Page 91 of Blood of the Sands

“Are you sure?” the man hovering nearby and wringing his hands asked—Badha’s brother, Koa, I assumed. “This isn’t just tending to a warhorse.”

Erix nodded, continuing to pat the horse soothingly, muttering nonsensically under his breath before answering. “I’ve… worked closely with the best horse master there is. I’ve helped with many difficult foalings.”

Koa glanced at his sister, who looked at me, as if waiting for my judgement on the matter. It felt odd for her to look to me for guidance, but I nodded encouragingly.

“Erix is good with horses.” If he had learned even half as much as Kaius knew, then I had confidence in him. Even in the short months I spent in Kelvadan, I had seen everybody in the city seek out his help for all sorts of equine ailments, and he handled them all with patience and expertise. Based on how well Erix treated Alza, I had a feeling he followed his father’s teachings.

“Then I would appreciate any help you can give us,” Koa said. “I just—something’s wrong. I can tell.”

“Your magic serves you well,” Erix responded.

I blinked. Reaching out with the barest lick of magic, I reached past the beacon of power that was Erix, nearly drowning out all else in the desert, to find a delicate bond between Koa and his horse.

Koa snorted. “It does very little but cause me to spoil my horse rotten.”

“It shows,” I chimed in. “She’s a beautiful animal.”

It was true. As much as all the mounts of Clan Otush looked like they had seen better days, as did its people, her thick, if dusty, coat and strong muscles spoke to years of good care.

“I’ll need bandages to get her tail out of the way, and some fresh water.”

“I’ll go,” Badha volunteered.

I followed her, planning to help carry water and supplies. She led me to a well dug in the center of the encampment, and I began turning the crank to bring up the bucket. I sensed her eyes on me as I worked. I itched to shrink away, uncomfortable with the scrutiny.

She eventually broke the silence. “I didn’t expect to find you riding in such company.”

I glanced over, finding her expression open, not holding the judgement I would have expected.

“To be honest, neither did I. But Erix…”

“You call the Viper by his name? I thought nobody knew it. I wasn’t sure he even had one.”

I chewed my lip, not wanting to unintentionally give away more of Erix’s secrets. It felt like a violation of trust, although I had made him no promises.

Badha shook her head at my silence. “I will not tell anybody if you don’t wish me to. I suppose his name doesn’t really matter. I just didn’t expect you to join him after the way the Trials ended.”

I winced at the memory of my loss of control. “I wish you hadn’t seen that.”

“I will admit, I was cheering for you in that fight. I knew that Clan Otush would have to join Clan Katal, and like our lord, I don’t relish bowing to others. I rode out right after that fight to tell my lord what had happened. But I did see your power, and you were certainly fearsome to face in a fight… I guess I can see why the two of you might have something in common after all.”

“Erix is… complicated.”

Badha shrugged as I pulled the bucket from the well. It was heavy with water that I was careful not to slosh over the sides. “If he can help Koa’s horse and save us from the lava wyrm, I don’t think I would mind following him after all.”

At that, I nodded. It was my sentiment too. Out here in the desert, where survival was the ultimate law, the barriers that had been erected between the clans and Kelvadan seemed both less important and looming more imposing than ever. After all, the clans blamed Kelvadan for the suffering they endured.

“Let’s get this back to Erix and Koa,” I said.

I lugged the heavy bucket back to the enclosure while Badha hurried to grab some cloth from one of the tents. When we arrived back at the horse enclosure, Erix took the bandages and neatly bundled up the mare’s tail out of the way of her hind quarters. Then he shucked off his gloves and pushed up his sleeves and used the water to cleanse his hands and arms up to the elbow.

“Try to keep her still, I need to see what position the foal is in,” Erix ordered us, voice full of all the calm seriousness of a war-hardened veteran. As all three of us jumped to obey without a second thought, I understood why Lord Alasdar put him in command of the combined clan’s riders.

Koa took the mare’s head, comforting her and whispering reassurances while Badha and I stood at her sides, keeping her from shuffling away as Erix stood at her rear. Between the three of us, we managed to keep her in place as Erix examined her, but I couldn’t help but frown at the sweat coating her sides.

“The good news is that the foal appears to be coming front legs first, so we don’t have to worry about it suffocating before its face comes out. The bad news is that it is upside down, with its legs up toward her back,” Erix said as he pulled away.

The creases of worry across Koa’s brow deepened, and he stroked the mare’s nose even as she panted. “What can we do?”