Dragon Deep

Chapter 17 - Another side of him

Getting back to the academy was hard. Raphael was bleeding slightly and he seemed to have gotten one or two fractures. Other than that, he was fine, which was a relief to me. I was luckier. I had a few bruises and the lash on my right arm. Feeling gradually returned to my limbs and blood appeared to have just started flowing, pumping life back to my exhausted muscles. 

“What happened to you guys?” I heard Janice’s panicked shriek and I looked up.

“Uh…we met into the bloody psychopath that eats souls for breakfast.” Raphael spat out before he winced in pain.

Janice only stared at us, with horror or admiration I do not even know. I was too tired to care. The fire crystal dug into my clammy skin, making beads of blood trickle out. My other hand was wrapped protectively around Ren. He didn’t seem to have any major external injuries. Perhaps he was just knocked out. My numb shoulders were holding up the weight of my bag that I had hastily picked up before heading back.

“You’re bleeding! Let’s go to the infirmary.” Janice finally spoke and hurried us into the academy like a mother goose caring for her little ones. Raphael was treated first. Janice seemed flustered and scolded him for not being careful. Her worried pout amused me and I raised an eyebrow. Raphael let Janice continue reprimanding him and he smiled apologetically. Raphael shrugged his shoulders in response and Janice resumed lecturing him with an imposing posture. His right arm was twisted in an awkward angle, obviously fractured. Raphael groaned in pain when Janice tied a splint securely to support his arm. After she was done, Raphael was chased back to his room to rest.

After twenty minutes of twitching uncomfortably on the wooden chair and a few blood-soaked towels, my arm was finally stitched up and bandaged. Janice must have been a healer before she entered the academy, for she quickly prepared a disgusting concoction of some herbs. It tasted as pleasant as cow manure…not that I had tried that before. My eyes fell on Ren’s sleeping form and a pang of guilt ate into my overworked heart. He was always getting hurt because of me while I escaped with nothing more than a few bruises and a cut.

I showered and changed into a fresh set of clothes. I opened the door into my room and stared at the bag that was carelessly thrown on the bed. After Faris disappeared, I had hastily stuffed everything back into the bag. Too tired to do anything, I decided to leave the task of unpacking to tomorrow.

I pulled out the fire crystal that had specks of dried blood, my blood on it. It was hard to believe that this block actually saved my life. I touched the crystal again with my fingers and a dim glow came to life within the translucent crimson block. A tiny bit of warmth radiated from the crystal which soothed my wrecked nerves. My eyelids drooped down and my exhausted body sank gratefully into the soft mattress. Clutching it with my hands, I brought it to my chest and took in the warmth. Comforted by the soft glow of light, I drifted into unconsciousness and my eyes closed.

 I ducked under the bed sheets when the sun rose above the horizon. I groaned as a stab of white searing pain stung my arm as my muscle contracted. Unfortunately, that was all my brain needed to be awake and I reluctantly pushed aside the restricting sheets after I realised I was wide awake.

“Are you okay?” The familiar sound of Ren’s voice penetrated my mind. My eyes flew open and landed on Ren. He was lying lazily on the bed, flicking his tail absentmindedly. He was fine. I let out a sigh of relief.

“Yeah. You?”

“I’m sore all over, but still in one piece.”

It was a holiday for another three more days, which meant no lessons. That was a relief to me especially with my injuries.