Page 29 of Ruarc
“Broken wrist, two fractured ribs, a cracked femur, concussion, punctured lung, and too many contusions to count. He will not be back on his feet quickly, but the nanites have already started working, and he is on the mend. He is strong, and now that they have stopped denying the bond, their combined strength will help speed up the process.”
Einar’s matter-of-fact recitation of Ruarc’s injuries is almost a balm to my tortured soul. Walking to the edge of the bed I stand there, looking down at him. There is not a spot visible on his skin that isn’t scratched, bruised, or wrapped in healing tape. Tears stream down my cheeks. “What can I do?”
“Pray! Or just talk to him. The sound of your voice may very well keep his spirit anchored; the call of the afterlife is strong, and he will have to find a reason not to give in.”
Determination fills me as Einar solemnly tells me that Ruarc’s life hangs with the mercy of our gods. I will pray fervently until someone or something hears me.
“Gods of Ruk,pleasedo not tease me … do not take him from me when we were so close to finding each other.”Time stops as I hold his battered hand in mine.
CHAPTER 18
RUARC
Growling, I open my eyes only to find Einar’s homely, concerned face hovering over me. “How long have I been out?”
“You are lucky to be breathing, brother. It is apparent the Gods of Ruk were not done with your story.”
“Where are Kallen and Atasha?”
“Look down if your muscles will allow it.”
Bracing myself for the pain that will come from my movement, I lift my head just enough to look down. Instantly, I notice Kallen’s head lying next to my hand, her body leaning against the bed from the chair she is in. Further down is a tiny ball of green curled up by my feet, with a small doll in her hand.
“I had to give both of them a sedative. Atasha’s tears were ripping my hearts out, and she refused to leave you or Kallen here, no matter how hard we tried to get her to go with mam. Kallen has not moved from that spot for more than a few tics at a time since you were brought in.”
“How long have I been here?”
Einar glances over at me with sharp yellow eyes. “Two rotations now. The longer you were out, the more stress I could see building within Kallen. She was getting so weak from exhaustion and lack of rest that it forced my hand.”
“Help me scoot over and bring her up here with me.”
A thunderous expression creases his face before he barks back at me, caution heavy in his tone. “Ruarc, you are in no condition to move. I barely got you back here in time, and you are still not completely out of the danger zone yet. You almost died, brother!”
“Either you pick her up or I will.”
“Stubborn fracker!” Einar snarls at me in frustration as he puts down the holo pad in his hand and carefully untangles Kallen’s hand from mine before gently lifting her. My breath catches as I raise my arm, but the pain is worth it if I can hold her. It takes Einar several tries, but he finally positions her just right, and immediately, I feel my whole body relax as her scent surrounds me. She does not make a sound, but she instinctively curls up against my side on her own.
“Now that you are awake, I will proceed with injecting more nanites. I was waiting to see what the first round accomplished before administering more. I am going to inject Kallen with a small dose since her body is taking far too long to recover from the ordeal with the Velgriddix, but I do believe that since you are no longer blocking your bond that she will start healing quicker.”
Relief makes the tightness in my chest relax when Einar tells me that my Starshine is going to be just fine. Glancing down, I sluggishly move my hand, brushing it against a scratch on herface, only to see that she has several scrapes along her arms. “Were Kallen or Atasha hurt in the cave-in?”
“Nothing serious, but I believe the horror of seeing the ceiling engulf you, has both of them shaken up pretty badly. Atasha is much too young to have experienced as much as she has. I must admit it worries me that this many horrendous experiences are stealing her youth.”
Before I can say anything else, Slavic peeks his head through the curtain that Einar has placed around this area. “Frack brother, you look like you got in a bar fight full of Korgons and lost.”
“Well, they may have whipped my ass, but they knew I was there.”
My attempt at humor makes Slavic crack a smile. “It appears those rocks did knock some sense into you.” He points to Kallen, who is tucked up next to me. “Are you finally going to embrace the blessing you have been running from, brother?”
“If she will have me, then yes. I have run long enough and kept far too many secrets for too long now. There is something about me that you all need to know.”
“If you are talking about the ability to will your influence upon others, well, that cat is out of the bag, as my Ruby would say. We saw what you could do firsthand when you raced through the halls when Kallen came up missing. We all understand why you thought you needed to keep that to yourself, but Ruarc, we would never worry about you abusing a power like that. You fought too hard and too long to escape others having control over you, so you would always think twice before subjecting others to the same thing.”
“You are not angry that I did not say anything?”
“I have enough to worry about now, so you and this new development are low on my list.”
I take a second to reflect on his blunt, yet honest words.
