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up my shoulders
something fierce."
    Va'del
found himself smiling in shared camaraderie as Jasmin examined his
arm.
    "It's
looking much better. The bones seem to be healing cleanly—I would
expect another two weeks and we can possibly remove the splint."
    Va'del
could tell from her pause that she was trying to decide whether or
not to say something. Finally after a couple of heartbeats had
passed, Jasmin continued in a rush. "If you want, I could
force the healing process. It is a simple matter which leaves no
lasting change. I'd simply cause the bones to bind together more
quickly than they normally would."
    Trying
to ignore the sudden queasiness in his stomach, Va'del did his best
to examine the offer objectively, stomping on the fear that would
lead to him offending her. "How quickly would it heal if you
did this?"
    Jasmin
seemed to relax slightly, almost like a gurra trainer who'd managed
to get the beast to accept a burden without kicking for the first
time. "We could have the splint off in three days, and you
could start training the day after that. It's possible to do it
more quickly, but neither you nor I would be much good for
anything other than sleeping while you were healing if we did that.
Healing magic takes energy from both the healer and the
patient—that's why Sara typically uses non-magical methods and lets
the body heal itself at a natural rate. If she exhausted herself
and then someone was more seriously hurt, she might not have the
resources to heal the life-threatening injury."
    Va'del
didn't doubt Jasmin's word, but the thought of Sara using mystical
powers seemed so unnatural that his mind shied away from the
thought.
    "Can
I think about it for a little while?"
    Jasmin
nodded, seemingly relieved Va'del hadn't turned her down
immediately, and turned to help with the last of the unpacking.
    I'rone
saw Va'del begin to unbuckle his sword belt and shook his head
emphatically. Betreec smiled gently at the young man. "You'll
need to remain armed at all times while we are in the village.
There really shouldn't be any occasion for you to use a weapon
inside, but there are those who bear the Guadel no love, and you
should always be mindful of the possibility of an ambush in the
darkness by someone who had a judgment go against them."
    Jasmin
frowned. "Sad to think that while our reception here is warmer
than what we saw at Bitter Rocks, we still have to fear attack from
our own people."
    Va'del
was about to ask for further clarification when a loud clap
announced the presence of someone desiring entrance to their
quarters. The man who appeared from around the privacy corner in
the wall was as broad as he was garrulous, and it took Va'del only a
moment to realize that the well-fed man was the village Headman.
    Betreec
handled the introductions, presenting Va'del to the Headman, He'lo,
without any title or explanation of his presence.
    He'lo
seemed nearly ready to ask for clarification regarding the young
man's status, before nodding and turning back to Betreec. "I'd
hoped you'd be bringing a shipment with you. We're starting to run
low on some things, and now that Ma'del has stopped trading with us,
it's getting to the point where the kitchens turn out nothing but
mushroom stew for every meal."
    Jasmin
smiled. "You'll be glad to know that a caravan set out from the
Capital about a week after we left. They shouldn't be too far
behind us. Maybe another week and a half, and your people will be
able to add some variety to their diets."
    He'lo
nodded. "That's good to hear. You'll take our gem harvest with
you I assume?" I'rone nodded and, the Headman continued.
"We've got more than usual. I'll send an order with you, but
what we'd really like to get is a light source we could use to grow
some grain. I know those are usually sent out on an as-needed
basis, but we'd be willing to forgo a substantial amount of the profit
we'd otherwise see on this gem shipment if the Council would be
willing to provide us with