Chapter 12
On the other side of the camp…
"Very well. Excuse us, Ororo." Jean hastily turned, arm locked in King Dayspring's.
"Of course." Ororo said to their backs as they walked to the opposite end of the camp. She felt a bit put out that Jean hadn't even waited for her reply. She sensed that there was something the flame-haired elf wasn't telling her. Sighing heavily, she dropped down to sit where Dayspring had been and sat in the lap of one of his soldiers instead. "Oh!"
"My lady! I am so sorry… I didn't mean…" He stood and offered her the seat.
She giggled. "No, no. It is my mistake."
"It offends me if you do not have this seat."
"What a predicament we're in. It offends me if you do not remain."
The brunette soldier's brow furrowed in conflict. The men of his troop were staring now and his chivalry as a soldier of Ayden, as well as a man, were conflicting with a request from a queen.
"If it will help, it's an order from your superior officer."
He hesitated, awestruck with the dark elf, and then finally took his seat and wrapped his cloak tight around his body with a shiver. "Thank you, my lady."
"No, thank you, kind sir. What is your name?"
"Hank McCoy. Henry if you'd prefer."
Ororo sat down on the ground across from him. She studied his appearance, noting his unusually broad shoulders and large hands and feet. He was not a small man by any means but nowhere near as towering as Dayspring. He had semi long brown hair tied in a neat ponytail and sported a well groomed mustache and separate goatee. "What is your position, Henry?"
His blue eyes lit up that the queen was interested in him. "I am a soldier, by title only. I am the King's medical advisor. Though I am not gifted in the magical arts of healing, am quite adept in the scientific arts thereof."
She tilted her head to the side. "Scientific arts of healing? What on earth is that?" He looked like she had slapped him so she immediately clarified herself. "I am truly curious as to what that means. I have never known much of the Outworld but it must be grand to have evolved so well without magic. I hope that doesn't come across as haughty…"
"No! Not at all!" The mistake clarified, he continued unwavered,"By healing with science, not magic, m'lady, one must observe how the body works and must understand how it heals itself before one can assist it. I'm sure you've noticed that you do not need to go to the 'Healer' for every minor injury you receive. It would be ridiculous. Headaches, stomach aches, small scratches- the body can heal them on its own. Through trial and error over the ages, or as I call them, experiments, 'healers' from across the world have developed herb potions for the headaches and stomach ailments. However, what about when you get a huge cut, say from a stab wound and a magic Healer is not around? It wouldn't do well to just lay their bleeding to death, now would it?"
Ororo seriously mulled it over and Hank couldn't help but smile at the genuine childlike naivety displayed. "No, I guess it wouldn't."
"Well, then you would be in luck if I were around. I have developed this new technique that helps close the wounds faster and keep infection out. It struck me one day when one of my servant girls was mending a worn pillow that's stuffing was seeping out. I was actually quite surprised to find that it hadn't been discovered sooner. You see, after you remove the object that inflicted the wound, if necessary, you cleanse the area with herbs to prevent it from getting infected. Then you take a needle and thread and sew the injury shut…"
"You are not serious, are you?" Ororo looked horrified.
"M'lady, it has a 100 success rate thus far. It helps keep the ends of the wound together and closes the open gap that would normally remain so that it can heal faster. And also, by having the wound shut, it keeps debris out that a normal wrap would not. Not to mention reduces scarring by a significant amount. Ask King Dayspring about it. He's had more than his share, believe me. It's a wonder the man is not dead."
Now here was a subject that she needed to know more about. She tried to act casually interested. "Hm. How long have you known Nathan?"
"You've caught me off guard." He paused a moment in thought. "I would say close to 20 years. When we first met, formally that is, he was half dead on the side of the road. You see, we were both tutored under Xavier of Mera, God save him, but we were never tutored alongside each other. Nathan was a scholar of monarchy. He was taught laws, order, and diplomacy. I, on the other hand, was apprenticed in medicine."
"If you don't mind my bringing it up, you look considerably young for having attended school with King Dayspring."
The man grinned, white teeth flashing in the moonlight. "I do not mean to boast but I was… am… exceptionally advanced for my age. I was 14 years old at the time. He was 24. As you may have guessed from my appearance," he held up his large hands in the moonlight, "I wasn't the smallest of children."
"I hadn't noticed." She lied.
"You're too kind. I am half-barbarian."
The queen's shock was unmasked.
"I understand your reaction. Barbarians are considered filthy, primitive creatures. Untamed ones at least. There are a few that aren't stupid and can pass for normal members of society, if not for the odd features. As a 'half-breed' orphaned youth, I was harassed by the locals and children would taunt me with the nickname, 'Beast'."
"However, it was one fateful day that I was traversing from my home town of Kinata to Mera when I heard some movement in the forest on the side of the road. Concerned for my safety, as bandits will try anything to attack, dismounted my horse and approached with caution. And to my surprise I found Nathan, lying in the ditch bleeding to death from 3 arrows in his chest and a stab wound in his back. It appeared he had been attacked by the very bandits I was concerned about."
"It is difficult to picture him having been defeated so badly," she now crossed her legs and leaned forward on her palms, enthralled like a child.
"I don't know if you could call it a defeat. 10 feet away lay three savagely beaten bodies. It crossed my mind who was more dangerous, the very dead bandits or the half dead man at my feet. I dressed his wounds hastily with one of the medicine kits I had created to solicit in Mera and placed him as gingerly as I could on the back of my horse. I don't care if you're full Barbarian, lifting Dayspring is no easy task. Don't tell him but I dropped his face in the dirt the first two tries." His eyes twinkled in the moonlight and they both laughed at the visual.
"Now, he kept murmuring Xavier's name which made it apparent that he had ties in Mera. Since it was only 6 hours away, I continued through the day and arrived just before dusk. In the city, you can imagine I received many curious stares and a child poke him with a stick when I was asking for directions." His jovial laughter punctuated the sentence.
"You're kidding!"
"Not at all. It wouldn't be as funny if it weren't true. When I arrived at the palace, the guards were less than cooperative. After 20 minutes of insisting, they finally sent for their captain who nearly laid a golden egg when he saw who my passenger was. While Dayspring was transported to the medical wing of the palace, I was escorted to the main hall. After waiting another eternity, Xavier himself was in my presence. Let me tell you, m'lady, when a man like him walks in the room, you know it. It may sound odd but when you're in the presences of someone so intelligent, so… clever and accomplished… it would shrink the most powerful of monarchs. He asked me a few brief questions of my medicinal skills and was fascinated the combinations of herbs I had employed. It seemed that the King's wounds were closing at a dramatic rate due to my treatment. He had never had two scholars at once before but decided that my skills, especially working towards the betterment of life for mankind, were too important to let wane. And that is how I came to attend school the same time as King Dayspring."
"That is incredible. If you wouldn't mind, I would very much be honored to have you teach my kingdom's healers your methods. Knowledge like yours is invaluable and would be a great asset. You would be reimbursed handsomely for it…"
"The honor would be mine, my lady. To walk among the elves is an honor that only those in this forest have known. To have that privilege would be my pleasure."
Ororo peered over where Jean and Nathan were settled. She noticed in the light of the torch that Jean reached over and grabbed his hand. A shot of childish envy went through her and she tried to force it away, telling herself that it was nothing and she shouldn't be having such silly ideas. She needed to preoccupy herself some more. "Hank, would you mind introducing me to everyone else?"
"Not at all." He stood and turned to address the company. "Form up!" His voice was a rich baritone that managed to be authoritative without being abrasive. The men immediately dropped what they were doing and stood in formation, each man side by side to form a line before Ororo and Hank.
Beast gestured to the blonde man at the head of the line Ororo had encountered before, and had rescued earlier in the day. "Sam, I believe you have met. He is skilled in swordsmanship with his forte being archery, and he travels well. His primary task is technically messenger, but he's Ayden's pride and joy when it comes to the Several Kingdom's yearly games. There is no one faster on foot than he."
Sam bowed to her and smiled shyly. "An honor, My Lady."
She nodded her acknowledgement before asking, "What is this 'yearly games'?"
"Sam?" Hank prompted the young soldier.
"Yes sir. The Several Kingdom's Yearly Games is an occasion when several human kingdom's convene to participate in different skill challenges. The winner of each event is given a prize but the winning kingdom is given tribute from each of the participating Kingdoms."
"They pay the winning kingdom?"
"Not exactly, my lady. The tribute is usually a skill or item that is native to the country. For example, Ayden would offer a bounty of the coveted Aldart Root, a rare and costly medicinal herb that is native to our land."
"Fascinating. There is too much I am ignorant of about the Outworld." Ororo pursed her lips in frustration.
"Do not concern yourself, m'lady. Even less is known about Elden to us." Sam bowed once more and stepped back into formation.
Next in line was a man with waste length blonde hair pulled back in a high ponytail. A black tattoo of a star was around his left eye. "This, is Benjamin Russel. Our most skilled swordsman and former alchemist. Mr. Russel, will you please explain to the Queen what your skills are?"
Benjamin stepped forward and bowed to Ororo before speaking. "As Hank mentioned, I studied the art of metallurgy. Dual swords are my weapons of choice. These two, as a matter of fact," he withdrew them from their place on his back, "are my own creation." He handed them to her to hold.
"They're so light…" She marveled before returning the weapons to him.
"Watch." He directed the sword at a fallen limb nearby and began to hum. Immediately, by unseen force, the limb was severed in half.
She jumped at the sight. "I cannot believe it! How did you…?" she implored.
Benjamin remained stone faced. "Years ago, I formulated an entirely unique combination of metals and spells that I have not been able to replicate. These swords are indestructible and only I can channel a spell engraved in it. It sends a vibration across the air and cuts through anything in its way." He placed the swords on his back once more and stepped back into formation without instruction.
Hank was intrigued by the queen's reactions to everything. It was almost as if he were showing a teenaged girl the local theatre presentation for the first time in her life. "My lady, meet Roberto Da Costa. Originally a mercenary pirate, he is an expert navigator as well as an excellent fighter with a sword." Roberto, a man with short black hair and richly tan skin bowed to her.
"It is an honor to be in your presence my lady. Should you doubt where we are headed, I will be obliged to rectify your doubt."
"Thank you, kind sir."
"As you were." Hank ordered and the men went back to conversing freely amongst each other and getting settled in for the night. It was this moment that Ororo noticed a disturbance in the atmosphere. Nothing natural. Hank had turned to address Queen Ororo but paused noticing she was looking to the sky, searching for something.
"Hank…" she whispered.
"Are you alright, my lady?"
"Do you not feel that?"
Hank looked around, trying to see or hear whatever she was talking about. "I sense… nothing."
Ororo looked over where Jean and King Dayspring had been and saw that the torchlight had gone out. She sensed it coming before it hit her and she threw her arms up in a futile attempt to protect her psyche. "Oh, Goddess…" A wave of psychic energy struck and the wind was knocked out of her. She stumbled back, clutching her head.
"Ororo!" Hank grabbed her before she could hit the ground. Everyone jumped up, weapons out, searching for the unseen enemy.
"It's them… Dayspring… Jean… nothing… I can…" another psychic burst struck her and she blacked out.