Ortai Legacy: Arrival

6.1 - Oathbound (L)

"Ortai Shiel?"

I jolted upright with a shriek, nearly slamming my face into Mar'kost's.

He luckily dodged me just in time. "I apologize for startling Your Taivess, but might I inquire as to the location of your descendant?"

"Wha-" The fog of sleep made it difficult to comprehend his question. "I didn't have any kids last I checked."

His large eyes widened. "Liza?"

"Yeah. Are you okay?"

"I am." He tentatively gestured at Butcher. "I have a vague recollection of that thing following your orders. Is that accurate?"

"Yeah, it does whatever I say." I eased myself into a sitting position. An ache led me to touch my sore ribs and rediscover the unfortunate state of my clothes—which were even more singed and full of holes than before. Trying to subtly cross my arms over my chest, I inspected Mar'kost's expression for any hint that he'd noticed—or cared—about my state of undress. Given the fact that he was butt naked, maybe there wasn't any reason for me to worry. It wasn't like he had anything to hide, but it was odd to see someone so casual about being naked in front of a stranger.

His attention wandered to a tendril of graxi prodding his arm. "Did you need something?"

Cringing, I willed the graxi to leave him alone. "That wasn't me. Unless I focus on them, they have a mind of their own."

His feathers rose. "'They?'"

"This-" I grabbed a handful of graxi. "-is a colony of microorganisms that Ortai apparently bred for protection. They nearly gave me a heart attack when they crawled on me."

"Fascinating." He hesitantly touched the graxi I was holding. "They interact like the many cells of one creature. Are they intelligent?"

"Not as far as I can tell, but they're good at their job, so I can't complain."

Nodding, he moved to sit next to me with his back against the fountain basin. "Would you happen to know why I'm not a pile of ashes at the moment?"

It took me a moment to remember the harsh side effects of my new food source. "You've got my Arka Resistance when you're close to me." How close, exactly, was something I couldn't remember.

"Handy." His gaze dipped to my chest. "Are you injured? You're too dense to tell."

I was so taken aback by the casual tone of his insult that I didn't even get mad. "I know I've been oblivious about magic being real, but you don't have to rub it in."

Blinking slowly, he let out an exasperated sigh. "I'm unsure as to why you think I insulted you, but rest assured that I meant no offense."

Heat rose up my neck. "You called me dense."

"No, I called you dense."

"Yeah, that's what I just said."

Another slow blink. "Liza, are you using a Polyglot Skill to communicate?"

"No idea. What's that got to do with-" A sudden realization silenced me. "Did you mean I have high density?"

"Yes." He cocked his head. "Strictly speaking, I'm blind in my true form. These-" He gestured at his eyes. "-are decorative. I navigate by sensing how arkegy flows through and around objects in my environment. With fleshlings, it's easy to see their internal structures, but you're..." He waved vaguely in my direction. "...bright? It's hard to describe in sighted terms, but you have such high arka density that I can't sense anything below your surface."

"Oh." Yet again, I wished I'd never opened my mouth.

"So, are you injured? You seem to be favoring your chest."