Gladhron
Arriving with wounded Gwestion, and then leaving, alone
Continued
here
The inn was just ahead. Gladhron saw the structure ahead, and a great sense of relief washed over him. He didn't know how he'd managed to keep any sense of direction, nor even keep moving, for his head felt like it was splitting open and he suspected that it was the horse, more than him, which had found its way here. Mael had been to the inn a few times, probably became friends with the other horses in the stable, and had perhaps followed her nose back to the place. He didn't give the matter a tremendous amount of thought. Any thought at all, actually, seemed to make his head hurt even worse, and so he just kept holding on and trying not to sway too much in the saddle. It was probably adrenaline which had enabled him to get this far. He had no idea how long it had been since the goblin attack, but he was exhausted, his head swam, and he felt like he could fall off of his horse any moment.
The young man honestly wasn’t sure what kept him from doing so, but somehow he stayed on his horse. Except it wasn’t his horse, it was Gwestion’s. As the horse approached the inn, moving slowly due to her load, the server girl from the inn, Bel, had rushed out to meet them, worried to see only one horse. She was even more worried, he noted, upon seeing that it was not Gwestion on Mael, but Gladhron. He felt sympathetic toward her, seeing the horrified look when she caught sight of his brother, resting on the tied-together boughs he'd used as a makeshift stretcher, bloody and bruised. "He's alive..." Gladhron had assured her, understanding that her first thought might be that he was dead... it had been his, too, when he first found Gwestion after he’d fell down the rocky ravine. "I don't know how bad he's hurt."
The next part was a bit of a blur. He wasn't sure how they managed to get Gwestion into a room. Perhaps the innkeeper had helped, or the stableman, at Bel’s insistence. He didn't know. He didn’t recall seeing the innkeeper, but he recalled Bel fretting over his brother the whole time, hastily gathering bandages and making new ones from old, but clean sheets. She fussed a bit over Gladhron's bleeding head, too, but he insisted he was alright, merely exhausted. "I don't know how long it's been since I slept.. or since they attacked us." He explained, trying to keep his eyes open. The room wouldn’t stop spinning, but he told himself it was merely due to exhaustion. He only needed to rest, and he’d be alright. He struggled to stay awake though. He wanted to know if Gwestion was alright, but the adrenaline was wearing off, now that Gwestion was someplace where someone could tend him. It was hard to stay focused, and he watched Bel’s face as she tried to clean his brother’s wounds.
She couldn’t possibly think that no one could tell how she felt about him, Gladhron thought. If his head hadn’t been throbbing so badly, he might have laughed at that the next thought; even as obvious as it was to others, Gwestion still seemed not to be fully aware of how she felt toward him. She gave him a damp rag to hold to the wound until she could bandage it, and kept asking questions, which he tried to answer but was having trouble keeping his attention focused.
Until she spoke of going for a healer. He frowned, forcing his mind to become alert, to some degree anyway.
"We are far from any town," He reminded her. "Can you not tend to him yourself?"
"He is badly wounded," she informed him, as if he didn't already know that. "I can do nought but clean and wrap the wounds. He is in need of a healer if he is to recover properly." Bel had told him, clearly very concerned about the wounded young man lying unconscious before her.
"But where will you find a healer? There is nought but this inn for at least a days' journey. You know that as well as I." Gladhron pointed out, frowning as he pressed the damp cloth to his bleeding head wound. It hurt, and he winced and lightened the pressure. He certainly didn’t feel up to another ride, and the horse would need to rest as well.
The pause that followed, as Bel worked on cleaning his brother's more serious wounds, seemed to stretch on forever, all while Gladhron strove to keep awake. “I have heard rumors of a foreign healer who travels from village to village, but I haven’t any idea where he might be at this time,” She answered at last, sighing. "The nearest healer of which I know dwells in the Chetwood forest, near Archet. I've been there once before, and I believe I can find the way again."
Gladhron frowned deeper, alarmed by the very suggestion. "Nay, I cannot allow you to go. That is far too dangerous a journey for a lady to undertake."
Bel looked up and frowned at him. "I have made the trip before." She argued. "You certainly aren't fit for such a journey; you're likely to pass out the moment you try to stand. And anyway, I know the way; do you?"
Before he could reply, she added, "Put a little more pressure on that gash, you need to stop the bleeding. Yes, that's better." She turned back to cleaning Gwestion's leg.
Gladhron frowned, wincing as he pressed the cloth against his gash and reluctantly answered her question, “No.”
“And have you ever been to Bree or Archet before?”
“No…well not in many years.” He confessed, unsure whether to feel annoyed or stupid, at the moment. It was hard enough to even stay focused on the conversation.
“Well, I have.” Bel replied. “Therefore, I’m not as likely to get lost on the way.” With that, she turned back to cleaning the worse of Gwestion's wounds, with a bit of a grimace as she worked.
"I still refuse to allow you to go." Gladhron protested, insistent on this matter. She had little knowledge of fighting! She'd be easy prey for the predators which roamed the wilds and watched the roads.. of which she probably knew even less. "The road is perilous, what parts of it are still maintained, and wrought with bandits and goblins, and possibly wolves. Even seasoned warriors are likely to run into trouble; what hope do you think you would have?" He tried to make her understand the danger.
Bel proceeded to wrap Gwestion's wound to keep it as clean as possible, not giving him an answer, and he couldn’t quite tell whether she was annoyed, or considering his words. At last, she tied off the bandage to Gwestion's most serious wounds, then moved without a word to tend to the gash on Gladhron's forehead.
"Do you truly intend to go?" He asked, wincing slightly as she dabbed at his bleeding forehead.
"If I cannot find anyone else to go, then what other choice is there?" She asked. "You must rest, and the innkeeper is away at the moment... Connor, the stableman isn't likely to go..." She sighed. "I shall try to find another to go, but if I cannot, then I certainly will."
Gladhron sighed, disliking this plan, wondering why women had to be so stubborn and difficult at times. Still, he had to admit to himself that she might be right about Gwestion needing more than just bandages. He knew she wasn't trying to be difficult; she was simply worried about Gwestion. He took a look at his brother, lying unconscious, wounded and, for all he knew, possibly dying. "He would never forgive me if I allow you to venture off on your own.” He said at last. But he was so exhausted, he couldn’t go anywhere till he’d slept. “Give me the night to rest, and I shall at least join you." He told her, turning to look back at her, determined that he would not let her go on her own, though he wanted nothing more than to curl up and sleep for days. But for all he knew, his brother could be in grave condition, dying even, so he consented to this plan, albeit reluctantly.
Bel paused, looking at him for a moment. "You don't look so good, yourself, Gladhron." She told him, frowning. "Are you sure you're well?"
"That certainly boosts my self-confidence," He managed a wry smile to accompany his sarcasm, trying very hard to look as if he were better than he felt. "I assure you I'm fine, I only need a few hour's sleep," He assured her, unwilling to admit that his head felt like it was split in half.
Bel gave him a very small smile, but he could see she was still worried.
"Give me time to rest, and I shall escort you to this healer," He wasn't sure this was the best idea but couldn't think of anything at the moment, let alone any sort of better plan. "Promise you shall not leave without telling me?" He insisted, determined that he would not let this girl run off into the wilderness on her own. She had no idea what sort of dangers awaited her out there, and it was for more than Gwestion’s sake that he couldn’t let her go. His own conscious wouldn’t allow it, either.
Bel hesitated, then nodded. "Alright. I will delay until morning, and wake you before I set out... unless, of course, I find another to go in my stead." She promised. "I shall not leave without letting you know, first."
With that assurance, Gladhron relaxed somewhat. After she had bandaged his head, he watched for a little while as she worked on cleaning the rest of Gwestion's wounds, wrapping them in bandages. Then, lying back on the cot, he stopped fighting so hard to stay awake, finally allowed himself to doze off as he slipped into a rather deep sleep, despite the discomfort of his armor.
He didn't stir when, the following morning, Bel tried to wake him, nor when she returned sometime later and tried again after another hour, and a third time, more desperately, unsuccessful each time.. He was unaware of her growing concern as she continued to fail at awakening him, and was further oblivious to her eventually setting off for the healer, alone.
It was several hours into the next day before Gladhron finally came around to consciousness, groggy and blurry-eyed, hardly remembering what had happened. He felt terrible, and first thought he might have drunk too much the night before. Groaning, he put a hand to his throbbing head, momentarily wondering how it got bandaged, before recalling some of the events of...was it last night? Yesterday? He couldn't remember what time of day, nor had he any clue how long he'd been asleep, but he was dimly aware that someone had just left the room; perhaps the sound of the door closing had awakened him. He wasn't sure how he knew, but thought that might have been what woke him. Bel? She'd wanted something.. Oh, she was waiting, he was going to go with her to find a healer! He sat up, and the whole room seemed to spin around him. His head felt like it split apart, reminding him that he was hurt. He groaned, wishing the throbbing would fade, wondering why he had to go and try to sit up. He struggled to get his feet over the side of the bed, and promptly decided maybe he'd better rest for a little while longer. But there was something under his hand, something crinkly. The crinkling sounded far too loud to his ears at the moment. He cringed, and felt of the flat, noisy thing, and discovered it was paper. Squinting, Gladhron found his vision to be blurry and the words wouldn't stay still for him.
Some part of him told him to just ignore it and lay back down, but another part of him nagged that it might be important. He tried to force his eyes to focus, but only could make out a couple of blurry words. He was about to dismiss the message entirely when it suddenly clicked in his head what it must have said, and what he had been speaking to Bel about, before he fell asleep. That was enough to concern him, to the point he dragged himself out of bed. He staggered, grabbed onto the nearest support he could find, and closed his eyes tightly as he waited for the room to stop spinning and tilting. It didn’t, so after a little bit, he ventured forward, despite swaying on his feet, and staggered out of the room, leaning on this, holding onto that, til he got out in the hall and used the wall for support as he tried to follow someone who was walking away down that same hall. "Bel?" He called, hoping to catch her before it was too late.
The woman, startled, turned and frowned. "No... what are you doing out of bed? You look like you're about to collapse where you stand." She demanded.
He recognized the innkeeper's wife, though he couldn't recall her name. Bel had probably spoken it at some point but he just couldn't think of it. It didn't matter though. He thrust the paper at her, frowning, half-slumped against the wall for support. "Does this say what I think it says?" He asked, anxious, and confused why he couldn't make sense of it.
She frowned deeper, taking the note to read it. "Hm, it says; 'I couldn't wake you, I've gone for the healer. I'm sorry I didn't wait, but I fear now for both of you. I'll be back as soon as possible. -Bel.' " She passed it back to him, sighing, but Gladhron didn’t take it.. "I told her she ought not go, but would she listen to me? Of course not."
Gladhron listened with a sinking feeling, and groaned at the words the lady read aloud. "How long has she been gone?"
"A few hours, now, I suppose. She seemed awfully upset and worried, said she couldn't wake you and thought the other one might be dying, so she had to leave..."
The woman trailed off as Gladhron staggered onward down the hall, leaving her to stare after him in puzzlement. "Where do you think you're going? You ought not be up and about!"
"I'm going after her." He replied, confused why she felt the need to ask. Wasn't it obvious? He found his way to the door and started outside, only to slump against the doorframe with a groan as the sunlight blinded him, making the world spin and sway around him, and he nearly lost his resolve right then. Clutching onto the doorframe, he turned his head away, trying to block out the sunlight with his arm for a moment. He closed his eyes, cringing as a wave of nausea hit him. Taking deep breaths, he struggled to refocus his eyes, reminding himself of how much danger Bel might be in. Someone must find her and rescue her. He wasn't sure how he managed to stagger out to the barn.
He was stopped by the stableman. “What do you want?” the man scowled.
"I..I need my horse," Gladhron told him, hanging onto a hitching post for support. "Bring my horse, please. The big chestnut mare.."
The man looked him over, looking rather unimpressed. “Alright, fine, if you say so.” he started toward the door, then paused and turned back, giving him a puzzled look. “Chestnut? There’s no chestnut in there.”
That left Gladhron confused for a moment. For a second, he thought someone must have stolen Gaeroch, until he remembered...she'd fled during all the fighting, and he hadn't been able to find her afterward. He'd ridden here on Gwestion’s horse, Mael, not Gaeroch. "The other one then. The dappled gray, I'll use my brother's horse." He told the man, wishing he felt well enough to saddle the horse himself.
It felt like ages passed as he waited, then the man brought out the smaller, grey mare. Trying to get into the saddle, he realized this might not be the best idea, but still, Bel could be in danger this very moment.
"Are you sure you want to get on that horse? You look like you’d be better off lying in bed." The stableman told him.
"Yeah, I'm..fine. Nevermind me." Gladhron tried to dismiss the suggestion that he might not be fit to ride, fighting another wave of nausea and dizziness, and with much effort, managed to pull himself up into the saddle. The world promptly spun beneath him, and he wondered why it seemed so terribly high up, when he normally rode a taller horse than this one. It was all he could do to stay upright. Closing his eyes tightly as he gripped the saddle in front of him, Gladhron hoped everything would stop swirling around very soon.
The stableman rolled his eyes and started to walk away, mumbling, “Idiot,” under his breath, "Hey, uh, wait," Gladhron reached out to try and catch his shoulder, despite being too far away to do so, and nearly tumbled out of the saddle. He hastily grabbed onto the horse as a nearly overwhelming wave of dizziness swept over him. He felt a cold sweat break out on his face and wished he hadn’t done that.
"What?" The man scowled.
Gladhron took a few deep breaths. "Bel... did you see which way she went?" Gladhron asked, struggling to keep the nausea at bay, his eyes squeezed shut as he waited, hoping the dizziness would go away.
"Bel? Why?" The man asked, wary.
Gladhron suppressed a sigh. "She might be in danger," He explained, wondering why this wasn't obvious to others, "and I need to find her, before..anything else does. Before anything happens to her." He looked down at the man, frowning at the sight of three of the man swirling around below him. “Please, which way?”
After a pause, the man replied, "She went that way," He pointed in a direction which Gladhron couldn’t quite be sure of, due to the blurred vision and the fact that everything looked like three or more things.. "She went that way... I tried to tell her it was a bad idea. If you ride fast you might catch up to her, but I’d not want to try that if I were you. You don’t look so good." He added with a frown.
"Thanks." Gladhron decided to just head that general direction and hope for the best. Had he not been feeling so confused and unwell, he might have asked 'And why did you let her go, knowing it was dangerous? Why didn’t you at least go along, to protect her?'
Nudging the horse's sides with his heels, Gladhron braced himself for movement that would surely make him feel even dizzier. Instead, the horse snorted and stamped the ground, her ears angling back toward him. One could almost imagine the horse saying, 'Are you kidding?'
Holding back a sigh yet again, Gladhron murmured a few soft words in Rohirric, which he knew Gwestion sometimes used to calm Mael, asking her to please do this, because it was important, and tried again. This time she did as he wished, though perhaps a bit reluctantly. Gladhron clung on, his stomach doing a few flips and tried to keep from swaying, or falling off as they set off on the road which he had warned Bel about being so perilous, hardly aware of what direction the horse was going in, the world was spinning so violently around him.