Ized- the Ancestors

by Esther Barvar

  They rode side by side to the place where Befen knew the spring. As they circumnavigated the next rock, they saw the waterhole. What they saw there let both men growl and bridle their animals. Suspiciously, they took up arms, watched the surroundings, and separated in order not to offer an excellent target to a possible opponent. In front of them, directly at the source, a human lay in a pool of blood.

  »By the waves, Adar, is that one of our magicians?« Befen seemed dismayed and calmed his horse, which began to step nervously.

  Adar shook his head. All his senses were awakened, too. »I don’t know, wait here. Pay attention to the surroundings. I look at it. The warriors all rode off in pairs or threes. It was nobody alone, so that won’t be one of ours.« He drove his horse, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings, his hand on the saber. Next to the body, he stopped.

  »No, Befen, that looks more like a wounded woman to me,« Adar called muffled back over his shoulder.

  He looked around vigilantly with his sword pulled. Maybe she had been injured by a wild animal. It might even have been nearby. »Befen, watch out, I look at her, maybe there’s still life in her.«

  Then he jumped off the horse and knelt on the ground. Carefully he turned her around. He cursed in horror as he discovered the amount of blood under her.

  Indeed, it was a woman. She was covered with wounds and unconscious. Everything about her was bloody. The almost porcelain-colored skin appeared even paler by the dark tone of the blood. In her blonde hair, was also soaked in blood. It had to be a stranger because this light skin tone and her slightly almond-shaped eyes did not exist in Ized. Adar shuddered as he looked closer at the wounded body. How could there still be life in her with such wounds? »By the Waves, Befen. It is indeed a woman, and she is badly battered.« Adar looked more closely at the wounds. He was not aware of any animal that could cause such injuries. Not even the claws of a black bear could tear such broad and deep wounds. And in fact, this one was huge when he stood up.

  What he knew immediately as a warrior, however, was that the injuries were life-threatening. That there was any life left in her seemed like a miracle to him. He laid his hands on her body, send his powers into her to see if spirit and body were still connected. Yes, she was still alive. She breathed very shallowly, but she lived. The stranger seemed to have a good constitution. He sent healing energy into her, but he was not a healer. Here the warrior could not help enough. He was overwhelmed by such wounds. A healer had to look at the woman as soon as possible. Otherwise, she would not survive the day. »Befen, she’s alive, but she’s fragile, and she’s still bleeding from the wounds.«

  Meanwhile, the Administrator had also approached, observing the environment further. Arriving at Adar, he also took a look at the unconscious woman. He cursed just like Adar had done before.

  With a critical glance, he looked at the body. He also had to growl and hiss involuntarily at what he saw. He also recognized how badly she was hurt. If she was to survive, she had to go to a healer as soon as possible. »Nobody seems to be around. But by the Waves of the Wide Stream, what kind of beast inflicts such wounds, Adar? No weapon can do such a thing.«

  »I have no idea. But we have to stop the bleeding somehow and take her to the hunting lodge. Otherwise, she dies. She has lost tons of blood. Look at the ground.«

  The whole floor seemed soaked in blood. It could not seep into the rocky ground, and the edges of the pool of blood dried on the rock.

  »She doesn’t seem to have been hurt here either. Look around you. Nowhere are traces of a fight. The ground, where the rock ends, carries only our marks, and they are easy to recognize. While nothing else can be seen. Not even footprints of her, let alone a blood trail. Where did she come from? How did she come here? Did she fall from heaven, Befen?«

  He shook his head at a loss. The same thoughts had come to him. »It is a mystery to me as it is to you. But how shall we bring her to the castle? She just lost too much blood. It’s about two hours to ride. If we take her with us like this, the wounds will rip open. She will lose even more blood. She can’t survive that. It will kill her. It would be more merciful not to let her suffer further.«

  Adar hissed excitedly. »We can’t kill her after all. No,« he yelled at Befen. Then, after a few moments, he had an idea. He hectically tore the warming winter cape off his shoulders and laid it flat on the ground. Then he gently touched the maltreated body with both hands and put a tight shield around the woman. With it, he covered all wounds and prevented further blood from seeping out. Now he lifted her onto the cape and hit it tightly around her. He pulled another tight shield around the bundle. »Befen, when I sit on the horse, you must hand her up. I will hold her in my arms until we reach the lock. So I can compensate the horse’s movements a little.«

  Befen, who had observed with interest what Adar was doing, nodded. It could work. At least it would minimize the woman’s blood loss. When they returned in this way, there was small hope for her. »Wait a moment. The horses need water first«.

  Befen led both animals to the spring and let them drink. Meanwhile, he took the birds and rabbits from Adar’s saddle and attached them to his so that Adar had more room with the stranger. He pulled a cup out of the saddlebag and filled it with water. He handed it to Adar and asked him to give him quiver and bow. Adar drank a sip, nodded approvingly, and gave him the weapons before he swung himself into the saddle. Befen handed him the woman. Adar held the stranger close to him with his right arm while he took the reins with his left hand.

  Befen nodded again. It could work that way. After he had attached the friend’s bow and quiver to his saddle, he also drank a little and sat up. »Let’s go back so she can get to the healers quickly.«

  Adar’s eyes had darkened a nuance, and he growled reluctantly. Befen wondered what was wrong with him.

  Together they made their way back to the hunting lodge. Currently, there were enough healers there to take care of this unknown beauty. But Befen saw little hope for her survival.

  During the whole ride, Adar noticed her scent, which touched him strangely and unfamiliarly. Most of the time, he enjoyed the smell of women. But it affected him in a way, he never felt before. It was a soothing, a balancing effect that he exerted on it. When they finally arrived at the castle, the woman was still unconscious, but she was alive. Nothing else mattered to Adar. He now additionally felt a strange kind of ferocity inside him, which he could not explain to himself. Growling and snarling, he handed the bundle down to his friend. Befen disapprovingly pulled up both eyebrows. Adar seemed to have reached a critical state that could quickly turn into bloodlust. »Adar, what has got into you?« asked Befen.

  He jumped off the horse without answering and threw the reins at one of the stable boys. »Give her back to me,« he growled with dark eyes in a tone that tolerated no contradiction. He radiated a readiness for violence that Befen had never noticed about him before.

  Befen handed the woman over to him. Adar seemed to want to possess her. »Where are we taking her?« he asked.

  »In my room,« he replied briefly, already on his way there.

  »Then I’ll send you some healers, if that’s all right with you.«

  Adar signaled his agreement and carried her into the castle. Befen shook his head as he looked after the young man stunned. What was wrong with him? In his opinion, the woman was consecrated to death and would probably not survive the night. With such a loss of blood, the healers could also reach their limits. Nevertheless, Adar seemed to be obsessed with her.

  He followed him into the castle and visited some healers and asked them to look at the severely wounded woman in Lord Adar’s room. Among them was Lord Sors, whom Adar knew quite well. Probably the young lord would trust a healer he knew.

  Adar growled on the way to his room, and the servants, as well as the magicians, evaded him. Finally, he entered the room and carefully laid the woman on the bed. He requested a washbowl with some towels. Only then did he release the outer shield and open
the winter cape. When the servant appeared with the bowl and the sheets, he fetched some warm water from the adjacent bathroom. Carefully he began to clean the areas where he had not put a shield. He had just finished cleaning the face and hands of blood and dirt when it knocked. Adar opened the door with a magical impulse, and two healers entered.

  »By the Waves, Lord Adar, what kind of wounds are these?« one of them asked with a very first look at the woman.

  Adar shook his head. »I have no idea what kind of animal could inflict such wounds. I don’t know of any weapon that can do such a thing, gentlemen. As a warrior, I am familiar with many injuries, as are you as healers. I put my shield tightly around her body and closed the wounds with it. Therefore, no more blood escaped. Shall I now loosen the shield again?«

  »No, wait a minute,« Sors worriedly stopped him. »Lord Befen said she had already lost too much blood. He was amazed to find any life left in her. Do you agree?«

  »She was lying in a massive pool of blood. But there is still life in her,« Adar insisted with sparkling eyes.

  »Can you open your shield partially, wound by wound?« Lord Sors asked him.

  Adar hesitated briefly. Then he nodded. »Yes, of course, I can. Why?«

  The healers looked at each other. Lord Sors took over the speaking. »She is not well, Lord Adar, not well at all. The sunken eyes indicate severe pain and high fluid loss. That will be a hard piece of work. We will have to share the job if she is to have any chance of survival at all. With the wounds and what Lord Befen has told us, she has lost tons of blood. Any further loss could cost her her life.«

  Another knock interrupted him. Adar moved one hand, and the door opened. Two more healers entered. Lord Sors breathed a sigh of relief. Then he stepped up to the woman, first laying his hands on her temples and sending his healing energy into the maltreated body. The remaining healers followed him.

  While the next healer gave her energy, Sors pondered how best to proceed. He nodded thoughtfully to his colleagues. »If we split up the work, it might work out. Who will take over the healing ointment for the wounds?« he asked.

  One of the two healers who had just arrived was still staring critically at the wounds. He pulled up an eyebrow skeptically and nodded while still giving her his energy. »I’ll take care of that. You are right. The wounds will not close and heal from our healing power alone. I am going to hurry.« Then he immediately disappeared again.

  »We need a strong painkiller, a sleeping drug, and a hematopoietic potion,« Sors continued.

  »I make the painkiller and the sleeping potion. I have enough of the herbs for this in my room. I suppose both in liquid form?« the healer, who had come together with Sors, wanted to know.

  Lord Sors nodded again in agreement. »Yes, exactly. We’ll have to give it to her drop by drop with a pipette. She will hardly swallow as long as she is unconscious, but it will work drop by drop. Please make the tincture as strong as possible. It will be a long process to give her the necessary things. The sooner we can start, the better.«

  Now the last healer spoke after he had also donated his healing energies. »Then I take over the hematopoietic potion. That will take some time. I have to ask my colleagues who has herbs for it. They are very rare at this time of year and probably only available in the dried form«.

  Lord Sors nodded happily and put one hand on the other’s arm. »Go into my room first. Most of the herbs are in the bag lying on the table. Then I stay here with Lord Adar, and we clean the wounds first, so they don’t become infected. Take the necessary time. The potion must simmer for a long time so that it can unfold its full effect.«

  Sors was satisfied with the distribution, now turned to Lord Adar, and nodded approvingly. »You did an excellent job with the shields. That way, she couldn’t lose any more blood.«

  Then he entered the bathroom with the washbowl and came out with fresh water. »Adar, please eradicate the shield so that I can undress her and get an overview. Only then will we gradually clean and treat the wounds.«

  Adar nodded understandingly and loosened the shield. Immediately the wounds bled again. Everywhere fresh blood seeped from the clothes.

  Sors took his dagger and cut up his tunic and trousers. As he removed the loose pieces of cloth, he glanced at the body and hissed into the air. »Damn it! Put the shield around her again, as close as possible.« Sors was pale and shook his head. »By the Waves of the Wide Stream, I don’t think she’ll survive the night.«

  Adar clenched his fists and hissed desperately, making a threatening step towards the healer to turn away the next moment. He trembled with anger and tension but forced himself to breathe a few times. Then he turned back to Sors. »Forgive me, my lord, but I beg you, try at least. I will help you as best I can. Tell me what to do, please.«

  Sors stared at Adar worriedly. The warrior seemed desperate as if the unknown meant something to him. A young warrior with such emotions could become a danger. Sors pulled up an eyebrow, feverishly considering how to calm the man. He pointed with a head movement over to her neck to distract Adar. »What is she wearing around her neck, Adar?«

  It seemed to work. Adar paid attention to the object on her neck and opened her fists. He slid his fingers along the chain until he found two rings, which he briefly examined. »She wears a chain with two golden rings on it. A black jewel is set in each of the rings. Strange. I have never seen such a stone before. Have you ever seen anything like this before, Sors?« Adar held one of the rings on the chain against him.

  Sors leaned forward, looked at the jewels, and shook his head. »Not yet. What strange gems,« he pondered. Then he turned his attention back to the wounds. »Of course I will try, Adar. We are going wound by wound. I’ll tell you what injury you are freeing from the shield, and then I’ll clean it and start the healing process. That will take time and concentration. Will you be able to hold out that long with the shield?«

  In relief, Adar nodded because he could do something now. Both started to work. Sors washed every wound that Adar opened. With the larger ones, he always laid a hand on them, closed his eyes, and sent his energy into it, tried to close it. But he only managed to stop the bleeding. Sors changed the water several times. They weren’t finished when it knocked. One of the healers came back. He brought the ointment with him.

  »Put it over there, please.« Sors pointed at a small table, still highly concentrated. He seemed exhausted. Closing wounds required enormous energy reserves. To his confusion, there was only slight healing. So he limited his actions to the deepest injuries. It was the only possibility he saw so that this person had any chance to survive.

  »We are now ready with the purification. The dirt is already washed out by the massive bleeding. But the edges of the wounds and the remaining skin have now also been cleansed. Adar, can you continue?«

  »I have no problem with that, my lord. The shield does not require much energy. I could even hold it up in my sleep for a while,« he replied, concentrating further on opening and closing the shield.

  Sors carefully wiped the cloth around the last wound.

  »Done,« he said, »now the same again for the healing ointment.«

  He brought the bowl with the used water into the bath. When he came back, he stretched out briefly and walked over to the table. Meanwhile, the other healer had put his hands on the woman’s head again. He donated further healing powers to the beautiful stranger.

  Again it knocked, and Adar let the other two healers in as well. They brought the liquids for the pain, for the sleep, and the blood formation.

  Both looked at the naked woman, glanced at each other, and shook their heads. Concerned growling ran through the room. No one believed that she could survive the night with wounds like that. But everyone sent their healing energy into the body. Adar nevertheless noticed their skepticism and hissed wildly and desperately. The healers felt the rising tension in him.

  »She will survive,« he pushed out violently. »She has to.«

  »We should reli
eve ourselves at the guard at her bed,« Lord Sors mediated calmly.

  »No,« Adar now pushed out angrily. Anger sparkled in his eyes. »I will give her the necessary potions by myself and watch over her. No man in this room believes in her recovery. But I will not give her up until her spirit has left her body.« Furiously he watched at the men with dark eyes. Sors stepped in front of him and sought direct eye contact.

  »Adar, you misunderstand us. We healers must not underestimate such a severe wound. But we do everything we can. Let me help you. I, too, will only give it up when there should be no more breath of life in her,« Lord Sors reassuringly objected.

  He knew how much Adar was affected by her condition, and now the warrior gave him his attention. So he continued: »You also need sleep. That will take many days, maybe weeks. You need our help, and I am ready to help you any way I can. After all, she is a suffering person. I have to do everything I can to save her life. You have my word.«

  Adar stared at him for a long time. He turned aside, fought with himself, and accepted the proposal with an approving head movement. After he had calmed down a bit, he gave in: »Thank you, my lord. Only you … and maybe the administrator.«

  Sors breathed a sigh of relief and nodded approvingly. Adar had always been one of the prudent warriors. Sometimes he just needed some time to come to his senses.

  Nevertheless, he was glad that Adar had suggested allowing Befen during the treatment. Since Lord Befen was also a warrior, he would be able to control Adar - above all to protect him from hasty action.

  »Please be kind and let Lord Befen know. I will not be ready to leave here. She is too severely injured for me to leave her,« he directed one of the healers.

  The man nodded in understanding. The healers communicated silently with glances. None of the men wanted to encourage the nervousness of the young warrior even more. He was already terribly restless anyway.

  »You will also need an antipyretic for the depth of the wounds. I still have a concentrate of it in my room. I will give it to Lord Befen on that occasion. He will probably be in the banqueting hall at his meal right now. I will inform him.«