Guild Of Zeroes

Chapter 25

The next day we met with a wizened old medicine man inside the building I had woken up in. The healer had straight, black hair the fell nearly to his waist. His skin was the deep russet colour of the sand surrounding us. Age had marked him with deep wrinkles but he moved with all of the ease and strength of a much younger man.

"Can you try standing for me?" he asked.

I was sitting cross legged on the floor in front of the fire pit at the center of the room. After a short walk last night Quin had taken me to an ancient Imperial ruin where a thin stream of water ran from the mouth a sand blasted stone dragon. Once the sweat had been washed off of me, Quin had given me a light linen dress to wear and sent me back to bed. I had been awake for less than an hour and still slept through the night and woke up drowsy. I was thankful we hadn't packed any heavier clothes. Even without a fire roaring at the center of the room it was unbearably here. How people survived in this place was beyond me.

I stood for the healer and took a handful of steps around the room. "I'm telling you. It feels like it's fixed."

He nodded. "Feels like fixed and is fixed are two very different things. You are part of the Guild, are you not? How many foolish young people do know who say they are fine when they aren't?"

"I can think of one for sure," I said, casting a glance towards the door where I knew Quin waited outside.

The healer followed my gaze and laughed. "Yes. Alessia always had something a reckless streak. Often too stubborn to know what's good for them. You watch out for that in your travels. I can see you mean a lot to them and I know they will throw themselves headfirst into danger to protect you. You'll do what you can to keep them safe?"

"Of course I will. Can't make any promises though."

The healer laughed again. "I know."

I took a few more cautious steps around the room. "How do you know Quin? Or Alessia, I suppose, we sort of surrender our real names when we join the Guild."

The healer nodded and pulled a thin roll of paper from a pocket inside his vest. He put the roll of paper in his mouth and snapped his fingers. A thin flame danced on his thumb. He lit the smoke and took a long drag. "That is a story and half. Maybe more like a story and three quarters."

He took another pull on the smoke and offered it to me.

I shook my head, politely declining.

The door flew open and Quin stalked into the room. They were wearing several layers of robes with a hood drawn up. They must have been baking alive in this damn heat.

"Grandfather," said Quin. "I don't know if I like you telling stories about me when I'm not in the room. Don't listen to him, Snip, he's always making things up."

I stopped short and frowned down at the older man. "Grandfather?"

The healer motioned for me to sit and picked up my previously injured leg, gently prodding at the healed muscle. "Does that hurt at all?"

"No." I shook my head. "Can we circle back to that grandfather thing? You didn't tell me you had family here, Quin."

Quin folded their arms across their chest. "I don't."

The healer sighed and shot Quin a hard look. "Don't be like that. We may not be family by blood, but I put my share of work in raising this brute." The healer held a hand maybe three feet off the ground. "Although you were probably only this high last time I saw you."

Quin rolled their eyes. "And that was your share of the work?"

The healer stood and their hands balled into fists. "You know it wasn't my choice to leave, and I would have come back if I could have."