World of Ranicke 04

The fact was as he was doing his thing something had impacted on his arm and suddenly it was hard to move it. He had tried one move that required both arms and his right didn't move correctly at all. He growled but kept going and used it as a method to make it look like he had been injured. The axe was soon lost and his knife came out.

He kept going as if he was fighting someone though his arm was really starting to hurt. It was all he could do not to cry as his arm was flaring up in pain. It felt like the one time he had soratica in one leg. Moments later the knife was 'knocked' out of his hand and he was now working hand to hand.

His expression was still hard as he was working and finally ended up on the ground looking like he had been taken out. By then he had in theory taken out a number of enemy. "Oh fucking hell I need to talk to the White Lady. Something is wrong with my arm."

Thomas helped him up and watched as Jim gathered up his weapons and tucked his hand back in his belt. "Damn it this hurts. Not sure why but..." He winced as he slung the axe into it's sheath and secured it with his left hand. As he was gathering his weapons he noticed a number watching him and ne nodded and then stalked away.

Once they reached the healers tent he was quickly shown in and Lia checked. "Ah, something is pressing on the nerve." She looked around Manlaso can you take care of this and I will heal it after you are done." She had some sort of pen and marked what needed to come out.

The old lady snickered. "Most definitely a dinner with me and you and your ladies are going to owe me." She gave him something to relax with and someone was playing some soft music in the back ground to help everyone relax.

"Fine we will be over there tonight just to keep you happy." He grinned at her and took her hand and gave it another kiss.

She laughed and after giving him the meds ran a nail down his shoulder and removed one of the last remaining pieces of schrapnel in his arm. Once she was done she called Lia over. "All yours milady. Just keep an eye on him since he is a lady's man."

Lia laughed and did a quick healing on him. "You will be fine in the morning. No extreme exercising for him." She smirked at him and he turned damn near red.

"Oh god shoot me now please? This culture is going to kill me." Jim whined just for good measure and got laughed at. "Fine, we will be there at dinner time. If nothing else it might keep your mate from doing me in."

The old lady laughed as she went off to treat someone else for a minor injury. Jim grumbled but his arm did feel much better.

Both the ceremony and the following day or two had been most interesting since he had been invited by several ladies and even a male or two to spend time with them. For the most part the males were just to talk thank god. The women were harder since they were almost hunting him down and it was hard to keep them at arms length and when the tribe decided it was time to keep going he was so glad it wasn't funny.

He did have his shoulder looked at by the White lady and found a piece of shrapnel had been pressing on a nerve but that had been dealt with. The actual removal had been with the old lady but the healing had been by Lia thank goodness and he could use his arm as good as new again.

One thing that did surprise him was that for the first day and a half they would be moving alongside the puma clan since they had similar locations for the rainy season. Actually there was a number of clans that used area's close since they were the high spots. He was walking with Thomas slowly heading towards the next caravan to sing and occupy the kids when it all happened. For some reason the fates of this world seemed to have it out for him and he was going to have to find them and have a talk with them soon.

Thank god they had been passing the chief's wagon when the attack happened. Jim was looking out on the puma side when what seemed like a huge number of rather raggedy ass bandits came boiling out of the forest on that side. "Toss me my rifle damn it." He screamed and Sorrel didn't think before she tossed it at him. "Attack, puma side, twenty plus minimum." He screamed and again reacted without thinking.

There was a female and he could see the sling they tended to use for small children on her and his face and eyes hardened. He was already carrying his axe, knife, and pistol but better to have more than needed. As soon as he had the rifle he jumped forward and one boot caught a spoke of a wheel and he used it to catapult up to the roof of the caravan and jumped across to the next and moved forward to a good firing spot.

By now whoever it was had already reached the most important caravan and h simply flipped off the safety and started dropping the bandits with three round bursts and the occasional single shots. Since he didn't have his vest and more Ammo he ran out rather quickly and there were still more than plenty. The female seemed to be down and bleeding and he didn't really think before he rolled off to top of the other caravan and landed on the ground and came up over her body.

Jim didn't know if she was dead or not, or even the child but the axe came out and he snapped it around and took out one bandit. Moments later a second was taken out and he ran into someone who was as good as he was and by the time he dispatched him his right arm was injured again. Thank god by now there were more than enough Puma warriors to start chasing the others away. Even a number of Moran's tribe were there. Jim had blood all over him but most of it was not his. "Fucking cowards. Come back and fight me you fuckers." He was screaming imprecations in different languagues. One finally turned around and flipped a knife at him. Jim reacted by reaching over and pulling out his pistol and with a head shot took him out.

"Owe god damn it not again." The knife was embedded in his right shoulder and it was agony. Leaving the knife alone he checked the female and she was dead. The baby boy wasn't and was just bloody though he didn't know that at the time. He scooped him up and carried him to the healer's tent. "Take care of him please. Make sure he lives." One of the attendandants grabbed the boy as Jim went down again.

Lia frowned at Jim and rolled her eyes. "God not again damn it. I don't have the time for this." She picked him up and placed him on a bed as others started coming in and realized it was more than a training accident. "Okay we are going to need..." She started tossing out orders as she moved amongst the injured.

When both chief's showed up and looked at Jim and then her she got the idea. "He is going to be okay though hating life again." She frowned at him. "Tell him to stop this crap or I am going to heal him whilwake." Moran stood tall. "White Lady he kept the caravan from being badly damaged by bandits. This

was not his fault."

She didn't even pause as she started working on him. "Well that was one thing I was planning on talking to you about on the trip. Just found out about them before we left." His right arm was well and truly fucked up. "Zonaia I am going to need your skills as a surgeon. One of his tendons is almost completely severed and unless sutured before I heal it he will never be able to use that arm again correctly."

She turned to another warrior that had been wounded and started working on him. The attendants were sorting the injured warriors by levels of how injured they were and if she needed to work on them. By the time they were done with the sorting and doing what they could Lia was collapsed in the corner and was about as white as could be.

They had lost three warriors while trying to work on them and that wasn't including several that had died in the attack. By the time the attack had been beaten off they had lost a total of 8 warriors total. Three from Moran's tribe and five from the Puma. They had counted a total of twelve strange kills that they attributed to Jim and as he was trying to defend the woman and child another five. The total kills of the ire attack from the bandits side looked to be somewhere near twenty five taken out.

Sorrel, Nora, and Nasha had dropped everything to help as best they could. Nasha took care of all the children totally free of charge unlike normal. This was a major tribal issue and she was going to do what was needed to help the tribe. When she had been handed a small puma baby she didn't even think twice before taking him and start nursing.

"Yim is a very brave warrior. He tried to protect this little one and his mother." One of the Puma clan females told them. She had one arm in a sling since she had been in the wrong spot and whatever Jim had been doing on top of the caravan saved her. "Keep a very close watch on this little man. He is very special." With that she turned and limped away.

Nasha and several others simply stared at the other woman when she told them to keep a very close watch on him. "Most definitely. We will be keeping watch on all of them since it is our job." She managed not to sound offended when she said that though she did grab a sling and once done tucked the baby in it.

Sorrel and Nora were helping take care of the injured as they were treated. That was mostly finding bedding in nearby in caravan's so the healers didn't have to try and hunt for the injured. They were making lists of who was where as well. It took several hours and the caravan's had been forced to stop and they did the equivalent of circling the wagons. Between the two tribes there were several thousand people and that was a large number of caravans.

Once everyone was treated and a spot found for them food was being prepared and Jim was back in Sorrel's partial tent asleep from the drugs he had been given. The entire group of kids he had been teaching were gathered and surrounding the bed. All of them looked horrified at the wound since it wasn't bound at the moment. It ran down the side of his arm from just below his shoulder to his elbow. It was in a sling though and he was looking very pale.

As they were sitting there both chiefs walked up and looked at him. The children all stood and looked at the two of them. They were upset enough that they weren't even playing music. The youngest ran over to Moran and wrapped her arm around his leg and started crying. Moran picked her up and held her. "He is going to be okay little one. Lia specifically told me that he will be fine when he recovers." He petted her a bit more and put her down. "I need you children to give us some space. We need to talk to the ladies."

That gave them something to worry about as well and they all left with their tails dragging. One of the boys settled down a moderate distance away and stared at the cot that Jim was in. They would be watching him and his ladies just in case any of them needed anything. Jim had sort of adopted them when he started singing and they were paying him back by keeping an eye on him.

All three ladies turned and looked at the two and turned pale as well. At the moment Nora was holding the baby and Tonya was curled up in Sorrel's lap looking really scared since she had been in the chief's caravan when everything went down. Both men sat down and looked very stressed and tired. The puma chief heaved a sigh and looked over at the child.

"We have a problem ladies. By Jim's actions he has become the guardian of that little boy. The woman who died was his mother and only family. He lost his others to a fever that went through." He exchanged looks with Moran. "This is a problem because we have never had a situation where someone from another tribe has been in this situation. The guardian would be expected to raise the boy in the traditions of the Puma clan."

Moran took over speaking. "Normally, or with our tribe the guardian would be released to the other tribe for the duration of the guardianship but we can't do that with Jim. He is in a unique situation being from another world not to mention the apprentice of our senior songsmith. We are trying to find a way for him to go back to his world as well." He looked over at the man. "Well that and try to keep Jim from doing himself in." He had to roll his eyes.

"Since neither Chief Moran nor Master Eldon, nor Master Warrior Jaksos will free him from his responsibilies and apprentiships then the child must go with him." He looked off to one side and waved a woman over. "Since he cannot be freed of his responsibilities I have requested that Sheeha travel with and as he grows she will help teach him what warrior Jim can't."

Moran couldn't help but smile slightly as the woman came forward since she was a fine specimen of the Puma tribe. He could feel all the women sort of mentally growling at Piquel and the woman. "This has been agreed on by the elders and masters of both clans. She is going to be in the women's tent at night unless other arrangements are made." He twitched his tail as he was speaking.

Sorrel, being considered the elder of the others sighed. "No need for that father she can stay with me for time being. I am going to need the help with Jim as injured as he is. Have her bring her things here and she can sleep here." She stood up and walked over to the woman and gave a good look. "We can talk about her responsibilities later." Sorrel looked directly at the woman. "I am Sorrel, the Inu is Nasha and the kitsune is Nora. The little girl is Tonya. Go and get your things and bring them here."

She turned back to the chief's and Piquel spoke. "As his guardian you will have temporary ownership of his mothers property. You will maintain and improve it as needed as he grows. When he reaches his majority the property will be ceded to him and what you have managed to acquire will be yours to do with as you wish." He was talking to Jim though he was unconscious but he knew the ladies would hear him. "It is being brought over as we speak."

It wasn't much since a great deal of the property had been bartered away to support her as the woman had been pregnant. There was a small tent and a bit of furniture but not much else. It only took a couple of males to carry the items over and neatly stacked them against the chief's caravan.

It wasn't much longer before the young woman was back with her items and knelt down near Sorrel. "Thank you for allowing me to stay here. Anything you need lady please just ask and I will do what I can." She had just reached her majority and knew that Sorrel was Moran's daughter. The other two ladies she didn't know but assumed they were higher in rank than she was.

Sorrel looked at Chief Piquel and then the young woman. "I will ensure to take good care of your tribes woman. She is under our protection and I will ensure that she sends you updates as best possible." She reached over and lightly stroked her ears. "We will ensure that the baby is well taken care of as well. Nasha is one of the clan nanny's so he will be well taken care of." As she was talking Nasha had started feeding the baby.

Chief Piquel nodded at her. "I will be back tomorrow to check on everyone since it looks like we are going to be here for a few days while the worst injured begin healing." They were going to see if they could track down the bandits as well. Between the hunters and warriors they had enough to find them and possibly even take them out. If nothing else they were going to pass out the information to the other tribes they came across and eventually they would have enough power to take out the bandits.

They nodded as the chiefs left and Sorrel settled back in the chair she had been in. "Have a seat Sheena, no need to kneel down here." She looked at the other women. "Just understand that we are currently Jim's companions and to the best of my knowledge he isn't looking for any other companions. As far as what you will be doing is something for discussion tomorrow." She turned to Jim as he moaned a bit. "Why don't you go with Nora and get some food for everyone." Sorrel glanced around and grinned. "Better yet take some of the kids with since they are going to want to be close as well."

She moved over to Jim and stroked his hair. "What are we going to do with you silly man?" She leaned forward and kissed his forehead. "Damn it Jim I don't know if I can handle this." The way he seemed to attract trouble like it was going out of style.

Jim lifted his left hand and cupped the back of her head and moved her lips down to his and gave her a tired kiss. "Love me maybe?" To be honest he was almost stoned out of his mind as he was talking. "I care about all of you. That is why I do the things I do. I have to protect you and everyone you care for."

Nasha came over and he kissed her as well and looked at the baby in her arms and simply blinked. "Um, I need the damn chair again. Damn it I am sick of this crap. I might just become a songsmith. Probably less hard on me." Several of the kids slowly came over and settled down.

"But you can't warrior Jim. You saved so many. You can't quit." That was the young man who had originally started to teach him. "Why do you think so many of the cubs want to spend time with you?" He settled down towards the end of the cot and leaned against his leg. "We will help take care of you for all the care you have taken care of us." Several others came over and settled down as well.

Nasha settled the baby down on some blankets and walked over to the cot. "Yim I don't know if you knew this but some of the children you have been watching in the morning are orphans. You are giving them both attention and a role model. Don't change who you are." She gave him a kiss before calling for help for him.

Now that he hadn't known at all and actually penetrated his drug blurred mind. As of yet he still didn't know about the child he sort of inherited since he had been out of it while that talk was happening. "Let me sit up for a moment." Two of the warriors helped him to a regular chair. "All of you kids come here." He patted one leg with his left hand since his right was strapped to his chest.

The children slowly came over and he smiled at them as they sat down. "That was something I hadn't known and wish I had. I have really appreciated how all of you have been helping me and my ladies. For those of you that don't have parents I know I am not but please come to me if you need anything. For those of you who have parents or families come to me as well if they aren't available."

He handed out a few random hugs before he started to fade again. "Ish stink nee down."

Thomas started laughing at him though he didn't help since he had been injured as well. "I almost should ask you to sing right now. That would be quite amusing." Several warriors helped Jim back to the cot where he quickly passed out again.

All the kids gathered around the cot as best possible and one boy picked up his flute and started playing a soft song. Several of the kids started some quiet singing as well. Almost before the ladies noticed most of the children had laid down and fallen asleep. When the ones with parents showed up Sorrel gave them a smile.

"They can stay if you don't mind. We already fed them as well." Somehow the smallest child had snuck up on his legs and was curled up and quietly snoring with her thumb in her mouth. She was still trying to deal with some of what he had said to the kids. Right now her mind was sort of not all there and having the kids around helped distract her.

One or two of the parents did take their children with since they were the youngest but most couldn't help but look at the pile with a smile. After today they needed anything to smile at. Losing a warrior to the forest or even a fever was one thing but to have one actually killed by another person was horrible. It happened but was so rare that amongst the tribes it could be counted on two hands. This attack alone was shocking in just how many had been killed on both sides.