On the Edge of Expanion (IC)

As he got closer to the Tau he could see they were gathered around something on the floor, likely to be Elrano. Giving him some last rites he hoped. The time that had passed surely meant the old Fire Warrior was dead. As he drew closer the kroot puts on a burst of speed eager to see what was going on and to find his meds.

He suddenly ‘appears’ amongst the Tau looming over Elrano from behind Vra’fa. The water caste had some of his meds in her hands, had she used them?

“They are mine Vra’fa, no use for a corpse.” He snaps out in his halting Tau.

Gorthrax knew little of medicine but he was a warrior, he had seen horrific things and so had learnt a little. He looks at the stump, was it still bleeding the blood being pumped out by the heart?

He'd noted the new comer but there were more important things to attend to.

Vra'fa looked up at the Kroot as he came through the forest behind them. There was a glint of something in her eyes, but her expression was clear and when she spoke, her voice was calm and resolute.
"I am glad to see that you are uninjured Gorthrax. This is Shas'La Ril'arn. I don't know yet if he is alone, or if there are others with him. We will do our utmost to prevent Shas'la Elanro turning into a corpse. While we do so, could you monitor the perimeter? Sitting as we are, all so close together and with blood already spilled, we probably present an ideal target."

The water caste was kneeling forward, both legs folded beneath her thighs and her back straight. All of these were pointed towards the prostrate figure on the ground. Her head was noticeably turned away from it, up towards the Kroot. The medicine was on her lap, both hands resting over them.

Na'no followed the Por'la's orders without hesitation. She paused briefly at Gorthrax and Bok's arrival - specifically Gorthrax's counter-order not to give the pain meds to Elan'ro. But as Vra'fa responded to the Kroot, Na'no felt herself calmed and relaxed again - pushed back into action.

She tied off the wound as tightly as she could. Then she picked up one of the vials and took off Elanro's battle helm. His skin was clammy and pale, the light blue fading even lighter. Na'no knew nothing of medicae - not even enough to check whether or not Elanro's heart still beat. But she had orders. Taking the vial, she pushed it into his neck and depressed the rear button. There was a small hiss as the pain-killing fluid rushed out.

Gorthraxs' eyes narrow at Vra'fa suggestion. He knew it was a wise one but his hunger gnawed at him. An uncomfortable few seconds pass before he turned and moved away from the scene, he then glances back "Save my medication for 'if' he wakes up. He'll need it then, not now. Burn the wound to seal it." before he turns back to patrol a perimetre Gorthrax gives the new comer a look up and down. He hoped he was more competant than the sleepy Elrano. There was no reason to assume he wouldn't be as he found Tau usual dedicated. With a brief nod at the warrior Gorthrax moves away.

Ril'arn looks up from his clumsy attempt to apply pressure on the wound to regard Gorthrax. As a pathfinder he had great respect for the scouting abilities of the Kroot, but of course never trusted them to grasp the intricacies of command.

"Yes, Gorthrax, maintain the perimeter while we stabilize the Shas'la. Fio'la, can you stop the bleeding?

Her face being turned upwards towards Gorthrax and away from the sounds of the treatment behind her, Vra'fa noticed a tightening of the Kroot's features. Before this trip she had only limited experience with these allies of the Tau, and mostly from a long distance. She had no knowledge to fall back on what his expressions might mean, beyond her own inductive reasoning about the experiences they had shared over the past two days. If she had to guess, she would say he was annoyed.

Thinking about it, there could be many reasons for this. Misplaced guilt about failing to protect Elanro? Perceived drop in status in front of the new arrival after following the suggestion from one as young and weak as her? A selfish anger about his possessions being used on someone else? It could be all of these or none at all. Something she could keep an eye on.

A wave of tiredness suddenly hit her. Another thing to add to a growing list. Was it really important? There were much more vital things to consider. Chiefly to do with Elanro. She wished she could turn to look at him. It felt so ridiculous, kneeling here beside him, her body turned away and staring into the woods. She... she just couldn't right now. Another additional strain.

"Thank you Gorthrax. We will keep the rest as you advise. Na'no, would his suggestion be possible? I've heard of burning to cauterise a wound before but I'm worried about the shock it might cause."

She waits for Na'no to answer before continuing.
"In any case we need to think ahead. Na'no even if we cauterise or not, do you think Elanro is in a fit enough condition to move? I do not mean to put so much pressure on you but sadly I am little use in this situation. If he is and there is a chance of saving his life, I would advise you to take him in the Piranha back to the nearest base for medical attention before returning to us here. If we split up like this, we can still attempt to continue with our directives. Hopefully.."

She sighed and for a brief moment massaged her temples with her good right hand, before continuing.
"Hopefully our superiors might not perceive this mission as a total failure then. If he can't be moved before some recovery, we should try and set up a camp nearby. If..."

She paused again and swallowed, her lips and throat too dry to make this comfortable. She really didn't want to think about this, let alone say it. It needed to be vocalised though.
"If he is beyond our aid, then we must try and make him comfortable."

Turning her head back to new arrival, she asked again, half asking out of interest and half to clear her mind of the implications of her last statement.
"Shas'la Ril'arn, are there any others with you who might be able to assist us? May I ask what you are doing here? We were informed that there wouldn't be any other Tau in this region."

Gorthrax paused at the 'threat' of his 'medication' disappearing with Elrano. It made sense to try and get the old fool back to the outpost as quickly as possible. Whatever his misgivings regarding his encounter with the Tau as he came out his drugged stupor, Elrano was now weak meat. Not fit for eating, the Tau could no longer stand for himself.

He steps back and looms over Var'fa and Elrano "I need some" he says in his halting Tau. He raches down to grab some of his meds "He not need that much for the way back."

Ril'arn shakes is head. "I am alone. My mission was simply to hunt these avian creatures and assess their value to the greater good. I need only obtain samples for my mission to be considered a success."

The initial shock of the chaotic situation beginning to fade, Ril'arns thoughts slow and become more methodical. He notices his holding pressure is doing little to stop the ever expanding pool of blood. The water caste member was right, the situation would soon resolve itself if action was not taken.

"Outpost 5 is a full day away, too far for an airlift. But if we can stop the bleeding he may stand a chance. We can camp here in the meantime, if that is congruent with your directive."

Vra'fa looked at Gorthrax with some puzzlement.
"You need some of the medication now? But you do not appear to have any injuries at the moment?"

Following his answer, she turned back to the new Fire Caste warrior.
"That is unfortunate. I was hoping we might have a medic a bit closer to. Our footsteps do seem to be dogged by the kir'erra today. However at least your mission may be congruent with Gorthrax's. He is also here to hunt."

She tried to compose herself but couldn't stop a momentary shake of her shoulders when he mentioned the bleeding.
"I don't have much experience with camping in wilderness, so I would leave the choice of our site to you two. Our first priority though should be to stop the bleeding. Perhaps we could cauterise the wound? Na'no I think is the only one with a little medical background. We should listen to her advice on what will aid Shas'la Elanro and then either set up a proper camp or stop the bleeding and have her fly him back."


Kir'erra- a dog spirit of ill omen