[alaklondewen]

Settlers -- Collothion and Cuilad

Collothion’s hands had been kept busy from the time the sun rose over the Eastern hills until morning faded to noon. Not only did he have his normal duties in camp with fevers, flues, and his regular rounds, but he also lent his services in the forest. Although he didn’t actually cut the trees himself, he helped the other men carry the lumber. He did have a few selfish motives for being in the forest…the vegetation. This new place carried a variety of plants, moss, trees, and herbs he had yet to see, and he could hardly contain his excitement at the thought of what healing potential some of this new vegetation might hold. He would bring Cuilad back here when the other men were gone or on break, and they would take a closer look. In the meantime Collothion would stop now and again when he spotted some undergrowth that looked interesting and slip it into his tan leather bag which hung from his waist.

The ringing of the noon bell was heard coming from the camp, and the men let out sighs of relief as they set their tools down and headed back to rest and fill their weary bodies with much needed fuel to get them through the rest of the day. Collothion waited by the last wagon in line until Cuilad could join him. The boy had worked hard labor all morning and had been excused from his training so he could help with the felling of the trees. Cuilad was covered with dirt and sawdust, and Collothion could see exhaustion in the boy’s eyes, but Cuilad held himself proudly without complaint.

“How are you holding up?” Collothion asked his son whose only reply was the nod of his head as he stopped to rest with his hands on his hips. “When we’re finished here, I want to come back and collect some samples of the undergrowth and foliage. I already selected a few to look at on our break.” Collothion smiled as he patted his pouch. Cuilad shook his head with silent laughter knowing his father would never take a break from his healing duties.

As they reached the edge of circle of tents, they looked upon a long table that had been laid out for the working men. A modest lunch was set out at each seat. The father and son sat eagerly at the end of the table farthest from the trees. Shortly after, Calumdril sat down across from them. The man seemed to be deep in thought and his expression was serious.

“How’s the arm, Old Man?” Collothion smiled broadly at the younger Calumdril who had visited him earlier with a raw boil.

At first Calumdril looked at Collothion with a certain curiosity then he smiled and replied, “Much better, thank you.” Collothion watched the soldier instinctively touch the sore spot with his finger tips.

“It’ll heal much faster if you leave it alone.” Collothion winked as he dug into the luke-warm food on his plate.

Calumdril nodded and began to eat silently. A moment later, the younger man looked up in an almost startled way as though he’d just remembered something. “These came from a pine tree on the edge of the wood…I thought they might prove useful to you.” Calumdril produced a few needles from a small pouch.

Collothion carefully took the dark green needles and rubbed them between his fingers before bringing them to his nose. Despite their small size they had a strong, yet almost pleasant, scent. He could feel his senses clear just from the aroma. As soon as he had a chance, Collothion would steam the needles to see what he could extract from them through simple infusion. “I thank you, Sir.” Collothion stood as high as he could with the bench seat behind his knees and bowed his head with respect to Calumdril. “I will surely let you know what I find out.” This act of kindness touched Collothion and he looked at Calumdril with respect anew.

After sitting back down, the men finished their meals in silence. Only too soon did the ending of their lunch hour come, and the weary souls took to their work again.

[ September 16, 2003: Message edited by: alaklondewen ]