The infirmary was larger than Adrian expected. Rows of beds lined both walls, most empty. Medical equipment he couldn't identify sat on tables and shelves. The air smelled of antiseptic and something herbal.
Doctor Rhys gestured to a bed near the window. "Sit. Let me examine you properly."
Adrian sat carefully. His ribs protested with every movement.
Rhys lit a lamp and brought it closer, examining Adrian's face with clinical efficiency. His fingers pressed gently along Adrian's jaw, his nose, his cheekbones.
"Nothing broken, surprisingly. You'll have impressive bruising by tomorrow. The nose might swell but it's not fractured." He moved to Adrian's ribs. "Lift your shirt."
Adrian complied. Dark bruises were already forming along his right side.
Rhys pressed carefully along his ribs, watching Adrian's face for reactions. "Does this hurt?"
"Yes."
"And this?"
"Yes."
"Hmm. Bruised but not broken. You're fortunate. Julian Ashford doesn't usually show restraint." Rhys stepped back and began preparing something at a nearby table. "Your enhanced durability from the binding likely prevented serious injury."
So the binding does make me harder to hurt. Just not hard enough to matter against someone who actually knows how to fight.
"Which Dao am I bound to?" Adrian asked. The question had been building since he woke up in the crater. "You tested me. You must know by now."
Rhys paused, his back still to Adrian. "That's... complicated."
"How is it complicated? You have that crystal. You said it identifies practitioners."
"It confirms binding. It doesn't always identify the specific Dao." Rhys turned around with a bowl of something that smelled terrible. "This will help with the bruising. It will also sting."
He began applying the substance to Adrian's ribs. It stung worse than promised.
Adrian gritted his teeth. "So you don't know what I am."
"We know what you're not." Rhys's tone remained professional but there was something underneath. Curiosity. Or maybe suspicion. "You're not bound to any of the four Daos we have comprehensive records for. The Crucible, The Hunt, The Armament, or The Cipher. Your signature doesn't match any of them."
Four. They only know four out of twelve. Mother's journals said there were twelve sanctioned Daos. The Vigil doesn't even know about all of them.
"What about the other eight?"
Rhys's hands stilled for a moment. "You're well-informed for someone who claims to know nothing about practitioners."
Careful. Don't reveal what you've read.
"I've been locked in a cell reading books you gave me for seven days. I learn quickly."
"Clearly." Rhys finished with the bruising ointment and moved to a cabinet, retrieving clean bandages. "The other eight are known to exist but we have limited information. Practitioners who follow those paths don't typically cooperate with the Vigil."
"So I could be one of those."
"Possibly. Or something else entirely." Rhys began wrapping Adrian's ribs. Not tight enough to restrict breathing but firm enough to provide support. "Tell me about the symbols you saw. The ones in your mother's hidden room."
There it is. He's fishing. Trying to extract information to report back to Caspian.
"I told Warden Thorne everything. Check his notes."
"Humour me. What did the symbols look like?"
"I don't remember. Everything was destroyed in the explosion."
"You don't remember any of them? Not even the central design?"
Adrian met his eyes. "I was grieving my mother and accidentally activated a ritual that nearly killed me. Forgive me if I wasn't taking notes for later reference."
Rhys's expression remained neutral but Adrian saw the calculation there. He was evaluating every word, every reaction, looking for inconsistencies to report.
"The symbols are important," Rhys said, tying off the bandage. "Different Daos have different ritual structures. If we knew what symbols were used, we could narrow down what you're bound to."
"Then I'm afraid we're both out of luck."
"Are we?" Rhys cleaned his hands in a basin. "Because from where I'm standing, you're remarkably composed for someone who accidentally destroyed their home and bound to an unknown power. Most people in your situation would be desperate for answers. Desperate for help understanding what they've become."
He's right. I should be more desperate. More confused. I'm acting too controlled.
Adrian slumped slightly, letting exhaustion show on his face. It wasn't hard. Everything hurt and he was tired down to his bones.
"What do you want me to say? That I'm terrified? I am. That I wish I could undo what happened? I do. But falling apart won't help me survive this place. So I'm trying to keep myself together and figure out how to not get beaten half to death in training again."
Rhys studied him for a long moment. Then he nodded. "Fair enough. I'll have Hunter Reed escort you back to your quarters. You're excused from afternoon training. Rest. Let the bruises heal."
He walked to the door and spoke to someone in the hallway. A moment later, Marcus entered.
"Take him back to his cell," Rhys said. "Make sure he rests. I'll want to examine him again tomorrow."
"Understood." Marcus walked over to Adrian. "Can you walk?"
"Yes." Adrian slid off the bed carefully. His ribs screamed but he stayed upright.
They left the infirmary and walked through the empty hallways. Marcus kept pace beside him, not helping but not rushing either.
He's watching me. Evaluating. He saw something in the courtyard. I know he did.
"That was a rough first day," Marcus said after they'd walked for a minute in silence.
"I've had worse."
"Have you?" Marcus glanced at him. "Because Julian Ashford is one of the best fighters among the Initiates. Most people don't walk away from a match with him in their first week."
"I didn't exactly walk away. I got carried away."
"You walked. Eventually. That counts for something."
They reached the stairs leading down to the cells. Adrian's cell, apparently, since he wasn't being promoted to proper quarters yet.
Halfway down, Marcus spoke again. "I'll be training you. Starting tomorrow. One on one sessions before the group training."
Adrian stopped. "Why?"
"Because if I throw you back in with Julian and the others without teaching you the basics, you'll be useless. Or dead. Neither outcome benefits the Vigil."
That's not the real reason. He wants to observe me. Figure out what I am.
"I don't need special treatment."
"It's not special treatment. It's practical necessity." Marcus continued down the stairs. "You're weak, untrained, and bound to something we can't identify. That makes you a liability. I'm going to make you less of one."
They reached Adrian's cell. Marcus unlocked the door and held it open.
"Training starts at dawn. I'll collect you. Be ready."
Adrian stepped inside. The door closed behind him and the lock clicked.
He stood in the centre of the small room and let himself feel the pain. The bruises. The exhaustion. The humiliation of being destroyed in front of everyone.
Julian beat me in under a minute. Everyone saw it. They all know I'm the weakest one here.
But Marcus noticed something. He must've seen what I saw. The shadows move
He wants to train me because he's suspicious. He wants to figure out what Dao I'm bound to.
Great well, so do I!
ButI need to be careful. More careful than I've been. I keep almost slipping up.
Adrian lay down on the narrow bed and stared at the ceiling.
His mother's journals had mentioned the Vigil controlling twelve Daos. But Rhys just admitted they only had records for four. That meant eight Daos existed out there that the Vigil knew about but couldn't control or identify.
And mine isn't even one of those eight. Mine is something older, according to the journal. Something they thought was extinct.
How long can I hide that?
His body ached. His mind raced. Sleep felt impossible.
But eventually, exhaustion won. Adrian's eyes closed, and darkness claimed him.