The three of them cautiously made their way in. After what he’d just heard from the man, Will wasn’t sure this was the best place for him to find proper treatment. If the Mender couldn’t tell which one of the three of them was hurt, would he really know how to fix his arm appropriately? At least Ezra and Bet didn’t seem to share his concern.

Once they were inside, a bit of calm slipped across his body which helped suppress the pain. The room was incredibly clean. It was easy to tell since most everything inside was white. The space was open, with every object and parcel tucked away in its own particular place There wasn’t a hint of dust in the air, and even the floor seemed to shine. It was made entirely of wide, white tiles, and it reminded Will of his kitchen back home. His mom always made a fuss whenever he dropped food on it.

Above was a long and wide light fixture. It sloped and reached in little curls to extend to all parts of the ceiling, and every foot or so, it was lit by a small glowing light. Not really a candle, and definitely not a bulb, but a light nonetheless.

“Okay, Okay, Okay,” the man mumbled to himself. “Whichever one of you is hurt, go lay down on the table. I have to retrieve Seebrus.”

Will turned sharply towards Bet. “It’s all right,” she said. Let’s see Seebrus first.”

He didn’t really know what she meant by that, so instead, he made his way toward the wide table, heaved himself up, and lay his back against the cold, white rock.

“How much is this going to cost?” Ezra called to the man.

“That depends. We’ll have to see the extend of the damage first, if—” the man’s voice trailed away. He was still talking but they could no longer clearly understand a word he said. Ezra grunted and began to scratch at his arm.

“Do we have enough to pay him?” Bet spoke in a soft whisper.

“We ought to. It’s just a matter of how much we’ll have once he’s done.”

The room became strangely quiet, until finally, the man wheeled around the corner smiling a crazy sort of grin. “Seebrus,” he said. “Isn’t he beautiful?”

Will’s eyes opened wide. Seebrus was a large, black and white salamander. The man cradled it in his arms as one might do with a particularly kind cat. The salamander made no attempt to struggle. In fact, it looked asleep and seemed perfectly content to be held.

“Are you ready boy?” The old man’s eyes flashed at Will.

Will nodded.

“Just be still.” Ezra sort of muttered the words Will’s direction.

“Let’s see, let’s see.” The old man had become distracted. “Now where did I put that? Always picking it up and putting it down. Hmm…” He seemed almost to have forgotten that Bet and Ezra were in the room. As he paced, both of them had to step sideways once or twice to keep from being run over. After a fair amount of muttering, the man found a small wooden box. He awkwardly picked it up with the hand that wasn’t supporting the salamander, and then approached the medical table.

“Your arm yes?” he asked Will.

“Uh, that’s right.” Will said.

The man looked directly into the salamanders eyes. “Seebrus, his arm.” He then placed Seebrus on Will’s chest and stood back.

Nothing happened. The animal sat there, and Will felt incredibly strange lying on his back with a salamander plopped on his torso.

“Oh, I totally forgot. Ridiculous me.” The old man rushed forward, flipped open the wooden box, and removed a small glistening something with his fingers. It was a piece of a pill. A binder, as Bet had called it.

He walked over to Seebrus, and placed the binder up toward the animal’s mouth. The salamander woke with a start, then gulped the piece down. Almost instantly the animal began to glow. It’s large, white spots became shining beams of light as a wonderful warmth began to pour across Will’s chest. The salamander sniffed and began to toddle around across his body. It was searching for the problem. After a quick stop on the side of Will’s face, it slowly crawled down and across his arm.

The warming sensation radiated deep inside. The pain melted away, and seconds later it was almost as if his arm was getting overly hot. Will let out a relieved chuckle. A bit of heat was all the discomfort he had.

After only a minute or so, Seebrus seemed to become bored of his arm. The salamander then crawled back to his chest, curled its tail around its legs, and nestled back down to rest.

“Delightful isn’t he?” the man said.

“Yes,” Will sputtered. “That was incredible. I can move my arm. I think it’s fixed,” Will said as practiced a few times extending his arm and bending it back.

“Well, of course it’s fixed. Seebrus here doesn’t make mistakes.” The man then gave a sort of grumpy noise. “That’s what comes of our relationship. The two of us see, we’re quite close. Which makes me wonder about you boy. Tell me, why is your Cakrit on my roof?”

Will started to turn to Bet and Ezra.

“Don’t look at them,” the man interrupted. “Her’s is in that bag, and his is gone. You don’t need their approval to be honest. I asked you for a reason.”

What should Will tell the Mender?

He was hiding the Cakrit

He can’t control where the Cakrit goes

It’s not his Cakrit

This Poll is Closed