Chapter 18: Healie
Ragnar looked around the chamber, wondering where the voice had come from. It sounded like the healer in front of him had talked but the soldier knew that that was complete nonsense. Healers couldn't talk in the human language. It must have been a trick of hearing from battling with the gophers.
Ragnar had been so busy trying to figure out where the strangled voice had come from that he didn't notice the healer floated a bit closer. "Hel-lo," it said again. "My... name... is... Hea-lie."
"Who's saying that?" Ragnar shouted at the chamber ceiling. "Show yourself!"
"I... front... you," the healer said, floating closer. Ragnar finally noticed it and pointed his sword at the healer threateningly.
"Don't you come any closer!" he said. "I'll hack you in two if you do."
"We... help... you," the healer said, its tentacles waving. "Still... no... trust?"
"I won't trust anything that won't show itself," Ragnar said, still not convinced the monster in front of him was talking.
"I... here," the healer said, daring to float closer "We... talk?"
"About what?" Ragnar asked, still pointing his sword at the closing healer.
"Friend-ship," the healer said. It stretched out a tentacle, as if implying Ragnar to take it.
Ragnar had no idea what to do. Every part of his gut told him not to let his guard down, yet every fact pointed to the healers wanting to help him. Was it them that had saved him? Why would they do that? And how was it that this healer knew how to talk in a human language? Many things didn't add up and the more he thought about it, the more it seemed that he was going to have to trust the healers, especially if he was to get out of here alive.
He slowly got down from the altar, keeping his sword between him and the healer. The healer was motionless, waiting for Ragnar to make his move. The soldier could easily chop down the monster and the healer probably knew it. However, it made no attempt to flee. It remained motionless.
Ragnar stretched his hand forward slowly. If there was ever a chance to back out, it was now. If ever there was a chance to kill the healer, it was now. If ever there was a chance to escape the chamber, it was now.
The soldier placed his hand on the healer's tentacle. "Friendship."
Ragnar walked in the middle of a small group of healers. Since his torch was beginning to die out, he couldn't see much around him and often bumped or stumbled along the path. He didn't feel comfortable in the presence of so many healers and kept his sword out in case they made any sudden moves. After hearing so many tales of healers attacking human travelers, Ragnar didn't trust the monsters. However, he needed their help to get back out.
He had many questions to ask and the healer known as Healie answered them as best as it could with its limited vocabulary as they walked.
"How is it that you can talk?"
"I... learn... from... child-ren," Healie said. The words were very strangled and watery. "They... friends."
"You know of the children?" Ragnar asked.
"Yes… when... they... come... here... we... play... to-geth-er. They... friends."
"But why don't you attack them? I've heard that healers will kill humans if given the chance."
Healie seemed to nod and replied, "Not... all... hea-ler... like... hu-man… we... kill... but... so... do… you."
"Well, um, I guess," Ragnar muttered, rubbing his mustache. The healer spoke true. Humans did kill, just like healers. Maybe it was just the fact that healers looked so much different and frightening that they just seemed evil.
"So, your kind isn't evil at all?" Ragnar asked, brushing a cobweb out of his way.
"Some... are... some... not," Healie said. "We... not... we... friends."
Ragnar rubbed his mustache. This healer seemed so friendly, even friendlier than many people Ragnar knew back home. Still, there was more to its kindness than it was letting on and the soldier figured it was time for Healie to come clean. "Why did you save me?" he asked. "I seriously doubt it was just out of pure benevolence."
Healie paused for a moment and the rest of the healer group stopped as well. Ragnar looked around to see what was going on. In the limited light, he saw a most peculiar thing. The healers were rubbing their tentacles together, and then placing each other's tentacles on the bulbous head of a different healer, rubbing it up and down. Was this how they communicated?
After a few moments, Healie emerged from the group and replied, "It... hard... to... say... man-y... rea-son."
"Just try your best," Ragnar said. "It is very important that I know."
Healie nodded and said, "E-vil... man... try... con-trol... us… we... not... like... ste-al... child-ren..."
"Wait a moment!" Ragnar interrupted. "What do you mean 'steal children'.?" Could this be a clue to the whereabouts of the missing children?
"No... know," Healie said, its voice starting to strain. It obviously took the healer a great amount of effort to speak in the human language. "Must... help... child-ren... kill... e-vil… man... control... us."
"I don't understand," Ragnar said, shrugging his shoulders. "Do you mean the children were trying to kill the evil man, or that-"
"No," Healie squeaked, shaking its tentacles in a mad panic. "E-vil... man... have... have..." Healie started to make a gesture to Ragnar's pack.
"What?" the soldier said, pointing to his pack. "He had a pack like mine?"
"No," the healer said. "Have... thing... in... pack."
Ragnar looked at Healie for a moment, confused. The other healers started to wave their tentacles at Ragnar's pack as well. He undid his pack and laid it on the dusty ground of the cave. There wasn't much left from when he first started on his trip. A few medical herbs he had bought in Izmit, a couple of spare torches and his flint, the empty bottle of Fairy Water from the King, and the strange shoes he had found on the altar. He suddenly realized what the healers were going crazy over.
He pulled out the shoes and held them up for the healers to see. "Did he have these with him?"
"Yes!" Healie said enthusiastically, its voice becoming hoarse. "Yes... child-ren... take... and... it... come... again... and... child-ren... take... and... you... come... and..."
"I get the point," Ragnar said, holding up his other hand. He looked at the shoes for a moment. They really did seem strange. And they were very light in his hands, almost as if they were floating on air. He looked back at the healers and asked, "So, an evil man who tries to control you left the shoes here, and the children find these shoes and disappear? Is that what you've been trying to explain?"
"Yes!" Healie exclaimed again. "You... find... e-vil... man... kill... free... we... free... child-ren."
"Me?" Ragnar said, shocked. "Nobody said that I was going to do anything like that! I was going to take these shoes back to the castle and let my King figure them out."
"No... time... no... time," Healie squeaked, waving its tentacles back and forth. "Must... now!"
"And how am I to do that?" Ragnar asked, crossing his arms across his chest.
Healie paused for a moment. The healers started to crowd around again, rubbing their tentacles together and on each other. After they were finished, Healie said, "I... join... you."
Ragnar tilted his head in Healie's direction, unsure of what he just heard. "Did... you just say that you were going to join me?"
"Yes," Healie said, shaking its blue body back and forth.
Ragnar began to have mixed feelings about that prospect. Letting a healer join his search for the missing children? It could actually be beneficial, not having to waste his medical herbs if Healie cured any more wounds he might receive.
After several minutes of mustache rubbing, Ragnar finally outstretched his hand to Healie and said, "Agreed." Healie put its tentacle onto Ragnar's hand and pointed its blue body up at the soldier. "Partner," Ragnar added, smiling.
It took a while but the healers eventually lead Ragnar back to the bottom of the old well he had first entered the cave from. The soldier looked up through the well but wasn't able to see much. The top seemed to be just a tiny hole, letting in only a portion of light. It was brighter than his torch was though, and Ragnar stamped it on the ground, putting the flame out. A few of the healers skittered off into the darkness in fright, shocked at Ragnar's sudden outburst of violent action. Ragnar noticed this and looked up, seeing a few of the healers timidly looking at him from the darkness. The soldier chuckled to himself. Could it be that these monsters were actually more afraid of him than he was of them?
Ragnar tugged on the rope, making sure it was safe to climb up. After he was satisfied, the soldier turned back to Healie, to inform him he was ready.
He saw an even more peculiar thing happening than when the healers were communicating. The healers were formed in a tight circle. From the middle of the circle, Healie (Ragnar wasn't completely sure since all healers looked remarkably alike) began to float higher than the rest, its tentacles waving in a rhythmic pendulum. The rest of the healers began to raise their tentacles at Healie. It almost looked like they were worshipping him.
It went on for a minute, then Healie descended outside the circle towards Ragnar. The rest of the healers floated in the cave entrance for a few seconds, and then vanished down the tunnel.
"What was that all about?" Ragnar asked, still a bit shocked.
"We... say... good... bye," Healie said in a low, strangled voice. The healer kept staring down the tunnel. It seemed as though Healie was upset.
Ragnar tried to be compassionate. "We shouldn't be gone long," he said, releasing his grip on the rope. "You'll be back in no time."
"No... you... know," Healie muttered, waving its tentacles side to side. It turned to Ragnar and said, "I... no... re-turn."
"I don't understand," Ragnar said. "Of course you will return." He thought for a moment, and then added, "You don't expect to die, do you?"
Healie looked at Ragnar for a long time, as if contemplating its words. After awhile, it said, "We... go," and it started to head over to the well's tunnel. Ragnar blocked Healie's path. The healer tried to float around the soldier but he was able to stop any advance.
"I'm not letting you by until you tell me what's going on," Ragnar said, a rare hint of concern in his usually stoic voice. "What is it? Are we walking into a trap?" Healie looked at Ragnar again, not saying anything, hardly moving except for the occasional flutter of its tentacles. The soldier grabbed Healie's bulbous head roughly and started to shake it violently. "What is it you're not telling me?" he asked, fury in his voice.
"Please... let... go," Healie managed to squeak. Ragnar let go of the healer but he still kept up a foreboding presence, crossing his arms over his large chest.
The healer kept looking at Ragnar, not saying anything, hardly moving. Ragnar sighed and put a hand on Healie's head. Healie started to back up timidly but stopped, allowing Ragnar to put his hand on its head. The soldier felt funny, putting a hand on a healer's head as a sign of comfort. The head felt soft, cold, and clammy, but not sticky or slimy, as he had expected.
"Look," Ragnar said, "I'm sorry. I overreacted, but I must know. Are we walking into a trap or not?"
"No..." Healie muttered.
"Then what is it?"
"I..." Healie began but lost the nerve to talk again.
"You can tell me," Ragnar said, as comforting as he could manage. Being caring like this wasn't easy for him but he could tell that the healer was very troubled and Ragnar's curiosity was piqued.
"I... I..." Healie paused again and Ragnar began to get impatient. However, Healie finally managed to mutter, "I... want... be... hu-man."
Ragnar was taken aback by the statement and removed his hand from Healie's blue head. Of all of the answers he was prepared for, this one he had not anticipated. A healer wanting to be human? What was the world coming to?
"W... why?" Ragnar asked. It was the only thing he could manage to say.
"Child-ren," Healie said, its voice sounding upset. "I... care... for... them... I... wish... to... be... with... all... time... not... when... they... come... I... wish... to... be... with... in... town... and..."
"I understand," Ragnar interrupted, holding up a hand. He knew how hard it was for Healie to talk for long lengths of time and he didn't want the healer to go into a painfully long explanation. "How do you think you can accomplish this?"
"Have... have..." Healie started to stutter, trying to find the right word to use. It began to wave its tentacles in front of its head.
"What?" Ragnar said, shrugging his shoulders. "Have head? Have eyes? Have nose? Have smell? Have vision? Have-"
"Yes!" Healie cried out enthusiastically. "Have...vi-sion!"
"What kind of vision?"
"King... Hea-ler... say... join... hu-man... to... be... hu-man," Healie replied.
Ragnar didn't really understand what the healer meant. Was this King Healer some sort of God to the healers? And how could a healer suddenly become a human just by being around one? It didn't make much sense but, of course, not much else was making sense lately.
Everything just seemed to have been flipped upside down today. Ragnar's simple life of routine and order was crumbling around him. Everything had been so uniform before these children started to disappear. What was the world coming to?
"Don't let it bother you," Ragnar said, trying his best to comfort the troubled healer. He patted Healie on the head.
Healie waved its tentacles enthusiastically. "I... glad," it said.
"Now, come on," Ragnar said, smiling. "Let's go and kill that evil man."
The soldier grabbed a hold of the rope and began to climb out. Healie floated beside Ragnar. Whenever he started to tire or his arms would seem to weaken, Healie started to wave its tentacles in a rhythmic fashion and Ragnar felt refreshed and new. It took several minutes but Ragnar managed to climb out. He eased himself over the well's top and stood up. Such a climb would have left even the most hardened soldier completely drained of energy but Healie's healing magic had left him refreshed and ready to take on anything.
The soldier looked up and noticed through the thick canopy that the storm clouds from the mountains were overhead already. It wasn't raining yet but it probably would very soon.
How long had he been down there for? It hadn't seemed a very long time but the spell had entranced him for a while.
Healie poked its head out from the well timidly. It was very bright for the healer, whom had spent most of its time in the darkness of the old well. Ragnar figured it must be a very frightening sensation to see the light like this. Healie looked around for a bit, then let out a strange squeak of fright before ducking back into the well.
"Don't worry," Ragnar said, walking over to the well to help Healie out. "I understand that it must be bright for you but you'd better adjust or else you'll never make it as a human."
"That not why," Healie said quite quickly, which surprised Ragnar. "Over... there." Healie pointed a tentacle behind Ragnar and the soldier turned. Behind him stood rows of pikes deeply embedded into the muddy ground. On each pike's tip, a single healer was plunged through, a clear liquid oozing down the brown shaft.
"Thus is the penalty for betrayal," an emotionless voice came from the bush.