Victory

The air reeks of the coppery-oily ichor and guts of the foul harpies and all I can taste is dust and sweat but all is still and quiet once more. The warm light of evening painted the sky as in the shadow of this valley the gentle babbling of the stream carries on as if nothing had happened. I hurry to the rosebush to help my Lady out from its thorns. Her nice new palla and stola were all nicked up with little holes and rough scratches marred her perfect supple skin, though thankfully few of them were deep enough to draw blood. The others gather around us as we check in on each other.

“Rosa?”

She offers a weak smile and strokes my arm that still trembled with the rush of fear and combat. “I am unhurt.” She looks off to the East. “Danae arrived just in time.”

Leaning in I kiss her head between her horns then turn and search the skies one last time. “I think that’s it. Everyone okay?” I say, wiping my blade clean but keeping it in hand

“I’m good, Quin. Not a scratch.” Cassie says, leaves and twigs hanging from her hair from her tumble back into the foliage. Despite her brave words I could see by her wide eyes and the way she continued to breath heavily the harpy had left her shook. I lay a hand on her shoulder and look into her eyes. Her tense body relaxes a little. She looks back at me and gives a slow nod. She’d had a terrible scare. If not for Rosa’s throwing of her bracelet’s portal magic in the nick of time to send the diving harpy straight into the hard pavement instead of her she would not be here right now. Another second, another few feet, and her journey would have come to an end before it really began. Taking a breath she stands taller and smooths her cloak. “I’ve got a lot of the world left to see.”

“And you will see it.” I say. “Colly?”

“I’m fine.” She says, though her small hand was clutching to the hem of my tunic. “Jutht some rothe thornth in my butt.”

“You saved my butt right there.”

“Thliced that bitcheth titty! Ha!”

I chuckle and give her head a little tussle then a pat. “My brave Colly.”

“You all fought bravely.” Rosa says softly.

“Even…oh!” Colly’s gasp draws all eyes to her.

I follow her gaze to see Catalus, huffing heavily and bleeding from a wicked looking gash down his right shoulder, limping up out of the rough terrain back onto the stability of the road. With our load slumped all the way to his left flank he staggers clumsily onto the road showing a limp as he avoided setting weight down on his right front leg.

“Gods damn those beasts.” I hurry forward to my wounded steed.

I grab his reins and steady him, stroking his sleek black neck. In his pain the normally cranky equine does not fight my control. His shoulder was stained dark, the wet of his blood gleaming in the waning light, and the smell of iron rich red blood mixed with the nauseating harpy foulness. The harpy’s talon had sliced through skin and muscle but thankfully nothing more, the gash it left was about eight inches long and gaped an inch wide. A nasty wound but one he could recover from. It was his limp now that concerned me more. When Cassie steps up beside me pass her the reigns. Farm girl that she was she was experienced at dealing with animals as I was. Stepping close to Catalus, opposite his wound, she lays her head against his cheek and whispers soothing tones as she strokes his neck.

I untie the horse’s load. What possessions there were of ours that hadn’t gone flying into the four corners of the world crunch to the road opposite me. I pat his side. “Take him to the stream, if he can make it. See if you can clean that wound.” I say. “Find out how bad that leg is.”

“On it.” She says.

“I will come.” Rosa says. Though she was no longer borrowing her fox’s sight Danae was still her guide. Trotting up beside her master Danae walks alongside, her fluffy tail touching Rosa’s calf as they went to keep her following the right path.

I watch Catalus limp along beside Cassie, Rosa trailing on his other side, and curse under my breath. “Our first night out. Still in heart of Italy. This is not auspicious.”

“We can make offeringth at the next temple for authpith…pith…outh…authpith…” Colly takes my hand and pats it. “We’re thafe, that’th what matterth.”

I look around at all the gear and belongings we had so carefully gathered and packed just the night before. There were torn sacks, busted boxes, shattered pottery, scattered food, and strewn clothes all around me. I spit a special curse as I notice Rosa’s special lubricating oil smashed and seeping into the dirt beside a boulder. On the road as we were I hadn’t expected much opportunity for backside love but that just dashed those hopes completely. I sigh. “Come on, Colly. Let’s see what we can salvage.”

Tucking my sword into my own pack I begin to search. Collywaddle and I gather what we could find into a pile on the road. I notice as we work, swiftly against the waning light, that my goblin friend was careful to keep me between her and the body of the beheaded harpy. Recognizing that I make sure to keep that in mind as I moved about.

It was maybe ten minutes later when a shrill whinny from Catalus draws our attention back toward the stream. We could see Rosa and Danae standing on the bridge, the fox peering down at Cassie and our horse who was down by the water. I could see no panic so I return to my task.

“Thir.”

“Yeah, Colly?”

Colly turns to me, her tufted ears drooped and her black and amber eyes wide, and says. “What are you going to do with Cat?”

Pausing I look back toward the bridge then back at her. “That will depend on how bad it is.”

She nods grimly, understanding my meaning more from my tone than my words. “Um…jutht tho you know. He…thaved your life too. That claw…wath meant for you. He broke it’th arm but paid the prithe.”

Thinking back, that part of the battle had been pure pandemonium, all screeching and scrambling. I never would have known had an outside observer not told me. With another nod I say. “Thank you for telling me that.”

“Jutht thought you should know.” As I return to trying to find all our gear my memory stretches back to searching along another road for scattered belongings after another harpy attack. That memory brings another and then another. As I thought about that deep gash in Catalus’ shoulder it was not lost on me that it was a harpy’s talon just like that one that had taken my life those months ago. Had this found my ribs instead of his shoulder…I’m not sure old Sylvanus would have come to my rescue a second time, not matter how bitter Rosa wept.

After another half hour Colly and I have the majority of our stuff piled around the pack saddle and platform. Anymore searching would have to wait until the light of morning as the air was cooling and the fading gloam was beginning to drain the color from our dimming surroundings. I look over the damage. Without even seeing our first star we’d lost nearly a fifth of what we’d brought with us to start a new home. With a sharp huff I prepare myself for losing a lot more. If Catalus couldn’t go on… It was time to find out how bad it was.

Colly and I load up our arms with stuff to start ferrying everything to the campsite. We give the bodies on the road a wide berth as we go. Along the way I break the silence.

“You’ve been quiet.”

“Yeah.” Colly whispers. “You’re not gonna really kill him, are you? Leave him here? Alone?”

“I hope not to.” I reply honestly. “It’s only a couple of more days to my family farm. Maybe if he can make it that far…I don’t know, Colly. We’ll have to see.”

“But…he’th one of uth.” She looks up at me. “He’th part of the family now. We don’t leave family, do we?” The genuine fear in her voice touched my heart. She was concerned for our horse but her question spoke to far deeper fears.

“I’m not going to abandon you on the road, Colly. You’re mine for good. Aristocles entrusted you to me. And you are my friend. You’re going to be one of the first faces our daughter sees. I wouldn’t accept all the gold in Rome for you, Collywaddle. You’re stuck with me I’m afraid.”

In the dim light I can just make out the glimmer of a tear in her eye and a little relieved grin playing at her plump lips. She says softly. “Thank you, Thir.”

My voice low, warm and far more assured than I felt inside I comfort her. “And we won’t abandon our puppy…horse…Cat if we can at all help it. Come on, Colly.” I nod toward the path into the camp where Cassie and Rosa had already lit a fire. “Let’s find out how he’s doing before we write any obituaries.”