[ just as clearly as he can feel aspen's feathers in his memory, he can hear the crack of hollow bone. he finds that it's a moment he regrets, a rash act of violence in the face of his own aching panic. a slip of weakness, a loss of control. men have died for blunders such as this, and aspen would have been the least deserving. ]

I can bring some back for you. The creature's skin. [ a small offering, when a verbal apology or any other sort of atonement is beyond the depth of his grasp. he has never fostered camaraderie with his men back home — he certainly doesn't know how to forge such a thing now with the people around him. ] You can use it to treat the others. The brands aren't large, so there should be plenty.