by Brian Keller
A few minutes later Kinsman was wondering whether he’d made the right choice, “Shut up and hold still, or I’ll jab you again and have to wait for it to wear off.” He had both hands busy. One holding a dagger while fumbling with the other, trying to rig a bandage to stop the man’s bleeding. He hadn’t considered what a difficult spot that was to apply bandages. He’d finally decided what to do. He used his dagger to slice a larger hole in the seat of the man’s pants, then applied the bandage and helped the man to stand, then sat him down on top of the bandage, using the man’s own weight to hold it in place. It was a tricky maneuver considering he kept a dagger to the man’s ribs as he was helping him stand and get seated. The man sounded grateful, “I can’t tell ye how glad I am that ye’ve spared me, lad. I can’t help wonder how ye came to be the way ye are, but I know better’n to ask.” Kinsman backed away from the man, “Keep your questions, and your thanks. I just want someone to help me paddle back to shore. Don’t do anything that’ll make me regret my decision in the meantime and you might survive.” The man chuckled as he paddled; he must have been feeling optimistic.
Chapter 31
Cooper returned home and went looking for the Guildmaster. It was the first time he hadn’t found the old Master in either his classroom or in the Council Chamber. He went to his own sleeping bay, slipped off his weapons, and simply lay down, still dressed. His last thoughts were that he might take Miss Camilla’s test on schedule after all.
The sounds of his roommate’s activities woke him. He lay in bed for a moment, collecting his thoughts. As he sat up on the side of his bed he rubbed his eyes and ran fingers through his hair. As hungry as he was, he needed to report to the Guildmaster. Updates on his progress were important and he felt sure that the information he’d learned was even more so.
He found the Guildmaster in his classroom, poring over a book, as usual. As he approached the table, he began to speak, “Good morning, sir”, he didn’t wait to be acknowledged, he simply went straight into a summary of his progress. He’d gotten a few sentences out, the part where he’d used Aden’s poison to even his odds, and the old man had placed a ribbon between the pages he was reading and closed the book. He didn’t interrupt Cooper’s report. Cooper finished his tale in just a few minutes, putting particular emphasis on the fact that the information was freely given, and though the implication of impending death might be considered coercion, these conditions were far from usual. Once he’d finished and was taking a breath, the aging Guildmaster nodded thoughtfully, “Thank you for completing your task with such vigor. And thank you for your insightful report. Document all your findings. I’ll direct the other Assassins to look for you in the library. Brief them and assist with the planning, then leave it to them.” Cooper felt his jaw go slack, “Sir! I talked to those men, myself. I know the information. Taking time to tell it all, and helping to make a plan that I already have roughly formed in my head, then go through all the questions and second-guessing….” Master Worthan held up a hand, “Enough! Your enthusiasm is turning into insubordination.” Cooper dropped his head, “I can see how it would seem that way, sir, but you have to admit, there’s no substitute for first-hand knowledge.” He looked up to meet the old man’s eyes and raised an eyebrow. The man’s expression softened and Cooper moved to capitalize on the opportunity, “Just let me go along, sir. Let me stay involved. I’ve uncovered more in a week than anyone has in the last month. Don’t exclude me now!” Master Worthan wrinkled his nose, “Drop the pleading tone, young man. It isn’t convincing and it doesn’t suit you.” Cooper grinned as he squared his shoulders, “But it fit the context, sir.” The old man made a dismissive gesture and a short series of tut-tut noises, indicating that he was changing the topic, “I saw Boyd’s remains when he was brought back from his task near the Ruins. The way you describe these slaves matches this description, and we know from the others on the patrol that Boyd was alive mere minutes earlier. Whoever did that to him has an affinity for cold like I have never seen before. Even if this affinity isn’t equally reflected as Fire, as Talent almost always is, then we still have something here that exceeds any ability I have heard of in recent times. It’s for this reason I am hesitant to send you into the Ruins, even along with experienced Assassins.” Cooper quickly processed the information and immediately replied, “If you’re worried about someone with a powerful Talent, then who better than me could you send? I might be able to counter it, or at least offset their power. Who else besides you has that ability?” Master Worthan was shaking his head, “That may be true, or it might not. The kind of power I’m referring to… you’re not well practiced enough to know whether you could offset something of this magnitude. Your ability is almost untested in that regard.” He held up a hand to stop Cooper’s interjection before it escaped his lips, “and there’s no one powerful enough here that might provide a way to test it. And even if we could, how would we then explain it? Our Gift needs to be concealed, remember? Even if we didn’t have those considerations, it just wouldn’t be practical to take the time.” Cooper was crestfallen, “So, you’re not letting me go along, sir?” Master Worthan took a deep breath, “Assist in the planning. If the other Assassins tell me that there’s a need for you, I’ll consider it.” He stopped and then amended his statement, “As long as the reasoning is compelling, I’ll consider it.”
Cooper tried to think of more to say but before he could Master Worthan waved him off, “Go on. You’ll need to eat something before you take Miss Camilla’s test.” As Cooper left the room he couldn’t help wondering, “How is it that he seems to keep up with everything that’s going on?”
As he sat at his desk in Miss Camilla’s classroom, he tried counting up how many hours he’d slept in the last four days. He couldn’t come up with an exact count but he knew he had good reason for feeling exhausted. Still, another couple of hours to take a test, then write up his report and afterward he might squeeze in a nap before the Assassins showed up to start the planning.
Miss Camilla began passing out test packets. She paused when she reached his desk, “Mister Cooper. I am pleasantly surprised to see you here.” She leaned slightly to the side to look at him from a different angle, “Have you slept?” He smirked, “I was just now trying to remember what real sleep felt like, Miss.” She withdrew the packet she’d been handing to him, “Do we need to postpone your testing? I am still willing to let you reschedule…?” He held out his hand to accept the packet, “I am ready now, Miss. I just hope you’ll be a little forgiving if some of my writing becomes a little illegible at some point.” Cooper immediately regretted his choice of words when he saw a flash of sadness cross her features as she moved on to the next student. He hadn’t intended to remind her of Garoth.
