Bonds of Light and Fire

6. Encouraging Advice

The sun was setting as Vaughan made his way through the camp, heading towards Aeron and Luciana's hut. He was more than a little nervous about the arrangement he'd made, but it was too late to back out now. Besides, who was he to leave Luciana on her own after what had happened? If he did and something worse happened to her, Nascha would never forgive him. He'd already failed one little sister. He wouldn't fail another.

"Vaughan!" He glanced over his shoulder to see Kyllian sprinting after him.

"Did Luciana stop by and give her account of what happened?" Vaughan asked.

Kyllian fell in step with him. "She did. I asked if she wanted us to assign a nightwatch in this sector of the camp to make sure Kron and Malik leave her alone, but she said no."

"She'll be staying with me until Aeron returns," Vaughan said.

Kyllian arched a brow. "I'm not sure that's a good idea. Elgan certainly won't approve."

"I'm not asking for anyone's approval. Luciana is my responsibility for the next two weeks. As such, it's my job to make sure she's safe. Besides, it's not a good idea for her to stay here alone anyway. She's not in full control of her magic."

"It could cause problems with your other students." Kyllian gave him a pointed look. "Namely Kron and Malik."

"I can handle them."

"Malik said you threatened to torture them."

A shadow of a smile crossed Vaughan's lips. "I said I had ways of making people remember things, should they choose to not tell you every detail of their encounter with Luci. I never said I would torture them."

Kyllian frowned. "Would you?"

"Yes."

"Did you torture people frequently when you were blood-sworn to...Her?"

"Often enough, but usually, Cairn was in charge of that."

"I see."

"Why? Do you need me to torture someone?"

"No," Kyllian gave a hesitant chuckle. "But I'll let you know if I do."

"Were Kron and Malik given a punishment?"

Kyllian nodded. "They're on manure duty for the next two months and have lost the privilege of living in a private hut. Elgan moved them back into the barracks. They'll be under guard for five weeks."

"Hm."

"What?"

Vaughan shrugged, running his fingers through his hair. "It's just a lenient punishment, compared to what I'm used to. Not that it's bad, just..."

"What punishment would they have received if they were in Maeve's forces?"

"That depends who their commanding officer was. If they were brought to Maeve directly, they would've been dead long ago. If they were a part of Rowan's army, I imagine he might've broken their arms or legs and still make them train while they healed. Lorcan would've done something similar but somehow more painful."

"Cairn wouldn't have cared about what they did to Luci, but if they disrespected him, they would've woken up without tongues, ears, the tips of their fingers, or something along those lines. Fenrys and Connall would have taken turns beating them into bloody pulps."

"And you?" Kyllian prompted.

"I'd have chopped their balls off. One at a time, with about four hours between each so they'd be sure to feel it."