Guild Of Zeroes

Chapter 14

The days drug out into weeks and things at the tower did not improve. Against Stargazer's and Hawk's predictions, Sabre didn't improve. He got a little bit weaker each day, a little bit thinner, a little colder. Worse, he was gathering his entire cohort to his side, and they weren't there just to wish him well. They were all falling victim to the same plague. The officers in the medica had no idea what the cause was.

Quin still hadn't woken up.

The only bright spot was my own recovery. I could limp around the tower without help, provided I didn't do too many stairs on my own, and the medica predicted I'd make a full recovery. My red humours were low, apparently, which made sense considering the amount of blood I'd lost and I was given a recovery plan that involved an extra helping of red meat and some time with a project I was passionate about. There were certainly worse recovery plans available.

With the village empty, our scouts found the two Drake's I'd helped to bring down strung up and bled in a smokehouse. They'd come to the Guild so they wouldn't go to waste. The extra materials had gone straight to my workbench in the crafting hall as part of my recovery plan, and Mouse had a brand new cloak made of scales and lined with wolf's fur. The next thing on my plate was finding a use for the Drake's skull and back plates. I was hoping to find some way to reinforce Quin's helmet but the steel was not cooperating. When they woke up they were going to have a better helmet for sure, one that no mace in the realm could break.

Mouse knocked on the side of my cubicle, pulling me away from my work. "Snip," he said. His voice was rough and his eyes were red. "We're needed in the medica hall."

The bottom dropped out of my stomach and I dropped my tools. "Is it Quin?"

"Stargazer didn't say. Things don't look good though. What if Quin catches what all the other Warriors are coming down with?"

I stood and took him by the hand. "We don't know that. Best not to leap to any conclusions."

Mouse took in a deep shaky breath. "Right, you're right."

"It could be good news," I said. I didn't know how much I believed myself. "Maybe they're awake."

"I hope so," said Mouse. "With all this running around and planning, I could use them right about now. I'm about ready to fall apart."

I nodded. "And Quin always seems to know just how to pull you back together. I miss that too."

We made our way out of the crafting hall and out onto the grounds. "Well, shit," I said. "Is it afternoon already? I forgot to eat again."

"I'll steal you something after we see Quin."

"You're too good to me." It was slow going, hobbling to the medica hall Better than last week by a long shot, but still slower than I'd like. This damn leg was getting to be a real pain. If it took any longer to heal, I'd be tempted to track Wraith down and see if he had any forbidden magic that could heal someone instantly ... and then once I was fixed, I'd kill him. "Do you think there'll be an end to all of this?"

"This what?" asked Mouse, gesturing vaguely around. "The whole war with some kind of strange wizard and his armies of undead? Us studying revenants in the Tower undercroft? Our Guild masters asking our opinions on things and making us make decisions? I think that should be wrapped up in two days."

"Good. If Hawk asks me for any more advice or opinions I'm going to snap. I don't think I ever want to be this important again."

"Me either. I just want this to blow over and go away."

A muscle in my leg twitched, sending a buzzing, irritated pain rattling up to my hip. "I need a second." I found a nice stump to sit on and took a precious moment to relax and enjoy the gentle hum of a fat bee flitting between the flowers.