A Slip Of Darkness

Chapter V

The next month goes by in a blur. Day after day, I train and train and train, enduring gruelling combat classes with Caspian, then switching over to espionage with Silas for the remaining hours of the day.

For the first time in my life, I start going to sleep at the same time as my siblings, exhaustion wearing me down to my bones. Everyday, my limbs ache, and my muscles burn, and it doesn't help that I've started walking with a slight limp ever since a wayward arrow found its way in my thigh on my very first day of training. The pain was something I'd never experienced before, a burning sensation that travelled from the wound and spread all over my body, making black spots dance through my vision. The shock of it caused me to pass out, only to wake up a half hour later, sprawled out on the floor of the armory in a pool of my own blood. Caspian had been lazily shooting arrows at targets, hardly even acknowledging the fact that I had just been shot.

"About time you came around." He had said, not even looking at me.

I pushed myself up, wincing at the sharp pains. My head felt like it had been pounded with a hammer, and a hard lump had started to form at the back of my skull. I looked down at my leg. The sight of the arrow protruding from my leg made me queasy, and I quickly looked away, choosing instead to stare at Caspian incredulously.

"And you just left me here?!" I shouted. "What about calling Eleanor?!"

Caspian set down the bow and strode over to me. Crouching down, he examined the wound.

"It hardly even touched muscle." He said coolly "you'll be perfectly fine."

Before I could process what he was doing, he wrapped a hand around the shaft of the arrow and pulled it out, causing fiery sparks of pain to spread throughout my leg. The pain made me go lightheaded again, but I managed to keep myself conscious.

Ripping a strip of cloth from the bottom of my pants, he wrapped it tightly around the wound, staunching the flow of inky blood.

I lay back down, blinking rapidly to keep myself awake. My chest rose and fell in ragged breaths.

"This. Is. Normal?" I say, crazed. "I don't think I want to do this anymore."

Caspian chuckled before pulling me up by the arm. I leaned into his shoulder and limped towards the benches, where I sat down and cradled my leg.

"I don't think you have much of a choice." Caspian said, eyebrows raised. "Plus, all this is merely a precaution. You're using poison, not knives or bows."

I sighed, tired and discouraged, but thankful for small blessings. At least I would be able to work with plants and poisons. I missed the comfort and familiarity of my herbs and books. Bows and arrows were foreign territory to me.

"All right, up, up. We're not done yet. But no more arrows for you. We're gonna try something else instead."

When I went to get up, he shook his head and pushed me back down gently.