The hunter grimaces, then gapes at the wounds on the table. Horrified at the pain.
“Faol,” Ulla says, addressing the man.
He backs away a step, then another, then turns around and vomits on the stone.
No one bats an eye. I wish that I could vomit as well, from the roiling in my stomach, but then Arlet comes. She’s hurrying along with another one of the Enduares.
“Oh, gods.Vann,” she practically screeches as she sees Lord Vann’s form. My eyebrows draw together. From what I had seen of the two, they had always been cold to each other.
“There was an attack in the tunnel.Tranquila2, Arlet. Everything is all right.” I say quickly.
Her hands are skirting around his face, across the blood leaking from his shoulder. She murmurs something I don’t understand, but Vann’s wounds aren’t as severe as Dyrn’s, so I turn my attention back to the other table.
With so many humans here, the Enduares continue in the common tongue. “We were exploring the mists. He started walking ahead of us, and he was attacked. Then Lord Vann started screaming as well. The creature was gone by the time we got there.”
For a moment, I stand there, shocked while Ulla comes alive.
“Did you seal off the tunnel?”
The hunter nods. “Lord Salo is helping the stone benders right now.”
Another scream fills the air, ugly and slightly wet sounding. Dyrn’s breath is more labored by the second.
Ulla nods but doesn’t ask any more questions. Everyone here knows their place—Luiz is tending to the pot over the fire, other Enduares are preparing meat, and I am just standing there. Watching. Horrified at the Enduar’s gasping wet breathes.
It isn’t until Ulla grabs a few crystals out of her clothing that I realize her hands are shaking. She places the gems around his body. Then, she starts to sing.
Her humming had been soothing, but this is different—like the taste of stagnant water in a barrel and the bright freshness from a running river. Her melodic tune is precise, intending to serve one function: mend.
I was not awake for most of the healing that had been performed on me, but now I am witnessing just how beautiful this magic is.
“Where are the herbs we brought?” I ask. “He isn’t clotting. There is a leaf in the sample box we brought that will help.”
Everyone around me looks shocked, but it’s Luiz who answers. His face is tight with fear as he stirs. “Don’t you remember? They were all used to heal you and those afflicted with the coughing sickness.”
My hands go numb, and I think of the ones in my room. Not all of my herbs had been used on my injuries, I used some to make that poison.
As Ulla continues to sing, the bleeding doesn’t stop. Another scream rips from the hunter’s throat. It covers the table and drips onto the ground with a sound as loud as a bang. The Fuegorra in my chest slowly blinks awake after many hours dormant from the experience in the crystal cave. Its familiar warmth encases me. It feels… kind. Kind in a way I had never known kindness.
Another Enduar comes around, placing steaming water and rags next to the injured hunter. The man isn’t getting better, despite the singing. His crystal flashes erratically, and he is still writhing in pain.
I can’t stand here and watch this. “Shh, keep still,” I command, “Or you’ll bleed out faster.” I place my hand on his armored leg, and a burst of heat washes through me. The brilliant light of my Fuegorra is reflected in the glow of Dyrn’s crystal. I reach up and take his hand.
Ulla gasps and jumps back. She mutters something I assume is a curse, but Dyrn’s breath changes. He eases. A lightness takes place in my chest, I am doing something. Healing him? Tears slip down my cheeks as I smile. It is a way for me to give back after they wasted their herbs on me.
“No, wait,” Ulla’s eyes go wide. She looks at me. I replace her at the top of his body. It’s sticky with blood.
“That’s better, isn’t it?” I say gently.
He coughs. “It hurts.”
I hold his hand tighter, and the glow brightens.
Suddenly, his eyes find mine. The silver of them sears my vision in a moment of soul-to-soul connection. He silently begs me to continue whatever it is I’m doing. The crystal on my chest glows brighter. Dyrn’s breaths get slower. “Teeth,” he murmurs. “Watch for the teeth.”
I nod. Cold? Teeth? It sounds like what attacked me outside of the mountain. Fear strikes me hard.
“The teeth hurt you. Let me help,” I urge.