Khollo frowned, thinking this over. The pain in his chest was bad, but not unbearable. He could feel his body again. Perhaps the drug was wearing off. “Hungry,” he said finally.
The healer nodded. “I expect so. You haven’t had a good meal in, oh, three days I think. Let’s see, you woke two nights ago and that was the night after the battle . . . well, two and a half.”
Khollo’s stomach rumbled in protest.
“I’m going,” the healer said quickly. “Lord Kurkan, please stay with him until I return. But don’t tire him, that’s an order.”
“To hear is to obey,” Janis murmured, winking at Khollo. Khollo rolled his eyes. If Janis ever heard an order and obeyed it in his life, I’ll eat those leather restraints they’ve strapped on me.
“You came to no harm?” Janis asked. “Permanent harm, I mean?”
Khollo sighed. “I wish you had given me a chance to respond to the original version of that question. I’ll live,” he said to Janis finally. “That’s what matters.”
Janis moaned in relief. “I’m sorry, Khollo, I tried to protect you, but I failed. As I failed your father.”
“You didn’t fail,” Khollo said quietly. “I saw how you fought. Four vertaga, was it? The only reason I was injured is because I tried to save you for once.”
“Never do that again,” Janis growled. “Or I’ll – ”
“Kill me?” Khollo suggested helpfully.
“Yes! No! Of course not,” Janis muttered. “I hate it when you get smart with me.”
Khollo was instantly sorry. “I didn’t mean to frighten you,” he said. “Or to anger you, or disobey your orders. But there were several vertaga on that roof, and they would have killed us all if I hadn’t helped. There’s a time to stay back, stay out of the way, let someone else do the fighting. But that was not it. When my friends are in danger, I fight,” Khollo finished. “I will not run or hide.”
“Nor should you,” Janis agreed. “You have grown into a fine man, Khollo. I would like to think I had some part in it, but I suspect that it is your father in you. He would have been proud of you,” Janis said quietly.
They sat in silence for a moment, each wrapped in his own thoughts. A feeling of warmth and belonging came over Khollo. Your father would be proud of you. He had waited so long to hear those words.
“Tell me everything,” Khollo said suddenly. He was in rather a garrulous mood.
Janis eyed him warily. “Are you sure? You should probably be recovering your strength.”
“Don’t worry about me,” Khollo replied. “What happened to the vertaga, are they dead?”
“Most of them,” Janis replied immediately. “A few got away on those hell-born steeds of theirs – ”
“Whoa, hold on, steeds?” Khollo asked, interrupting. “I thought you said horses would not bear them?”
“Who said anything about horses?” Janis asked, wincing, as though he had not meant to stray onto this topic. “Their beasts are much larger than our horses are.”
“What do they look like?” Khollo asked.
“No, enough,” Janis decided. “You need rest.”
“Janis, tell me now or I swear I will tear these restraints apart and go search the Southern Fells until I find a specimen of my own to observe.”
Janis sighed. “Fine. I suppose you should know since you shot one of them through the eye. You must have missed something on the wall and the beast was in the wrong place at the wrong time. At any rate, the one you shot was nearly three meters long, with the strength of a bear but the speed and face of a wolf. And the eyes, they were intelligent, cunning.”
Khollo pictured this creature, then added a massive vertaga warrior to its back. The result was almost too terrifying to contemplate. But the vertaga did not hold the same irrational fear for Khollo that they had before. I’ve seen them now, fought them, Khollo thought. They bleed and die just like any other creature. And they can be defeated, like any other foe.
“I have a sketch,” Janis said, sorting through his pockets.
“No,” Khollo said. “That will keep. How are the others? You know, Sermas, Hern, Ondus . . . Clemon . . . Genal.”
Janis gave a short bark of laughter. “You needn’t worry about Clemon and Genal. They took no harm, just as they took no part in the fight. Wilkes gave Genal an earful about loyalty to comrades and courage and such, then reassigned him to the infirmary until further notice. Mind you, nearly everyone’s assigned to the infirmary right now. Sermas and Hern are doing well. Hern remembers little of the battle. Head wounds, you know. Sermas is beating himself up over your injury. Thinks that if he had done a better job of fighting that one vertag you would have been fine.”
“I’ll be fine anyways,” Khollo growled. “What about Ondus? And the smiths! I saw their charge from the kitchens.”
Janis’ eyes hardened and his mouth set in a thin line. “Ondus took many wounds. None were mortal though. He lost a lot of blood and has been confined to his bed since the battle, very weak, but alive and in little pain. The smiths . . . their small force paid a steep price for the seven vertaga they killed. Six dead, all stable hands and assistant cooks. Without their sacrifice, we would likely lay slain ourselves.”
Khollo nodded agreement. “Twelve vertaga on the roof would have been more than we could handle. I – ”
He broke off as the door opened and the healer entered, bearing a tray laden with food. The healer looked between Janis and Khollo suspiciously and harrumphed.
“I suppose you’ve worn him out with talking, Lord Kurkan?” he demanded stiffly. “It really would be easier for me to do my job and heal both the
