High in the Grey Tower

Chapter Five

When Ruth finally opened his eyes, he felt the warmth of a campfire blazing on his face. He blinked slowly and turned his head, feeling the cricks in his neck release. Cautiously, he stretched his arms above his head and let out a lazy yawn. He heard the shuffling of fabric and rubbed his bleary eyes to see Riftan looking down at him disgruntled. Riftan held a scrap of fabric that was dripping wet and Ruth looked down with a tinge of embarrassment that Riftan had been wiping down his fevered forehead.

"You're up." Riftan turned his back to the wizard and looked intently at the fire. Ruth scoffed unintentionally at the knight's brusqueness. He made an attempt to sit upright and quickly began seeing stars. Ruth groaned and laid back down as Riftan knelt next to him and continued dabbing the wet cloth against Ruth's forehead.

"What good is a healer if they can't even heal themselves?" Riftan muttered under his breath as Ruth savored the cool sensation on his burning skin. "What, did she put a hex on you or something Ruth?"

"No," Ruth answered, disinterested. He gazed unfocused into the night sky which was peppered with bright stars. They were losing valuable time. He sighed to himself and turned to Riftan. "I can get in my tent and we can both get some sleep. It's useless to stay up and lose sleep with me."

"I can't have you dying overnight or this whole expedition is useless," Riftan responded gruffly. He crushed herbs in his hands and dropped them into the pot of water boiling away on the campfire. Riftan let out a curt sigh and stared at the wizard pathetically crumpled on the ground. "Just drink this and try not to die."

Ruth couldn't even muster the strength for a witty reply and just lay still. His lips pursed and he tried to gain his bearings. Trying his best to not lose consciousness, he took stock of his mana, which felt as strong as usual. He listened to his stomach, which was full from dinner. He swallowed the lump in his throat, but his mouth didn't feel dry from dehydration. What was wrong with him?

Riftan lowered a cup full of the steeped leaves to Ruth's hand and helped the wizard prop himself upright slowly. This time, Ruth didn't get as lightheaded and brought the warm liquid to his lips. He grimaced bitterly, still feeling Fei's warm palm on his lips. He quickly forced the thought from his mind and downed the liquid. Sighing once finished, he handed the cup back to Riftan, who sat down next to him. Riftan looked at him, inquisitively, but bit back all the questions that were piling up. He knew it wasn't the right time to get answers.

"Will you be alright? Maybe it's best we go back to Anatol until you've made a full recovery-"

"No, I'm sure I'll be fine-"

"Then maybe we should stop at the next village we pass-"

"Riftan," Ruth insisted, "I just need a proper night's sleep. I didn't sleep well last night." Ruth was lying right through his teeth, but Riftan seemed to buy it and shrugged his broad shoulders.

"Can you stand?" Riftan supported Ruth on his arm and helped him into his tent. Ruth almost laughed how Riftan prepared his tent with blankets to cover the hard ground. "There's no mission without you, Ruth. Get some sleep."

"Yes, my Lord," Ruth responded as sarcastically as he could muster, and as soon as his cheek hit the soft blanket, he drifted back to sleep.

•••

Ruth tossed and turned all night, but he still remained in blissful unconsciousness. When the rustling outside of the tent finally woke the wizard up, he groaned and rubbed his bleary eyes. Slowly collecting himself, he exited the tent.

The Remdragon knights were bustling about the campsite before the Sun had risen on the horizon. Many cast Ruth weary looks as they milled about, but otherwise left him alone. Ruth sighed and stretched his stuff back. He didn't consider himself well-rested, but he was in fine enough shape to continue on the journey.

Ruth lazily filled his canteen with fresh water and groaned to himself as he mounted his horse. Hip hips and forearms were sore, but Ruth grit his teeth and urged his horse forward in step with the rest of the knights. Riftan was at the head of the group, as usual, and barked his orders to keep the ranks tight. Soon they would be passing through monster-infested territories.

Ruth grit his teeth. This expedition was just barely getting started.