The blue-haired healer chuckled. "That's enough. It seems your eyesight is returning nicely." She turned away and called out, "Sister, his eyes are stable now."
Only then did I fully take in my surroundings. I was lying in a proper bed—feather mattress and all—draped with a clean cotton blanket. Faint morning light filtered through a nearby window, and I smelled antiseptic herbs and incense in the air. Rows of cots and screens suggested this was an infirmary or temple ward of some sort. A far cry from the dingy slave stable or forest floor I was used to waking up on.
I glanced down at myself. I was no longer in my filthy tunic and trousers, but a simple linen patient's gown. Fresh bandages were wrapped snugly around my head and across my brow.
My memories flooded back: the trap, the collapse, pain and panic… Clearly I had survived, and been brought to a healer. Did that mean—?
"Elfriede!" I blurted, heart leaping. If I was alive, surely she had made it out too—she was far more capable.
As if summoned by my voice, a familiar figure stepped out from behind a nearby privacy curtain. Elfriede Desmund strode toward my bed, arms crossed over her chest. Even out of her battle leathers (she wore a plain blouse and breeches now), she managed to radiate intimidation. Her silver hair was disheveled and a large bruise darkened one cheek, but otherwise she looked unharmed.
"Elfriede…" I began, uncertain of her mood.
She fixed me with a withering stare. "Finally decided to wake up, did you?"
I flinched. Yup, she's fine. Fine enough to be angry, anyway.
The blue-haired healer cleared her throat softly. "Sir, before anything else—please look here." She waved her hand gently in front of my face to reclaim my attention. "I need to perform a few checks."
I obeyed as she ran me through a quick series of tests—tracking her finger, testing my reflexes, asking if I felt pain in various places. Elfriede watched impatiently from the foot of the bed, tapping her boot.
"How is he?" came a new voice. Another healer—a matronly woman—approached, addressing the blue-haired girl.
"He's recovering well, Sister Ann," the younger healer replied. "His vision is intact. We managed to neutralize the venom just in time." She turned to me, offering a polite smile. "You're a very lucky man. A dose of flame serpent venom that strong would have permanently blinded you if you'd arrived any later. Only high-grade holy water can treat it, and even that needs prompt administration."
I nodded weakly. "Th-thank you… truly. I owe you my sight."