Recovery

He made his way towards the exit, avoiding the littered corpses and limps.

'What a mess we created. And I took part in it."

Just a month ago he wouldn't even have a nightmare about this, now instead it being his harsh reality.

His tiredness and exhaustion tho made him care not enough to dwell on this thought.

He sunk on his knees next to the cave, the soft grass still a bit wet, the soil sullied his pants.

Their heavy backpacks were hidden here, not that they could take these bulky stuff with them into a fight.

He crammed around her personal stuff, searching for her recently acquired potions.

"Where is this stuff. She constantly nagged it was so bloody expensive, so it should be... Ahhh, here it is."

Finding two boxes that were finely crafted, one each respectively was written -Pain- and -Wounds-.

Mikael took the wound one, opening it and carefully unzipping the cloth wrapping up a glass bottle.

'She spend most of her rewards one these, better be worth it.'

He closed the lid again, walking back to Sophia who still laid there, not caring about the world around.

Her wound looked nasty and painful every time he glimpsed at it, so he wasn't sure at first if he should get the other potion, too.

'Better not, bet she would kill me if I'd do so. Additionally it doesn't seem she is in much pain right now...'

He took out her potion, but immediately stood before his next question.

'Does she need to swallow it or has it to be applied on the wound?"

He struggled to not fall over her, his muscles also weak and hurting.

'Just do both, can't hurt.'

Taking out clean cloth and bandages from his small bag, he began to let a bit of it soak up the liquid, dripping some of it on her cheek before wrapping it up clumsily but neatly.

Half her face was now wrapped up, but Mikael didn't care, and he guessed Sophia wouldn't, either.

He turned her head gently, placing it on his lap before dripping some small droplets into her slightly opened mouth.

He couldn't knew if the liquid would work if it was taken in like that, but had no idea how else toet her intake it.

"I hope you get better soon. Can't imagine to loose another person so soon again..." he weakly whispered, caressing her hair and looking down at the closed eyes.

After 30 minutes of nothing happening, he laid against the cave wall, as he heared faint moans. Their backpack laid next to him, the other potion and some pills he bought ready.

Turning only his head, he saw Sophia's body moving, her head rolling not far from him to one side and the other.

Her eyes shuddered, but didn't open and she dug her feet onto the stone.

Before he could act and eventually take out her pain reliever, her breathing got flat and even, and she lost her brief moment of consciousness.

He didn't know when, but eventually he slid into a light sleep like state. Awoken by the smallest noises, he could not really call it rest.

They remained in the cave until night came, and Mikael felt energetic enough to slender around the room.

His time was spent by gathering the ears of the slain Goblins, dragging in a spurt of enthusiasm outside their resting place.

Only the head of the Goblin magician remained on the other end from their position, as he was unsure what to do with it.

Coughing reached his ear, and he saw as he just dragged another body outside how Sophia's arm rose, reaching towards her head.

He bandaged her so that her right eye was covered, so she couldn't see well.

Her head moved, searching for something.

Seeing Mikael how he was already working, her mouth moved slightly, no sound arriving at his ear.

Abandoning his task, he got closer to her, hearing her say weakly:" Water, and some beef."

He obliged handing her his own water flask and some dried meat.

Mikael helped her sitting upright against the wall, as she drank in big gulps mouthfuls of water and bit of pieces of the beef.

Mikael continued his work, as he saw thdat Sophia was already closing her eyes again, ready to fall into another sleep.

'Maybe that potion works similar to the one I gave Leon. Would explain why I can already move while she is so exhausted. Or she took more of her energy. Well, let's just hope tomorrow we get back.'

As the last corpse was taken outside, Mikael sunk down, ready to sleep just on the ground like that, not even fully going back to the safety of their cave room. He dozed off at the entrance his body not illuminated by either the big moon or the glowing stones deeper inside.

So it was no wonder the approaching creatures in the night missed him, walking next to him, avoiding this bit like it was a stone.

Mikael only awoke as one of the remaining creatures stumbled from stepping onto him, falling over and making a high pitched klicking sound.

"Wha...? Is it morning already?" he asked confused, blinking into the darkness before his eyes adjusted.

The creatures turned around, the frontmost about to enter the room where Sophia rested.

'Kobolds? What are they doing here?' Mikael panicked, glancing from one of these monsters to another.

He saw how their small noses twitched, trying to smell him before he saw the white in their eyes moving downwards, looking straight at him.

'Shit, what a cursed day!'

But he lamented not for long. He stood up as fast as his tired body could, unsheating his knife he had on him.

'Why do I so often leave my main weapon elsewhere?' he thought gloomy.

His knife was not as long nor had it the same stopping force. It was easier to wield with his sore muscles tho.

The Kobolds were somehow hesitant, this person before them emerging from who knows where.

But their little brains switched instantly, bearing their claws and simple weapons.

Some shouted out these weird noises that sounded if one hit two rocks together, others hissed or spit in his direction.

"Come and get me, ugly monsters!" he provoked.

'I've to lure them towards me, Sophia is most likely still sleeping.'

He suppressed a yawn, beginning to breath more quickly as the adrenalin began to circulate in his system.

'At least I don't have this weird feeling again.'

Not waiting anymore, the monsters began rushing towards him, trying to overwhelm him with their numbers.

'I took on dozens of Goblins myself, I think I can take you lots, too.'

He then began his resistance, using his knife to slice and stab into the soft bodies and organs, retreating a bit to use the trees as a obstacle.

His hands grabbed incoming weapons and limbs, tossing them away or altering their paths.

But these creatures were more nimble and aggressive than Goblins, their claws and teeth longer and sharper.

Few managed to bite into his clothes, the thin teeth penetrating his mail underneath and creating small wounds.

Others could scratch his even less protected parts, like neck, legs or arms.

After only 3 minutes of fighting he had killed most of the monsters, injured everyone of them to some degree, but suffered scratches, bites and blunt force wounds.

He felt now every muscle crying in protest, demanding rest and recovery, but he pushed himself.

He failed to strike at a opposing Kobold, and the creature answered by throwing its branch. Brushing it away with one arm, he fell on his button. In some distance away he began to see how from the cave a person stood, sword in hand and half the face covered.

'Sophia.' he rejoiced.

She came closer, unsteady on her feet but approaching fast. Her sword simply entered the Kobolds head before it could react, and another soon followed, until a moment later the few remaining laid on the ground, dead.

"You alright?" she asked, looking around seeing all these corpses.

Her eyes wandered to the pile of Goblins Mikael dragged out before, silently shaking her head.

"I see what you wanted to achieve, but that was stupid."

She pointed towards the bodies, helping Mikael standing up, herself needing the support of a tree.

"The smell of corpses or blood does attract all sorts of monsters. Or didn't you learn when we set up camp in Nodan?"

'Right, we had to bury the Kobolds as a precaution. And now I did something so stupid.'

He'd like to hit himself for his negligence, but Sophia followed up.

"But neither did you have the time nor the means to effectively hide the traces, so this may have been the better outcome. Good work fighting on your own."

She punched him lightly on his shoulder, a slick smile showing.

"Not just here, but also against the amount of enemies and even a evolved one. Honestly it's scary considering you are just 10 or 11. Are you sure you aren't some different species?"

She asked jokingly.

Together they walked back to the cave, as they still needed to tend Mikael new wounds and finally get some real rest.

After they were done, each one of them slept for just few hours, awoken early the next day by the intruding sounds of bird chirping.

"Let's not forget to collect the teeth of these Kobolds." Sophia reminded, a bundled up round object hanging from a long branch.

Wordless Mikael held up a small pouch, shaking it a bit. "Done." he yawned, Sophia shrugged just with her shoulders and heaved up the branch.

"Then let's head back. Maybe we get around your proposal to hitch a ride. I'd welcome a break now, even if we get on to some shady person."

"Then should we go back on the same path we came?"

"No, straight down through this small patch of forest. Behind their begins a merchant route. I avoided that road as it would've taken longer as cross the fields, but now we got no pressure."

She swung her bundle a bit, changing its position from her right to the left.

"The danger in this patch of land is dead, and our reward secured. With this thing in hand, even a raise of reward should be possible."