Lady Naravie Greyson

  I flexed my wing as Heskari applied more of that green salve to it. The Wing was now healed enough that I didn’t particularly need the salve but she insisted on it for my health. Ilgard was fussing around near the doorway while Mother leaned against it and watched Heskari with suspicious eyes. I ignored her expression and turned to face Odessa who was standing on her own now, shakily but on her own.

  “Your wing should be strong enough to bear your weight by morning. Though I would suggest staying through tomorrow to be sure.” Heskari said as she ran a gentle hand along the membrane of my wing in a way that sent shivers down my spine.

  “We would hate to infringe on your hospitality.” I said after mother remained silent.

  “You may stay as long as you like, and certainly as long as it takes for you to be well enough to travel. But I will not stop you all if you decide it is time to move on.” She said, a nervous glance cast in my direction.

  Footsteps echoed in the hallway and Mother’s eyes flicked toward something out of view. I smelled the both of them long before they stood in the doorway, their scents wrapped around one another like a tangleknot. Irand stood in the doorway looking only slightly out of sorts and Alvina was fixing her robes as she stood next to him. I quite wished they had both bathed before they had decided to come here as I could still smell all of their acts upon them. I had known what they were doing but I had never smelled the aftermath before. Ilgard and Heskari both wore similar grimaces while mother remained stony faced.

  ‘Good afternoon all of you.’ Irand’s voice echoed in my mind and my eyes snapped to him.

  I wasn’t the only one whos attention was held as he spoke with telepathy.

  “Irand?” I asked, speaking the word out loud slowly.

  ‘Yes?’

  “You can use Telepathy?”

  He gave me a look of confusion and I watched as Alvina perked up, seemingly only just realizing that he had been doing so. Irand looked confused himself and he opened his mouth to speak and a choked sound came out before his voice emerged, shaky but there.

  “I didn’t even realize I was… I suppose it has been the only way I’ve been speaking for several days so…” He looked dumbfounded at this development.

  ‘He must have been… he must have adapted to speaking with it with me. I didn't know that was possible.’ Alvina said, casually leaning against him before realizing what she was doing and correcting herself. Irand looked slightly embarrassed and Alvina’s face turned bright red as she suddenly found the floor very interesting.

  “You two are aware that we all know what you’ve been up to right?” I asked.

  Both of them grew more red at that. Irand’s face twisted with embarrassment as he gave me a look.

  “How?” He croaked.

  “Well Alvina can't really keep her mind quiet when she is enjoying herself. And about half the Castle falls in range of that. I had to actively block her out last night.” I said, casting a glance towards Alvina who looked like she wanted very much to be able to vanish right now.

  “I've had to sleep outside…” Ilgard said from where she mas mashing some herbs together in a mortar.

  “I've found the skies very comfortable to roam these past few nights.” Heskari said with a smile towards the two of them.

  “Also not discounting the smell.” Mother growled.

  “Smell?” Irand asked, looking down at himself concerned.

  “You smell of intimate acts. Quite strongly.” I explained and it was Alvina’s turn to look confused as she sniffed the air.

  ‘But we don't…’

  “Maybe it's not apparent to you but it's very noticeable to the rest of us.” Heskari said with another smile.

  Both of them looked like they wanted to run and disappear but they were saved from their embarrassment by Tiran as he rounded the corner and arrived with arms full of plates of still steaming meat. It was a new smell, it was strong whatever it was but it was helped by the scent of butter. Ilgard and Alvina both immediatley snapped their heads to look at it and I could see the both of them staring at the plates hungrily.

  “Tiran offered to cook so I gave him the recipe book and left him to it. It would seem he did a rather good job.” Heskari whispered to me as she helped me relax my wing and avoid flecking off the salve.

  “It smells… interesting.” I whispered back.

  “The smell is something you cannot quite mask no matter how hard you try. The taste however is to die for.”

  Tiran handed out plates and ran off to fetch more once he had emptied his arms. The meat was sizeable, about the size of a steak back home but the meat had an off putting gray color and a bit of a slimy film to it. I looked up at Heskari with a doubtful look and she shrugged as she waited for Tiran to return. It took a few moments but he did come back with enough for everyone else and Ilgard took the first bite as soon as she got a plate. She let out a happy noise and dug into the rest. Alvina and Heskari were the next to try it and both seemed pleased. I cut out a bite and tried it.

  It was wonderful. The spices blended with the meat incredibly well and I hurriedly ate the rest I had been brought. I looked around to see Odessa enjoying hers and Irand sitting next to Alvina as they seemed to be having a telepathic conversation. Tiran was picking at his as he watched everyone as well. I knew he had enjoyed cooking before but I hadn’t seen him this proud about it in a long time.

  And then my eyes fell on mother. She was picking at hers and taking small bites as her eyes flicked between Heskari and her daughters. She had been stony faced all morning but her mask slipped as she ate and I could see the rage in her eyes. I reached out to her mind.

  ‘Why are you so angry with her?’

  ‘She threatened me.’

  ‘How so?’

  She remained silent.

  ‘How?’

  ‘You don’t need to-’

  ‘How? It is a simple question.’

  She pushed me out of her mind and I tried to claw back to where I could speak to her but it was like scratching at a wall of steel. The meat suddenly took on a foul taste as I met her gaze and felt her glare upon me. Her gaze softened after a moment and it looked like she tried to speak before Irand did.

  “So when are we heading out? A few days? A week?” He asked.

  Mother’s eyes hardened again as she looked at him.

  “As soon as Naravie is able to fly again with Odessa. Which should be the day after tomorrow. According to our Host.” The last few words dripped with malice as she spoke them and I saw Heskari stiffen.

  “Then I believe we have something to say…?” Irand said as he turned to Alvina who looked as if she were steadying herself.

  ‘I would like to come with you.’ The Dragoness said quietly in our minds.

  There was a moment where everything froze before I saw movement.

  “Absolutely not.” Mother growled, the sound shaking the castle around us.

  “You’re leaving?!” Ilgard cried

  Heskari said nothing but I saw her flex her claws and brace herself. Odessa gripped my hand as she watched Mother’s eyes narrow and flick to Heskari.

  “You! You did this. You planned this! You want a way to keep an eye on me!”

  Heskari growled but kept her face calm.

  “I was not aware of this until just now. Do you think I control my children?”

  “You seem to not have any trouble giving mine orders.” Mother growled as she took a step forward.

  I saw Tiran tense up and realize he didn't have his weapons and Ilgard gripped her plate as she looked back and forth between Mother and Heskari.

  “I am making sure your daughter heals properly from her wounds! And I have ordered neither of the boys to do anything! Tiran was offered a chance to hunt with us.” Heskari growled.

  “She would have healed fine in a matter of days on her own. We don’t need your help.” Mother spat as she took a step towards Heskari.

  “Your daughter is dying! You might have noticed that had you spent less time wallowing in self pity!”

  “She. Is. Fine.” Mother roared.

  Odessa gripped her ears as the sound filled the room. I lunged forward and put myself between the two of them as I stared into Mother’s eyes.

  “Have you heard of Magic Blight?” I asked.

  “Move.”

  “Answer me.” I growled.

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  “Move. I will not ask again.”

  “Give me an answer.”

  I saw rage build in her eyes. The Gold flared with magic and she raised her claws before clarity filled them and she shrunk back from me like a dog who had been struck. She looked around the room and saw everyone watching her and bolted out the door.

  As soon as she had left everyone’s posture relaxed and Irand and Tiran looked at me with a mix of confusion and sadness in their eyes. Heskari slumped against the wall and ran a hand over her face with a sigh. I leaned back against my cot and Odessa placed a hand on my shoulder. Alvina laid her head on Irand’s shoulder and Ilgard fell back onto a cot.

  “What did she mean you are dying?”

  ‘Magic Blight. Something went wrong when she hatched and her body has been converting small amounts of body tissue into magic. Its a slow process and one that can be stopped with the right ritual but if left unattended it is fatal.’ Alvina said quietly.

  I nodded and Tiran looked up at her.

  “Can you stop it?”

  ‘I know the Ritual. I went through it. Mother performed it on me though.’

  “I offered Naravie the option but I was not going to force her, especially when she has no reason to trust my words.” Heskari explained.

  “But if shes dying then shouldn’t you be hurrying for it?” Tiran asked, his voice slightly panicked as he looked at me with concern.

  “She is months away from the situation becoming Terminal. And there is at least some benefit to letting Magic Blight continue, it expands ones ability to draw upon their magic. Based on what I’ve seen and doing some absentminded checks, I believe Naravie’s magic could rival my own if she had the knowledge of how to wield it that I do.” Heskari explained as she rose to her feet.

  “Doesn’t it scare you though?” Tiran asked.

  “It does. I’m thinking on it. I think I trust Miss Heskari at this point but… part of me still worries. No offense.” I said, giving an apologetic look to the Elder Dragon.

  “None taken. Again, we have only just met a scant few days ago. You have no reason to believe my words. And with your mother being the way she is right now I worry that if we attempted the ritual she would interrupt and make the situation far worse.”

  I shrugged and leaned back against Odessa. She ran a hand through my hair and wrapped a hand around my waist. The others took the hint and filed out and in moments we were the only ones left in the infirmary.

  “You didn’t seem surprised.” I observed.

  “I heard when you two were talking the other day.”

  “What do you think?”

  “You want my opinion?”

  “We are partners aren’t we?”

  “Yes but I… I think she is genuine.” She said, catching herself mid sentence.

  “Do you think I should ask her to do it today?”

  “I worry about your mother interrupting. She looked as if she were going to strike you. I’m sure she would attack Heskari if she thought you were in danger.”

  “She almost did.” I said, trying my best to hide the sadness in my voice.

  “Are you alright?”

  “I’m worried about her.”

  “Do you think talking would help?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  We sat in silence for a few moments before I reached out with my mind to find all of them just outside the door.

  ‘You all are not subtle.’

  I got a general murmur of agreement. I focused in on Irand’s mind.

  ‘Irand?’

  ‘Yes?’

  ‘Do you think I can trust Heskari.’

  He was silent for a moment and I could almost picture the look on his face as he thought.

  ‘I trust Alvina when she says her mother means us no harm. If they wanted to they could have disposed of us quite easily.’

  ‘I see. Heskari, can you perform that Ritual tonight? Hopefully Mother will not be back by then.’ I asked, broadening my telepathy back to the group.

  ‘I can child. Alvina can inform you of what to expect and we can perform it before dinner. I’m sure you will be hungry once this is done. But for now, try to get some rest.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  One by one they all scattered down the hallway leaving Odessa and I alone. I curled up and put my head in her lap. She ran her hands through my hair and I felt her start braiding it.

  “Are you scared?”

  “I just know this is going to hurt. And I know it's good for me but… I don’t want to be hurt.”

  She was silent as she continued braiding my hair.

  “When Father died I just wanted an escape from home. I wanted to be away from everything that reminded me of him. It hurt. Watching him die hurt. Knowing my Brother had to face the Man who abused him hurt. Knowing he had been abused like that hurt! I just want the hurt to end.” I said, gripping the blankets on the cot as she gently caressed my face.

  She said nothing, just listened. I babbled a few moments more before tears welled up in my eyes and after a few moments of tears I fell into sleep.

  I awoke to a light touch and I found myself looking up at Odessa, now out of her Cot and standing shakily. Alvina and Irand were with her, with Irand helping her steady herself.

  ‘Naravie? Are you ready?’

  I climbed to my feet and stretched, feeling my back pop as it adjusted.

  “Yes.”

  ‘Alright follow me then. Now this ritual is going to be awful, no sugarcoating that. I went through it as a child and I still remember it. But with that in mind, please please please remember to keep your magic in check. If you start lashing out with it too much you may just bring the whole castle down around us.’

  “Keep my magic in check? You mean suppress it?”

  ‘Yes. It's going to want to lash out at those who are subjecting you to this pain. So it will target my mother and I. As you have probably guessed I am not a particularly hardy specimen so please, any chance to not get attacked is a good one.’

  “I’ll do my best.”

  ‘Good. Now, this ritual is painful. When I went through it it felt like my breath was ripped from me and my lungs were dying. Like I was dying. But it's temporary. Just hold on and we can get through this as quickly as possible.’

  She continued on through the castle to a large domed room that could have held all of out true bodies with ease where Tiran and Ilgard were both outfitted in their armor, both wearing grim expressions. Tiran nodded to me before he put on his helmet and led Ilgard out of the room.

  Heskari was inspecting a series of runes on the floor mumbling something to herself as we approached.

  “- Yes yes and yes. It's ready. Are you dear?” She asked as she turned to me.

  My legs felt weak and I wanted to run but I stood and nodded.

  “Child, you look terrified.”

  “I’m scared.”

  “It will be painful yes but it will be quick. No longer than five or so minutes.” She said cheerfully.

  I tried to steady myself and failed and Odessa gripped my hand and pulled me close, pressing a kiss to my cheek which helped. I took one last look at her before I turned to face Heskari again.

  “Ready.”

  “Good. Stand here.” She pulled me into the center of her runes and Alvina took up a stance on one side of the circle.

  “Normally I would do this myself but I’m lacking two hands to do it with. Alvina will be assisting. And hopefully the added flow of magic means it will be even quicker to complete.” She said.

  “You don’t know?” I asked, my voice squeaky.

  “With Magic things can be slightly unpredictable. But I can guarantee no longer than five minutes. Irand and Odessa will be here to tend to you once we finish and Tiran and Ilgard can stall Ereneya for a few moments. So let us begin.”

  I took a breath as both she and Alvina began weaving symbols in the air. The runes flared with red light and I felt an invisible force grip me. The breath left my lungs and I was lifted off the ground. Alvina had said it felt like she was dying and this was worse than I had thought. My lungs felt like they were full of water. Like I was drowning. Every instinct was to struggle. To Fight. I fought them down. I could hold. I could do this.

  And then the heat came.

  It was like someone had taken molten metal and poured it into my eyes. It began in my face, a burning searing pain that trickled down through my body. Cold Blossomed in my chest, my lungs felt the icy grip of death and the rest of me burned with overwhelming flame. My eyes snapped open and all I could see was white as I let out a scream. I couldn’t hear anything beyond me. Couldn’t see anything beyond me. There was just the pain wracking its way through me.

  And then it stopped.

  It all just stopped.

  I fell to the ground, coughing and gasping. I felt hands on me and voices but they were garbled, speaking gibberish. My mind raced as it tried to make sense of things. My vision cleared and I was staring up at Alvina, Irand and Odessa. They were panicked and I could see them speaking.

  I mumbled something and they all froze. Then Alvina launched into movement, she placed a hand on me and a cool refreshing feeling washed over me, like sinking into a spring on a hot summer’s day.

  “- Is she going to be alright?” Odessa asked.

  ‘The Ritual worked, She isn’t being affected by Magic Blight anymore.’ Alvina’s voice washed through my head.

  “But is this… She's alive can you keep her that way?”

  ‘Yes. Calm yourselves. She might have scars but this will heal her.’

  “It worked?” I croaked, my voice hurting my throat.

  “Naravie?!?” Odessa Cried.

  “Present.”

  “Stay still. You got burned pretty badly.”

  “Burned? From the ritual?’ I asked, shifting into telepathy.

  ‘No. Your mother interrupted. She broke down the door using her flames and they caught you. It interacted with the ritual somehow and lit you ablaze. I’m working my way across you to fix it so this might take some time.’ Alvina explained.

  ‘I felt like I was drowning. It was cold. And then I felt like I was burning. Was that it?’

  “Yeah. Heskari dragged Ereneya away and Alvina finished the ritual. I need to go check on Tiran and Ilgard alright?” Irand asked.

  ‘Go.’

  I saw him leave and Alvina continued her work.

  ‘You can heal burns but not a wing?’ I asked.

  ‘Well I’m not really healing burns. I’m just making your skin shake off the burnt layers. You are going to be pretty pale after this.’ Alvina said.

  ‘Nothing some time in the sun won’t fix.’

  “Maybe by an oasis?” Odessa offered with a nervous smile.

  ‘I’d like that.’

  I don’t know how long I was there laying on the floor before Alvina told me I could try sitting up. But eventually she did and I saw my legs. The skin was black charcoal, I watched as Alvina worked and it simply fell to the ground, leaving behind skin that was either very pale or very pink. I looked over the rest of me to see that my clothes had burned away and holding up one of my arms I could see the muscle and, at least in my hand, very faintly the bones beneath.

  ‘It’s not perfect and I definitely would advise you to be careful but it should help with a quicker recovery.’ Alvina said as she finished one leg.

  Odessa held out a towel and I took it to cover myself, the stone floor felt frigid beneath me, and waited for Alvina to finish her work. Odessa helped both of us to both to our feet and we headed back to the infirmary to grab me some fresh clothes. There we found Tiran and Ilgard both lying on cots. Tiran looked mostly fine aside from some bruises but Ilgard’s arm was bent at an unnatural angle. It made my stomach turn to look at it but both of them smiled as we walked in.

  Irand placed a hand on Ilgard’s arm and spoke an incantation. There was a pulse of light and a pop as her arm twisted back into the right position. Irand backed away and looked pale after the incantation completed. Alvina caught him and helped him find a seat as I grabbed a change of clothes and stepped behind a curtain to change. As I reemerged Ilgard looked over at me.

  “So did it work?”

  “According to Alvina yes.”

  “Do you feel better?”

  “Not sure yet.”

  “Sorry we couldn’t stop her.”

  “Its okay. Where is she anyway?”

  “Mom dragged her out of the Castle and down towards the basin. Something about making her learn a lesson.”

  “I should go find them.” I said.

  ‘No, remember what I said about being careful? Getting involved in a fight between them is not careful!’ Alvina squealed.

  I leaned against Odessa and we sat on our cots.

  “I hope she’s okay.”

  “I’m sure she is. Mom isn’t one to go overboard.”

  “Well, I hope we shall see once they both come back.” I said, as my stomach growled.

  “I think its dinnertime. I’ll be back in a bit.” Tiran said as he rose to his feet and walked out, a slight limp plaguing his steps.

  “I’ll go help him. You get some rest.” Odessa said as she rose to follow him.

  I was going to protest that I wasn’t tired but as I tried to stand I suddenly felt the exhaustion hit me. I was that tired. I nodded and leaned back onto the cot and closed my eyes.