The Hunter's Song II: Lost Blood

Ch 21: Surrender🔥(Lor)

"Little shit better still be alive."

I wedged in through the metal flap on the side of the shuttle.

According to the comm on my gauntlet, the razkur's heart was still beating, but the occasional tiny red blip hardly qualified as comforting.

Arctic Haze was still unconscious on the floor.

I managed to stabilize the glass shard and slow his bleeding before jury-rigging a barely functioning vital signs monitoring device with components from the shuttle's life support system and the razkur's helmet.

It was the best band-aid I could fashion in a handful of minutes.

Arctic Haze's condition left me with no choice but to scan the terrain we crossed and backtrack alone to collect our lost medical supplies.

"Dammit," I hissed as I crouched beside him. I twisted my ankle, scaling down the mountain.

Fortunately, I didn't encounter many minions, or any Graven. However, it was all out pandemonium by the monastery. I couldn't see anything beyond a giant wall of vines.

On any other day, I would have charged in, hoping to slaughter as many as I could.

Arctic Haze came first...

I retrieved the first aid syringe and carefully rolled the razkur to his side.

"Don't worry," I clicked softly in his limp ear. "The cap was secure. I double-checked. The needle is sterile."

I pressed the tip into his neck and let the compound do its work.

The razkur shivered as I jabbed in a pair of pre-prepared tweezers to pluck the glass out.

Pale pink blood flooded out until it stopped, and his skin started to seal up.

"There you go," I exhaled in relief.

"Lor," Arctic Haze whispered.

I rolled him over and couldn't help grinning when he blinked.

"You're ok," I eased him up. "I found a syringe. You'll be up and bitching in no time."

Arctic Haze chuckled with a cough.

"How? I thought everything fell out."

"It wasn't that far, the hardest part was -"

"What!? Why would you give them an opportunity?!" Arctic Haze's ears shot up as he cut me off.

"You were dying," I growled and reared up on my knees.

"But you were alive and reasonably safe," Arctic Haze snapped back. "Why throw it all away?"

"Throw it away?!" I stood up and backed away from the ungrateful little shit. "We're fucked! The least I could do was not sit on my ass and watch some pissy ingrate bleed out and lure in more monsters!"

"Yes, the least!" Arctic Haze shot to his feet and veered his idiotic face at me. "Why put your life needlessly on the line?! There are more important things to be concerned about than fabricated glory!"

He flung his hands in the air with the audacity to snarl and bare his teeth.

"While you're at it, you can flaunt me off," Arctic Haze just kept on digging. "Round everyone up to come see the lucky male, clever enough to have you to look after him! I'll be no different than one of your macabre trophies. Just twirl me around at parties while loading me up with pouches of younglings!"

"I do not need you or any other male to bear my offspring!" I grumbled in his irritatingly symmetrical face.

"Yeah! Well!" Arctic Haze shouted. "I forgot about that!"