Wounded

I stumble across the dirt path to my home, clutching at my sore ribs as my steps limp and kick up dirt. The bleeding of my face has mostly stemmed but as I spit into the ground, I see a glisten of red in the liquid. Almost tripping, at the step to the house, I push the door open and fall to my knees, clutching at my chest as I pant for breath.

My mother is sat on the furs with Mia on her lap as she reads a story to her; I recognise the book as the story of the Emerald Knight, one that I was read as a child. Seeing me on my knees with cuts across my face, my mother gasps and gets up putting Mia on the furs with the book before rushing over to me

“Aucus! What happened to you? Did you get in a fight with Clen again?” she demands, taking my face in her hands as she runs her fingers across my cuts. I wince as they press against the bruises but notice that the more cuts that had been the cause of my bleeding had somehow began to scab over was that even possible?

“Ugh, not Clen” I say, putting my hand on my ribs where I feel a large bruise though my shirt though my ribs are feeling better, “Zarin” I mutter

Her eyes go wide at that name, “Aucus” she whispers, “Don’t tell me you hurt Motten’s son” her face goes pale at the notion. She tears off my shirt, looking at my darkened body as she lays me on the ground, her fingers shaking

I nod my head, “Think he’s alive” I mutter, struggling to keep my eyes open. “Something happened… broke his arm”

“Okay, okay” she reassures me as she goes to the kitchen and pulls a bundle from one of the cupboards. She lays it out on the floor besides me, revealing a number of salves and herbs alongside some bandages, cloth, and sharp instruments. She presses her hand to my face, I wince at the touch, “Your face looks sore, but I don’t think it’s too serious. Your cuts are already healing, it’ll hurt but I think you’ll heal soon. Here this will help with the pain” she observes as she chooses one of the salves and rubs it on my cuts. I wince and shake my head at the pain but eventually relent and allow her to finish applying the foul-smelling grey cream.

Mia looks across from her furs to me, “Is Aucus okay Sepha” she asks, timidly as she watches my mother examining my body lying on the ground.

“Yes Mia, he’s just a bit hurt right now. I’ll make him better. Why don’t you go upstairs and get ready for bed, I can finish the story later” my mother tells her. The young girl nods her head as she stands up, the book looking enormous in her small hands.

“Get better Aucus” she says sweetly, giving my hand a squeeze in her hand before she runs upstairs.

My mother looks back at me, her hand pressing against my ribs. “Okay, a lot of bruising but nothing is broken. Nix? Can you help soothe it” she says. Her water spirit appears in the air, a playful grin on her face before she sees me. The small spirit with the body of a woman, made of a blue liquid, flows through the air for a moment before diving against my chest. I feel the wetness of her touch as her form spreads across the dark area of my bruising. Almost immediately I feel a relief from the pain as her magical touch dampens the agony that I was feeling.

“Thank... you Nix” I sigh in relief as I look up at my mother, tears welling in my eyes as the events of the day collide with me.

“That should be enough for now” my mother says before stuffing some herbs into my mouth. “Chew on these, then tell me what the hell happened” frustration seeping into her voice at the end

I nod my head as my jaw works the motions against the bitter leaves. “Clen” I start to say as I begin the story, “he started beating on Henry and I tried to step in, to help. But Zarin was there, he wouldn’t let me stop them. When I tried to, he started punching me” the tears that were blossoming in my eyes, now sprouting down my cheek and dripping into the salves on my wounds. “I went **** for a bit and when I woke up, he was still hitting me, Clen and the others had already left by then. And then… I don’t know” I say in exasperation, “the next thing I know he was lying on the rocks with a broken arm, and he was angry. I didn’t stay, I just got Henry and took him home”

My mother listens in concentration, “Okay. So if he’s as hurt as you say, it’ll take him a few hours to get back to the manor. And if we’re lucky he’ll be **** for a while before he can say anything about you. That should give us a few hours if we’re lucky” she runs a hand through her hair, brushing it back as she looks around our wooden home.

“What are you talking about mother? Hours for what?” I ask, grunting as I sit up and lean against the wound. Nix gives me a pleasant tingling on my side as she soothes my pain.

“I love you Aucus, but you’re an idiot” my mother admonishes me, laying a hand on my chest as she feels my heartbeat. Tears trickle down her face as she speaks, “He’ll kill you” she sobs, “As soon as Zarin tells his father what happened… they’ll come here and take you from me” she pulls me close and grips me in an embrace as her pain flows down my chest. “They’ll take you away and then they’ll kill you, if his father has any part of it… I… I don’t want to think” she’s crying in full **** now as my heart races.

“Wha…” I croak as the severity of the situation knocks into me, “No… No, no, no, no, no” the horror of it all too much for me to process. “What are we going to do? Can we run?” I as k

She shakes her head, “I can’t leave sweetheart. Mia needs me, and I need to make sure Rosaria gets out safe. Okay. Okay. This is what we’ll do. You’re going to leave, now. We might have an hour to get ready” she says, her voice picking up pace as she builds a plan in her head. “Yes, you’ll go to Alynthir. I’ve still got some friends from my party there. You’ll go to the temple of Soras and find Opal and Isabella, they’ll take care of you until the test” she nods her head, liking her plan. “After Rosaria is safe, I’ll meet you there”

“What about Motten? Won’t he still come after me, I mean after what happened…” I trail off, not knowing what really happened.

“Motten can go fuck himself” she spits, venom dripping from her voice “he can do whatever he wants to you whilst you’re in his lands, but when you’re in another lord’s domain he will have to provide evidence to take you. And in the capital, he’ll have to be giving that to the Queen herself who won’t be eager to give away an adventurer to someone like him” her lips curl into a smile, “And if he’s having Zarin healed right now, then there won’t be any evidence” she says

“Okay, so get to the capital, stay at the temple, and become an adventurer” I say, letting out a breath as I struggle to my feet. The shape of Nix adjusts to fit my sore area as I move.

“You can’t take the pathways when you’re going to the capital. He can’t arrest you from any of the lords, but I’m sure he’ll send men to abduct you on the road. You need to stick to the woods, try and avoid making any fires, and avoid people” she finishes, kissing my forehead as her arms refuse to release me.

“Mother, I’ll be okay. We’ll see each other again in Alynthir” I try to reassure her as she weeps

“I know baby, I know” she pleads, “I just don’t want to lose you, you’re my everything. I’m so proud of you, I know your father would be too” her voice chokes on the emotion

I rest my hands around her as I look at her, “I love you too mother. Just… be safe. If I’m not here, then he might hurt you instead” I say. My mother smiles as she lets go of me and moves about the house, stuffing things into a rucksack

“Don’t worry about me, I’ve survived his kind before. And if he thinks he can hurt me, well…” her mouth grins as she lifts up a floorboard to show an assortment of weapons. She pulls an intricate dagger and a pouch that clinks as she lays it on the floor before restoring the floorboard.

I nod my head again, “Okay, er… where’s Elsie?” I ask, wanting to say goodbye to her before I go.

Her head shakes again, the raven hair swishing with the motion, “I don’t know, she was out when I came back. Don’t worry sweetheart, I’m sure you’ll see her at the test” she reassures me. She goes upstairs and comes back with some of my clothes stuffed into the rucksack. Finishing the pack, she hands it to me and I drape it over my shoulders; the weight causes me to wince, but I endure.

With Nix returning to my mothers’ shoulder, she coats my bruise that seems to have recovered quite well, in a green ooze. Her hands spread it across my chest before covering the area in a bandage and handing me a shirt to wear. I cover myself in the garb and give my mother another hug

“Here, you’re going to take this. You’ll get a lot more use out of it than me” she says as she unfastens her sword from her belt, the one that she used as an adventurer. She slew countless monsters with it and now… _What? It’s mine? _I think

“Uh, are you sure mother?” I ask, looking at the ebony hilt of the weapon

She nods and thrusts the blade into my hands, “Yes, I’m sure. You’re probably going to need it, and I have plenty of replacements” she says . I fasten the scabbard to my belt, adjusting it until it feels more comfortable on me.

“Now, as long as Motten is lord over these lands you can’t return” she says, clasping my shoulders “So don’t even think about coming here. No matter what. But I want you to write me every day, I’ll take care of things here” hugging me again and smothering my face with her kisses

“I love you mother” I say, tears welling in my eyes as we say goodbye

She nods her head, “So, much like him” she whispers quietly, “come on, I’ll take you as far as I can”

With that, my mother leads me out of the village, past the rocks where I fought Zarin, past the strips of farmland, we make it to where the road leads across a rolling plain and she takes me into the woods. Giving me what more help she could, before telling me the direction to go. Follow Cleonora’s star at night and using the sun to travel south-east. With one more tearful farewell, she watches my figure disappearing into the belt of trees