Claiming The Remnant

Chapter 69

[ Garrett ]

"Truce?" The Head Healer held out his hand for me to shake. I eyed it for a moment considering. The conversation that had transpired between us felt like a door opening. Ok, perhaps more ajar - but it was a start.

"Friends?" I countered, hedging my bets that he needed a friend just as much as I did.

"That's very generous of you, considering how I've behaved." He answered hesitantly.

"Well, I have to. It's the code." I grinned; the alcohol making me a little more forward.

"The code?" Asperonin was weary.

"Yup, we drank and shared sob stories, we have to be friends now. That is the code." I teased, smiling wider when relief crossed over Asperonin’s serious face.

"Ah, duty and obligation. I understand Captain." He grinned right back. I took the proffered hand and we shook. A firm handshake. Satisfied that we had come to an accord I sat back in the chair.

"Ye Gods, that stuff is strong." I eyed the dark liquid. Elbranis was distilled from the fruit of a Yelka tree. Even low quality bottles of the stuff were rather expensive. This was clearly top notch, I wouldn’t expect anything else from the Head Healer, and I did not want to know how much it had cost.

"Another?" Asperonin reached for the bottle.

"Tempting, but some other time." I liked to drink, but socially only. Not that there were many occasions so I was a bit of a light weight. My quarters were also devoid of any alcohol. I didn’t have a problem but it was a habit that could easily develop into one. I thought it better to just not have the temptation there in the first place.

"Of course Captain, I forgot you came on business. Something about equipment?" He made sure to jam the stopper firmly in before putting the bottle away.

"If you're up for the walk, I think it would be better if I showed you." There wasn’t a single scenario where Asperonin would accept the same kind of demonstration as His Majesty had. The better course of action was to simply show him the damage the nullifying cuffs caused.

"Humm, I'm intrigued Captain." He cleared the mugs and plates from the table. “Let me change from my slippers and we can be on our way.”

He was a little longer than just ‘changing out of slippers’, but I didn’t mind. I didn't have anything else to do today, that is, other than mope and wallow in my own self pity. At least Jo was ok. Physically ok. They had to be if they were back to escort duties with Lady Esther.

The walk to the dungeons was a quiet one. In an easy silence we both traversed the castle, lost in our own thoughts and calmed by the mellow after effects of our early morning Elbranis consumption. So far the outcome of this morning's endeavors was entirely different to my expectation. It had been refreshing to not be received in a snide and condescending manner, and finally finding some common ground was the crowning achievement. Asperonin’s problems didn’t please me. I wasn’t happy that there was a rift between him and his son but I was glad the predicaments that we had both found ourselves in had led to an understanding.

“Graceson,” Seriously, there wasn’t a single other guard I encountered milling as much as him.

“Captain.” He stood to attention. “Head Healer.” He added the address in a respectful tone. There was no reason for him not to. I did not titter about my gripe with Asperonin but I suspected that the Healer did not extend the same courtesy.

“Go to Housekeeping, I want the Captain’s Suite cleaned, stocked and available for this evening.” At least Graceson’s apparent lack of schedule seemed to come in handy.

“Yes, Captain. Good day to you, Head Healer.” Graceson then hurried off to attend to his assigned task.

“Jo trashed my regular quarters.” I answered the unasked question quietly. “I can’t go back there, nor can I keep camping in my office. The Suite is the only other available quarters. Unless I want to drop rank and take a bunk.” Most of the guards stayed in communal quarters. Large rooms filled with bunks, shared shower facilities and a big mess hall. It was a simpler life.

“Yes, you would be at capacity with all the recruitment. Threat of war and all that.” Asperonin kept to the safe side of the topic.

“This way.” I beckoned him down a dim passage. The moaning was almost inaudible at this point and if you didn’t know what that sound was on the edge of the silence then you wouldn’t realise it was there. I knew it was there though. It was impossible for me to forget. We got closer, it got louder and Asperonin held his patience - waiting as opposed to asking. At the door I turned to him. Looked straight into his glowing golden eyes. “Behold,” I spat, unable to contain my anger, “the legacy of the ‘great’ Captain Mersolk.”

He cast his eyes around the room I’d opened. There were 15 people in the room. All female. The youngest was about 12, the eldest 73. A foul odor that bit at the nose and eyes came from the dim stone room. This large cell was washed out three times a week but the stench wouldn’t disperse.

“What am I looking at Captain?” He hesitated at the doorway. The prisoners wandered, muttering, moaning, staring into an empty distance; paying us no mind.

“This is what happens when...” I stepped in aiming for a woman with short golden hair. A Healer. “Come, they won’t do anything other than what you see.” He pulled the door too. Protocol should have had a guard lock us in but it was unnecessary. Asperonin joined me next to the golden haired woman I was gently holding by the shoulder. Her hair was cut brutally short. Not her choice. She had no choices in here, and even if she did she wouldn’t be able to make any for herself. Short hair prevented matting, lice and kept the prisoners cleaner. Another thing I had ordered.

“She is a Healer.” Asperonin stated the obvious. His voice gave nothing away. I didn’t know what he was thinking and I didn’t care. Perhaps he thought this was some strange threat. Truthfully, she was just the safest option for what I wanted to show him.

“Yes. Mersolk’s records were poor but from what I can tell her name is Lees’oul. She was imprisoned at 19, for what… it is unclear. She wore nullifying cuffs in a single 6ft cell for 23 years. When I took over she wasn’t far from the all skin and bone Lady Esther from a few nights back. Filthy, covered in sores, hair and body lice.” I fished the keys for the cuffs out of my pocket.

“Captain…” He began cautiously, “prisoners are not my jurisdiction. We do not attend to them unless requested to do so…”

“I know, I’m making no accusations.” The key was in the lock but I didn’t turn it yet. “Just watch. Lees’oul? Lees’oul?” She looked at me, almost empty brown eyes just about catching that I was there. “Deep breath Lees’oul.” She did as I asked. As she breathed I clicked the cuff open. I counted to three and, as I knew it would, her magic flared. Lees’oul’s eyes burned bright gold, so much so it brightened the room. “She will just keep going until she burns out. Zero control. Her mind is damaged. She hardly responds to her name, let alone anything else.”

“They’re all like this?” He scanned the room.

“Some are worse. This is what prolonged use of the nullifying cuff causes but it’s not the magic, it's the pain. I need to put the cuff back on before she burns out. If you wouldn’t mind?”

“Of course.” He put a hand against her cheek making Lees’oul sigh.

I clipped the cuff back around her wrist without the usual deep breath mantra. It wasn’t necessary as Asperonin was preventing any pain. Then I counted to ten out loud signaling on ten that he could stop.

“This is a S4 single syphoning cuff. Double banded but as it is already at her body temperature the second band is active already.” These prisoners only wore a single cuff, like a bracelet, because they didn’t need to be restrained. “With Healers it can be difficult to choose the right syphoning level because the volume of the shade is the same no matter the size of the well.” He nodded at my explanation but looked guarded.

“Have you seen my mummy?” The youngest prisoner pulled at Asperonin’s sleeve. He went pale but didn’t move away, much to his credit.

“Hey, Ginsi,” I crouched down to her level and, while looking into her bright orange eyes, carefully pried her fingers off Asperonin, “try over there, I think I saw her.” I lied. Ginsi turned in the random direction I had pointed and happily wandered off.

“What is she here for?” He watched her walk away.

“I don’t know, I guess she burned something or someone. She always asks for her mother. Best thing to do is just pretend. Anything else and she just gets upset.”

“So what do you want?” There it was; the tone I usually received from the Head Healer. I’d wondered how long it would take to get back to it.

“I picked Lees’oul not because she is a Healer but because her magic was the safest for me to show you this. They all react like that.” I turned back to Lees’oul who hadn’t moved. “Ginsi would have burnt us both to a crisp while calmly asking for her missing mother.”

“Ah, my apologies Captain.”

“The syphoning cuffs are better than the nullifying in the sense that they settle, nullifying peaks and troughs with pain on a continuous basis but syphoning cuffs come with their own difficulties. What I want is to eliminate all the negative points. I want to make nullifying cuffs that are painless.”

“I see.” He studied Lees’oul. “Why was she even cuffed in the first place? Healing magic isn’t dangerous.”

"Are you sure about that?" I gave him an almost cutting look. "But I agree, it was heavy handed and unnecessary in this case. The whole system needs an overhaul, starting with this. We replace the cuffs every 12 months. It's distressing for the prisoners, especially when you consider their complete lack of mental awareness and the levity is likely disproportionate to their crimes." Asperonin said nothing, just continued to look at Lees'oul. "Everyone gets treated equally no matter the age, health status or crime. Accused, cuffed, punished or released. The one size fits all approach doesn't work. Take Sara," I pointed to the oldest inhabitant, "we were only able to match her to a file because they branded her. White magic, been here almost 50 years. Her crime? Not even magic related; couldn't pay a debt. By the time she had served the sentence she wasn't fit for release. None of them are. What can I do with them? If I let them out they would just end up right back here." I tried to keep my voice under control, these vulnerable people didn't need me upsetting their delicate frames of mind.

"May I?" He raised his hands toward Lees'oul in a typical healing position.

"Be my guest." Asperonin was gentle and Lees'oul closed her eyes but nothing else happened. The Head Healer removed his hands with a furrowed brow and an angry curl to his lip.

"Ginsi." He called the girl in a sweet friendly tone. Her bright orange eyes snapped over. She stopped bothering the other inmate with her singular question and bounded over.

"Have you seen my mummy?" She asked brightly.

"If you stop here a moment and be a good girl we might be able to find her." He then poked her oak brown nose with a little ‘boop’ and she giggled. Ye Gods have mercy, she giggled. I though my heart might collapse.

The Healer placed his hands in a position I didn't recognise. Starting at the crown of the head he moved two fingers in unison.

"Hilom Fluxus," He announced, running two fingers over her heart, "a chakra healing technique."

"I was wondering." I watched him move his hands. A little bit of hope was rising in me but I tried to squash it down.

"What's your name?" He asked as soon as he finished with this chakra thing. I'd asked, and asked, hoping beyond reason that she would come back. She always just asked where her mother was.

"My name is Ginsi." She smiled at Asperonin, showing her yellow and rotting teeth.

"Earth and Sky be blessed! Is she…"

"Have you seen my mummy?" Ginsi interjected.

"I'm afraid not, Captain. At least not yet." He patted her head and sent her off in a random direction. "Over time, some of them might be salvagable but no more today. I'm still exhausted from dealing with Lady Esther. She shouldn't be so draining to deal with but the volume of magic required to make an impact on her is phenomenal. She was taxing enough to heal a Taiya but for some reason Esther is much worse."

I watched the little girl grab at one of the other women. A sad smile shuffled onto my face as this time Ginsi didn't just ask for her mother but she also told the woman who's arm she was pulling her name.

"There are hundreds of them, most of them are peaceful, just lost inside themselves. We do have a few that self harm or are violent. Of course we keep the men and women separate - avoid anything untoward." We moved towards the door.

"Perhaps Dr. Heathson should come take a look at them." Asperonin pondered out loud.

"Do my ears deceive me or did you just suggest a Dr?" I tried to lighten the mood a little.

"Yes, yes I did." The Healer practically rolled his eyes. "Poflorin thinks that we should be looking to combine the two practices. I'm trying to be supportive of that."

"It does sound sensible." I shut the cell door behind us and slid the bolt across.

"Well, the girl needs her teeth looking at." He snapped a little. "Why have you waited so long to broach this? Clearly, the situation is in dire need of address." He huffed. I bit my tongue trying to think before replying.

"Uh-huh. Who was going to offer me their support?” I started calmly. “As I recall, unless it was a meeting arranged by the King or a request for prisoner care, you refused to meet with me." I stopped and held my ground. "I'm not like you. I'm not from a wealthy background. I don't have contacts and I don't have magic. I've had to work from the ground up to get to where I am. The whole while balancing on a tightrope of expectations." Raising my chin, I continued. "Since His Majesty promoted me I haven't taken a single day off. All my time has been spent sorting out this s**t tip I inherited alongside all the duties that were expected of me. I had to do it by myself. No support. Yet here you are with the audacity to insinuate I should have asked for help. From who? You? Should I have come begging at your door? Kissed your feet as you sat in your tower of privilege and prejudice?"

I was angry, beyond angry. Shaking and panting hard, I tried to find some calm.

"Zach." Asperonin said simply.