Wherever I Am

Chapter 25 - Part 1

I parried his spear, then slashed the Sobeck's wrist. His spear dropped, and he grabbed at my blade, gashing his other hand as I punched. He staggered and fell, my hilt cutting into his snout.

Another Sobeck charged me. I sidestepped, knocking his spear aside with my long blade.

Something hit the small of my back, bowstring twanging. I riposted his spear, missing, distracted by the hit, and tripped over the Sobeck I'd just dropped.

A bow twanged again, Sinense's arrow going over me this time, catching my opponent in the hip. He staggered but caught himself, looking at Sinense now. I kicked out at his knee before rolling to my feet.

He fell, but I did a faceplant. The dying Sobeck pulled me down. Rock cut deep into my cheek, and stars sparked in my vision. Another twang and my Sobeck went limp.

Staggering to my feet, my vision swam. The Sobeck I'd tripped bowled me over. I jerked my blade up, his fangs biting on the filigreed hilt instead of my neck.

This wasn't one of the smart ones, but with the others we fought, it was bad enough.

"No," rang in the air, and more weight hit on top, and he began to spasm.

"Die, die, die," Sinense's voice rang out as the Sobeck went still. I shifted my head as her chant continued. Tears flew from her eyes while she continued to stab it two-handed.

"Sinense," I yelled. "It's dead." Some of those stabs were going through it and into me. I'd have bruises from those, like the one from stepping in front of her arrow shot.

She stared at me a moment, her mouth dropping open.

"I thought I'd killed you...or...it'd killed you...I missed my shots."

"I'm alive. Help me get up if there aren't more."

She nodded, pushing the mutilated body off of me. I hoped there weren't more because she didn't look.

"You're bleeding."

I shrugged. It stung, and blood dripped off my face, but my vision was clear now, the dizziness gone when I sat up.

"I didn't even kill this one," she spat, then drove her knife into the first one's throat. "I can't do anything right."

Her arrow had creased its head, probably enough to knock it unconscious, but not a killing shot.

"We're okay, Sinense," I said, coming to my feet, feeling the blood begin to run off my chin.

Sinense looked at my bloody face but caught the movement of another Sobeck rising about a dozen feet away. Blood soaked its right arm, and it turned away.

Sinense raised her bow, sighted, and released. Her arrow took him in the right shoulder.

It stumbled and fell, rolling out of sight down the other side of the ridge.

"I can't shoot. That was supposed to be center of mass, where Ellie said to aim."

"It was a hit," I replied automatically. "Where are the others?"

We followed the yells over the ridge and watched the last of the battle play out. Ellie dropped a Sobeck with an arrow shot into the face, Nathan on the ground between them, scrambling to get away. Cornelia slashed another's stomach while holding its spear away with her second long blade. Then it was over.

Ellie and Sorina stood over Nathan as he gasped for breath.

The contingents moved, finishing any of the enemies who weren't dead. Sir Lucian raised his saber in salute from across the way. We'd run across this large group, and I wasn't sure which side was more surprised.

"I'm sorry," I heard at my elbow.

"You're hitting them now," I said. "You weren't a week ago. If it had happened then, I might be dead and you next to me. Today, we're both standing. Let's go see about Nathan."

Two weeks out, she was hitting more than she was missing. She was doing better than I expected, so I'd forgive her the bruises.

"I think he's got broken ribs," Ellie said as we approached, watching me closely. "Took a hard axe swing from the side...from behind. Never saw it coming."

"I'm okay," he protested, but weakly.

"Let Ellie check you out," I said, and continued around the battleground.

Gabriel came up to me, looking pale, a gouge cut out of the left side of his leather cuirass. He shook his head. "I didn't even hit it. Sir Lucian killed it."

He staggered, and I caught him, pulling at the straps on the armor. Sinense did the same from the other side. He cried out when we pulled it off. I ripped through his bloody shirt. It'd gone through right at his floating ribs. It looked like it was far enough to the side that no organs were pierced, but I was no doctor.

"Maid Mara," he said, and I turned.

Blood soaked her skirts from hip to knee on her left side and dripped from that hand. Her right hand gripped a bloody dagger. Her clothing was spattered with blood.

Her gaze seemed distant, then focused on Gabriel. "I'm okay," she said.

"Sinense," I yelled. "I've got Gabe. You get Mara."

I sat him down and started examining the wound. I could see rib bones when I moved a flap of skin and meat, but it didn't go deeper. A lot of blood flowed,

I pulled out a bandage and applied pressure. He seemed focused behind me on Mara while I bandaged, so that was good. Anything to keep him from passing out.

Once I the bandage was tied, I picked him up to carry him to someone for further care.

"My Lord Kevin," he said faintly. "Put me down, please. I can walk."

I looked at his pleading face, then set him down, a hand on his back in case he did fall as we went to where my soldiers were moving the wounded.

It had been another hunting party. We'd found a couple of real camps and took them out. I didn't like it, but it was necessary, but I was seeing them as too human these days. Hairy humans with something like snouts, but we killed them all. I didn't know what else to do.

Now to go down and see to our dead and wounded. Why couldn't we just bring in an Apache helicopter and blast them to oblivion? Then I wouldn't be losing men. Boys and girls like Gabe and Mara wouldn't be hurt.

Still, this was better than losing whole villages. We were finding less and less of them, so maybe we were close to being done with this. I'd planned to be out one more day, then head back to Suata, but now with all the wounded....

The bows gave us more advantage—shock and awe from a distance. Sinense handed me mine from where I'd dropped it, wherever that was. Somewhere back behind us.

We had nine wounded, none dead. That gave me some satisfaction. None of the wounds were mortal, and only two couldn't walk, so we could push on well enough. Head to Suata now, and we might get in by dark.

First, get everyone bandaged up, then move away from the carnage.

"Sit," I ordered, a hand on Gabriel's shoulder pushing him down.

He sat but looked at me. "You need to, too."

"I will, but not yet." I looked at Sinense, who sat behind him with Mara lying with her head in Sinense's lap. Mara held her dress together where Sinense had ripped it to get to the wounds.

"How is she?"

"I'm fine," Mara replied, then looked at Gabe, who looked away.

"Shoulder wound is a bite," Sinense said. "Not too deep, and I think it bled clean. I've bandaged it well enough for now. Her buttock's slashed and needs stitches. I've got it covered, but I'll get Sorina over to sew it up when she's done with the others." She brushed Mara's hair lightly. "You'll be okay."

Mara gave a slight nod but reached her hand out and laid it on top of Gabriel's.