The Reformation Wars: The Trump of Ibis

Chapter 10

Every muscle in Dustin's body seized up when he plunged into the frigid lake. For a long while, all he could do was sink, unable to move one bit. Not one of his thoughts managed to translate into action. He despaired of ever escaping his frozen prison, and though a myriad of memories flashed through his mind, only one regret remained coherent for more than a second.

Poor Serena will be utterly crushed when this news reaches her, he thought, and if he weren't submerged, the thought would have caused him to shed a tear.

Instead, he found an ounce of motivation that he used to shoot an arm upward. By some miracle, he hadn't sunk as far as he'd imagined, and his fingers grasped the edge of the icy shelf he'd fallen through. That small victory gave him the strength to jut his other hand out of the water and pull his head up.

Dustin gasped for breath and beheld the world above water again. His muscles still spasmed from the shock, and the fact he already couldn't feel his feet at all was more than concerning. Frigid droplets ran down his face as he filled his lungs. He had no energy to pull himself fully to the surface, but at least for now, he wouldn't drown.

Then he glanced over at Paulo, and a wide grin spread across his face. Despite his own injury, Paulo scooted himself across the ice on his belly, clearly intent on lending a hand. Either that, or he wished to shove Dustin further into the frozen hell he'd almost escaped, but something about the glint in his eyes suggested a more favorable motive.

Paulo eventually crawled close enough, and with effort, he reached out his hand. The two exchanged a meaningful glance as Dustin grasped him by the wrist. Weak as they were individually, they combined their strengths and pulled toward solid ground. Slowly but steadily, Dustin's upper torso emerged from the water and came to rest on the ice shelf.

Then Paulo jolted. His grip loosened. Dustin began to slip, and he glanced up with desperate eyes. He gasped upon spotting the cause for the disruption. An arrow jutted out from his upper back, having come from the direction of the camp. Paulo gritted his teeth to hang on, but his anguish had apparently reached its limit.

"Don't shoot again!" Dustin cried out. "Come assist us instead!"

With a heave, Paulo yanked the rest of Dustin's body out of the water. Only his feet remained, which he removed on his own. Then Dustin helped drag them both off the frozen lake and onto more solid ground. After their great undertaking, the two simply sprawled out in the snow besides one another and waited for help to arrive.

****

Back at the camp, Dustin sat at the fire again, dressed in dry clothes and bundled in as many blankets as the troops could spare him. Strength and feeling gradually returned to his body as Jude fed him spoonfuls of warm broth.

Across from Dustin, Paulo hunched over shirtless, with his leather belt clenched between his teeth and a new wad of bandages on his thigh. He grunted as Cassie delicately cut away flesh in order to remove the arrow Jude had landed beside his shoulder blade. Kyle served as her assistant, constantly dabbing away blood so she could clearly assess the progress of her surgery. And more than once, he distracted her as well, inadvertently casting his shadow over the wound and preventing her from working.

"You're absolutely certain he's completely ceased being hostile?' Jude asked in a hushed tone while he nudged another bite of soup to Dustin's lips, "No chance he has some hidden agenda?"

Dustin swallowed. "If it were my death he sought, he could have seen to it far easier. He pulled me out of the lake after I wounded him. I need no assurance other than that."