Zeli, caught up in his beast-father’s homecoming, hadn’t had time to ask who was injured. His beast-father, seeing someone speaking to his son, couldn’t help questioning their identity.
When Zeli told him, his beast-father didn’t have much of an emotional change. He had heard of the rejection. It wasn’t his own cub that was rejected, so he didn’t care much. But seeing his son so close to this rejected female, he had some reservations.
He knew that, as males, they were very tolerant of females. He couldn’t have imagined what this scrawny female could have done to make a male reject him.
Still, seeing his son happily speaking to his friend, he said nothing. Kifa saw him looking and pinched him. He gave a flattering smile.
"Oh right, beast-father, who was injured?"
"No one from our tribe. We aren’t certain who he is, but it was thanks to him that we managed to get a big horn and a giant beast back. He saved our lives."
Hearing that the injured party was Rider’s saviour, he immediately knew who it was. He was another background character, like himself. This person died a few days after being brought back to the tribe.
It’s said the injuries were severe.
Enzo shook his head. He looked towards the direction the person had run. As per his nature, he really wanted to go over and take a look. He wondered if he would be too conspicuous.
Looking around, he saw everyone having their reunions.
"Then..." Enzo said hesitantly. "Will anyone go over and look?"
Zeli’s beast father glanced at Enzo, then at Zeli and Kifa. Kifa laughed, then gave Enzo a gentle smile.
"Let’s go look," he said.
The four made their way to Gato’s hut. When they arrived, they saw Gato rushing around. The person who brought the man in was standing over in the corner.
Enzo saw the person lying on the bed. His leg was bent at a strange angle; he was breathing out more than in. There was a large gash along his back. He watched Gato bustle around.
He watched as he mashed various roots and herbs together and began to boil them. Enzo couldn’t tell what they were. They had all been dried and just looked like dead things to him.
Unconsciously, he stepped closer; whether it was a morbid fascination or just wanting to see more clearly, he stepped close enough to see the blood still seeping from the wound.
"Do you need help?" he heard himself say.
Gato turned around and saw Enzo not far behind him. He didn’t say yes, but he didn’t stop him.
Enzo couldn’t believe he asked that. He didn’t know the first thing about medicine. But as he watched Gato move, he felt he wanted to do something. If he couldn’t do anything else, he could at least put pressure on the wound to stop the bleeding.
His eyes flitted around the hut, looking for gauze before he mentally slapped himself. There is no gauze; he wasn’t in modern times anymore. The only thing he found nearby was strips of fur.
They looked clean enough, so he used them to press the wound.
"What are you doing?" Gato asked.
"I’m stopping the bleeding," Enzo replied.
"By pressing it? Wouldn’t that make him bleed more?"
Enzo pursed his lips. His gaze went from Gato to the man on the bed.
"Don’t you put pressure on the wound to stop it from bleeding?"
"Never."
"Well, I don’t know. I feel like doing this would stop the bleeding or at least keep some of the blood inside him."
Enzo had to remember he wasn’t supposed to have any memories. He couldn’t explain why; he could only frame it as a wild guess and let others make up the rest.
Zeli and the others watched Enzo as he gravitated towards the beastman on the bed.
"Who is he?" Zeli’s beast-father asked.
"It’s You," Kifa replied.
"Sub-father, his name is Enzo now."
"Right, Enzo," Kifa chuckled.
"Beast-father, don’t make Enzo feel weird when we go back. He forgot everyone. He only woke up yesterday, so he’s a little strange. Don’t point it out."
"What do you take me for? I only saw that he looked interested in healing. Gato doesn’t have an apprentice yet. If the chief approves, he can help."
Zeli didn’t say anything else. His beast-father and the chief were close. Even though his father wasn’t the chief, they would talk about tribal matters all the time.
On the other side, Enzo watched as Gato poured the medicine into a small bowl and came to stand beside him.
"Remove it," he said.
Enzo did as he said. Gato used the dregs of the medicine to cover the wound. Enzo’s brows furrowed. Using the dregs didn’t seem safe.
"His bleeding stopped," Gato commented, turning to Enzo. He only looked for a moment before turning back to the person’s back.
Enzo watched him smear the dark dregs across the beastman’s back, then, when the medicine cooled, he poured it into his mouth.
Gato stepped back. "This is the best we can do for now. Waking up depends on the beast god."
"Then what about his leg?" Enzo asked.
Enzo stared at the man covered in blood. Even with his skin a healthy wheat colour, he could see that the blood loss was significant.
Gato shook his head. "There is nothing I can do. At most, he can go with the gathering team after he’s healed. But he won’t be able to hunt again."
Enzo listened as he spoke. He wasn’t a doctor, and he didn’t think it was simple, but he was certain all they needed to do was fix the position of the leg and set it.
He contemplated whether to say anything. The blood-covered beastman had nothing to do with him, but hearing that he wouldn’t be able to hunt again, it seemed unfair, especially when he knew the problem was fixable.
Finally, he sighed and stepped closer to Gato. "His leg can still be fixed. Just straighten it, use two large pieces of wood to keep it straight, and it will grow back on its own."
Gato whipped his head towards Enzo. He was quiet as he evaluated Enzo.
"There has never been such a thing in the tribe. Many tribes have people with injuries like his. The bones never heal," he said slowly. "Are you sure it will work?"
Enzo didn’t want to guarantee certainty. He was basically talking out of his ass.
"I don’t know if it will, but doesn’t bone grow back? If you straighten it and put it back where it’s supposed to be, then wouldn’t it heal the same way?"
Gato listened, and when Enzo was done, he clapped him on the back and laughed.
He thought to himself, such a simple solution, and yet the tribes have never thought of it. Gato looked at Enzo, his eyes sparkling. He felt he had found a good seedling.
Everyone in the hut heard Gato and Enzo speaking, which meant they heard the solution. They watched Gato walk over to the leg and watched him shift it. The sound coming from the leg made Enzo’s heart tighten, and his eyes twitch.
Gato worked slowly and methodically. He pointed to a corner of the hut, at no one in particular, gesturing for whoever to get something from the corner.
Enzo was the first to move. He saw it was a large flat piece of wood. He brought it over.
"Break it," he said.
Enzo didn’t even try; he handed it to the beastman who had been watching. After a brief pause, the beastman broke it and handed it back to Enzo, who in turn handed it to Gato.
Everyone watched him work.
When it was all done, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Everybody, leave. You," he pointed to Enzo, "Come find me tomorrow."