Elrik swam in an endless blackness.

[This one... this one was my fault. I promise, I'll do better next time. We'll figure this out together. You and me].

Different shades of black undulated around him in a sightless abyss. It felt both real and unreal - in that way those moments right before sleep do.

[Just try and listen to me next time? Faster I mean?]

[If I have to factor in bad response time, it kinda screws up all the math okay?]

Elrik just lay there feeling the thrum of his pounding, aching head. This was a very strange dream.

[Yeesh. Fine. Be that way.]

Elrik woke up

...

For a minute, Elrik just lay there with his eyes open, watching the sky.

He could see stars overhead. There was something warm, a fire close by.

He could feel something else, a person behind his head. The faint scent of lavender, sweat, travel and leathers. The thing behind his head was Yena's leg, that he was somehow resting against. She was eating, quietly watching the fire.

Elrik started up, a little embarrassed. Somehow he’d slid his head up against her in his sleep.

Yena just gave him a mild smile when she noticed.

”You look comfortable kassi. Don’t start up. You rest when you can hey?”

She seemed a lot less irritated by him than she had for weeks. Maybe it was his showing in the ambush.

His plan, such as it was, had worked, Yena told him.

With a bolt through one of the men’s faces and two after ELrik, Sakka was suddenly dealing with three men instead of six. He'd made short work of them before he’d rushed after Elrik. The rushing spearman found the last one about bash Elrik’s head and saved him just in the nick of time.

There had been almost thirty men, set to ambush them.

Most of it had been quiet, deadly work. The ambushers had not expected to be ambushed. Agrisu and even the giant Senu had excellent woodcraft. They’d taken out a few before the ambushers had even known they were under attack.

Most of the rest they’d led away, right into Yena - who’d set up with a bow. The three of them had taken apart most of them. The rest was Sakka and Elrik.

Compared to Agrisu’s little warband - the ambushers were garden variety thugs. Pests.

Yena spoke quietly, evenly, filling him in on the events, her tone soft and patient.

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“Good work today”, Yena smiled wide, and stretched like a cat, “Stay alive”

Something about how she was caressing the dagger on her hip as she walked away made Elrik feel like the day’s bloody work had done wonders for her mood.

...

Elrik sat by the fire, mulling over his thoughts. For once he didn’t let his eyes stray all over the place.

He just stared into that fire.

He’d done a lot today. He’d killed two men, no.. three. It didn’t trouble him. He waited - for some kind of guilt to hit him - but it didn’t. They’d tried to kill him - and he’d killed them.

It felt clean.

Even more - it felt good somewhere. Not the killing - but the fact that he’d done something. He’d survived - no - not just survived. He’d helped. He’d been stunned like a flailing fish, but he’d been good for something.

Gods.. it felt like it had been a long time since he’d been useful to someone else. He couldn’t believe his half baked plan had actually worked.

He didn’t know where he was, how he’d gotten here, or what he was going to do next - but it felt good to not fuck up again.

Elrik touched his temple - still feeling a faint echo of the pounding pain there from before.

Something was going on with his head, and he didn’t understand it. He didn’t even know what questions to ask.. And that scared him.

What had that been - that moment when the arrow almost hit him?

His head had felt like it was thinking a million thoughts all at once. At the end though - it had almost felt like he’d there had been someone else there inside his head..

Elrik didn’t know where to start to make sense of it.

“Whup! move over”

With a grunt, Agrisu lowered himself to sit next to Elrik by the fire.

For a moment they sat in silence.

“You did good today. You did your rukka today”, Agrisu spoke quietly

“Rukka?” Elrik hadn’t heard the word before

“It’s a .. it means due work. A day’s work for a day’s pay. You understand?”

Elrik nodded. You paid your dues

The larger man stared deeply into the fire as he spoke, “When we picked you up chupa, it was just Kaldjwi siliu. You seemed like a sad little kassi in the wrong place at the wrong time. Like a lame ikrit.”

Elrik couldn’t really say anything. That sounded about right.

“Don’t misunderstand me now”, Agrisu continued as if to fend off objections, “Kaldjwi or no, I would have cut you lose at the first sign of trouble, yes?”, Agrisu made a cutting motion with his hand, as if discarding a piece of bad fruit.

“I would have put you in the ground in a heartbeat if you slowed us down, and not blinked. If I needed it, you would have served as bait for me. You understand?”

Elrik did understand.

Agrisu nodded solemnly, “I say this, so that if you have a bad feeling about this - you can tell me. I also say this because now things have changed. Today you put in your rukka. You are paid up. More importantly - you are useful - and that is very rare in the business. Kaldjwi be damned.”

Agrisu tapped his eyes, “You see things. I know. I see things - and I see you see things. And also you can think. If you want to stay with us a while - after we are done with this work - you can. You have good instincts. You are useful - you see and you think. The rest I can teach you”

Elrik thought for a minute, “The day you found me - that day I-”

But Agrisu stopped Elrik, “No. We don't talk of this here. The Grove hears us" He pointed up at the trees, "We talk about other things near the cosi trees but not that. Understand? Someday? Someday we talk, yes? First we get out of these thrice damned woods”

"Ah.. but", Elrik started to say something - but Agrisu stopped him with a sudden slap to the back. “No, no - you think on it. When you have thought - then you let me know. This needed saying - so I have said it.”

“Hahaha!” Agrisu suddenly broke into a laugh, his seriousness dissipating like morning dew, “I can sound very serious, no? It is ok! It is all fine”,

Agrisu pointed a finger at Elrik's face, his face all smiles, "You are with us now. For now, we keep you. It's a good deal for me. And for you kasi", Agrisu nodded to him cheerfully, "Now - and until we're across the badlands - till we make to Kalaghutta - you're one of mine. Then we can talk again"

Before Elrik could start to reply - a slap to his back drove the breath from him.

"Good! it's done then!", With that, as suddenly as he’d sat down, Agrisu got up and toddled away, leaving Elrik sitting there not knowing what had just happened.