As Kaia closed her eyes and thought about how feelings were expressed, the thought of Boris came into her head. She hadn't thought of him in so long. Mostly because she had been so busy training and Turbine had told her to not even say a word about him. He was so handsome and dashing. She thought that she loved him. She thought really hard about it. Did he love her too, like Turbine does? He never really talked to her and he was too egotistical to notice her. Maybe he didn't love her after all. He's gone now, so Kaia can't ask him if he really did or not. She quickly wiped away a tear and forced herself to forget about him. He was a lost cause anyway.

"Is she doing okay?" Blocken asked as he and Basil walked up to the bench.

"Not really. I had to carry her most of the way." Turbine replied. Kaia opened her eyes and looked out over the streets.

"Have you ever thought of taking her to the Patches?" Blocken suggested as Basil helped him up onto the bench.

"I doubt they could do anything for her." Turbine said with a sad look on his face.

"What's the problem anyway?" Basil asked cluelessly.

"A long time ago, Kaia had broken her foot and it was never treated right." Turbine explained. "I think her nerves are being pinched by the bones from when they weren't aligned right." He demonstrated with his hands how they could not be aligned.

"Surely the Patches have an immense medical knowledge and can fix that sort of thing." Blocken urged.

"I'm worried about the money." Turbine admitted.

"I'm sure they won't charge a participant for medical bills." Blocken said as he adjusted his blue scarf that he had wrapped around his ochre cloak.

"Turbine, please take me to the Patches. I don't want to be a bother anymore." Kaia said as she lifted her chin off her knees.

"You're not a bother at all, not at all." Turbine told her.

"I can't train hard enough to even help my team. I know my opponents will be stronger than I and I have to do my part." Kaia frowned. "I'm weak but if I can fix my foot, I'll be stronger."

Turbine stared at her for a minute. He never thought she would doubt herself before, Kaia was so optimistical and had confidence in herself. But now that she knew her disadvantage against others, she had to do it. He closed his eyes and nodded. "I'll see what I can do."

Turbine carried Kaia on his back through the village, looking for a clinic of some kind. Finally, he resorted to asking one of the Patch officials that ran the shops. Luckily, the Patches were very nice and helpful, taking them to a hidden clinic where Kaia could be treated at.

"Mohammed Tabarsi?" A Patch physician called from the doorway.

Turbine had been waiting in the lobby as the Patches looked at Kaia's foot to determine what the problem was. Even though she wasn't going through any kind of surgery, yet, he was a nervous wreck. His black hair was messier than usual and his hands writhed terribly through his unwrapped turbin. As the physician called, he stood up immediately.

"Is she alright?" He asked as he walked through the adobe hall with the Patch.

"She's fine, just in slight pain. You stated she had broken her foot when she was younger and it was never properly treated, yes?" Turbine nodded, "We must fix that foot right away. We thought you would like to talk to her before we give her a sleeping herb and start to do the surgery."

The Patch opened the door and Turbine rushed in. Kaia laid on a medical bed wearing only a plastic white dress. She smiled when she saw him, happy to see him rather than the Patches. He came up to the side of the bed and brushed her red hair.

"Are you feeling alright?" He asked her as he sat down in the wooden chair by the bed.

"Better than ever." Kaia smiled although the bone in her foot was killing her.

"Good." Turbine closed his eyes confidently. "I was really worried that you were in worse shape than we thought."

"Don't worry about me Turbine, I'll be alright." She beamed.

"I can't help it. I don't know if you'll be better after they fix your foot or not."

"They told me they'll fix me. I trust the Patches enough to know they'll fix me. Please don't worry. After the surgery, I won't be a burden to Blocken and Basil anymore." Tears became to fill Kaia's eyes as she stared up at the ceiling. "Or you."

"You were never a burden Kaia." He wiped her tears away, his own starting to form but he stopped himself.

"You say that but you and I both know how hard it was for me to walk all that way." Kaia choked through her tears.

"But I didn't mind to carry you." Turbine held her small white hand in his tan hands. One had a black band around it and a yellow gem in the palm of his hand. Kaia was always so curious about the black band with the gem. She studied it as he held her hand. "I didn't mind to be your beast of burden."

"I've been told to never carry burdens or regrets, be free as a bird, wild as fire. That's why I don't want to be a burden to anyone else. I want them to be as free as I am." Kaia smiled slightly as she turned her head towards him. He stared at her through his black hair.

"Oh, Kaia." He smiled back and brushed her hair from her face.

"We're ready to do the surgery now." The Patch physician said as he popped in through the door.

"Don't be afraid Kaia. It will be all over soon. I'll be waiting right outside the door." Turbine assured her, not sure what else to say or do as a goodbye.

"I'm not afraid at all." She lied through her smile. "Remember, I'm as free as a bird."

Turbine gave her that dreamy smile before her turned and walked by the doctor. "Please take upmost care." He said quietly to him. The doctor nodded. Turbine quietly left and sat out in the hall, already nervous again.

"Take this, child." He said to Kaia as he gave her a bowl of herbal tea. She drank it obediantly and grimaced at the taste. Within minutes, she fell asleep on the pillow, afraid of the unknown and feeling trapped like an animal as they strapped her to the bed for the surgery.

To be continued in Chapter 10!