by Jacinta Jade
Siray’s eyes widened in surprise. In the light of the three moons, she could see Baindan pull himself back upright and shake his head to get his wet hair away from his face.
When droplets of cool water sprayed over her, Siray flinched away from their cool touch automatically and then gasped as the movement caused pain to explode in her foot.
Baindan was leaning over her again in an instant, still dripping. ‘Is it your foot? Are you okay?’ he said rapidly, his voice concerned.
Siray wanted to respond, but speaking was physically beyond her while the wave of pain crashed through her. Slowly, it faded, and as it did, she reached both hands down to grip the upper part of her leg. She didn’t dare grip the foot itself, but she felt like she had to hold on to something after the intense onslaught.
Very carefully, she sat fully upright and moved her leg closer, trying not to flex the foot. Something wasn’t right.
‘It feels so tight,’ she told Baindan. ‘And it feels like my heart has moved in down there.’
Baindan leaned closer over her foot, and Siray tensed, but he hushed her. ‘It’s alright. I’m not going to touch it unless you want me to.’ He looked up at her.
Siray bit her lip. ‘I really don’t want anyone to touch it, but …’ The pounding in her foot was terrible. ‘I think you’re going to have to loosen those bandages,’ she allowed.
Baindan nodded. ‘Okay. I think you better lay back and try to relax as much as possible.’ He paused, his mouth thinning. ‘I think the bleeding might have stopped, but the dried blood means I might have to pull a bit to get the bandages off.’
Siray took in a shaky breath and nodded. Swallowing, she lowered herself to her elbows, then flat onto her back. At least Baindan’s experience in the wild meant he had some knowledge of how to treat injuries with little resources. Still, she yearned for one of the cities’ medical facilities where advanced treatments could accelerate the healing process of her body so that she would be back to full physical health just spans later.
Baindan kept talking to her as he started removing the bandages from her foot. ‘Here we go. We’ll do it nice and slowly,’ he said soothingly.
Siray managed to move her head in something like a nod as she looked up into the night sky and started obsessively counting stars.
The first tug at the bandages made her grit her teeth, and she kept her lips pressed tightly together with her hands clenched as Baindan worked, a sweat starting on her forehead. She could handle this.
Baindan spoke again a few moments later. ‘And this is where it’ll get a bit nasty,’ he warned. ‘You ready?’
No, she wasn’t, but Siray gave a quick nod anyway and tensed herself.
When Baindan pulled, he did it quickly, the motion jerking her foot a little even as he held her ankle with his other hand as another part of the bandage came away.
Siray bit down on her lip hard enough that the taste of blood came to her mouth as the bandage separated painfully from the flesh on top of her foot, but a low groan still escaped her.
When Baindan paused for a moment, she relaxed slightly, breathing rapidly at the pain.
Baindan gently patted her uninjured foot. ‘Just one more bit to go and the bandage will be off.’
Siray nodded and ground out, ‘Right.’ Now that she knew what was coming, she just wanted it done with. She knew it would be bad, but she would get through it. She had so far.
Baindan must have sensed her need for it to be over, as his hands worked swiftly to loosen the sides of the bandage that clung to the bottom of her foot.
Siray could feel her foot throbbing now both on top and at the sole. It was a deep, hot throbbing, as if her heart were actually down in her foot, beating away and berating its treatment.
Baindan gave her one last warning. ‘Here we go …’
Siray closed her eyes and dug her fingernails into the wood of the raft.
Baindan ripped the bandage away.
Siray screamed even before her eyes flew open, and she felt her arms give way as the world spun and the light of the moons disappeared. A moment later, she felt hands on her shoulders, but it took a several breaths before she realised the sound coming to her ears was Baindan trying to soothe her.
‘You’re okay, it’s done,’ he said, one of his hands stroking her hair.
Siray’s body was trembling as he held her, and although the intense spike of pain was fading a little, the nerves in her foot continued to feel like they were on fire and attempting to cook the rest of her.
Baindan’s hands were still on her shoulders, and Siray found the pressure and warmth comforting while she waited for her head to stop spinning.
When she felt like she could try talking, she asked, ‘How does it look?’
She almost regretted her question when Baindan’s hands left her shoulders, but she forgot that immediately when she felt them again on her foot, tensing.
He was as gentle as ever, though, as he lifted and cradled her foot very gingerly by the ankle, supporting her heel with his other cupped hand. ‘Mmmmmmm.’
Siray felt him carefully turn her foot, and not really wanting to look, but unable to stand the suspense, she struggled to prop herself up on her elbows again so she, too, could see.
‘Is it bad?’
Baindan was frowning down at her foot. ‘Definitely swollen.’
Siray snorted. ‘I think we’ve already established that,’ she said grimly.
Baindan nodded but continued examining her foot. ‘The wound is already looking red around the edges too.’
Siray peered closer at her foot, concerned. ‘Can you do anything?’ she asked, the light of the moons just bright enough to allow her to see that the edges of the bite and the rips in her flesh were definitely looking redder than the rest of her skin.
Baindan frowned. ‘Not much, I’m afraid. I think we should wash it again, though. The cold water might even help with the swelling a little.’ He lowered her foot to carefully place it on the surface of the raft.
Siray cautiously pushed herself up into a sitting position. ‘I could swirl it around in the water to take the heat out of it.’
‘And risk it hitting a submerged log and you passing out?’ Baindan shook his head and twisted away from her, ripping at the one remaining sleeve of his overshirt.
Siray watched silently as Baindan scrunched the material up in his hand and then, leaning towards the edge of the raft, dipped the material into the water. The light of the rising moons clearly outlined him as he turned back to her, and she could see droplets of water running from his fist down over his tanned and toned forearm. With a conscious effort, Siray forced her focus back to the matter at hand.
Flexing her core, she lifted the leg with the injured foot into the air a little—enough for Baindan to slide a hand underneath once more. When his hand was in place, she gratefully relaxed again, as even that small effort caused her pain. When Baindan looked at her with a raised eyebrow, she nodded, and he lowered the wet material to her foot.
Siray tensed and squeezed her eyes shut as a mixed feeling of pain and relief went through her—pain at the pressure of the cloth against her swollen foot but also relief at its coolness against the warmth her foot was exuding.
After dabbing her foot all over with the wet material, Baindan lowered her heel again and set about methodically rewrapping her foot in fresh bandages made from the sleeve of his overshirt. Then he moved back to sit beside her, his arms bare beneath the now-sleeveless shirt.
Siray sighed in relief that the examination was over. ‘Well, at least I’m awake now.’
Baindan chuckled. ‘Me too. Although my dunk in the river woke me up, your scream also really helped.’
Siray chuckled, then exclaimed in surprise, ‘Hey!’
Baindan had suddenly stood, making the raft rock and causing Siray’s foot to be jolted.
‘Sorry,’ Baindan murmured distractedly.
Siray peered up at him. He seemed to be trying to see ahead in th
e darkness.
‘I think we’re almost there. Yes … I know that tree.’
Siray tried to peer around Baindan, but all she could see were more trees overhanging the sides of the river.
Baindan glanced at Siray. ‘Stay on the raft.’
Siray frowned at him. ‘What? Why? What are you—’
She went silent as Baindan promptly sat down on the edge of the raft and, keeping a hold on the edge, slid into the river, the water rising up to his shoulders. Siray felt her eyebrows rise, but she remained in the centre of the raft as Baindan, still holding on with one hand, shifted to face the bank and began pulling at the water with one hand.
Slowly, Siray felt the raft begin moving towards the bank, and she braced her hands on the raft’s surface to keep from falling over as Baindan pulled them forwards across the current.
Every now and again, Baindan would turn from his front to his back as he kicked his legs, switching arms every so often in an effort not to avoid fatiguing one side.
Siray pressed her lips together as she watched his exertions. She badly wanted to hop off the raft and help him, especially given his shoulder injury, but she knew she would only be a liability with her injury. Which also made her wonder just how much longer her back would stay numb, and if the effect of the plant that Baindan had rubbed on her earlier that day had already started to fade, given the way all of her was aching.
Eventually Baindan was able to pull the raft to a depth where he could stand, and upon gaining his footing, he began walking backwards, pulling the raft with him.
Siray could see that it was also easier for Baindan to do this now that the raft was out of the main current, and she breathed a sigh of relief.
When the raft finally bumped up against the riverbank, Baindan hopped up onto the bank while Siray leaned forwards to hold on to an exposed tree root to keep the raft in position.
Then they switched positions, Baindan holding the raft steady as Siray carefully turned over onto her hands and knees and lifted her injured foot up off the raft’s surface. Then, on all fours, she crawled clear of the raft and onto the bank.
Behind her, she could hear the sounds of Baindan lifting the raft from the water and dragging it up onto the shore.
When Siray judged she had crawled far enough up the bank, she stopped and carefully tuned over into a sitting position, watching as Baindan shifted the raft onto its side and pulled it up into the tree line to prop it against the trunks of a cluster of trees.
Done with his task, Baindan walked back over to Siray, shaking off his wet hands as he squatted down in front of her.
‘We’re not far now,’ he said, turning and pointing for her benefit at a right angle from the riverbank. ‘We only have to work our way through this part of the forest, and then we are literally at the foot of the first mountain.’
Siray looked in the direction Baindan was pointing, and above the tree line she could see the silhouette of mountains rising high into the air. They were so close.
‘And that’s where you’re hoping Roalger will be?’
Baindan nodded. ‘That’s right,’ he said, pausing. ‘There’s just one issue.’
Siray looked down. ‘My foot,’ she said, knowing even better than Baindan just how much of an issue it was. She took a deep breath and let it out in a huff. ‘Well, it’s no help to us with me just sitting here. Let’s see what I can do with it.’ She spoke in a lighthearted tone, but her stomach stayed clenched, and, taking a deep breath, she stepped her good foot up closer to her hands, preparing to stand up.
She also heard and felt Baindan stand and move around to her side, and her stomach gave a different kind of flutter altogether as she felt him slip one of his hands around her waist and place the other on her elbow.
Then she tried not to think about how absurd she must look as she rested in that position, building up her courage before she moved.
‘Ready?’ Baindan prompted.
She nodded. ‘Ready,’ she confirmed.
With a quick intake of breath, she centred her weight on her good foot and then pushed off the ground with her hands. As she straightened, she curled her back leg up and away from the ground. She swayed a little, but Baindan’s sure hands had her steadied in a moment. Now her stomach was clenching worse than ever because she knew what had to come next.
‘Alright,’ she said and then gently lowered her foot to the ground, letting it just kiss the dewy grass without putting her weight on it. Her foot throbbed at the contact, and the slight pressure of it against the ground made it ache straightaway.
But Siray nodded to herself and thought, It’s not so bad—I can do this.
Committing fully to the movement in a burst of courage, Siray transferred her full weight onto her injured foot and stepped forwards with her good one.
An explosion of pain in her foot caused her knees to give way beneath her as points of light danced in front of her eyes.
Dizzy and breathless, as if the pain had been a physical punch to her stomach, she barely felt Baindan catch her just before she hit the ground. When her senses came back to her, she realised he was still holding her at a bent-over angle, his face hovering just above hers as her eyes flickered open.
When Baindan saw her focus on him, he seemed to expend no effort at all as he lifted her back upright, carefully keeping the weight off her injured side and holding her tightly to his side.
Meanwhile, Siray’s foot throbbed and burned, each angry pulse causing a physical pain that felt as if the nerve endings were being continuously hit with a hard object.
She took a shaky breath, and then another, before she spoke.
‘You know. I think you might be right. My foot could be an issue.’
Her voice came weakly, and she tried to clear her throat immediately to hide it.
Baindan lips were pressed together, and he was looking at her in concern despite her attempt at humour. ‘Maybe we should find another way to get you to the pass.’
Siray laughed despairingly. ‘There’s no time.’
But then inspiration hit, and she squinted as she tried to see past Baindan into the darkness. By some kind gesture of the Mother, she saw what she needed close by. ‘Baindan—see that large branch half hanging off that tree?’
She watched as Baindan looked in the direction she pointed and saw him locate the branch.
‘Yeah?’
Siray nodded at it. ‘Go break it off. I’ll use it to support me on one side. If you support me on the other, I should be able to move without putting any weight on that foot.’
Baindan nodded slowly. ‘That might work. Stay here.’
Siray shook her head as she observed him move off towards the tree with the hanging branch. ‘I hope that was a bad joke,’ she called after him.
She watched Baindan reach the tree and stretch out an arm to grab onto the end of the hanging branch. With his weight pulling it farther down, she soon heard a sharp crack, and with a final jerk, the branch came free of the tree limb it had only just been clinging to.
Baindan walked back to Siray, eyeing the branch as he neared. When he reached her, instead of placing the branch in her outstretched hand, he put one end of the branch on the ground and leaned his own weight on it.
After a moment he seemed satisfied. ‘It’ll do.’
Siray extended her hand again, and this time Baindan handed her the branch before moving closer once more to put an arm around her waist.
Well, it’s not all bad, Siray thought to herself as she lifted her arm on that side and rested it along the back of Baindan’s broad shoulders. She breathed in deeply, preparing to test the branch, and paused again when she caught the scent of him.
Dirt, dampness, but also the forest. In addition, there was a kind of husky—but not unpleasant—animal smell …
Siray gave her head a quick shake. Now was not the time for her mind to wander. She nodded to herself as she gripped the branch tightly.
‘Let’s do this.’
Baindan stepped forwards, and Siray extended the branch out in front of her and, putting her weight both on Baindan and the branch while keeping her injured foot off the ground, hopped forwards on her one good foot.
Success.
Awkward, yes. Painful, yes—but manageable.
Siray gave Baindan a tight smile.
He nodded slowly back, relief showing on his face. ‘Alright, then,’ he said and then pointed in the direction they needed to go.
Gradually, they refined the timing of their movements, and a short time later, they were travelling at a slow but constant speed. The trick, Siray soon learned, was to keep her momentum going.
Together, they passed by numerous trees and under countless branches as they slowly covered ground, but after a while, Siray saw that the trees were getting farther apart and there was less shrubbery and undergrowth in their way.
‘We’re getting close, aren’t we?’ she said, panting for breath.
Baindan grunted an affirmative. ‘Yeah. That should be the start of the pass up ahead,’ he said, jerking his head at an outcropping of rocks that lined the bottom of the first rocky hill of the mountains. ‘We’ll just get to that, and then we’ll—’
A yell made him break off, and they froze for an instant before both of them snapped their heads around to look behind them in the direction of the yell.
Not far from their position, Siray could make out flickering lights in the night. Torches. And numerous tiny flashes.
At first squinting, her eyes rapidly widened as she realised what it was she was seeing. The shine of light reflecting off armour and the distinctive dress of the hooded Faction soldiers she had come to know.
She cursed in alarm. ‘Mother take them.’
The soldiers were emerging from behind a large group of rocks, advancing at speed in their direction.
Siray doubted that the soldiers could actually identify her or Baindan at that distance, but spotting two lone travellers in this location would be enough to raise their suspicions.
She felt an elbow dig into her ribs, and she turned to look back at Baindan, annoyed.