Wading into the stream to escape the sun, Azela glanced at the bracelet Five had given to her. It was poorly crafted and would fall apart within a few days in this wilderness, but it was sweet of him nonetheless. He checked in on her irregularly on behalf of MegaGlitch. Each visit was a welcome distraction from her loneliness and boredom.
He never stayed long, though, and his visits were shortest when he left to the south instead of going north to Jastria. When she asked about this, he confessed that he had a lover in the southern village, but it had to be kept secret for political reasons. The village was a blue-elven settlement. She had seen pictures of elves in Jastria's books, but couldn't recall ever seeing a blue one.
Her thoughts were interrupted by the smell of blood flowing from upstream. That she could still detect it in the running water meant that the source had to be nearby. The Mietha was in many ways a paradise, but not without predators. Dire wolves, droms, cave lions and many other deadly things sometimes crossed Azela's path. Usually they avoided her and she avoided them, but often she had encountered smaller animals that weren't so lucky. If it wasn't too late, these poor creatures were nursed back to health under Azela's care.
But there was something strange about this blood's smell. Something familiar.
The sapien girl!
Jumping from the water, Azela ran along the shore, her thoughts racing. The image of the two dead sapiens haunted her mind, fueling her fears. Did Jastria’s forces find her? Did a predator? The uncertainty gnawed at Azela's heart, quickening her pulse with each step. Please, please let her be safe.
It was not long before her mind was silenced. She stopped, blinking to make sure that what she saw was real. Before her lay the strange girl, her form sprawled awkwardly along the edge of the stream. The girl's left side was submerged in the water, where the scent of blood was strongest. The ominous black sword lay close to the girl's lifeless hand, as if it had just been released from her grasp.
Azela rushed to her side, heart sinking as she took in the severity of the wound. The girl's arm had been cut open. Where the current had washed away the blood, Azela could see where fat and muscle tissue had been sliced through. Cautiously, she reached out and touched the girl's cold face. There was no reaction. She shook the sapien's shoulder, but her body remained still, and signs of breathing were nonexistent.
Azela dragged her out of the water. Staring at the large gash on the woman’s arm, she cried, "How am I supposed to fix this? Wake up! Wake up!"
Frantically she tried to remember all that she could for treating wounds, but her thoughts were like the scattered shards of a mirror that had been broken by her panic. She searched her mind continuously, but became more and more terrified at the thought that she was only wasting time.
Then, from the dark, empty places in her mind, a memory emerged through sheer sense of need. She lifted the girl's neck and tilted her head back, then pinched her nostrils. Placing her mouth on the sapien's, she exhaled. The girl's chest rose, and Azela could hear the air escape her lungs. Again and again Azela gave the girl her breath, and gasped a smile once she finally felt her take in a lungful of air on her own.
To control the bleeding, she lifted the girl's arm and set it on her lap to keep it elevated. Then she grabbed a handful of nearby moss to use as makeshift gauze as she applied pressure under the ugly gash. Despite her efforts, the bleeding persisted.
Frantically scanning the area for anything that could be used as a tourniquet, Azela's eyes fell upon a torn piece of red fabric near the edge of the stream, but she could tell that it wouldn’t be long enough. Carefully but quickly, she ripped a long strip from the side of her own outfit, then she tied it around the wounded arm as tightly as she could without tearing the already damaged material.
A wooden box suddenly flew toward her. She dodged it, and it narrowly missed her head. The box burst open as it hit a tree, and various medical supplies spilled out.
Azela turned to see who had thrown it, but no one was there. She ran to the supplies, noticing a familiar green lizard painted on the box's shattered top, and began to gather whatever suturing equipment she could find.
"It's just like helping that bat with the bite and broken wing," she said. "I just have to patch her up and she'll heal on her own. No need to worry." She worked the needle and thread without bothering to wipe away the occasional spurt of blood, holding her breath, tensing her fingers to stop shaking.
After a time that felt endless and only half-real, Azela finished closing the wound. It was probably unsafe to move her, but Azela wasn't the only thing in the forest that had sensed the girl's blood. From the sound and smell, a curious drom was moving closer, and its pack was likely nearby. Azela lifted the girl's lifeless body and positioned it behind her, leaning forward and holding the girl's legs as if she were riding piggyback. She carried her downstream, the weight heavier than expected, but not enough to be a burden.
Upon reaching her garden, Azela laid the girl gently on the grass bed. After a few heavy breaths, she looked down at her hands. They were still shaking. Not since Jastria had her nerves been this shot.
A dark shadow moved in the corner of her eye. It was too silent and odorless to be an animal of the Mietha Forest. Thank you, she thought, but didn't say. It was relieving to see that Shi-Yon, for now at least, was not determined to end her life.
* * *
Several hours slipped by as Azela looked after the wounded girl. During this time the glitch didn't eat or sleep, but watched the girl intently, hoping for any sign of recovery.
There was none.
She also whispered to herself and to the girl, wondering if she should risk sneaking into Jastria to ask for MegaGlitch's help.
Eventually she drifted into a restless slumber. When she awoke, it was to the stirring of her patient beside her. The girl's eyes slowly opened to take in her surroundings.
"You're awake! Finally!" Azela exclaimed with a weary smile.
The girl's gaze darted around the clearing. "What happened to the sword?" Her voice was tinged with growing panic, and she looked upon her bandaged arm with confusion.
"You were in danger, so I saved you, like you did for me."
The girl's panic only seemed to escalate as she processed Azela's words. "The sword!" she exclaimed, her voice rising. "You're not supposed to be here! How did you even find me?"
"You were at my doorstep, kinda. I thought maybe some part of you caused you to come looking for me, needing my help," Azela admitted.
"Did you touch the sword?"
"I'm sorry, I just left it there," Azela replied, a hint of guilt creeping into her voice. "It's just upstream, not too far."
The sapien's expression darkened. "I don't know if that's good or bad," she muttered. "Gods, he may have it already, unless he's smarter than I am."
Azela's confusion was evident. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"You should have let me die."
The glitch's heart clenched at the words. "I wasn't going to just leave you there."
The girl's voice cracked as she said, "Can't you see how dangerous I am? Don't you remember what happened in that alley? What I did to them? What I almost did to you? Do you have any idea what I'm capable of? Because I certainly don't! For your own sake, just stay away from me!"
The force of her outburst made Azela recoil. It echoed through the clearing, making nearby birds flee from their trees.
But Azela felt a spark of defiance ignite within her. "Stay away? So you can try to kill yourself again? I'm happy that you're dangerous, or else I might be dead instead of those sapiens that attacked me!"
The girl's gaze softened, a flicker of vulnerability shining through the mask. "I didn't try to kill myself. Not that I hadn't considered it. I destroyed your life, and you don't even know me."
Azela was quieter, but her voice hadn't lost its edge. "I know that you're afraid and alone at a time when you need someone more than ever. I'm the only someone anywhere near here. I don't know what you're going through or if I can help, but I'm here if you'll let me try."
"Don't look at me like that," the girl said in a cold tone. Azela didn't look away but remained silent. The sapien stood up and, in the process, found that she couldn't move her left hand.
She began to walk away, following the stream, then stopped to say, "My name is Catherine. You've seen my camp. If..."
At that moment, Catherine's control over her emotions failed. She covered her face with her still-functional hand just as everything started to break through in the form of tears. After a moment, she took a deep breath, collecting herself again.
She said, "I didn't try to kill myself, I was attacked. And one of them might still be around. If he finds out that you helped me, he might use you to get to me. Just… give me one night. Then, if you really care, you know where you can find me."
Two separate emotions danced across Azela's face. "You could stay here, you know. The bed I made's not perfect, but it has to be better than a rock."
Catherine quickly turned away from Azela and said, "I need to prepare some things. There were two of them. One is dead, but the other, I feel, isn't finished with me yet." There was a moment of silence before she continued, "I have an idea."
Kneeling down, Catherine traced a symbol in the dirt. She put her hands together, then growled in frustration. "I… need your help," she said to Azela, embarrassed.
Azela walked to her side.
Catherine explained, "I can't move my hand properly, some connection or another was severed. I need you to help me put the fingers in place. Here, like my right hand." She did her best to display the hand-shape that she needed to Azela.
Azela felt her cheeks flush as she tentatively reached out to touch Catherine's hand. Wordlessly, she helped to get it into the correct position, unaware of what Catherine intended to do.
"Now hold my hands together so that the fingers stay in place," Catherine instructed. Azela complied, and was surprised when Catherine suddenly began to sing.
The sound of Catherine's voice resonated through the air. Azela let herself become lost in it.
The beauty of that voice. The warmth and softness of her hands. The closeness.
Azela's heart was sent aflutter.
When the song came to an end, Catherine spoke again.
"I can't sense him, but that's how I know where he is." Catherine’s voice carried a note of smug satisfaction. Azela released her hands.
Catherine explained, "I can sense most animals in this area of the forest. Except for one shadowy spot where I sense nothing at all. An unnatural void. That is where he is." She paused, exhaling a breath of relief. "And thankfully, he's nowhere near us. Though he may be watching through something else's eyes."
Azela wondered if she could be speaking of Shi-Yon, but remained silent. Catherine met her gaze and spoke again. "Yes, I can use magic. I'm sorry I didn't warn you."
Azela nervously shifted, her cheeks still flushed. "No, it's just that... I haven't been that close to someone in so long. And never someone as pretty as you," she admitted.
Catherine stood up quickly, turning away towards the stream. "I will see you tomorrow, then. Don't worry about me, I'm not going to let all your stitching go to waste so soon," she said as she disappeared into the thick forest, leaving Azela alone with her feelings.