Borny'a led the way through the forest into his valley over a narrow path that wasn't too steep.
Geth'n followed closely, leading the forward horse of the carriage assembly, and Anisah followed holding the rein of the horse packed with the baggage items.
They trekked for several miles without incident; only once did the rear horse of the travois move about roughly.
Anisah dropped the reins of her horse. It stopped immediately and she ran forward and held the animal's muzzle; stroking it until the animal quieted. Soon they broke from the wooded area and followed the path down the trail beside a quiet stream bubbling with clear water.
The horses wanted to stop for a drink, but both Geth'n and Anisah held tightly to the reins – there was still a need to finish this trip for Jond'r's sake. They continued to travel quietly and avoided any problems the rest of the trip. Finally they reached a small cabin nestled in the edge of the forest.
“Well, it ain't much, but its home,” Borny'a said as he dismounted. Anisah was glad to see they had finally arrived. She had been looking of the countryside, relishing the beauty of the forest from the view coming down from the hills.
It's sad we have to accept we will need to fight to save our homeland. Why is there such a hate of one individual that our world has to suffer and be destroyed? And Anisah, why does that person have to be your grandfather?
They tied the horses and removed the travois gently from their backs. Geth'n and Borny'a took the wounded man, still on the carriage, into the cabin and set it gently onto the floor.
Anisah scurried about, grabbing some bedding materials Borny'a pointed out and made a small, but thick, pallet on a cot near the fireplace. Geth'n and Borny'a then gently raised the soldier from the travois and lowered him onto the bed.
Anisah began to cut away the clothing from Jond'r's upper body. Geth'n then helped her turned the Jond'r over onto his stomach so she could work with the wounds.
There was some bleeding caused by the trip down from the hills, but the herbal poultice compresses Anisah had concocted in haste and bound around the man's back on the trail were intact and had proven to be very effective.
It would take a while to cleanse the great gash across the man's back, but she could already tell none of the major blood vessels was severed. The healing process would probably be successful, but the man's muscles would take a miracle to heal properly. Massive muscle tissues were hacked and the damaged, possibly beyond repair.
Anisah sat and cried for Jond'r while she softly cleaned away the blood and dirt. She searched in her small medical pouch, trying to remember some of the advice that Mistress Elspeth had given her, and mixed some different herbs in a small bowl she found near to the fireplace.
Borny'a had stirred the coals, brought the small fire up with some small dry sticks of wood, and heated more water from the stream outside. Geth'n took the horses downstream to a large lake, covering most of the valley floor, and let them water.
He returned shortly. He and Borny'a sat and talked quietly. The air outside became a bit too cold so they soon went back inside and found Anisah had finished what she could and was cleaning the area around the Jond'r's wounds to make certain all would stay dry.
"I have done what I can. Borny'a. You are a good man. I thank you for what you've done today," she talked softly with tears running down her cheeks, held the old man's hands in hers and tiptoed to give him a kiss on the cheek.
"Well, Missy, I believe I was only the helper here. You seemed to have done the job up right, far as I can tell," Borny'a answered, his face a little flush with embarrassment, but he smiled broadly with the attention.
Anisah turned to Geth'n.
"Should we stay another day tomorrow, or should we go on?" She was almost imploring him to agree to stay.
"I believe waiting another day probably would be the wisest thing to do. This man will survive this, but only by your hand, I believe. And Anisah, your own dreams are coming truer than you ever thought," Geth'n answered, realizing what she meant.
He smiled at his friend, put his arm around her shoulder, and squeezed her gently with affection. Borny'a agreed with them. So they stayed the night, both needing the rest themselves. They traveled at a rapid pace for several days previously and with excitement of finding Jond'r and the effort to rescue him, both were exhausted.
Geth'n lay down on another cot near the door and quickly fell into a deep sleep after only a moment.
But Anisah couldn't and rose frequently to minister to the wounded soldier. Once Jond'r awoke briefly, looked her in the eyes, searched the room for her, smiled at her , spoke only his name, "Jond'r", and softly returned to sleep. She felt much better afterward, feeling the man was healing properly and was able to rest more easily.
The next day and night proved uneventful. It was obvious the Jond'r's wounds would take a long time to heal.
On the third day, Geth'n mentioned to Anisah he thought they should be moving on. They still had Pet'r to worry about. Anisah stood over the soldier sleeping peacefully now, looked at Geth'n and nodded her head.
"Yes, we do need to go.” She nodded her agreement.
“Borny'a, if you will, please give him a small spoon of this broth I prepared. Warm it a little so he can swallow without strangling and as often as he wants, once he's awake. Don't try to change the dressing until he tries to move. He shouldn't get up too quickly but let him decide.” “You probably couldn't stop him anyway, but try to persuade him. You are a wonderful man for doing this for him, a complete stranger. And I believe he is also a good man so he should cooperate, if you admonish him as the gentleman I think you are," Anisah was giving some advice, some gratitude, and some admiration for Borny'a.
The old man, of course, blushed again at all the praise.
"I'll do just that, Missy. Don't you worry none. He'll be just fine. And I'll tell him about you two and what you did for him. But, if you're planning' on continuing toward the north, be wary. You are about to enter Voravia's lands and she's not polite to strangers.
Her men, or creatures, or whatever they are, have never bothered me here though I don't know why. But those things are dangerous, be sure ya stay sheltered in the night," Borny'a advised.
"We've three horses here, Borny'a, and you should have them all, but Anisah and I have important business to for our friend. We need to borrow two of them to hasten our own journey."
"Take them all if need be, young fellow,”My small world provides for everything I need," Borny'a pointed toward the house as he spoke. “These animals are not of much use to me. But the soldier there. He probably will want to be on his way when he's able. So, I'll keep this one that was standing by him when he lay dying so he'll have a way to travel.”
They rose early and prepared two of the horses for their journey. Borny'a shook Geth'n's hand and held Anisah's hand gently in his rough hands for a moment. Finally it was time for the search for Pet'r to continue.
"Come, Anisah. We need to go," Geth’n said, picked up his staff, walked to one of the horses and placed it through the loops on the saddle.
“By the way, don't fret over those two men on the road. If the animals haven't taken them away, rest their souls, I'll give them a decent burial."
"You are a good man, sir. I find you a most honorable man, a rare occurrence these days, and I'm pleased I met you," Geth’n added, reaching out and shaking the man's hand again. Anisah gave Borny'a another kiss on the cheek, and he blushed again.
"Maybe Jond'r can find and thank you some day. Who knows? Life has played stranger tricks," Borny'a called after Geth'n and Anisah as they led their horses back up the path they used to get to this peaceful place.
When they reached the edge of the forest, Anisah stopped, turned and felt uneasy about leaving.
But she looked down at the kind old man and the little cabin with a light stream of smoke trailing from the chimney, smiled though she knew he couldn't see her, and waved her hand high in the air so he could see it.
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She saw him return the wave, turned back to the path and followed Geth'n into the deep shadows of the trees.
GUARDIAN REBORN