Children began to filter into the abbey courtyard and Tish, as always, was the first to greet them. “I’d like to welcome you all to this beautiful Satyrday morning! Now everyone should go ahead and sit down in a wide half-circle and will someone tell me where we left off last week?”
A boy raised his hand. “Eatha granted Knight Brax with a vision! He was going to go to the Sky Kingdom to find the chieftain’s treasure!”
“That’s exactly right!” Tish beamed at how smart they all were. “He had finally made it through the Crimson Kingdom and past that horrible swamp. Tria had placed it there in order to protect her lands from invasion, but it wasn’t enough to stop brave Knight Brax!”
High above the group, Zaniyah sat on the edge of the abbey’s walls. Her legs kicked back and forth below her. As fun as this place was, she didn’t like how slowly news traveled. She had no idea that slavers had attacked Sybil, nor of any other nefarious plots that had been floating around. All she knew was that she wasn’t allowed to give sermons anymore.
Something about the kids enjoying her stories a little too much. Zaniyah had been stuck on play duty ever since one of the kids broke their leg attempting to recreate the flight of harpies. She was allowed to do whatever she wanted, which was all well and good, but any stories she told had to be approved of by Tish first.
Standing next to her were both Evan and Chester. Chester had been hesitant to be in any crowded area since last season. Evan didn’t know what to do with children. He had been a serious child himself. Tish told him to teach them what he had learned as a child, which was sword lessons. Somehow, that was less dangerous than what Zaniyah was teaching them.
Luca was usually rounding up children with Tish, but he had been asked to give a sermon at the church in town. Due to the clerics in the area being sent out to help the war, he often found himself torn between helping out the town’s clinic or healing children’s scrapes and bruises. Out of all of them, he was the busiest.
Though he had been rather absent as of late, Chester appreciated that Luca had been assigned to their squad. The tense air between Evan and Tish had mostly dissipated. Either they were busy with their mission and Tish would no doubt spend all of her free time with Veximarl once they returned to the barracks. There weren’t many opportunities to fight.
Zaniyah looked over at the other two. “Should we go on patrol?” Tish’s stories always took a few hours. They had plenty of time to go for a walk around the fields.
“Too hot,” whispered Chester. Frost gathered around his fingertips as he put a hand to the back of his neck. It wasn’t even noon and the heat was already getting to him.
Evan’s expression became stern. It was always stern, but much more so than usual. “We must not let our skills dull simply because we have been issued an easy assignment.”
Chester tossed him a glare. “This isn’t the barracks. We don’t have jurisdiction here,” he argued. “We can’t wander about on other’s private property hunting for rabbits or swinging from trees.”
“Why would people be upset about us having some fun?” Asked Zaniyah. “It’s not like we’re looking for trouble.”
“There’s a high risk of us wandering on private property without permission,” replied Chester. And there was also a high risk of danger whenever a member of Grimstone Squad was around.
Evan stood up. “Then we will head to the main town and ask if they need assistance,” he said with a firm nod. “A town guard should always be accepting of squires willing to work.”
Except for the fact that these squires included a barbarian and an elementalist. Zaniyah’s disposition made people naturally wary of her, but it had been worse for Chester. The illness that overtook the elementalists last month was still largely unexplained. There was no evidence that it wouldn’t happen again.
Zaniyah stood up and pumped his fist in the air. “Alright! Volunteer work!”
Chester let out a long sigh. She didn’t realize that they would no doubt be tossed at novice guard duties. Then again, if he were stuck doing paperwork, he would be indoors. It was much easier for his magic to cool an indoor area than it was to keep himself cool outside.
He reluctantly stood up and patted himself down to make sure he had everything on him. Zaniyah grinned widely. Evan nodded approvingly. Chester couldn’t bring himself to care. They fetched Zaniyah’s and Evan’s horses, as well as a mule they borrowed from Braytons, and set out on their adventure.
There was rarely trouble in a place like this. Nearly everyone relied on the barter system, having more faith in raising animals than saving money. Chickens and goats were most popular, as eggs, meat, and milk were always needed. If they didn’t have enough land to raise anything, they settled into other tasks such as weaving or shoemaking.
The abbey was no different. Any land they owned had been converted into fruit orchards. Children often gorged themselves on sweet fruits while the rest were processed into different flavors of wine. Their earnings had them breaking even most years, but it was still enough to give everyone a comfortable life.
Children here were grouped by interest and taught trade crafts. Many would leave once they hit thirteen, when they were old enough to start apprenticeships. Few would stay, seeking to be farmers or caretakers of the abbey.
The squires from Braytons enjoyed the peaceful life that was found here. None loved more than Zanyah’s horse, Gypsum. The abbey was surrounded by tall walls with few entrances, meaning he was allowed to wander about the wide courtyard freely. He especially enjoyed adventuring with Zaniyah. The ground here was more level than it was by Braytons or Carapace. Gypsum could run as fast as he wanted without worrying about adjusting for hills or dips in the road.
Though his disappointment elevated to new heights when Zaniyah quickly eased him to a stop. She squinted her eyes and waited for the others. Evan caught up first, while Chester took his time to catch up on the mule. Mule pace was its own thing, and the beast did not know the definition of “hurry.”
“Something’s happening over there,” muttered Zaniyah.
She was focused on a dust cloud chasing behind a group of riders. One was riding ahead of the others. He shook the reins of his horse frantically, though the animal’s unsteady gait meant that it could not keep up this pace for long.
Chester formed a circle with his hand and looked through it. Frost built up around his glove, twisting together to form an icicle spyglass. “Four total. Two are wearing leather armor, but it’s standard gear. No uniforms.”
Evan squinted as he strained to see. “No one here wears uniforms. Not even the guards.”
“Wait,” whispered Zaniyah. The front rider had slipped off of his horse. She tightened her grip on Gypsum’s reins. “Hyah!”
“Don’t charge in!” Evan cried out after her. Though it was useless, she was already gone.
Zaniyah raced in part of the way before hopping off Gypsum, using the extra momentum to dash in. She took Fling off her thigh and held it up defensively. “No one gets any closer to him until someone tells me what in the core you’re-” She put up a shield to deflect an arrow. “Hey! Rude!” She kept her shield up with one arm as she held up Fling.
The man she was trying to save had been left twisted and broken by his fall. “R-run,” he gasped out. An agonizing groan escaped his lips as he twisted up in a ball. One of the riders had extended his hand out towards him, as though he were casting some weird spell on him.
“It’s okay, man, I got you,” replied Zaniyah reassuringly.
The hunter who had his hand outstretched tossed a side glance to their archer. “Faith her.” The archer shook his head. “We don’t have time. Faith both of them and be done with it.”
After a moment of hesitation, the archer retrieved a fancy looking arrow from his quiver. It had a leather pouch over its tip, which he ripped off with his teeth before notching it into his bow.
“My name is Zaniyah Krogastein! I am a squire of Braytons, and I demand to know-”
The arrow struck her shield and cracked through it with no resistance. She barely had the time to tilt her head to the side, but it still managed to slice through her cheek. Zaniyah inhaled sharply as horrifying pain tensed up the muscles in her face. Her eyes widened from shock.
She put her hand to her cheek in an attempt to heal the injury. All she felt was hot blood as the wound refused to seal. The archer was already notching another arrow. At this distance, she wouldn’t be able to cleanly dodge a body shot. Instinct kicked in as she hurled Fling forward
Time almost seemed to slow as she watched the second arrow fly forward, quickly followed by her axe striking the archer’s shoulder. Zaniyah always believed that her life was supposed to flash before her eyes, but her mind was an empty void. She attempted to step to the side, only to hear a loud screeching as the arrow made contact with a wall of ice.
“Get down!” Chester shouted. He held his hand aloft, wand neatly held between his fingertips.
Evan put a hand to the hilt of his sword but remained neatly seated on his saddle. “I thought your shield was supposed to be stronger,” he muttered.
Zaniyah looked down at her hand. Blood was still gushing from her cheek. “Something’s wrong with that arrow.”
Chester struggled to concentrate. His wand was shaking in his hand. “Get on your horse. We need to go.”
Zaniyah turned around and shook her head. She gestured to the wounded man. “We can’t leave him!”
Though reluctant to let a man suffer, Evan knew they were in trouble. “We can’t expose ourselves to arrows of true faith,” he said as an attempt to reason with her. “And we’ll need a wagon to transport him. Our only choice is to flee and make our report.”
“He’ll die!” Zaniyah cried back. She gestured to the man on the ground again.
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That’s when Zaniyah noticed that the man had a terrible gash on his cheek. It looked infected, and part of the flesh had died off, leaving his teeth exposed. Her own wound was near her eye as well as part of her ear. Zaniyah grasped onto her cheek again and doubled her efforts to heal it, worried that something like that would happen to her.
The arrow was still screeching in the ice like a hot sword being quenched in oil. Zaniyah glanced at it behind her before she addressed the man again. “It’s alright. I’m going to pick you up and carry you to safety.”
“Zaniyah!” Chester cried out just as the arrow cracked through the ice. With a shake of his wand, ice tendrils curled out in an attempt to catch it… But his spell wasn’t fast enough.
Zaniyah let out a brief exhale of air as she felt the arrow strike between her shoulder blades.
She felt the warm earth below her as she thudded against the road. The scent of the rising dust hit her nostrils. Oddly, her body felt numb. Nothing below her waist seemed to work anymore. Though she couldn’t feel anything, that numbing sensation was so overwhelming that it was starting to black out her senses.
“That was a mistake,” whispered Chester harshly. It has been said as a threat, but he knew full well that he was the one at fault.
He slid off the side of his horse and bit his wand between his teeth. The bindings that he kept on his wrists were torn off, and the barrette that kept his hair up was also tossed to the side. Without Chickadee nearby, he didn’t trust his magic not to go haywire. But, without those bindings, there was a chance he could’ve prevented Zaniyah from getting struck. His hair began to blow about wildly as the wind began to howl.
The archer laid bleeding on the ground, but another of the hunting party had picked up his bow and was in the process of notching another arrow. Chester snatched his wand from his teeth and flicked it outward. All around them, the winds howled more loudly, twisting the arrow around Chester and firing back at his attacker. It thudded into the neck of one of their horses. The beast, rather than bucking back, crumpled into a seizuring heap.
Zaniyah fought to stay conscious. She couldn’t hear the wind, nor could she hear Evan as he called out to her. He put a hand to her shoulder, but she couldn’t even sense the pressure. Her fingers loosely grasped the dirt road as she failed to push herself up. Pawing at the dirt was the most she was capable of.
It was as if her mind was being torn apart. At one point, she was in Chester’s growing blizzard, yet she was also standing in a field. Someplace warm. Someplace calm. There was someone idling nearby and the scent of a simple meal... Everything about this place was so tranquil and serene.
Zaniyah felt herself drifting away from the cold as she happily accepted this inviting place. There was the faint rustling of tall grass and birds, as well as the scent of vinegar and bacon. She hesitantly took a step towards the figure who was sitting on the ground. Her legs didn’t feel stiff or useless, but her body still felt numb.
Vincent looked up from his meal. He tilted his head, clearly confused by what he was witnessing. “... Zaniyah?”
Zaniyah opened her mouth to speak, but found that she didn’t have one. She felt around her face and noticed that it was completely smooth, like a helmet. Without understanding what was happening to herself, she tried to gain perspective by staring down at her hands. Her whole body was glittering pink and gold light, much like her shield.
Chickadee had always reassured her that her soul wasn’t attached to blood iron, but… Wait, was she dead?! Zaniyah began to flail her arms about as an attempt to communicate. Was she dead and doomed to haunt her ex-boyfriend for all eternity?!
“Calm down,” said Vincent as he set down his bowl. He stood up and held his hands steady in the air, as though he were attempting to calm a charging steed. “Are you still on your mission at the abbey?” Zaniyah hesitantly nodded her head. “I will come to you, but I am three or four days away. Please be patient.”
Zaniyah felt her consciousness being yanked outside of her body. Her eyes snapped open… And she was laying on her stomach in someplace clean smelling. The first thing she checked were her hands, which were fleshy and covered in skin. She let out a sigh of relief, then gagged from how dry her mouth was.
“Hold on.” Luca stood up from his chair and poured her a glass of water. He set this on the nightstand next to her bed. “First, try to grip onto my hand.”
Zaniyah reached up and attempted to tighten her fingers about his. Her hand was shaking terribly. All she managed to do was give a brief squeeze before she was forced to give up.
“Thank you... I’ll help you get a drink,” said Luca.
Luca had to support Zaniyah as he held the glass to her mouth. She wasn’t able to sit up on her own. Part of her face felt numb, and the muscles didn’t work quite right in her cheek. After a few sips, Luca eased Zaniyah down and adjusted her pillows so she could comfortably lie on her side.
“Sorry. We have to monitor how much you eat or drink because you might vomit,” he said apologetically.
“It’s fine… We’re in the infirmary, right? At the abbey?” Zaniyah asked.
Luca fetched his chair and dragged it to the side of Zaniyah’s bed. “Yeah... Yeah, we are.” His look softened, as though he pitied her a great deal.
“... What happened?”
“Do you know about arrows of true faith?”
Shaw had drilled information about them into her head. It was a part of his lessons about the Arbutus family. To be honest, Zaniyah only half paid attention. She did know that they caused the death of a few family members during the war. What she hadn’t expected was how efficient they were against magic.
“Yeah, but… I mean, are Chester and Evan alright?” The last thing she remembered before seeing Vincent was that Chester was summoning up a blizzard.
“They managed to kill one retrieve the arrows,” replied Luca. “Unfortunately, the other two escaped. Chester and Evan were focused on getting you and Maurice back here safely rather than giving them chase.”
“Maurice?”
“He’s in the bed by the window,” replied Luca. Zaniyah attempted to turn around, but Luca grabbed onto her shoulder. “Don’t move if you don’t have to. Maurice is fine. His bones are still soft, but he’s fine... At least, we think he is? He doesn't talk all that much, but from a medical standpoint, he should be okay? I guess?”
Zaniyah scrunched up her nose. “... Alright?”
Luca attempted to smile at her reassuringly, but his smile quickly faltered. “Vincent had to step out for a moment but he’ll want to know that you’re awake. I’ll bring him here for you.”
“... I thought he was way, way far north,” replied Zaniyah. “Chilling out on some beach with his squad.”
“Yeaaah,” said Luca. “... It’s been a few days. Listen, uh, Vincent wanted to be the one to talk to you about it. Tish might come too. Wait here and I’ll be back as soon as I can.”
Her eyes followed Luca as he headed out the door. Zaniyah then gagged. She still felt thirsty. Barfing be damned, she needed a drink. She attempted to climb out of bed, only to collapse on the floor.
“... Eh?”
Nothing below her waist worked. Well, it sort of worked because she didn’t completely flop over. Zaniyah didn’t have the strength to move her legs, nor could she feel anything below the center of her back, where the arrow had hit her. She let out a huff of frustration. Her arms flailed about as she tried to find anything to grab onto so she could use to pull herself up.
Soft, padded steps made her way towards her. Bare feet appeared in her vision, then a warmth encompassed her as Maurice picked her up and set her down on the bed. Zaniyah tried to lay on her back and let out a faint wheeze as she felt shooting pain scream out from her injury. Maurice helped her lay on her side. He knelt by the bed so he could get a good look at her.
His cheek looked… Better? The dead flesh around his infection had to be cut away, leaving a deep pocket in his skin. At least his teeth were definitely no longer exposed, which was better than how it used to look. Zaniyah held her hand to her cheek. A bandage had been stuck there. She could feel stitches underneath it and on her ear.
“Thanks,” she muttered. “... Are you alright now?”
“You’re worse,” replied Maurice.
He stood up and walked to the other side of the bed, moving towards the window. Zaniyah attempted to roll over to look his way, but only managed a pained whimper. With a heavy sigh, Maurice went back and helped her rotate.
“Who was chasing you?” Zaniyah looked up at him, but he only grimaced in return. “... Sorry. Evan probably interrogated you a hundred times already about it. I mean, Vincent likely also asked you a billion questions after he showed up. I shouldn’t be rude and-”
“Slavers,” interrupted Maurice. “I was taken by slavers last winter and forced to work with them.”
“... Whoa,” whispered Zaniyah. “Well, I had a friend taken by slavers, so I know a thing or two about-”
“Sybil Twist,” he interrupted again. “... I’m aware.”
“Right… Because those were the same people,” muttered Zaniyah.
Maurice let out another sigh and sat on the edge of his bed. “I’m still feeling tired. Please don’t talk to me right now.”
The two sat in awkward silence until Luca appeared with Vincent. Without a word, Vincent started to fuss with Zaniyah’s pillows so that he could prop her up. There was a special pillow that Tish had sewn for her. It had a gap in the center, so that her wound wouldn’t have any pressure against it.
Luca sat back down in his chair. “Chester did what he could to remove the little bits of the arrow that were left in you. It begins to dissolve once it hits blood and unfortunately, it had struck your spine, so Chester couldn’t hasten the procedure. He didn’t think it wise to wiggle a magnet inside your spinal cord and rushed to get you here so I could operate.”
Zaniyah looked between the two of them. “He did his best, right? It’s better to get it out quickly rather than not at all?”
“It is,” replied Luca. “But there were pieces left behind that I had to remove.” He hesitated as his face began to drag with overwhelming guilt. “I’m sorry, Zaniyah. I don’t have much surgery experience either. I-I did what I could to save your life, but…”
“The nerve was severely damaged,” continued Vincent. “Part of your vertebrae had to be removed as well. The bone had become infected. It is unlikely that you will ever walk again.”
Zaniyah blinked a few times. “... Well, that’s not a big problem, right? I mean, who needs walking?”
Vincent sat down in the chair next to the bed. He grasped onto her hand. “Zaniyah…”
She laughed. “It’s fine... I’m alive. It’s all good as long as I’m still alive. What’s the problem?”
Vincent tensed up for a moment before continuing. “Tish has written to your brothers. Paladin Arbutus has not yet replied to say whether or not he is visiting. His duties protecting the prince will likely prevent him from seeing you until our missions are done. We are going to transport you to barracks as soon as we are certain that you are stable.”
“What about my squad?” Zaniyah asked. She subconsciously tilted her head while she asked, only to be rewarded with a stab of pain.
“We’ve written to them as well,” replied Vincent. “You will be able to see them soon, once we start our journey back.”
“When are we going back?”
Luca still looked full of guilt and dismay. “It will all depend on you. If it seems like you will slip into a coma again, we won’t be able to do much. We have to make sure that you will survive the journey before you go anywhere.”
“Wow…” Zaniyah nodded a few times. “... That does sound pretty serious.”
Luca frowned. “... We should’ve brought Tish.”
Zaniyah laughed again. “I’m fine! I don’t need counseling or my brothers. Maybe Sybil, but she’s probably busy too, right? Or she stopped by while I was sleeping?”
“No,” replied Vincent. “She was also attacked by slavers and was forced to flee to the barracks. The group that was chasing Mister Maurice were stragglers from her attackers.” Zaniyah nodded a few times. “We are doing everything we can to help her.”
“Pfft, I know that.” Zaniyah grinned at the pair. “It’s not like she should’ve run all the way here so I could protect her, even though I’m a lot closer than Braytons. Like, way, way closer.”
Vincent tightly gripped onto her hand. “She was injured… They had to seek emergency treatment from Lady Blu.” The smile drained from Zaniyah’s face. “She’s doing better. Her injuries weren’t as severe as yours but she’s suffered a great deal of mental strain.”
Zaniyah slowly nodded her head. “Well, then… I’ll just get Iath to heal my back, then I can help her out myself.” Maurice scoffed loudly from his corner of the room.
Luca wasn’t convinced either. “Faith is important, but we also need to be practical.”
She shook her head. “Nope, that’s just the way it is. Iath is going to make me better, then I’m gonna hunt down those slavers, and I’ll make every single one of them pay for what they’ve done to me and Sybil.”
And if Iath refused to help her, she was going to murder him first, then hunt down the slavers. Everyone was just going to have to deal with being safe forever. That’s simply the way it was going to be.