Chapter 48

The Iron Army’s barracks demanded conformity. The sergeants didn’t allow personal decorations of any type. Everything needed to be tidy and perfect for inspection. Anyone that didn’t follow the rules received reprimands and ended up with the worst duties. Flint survived by sleeping outside and only visiting the barracks to dust his chest and beds. He preferred sleeping outside with Maya and any strays he befriended.

Meanwhile, the Woodson guards had made their barracks their own. Flower-covered vines decorated the walls, framing gorgeous paintings. Flint didn’t mind. This was their home until they found families and moved forward with their lives. He wanted everyone living on his grounds happy and content with their lives.

As Flint lay in the straw cot, he realised that the guards deserved some sort of stipend. It was the same for the childminders, teachers, and anyone that provided a service. Everyone that worked in the gardens and production would benefit from a share of their productions or collections. Flint needed to set aside a fraction of the fort’s claim and pay salaries. He made plans to consult Alais on the matter. Perhaps they could start a ledger, and let people collect their pay in service and goods.

Some would likely fight Flint on the decision, but he believed the guards and hunting parties deserved special considerations. They risked their lives for the remaining residents, after all. The image of the frozen boy kept returning to Flint. He had been laying in bed for close to an hour, but couldn’t get himself to move and face everyone.

Winona had more experience at war than him. Her decisions had helped them win and repel the attacking force. At the same time, he couldn’t help but think that letting her command freely caused fatalities. Flint understood that his thoughts were foolish. People would die during battle. It was inevitable. However, the image of the shattering boy and the swatted goat rider haunted him. The bloodhound’s yelp occasionally sounded in his head too. The dog hadn’t joined the pack yet, but it still hurt.

When Flint heard the gates opening and the voices getting louder, he knew it was time to get up. Despite the close proximity to the [Totem of Healing], Flint’s joints throbbed when he sat up. The splints around his left forearm and right leg were far too uncomfortable. The breaks felt like they had reattached. However, the bones still felt weak and not yet ready to support him.

A loud groan escaped Flint’s lips as he sat up. He felt a sudden wave of excitement through the empathic link. Then Bjorn’s big fluffy head peeked in through the doorway. He made a sound halfway between a yap and a howl before padding in and smothering Flint’s face with kisses. Maya’s empathic touch reached him next. She entered with a more enthusiastic gait, climbing over Bjorn and onto the cot. High pitched whines escaped the sheepdog as she masterfully avoided his injuries before lashing his face with her tongue.

“I was worried about you too!” Flint laughed, sensing the torrent of emotions within the pair. It took some wrestling to get the two dogs off him. He realised that the pair had activated [Soul Link] to infuse him with enough strength to crawl out of the cot.

“What happened to your paw?” Flint asked, noticing the bandages around Bjorn’s ankle. The big snowdog whined and looked at him with big round eyes and flat ears. His tongue fell out as soon as Flint scratched him behind the ear. As they got up, he watched the area carefully, but Bjorn didn’t seem to favour either side. For the time being, he assumed the [Totem of Healing] had fixed the injury, but made a note to investigate it later.

Bjorn was now tall enough to support Flint as he walked, and they left the guard’s quarters together. Much to his surprise, he exited from the fae quarters.

No one noticed Flint. Everyone appeared busy with butchering, cleaning, and tending to the wounded. It hurt seeing the gate in pieces after the many hours he had spent. Only fragments of the stone gate remained, and the part of the wall above it had collapsed too. Flint would need to rebuild it, but that was probably for the best. [Change Density] would make any wall Flint built much stronger than the previous iteration. The cracks appeared to have spread from the foundation. It was an excellent excuse to strengthen it too.

Twylip got his attention first. Liquid flame erupted from her arms, incinerating a giant hive fragment. Curiosity got the best of Flint, and he used Bjorn’s help to make his way to her.

“I’d say you’re up too early, but Flint Woodson doesn’t come across as someone who stays in bed despite instructions,” Twylip said without looking at him directly.

“To be honest, I did spend an hour laying around feeling sorry for myself,” Flint replied. “Then curiosity got the better of me, and I had to come out here and see how bad the damage is.” Twylip looked like she was about to protest, but Flint swiftly changed the subject. “What’s that contraption?”

“Nice, isn’t it?” She grinned. “Adam and I put it together. One of [Alchemy]’s abilities let me excite liquids to extract their essence and fabricate something more potent. Adam figured out a way for me to pressurise, ignite, and expel the vapours. We call it a flame spitter.”

“It’s a potent discovery indeed,” Flint said, taking a step back as the stream’s heat overwhelmed him. He could see hand-sized creatures squirming in the hive as they burned. “Would you happen to know what happened to Bjorn’s ankle?”

“I’m not sure, but he was limping on the way back,” Twylip answered.

“Way back?”

Twylip nodded. “Your magical hounds went out alone after we rescued you and took down the horned giant. Everyone was awestruck, to say the least.” She chuckled, petting Bjorn. His tail took off once again, loudly swishing from side to side. “He kept gnawing at the paw, and Maya was barking at him, so I put on a bitter cooling salve and bandaged it.”

“Good thinking,” Flint said.

Going by the moon’s position, it was nearing midnight. Yet, several fires burned the collapsed wall, and everyone—children included, were hard at work. When Flint turned around, his eyes met Winona’s. She stood by the gate in a heated conversation with Alais and Seven. As soon as she saw Flint, Winona left the others mid-conversation and rushed over to him. For a moment, it looked like she was angry and was going to reprimand him. Instead, she fell on her knees in front of Flint.

“I owe you an apology,” Winona said. “You, the lord of this land, trusted me with commanding our warriors. When I stepped out of line and gave into my hatred, you warned me and provided council, but it fell on deaf ears. For that, I’m sorry.” The speech started strong, but her voice quivered as she carried on. “It’s my fault we lost people. For that, you have my sincere apologies. I will accept whatever punishment you think necessary.”

“How many lives did we lose?”

“Seven. Elvin, the swordsman, died to frost fire. Antler, the Wyld rider, fell with his goat mount at the hands of a hill giant. Your bloodhound was crushed under a thrown horse. Luca, our marksman, died watching Keen’s back when the giants got to the wall. Ellis and Leon were growers in the fort. They responded to your call for assistance and were ripped to pieces by the insects.”

Flint wanted to kneel and help Winona up, but his splinted limbs got in the way. “To start with, I’m not the lord. There is no such power dynamic here. You’ve sworn blood oaths to the land, and I’m its representative.” Winona looked up at Flint with her mouth open as if to interject, andhe continued without letting her get a word in. “Secondly, I do want to blame you, Winona. You had a lapse of judgement and were blinded by hatred. However, we both are responsible for the people here. So, it’s not just your fault but mine as well. I should’ve been more firm, and not just called my dogs back but taken over and ordered a retreat.”

“Given the circumstances, though, I’d like to think we didn’t fare too poorly.” He gesturedat the people, human and fae, working together to clean things up and helping the injured. “After all, we didn’t just face one opposing force but two. If not for your command and magic, more would’ve died. I’d like you to find out if the dead have anyone particularly close among the living and offer them your condolences.”

Winona stood up, wiping away tears. A soft smile formed on her lips as she took Flint’s good hand and squeezed it gently. “I guess I owe you an apology for misjudging you repeatedly,” she said. Winona exhaled slowly before straightening her back. “You should know that we’ve taken three prisoners too.” Flint followed her finger to a man and woman. They sat with their hands bound behind their back with rough stone cuffs. “We used Aetherite with runes that impede skill stone usage. Should I execute them?”

“No,” Flint answered, shaking his head. “They’re soldiers following more or less reasonable orders. Well, they didn’t have the most reasonable of commanders, but they’re not slavers or deserters. I’d like to talk to them and offer them a chance at survival—”

“I don’t think a blood oath is sufficient for people like them,” Winona stated, interrupting him. “If you set them free, it might be a case similar to mine. Their superior officers will be sure they know more than they’re letting on and torture them for information while the blood oath kills them.”

“I figured as much. The inquisition doesn’t have the best of reputations. The oath will be harsher than everybody else’s and require them to serve in the guard.”

Winona glanced at them, furrowing her brow. She exhaled loudly and nodded. “You’re right. We’re not barbarians that murder ordinary troops.”

While the trio discussed a plan of action, they had to put up with multiple interruptions. A brownie and plains dryad appeared to reprimand Flint. They told him his bones were still soft and in recovery. By getting out of bed, he was risking undoing all the work they had done to fix him. Flint had no choice but to apologise and sit down so they’d leave him alone.

The pair gave him a quick rundown on the injured. Rowan had broken his femur.  His leg would be out of commission for the next week. A couple of people—including the teenager Flint saw dismembered—were crippled. Twylip interrupted to let Flint know that Adam was looking into designing mechanical prosthetics for them to continue living ordinary lives. Until then, Lefa had taken it upon themselves to sing prosthetics out of the new apple trees in the fort.

Then Flint’s eyes widened as carts started coming uphill with butchered giant bodies. Several pucks busied themselves, skinning the body parts and taking the meat off the bone.

“We’ll use the meat to fertilise the soil,” Winona said. “We have craftsmen that can make the most of the bone and hide too. Together they’ll be excellent armour for the hunting party and fae guards.”

“We’ve got several new horses too,” Twylip added. “Most of them are badly injured, but we’ve got Wyld healers that can fix them up.”

The pair continued listing every loss and gain from recent events, but Flint soon lost interest. His eyes drifted to the bloodhounds laying in the distance. They solemnly returned his gaze. Their sorrow radiated through the empathic sense. Helping the pair deal with the grief of losing their sibling would be much harder than helping the humanoid mourners.

Laughter sounded from the gate as a puck jumped atop a cart and moved a giant’s mouth open and closed. Others joined in, and before long, there was food and drink being passed around—Flint wasn’t sure where they got it.

“Flint!” Twylip yelled, snapping Flint back to reality.

“What?”

“What do we do next?”

“Rebuild,” Flint answered. “What else? We rebuild and get stronger. The wall wasn’t good enough, and we need greater deterrents.”

“You need to rest—”

“I have you and the healers.” Flint cut her off mid-sentence. “I doubt the giants are the last monsters we’ll see, and Bluelake got away as well. The Wyld will get here sooner or later as well. I can’t rest until we’re secure.” He turned to Winona. “I’d like you to delegate the watch’s command to someone else. You need to scan everyone here: fae, human, and Wyldblood. Anyone capable of moulding essence needs training. We’ll be stronger when they return.”

“You do realise that includes you too,” Twylip commented.

“I’m an empath. Isn’t that the end of it?”

“It might be best if you speak to Alais.” Winona pulled away from Winona when he realised they were still holding hands. Her cheeks reddened as she looked away. It felt so natural that Flint hadn’t realised they were still touching. “He tested your blood while the healers were working on you. I think he might have the answers you’re looking for.”