65th Day of Summer, Year 9132 of the Unick Measure
Near Patarum, Alhallo
Believer stepped into Little Eye’s tent carrying a mug of hot tea.
“Shitty, but warm,” he announced from the entrance.
Little Eye took the mug, then glanced at the small bundles spread out in front of him.
“We’re running low on herbs.”
“Little Eye, I’m in shock.”
“Why?”
“I never realized you had this much stuff. You always treat us with pretty much the same thing.”
“You, yes. I have to take care of myself.”
Believer looked at him and suddenly didn’t feel like joking anymore. Little Eye caught the expression and rolled his eyes.
“Just because everything I give you tastes like shit doesn’t mean it’s the same thing. Believe it or not, you wouldn’t survive on a single infusion.”
“You sure?”
“Yes.”
“Because everything you give us really does taste like shit.”
“No problem. I can stop giving you anything.”
“Come on. You don’t recognize a joke?”
“Weren’t you the one who told me yesterday my sense of humor was deader than Toady?”
“That was Sensitive.”
Little Eye paused, then nodded.
“Right. My mistake.”
“Graciously forgiven.”
“I graciously don’t give a fuck.”
Believer nodded, unsure what else to say. He glanced again at the supplies. Was it really possible to mix all that into different medicines that somehow tasted exactly the same? Was that normal? Or some hidden talent of Little Eye’s? So many questions he would never have answers to.
“All right, we’ve enjoyed our silence. Now tell me what you want,” the medic said, taking a sip of tea.
“Could you look at my left index finger? I think I broke it.”
“What did you do?”
“Small accident.”
“What kind?”
“Small.”
Little Eye had no patience for this. He extended his hand and waited. Believer placed his own on it. Little Eye immediately found the injured finger and squeezed as hard as he could.
“Fuck! What the hell is wrong with you?” Believer shouted, trying to yank his hand free.
“I asked you a question.”
“I smashed it against something!”
“I’m about to twist it.”
“All right! I was digging through Duty’s pack! The bastard shoved a mousetrap in there!”
Little Eye released his grip and looked at Believer with disgust.
“So now you’re a thief?”
“I’m not a thief!”
“Sure sounds like it. You know I hate thieves.”
“I wasn’t stealing anything!”
“So you stuck your hand in there because it was cold?”
“I wanted to shove that big bug Shitstain was talking about this morning into his bag!”
Little Eye stared at him as if he were irredeemably stupid.
“What?”
“He put a dead viper in my things last week. I nearly shit myself, so…”
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“I’ve changed my mind. I don’t care anymore. Show me the finger again. I’ll set it.”
“Set it or rip it off?” Believer asked suspiciously.
“Ask one more stupid question and find out.”
Believer hesitantly extended his hand. A moment later he screamed, absolutely certain that Little Eye could spare people a lot of suffering if he truly wanted to.
“Thanks,” he groaned once it was done.
“No problem,” Little Eye replied, making a mental note to add mousetraps to his list of needed supplies.
***
65th Day of Summer, Year 9132 of the Unick Measure
Near Patarum, Alhallo
Darling had already vomited everything in his stomach, yet his body still convulsed.
“Well, well. Easy now, our delicate little blossom. You did fine. Brave little bird…” Sensitive murmured, patting his shoulder.
“Warm, he’s hitting on your boy,” Rope commented while finishing the rope that kept the first corpse hanging.
“I’ll worry when he starts fucking him too,” Warm replied, then looked at Darling. “You done? Four more left.”
At that, Darling felt his stomach twist again.
“He won’t be done anytime soon,” Hungry said. “Maybe if we smack him, it’ll pass.”
“Maybe,” Warm considered briefly, then shrugged. “No time. I want to reach the nearest town and drink something decent.”
“Prophet speaks truth,” Hungry agreed.
“Then grab your knives and finish this shit.”
They obeyed, ignoring the piercing screams of their victims and Darling’s ongoing battle with his stomach. Comfort and rest after days of forced marching were calling.
When they were finished, Warm studied their work with satisfaction.
“They made us march half the fucking country, slaughter everyone who dealt with them and dared say the Company’s going soft, clean up this whole mess, and all for basic pay. Now I feel like they still didn’t suffer enough.”
“If that’s how you see it, I can climb the tree and piss on them,” Rope offered casually.
“Good,” Warm said with approval. “Do it, then we’re heading back.”
***
65th Day of Summer, Year 9132 of the Unick Measure
Near Patarum, Alhallo
Little Eye sat by the fire, watching the others closely. No particular reason. He was simply bored, and he knew it unsettled some of them.
“Can you stop?” Believer finally asked.
“No,” the medic replied flatly.
“Shitstain’s about to trip over his own feet, smash his face into the pot, and we won’t have dinner.”
That was an argument. A weak one, but still.
Little Eye shifted his gaze to Believer, folded his arms across his chest, and said, “Then entertain me. I’m bored.”
“How old are you? Do I look like your babysitter?”
“I don’t know. But you look like someone who wants dinner.”
Believer cursed under his breath.
“Find a hobby.”
“I had one. When I was a kid, my mother gave me a patch of garden. I grew flowers. I liked it. But you know what? I don’t exactly have the right conditions now. The only thing I can cultivate here is Darling’s ass so it doesn’t wither too fast.”
Duty snorted, then said solemnly, “We’re all grateful for that.”
“I know. Still doesn’t solve my boredom.”
Believer glanced at the sky.
“They’ve been gone a while. Should be back soon.”
“And what will that change?” Little Eye asked.
“I don’t know. But I think if Warm hears what you’re saying, he’ll find you something to do.”
Little Eye sighed heavily. He knew that far too well. That big bastard would find him something to do even if no one mentioned their little conversation at all.
***
65th Day of Summer, Year 9132 of the Unick Measure. Near Patarum, Alhallo
Warm entered the camp carrying Darling slung over his shoulders, gripping him by one arm and one leg.
“Little Eye, take a look at him,” he said immediately, stepping up to the medic and dropping the unconscious soldier at his feet.
“Did you just toss him like a sack of potatoes?”
“He passed out. Not much difference.”
Little Eye briefly considered continuing that line of conversation. He quickly decided it was a waste of time and focused on Darling instead. Exactly what he had been thinking about earlier. That this giant son of a bitch would never let him rest in peace. He would always find a way to be a pain in the ass.
“What happened to him?”
“He made a suggestion about what to do with those five,” Rope said, passing by.
“And purely out of curiosity, what exactly did he suggest?”
“Gouge out their eyes, cut out their tongues, carve the deserter mark, chop off arms and legs, then hang them on hooks by the road,” Hungry replied, settling down near the fire.
The sun was sinking and the air was turning cold. He might not have been particularly sensitive, but his life-worn bones appreciated warmth.
“You brought hooks with you?” Little Eye asked, surprised.
“Not a chance. Rope improvised.”
“He pass out when he found out that if he suggests it, he does it?”
“After he finished with the first one,” Warm said, almost proudly.
Little Eye looked at Darling in disbelief, then nodded to himself, keeping his thoughts private.
“Didn’t think he had that kind of nerve.”
“No idea about nerve,” Hungry said, “but I know for damn sure he’s got nothing left in his stomach.”
“He puked?”
“Once?” Sensitive cut in. “He couldn’t stop. Just kept retching like it was never going to end.”
Little Eye had served in the Company too long not to ask the right question.
“He did the job, started vomiting, and then what?” he asked, watching Hungry and Sensitive carefully.
“He lost consciousness and Warm dragged him back,” Sensitive replied.
“He lost consciousness on his own?”
“Well, yeah. The rest of us had to walk back.”
“Did anyone help him lose consciousness? With a fist, maybe? Or something else?”
They grimaced as it dawned on them that the medic had already figured it out.
“Rope hit him in the stomach. Couldn’t carry him while he was still retching.”
Little Eye said nothing. In his opinion, they were right. Instead, he nudged Darling’s limp body with his boot, thoughtful.
“Fine. Get him to my tent. I’ll give him something for the vomiting and something to calm him down. Once I’m sure he’s done emptying himself, I’ll send him out. Don’t give him any food. Warm, when I release him, take care of him.”
“Take care of him? What, rock him to sleep?” Warm asked, irritation creeping into his voice.
“Fuck him all night until he forgets everything and the only thing on his mind is the state of his ass.”
Warm considered that for a moment.
“Manageable.”
“New treatment method?” Hungry asked.
“Just developed,” Little Eye replied.
“Great. One request. Never, ever prescribe it to me.”
“Don’t feel like getting fucked senseless?” Sensitive asked.
“I don’t feel like being fucked senseless,” Hungry corrected.
The others quickly voiced their agreement.
Little Eye ignored them. So did Warm. Both were already somewhere else in their minds, specifically in the nearest town where they would finally be able to enjoy themselves.
