Trust Has Affan

[delight-in.livejournal.com]

Trust Has Affan

No one made me do anything for the rest of the day. No one actually let me do anything for the rest of the day.

That wasn't so much because I'd just almost died or because I'd actually died yesterday as because the giant waterKhtsoyis had broken most of my ribs.

Trust started casting spells on me right where I lay on the steps, about fifteen feet above the waterline. The others were below us, pulling Outcast to safety. "I'm sorry I don't know Mend the Broken Bone, Delight, ♥" Trust apologized.

"That's all right," I wheezed. "I know it's -- "

"Don't try to talk, Dee, ♥" Trust said.

" -- an expensive spell ... "

"Don't -- " Trust put a hand a hand over my mouth " -- try to talk." He looked into my eyes. "Got it?"

I nodded. He took his hand off my mouth. "I was just -- " I started.

"Don't," Trust barked. I shut up. He checked my throat and cast a spell on it that made my bruised larynx feel much better.

I opened my mouth to sigh in relief. Trust gave me a look so sharp it would've pierced steel. I closed my mouth again.

The others had gotten Outcast out of the water by chopping off the tentacle that had grabbed his ankle, but the waterKhtsoyis surged up the dry steps after him. Chain Lightning hit it with a lightning bolt, Windchime ripped into it from above with her claws, Mirhandrax slashed one side of it with his great axe, and Nightbloom stabbed it with sword and spear. What was left fell back into the water. Which Chain Lightning hit with another lightning bolt.

Trust was saying to me, "Since I can't heal your ribs, you will need to rest and keep still until we can get you to a healer who can. Your ribs have already punctured both lungs, which I did fix, and I've sponted a spell to get your ribs back in the right place for bandaging, but I don't want it happening again and I don't want you hemmoraging." He turned to look at the knot of adventurers gathered just below us. With the monster gone, most of them weren't doing much. "Purrzhon!"

Purrzhon twisted about, startled.

"I need you to pick Delight up while keeping her body in the same posture, so that I can bandage her ribs."

Purrzhon lifted a paw lazily, gazing pointedly at the pads. "You ... are ordering ... the Sleeth to do this thing?"

"I can -- " I started to say, shifting a hand underneath me.

"STAY." Trust glared at me. I froze. "Purrzhon needs to do it because he can do it without shifting your posture and without spending cley." He turned back to the Sleeth. "I only need her up a couple of inches."

Purrzhon looked like he was about to argue, his tail lashing. Trust stared at him. The Sleeth sat back on his haunches and gestured with a paw to me. "She rises." A moment later, I levitated very slowly a couple of inches into the air.

Trust bandaged my ribs. "There. Mirhandrax, carry her."

The Gormorror had been watching the water for any signs that the waterKhtsoyis was going to return, but he spun about at Trust's command. He handed his weapons to Outcast and picked me up gently.

They installed me in Sharone's bedroom which was very nice for a bandit's bolthole. I guess they had to spend all that extorted loot on something besides traps for their lair. Trust stayed with me to heal me permanently as various temporary healing spells wore off.