Flewelling,_Lynn_ _Nightrunners_04_ _Shadows

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thing all the same. That was, until it lifted Alec s left hand to his mouth and licked weakly at the dry blood
there.
Bilairy s Balls!
It s all right, Seregil rasped as his eyes fluttered open again. He s starving. Eats&
Blood, Thero finished for him, looking appalled.
Alec s. Just a little, Seregil whispered as his eyes slid shut again and his voice failed. Please, help
him. Saved us. Save him&
You can t be serious, gasped Thero.
You heard him, Micum said. He s in no shape to explain. He took out his knife and pulled Alec s
hand from Sebrahn s grip. The child was surprisingly strong, but gave up with another pitiful little
whimper when Micum gently insisted.
Look at that. Micum showed the wizard the tips of Alec s fingers, all stippled with small scabs. I
guess that s how they do it. He nicked the least damaged finger and Sebrahn lunged forward, grabbing
Alec s hand and sucking frantically on Alec s finger.
Micum watched in mixed wonder and revulsion. I don t suppose you could get word to Magyana to
send us one of those translocations of hers? I don t know what Seregil meant when he said this little mite
saved them, but it can t be much help to them anymore. We have to get them somewhere safe, and
quickly.
Translocations don t work that way, and even if they did, the shock of the magic would surely kill
Seregil, weak as he is, and probably Alec, as well.
Micum looked around, trying to ignore the loud sucking noises. There s no shelter in sight. We ll have
to make do with the tarp for tonight. Can you do more of that healing on them?
I can, but I don t know how much good it will do. They need a drysian.
Do what you can. And give them more water. The child, too.
Micum left him to it and led the packhorses away from the carnage. Not far on he found a dry gully
deep enough to hide the horses. He used the tarp they d brought to make a small lean-to, spread the
bedrolls, and rode back for the others.
He found Thero still bent over their friends. The strange child hadn t moved.
Thero had their dirty coats open and was inspecting their chests. Look here! he exclaimed, pointing
to what was obviously a freshly healed arrow wound on Alec s chest. Seregil claimed this happened
yesterday.
But that would have gone right through his heart, and a lung, too.
I know. Seregil has a similar scar here under his shoulder, and one that went into the large artery in
his thigh.
We call that a man killer. How in Bilairy s name did they survive, half-starved as they are, much less
heal?
Seregil kept insisting that this-creature did it, though I can t get enough sense out of him to know
how, and it seems to be mute.
Never mind. All that matters is getting them to shelter.
Handling the wounded men as carefully as they could manage, they slung them each over a saddle.
They had some trouble with Sebrahn when they went to move Alec. The child clung to him and hissed at
Micum when he tried to pull him away. In the end, Thero had to hold him back until Micum could get
Alec on the horse, then lift the struggling, spitting child up onto the horse behind him. Once there, still
gripping the battered cup in one hand, he clutched the back of Alec s coat with the other.
It s all right, little one, Micum soothed, patting the child s skinny leg. You stay with him and we ll be
safe soon.
I m telling you, that s no child, Thero warned.
You heard what Seregil said. That s enough for me.
They led the horses toward the camp Micum had set up, going slowly so as not to jostle their friends
too much. Even so, halfway there the child began to whimper and squirm. Then Seregil began to moan
and struggle weakly.
Micum pressed a hand firmly between his shoulders. We re almost there. Just a little further.
Seregil s face was turned away, but Micum heard him gasp out, So-undignified!
He s bleeding again! Thero pointed out. It s his leg.
Looking back, Micum saw bright red splashes in the dust. He halted the horse and walked around to
the other side. Seregil s left thigh was soaked. Feeling carefully, he found the wound, then took off his
belt and tightened it above the wound. We d better hurry.
Yes. Alec is bleeding a little from the mouth.
The child grew more and more frantic as they went on, until Micum finally had to pull him off and carry
him. He weighed almost nothing, but struggled all the way, reaching out for Alec and crying out softly.
At the tent, he scrabbled about underfoot until Micum and Thero had the wounded men settled on the
bedrolls they d brought. Seregil was unconscious, and Alec was in agony, coughing up bloody foam.
Micum put the child aside as gently as he could, but he persisted, tugging Micum s water skin from his
shoulder. Squatting between Seregil and Alec, he filled his dented cup, then held out one little hand.
What is he doing? wondered Micum.
Cut his finger, Alec wheezed. Now!
Despite his doubts, Micum did as he asked. As he and Thero watched, the child held his cut finger
over the cup and something far too pale to be blood dripped into the water. There was a faint flash of
light, and then a beautiful, dark blue flower appeared. Sebrahn scooped it out and put it on Seregil s
wound. It melted from sight, leaving a pleasant scent behind.
Micum reached down and felt the wound. It s closed up again.
The child made another flower and placed it on Alec s chest wound. Alec was still coughing blood, [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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