The Dragon's Blood, Ch. 8

BRIDGE OF CONSEQUENCES

Chinji spread the last dried petals over the fresh grave and stood up. "Kritanu Dhir Sen" the new grave maker read. The two boys had buried him beside his wife and son, using a plank from their cart as the marker the same way he had once done for those two. They had buried the hunter where he'd fallen as well out of decency, and left a nameless marker to explain in short what had taken place there, but they had no tears for him. Only this man before them. Suddenly, this site had taken on a whole new meaning for Arjun.

"He didn't hate me, did he?" asked Arjun between sniffles.

"Of course not," said Chinji, still pawing at his sore chest. "You were his son too."

Arjun wiped his face on his sleeve. "You don't have to lie to make me feel better. I know he didn't think of me like that."

"I'm not lying," said Chinji. "It's true."

"But he never said I was his son."

Chinji laughed, recalling old memories. "You know how he was. He wouldn't just come out and say something embarrassing like that. He let you take his name, didn't he? You're Dhir Arjun Sen, aren't you?"

"That's just because I didn't have a father to use for my name."

"But he never stopped you from using it, did he?"

Arjun shrugged.

Chinji cradled his sore head and sighed. "I've got a really bad headache from staying up all night."

"Maybe we should rest some before leaving?" said Arjun.

"No, we can't stay here forever. We're on our own now." He nodded. "But we're real merchants, right? That means we can take care of ourselves, but we have to work even harder from now on."

"I guess."

Chinji motioned with his hand for them to leave. "Let's go. I can't stand this place anymore today." He began to lead the way back to the cart, and Arjun followed. "You're still walking funny," he teased, calling back to Arjun.

Arjun winched, rubbing the inside of his thigh. "I can't help it! It still hurts down there." He sighed. "I hope it gets better soon. What if he really messed something up?" He noticed that Chinji was walking a little funny as well. He wobbled from side-to-side almost drunkenly, stumbling a few times before catching himself. "Hey, Chinji, are you okay?" Arjun called.

"Yeah," said Chinji, rubbing his head again. "Just shaking because I'm tired, that's all." Suddenly he came to a stop and put a cold, sweaty hand on Arjun's shoulder to steady himself. Arjun could see his brother's pupil's quivering.

"Chinji?..."

Chinji fell to his knees, pulling Arjun down with him.

"Chinji!"

A new tear began to roll down Chinji's already moistened cheek. "S-something's wrong, Arjun."

"Maybe you need to lay down a minute," said Arjun.

"It's not an earthquake, is it?"

Chinji pulled back. "Huh? Chinji, what are you talking about?"

"It—It won't stop shaking." He clutched his head again and groaned loudly, falling face-first into the ground.

"Chinji!" Arjun rolled his brother over onto his back. Chinji was shaking violently. He no longer responded at all, but his eyes were open. All Arjun could read in them was fear. "Chinji! Chinji, speak to me! Don't panic, I'll get you to a doctor right away!" He jumped up to ready the cart, but quickly came to a halt. The cart was still there, but the horses were gone.

"Chinji! What happened to the horses?" he shouted. "They were here just a few minutes ago!" He looked further down the road to see their two horses in the distance, an unknown silhouette seated on one of them. "Horse thief!" he screamed. "Come back! My brother needs those!" He scrambled up into the back of the cart, jammed as much food and clothing into his satchel as it would fit without bursting, stuffed his boots as full of rupees as they would take with just enough room left for his feet, and then ran back for Chinji. The spices were of no use to him now.

"Don't worry, Chinji!" he shouted, hoisting his brother up onto his back. "I'm going to get you to a doctor right away!" The Grand Bazaar was too far back to walk. On foot, it might even take a few days. But he remembered there being a small farming village not far ahead. They didn't have an inn, but he prayed that they had a doctor, or at least that they could quickly send for one. He took off down the road, running faster than he had ever run before.

"Please don't die. Please don't die. Please don't die..."


* * *


"Poison," the wrinkled old doctor murmured, closing up her bag. "If what you said is true, it must have been in that dart."

"Then that means you can make some kind of antidote, right?" Arjun asked, squeezing Chinji's ice cold hand. Chinji's eyes were no longer open and he lay very still. Arjun would have thought his brother were dead if he hadn't pressed his ear to his brother's chest and heard the intermittent thump of his brother's heart so many times already. "He's not going to die, is he?"

"I'm afraid there's not much I can do for your friend here," the woman replied. "It's no ordinary poison you're dealing with here; when it gets into the victim's blood they fall into a deep sleep."

"So he'll wake up eventually, right?"

The doctor shook her head. "There is no waking. Over time he will merely waste away." She began to gather to last of her things. "I'm sorry it has to be like this, but at the very least it won't be painful for him. He won't feel a thing." With her bag in hand, she began making her way out of the tiny room.

"Wait!" Arjun called. "There's got to be something you can do! Or somebody somewhere!"

The woman paused. "This poison is a favorite of bandits and highwaymen, not for its practicality or price but for its reputation. It is especially potent; only the blood of a dragon can revive those under its spell."

"So all I have to do is find dragon blood, right?"

The woman laughed. "It's no use putting your faith in false hope, boy. Dragon blood isn't just something you can go buy at the Grand Bazaar. After all, dragons aren't so common these days. Those that remain cloak themselves in the mist and rocks, and even the weakest of them are more than a match for you. You should grieve and be on your way. There's nothing more we can do." She continued out, closing the rickety door behind her.

Arjun knelt down and buried his face in Chinji's side. "I don't care what she says," he vowed. "No matter what happens, no matter how hard, I'm going to find a dragon for you! I don't know how I'm going to do it, Chinji, but you are someone who must go on living!"