Pathfinder Galstar’s absence was explained some hours later when they arrived at the spot for the second camp, only to find that it had been already prepared for their arrival.
The Kranjir had also laid out markers for waste, where the closest fresh water was and had been hunting in the local area.
Verdan had seen the mounted scouts here and there all day, so clearly this had been a concerted effort by only a few of their number, though that only made it more impressive.
The Airta seemed impressed despite themselves at the pre-organised camp, as were they all. Still, Galstar had a slightly smug expression as she and her people effortlessly managed the flow of the small army into the prepared areas.
Cooks and support staff from the city prepared a hot meal for everyone once they were set up, using the fresh meat to supplement what they had with them.
The work of a few hunters didn’t go far when there were seven hundred mouths to feed, but it helped give some depth to the quick stew that was made.
Verdan ate with Natalia and Feli, and though their conversation about herbs and alchemical practices was mostly over his head, he enjoyed the company nonetheless.
Some time after they’d finished eating, Verdan saw Kai and Gwen approaching their fire, with Branwen and Zhalia not far behind them.
Natalia had noticed as well as she got to her feet. “Sorry, Feli. We’ve got some work to do now.”
“Oh, no problem,” the green Witch said, her hamster familiar poking her head out of the pocket of Feli’s jacket. “I’ll go for a walk and see what spirits are around here.”
“If you do, ask them what they’ve seen if you don’t mind,” Verdan said, though he doubted they’d get much useful information out of any spirits in the local area.
The Cyth shouldn’t have got this far west according to their information, but it would be a good practice to get into for when they got past Dresk.
“So, how do you want to do this?” Kai asked as he and the others reached them.
“I’ve already prepared, don’t worry,” Verdan said, leading the way to the rear of the wagon he and Natalia were sharing.
During the day, Verdan was moving near the front of the group, ready in case anything happened, while Natalia and the Fwyn rode in the wagon.
Once they’d arrived, he joined them and had asked Aeva to create a low stone table for them. Everything else he needed, he’d brought with him, but a decent flat surface was hard to find.
Kai saw the stone table and looked a little pale for a moment before sitting down on the stone and glancing up at them. “You’ll be putting me to sleep, right?”
“Don’t worry,” Natalia said softly, stepping forward with two vials. “Drink these and you’ll wake up once we’re done.”
Kai nodded jerkily and downed the two vials, passing them back to Natalia once he was done.
Verdan waited impatiently as Kai lay down and the sleeping potion took effect. It wasn’t that he wanted to hurry the Sorcerer, but he’d been worrying all day about what they’d find.
Taking a breath, Verdan looked around at the Clerics as Kai slipped into a deep sleep. “Alright, time for the blessings. Let’s get to work.”
Branwen and Zhalia applied their blessing while Verdan put a sharpening spell on his scalpel and swept it with a cleaning spell.
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Stilling his mind, Verdan leaned in and moved Kai’s arm into the right position before slicing deep into his friend’s flesh and peeling it back so they could see the bone where it had been damaged.
Dimly, Verdan heard Natalia gasp as the bone of Kai’s arm was revealed. There were none of the dark veins or signs of corruption that they’d seen before, but the entirety of the bone was grey.
Taking the incision up toward the shoulder, Verdan confirmed that the entire bone was affected, but the change hadn’t passed through the shoulder joint.
Closing up the incision, Verdan cast a spell to bind the two edges together before hitting Kai with his strongest healing spell.
“What do we do now?” Gwen asked, her voice a little shaky.
“We get him settled and let him wake up on his own,” Verdan said huskily. “After that, I don’t know.”
“The damage is to his soul,” Zhalia said softly into the bleak silence that followed Verdan’s words. “I’m not sure if your magic can truly heal that.”
“But yours can?” Gwen asked fiercely, turning to Zhalia with an intent look. “Can you fix this?”
“No, the magic of the gods can not do this either,” Zhalia said, quickly holding up her hands as Gwen’s eyes flashed angrily and the subtle scent of ozone filled the air. “That isn’t to say there is no cure, just that I can’t do it.”
“Then who can?” Verdan asked, eager to move this along before Gwen lost her temper.
“You would need someone who understands the magics of the soul. Beyond that, I don’t know. We Airta understand our part well enough, but this is something else entirely.”
“Thank you for explaining,” Verda said, even as he searched his memory for anyone who would have that kind of magic. If the Airta were right, then that meant he needed a practitioner of Parada, and they were incredibly difficult to find.
Silence fell as they all came to the realisation that there was no cure coming for Kai in the foreseeable future.
Gwen stirred after a few moments and looked over to Zhalia. “Will he be in any danger from the change?”
The Cleric shook her head, but Verdan caught the slight moment of hesitation before she spoke. “I don’t think so, but you must be prepared for his arm to change further. Maybe the bone changing is all that happens, but I doubt it.”
Verdan doubted it as well but said nothing, instead focusing on making sure that Kai was healing properly from the incision.
Everything seemed to be going well, so Verdan turned back to the rest of the group. “Alright, let’s leave Kai to rest. We’ve got a lot of distance to cover tomorrow. I’ll stay and keep watch for a little while, though, just in case.”
“No,” Gwen said, stirring from where she’d been staring off into the distance. “I’ll stay. I’m sure there’s plenty else for you to be doing.”
Verdan nodded and headed back to the fire with Natalia, leaving Gwen to sit in silence by the sleeping Kai.
-**-
Natalia liked to ask about the sights of the Imperium, to try to imagine what life had been like back then, and Verdan was just describing the Imperial gardens when Magnus and Dirk approached their fire.
Verdan broke off his explanation, eyeing the surprising unity in their step. There were few things that they could both want from him, but he was confident he knew what they were going to ask.
“Duty calls?” Natalia asked, smiling faintly as she saw the two Kranjir approaching.
“It seems that way,” Verdan said with a dramatic sigh. “Such is the cost of being a wise and all-knowing Wizard.”
Natalia laughed and shook her head. “Well, I’m sure such a man would know the wisdom of not spending all night working.”
Getting to her feet, Natalia gave him a pointed look before heading up into the wagon they were sharing.
Verdan stared after her for a long moment before turning back to Magnus and Dirk, who were waiting at the edge of the small camp Verdan had set up. “Well, what do the two of you want?”
Magnus shifted uncomfortably, but Dirk stood firm and answered for the both of them. “We’re ready to learn a new Word.”
“I see.” Verdan got to his feet and went to the storage box at the rear of the wagon to grab the side project he’d been working on for the last few days.
Taking the long wooden box that contained it, Verdan made a beckoning motion and set off to leave the camp. “Come with me, both of you.”
Leading his apprentices out of the camp and a short distance into the surrounding woods, Verdan first created an alarm ward before adding a silencing one as well.
That would keep them isolated and, hopefully prevent any distractions.
“Alright, take a seat. Sia garreg,” Verdan said, creating a stone chair for himself and Magnus. At Dirk’s look, Verdan shook his head and waved for him to do it himself.
Dirk cast the spell and formed a chair of rock, and though it was a bit rougher than Verdan’s version, it was serviceable.
“Not a bad attempt, I see you’ve been keeping up your training,” Verdan said approvingly. It was all too easy to stop and just work on the new Words you’d learned.
Dirk beamed at the praise. “Thank you, Master. I’m doing my best to follow your example.”
Verdan wasn’t sure that he was the best example, but there wasn’t exactly another Wizard that he could point them to. He’d just have to make sure they didn’t pick up his bad habits.
Learning the right way to do things would start right now.