The first sensation that Berit was aware of was wet. He was lying in the wet. And he was cold. It was funny that only then did he realise he was in pain. Well not really funny when he came to think of it. Far from funny in fact. There was absolutely nothing funny about the fierce hot ache from his shoulder, hip and knee, or the stabbing pain that was coming from his wrist and chest. He also felt the echo of the spell fizzing within him, causing nausea to rise and giving him a headache. He took a deep breath and instantly regretted it as his broken ribs protested and forced from him a moan.
"Easy now, everything's back in the right place. You look like shit though." Khalad's voice. His face swum into focus as Berit opened his eyes. "Do you think you can sit up."
"With a little help." He said, hoping that he wasn't lying. He knew that getting joints point back in their sockets hurt, but had hadn't realised that it would hurt quite that much. If he had, he probably wouldn't have suggested it. He thought that he hurt before, but that was nothing compared to those last few moments of consciousness. He tried not to think about it. Unfortunately he couldn't stop thinking about how he felt right now, because that was awful.
It was his ribs that hurt the most. They varied from sharp and stabbing to dull and aching but he thought he broken at least ten of them. It's strange how you didn't notice how much your ribs moved all the time until they were broken. He could feel them, in and out and up and down, and he was sure some of that movement was not meant to be. His left arm and leg were going to be next to useless and as for his wrist... a worry for another day.
Very carefully Khalad and Talen helped him to sit up. Though he tried to stop them hisses of pain still escaped his lips and the effort made his head reel. With careful positioning they managed to get him to standing, but to do so he had to be fully supported by Khalad. They had managed to put his arm in a sling so there wasn't too much weight on his shoulder, his wrist so swollen that it his shirt cuff had to be cut open. He couldn't put any weight on his left leg at all: he had tried but almost blacked out again.
"I don't think... I don't think I can do this." He gasped, trying to stay in the waking world.
"Sure you can. You've faced down a raging Elder God. Walking down a mountain is a piece of cake next to that." Berit appreciated the confidence that Talen had in him, and he didn't want to disappoint his young friend, but this really wasn't the same at all. Though it seemed he still had his mind and memories. Look for the positives he told himself.
"We'll manage this together" said Khalad, looking to his brother "Take his other side, mind the ribs. That's it. Ready? Let's go."
Talen had positioned himself on Berit's injured side. Although Khalad was taking his weight on his uninjured side, he still needed that support to prevent him from collapsing completely. They moved slowly, more slowly than Berit could have imagined that it was possible to move. The others tested out the ground before they took a step to make sure it was stable – a fall now could push one of Berit's broken ribs into his lung and that would make a bad situation even worse. He hopped and shuffled with his friends either side, but time soon began to lose meaning for him it seemed there had never been anything before this painful journey.
There were several times that Berit had begged to stop for a rest and relief from the pain. If it had been just Talen maybe he would have got his way but Khalad was implacable and wouldn't consider it. Perhaps he knew that once they stopped it would be near impossible to get Berit standing again. Breathing was difficult due to the band of fire around his chest. Each step sent shockwaves into his abused joints causing them to pulse. He was able to just about fight back nausea but could do nothing to hold back the tears or even summon the energy to open his eyes. He trusted to the others to move them all safely. His world shrunk down to careful movements, the low communication of the two brothers and the all-consuming pain.
They continued their slow limping trek until they finally arrived at the rocky outcrop where they had left their horses and at last Berit was able to sink down onto the ground.