Lunar Flare Book 1: Crimson Moon

Chapter 17

The infirmary was quiet, with Balthasar being the sole occupant of the room, exactly how he preferred it. The chirurgeon was seated at his desk, writing out some notes on his latest experimental remedy to Thedrick's infinite blood hunger. Once again, his concoction had not yielded any helpful results, but still he always made sure to keep a record of each attempt. Perhaps he would soon have to start looking into incorporating real magic into his methods, but that was something that this kingdom was surprisingly bereft of. The world was full of magic, but this seemed to be the most mundane country of them all.

When Balthasar heard the door of the room opening, disturbing him from his work and thoughts, he instantly felt annoyed. Of course when he finally got a quiet moment to himself to work on his own projects, someone had to come along and ruin it. The chirurgeon raised his head and eyes up from his work to look over towards the door, and when he saw who was standing there, he lowered his dark brows over his eyes in a scowl.

Cassian smiled and waved sheepishly at Balthasar from the door, before he started walking over to the desk. Balthasar rolled his eyes before setting his quill and notebook down on his desk, crossing his arms over his chest as he fixed his eyes on the soldier who stopped on the other side of the desk.

"What do you want?" Balthasar sighed wearily.

"Come on Balthasar, don't be like that," Cassian entreated with an unsure smile. "Don't you enjoy my company?"

"I'm busy," Balthasar said curtly, tapping his finger impatiently against his arm. "So try and make it quick. Or did you just come here to annoy me?"

"Well, of course I had something to tell you as an excuse to come see you, but you are not going to like it, especially with the mood you are apparently in at the moment," Cassian said hesitantly.

"What is it?" Balthasar asked as he prepared himself for bad news.

"I'm putting Emil back on guard duty," Cassian stated, looking apologetic.

"Ugh," Balthasar made a noise of frustration. "Why? Can't you just send him home?"

"No, I can't just send him home, his parents have too much influence," Cassian replied with a small shrug.

"Well if they wanted the army to straighten him out, it doesn't seem to be working at all," Balthasar pointed out. "That spoilt brat is way more trouble than he is worth, how can you keep giving him second chances?"

"Do you know why his parents forced him into the army in the first place, Balthasar?" Cassian asked in a cautious tone.

"Isn't it obvious? He lacks discipline," Balthasar offered plainly.

"Well yes, that is true. But in particular... he kept sneaking out with boys, against his parents wishes," Cassian tried to explain awkwardly. "They disapproved because they want him to marry a noble lady to continue their bloodline."

"Oh..." Balthasar said with some surprise. "And they want you to fix that..." the chirurgeon felt a small smile tugging at his lips.

"I know right?" Cassian said with a smirk.

"Hrm, and here I thought he was just a bully like you were when you were young," Balthasar mused.

"Well you know, I've dealt with a lot of young men similar to him before. Bullies usually have a reason behind their behaviour, and figuring that out is the first step towards helping them improve themselves," Cassian explained.

"So then why did you bully me?" Balthasar asked, narrowing his eyes at the soldier.

The question seemed to take Cassian a little by surprise, his eyes widening as he reached up a gloved hand to rub the back of his neck apprehensively. "Well... I think it was because I was attracted to you, and I didn't know how to handle those emotions properly."