Buddi closed his eyes and Ursa
dumped another bucket of warm water over his head. The blood ran off in small
rushes, trailing down his bare body. It stung but Buddi tolerated it. He knew
it would hurt. So he gritted his teeth and took it. Ursa gave him fair warning
when to close his eyes and she tried to be gentle.
"I know it hurts, Buddi." She stated
as she wiped some blood off his arms with a washcloth. "But I have to be able
to see the wounds before Grubbi or I can help heal them."
Buddi winced, as she wiped over a
gash in his left arm. "I…I know Ursa. Are we done yet?"
Ursa smiled. "Almost. Just a few
more should do it. Close your eyes."
Buddi complied and Ursa poured
another bucket of water over his head. Blood flowed down his body again but in
lesser amounts. Ursa repeated the process until clear water flowed down his
arms. When that occurred, she reached for a warm towel and grabbed Buddi in it.
Wrapping it around him, she stood and rinsed the tub out. It was stained with
blood. Seeing that and knowing all that blood came from her small cub, an
undersized child, made her sick to her stomach with worry and anger.
She walked towards the infirmary,
Buddi cradled in her arms, perched on her hip. Buddi was breathing hard,
evidence of blood loss and his face was a shade lighter than normal. But Ursa
knew that he had not lost enough to be life threatening. But he was
considerably weaker. He laid his head against her chest and closed his eyes.
Ursa smiled and ran her fingers
through his wet hair. He, in response, leaned deeper into her side. She opened
the door to the quarters of medicine and placed the cub on an examination
table. Grubbi came in shortly after.
"Ouch," he winced himself as he
examined Buddi's wounds. There were so many! Buddi tried to keep still but it
hurt. He was squirming. Grubbi gestured Ursa over. She nodded, sat on the
tabletop and pulled Buddi into her lap. Her strength held the fidgeting cub
still as Grubbi examined the major wounds. Buddi didn't cry or shout in pain.
However, he did grit his teeth tightly, to suppress the pain.
When Grubbi stopped, he smiled at
the cub and patted one of his cheeks. Then, he turned to Ursa. The adults spoke
in Barbic, which Buddi could follow but they were using words Buddi didn't
understand. He heard the regret in Ursa's voice and her hesitation but she
nodded. Buddi swallowed, hard. He didn't like Ursa's hesitation. He looked up
at her.
Ursa gazed down at the tiny child
with a small smile. Buddi didn't buy it. He knew something was wrong and the
shimmer in his eyes told Ursa that. With a sigh, she said,
"Buddi…you have too many wounds. We
can't clean them individually. We have to do them all at once. So, we're going
to give you a bath in those cleaning herbs. Then-"
Buddi interrupted her. "NO! Gum,
Ursa those herbs sting!"
Ursa bit her lower lip. She knew
he'd protest. She said to him in her stern voice,
"You're getting it, Buddi. We have
to clean those cuts and wounds. That's the fastest way. You can comply or not
but either way you're getting it."
Buddi's face fell. Ursa's voice
softened.
"Buddi…I know they sting. They're
supposed to sting. It lets us know they work. Grubbi originally said he'd do it
alone. But-" she added, seeing the cub's horrified face, "I convinced him to
let me stay with you. We'll try to be fast alright?"
Buddi nodded, his eyes wet. Ursa
picked him up and carried him into the adjourning bathroom. Grubbi poured some
herbs into the water, which turned a pale blue tint. Buddi tightened his grip
on Ursa's neck. Ursa gestured to Grubbi. The elder Gummi nodded and plucked the
cub from Ursa's arms.
Buddi squeezed his eyes shut and
Grubbi felt his muscles tighten and condense. He hated doing this but honestly
saw no alternative. He nodded for Ursa to stick close and gently lowered the
cub into the waters.
The cub's scream nearly burst his eardrums.
"NO! OW! IT HURTS! IT HURTS! IT
HURTS! MAKE IT STOP!"
Ursa swiftly grabbed the child in a
hug and put one hand to the back of his head, on his soft spot. She moved her
fingers gently in a massage. It helped a bit but she could still hear her
child's screams and shouts of pain. It ripped her heart open. She kept
massaging as it seemed to help but she still longed to be able to take the pain
for him.
"Hang in there, kid," Grubbi said
gently as he started to wipe down the wounds.
The child's screams did not cease.
To Buddi, his body was being scalded with fire and ash. He had never been in so
much pain. Tears were flowing freely down his cheeks. Granted, Ursa's massage
helped a bit but it still hurt. The time dragged on for Buddi. It only took
about ten minutes but to Buddi, it felt like ten years.
But when Ursa finally lifted him
out, he clutched her tight and whimpered like a baby. She normally would have
reprimanded such behavior but he was hurt and she knew how much those herbs
stung, even on a small cut. But still, that was how they determined if they
worked.
"Ursa!" the cub wailed as Ursa
carried him back into the main chamber of the sanitarium, clutching her around
the neck, "make it stop! It stings!"
Ursa squeezed him gently.
"I know Buddi. But that's how we
tell if it works. We can patch you up now. Just hang in there. The pain will
dull and then disappear, I promise."
Buddi nodded and tried to bite down
the pain. Ursa smiled and fingered his hair as she sta him down. She gestured
Grubbi over. He brought salves, ointments, and bindings over. He handed a few
to ursa and then sat to work on the cub's frontal wounds while Ursa
concentrated on the back.
Grubbi finished swiftly, being more
experienced. Ursa had done her share of wound dressing as the cub had grown but
these were profuse! Ursa noted Grubbi was finished, so she pressed Buddi down
onto his stomach, making the wounds on his legs easier to reach. He had several minor wounds that would heal
practically by morning
The few that were major were not
life threatening.
As Ursa tied the last dressing, she
pulled the cub up. She motioned for Grubbi to bring her something. The next
thing Buddi knew, he was being dressed into his nightclothes, as if he were
five again. But every movement hurt so he did not mind as much. But that did
not mean that he didn't blush.
Buddi looked a Ursa. He tried to
tell her what he saw but she put a finger over his lips and plucked him up to
set him back down on one of the few beds they had in sickbay. Buddi's first
impulse was to try and get up. But the mattress sank under his weight, like
sand. The pillow caved in under his small head. Ursa pulled the sheets tight
around him, saying,
"Rest Buddi. You lost a lot of
blood. Rest and we'll talk later."
Buddi's eyes gave her a simple
request. She smiled and with a nod, said,
"I won't leave, Buddi. I'll be right
here when you wake up."
The cub started to protest, when
Grubbi held a handful of broken stems under his nose. The child's vision slowly
blurred. Then, sleep overwhelmed him and he dreamed.
* * *
Ashes, fire, smoke.
Trees, falling growing.
Darkness and red.
Darkness and red.
Smoke and blood.
Smoke and blood.
Blood, blood, and more blood.
"Evil comes again…"
Buddi screamed and sat straight up.
Ursa, true to her word, was right by him and gathered him into her warm arms.
He climbed into her lap, trembling. She asked,
"That dream again, Buddi?"
He nodded.
Ursa slowly stood up, Buddi still
cradled in her arms. She walked out into the hall and down towards the main
chamber. Buddi looked at her. She sighed,
"The others have been having the
same dreams Buddi, although less clear. I have an announcement I need to make
to all you."
Buddi just nodded and waited until
they came into the room before looking up.
Ursa said swiftly, without preamble.
"We have to take action. So many
dreams, so similar may be a coincidence but I cannot take the risk that they
aren't. Gritty, Mari, Lundi, you go with me. Grubbi, until we get back, you
lead."
Buddi tugged her sleeve.
"What about me?"
Ursa hated herself for what she was
about to say but she had to say it.
"You come with us, Buddi."
Gritty caught on. "Ursa, you don't
think…"
She nodded. "We have to trail this
problem back to its source, the place Buddi knows inside out.
Everyone paused and only Buddi could
say it,
"Home, we're going back where Barbic Woods was."
