‘I can help.’ The Stoman pointed at Charlie. ‘I can heal her leg.’
Nibbler hesitated. He stared at his suffering friend and her cruelly twisted shin, then back to the Stoman boy with his large brown eyes and honest expression. Realizing he was risking everything, but also aware that he and Charlie were in terrible jeopardy, he struggled to reach a decision.
‘OK,’ said Nibbler at last. ‘But don’t hurt her. She … she just can’t take any more. OK?’
The boy nodded. Walking forward, he knelt by Charlie’s side so he could better study her wound.
‘It’s a bad break,’ he muttered, talking more to himself than Nibbler. ‘It’s fractured and … No matter. This I can fix …’
Shutting his eyes he began to sing, his hands taking on a soft blue glow.
‘Whoa! Whoa! What do you think you’re doing?’ asked Nibbler, alarmed by the presence of stonesinging so soon after his fight beneath the Stubborn Citadel.
The soft blue glow disappeared when the boy stopped singing. ‘It is my Stonesong. I need it if I am to heal her leg. With it I can manipulate the calcium in her bone and the iron in her marrow.’
Nibbler hesitated before consenting.
Once again the boy started to sing and when his hands glowed blue he gently placed them on Charlie’s shattered leg.
‘First for the difficult bit. This will hurt your friend, but it will be quick.’
Without waiting for Nibbler’s permission, he yanked Charlie’s shin straight. It was a violent motion and it obviously pained Charlie as, even unconscious, she arched her back. Strangely enough the boy’s glowing hands seemed to have a calming effect and Charlie stirred no more after that.
Bowing his head, the boy began to chant a simple melody with a lilting voice. His hands glowed brighter, the blue colour grew more intense … and then he stopped.
‘It is done,’ he said simply. Rocking back on to his heels he waited in a crouch.
Nibbler, still eyeing him with slight misgivings, padded over to inspect Charlie’s leg. Leaning in he sniffed at her leg. ‘It’s still bleeding,’ he said accusingly.
‘Of course, but I have welded her bone back together. It is as good as new. Winged One, if your friend was awake now I am certain that she would be able to walk again.’
Nibbler looked at the boy with new-found wonder. ‘Amazing. But what about, you know … all the fleshy bits?’
‘Stonesinging has its limits. I can mend bone, but healing flesh is a talent that only lies with Treman healers. Surely you should know that?’
‘It’s a long story,’ grimaced Nibbler, not keen to explain yet again why his education was lacking. ‘What are you doing?’ he asked as the boy pulled a length of thread and a needle from the small bag he wore at his waist.
‘This? Well with the weight of the rock fruit that I carry to the market, my pannier often breaks so I have to repair it all the time. I thought I could use this to stitch her wound and … oh, wait a minute! I must recover my pannier. It has my pot in it and we will need it if I am to sterilize the needle and thread.’
‘Sterilize the thread?’
‘Sure, to stop any chance of infection. And if I look around I’m sure I can find some Birolac Stone.’
Nibbler looked confused again. ‘Birolac Stone?’
‘It has healing properties in it. Please, Winged One, I will be back in a moment.’
‘Wait!’ urged Nibbler. ‘How do you know all this stuff?’
The boy smiled brightly as fond memories filled his head. ‘My uncle. He taught me everything I know about the healing ways of Stonesong.’
Nibbler nodded. ‘One more thing. What’s your name?’
‘Crumble Shard,’ said the boy. With a final smile he jogged off.
Nibbler hesitated, uncertain of what to do. Part of him wanted to snatch Charlie up and see if he could fly her all the way to Sylvaris where he knew he could get her the best medical attention. But as much as he had recently grown, he was still too small to fly long distances with a passenger. Indeed it had been pure luck that when fleeing from the Stubborn Citadel they had been gifted with strong winds and high altitude. Without similar conditions he doubted that he and Charlie would get far. He too needed to rest, find some food and grow stronger. For the moment it seemed that Charlie was, relatively speaking, safe.