The Cinders of Dezu

21st: Caddock (1)

Raina was cold. She was looking up at the quickly hardening mucus suspension that was holding the steadily forming cocoon. The colorfully bulbous and human sized larva was wrapping itself very careful and deliberately around its prospective meal.

Raina had interacted with it when she had reached this dark stone walled room that Caddock had called the Kota Moth Clinic. It was called a kotapillar, and he was actually very nice to talk to. Caddock said it was perfectly safe. More than safe, really. He said that in the wild, a kotapillar will find injured animals and cocoon itself with them. Once inside, they secrete a thick liquid substance that has healing properties. As far as Caddock knew, the kotapillar ate a kind of foam that was left over from secretions and the healing injuries. It repeated this process until the creature it cocooned is healed. Afterwards, it releases it, sometimes healthier than before.

Raina wasn't overly squeamish, but even she thought eating healing foam sounded pretty gross. But as she looked up at a passed out Orion secured to a suspended bed and being slowly wrapped up by the friendly pulsating grub, she felt a sense of relief.

After he was gored, Orion had instructed her to pull the purple crystal out of his coat pocket. She placed it in his hand and despite his failing strength, he managed to light it. They ended up shuffling through sanctuary after sanctuary, on their way back to the the castle. Raina encountered several panicked faces of guards as they caught a glimpse of the injured king on the sanctuary floor before he disappeared again. Once they reached the palace sanctuary, the kings men came running in and carried him away on a stretcher. Raina followed closely and could see Orion fading in and out of consciousness as he lost blood. Before he passed out one final time, Orion managed to look in her direction and mouth the words: "It will be okay," before succumbing to his trauma.

Caddock put his arm on Raina's shoulder. She looked away from the Kotapillars work to look up at his violet hued face.

"Let's go," he said, "He wouldn't want you to have to watch him like this. It's going to take some time anyway."

Raina looked at him once more before she went to a table at the corner of the wall to pick up the root ball she'd been given. It looked like it didn't have any glowing embers on it anymore.

"How long?" she asked.

"It should be a few days," Caddock said with a nod, "judging by his injuries."

He started leading her to the door.

"A savern bull is not a creature to fool with. For anyone. Not him. Maybe especially him," he said

"I couldn't see everything, but it didn't seem like his fire did anything!" she said.

Caddock nodded as he opened the door for her, "It is not a beast that can be phased by fire. But more than that it holds a special place in Orion's life."

Raina looked up at him questioningly as they walked down the hall.

"It was when he first got here," he said, "He's recounted the story to me many times. He came into this world scared and alone. He thought he had died. He said it was just a bright light and then trees. And just ahead was the face of a savern."

"Oh my gosh," Raina said under her breath, "How old was he?"

"Just a boy. Seven years old. And small. Skinny. Too skinny for his age."

"What did he do?!"

Caddock shook his head.

"Nothing. There was nothing to do. The bull just stared at him. No anger. No sign of friendliness. Just stared."

Raina frowned as she considered her own interaction with the bull. There was definitely anger. At least at first. The stories felt very similar though.

"Orion always said he felt like the beast was judging him. Looking deep into his heart. Like it could read it. Like it knew."

"Knew what?" she said.