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Bingo lay miserably still inside his tattered bedroll, unable to settle down and fall asleep. The eerie sounds of the forest and the impending presence of the trees hovering menacingly over them were bad enough. Even worse was the fact that, for the second time on the journey, he had managed to get separated from his brother. Reggie was on top of the ravine, while he was stuck here below. He cursed the ill luck that had sent him tumbling downward.
But there was something else very wrong. Bingo hadn't said anything to the others but he was in considerable pain. In his downward fall, he had glanced off the side of a jagged rock. Ever since then, he'd had a hard time even breathing. Every mouthful of air and compression of his chest brought an agonizing sensation of tightness, almost like someone repeatedly jabbing him in the side with a dagger; he could only guess that one of his ribs must have been cracked in the fall. He knew there were herbal remedies that could help stave off the pain, but he didn't know how to find the herbs or concoct a suitable potion. Maybe he could take his one spare shirt and wrap it tightly round his chest to help support the broken rib. Yet every time he tried to manoeuver his body to do that, the pain in his side worsened to the point that he had to stop.
Finally, he could take no more. Speaking loud enough so anyone who was awake could hear, whether in the ravine or on the hillside above, he spluttered out a plea for help, "Anybody awake? I think I've broken my rib. Can anyone help me.....?"
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