Trafka’s breathing, despite everything occurring yesterday, was calm.

  His tail and face twitched now and again in his slumber. Kenenth couldn’t tell what he was dreaming; however, it seemed to grow slightly in intensity as he suddenly rolled onto his side, fully revealing his puffed tail.

  Suddenly, with a full-body twitch, it stopped, and his body relaxed as he rolled onto his back.

  With barely open eyes, he looked up at the ceiling for a moment before abruptly spinning to his side and puking a mixture of alcohol, meat, and eyes onto the floor.

  Unfortunately, some of the pupils were still intact and looking at Kenneth.

  “Morning, sleepy head. How are you feeling aside from the splitting headache and dehydration?” He asked, followed by a yawn.

  Trafka briefly looked up at Kenneth with a glare, opening his mouth and uttering, “Why, sitting there lookin'--Blerg!”

  Before he could utter the last syllable, he puked again, adding to the mess on the floor.

  While gently scratching Nokstella as she slept, Kenneth replied, “I was a bit worried about the possibility of you either choking on your own vomit or having a stroke or seizure in the night, so I stayed up just in case.

  “Now, I would offer you some coffee, except that heavenly brown brew is only available to me in pill form, and as fun as it would be to see you borderline crazy with zoomies, you’d just be right back where you started once you calm down from the high,”

  Groaning, Trafka sat up, “Why did I allow myself to listen to you? I’m still poisoned.”

  “That’s called a hangover, and it’s because alcohol is borderline poison, though a fun one to drink, I suppose, and one that might have saved you from having a stroke,” Kenneth replied.

  “So your way of healing poison is to substitute it for another?” Trafka questioned.

  “No, we usually use anti-venom to cancel out the effects. Shame you didn’t come clean about being poisoned before we left the tower. I might have been able to create such a concoction and save you some pain,” Kenneth explained.

  “The only reason for my pain was my own ignorance, Trafka said. “Had I known part of the Sil remained inside me, I would have ripped it out myself and won the internal struggle easily.”

  “Well, regardless, poison is still in your system, luckly for you, flushing it out and relieving your pain has the same solution. You need to drink water and pee a lot, and you should be the same old angry self in no time.

  “I should probably have the healer focus on your liver and kidneys to expedite the process.”

  “No, Trafka said with a mix of growling and groaning. “I will not be healed. I couldn’t win the internal struggle of the last poison on my own, but this poison I will.”

  “Ah ha… and to that end, I’m guessing you will refuse to drink any water or use the toilet,” Kenneth surmised.

  “Don’t be ridiculous; if I want to drink, I’ll do so, and if I want to piss, I will do so from the top of the wall if it so suited me!” Trafka proclaimed.

  “Let's hope all the alcohol didn’t give you a kidney stone; otherwise, it’s going to be a very loud serenade you’ll perform for the outpost. Kenneth stretched his legs and stood up out of bed, “Now, if you want to drink some water, I’ll be getting some. I need to clean up the gawking mess on the floor. It’s making my skin crawl.”

  “If you must, do it quietly,” Trafka replied.

  Taking one last look to be sure Nokstella was still sleeping, Kenneth made the quick trip to the well, humming a quiet little tune as he threw down the bucket.

  “Getting some water, I see,” Akiti said, walking right up to the well.

  “Yep, I’m guessing you are here for the same,” He replied, gesturing to the bucket she was holding.

  She smiled gently at him, though her eyes were kept lower than most other Aki he’d had conversations with, “You said Moliki’s wounds needed to be washed, and I know she only tends to listen to half of what someone is saying.”

  “Ah… the bane of any doctor's existence, patients who don’t listen, Kenneth sighed, though he had a slight comforting smile. “It’s good she has you then.”

  “It’s the least I can do. It is because of her that I even managed to make it as far as we did to end up here, Akiti said with a saddened expression. “Do not let the fight she had with Lord Hydrog fool you; she is a capable fighter, though nothing special.

  “It honestly amazes me how blind she can become when angry. Thinking she could defeat a royal and of all a descended of house Kokulika no less.“

  Huh…? House Kokulika,” Kenneth repeated.

  Akiti looked at Kenneth for a moment, tilting her head in slight confusion before it dawned on her. “Yes, you wouldn’t know, would you? But many summers ago, one of House Hyrog's children was born with a unique inherited magic.”

  “U-huh…?”

  “When word reached house, Kokulika, the head of the house, sent word interested in obtaining this magic and for the child when he came of age to become one of House Kokulika's daughter's mate.”

  “Errr…”

  “I remember rumours of the negotiations spread around every corner of the capital, even down in “Underfoot,” and people gossiped simply because, unlike every other royal household, they almost never engaged in these transactions.”

  “Ahhh…”

  “By the end of the negotiations, the son of house Hyrog was promised to house Kokulika, and in exchange, they would get two daughters, one of who was Lord Batugta’s mother.”

  “Umm, I was just wondering what made House Kokulika so special; I pretty much understand the whole name thing. First name, middle name, last name.”

  Once more, Akiti tilted her head in confusion, “First, middle, and last. I understand what you mean, but I don’t think you understand what you mean.”

  “Enlighten me then?” Kenneth requested with a raised eyebrow.

  “Well, you have your “Name,” for you, it’s Kennet; then you have your family name, which only royals and noblemen have, and then your house name, an honour only the king himself can bestow on anyone,” Akiti explained.

  “I see. Longer name, higher status. I guess this is the kind of basic stuff I never got around to learning,” Kenneth said.

  “Ask me any question then,” Akiti cheerfully offered.

  “What about the one I originally asked about, house Kokulika?” Kenneth requested.

  “Oh, of course. But mostly all I know are rumours, Akiti admitted. “Every child born in House Kokulika are geniuses capable of reading and writing from near birth. Unlike other houses like the Krosk’s and Amotika’s, which aim for children who inherited their specific magic, they only want those who focus on the mind.

  “Many say it is to make the next generation wiser and breed the greatest mind that will ever be, yet others say they already have. Ask anyone, and they can always tell you a story of a child of the house Kokulika who paraded through the streets, some naked, others clothed, screaming to those above, inflicted with madness for knowing truths none were ever meant to know. “

  “Huh… how scary,” Kenneth calmly replied.

  Akiti softly giggled, “I supposed I became a bit excited.”

  “I get the distinct impression you are one who likes gossip. Nya enjoyed a bit of that as well,” Kenneth reminisced.

  “The commander?! Akiti exclaimed. “I find that hard to believe! She was always very imposing and not a woman you’d want to anger.”

  “Yeah, learned that the hard way, a couple of times,” Kenneth slightly awkwardly admitted, remembering a scar of his.

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  “Though now that you’ve brought up the subject of gossip, I must say, word has been travelling very fast, and I must admit I wanted to know if they were true?” Akiti questioned.

  “Depends; which rumour?” Kenneth replied.

  Akiti’s tail gently began to sway from side to side, “Oh, don’t act coy. All the women have been talking about how Lord Krosk issued a challenge that if any could defeat you in a battle of strength, they’d get the honour of challenging him.

  “Those I heard it from couldn’t stop laughing when recalling the confident faces of each man, only for the fa?ade to be shattered when none could move you. I must say I find it a bit hard to believe, given your size.”

  “Well, believe it then. I arm-wrestled with a couple, and none of them could quite beat me,” Kenneth replied.

  Akiti somewhat shyly fiddled with her fingers, “If you don’t mind my asking, how strong are you?”

  “Hmm… hard to say. It’s been a long time, but when I was in my prime, I could benchpress maybe around ninety to ninety-five kilos, but I suppose I can always show you if you want?” Kenneth offered as his bucket finally reached the top.

  “If it’s no trouble, but what will you be lifting?” Akiti asked as she looked around while Kenenth placed the bucket on the ground.

  Noticing her eyes off him, he let a devious and playful smile grow across his face, “I think I found something straight ahead.”

  Akiti squinted and leaned a bit forward, “Do you mean the creat over there--!”

  Suddenly, without warning, Kenneth pouched on his prey, sweeping her off her feet and holding her in a bridal carry, “Well, you are not as heavy as I guessed.”

  “Oh my! I didn’t think you so forward!” Akiti yelped with slight laughter.

  Kenneth let out a chuckle of his own, “I must say you are handling it far better than Nya. The last time I did this to her, she was already threatening me with her claws.”

  “The commander also?!” Akiti exclaimed in a mixture of shock and laughter.

  “Oh, just you wait. I’m not done yet, so please don’t move; I wouldn’t want you to fall,” Kenneth warned as he spread his legs slightly, bent his knees and tightened his core. Keeping a firm yet delicate hold on her body, he lifted Akiti above his head like she was a dumbbell.

  Even with her tail hidden, Kenneth could feel it wildly thrash around underneath the fabric. Feeling the pain in his broken middle finger along with a foreboding pain in his lower back, he carefully placed her back on the ground.

  “There’s no denying the rumours now!” Akiti said in a mixture of awe and excitement.

  “Sorry if that was a bit much. I got a bit carried away,” Kenneth said.

  Akiti tied the rope to her bucket and tossed it down the well, “I was the one who wanted to know how strong you are. Guess I got my answer.”

  “Well, I should probably get back before the mess before it stains the floor,” Kenneth said as he got ready to walk back.

  “Em… before you go, one last thing I wanted to ask you,” Akiti quickly said.

  Kenneth paused right after picking up his bucket, “Go on.”

  “Well, remember there was a small matter I mentioned of Moliki only hearing half of what anyone is saying,” Akiti said, her slightly chipper expression waning.

  “Yes, what of it?” He asked.

  “She seemed to have heard the wrong thing and is now using words I never thought possible and don’t understand while diligently trying to make new, worse ones, Akiti explained. “I only wish to know why you taught her them?”

  “It was either that or explain to her the complexities of my life, Kenneth shrugged. “But if this makes you breathe a little easier, she told me before I went to the banquet that she doesn’t want to lose more nipples fighting Batugta.”

  Akiti sighed while pulling on the rope, “I can only hope, I suppose.”

  Getting a filled bucket of her own, both of them parted ways.

  As he walked back on the way, he spotted Batugta, along with Ijubee in toe, dragging the outpost’s healer by his legs, who looked bored and tired even now.

  “Lord Krakni, I hope you do not think me forward for bringing you a healer after the banquet’s delights”, Lord Batugta said.

  Ijubee smiled, “Sound utterly fantastic, Lord Hydrog.”

  “What do you know, Lord Batugta calmly snapped. “It is complete shit; it sounds like I think he’s too weak to handle a bit of floor juice. I need it to be perfect, so shut up and let me think.”

  “Yes Lord Hydrog. Sorry for my incompetence,” Ijubee said as he kept following along.

  As they continued to walk, unaware Kenneth was calmly approaching from behind, Lord Batugta muttered incomprehensible words to himself while adopting some new poses every ten seconds or so until they finally came to a stop in front of Trafka’s and Kenneth’s abode.

  Quickly, he settled the feathers on his black cloak to look pristine, then got ready to knock.

  “So, what did you settle on?” Kenneth asked before the Lord’s knuckle as much as graced the wooden door.

  Startled, both he and Ijubee turned to face him.

  “Black healer, Lord Batugta said in surprise, “I had not expected you to be awake so early. Does that mean Lord Krakni is as well?”

  “Hmm… I don’t know if he went back to sleep after I left, though a piece of advice, I wouldn’t go inside just yet; it reeks, and I haven't had time to clean,” Kenneth replied.

  Lord Batugta stepped away from the door and closer to Kenneth, “One of your intellect should not have to lower yourself and do a low-born’s work. Ijubee! Get cleaning!”

  “Yes, Lord Hydrog!” He replied.

  However, Kenneth stopped him with the wave of a dismissive hand, “Oh, there’s no need.”

  “There’s no need to be so humble when you are of such importance,” Lord Batugta insisted.

  “No, really, Kenenth said, his voice becoming a little more firm. ”Trust me, I’ve handled far worse working in elderly care, though the back talk is about the same, but regardless, it’s fine. Need to do something to keep me awake anyways; otherwise, my sleep schedule will once again be destroyed.”

  Lord Batugta looked ready to respond; however, before he could.

  “Commander!” Drogsa said from a distance, quickly approaching.

  “Drogsa, I’m in the middle of something important. Whatever it may be, it can wait,” Lord Batugta said.

  Drogsa’s tail flicked to the side before falling motionless, “You had me put this off since the banquet, but this is something you need to hear. Returning from the recent hunt, while I was in the middle of stalking my prey, my sons noticed two Nok wandering the forest and killed them.”

  “And…? I don’t need to hear about your son's achievements. Be proud if you want to, but do not share it with me,” Lord Batugta said with a hint of anger in his voice.

  “I do not feel pride but concern, commander, Drogsa replied. “Having recently learned a large gathering of Nok is in our territory, I think we should take action.”

  Lord Batugta turned to face Drogsa, “And what actions do you propose? Should we gather the forces and have them march to wherever this large horde of heretics are if the two your sons killed were indeed a part of that and not simply scavenging low-life wanding on their lonesome.”

  “I would not take it so far; I would only have more guards up on the wall and an increase in patrols. As it is, we are far too few in manpower, so I propose we have a number of women take part and merely watch,” Drogsa replied.

  “What is it with this insubordination from you low-borns as of late? Have I not made it clear we do things properly here as it should be,” Lord Batugta sternly said.

  “Yes, commander,” Drogsa surrendered.

  Breathing a sigh of frustration, Lord Batugta turned around to face Kenneth once more, “Well, Black healer, my apologies for the interruption, and if you change your mind, do let me know; I’ll be doing some work in the meantime.”

  “See you later then,” Kenneth said as the three took their leave, the healer getting dragged away while looking at him.

  ‘Wierd,’ Kenneth thought as he walked into the house, keeping quiet so as not to rouse the hungover Lord if he had gone back to sleep.

  Slowly and silently opening the door, Kenneth was surprised to see Trafka out of bed, crouching down over by his.

  ‘SHIT!’ For a moment, the alarm bells rang in his head as every possible and horrid thing his imagination could imagine flashed inside of his skull, but just as quickly as they had come, they were gone.

  Surprisingly, Trafka didn’t seem to hurt Nokstella in any way, but more so annoyed her.

  Carefully using his knuckles, he blocked her nostrils, making her body shudder in her sleep before she began to breathe with her mouth. Strangely, it seemed he was being gentle with her, avoiding as much as knicking her with his claws.

  “Err… what's going on here?” Kenneth asked.

  Suddenly, Trafka sprung to life, standing up while his ears flexed in Kenneth’s direction.

  Slowly, he pulled his fingers away from Nokstella’s snout and stood up while at the same time audibly fighting against the urge to vomit, winning, “I wonder. Why did you keep this little heretic? Wouldn’t it have been better off with its own kind?”

  “Don’t answer my question with a question,” Kenneth replied.

  Trafka sighed as he walked over to his bed and grabbed the mug on it, “I saw how peacefully the little creature looked while sleeping, and it made me angry. So I hoped to disturb the heretic’s peaceful slumber.”

  “Wow, you are petty,” Kenneth said.

  He turned around and dunked his mug into the bucket of water Kenneth held. With a series of loud, audible gulps, he swallowed every drop, whereupon he dunked the mug into the bucket once more, gulped the liquid down and, once done, jumped onto his bed.

  Kenneth watched as Trafka placed the empty mug by his side, folded both arms behind his head and closed his eyes.

  “What, no comment?” He asked, the silence the only answer he would get.

  Huffing in annoyance, Kenneth got to work using most of the water, pouring it on the floor and, reaching into his bag, pulled out a large number of bandages, thinking, ‘It works as toilet paper, probably also works to clean up vomit.’

  After cleaning up the mess, Kenenth scrubbed the floor in a relatively short time, ensuring there would only be a small stain, if any.

  However, the more he worked, the more Trafka’s silence began to annoy him, slowly building until he poked the sleeping bear, unsure of what the result would be.

  “You know you could at least show her a bit of decency. She saved your life, you know,” Kenneth said in annoyance while continuing to clean.

  Trafka scoffed, “How funny. And when did the little heretic save my life?”

  “When she saved mine and stopped Nokqotir from killing me. If not for her, you’d be dead,” Kenneth calmly said.

  “I owe that heretic nothing, and you better not go around saying such things and make people question my honour. I will defend that above all,” Trafka warned him.

  “Treat her with a bit of decency, and you got yourself a deal,” Kenneth replied.

  Trafka seemed to hold back his anger and annoyance, letting out a sigh and rolling onto his side, facing the wall. “Fine, Kenneth, I’ll do that small kindness.”

  Getting a better deal than he ever thought he would get, Kenneth let out a small sigh as he more or less finished cleaning. However, before he was about to stand, he noticed that the game of tic-tac-toe he’d carved into the floorboards had come to an end.

  “You win Kolu. I guess this time I’ll go first,” He said in a melancholy voice, carving another game into the floorboards and making the first move.

  “Hiissssss…”

  Kenneth calmly turned around to see Nokstella awake, looking a bit disheartened, “How long have you been awake?”

  “Is Kolu good?” She asked.

  “Not yet, Kenneth sighed. “He needs space and time, as much as we can give him.”

  “I only want play Kolu. I miss,” Nokstella said, lowering her head.

  “I know, Kenneth said, taking a seat beside her on the bed. “One day, but until then, how about playing a game with me.”

  With a hissing sigh, she fell onto his lap, “What game?”

  “Whichever you want,” He said with a weak smile.

  For now, everything seemed peaceful, yet Kenneth couldn’t, no matter how hard he tried to shake the feeling in the back of his head that it was only a matter of time before something, whether it be inside or outside the outpost, was bound to happen.