by Sami Dougish
My scales weren’t steel plated yet, but they already were far more durable and resistant to cutting then they had been minutes ago. Plus, under my armor, the sopping power of the scales would be compounded by whatever armor I wore. I would take it. Curious to see how my talons compared to the dagger, I did the same test with the talons. I gritted my teeth, when I surprised myself, by cutting a deep furrow into my arms scales, as the talon split the hardened scales as easily as if they had been skin. After getting over the initial shock, I grinned, as I imagined what these talons could do to human skin.
I wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but my claws had disappeared, so it must have been at least fifteen minutes of soaking in the water. It was no longer hot, but lukewarm at best. I stood, and stretched, my body feeling worlds better after the soak. I drained the tub and stepped out. I walked naked from the room and went to where my pack was. I quickly pulled out one of the cotton shirts I had bought, along with a pair of underwear and pants. Now dressed, I was eager to just lay down and sleep, but I knew I needed to tend to my gear first.
For the next twenty minutes, I wiped down, and cleaned the filthy leather armor. The set had served me well, and I was glad I had spent the gold to purchase it. There were several nicks in the leather, including the spots where I had taken my two large wounds, but overall the armor was still in good shape. Once I was done oiling it down, I checked over my weapons. The naginatas edge was still as sharp as it had been when I had first purchased it. The hammer and mace had several small dents, but nothing I could really do about that. I settled for just wiping the dried blood and gore from the weapons before setting them aside as well.
Satisfied that all my gear was clean, I went to reassure myself that the door was locked securely. Once done, I picked up all of my belongings, and moved to where the bedroom was. The interior was even more impressive than the rest of the room, with a large bed covered in a variety of furs and linen. I grimaced at the thing. I hated the way the cheap bedding had been so soft, and I could only imagine what this one would feel like.
I walked over to the bed and grabbed one of the many furs. This one looked to be from some sort of black bear. I was about to make myself a spot on the floor to lay down, when I remembered that Ekton had said there was a balcony that over looked the escarpment this hideout was built into. I had spent enough time sleeping without being able to see the sky, and I’d rather sleep outside then in.
I picked up my pack and weapons again and slung the bear pelt over my shoulders and made my way back out into the main room. This time I turned to the final door, and pushed it open, which lead down a small smooth stone corridor. The moment I opened the door, my nose picked up the scent of fresh air, not the stale taste of the underground air.
I eagerly moved down the hallway, and eventually, I came out to a small balcony that was built into the side of the escarpment. I looked up, and saw that vines and other such plants, grew from cracks in the rocks, and provided a certain amount of camouflage from any one viewing the balcony, from the other side of the escarpment. I took a deep breath as I looked out at the landscape. The view was impressive to say the least. I had a view of the forest on the other side of the escarpment, and of the river below. The sun was just at its mid-point, and I was surprised by how much time had passed since we had attacked the compound.
I wasn’t in the habit of sleeping at this time, but I was tired, and didn’t care that it was mid-day, it was time for a nap. I laid down on the cool stone floor and placed my weapons all within easy reach. I then pulled the fur pelt over my tired body, and before I knew it, I was falling into unconsciousness.
Chapter 13
I was awoken by a sharp knock at the door in the main area of the room I was staying in. sometimes my races improved senses could be a real pain in the ass. I decided to just ignore the knocking. This proved to be in vain though, as a few moments later, I heard a voice call out. It was distinctly feminine, and surprisingly loud.
“Sorry to interrupt you, but the boss sent me up here to inspect your wounds, I am a healer, and have been instructed to examine your wounds, and provide medical aid. Please unbolt the door. I would let myself in with the master key, but you threw the bolt on as well. Open up so I can examine your wounds!”
I growled, both tired, and now irritated as well. Judging by the sun, I hadn’t been asleep for more than a half hour or so. I rolled over under the pelt and decided to just ignore her. I was just about to drift off again, when she the persistent women banged on the door again.
“Look here, I do not have all day! You are the boss’s guest, and he gave me strict orders to see to your wounds! I will get in there even if I have to knock this damn door down! I know you are in there, now open up!”
Now thoroughly irritated, I stood up, and growled. I picked up my hammer and a knife and stomped over to the door. Mid knock, I grabbed the handle, pulled the bolt and wrenched the door open. The sight that greeted me was that of an older looking human women. She was small, just barely taller than your average dwarf. She had grey hair that was pulled back into a tight bun, and almond shaped brown eyes that were glaring back at me with the same amount of irritation in my own eyes. Her face wasn’t heavily lined, and she seemed to be in decent shape, but it was clear by her hair, and her expression she was older then she looked. She was wearing a long black robe, and carried a small bundle in her right hand, and had her left raised, mid knock.
Her hand fell to her hip though, and she raised an eyebrow at me and said, “Well it’s about time. Don’t you have any respect for those older than you and are trying to help you?! Making me wait out here wasting my time! Why I have- “
I didn’t let her finish, and bared my teeth before growling out, “Then feel free to leave! I have taken care of my own wounds and wish to rest human! I have no need of your services!”
My fangs made her take a step back, in surprise, but she quickly recovered, and snorted at me, “So you are a drayzraac huh? Well, I don’t give a rat’s ass if you were part troll, and dragon, my job is to heal, and the boss sent me to do just that for you! I am sure whatever hack job you preformed on your wounds can’t compare in the slightest to what I can do for you in the mundane way, let alone what I can heal with my magic! Now stand aside and let me in so the both of us can be done with this!”
My eyes narrowed, so she was a mage as well. Now that I was focused again, I did feel the familiar power in the air that surrounded mages. I hissed warningly at her, and made to close the door as I said, “I have no need for some arrogant mage, who feels she has to stoop below her station to heal me, get out, and leave me alone!”
I slammed the door in her face and was satisfied that she would take my blatant hint to leave. I turned to go back to my sleep when she began banging on the door again.
The closed door didn’t faze her, and she continued to shout through the door, “Look here you ungrateful pile of scales! It is not just anyone who has access to a magical healer! You want to leave as soon as possible yes! Well believe me, I can help with that! The sooner you let me speed up your recovery, the sooner you can be gone from this place! Besides, I was told to see to you, and I will not be leaving this spot until you let me come in and examine you!”
She proceeded to bang on the door rhythmically, and I howled in frustration.
“Persistent isn’t she!” Raskorian sound extremely amused by the whole situation, and his laugh reverberated in my head.
“Ugh this is ridiculous!” I replied out loud.
“Well you could always kill her, absorb her blood, and throw her off the balcony. There won’t be any blood left as evidence, and they will have no proof you killed her.”
I couldn’t help it, and I burst out laughing. As much as the idea was tempting, I knew it probably wouldn’t be the best idea. If I was found out, there was no way I would be able to fight my way out of this place.
“All I want is some damn sleep!”
“Well maybe you should just let her i
n, and heal you, if you do not want to take the killing route.”
I groaned; the dragon was right. The women seemed to have no intention of leaving until she was allowed to examine me, and as if on cue, she began yelling at me again, and her knocking increased in intensity.
Sighing in exasperated defeat, I moved back over to the door, and wrenched it open. The woman was of course still standing there, with an indignant look plastered across her face.
“We’ll have you finally pulled the stick out of your ass and decided to let me come in and do you a favor, or do you still intend to keep an old woman out here in this drafty hallway!”
I growled at her but proceeded to let her into the room. The healer bustled in, muttering to herself the entire time, and moved over to one of the chairs in the middle of the room. She turned to me, and gestured to the chair, and said, “Well come on, sit yourself down here so we can get started!”
I narrowed my eyes but moved over to where she gestured. I sat down and continued to glare at her. She set down her bundle and unrolled it. Inside were a number of medical items. Bandages, some sort of cream, a needle for stitches, and some other similar tools. I didn’t take my eyes off her the entire time. The more she continued muttering to herself, the more I felt like doing what Raskorian had suggested.
Finally, she turned to me, and said, “Oh stop glaring at me as If I sliced your cock off and forced your sister to eat it! Where were you injured?!”
“Hmm she is impudent, but she is quick, I will give her that,” Raskorian rumbled in an amused tone.
I ignored the dragon, and just said, “My right upper thigh, and my left ribcage area.”
“Well hurry up and take your clothes off so I can see the blasted things!”
Grudgingly, I stood up, and pulled my pants off, and then my shirt. I was left in just my underwear, and I sat back down, still glaring at the women. She looked me up and down, and I saw her frown when she looked at my scaled body.
“Are you done gawking?”
She shook her head, as if trying to clear her head, and she coughed, and quickly reverted to her previous biting tone.
“Hmph, I just have never dealt with a scaled patient. I was told stories of your kind growing, up, you seem to be more heavily scaled then the stories I was told suggested. I was just surprised.”
I didn’t answer her unspoken question, about the number my of scales, and just kept glaring at her. She muttered something to herself, and moved forward, and bent down to her knees as she looked at the wound in my thigh.
“Well at least you did a half decent job at bandaging the wound. I need to take off the binding to get to the wound.”
She proceeded to quickly unwrap the binding, and once she pulled the final layer off, she tutted under her breath and shot and accusatory glance at me, and asked, “Why didn’t you stitch this closed? This will otherwise leave a nasty scar and take longer to heal.”
“My scales are tough, needles break on contact,” was the only reply I gave her. She grunted in acknowledgement, and said, “Well I prefer the natural healing process, but since I don’t have any needles made out of stronger materials, I will have to use magic to speed this process up.”
“No,” I hissed angrily, as I instinctively pulled back from her, “No magic!”
She seemed taken aback for a moment at my strong reaction to her suggestion, she quickly recovered though, and barked, “Why not? Scared of magic? Don’t be a fool! You need this healed as soon as possible if you want to be on your way.”
“I will settle for letting it heal naturally! I don’t need any magical help! I don’t trust it, and from my experience, mages are more concerned with the matching clothing they are wearing, then the lives of those around them. I will take my chances healing on my own!”
To my surprise, the little women wasn’t cowed in the slightest, in fact she seemed to swell with indignant rage, and finally she burst, “What have I done to you to deserve such rude mistrust? Do you know how much magical healers usually cost?! Brazkin spends a small fortune keeping me on retainer and will also float the price of helping your ungrateful self. I do not know what mage’s you have met, but I spend all my time healing the wounded! I don’t play with my magic carelessly; I have spent years learning how to properly control it! I can proudly say I have never used my magic to take a life, I have only ever saved with it! How dare you hurl such disgusting accusations at my feet! You should be thanking me on hands and knees! You should be- “
“I should be what!” I roared, rising to my feet as well, “kowtowing, and kissing your feet since you deign to lower yourself to heal me!”
My eyes were blazing now, and I nearly followed through with my darker impulses.
“You come to my room, disturb me after being told to leave, burst in here, and proceed to insult me, and stare at me as if I was an expensive pet! You claim you are different form mages I have met in my life?” A growl slipped out, and I took an involuntary step towards the small woman as my anger built.
“What do you know about the mages I have met?! I do not fear magic, it’s the mages that use it that disgust me! Always so proud, so sure of their power, looking down on anyone without magic as if they alone were blessed by whatever gods they believe in!”
Her eyes now blazing as well, she refused to step back, “Is it wrong to examine something that makes you curious?! I have never seen your kind before, and I wanted to know if the stories were true! Now sit down before I force you down, Just because I heal, does not mean I can’t hurt as well!”
Her hands began to glow with magical energy, and her eyes blazed with magical energy to match her anger. The boiling anger rising inside me immediately turned to a much colder and crueler anger.
“Magic is a poor choice in close quarters.” I hissed out.
Before she could react, or utter a spell, the blade on the table was out of its sheath and pressed up into the soft flesh of her throat. For the first time since she walked into the room, her confidence was replaced by fear. I leaned forward relishing the smell of fear that wafted off of her. Fear had a distinctly sour smell, and my tongue flicked out to taste it as I stared into the mage’s eyes.
I leaned down, and in a voice dripping with scorn, I said, “You see? Arrogance. You felt safe and protected since you have the ability to manipulate mana. Before you can utter a single thing, I can shove this blade up through your jaw, and into your brain. Release your hold on whatever spell you are going to throw at me, and I will let you live, refuse, and you won’t live long enough to regret it.”
Almost as quickly as the magic had come, It faded. I still didn’t remove the blade though, and instead provided a bit of pressure, forcing her to move backwards.
“You are going to leave me in peace, or next time, I will cut out your tongue so you can never utter a single spell again. Do You Understand?” I clipped the last three words, to emphasize my point, and she attempted to nod, but the movement drew a small line of blood from her throat, and she immediately tensed.
I continued moving forward, until she was in the hall way, which was when I heard footsteps approaching. I didn’t take my eyes off the mage, but I sniffed, and judging from the scent, and the sound of the footsteps, it was Orizmad.
Sure enough, the dwarf turned the corner, followed closely by Ekton, and was greeted with the sight of me nearly naked, holding a blade, now stained with blood, against his healer’s throat. Ekton gasped, and Orizmad stopped in his tracks.
We all stood like that for several seconds, until Orizmad broke the silence and said, “Why is it half the time I see you, you have a blade at one of my members throat? Take that blade away from Marin’s throat Vakarrian, I owe you much, but my vow is null if you kill any of my men or women outside of self-defense. Besides, she is here to heal you.”
Still glaring at the mage and not removing the blade, I growled, “I didn’t ask for a healer!”
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Orizmad roll his eyes, and then say, “W
hat kind of host would I be, if I didn’t help my guest care for their wounds? By Arshaag’s hairy ass man, I am trying to be hospitable, and you are not making my job any easier! Now lower that blade!”
I hissed but still lowered the blade from the mages throat. She immediately sprung away from me and clutched at her throat where my blade had been seconds ago.
I turned to face Orizmad, and I saw him look me up and down, taking in my appearance. “By the six gods above man, you can make a map out of all those scars. And those scales! I have seen several Drayzraac slaves before, but none of them had as many scales as you do, not to mention those teeth of yours! I imagine you would have been considered quite a catch among your people eh!”
I narrowed my eyes at him, and said, “Not among any other race though it turned out. Especially in Thuum!” I spat the last word like a curse, and Orizmad nodded, as he took in my words.
“Yes, I can guess what you mean. Thuumians have an unhealthy love for slavery, and like most other races, they hate your kind. I assume you are the escaped slave that I have heard about?”
The only answer I gave was to hold my wrists up, so he could see the scars around my wrist which had come from years of wearing shackles.
He nodded solemnly, and said, “Well that would explain some of your scars, as well as your dislike of seemingly anyone you meet, I can’t imagine being a drayzraac slave in Thuum was enjoyable.”
I grunted in response, and said, “I have no need of a healer, all I want is some time to rest, afterwards, I will come and collect what I am owed.” I spun around, but before I was able to close the door, Orizmad made his way over to me, and said, “Look Vakarrian, I can guess why you dislike magic as well. I know that mages generally can be a pian in the ass, neck, and a multitude of other body parts, but take my word for it. Marin, despite her tendency to act like a badger with a head cold, is a fine healer, and a caring person. I gave you my word of protection, and Marin has worked with me for many years. Your wounds wont trouble you any more if you let her do her job. You will need all your strength in the days after you leave the safety of this place.”