“I belong to no one,” he snapped out before he could stop himself. Even Delfin could not make a slave of him. In some ways being a mage was like being a slave, but at the end of the day, he had freedom, even if not always respect. At least they had never forced a silencer on him when it wasn’t necessary. From the Undari point of view, though, he supposed it was necessary. He was an enemy mage who could wipe out small forces alone with his magic- of course they couldn’t afford to leave him with the use of such a dangerous weapon. It didn’t make him any less upset to have his magic chained.

Turuk snorted, and then eyed him, settling a hand in the silver fur when Siira let out another low growl. It was almost like she understood him, too. He glanced at her cautiously, and then flicked his gaze back to Turuk as he spoke. “You belong. Delfin lost,” he said, giving another grin, full of teeth. Now that Aurem looked closer, he could see a few sets of teeth were sharper than should be. His canines looked deadly, though only a slight bit longer than Aurem’s own. Aurem shuddered at the sight, and the man’s response.

He wanted to insist he wasn’t a slave, but Aurem knew he didn’t have a choice. And something told him he was better off in Turuk’s watch, than the scrawny one. “What’s the puny one’s name?” He wasn’t sure how much Turuk understood, but he received a blank stare in response, and sighed, scrunching his nose up. “Puny. The small one…” he hesitated, and then huffed, and motioned to Turuk, gesturing wide with his hands. Then he jerked over his shoulder, where the scrawny one disappeared, and held his thumb and forefinger, with barely an inch between them.

Turuk blinked, and then laughed, his head tilting back slightly. A Hand slapped down on his back, and he grunted, hissing in pain, as Turuk rumbled with laughter. He flopped forward, soon face first back into the cold dirt, which only made the Undari laugh even harder.

“Bastard!” he hissed out low, sitting up, face pinched with pain. The nerve of the man! He scowled up at Turuk, and got another infuriating smile in return. He growled low in his throat, and just glared hard. Turuk grinned, eyes half closed in amusement, and then grunted. He held up his fingers, in an imitation of what Aurem had done moments before. “Puny. Geran.” The man seemed greatly amused by the word, especially used to describe the surly small Undari.

Aurem stared, and then nodded. At least he knew the name of the scrawny one. What it would gain him, he didn’t know. But he was learning a few names that he wouldn’t soon forget. Seeing satisfied, Turuk rose, and then Aurem felt a hand grabbing the back of his shirt. He cursed under his breath, as he was easily hoisted to his feet. He was set firmly on the ground, giving Turuk a dark, and slightly perplexed look. Whatever he had expected in being their prisoner, it hadn’t quite been…this. More of whatever Geran clearly had wanted to give, really.

His back gave a twinge of pain, from the wound, and Aurem let out a hiss of air, eager to go back and lay down. He felt Turuk inspecting him, and then a hand at his back, flinching at the touch. Turuk grunted at his side, and then grabbed hold of Aurem’s arm, and pulled him back towards the tent. “I can walk on my own,” he hissed softly, nearly stumbling as they walked back into the tent.

Turuk ignored him, and then helped Aurem back down onto the furs below. Aurem tensed, but soon resettled on top of the furs, giving Turuk a dark look. He heard shifting outside of the tent, and then Siira’s large head popped inside, eyeing him, giving a low growl. He returned the look, and then tore his gaze away moments later, unable to hold it for much longer. She was a great deal more intimidating than any Undari human. He heard her huff, as if satisfied he didn’t challenge her further.

Turuk inspected the unconscious mage, and then grunted lightly, and motioned towards him. “Hurt? Pain?”

Aurum blinked, and then shifted slightly, and thought for a moment. Realizing there was no point in lying, Aurem let his shoulders slump slightly, and nodded. “On my back,” he said idly, giving the man another sharp, cautious look as Turuk shifted and moved behind him. He hissed softly, when his shirt was peeled from his back, remembering that he had opened it earlier in his attempt at escaping. He felt fingers rubbing almost tenderly over the skin, and suppressed a shiver. He heard a grunt behind him

“Hot,” the Undarin said simply, and then leaned around his arm, and Aurem glanced in his direction, looking him in the eyes. “Sick?”

Aurem hesitated, his heart sinking. If it meant what he thought, then the wound might be getting infected. And now that that was on the table, Aurem felt a vague sense of unease. “If I had my magic, it would be simple,” he grunted lightly to himself, and sighed, knowing there was no way that would happen.

Turuk tilted his head to the side, and Aurem met his gaze once more. Seeming to decide on something, Turuk pulled out a blade, longer than a dagger, and made of a shimmering metal. He placed it over his lap, and then nodded. “Okay.”

Confused, Aurem stared for a long moment, flinching once Turuk reached out towards him. The man snorted, and then eased his hand closer, moving slowly, cautious, as if approaching a wild beast. Aurem kept his eyes locked to crimson. They seemed to flicker a warning at him, and the next second, Aurem realized what was about to happen, and took in a sharp breath. Another second passed, and Aurem’s eyelids fluttered closed as a trickle of his magic returned. The silencer had only been released part of the way, but he felt the magic flare inside of him, fingers twitching slightly with the urge to lash out. But as much as he wanted to, Aurem knew it was foolish.

Turuk would move quickly, and Aurem doubted he had enough power to take him out in the instant he needed, before the man retaliated. And even if he did take the Undari out, the wolf was near. He could hear the faint rumbling growl, and forced himself to relax, once again opening his eyes. Turuk was watching him closely, and Aurem returned the gaze, and set his jaw. He wanted Turuk to know he could easily take him out. But also, that he wasn’t stupid enough to do it. Turuk snorted, that amused glint coming to his eyes, and then settled back behind him.

A bit nervous to have Turuk at his back, Aurem took a moment to focus the little bit of magic he had. He closed his eyes again, feeling his shirt lifting once more, wondering if Turuk wanted to watch the healing process. He huffed lightly, but then focused himself, feeling Turuk’s gaze trail over the intricate ink across his body. His markings shifted slightly, as he flooded his magic throughout his body, reacting to the magic’s touch. The dull ache in his face settled, the cut in his mouth healing first. Little scrapes and bruises healed along the way, as he worked towards the nasty gash on his back. And once he reached it, he winced. He could see the start of infection, and worked on clearing that up first. Blackened flesh and veins returned to normal as his magic cleared through the beginning infection. And then, he started knitting the flesh back together.

All of it took less than a minute, but he was left panting softly by the end of it, sweat beading on his brow. Healing normally was easy, but with only a trickle of his magic coming through, it took great effort to even heal the smallest of cuts. He felt a touch at the collar again, and then tensed, and jerked away, “Wait!” his voice came out more of a yelp than he would have liked. But he felt Turk pause, and glanced over his shoulder briefly, brows knitting together. “I…can I heal him?” He asked quietly, inwardly recoiling at having to ask such a thing.

Turuk’s brow arched slightly, and he considered for a moment, before grunting, and nodding. “Quick,” he said quietly, and Aurem felt his shirt fall back into place. Nodding his head quickly, Aurem moved towards the unconscious mage, and leaned over him. He was already exhausted, but he might not get a chance like this again, and the other mage could very well die from the fever.

Aurem placed a hand over his brow, and then sent his magic through their contact. He felt it flowing through the markings on his body, stabilizing his magic despite the weakness. He could feel the magic tend to the injuries first, the fever next. He rested his palm on top of the mage’s forehead, feeling the temperature drop to the touch, within a few moments. Scowling, Aurem closed his eyes as a wave of dizziness took over. His magic was roiling inside him, eager to get out. The hardest part was trying to thin it out enough to trickle through the small crack allowed.

Once Aurem was satisfied that the mage was stable enough, he drew his hand away, and sat back. His head tilted back, and his vision darkened as he flopped back towards the furs below. Rather than hitting the ground, he hit something a bit warmer- but just as solid. He felt a hand closing on his shoulder, and then the trickle of magic closed off completely. A faint whine broke past his lips, not enough energy to stop it. “Bastard,” he murmured, unable to force his eyes open. But after a moment, Aurem knew what happened. Turuk had kept him from falling, and then re-established the silencer. Once again his magic was sealed away, and he felt less than half of his normal self. But half was still better than dead, in some ways.

Aurem grimaced, as the Undari warrior slowly lowered him to the furs below. After a moment, he managed to open one eye halfway, staring up at the curious expression hovering above him. He groaned, and then immediately shut his eye, hearing a faint chuckle from the man above him. No matter what he did, the damned warrior seemed amused. He’d wait until the man dropped his guard. And then they’d see who was amused. Aurem huffed to himself, already feeling himself starting to drift away. He needed rest. And food. But his body craved the former more, at the moment. Come morning, it would be a very different story.

He didn’t know what he’d done to deserve all of this, but Aurem really wasn’t keen on asking the gods to find out. Feeling Turuk drawing away, and that gruff tone speaking unknown words, Aurem finally let his mind drift away. Anything else would have to wait until the next day, when he was more prepared to deal with things. Hopefully, tomorrow would be a better day. But as Aurem’s mind finally fell to unconsciousness, he heard that little nagging voice assure him it wouldn’t be.