Heartbeats Amid Fire

11 - Trusting

Alysa pov:

"Commander," I mumbled as I gazed at the three men in front of me. It seemed that I had been right in thinking that Rayner was not a mere knight - his physique had made it more than obvious that he was a very strong man, a tough fighter, and the fact that he was a commander did not seem surprising in the least.

I shook my head to dissipate the thoughts, for I had more important things to worry about now. Opening the door wider, I ushered the men to step into the store room.

"Come inside and sit down anywhere. I'll heal your injuries," I said.

The man who was the least injured seemed thoroughly skeptical of me but stepped inside nonetheless and helped his two comrades take seats on the floor against the wall. I kneeled first next to the man who was most injured and reached for him to heal him before his state became critical. I was quick to take care of his head injury and then slowly undid the bandages to make sure that the wound had closed up nicely. The injury he had suffered was nothing more than a scar now but the man was unconsious and pale. He had lost a lot of blood, it would seem, and was exhausted from his injury.

Next was the man who had a rather deep gash in his torso. It was nothing short of astounding how he was still conscious and walking with crutches with such an injury. His wound was taken care of too, leaving behind a light scar. The two healed men were quick to slump back against the wall and fall asleep while I tended to the man who seemed scrutinizing of me despite having come here for treatment.

When his arm was better, he checked his mobility a moment before gazing at me. Uncomfortable under his gaze, I averted my eyes and shifted on my feet. I was also awkward, unsure of what to say or do next.

"It seems it is true that you possess very powerful healing mana," he said.

"Oh, um, yes, I guess so," I responded with an awkward smile.

"Commander Rayner told me that you are an Alpha."

"Well, I found out about that only when he told me. His Holiness, Lord Rafaelle did not mention that fact when he had come to see me," I answered.

"And it is true that you did not hesitate to heal us," he added.

I did not know what to say in response to his words so I sufficed another awkward smile. Kian entering the store room after a knock saved me from remaining awkward.

"Lady Alysa, is everything alright?" he asked, gazing at the three Zeros in the room. The one who was still awake regarded him with a stare of both curiosity and scrutiny.

"Everything is fine, Kian," I said. "Did Mr. Albert leave?"

"He did. I put away the money he paid in the cash drawer."

"Thank you." I regarded him with a smile and a nod in acknowledgement. Then, I asked, "So, there's no one in the café now, right?"

"That's right."

Nodding again, I looked to the man who was still watching us intently. "I could show you to the rooms upstairs if you would like to rest more comfortably. Ah, and would you mind telling me your names and how you would prefer to be addressed?"

It was perhaps silly for me to ask how the three Zeros wished to be addressed. After all, it was obvious that most would just use names with no prefix, if not insults when addressing any Zero. But the queasy knot in my stomach had had me ask that question - something about the man who was staring at me made me uncomfortable, uneasy even. Though he was a comrade or friend of Rayner, an air of hostility hung thickly around him.

"I am Alden, First Captain and Commander Rayner's right hand man. These two are Siward and Jukel, two of our fine soldiers. You may address us with our names," he answered. I was relieved that he seemed rather neutral on the matter, and accepting of my hospitality, "Thank you for giving us a place to stay. Please show us to the rooms, and perhaps your Zero can help with Jukel."