#utowyn

Easthies had left the healing spire as soon as the bandage was secured around his wrist, ignoring the protests of the nurses there that insisted he should remain longer to rest, but a man like Easthies did not have time to rest. He was the Deputy Captain of the Knights Moralis, and getting injured in a fight was already bad enough, but if he remained here to rest he could already hear Vinanna’s voice in his head:

“A few bruises and a broken wrist are keeping you from your duty? Easthies, I thought I trained you better than that.”

The thought of the Wise in Principles looking at him with that tired disappointment, shaking her head at him with a sigh was enough to send a shiver down his spine.

He gently pushed the nurse to the side to free his way, he gave her a polite bow and thanked her for her efforts, but he denied the painkillers she tried to hand him and instead he rushed out of the room, almost appearing like he was fleeing from his shame. And in a way he was.

Easthies had a reputation to uphold; he was supposed to be a good leader, unwavering, untouchable, determined. Walking away from a fight with cuts and bruises and the wrist of his dominant hand broken, it felt like he was nothing more than a failure, an embarrassment for the strength the Knights Moralis were supposed to represent.

It was a relief that he did not meet any of the other Knights on the way to his office, the last thing he wanted was the others to see him struggling, he needed some time alone to lick his wounds and assess the severity of his injuries. He winced when he tried to bend his broken wrist, which responded with a stinging pain that forced a little gasp from his lips. This would be a problem. How was he supposed to finish his reports, how was he supposed to fight for the principles when the need arose? He could force himself through the pain, he was sure, but it would do no good if his wrist healed wrong and caused problems for the rest of his life.

With a gloomy expression Easthies walked towards the large window, lifting his gaze to look at the familiar fish outside that somehow always managed to calm him. Raising his uninjured hand he used it to lift his cap off his head ere he turned around to place said cap on his desk. Then he combed his slender fingers through his messy hair which was also the moment he realized it would be a challenge to take care of it in the coming weeks. This broken wrist was a real inconvenience, one he was already tired of.

When there was a knock on the door his body involuntarily winced, as if he had been caught doing something forbidden, and as he called for whoever was outside to come in Easthies straightened his back, hiding his injured wrist behind his back, pressing it slightly against the small of his back to concentrate on the dull pain it caused.

Then the door opened and he tensed even more, expecting Captain Vinanna to come and scold him for his missteps, but instead it was Utowin, the one that had accompanied him on the mission that had left him injured. Easthies relaxed ever so slightly but he still held his hand behind his back, and he also turned his face away, wanting to hide the cuts on his cheek and jaw. Today it felt like he had failed even though they had apprehended the rogue witch, but Utowin had seen him struggle and how much did he know about Easthies’s injuries? He intended to hide them well.

The Deputy Captain cleared his throat and poured his guest a glass of water before he lifted the gaze of his red eyes to meet those of Utowin, he kept his expression as stoic as always, the same expression he always wore when he tried to keep people at arm’s length.

“Utowin”, he greeted his fellow Knight, gaze quickly wandering over the other’s form, up and down and up again to meet his eyes once more, feeling relieved he could not detect any severe injuries on the other.