Chapter 14 - Arguments

                                    

                                          
I awoke, staring at the secure walls of the tent with no memory of returning to it the night before. My head ached, and I still felt the remnants of the haunting grip of the vision from the night before, but thankfully, I had suffered no further nightmares. The thought reminded me of the night before, and I fingered the beads of the bracelet Kotaro had given me. A part of me wondered if it would hold the nightmares permanently at bay, and the thought was almost enough to put a smile on my lips.
                          
The pounding in my head increased, and I groaned softly. Was this a side-effect caused by the images I had seen last night? It took a ridiculous amount of effort to lift my hand to rub against my temples, but before it reached my head, I stopped it mid-air.
                          
Horror filled me, and I sat upright, my eyes glued to the inside of my wrist. My veins were black. I blinked quickly, but it was no hallucination. The dark lines were stark against my pale skin, and I rubbed at them roughly. They didn't disappear, and beneath the black stone and jade beads of Kotaro's bracelet, I noticed the stark coloring on my other wrist.
                          
Biting down on my lip, I looked up to make sure David hadn't noticed anything, but David wasn't there. His cot was empty, the blankets bunched messily as if he had slung them aside in a hurry. Tugging my sleeves down in an attempt to cover the darkness of my veins, I rose, shaking the last grips of sleep off as I stumbled out of the tent, worry thrumming through me.
                          
The sun had already risen, and despite the fear that had marked my first moments of consciousness, the morning was calm and serene. I felt a small tremor of relief at the fact that my problems weren't big enough to have any effect on the world at large, and inhaling a deep breath of the fresh, crisp air, a small wave of peace washed over me. Wherever he was, I could trust that at least David was safe.
                          
"Bree!" As if in answer to my thoughts, David hobbled up to me. "You're awake." He smiled.
                          
"Yes." I returned his smile, hiding my hands behind my back.
                          
"It's a beautiful morning, isn't it?" He drew a deep breath.
                          
I didn't respond, taking in his appearance instead. He was leaning on a crutch, but there was some color in his cheeks, and he was upright. My joy at the sight overcame my fear, and I enfolded him in a gentle hug. The seed of hope, that had been planted in my heart at Kotaro's appearance began to sprout. No matter what was happening to me, at least he was safe, and I didn't know why but the feeling that I could trust these men to take care of him if something happened to me washed over me.
                          
"Come on. Let's get some breakfast." David took my hand before I could completely pull away, and looking at his cheerful grin, I could almost have mistaken him for a much younger man.
                          
I allowed him to lead me to the fire, hoping that my compliance would keep him from seeing the dark color of my veins. I would figure this out on my own without worrying him. Likely, it was all nothing, and if he got involved, it was certain a mountain would be made out of what could only be a molehill.
                          
At the sight of the fire, memories of the night before resurfaced, and something like regret touched my heart again, helping realign my focus from whatever was going on with my veins. As if he had heard me struggling against my feelings, a dark figure materialized in the corner of my eye, passing me without a word. I pointedly tried to keep my gaze away from him, feeling the temptation to tell him everything once again stirring in the pit of my stomach.
                          
"Where's Martimus?" My efforts failed at the sound of his voice, and I stared at him.
                          
He was standing next to Ayan, almost completely turned away from me, and he was dressed in leather armor and gear. Whatever injury he had received the day before didn't seem to bother him at all, and if I hadn't known of its existence, I never could have guessed he wasn't completely healthy. I wondered faintly what kind of training he had undergone to get him in this condition.