Grounded By Love (The Giant Wars #2)
Lily Thomas
Chapter 1
Kaeldar couldn't believe a human soldier managed to drag him from his horse, yet here he was, in a puddle of his own blood. When human soldiers came back to finish off the dying rock giant soldiers, he’d somehow avoided death by sheer luck. The soldiers had just bypassed him, thinking he was already dead.
But he wasn't certain if this was a blessing or a curse. The human soldiers would’ve put him out of his misery, but now he’d have to pray he survived his wound. With the amount of blood he’d lost, he had a slim chance at life. Though he was positive the wound had closed up. His fear, now, was infection.
He took a glance over at where the tree line was.
The sun was finally setting. This would be the best time to struggle his way to cover. There were some clouds moving in that threatened to release their load down on him. Personally, he was already in enough pain. He definitely didn't need to get soaked to the bone, as well.
With a pained groan, he pulled himself towards the cover of the forest. The distance seemed impossibly far, in the state he was in, but the need to survive pulsed through him. Kaeldar crawled over his fallen rock giant comrades and human bodies that had been over looked.
It took him a few hours to make his way to the forest, and to his irritation, he didn't make it to the trees, before the rain poured down on him.
After crawling a few feet into the forest, he stopped for a rest, since his strength was sapped. Where he was would have to do for the night. Either he would get better or he wouldn't. There was nothing he could do. He couldn’t even stand, at the moment.
Perhaps another group of humans would come to make sure all the giants were truly dead. Kaeldar would’ve preferred a more honorable death, but he didn't want to die of his infected wounds either. He was a warrior, and he didn’t want to die a slow death all by himself.
Kaeldar went in and out of consciousness, as the pain built in his side. He knew no rock giants would come back to search the dead for any survivors. Anyone lost in battle was lost, in his culture.
Every once in a while, he would wake to the sound of animals scuffling around. He knew the mass carnage would attract scavengers.
Groaning, he reached over to yank a knife free from a dead body.
There was no way he was going to be any animal's meal. Kaeldar had no intention of being eaten alive. Being eaten alive was a worse fate then dying by his wounds or by a human male stabbing a sword into his heart.
When Claira arrived back from the village, she was exhausted physically and mentally. There were some soldiers who she’d been unable to help, and they hadn't made it through the endless night. All she’d been able to do was make them comfortable.
Sometimes healing brought her joy, but other times it just made her realize how short life truly was. Even though it was a grueling task, Claira would never give up medicine. She might not be able to save everyone, but she could save some.
She put her medicine pack back in her cottage and went out to take a look over the battlefield. Most of the human bodies had been taken away, but she still felt remorseful for the losses on both sides.
In her mind, there was no reason for this war. All the humans and rock giants had to do was talk and discuss a truce, yet both their leaders refused.
Thankfully, she’d trained herself to control her emotions, when it came to healing. She never broke down when faced with impossible odds, and she’d keep helping the soldiers, even if she didn’t believe in the war.
Claira’s thoughts turned to the villagers. They treated her with disgust and contempt, even though she always did her best to help them. Where ever she went, she was thought of as a witch. So after some time, she decided to settle down and just stay put in one village with the hope they would grow used to her presence.
These villagers forced her to live on the outskirts of their town, but that was fine with Claira.
She still dreamed of finding a village that would accept her, so she could belong somewhere, but she was also patient. Healing had taught her to bide her time.
Heaving a sigh, Claira shook the thoughts from her head. It didn’t matter what they thought. She was doing some good in a world that had been turned upside down.
She decided to get ready for another night of helping the injured soldiers in the village. She’d run out of her herbs and needed to resupply before heading back.
As Claira was about to head into her cottage, movement from the battlefield caught her attention. Claira looked down at the field again, watching closely to see if it’d been a trick of the eye. She stood there for a few minutes, and when nothing moved she laughed at herself. The stress of these days was getting to her.
Shaking her head again, she turned, but stopped, as she yet again caught movement down on the field. Squinting, she took a few steps away from the cottage to get a better vantage point. Claira watched, as something dragged itself over other bodies. A human who had been overlooked? Or was it an injured rock giant?
Whoever it was, they were injured. They wouldn't be crawling, if they were capable of walking.
She felt as though she had an obligation to go down there and help, whether they were rock giant or human. Everyone deserved to be healed, or at least that was her belief. There was no possible way she could ignore someone in need.
Her fingers trembled slightly, as she played with the skirts of her dress. If it were a rock giant, he might not understand she was trying to help. He could kill her.