves. *-

Kinehexergy, the art of using force by the blessing of Vhirs, is more often than not used as a blunt tool. Tanai, however, because of their innate, almost primordial, reliance on the Craft, developed more nuanced hexergic techniques to replace files, hammers, wedges, chisels, and just about any tool, provided one had the ability and patience to learn. Most of these, however, required almost intimate contact with the workpiece and, just like work with their physical counterparts, dust, sparks, splinters, and chips would be flying everywhere around the craftai. For this reason, practitioners would always wear thick, leather gloves, aprons, and face masks. It also made for a splendid show for anyone witnessing the process, as there were sparks, splinters, and debris being violently ejected from below the practitioner’s palms.

Which is precisely what Anh was doing. Maybe not as skillfully as some of the masters from Tanais, but certainly it was as much of a show.

The tanai worked for almost a halfer, totally engrossed in the activity. He skinned the bark, revealing a grey-green, veiny wood beneath. Then he smoothed and burned the ends. Finally, he formed a rest for the armpit where the branch was split in a ‘Y’ shape. Once he was content with his creation, he began to smooth it, by caressing it while applying a mixture of kine- and pyrohexergy.

-” Goede geast jou my sterkte ” - Olaff’s words shook Anh out of his trance. The wildman attempted to sit, but all he managed was to prop himself on his elbows and stare at the tanai with his eyes wide open.

-” Ow!” - said startled Anh - “ How long have you been up?”.

Olaff didn’t answer, just stared at the tanai with a blank stare of what could be only called adoration.

-” Right ” - murmured tanai.

-* Show him our work * - commented Greoo. Anh immediately did so. He floated up and presented the crutch, or a branch looking very much like one.

-” Wat is dit?” - the man pointed at the item and didn’t seem to make out what he was looking at.

-* I think he does not what is he looking at * - said Tow -* their language reminds me of the very heavy maaren *

-* can you speak it? *- asked Anh

-* no, but I have some intuitions *- Tow replied uneasily -* we read a dictionary once *

-* let’s go with that, I’ll show him what we have done *

Anh straightened and then put the crutch beneath his armpit, once it was in place, he clumsily tried to show Olaff the use of the item.

-” Hout ... skonk ” - Brandt’s voice came emanating from the perimeter of the camp, immediately grabbing the attention of both Anh and Olaff - " jo rinne mei dy" - the nord approached them with two hare in his left hand - " Ik meitsje iten " - he threw them by the fire

Olaff stared at both men. Once at Anh, and once at Brandt, confused about what to do or say. Tanai floated towards him and rested the crutch beside him. The wildman grabbed Anh’s hands and twisted them to see their insides.

They were in a mess, charred and slowly dripping with blood. The wildman held them for no more than a drip before Anh yanked them out and abashedly moved away. Olaff tracked him with a confused gaze, then looked at Brandt with a questioning stare. Hoomin however paid him no attention, being already busy skinning his prey. Seeing that he’ll get no answers, Olaff lay defeated.

-* That was a little uneasy *- commented Tow.

-* Umm, yeah… * - Birdekk agreed -* Anh, can you ask Brandt for water, we need to tend to our hands. Even I feel them sting a little. *

-”Mr. Zerster” - Anh complied -” Could you hand me the costrel? I need to tend to my hands. ” - Brandt interrupted his work, quickly reached to his left for the item tanai requested, and quickly threw it towards him. Anh caught it kinetically mid-flight and floated away.

It turned out to be quite a daunting job without anything to aid him. Certainly without soap, for which he was paying dearly at home and was used to having it. That mere fact reminded him that he hadn’t washed in several days and didn't even change clothes.

-* We stink *- Birdekk dryly announced what everyone else was thinking

-* Don’t remind me, I have been actively thinking of ‘something else’ to get this smell out of my cognition for some time now *- grumbled Greoo

-* We better tend to our hands *

It took almost a quanter of delicately scrubbing, caressing, and cleaning with as little water as he could muster to approach at least a sensible level of cleanliness. Then he proceeded to scrub some more, every so often he peeked at how Brandt was progressing with their breakfast and decided to consider it done when hoomin was sticking pieces of meat in a long stick and preparing to roast them over the fire. Still, when waiting for their food, he kept himself busy plucking the splinters stuck under the surface of his skin.

-"Jo ite ... jo geane "- said Brandt casually when the smell of roasted meat filled the air. Olaff propped himself on his elbows, then slowly tried to assume a sitting position. Which he managed to achieve after a little struggle, although in a little contorted manner, as his healthy leg was positioned as if he wanted to sit cross-legged, but the injured one was stretched weirdly. In the end, he managed to sit without needing to prop himself.

-” Jo litte my gean? Wêrom? "

There was a short pause, during which Brandt was slowly turning the roast over the fire.

-” Jo … how to say this ... kin gean ... jo ite ... jo gean ... gjin fangen" - Brandt smiled awkwardly - “Mr. Trawins, I kind of assume you want to get rid of him.”

-” It’s fine. I would prefer he stayed, so I could take care of him” - replied Anh, still cleaning the splinters off his palms - “But it is his decision. Provided he can walk.”

-” Brûk houten skonk” - continued hoomin towards the wildman, pointing at the crutch with the hand that wasn’t holding onto the makeshift roast.

It took Olaff a moment to understand what Brandt wanted to convey in his broken words. That he did was made obvious when he took the crutch and, struggling equally as a few moments prior, was propping himself into a standing position.

-” Rinne … Ite” - Brandt encouraged him, although it wasn’t necessary. As soon as he managed to catch balance, Olaff immediately attempted to walk, aiding himself with the Anh-made crutch.

-* If he continues like this, He’s going to get even more injured* - sarcastically said Thernohh, witnessing how shaky wildman’s first attempts were. Her worries were quickly proven moot, as Olaff quickly managed to accustomise himself to the new tool he was given.

-" Ik wol gean. Ik wit net wêrom jo dit dogge, ik bin tankber. Mar ik wol fuort." - he said towards Brandt. Who took a little to glean as to what the wildman was saying.

-” Ite. Let. Gean” - he finally said, once again pointing at the roast.

-* He is really anxious * - said Greoo -* He probably didn’t expect any of this *

Anh smiled at the confused wildman, who nodded and slowly sat beside the fire once again.

They ate in silence. Pieces of an unseasoned hare were by no means worthy of the stomach of the Most Busiest Sorriesian Emperor. In all honesty, they were quite awful. But between the three of them, there was plenty of food to go about. Brandt even managed to partition some for Olaff to take with him.

Once they were done, the wildman left. Before he did, Anh checked if the injury was healing, and once again applied a little bit of vitahexergy to speed up the healing process. Although he couldn’t tell whether it was beneficial or not.

Olaff’s parting words, shouted before he disappeared, limping into the forest were “Danke wol, slanke man”.