Helping Hand

The smell of manure and sawdust and hay made my nostrils coil. Although I loved the smell on Earth, I hated it here. It was dry and dusty. The royal courtyards and stables and track were nothing of which was on Earth. The stables on Earth were more roomier, with little half-doors leading out to the fresh grass. The tracks on Earth had cushy dirt with lush green grass alongside. The courtyards were big, but not that big, and every animal was given four days off every month. Everything was different here, so foreign and so hostile.

"We have twenty-four Yobis's and thirty-four Hoyi's living in that." Deniton said.
"They look so mean." I whispered.
"They are," Deniton said. "King Goobot trains them early."
"How early?" I asked.
"Nine months." Deniton sighed.
"Oh my god," I exclaimed. "How could he?"
"It's his rules." Deniton said. "We have to abide by them."
"You don't have to." I said nastily.
"If we don't..."Deniton trailed off.
"If you don't he'll hurt you?" I finished.

Deniton nodded his head and floated slowly into the stable building. Poor guy, King Goobot really was a pain in the neck. He was like this to everyone, I noticed this on my tenth day here. He didn't let them have days off to spend with their families, if he allowed them to even have families. Holidays, he didn't let them go celebrate on any holiday. He even told them when to eat, sleep, read and I bet he told them how to blow their noses.

I started to walk into the building when a high pitched scream made my eyes grow wide. Goose flesh popped up all over my skin, my hair stood up on the nape of my neck and I started sweating. Another scream followed and I high-tailed it, following it to the source. I really wish I wouldn't of. What I saw wasn't in any case pleasant.

A white Yobis, a female by the size of it, was rearing up and thrashing out with her black sliced hooves at her handlers. She had five handlers, and all five of them were whipping her with long sticks with black ropes connected at the ends. Her tail was a stub, it was white with black and gray hairs splashed every which way. A thick mane stood up on her neck. It was the same color. Both of her long ears were pinned to her head, her eyes blazing and her mouth stood agape in a snarl that meant she wasn't to be taken without a fight.

I watched in fright as one of the handlers raised the whip and scraped it across her underbelly. He rose it again, and again, and again until I saw another handler raising his. He cut into her back continiously. The creature bellowed in fright and anger and pain. She turned my ways and lunged. I couldn't take it any longer. I raced towards her and the first handler was taken down by a good right hook.

The other handlers backed away, the lead rope dangled to the ground. They looked at my with amazingly astonished eyes. The Yoris had stopped her fighting and had crashed to the ground, bleeding everywhere. I grabbed up one of the whips that one of the handlers had dropped and I thrashed it at them. The backed away so more, but with anger instead of fear.

"You better leave before trouble starts." one of the handlers said.
"I'm not leaving this poor creature alone." I said.
"She'll kill you." Rasiob exclaimed.
"I've trained beasts worst than this one here." I said defiantely.
"Ma'am?" Deniton asked.

Deniton floated up besides me and with a flurry of his eyes, he saw everything. The poor bleeding Yoris lying at my feet, the handlers backing away with both fearful and angered expressions, the whip I held and the expression I had. I reached down and I placed my hand on the thrubbing shoulder of the Yoris. She jerked up and bared her teeth but that was all. I smiled warmly down at her and I slowly kneeled down and started smoothing out her long thick mane. I spoke sweetly to her, and I saw all the hate flow from her eyes.

"Leave." I said.
"Excuse me?" Rasiob asked.
"I said leave." I repeated.
"King Goobot..."Rasiob started.
"I don't give a rats tail what King Goobot said." I exclaimed. "I said leave."
"You heard her," Deniton said. "Go on."

Rasiob snarled at me then he floated away. The others followed, but with fear in their movements instead of anger. Deniton floated down closer to me and looking at the creature I saw his eyes moisten. I slowly grabbed the lead rope and I allowed for her to gather her small legs under her. Then I slowly walked in the direction of the stables. Deniton followed, at a distance though. The Yoris was swinging her head back and forth, and she was limping.

Her stable was the smallest thing I had ever seen. The sides came way up over her head and the overall size was hardly enough to hold her. She had but a foot to walk in. Once I saw that stall, I felt the hot terror and anger rise again in my throat. No, she wasn't going back in there. So we back tracked back out into the sunshine and we went to the pastures. I tied her down and I gently patted her neck. She looked at me with sorrow filled eyes. If she could have spoken to me, I bet she would have said thank you.

"Can you get me some soapy water, hot water and some rags?" I asked.
"Sure, I'll get them for you." Deniton whispered.

He left slowly, I could tell he was also fuming. I could also tell that he was trying his best in not making the female Yoris more upset. She was shivering and sweating like crazy. Her eyes were rolling, for the first time I noticed they were purple with blue pupils. Her sides were rising, and falling. One of her legs was ripped wide open. I could see the bone, luckily from what I saw it wasn't broken. She was favouring it, holding it high off of the ground.

Deniton came back three minutes later with three buckets. One bucket held the warm soapy water, the second held half a dozen sponges and rags, while the third held bandages and medicines. I set to work quickly, I wanted to clean the blood off of her as fast as I could. Bringing it slowly over her face, ears and neck. She sent a satisfied and relieved sniff, her tail sweeped back and forth. Her back was next. I slowly brought it over the cuts, making sure to not cause her more pain.

She had her ears perked up, but now they were back flat against her head. She sent a pained yelp and I stopped. I stopped, and I allowed for her to calm down. Then I gently moved my hand alongside her side, as I sponged the blood away from her rump. Her belly was next. It was pretty easy, as long as I didn't mess with the long scratch marks she was leaning comfortably against the fence. I cleaned her legs slowly and carefully. That one left front leg was ripped open was really bleeding now. I would need to have some real help in getting that bandaged. The rest was easy. As I straightened myself up, I noticed that we had had an audience.

Grooms, stablehands, handlers, riders, Pae, Visah, Reshia, Dahlia, Oshia, Thalia, Lithe, Maziera, Icolia, Lalee, Ryenio, Ooblar and Reinbotz watched my closely. Ooblar was smiling, despite his constantly looking back over his shoulder. I could tell he was watching out for King Goobot and Xeshi. Deniton had retreated, he was floating just about in front of Pae.

"What's her name?" I asked.
"Masakii." Deniton said.
"Well Masakii, how you feeling?" I asked the Yoris.

Masakii snorted, and she leaned on me. It was a sign of her telling me to hurry. I slowly stooped down and picked up the badly injured leg. The gauze was applied then a thick bandage that had to be tied off at three different locations. Masakii dosed while I did this. The rest was a piece of cake. I bandaged and medicated the whip cuts on her back and stomach, I checked the rest of her body and I found a stone in her back right hoof.

"How old is she?" I asked.
"A year." Deniton said.
"Her mother died giving birth." Pae sighed.
"You're a very good girl." I cooed.

Masakii stirred when she felt me gently tugging at her lead rope. Slowly and carefully she limp walked to a new stall that had been empty for a while. She was happy, her eyes were bright and her tail was held at a high stance. She tried to prance but her leg denied her of this. Once I had her in her new stall, I provided her with some hay, some oats and brandy and some warm water. I even gave her some vegetables. She was very happy and so was I.

"How was your day?" King Goobot asked.
"Eventful." I said.
"Excuse me,"he exclaimed. "but was I talking to you?"
"No sir." I sighed.
"It was very pleasant." Xeshi said.
"Now how was your day?" he asked me.
"Eventful." I repeated.
"I heard you saved a beast." Xeshi snarled.
"Yes, yes I did." I said.
"Which one?" he said.
"Rourke." Xeshi said.
"Rourke?!" he exclaimed.
"No, it was Masakii." I said.
"Oh, bad beast." he said.
"King Goobot sir." I said.
"Yes." he said.
"I was wondering if I could be in charge of her training." I said.
"Absolutley not." Xeshi said.
"Sure why not." King Goobot sighed.
"What?" Xeshi exclaimed.
"If it makes her happy." he said. "She can train her."
"Can I have her?" I asked.
"Sure, why not." he said.

King Goobot wasn't interested in this conversation at all. He kept talking to his plate. I made a mental note to watch out for him. Luck me I had a tape player under my dress. If he came to me one day and started screaming at me for this, I would have proof. Xeshi was fumming, she was use to making the rules, and getting her way. But I had gotten my way, instead of her I had gotten mine. A smile crossed my lips for a second. Then I dove into my plate of ribeye steaks.