Deus Ex Machinarium

Anh has done what he promised, but as a result, both him, Brandt, and their new companion were slowed down considerably. Hoomin found it somewhat annoying but decided to tolerate such a comical situation. Anh sternly continued to carry the unconscious wildman until the evening, despite it causing him significant strain after a couple of candles. For the entire day, they formed a curious caravan, where Brandt would lead through the woods, tracking the steps of the group of church soldiers. Following him was the gently floating body of a blonde man, after whom was Anh, keeping track of their progress and taking care of the patient.

Brandt hastily set up camp in the middle of a picturesque beech grove and left in search of water and hunt for food. Anh laid the wildman near the campfire, checked upon his wound, applied some supplementary vitahex and once he made sure his patient was going to be as good as could be expected in the circumstance, he began to float in a cross-legged pose.

Nord returned about a candle later, carrying two hares and several large mushrooms. As he entered the camp’s proper, he presented them to the tanai as if they were trophies.

-” I thought” - he said - “That we could add some taste to our food. These are king’s boleti, a delicacy, and I don’t recall ever seeing them so large. I found several of these, and with a little meat, there is quite a supper before us.”

The tanai took a peek at the hoomin and his trove.

-” Lovely.” - he replied with a hint of enthusiasm - “Compared to what we’ve been eating for the last few days.”

Brandt sat beside Anh, reached for a knife, and began to skin his prey.

-” How is he doing” - he asked the tanai.

-” I honestly can’t tell. I think he is sleeping.”

-” Well, you did lull him for the whole day. I’m not surprised.”

The tanai didn't respond. He put his hand on the man's leg testing whether his vitahexing fulfilled its purpose. At that moment, the injured man opened his eyes and right after, tried to jump up, but a sudden jolt of pain from his wounded leg reminded him futility of such attempts. Humbled, he sat slowly, propping himself on his arms.

The sight, and smell of an unshaven, scruffy, sweaty tanai groping him, with an easterner hoomin companion was certainly not what the man expected to see. Especially since the hoomin was of the kind he likely had never seen before and in no better aesthetic shape than the floating man. He stared at them briefly, then laid back on the ground.

-” Wa bisto? Wa wolsto?” - he asked. His voice was melodic and strangely soft, considering how poor of a state he was. Its timbre weirdly struck Brandt. It wasn’t necessarily familiar, but he would have sworn he heard it somewhere. It wasn’t the language though. If there was one, Nord wasn’t, by any measure, fluent, but he could utter a word or two. It was how this man spoke, not what he said. It took Brandt a better part of a triskol to realize what the wildman was saying.

-” Brandt Zerster. Anh Trawins.” - he replied finally while pointing at himself, then at the tanai. Then he held both hands in front, presenting he had no weapons - “Wy nee sear jo.”

-” Ja dat dochst.” - scoffed the man - “Ik hyt Olaff. Wêr is Aljon?”

-” Deat. Finde kadaver en jo.” - a paroxysm of pain flashed through the man’s face, when he heard Brandt say that.

-” Fouk.” - he uttered - “Jim manljen bringe allinne de deaot.”

Anh was witnessing the overall hostile attitude of the wildman

-” I’m guessing our guest isn't too happy to see us?"

-" It would seem so." - replied Brandt.

-" You know their language?" - Anh raised his eyebrows - "This would be truly impressive.” - the tanai froze for a brief moment - ” I’m not aware of any books or dictionaries regarding this subject."

-" I wouldn’t call it ‘knowing’” - said Brandt uneasily - ”I picked a few words when I was doing business in Loria. This seems similar enough."

The wildman in the meantime was looking at his leg with a pained look on his face. Then he tried to remove the bandages. Anh frowned.

-" No, don't move them. You'll disturb the scabbing! Tell him!"

-" Nee. Is foar… healing, umm… hielje."

Olaff ceased his struggle with the cloth and grunted. He looked around, then towards the sky, and then fixed his gaze on the Nord.

-" Jo hearre net yn it Heitelân, it is net jo lân. Wêrom bisto hjir?" - he said aggressively. Anh looked at a frowning Beorg.

-" What is he saying?"

-" Something about this land. And he's asking why we are here."

-" Are you going to tell him? The real reason?"

The nord nodded and then started gesturing.

-" Wy sykje manlju. Members of Ordo? Warriors, ehm… krigers. And one like him… ien… lykas hy." - he pointed at the tanai then at the forest - "They took from us. Eh… sy… stelle ús. I don't know how to say this… equipment. Goods. Handel."

A slight change appeared on the wildman's face and a shadow of understanding but then he frowned again.

-" Ik leau dy net. Easterlingen komme hjir allinnich om ús lân en ús folk te deadzjen en te nimmen. Jo binne hjir om wat te stellen."

Brandt shook his head and then looked at Anh.

-" This is pointless. He's not going to be of any help. Now he accuses us of stealing something too." - he checked whether the meat was already cooked, then continued - "We should cut him loose. He's conscious. It's his land. He'll survive."

-" But he's injured!" - protested the librarian.

-" We'll leave him some food."

-" He'll die here. He can't move.”

-" His mates will find him..." - said Brandt but then stopped, because the wildman laughed bitterly.

-" En no binne jo rûzje." - he said, then shifted his leg, wincing with pain - "Jo wolle my hjir litte om te stjerren of my te deadzjen. Wa wol my deadzje? Ik bin der wis fan dat it de slanke man is."

-" Hy hielje jo. Sjen tank." - replied Brandt tiredly then added - " Our food is ready."

Both the wildman and the tanai now observed the Nord, who skillfully parcelled the coneys into three roughly equal portions, then chopped the mushrooms in halves and laid them out on large leaves.

-" Hand him some please, Mr. Trawins." - he said.

The hexergist almost absentmindedly gripped the food and floated two portions, one towards himself, the other one at the wildman, who looked at the scene with his jaw hanging open.

-" Do bist in sjenner!" - he exclaimed, shifting his gaze between the tanai and the meat in great confusion.

-" Does it mean 'thanks'?" - inquired Anh.

-" No." - replied Brandt between bites - "He thinks you're a… I don't know the word, but it sounds like someone who sees."

-" Siyener." - repeated the tanai, slowly and carefully mispronouncing the word.

-" Jo, jo! De sjenner!" - repeated Olaff, then started making grand gestures with his hands and whooshing sounds with his mouth. Then he picked up a random bit of his food and held it out toward the tanai.

-" I think this word means hexergist in their language." - said Anh excitedly - "Fascinating! Is he giving me food? Is it an offering? Sign of respect perhaps."

-" Either this or he thinks you eat far too little." - chuckled Brandt

-” It’s for you!” - Anh gently gestured at the increasingly puzzled Olaff - “I have my own” - tanai pointed at his food - “Please tell him that? This is very uncomfortable”

-” Jo. Iten. Slanke net nedich” - slowly uttered Brandt, while pointing at the wildman and rubbing his belly at the same time.

Olaff was, at this moment, completely confused. With a reluctant hand he took the bit of food he, until now, was holding in his hand and put it into his mouth. Mundane drive of hunger overcame his reservations and he began to devour his portion of food, doing so much quicker than both aberrants.

-” So, Mr Trawins. What do you suggest we do now?” - asked Brandt when he finished his portion and discarded the leaf he ate it off. Anh took a few drips to answer, as he was busy chewing his food.

-” I think” - tanai finally replied - “we ought to reunite him with his tribe. They live in tribes, right?” - Brandt shrugged.

-" Wêr jim minsken?" - inquired hoomin. Olaff’s eyes turned into slits.

-" Net fertel dy neat" - he hissed. Anh sighed heavily in frustration.

-” Tell him he saved his life? Maybe?” - Nord nodded to tanai’s request, but it didn’t seem he was convinced of it.

-" … helpe … jo libben" - he said slowly while pointing at himself and Anh -"wol jo werom minsken".

Olaff turned his head away. Brandt didn’t seem to be much bothered by this. He just helplessly threw his hands ever so slightly. Anh, on the other hand, seemed puzzled as to why their guest was so defensive.

-” I suggest…” - said Brandt - “...we rest.”

-” Why?”

-” Because it is late, and we’re still not done.”

-” What I meant was, why is he acting like this?”

-” Maargard has been brutalizing, enslaving, and exploiting those people for the last five hundred years.” - Brandt looked straight at Anh - “ He has no reason to like us.”

-” But… we, I mean, you and me, we did help him. We didn’t do him any harm.”

-” I’m sure he is very grateful. We are still the enemy. If these people are anything like Lorians, he will gladly trade his own life for the good of the tribe.”

-”I don’t understand.” - said the tanai after a moment of silence

Brandt rubbed his temples, thinking for a few drips.

-” I don’t want to sound patronizing, Mr Trawins.” - Brandt rubbed the bridge of his nose - “You have no idea what kind of people a place like this creates. You’ll need much more than a few words and a meal to gain even a bit of his trust.”

Anh fell silent, and his gaze turned unfocused. For a while, Brandt was waiting for some sort of reply. When it became obvious none was coming, he stood up and began to wander around the camp. Both stretching his muscles and getting his bearings in the immediate neighborhood. He returned half a candle later and found Anh floating in a cross legged pose before the fire. Tanai’s eyes were half closed, just enough to be aware of what was happening outside, but also indicating that he was busy with whatever occurred behind his brow. Olaff was asleep, curled on the other side of the fire and snoring slightly. Nord decided to rest himself.