“Guess you were strapped up there awhile.” The boy held him up in a sitting position, bracing him in place while Bombax tried to work the circulation back into his arms and legs. “You want some water?”

Bombax nodded. The boy helped him move over to a wall where he could prop himself up before disappearing back into the gloom. Bombax kept working at his limbs, thinking that he probably couldn’t even manage to get back on his feet and out of there if the Mwellret returned. Because he couldn’t speak and couldn’t work his hands properly, he couldn’t work his magic, either. He might be free, but he was virtually helpless.

The boy returned after a time carrying a ladle filled with water. “The water’s okay to drink,” he told Bombax. “It’s clean.”

Bombax drank, easing the dryness, opening his throat so he could breathe better. He grunted in thanks and handed the ladle back.

“Look, I’d do something more for you if I knew what it was you wanted me to do,” the boy said.

Bombax nodded. He made writing motions with his hands.

The boy shook his head. “I don’t have anything for that. Here, use the floor. Write in the dust. Start with your name.”

Bombax did so, using his finger.

“Bombax,” the boy repeated. “I’m Deek Trink. Now tell me what you want me to do.”

Bombax thought about it for a moment, trying to think how to explain it. Then he wrote a single word:

PARANOR

“Paranor?” the boy exclaimed in surprise. He looked at Bombax with fresh eyes. “Is that where you’re from?”

Bombax nodded.

“You’re a Druid?”

He nodded again.

“You want to go back there?”

Another nod. Bombax wrote a second word in the dust:

AIRSHIP

The boy frowned. “You want me to find you an airship?”

Bombax shook his head. He was getting frustrated with being unable to talk. He pointed at himself.

“Oh, you’ve got an airship and you want me to get you to it?”

Bombax nodded.

The boy, who had been kneeling next to him, stood up. He used his boot to rub out the words that Bombax had scrawled in the dust. “Can you get on your feet and walk?”

Bombax nodded. He struggled up, but then stood in place swaying unsteadily. His legs didn’t seem to want to move and his head was spinning.

The boy laughed. “Well, you can’t walk far, that’s sure! You better let me help you. Here, put your arm around me.”