“Thia, stand up.”
Jinaari’s voice cut through the blind terror she felt. “I didn’t know,” she stammered as she looked at him.
“I know you didn’t. Adam!” he shouted, “get the others and find Sayge. If one of us falls, get them out.”
“What about you and Thia?” Adam said as Thia stood. Her legs shook with fear.
“We’re the only two that can fight this. Your magic won’t touch it. If you’re too close, you’ll die. It can’t leave here, and I won’t waste your lives.”
Caelynn looked at her, then Jinaari. “What’s coming?”
“Corse,” Thia choked out the word.
“I’ll keep us close enough to heal one of you if you’re hurt,” Adam said. Thia turned to the warlock; his face was somber. “I won’t leave unless I have to.”
Jinaari nodded. Thia stood, watching her three friends run away from them. “I didn’t know I’d unlock his cage.” Her voice was soft as dread took over.
“I did, Thia.”
She turned to him in shock. “You knew? Why didn’t you stop me?”
“Because this is what Garret told me to do.” His words were clipped, angry. “I couldn’t get to the cage myself. Silas buried it within the bedrock. I needed you to unlock it, set him free to come find me.” He turned toward the noise, sword at the ready.
“You could’ve told me! Jinaari, Corse is a demon!”
“I know what he is, Thia. And he’s going to be pissed after a century in his prison. We’re the only two with the ability to finally kill him. Isn’t that what you wanted to do? Purge Tanisal of everything evil that lived here?”
She nodded, swallowing her fear. “How can I help? I’ve never fought anything like this!”
“You’ve fought worse and survived. We all did.” He glanced at her, and she could barely make out his dark eyes through the face guard of his helm. “I know you’re pissed at me for not telling you. Let’s take care of this, and I promise you can yell at me as much as you want. Right now, I’m trusting you to have my back.”
“I’m going to hold you to that, you know.”
“I do. You’re too stubborn to let it go.”
The street in front of them began to buckle; paving stones cracked sharply, rising at an angle as something underneath them struggled to come out. A single arm, cloaked in black, emerged.
“One condition,” she whispered.
“What?”
The earth shook, and Thia lost her footing. Falling to the ground, she covered her head with her arms as rubble flew toward her. Something screamed; an inhuman bellow that echoed within her soul. She stood, staring at the creature.
The demon was a head taller than Jinaari. His body was covered with black feathers; blood red eyes stood out against the pale skin of his face. A cacophony rose from the buildings; hundreds of crows stood at the edges of rooflines, crying out to their master.
Corse turned his gaze to them; a smile forming on his face. “You have come, like you promised. I held true, Lolc Aon! I waited, and prayed, and now you know I am worthy of you!” He began to walk toward them.
“Lolc Aon is dead,” Thia said. “And you will join her soon enough.”
“No,” the demon said, shaking his head. “She stands before me.”
Thia felt something grasp her and she rose from the ground. Staring at Corse, she struggled against the unseen bonds.
“I know the smell of my Beloved,” the demon said. “She is within you. I will find her, lure her out. You will embrace her and then you will remember me.”
Jinaari screamed, and Thia watched him charge toward Corse. The demon shifted his focus, but she remained in the air. Concentrate! He needs my help! Pushing down the fear, she formed a sigil and sent a wave of healing to Jinaari as he was thrown into a wall. Timing her spell perfectly, she caused the snow around them to become thousands of small daggers of ice. Spinning them around, she threw them at Corse to distract him as Jinaari regained his footing. The demon screamed in pain, turning toward her. The bands tightened around her, crushing her arms and ribs, making it difficult to breathe. Without warning, they evaporated and she plummeted to the ground. Her leg made a sickening sound as she landed. Pain wracked her body. The crows began to scream again, followed by the earth shaking. Thia forced her eyes open and saw Jinaari standing on Corse’s back, the pommel of his sword buried deep in the demon’s skull.
Another wave of pain hit, making her scream as her body arched.
“Thia!”
She barely heard his voice; all she knew was agony. He was asking her something, but she couldn’t hear him.
Something warm washed over her, chasing away the sharpest edges. “Codal,” she gasped.
He took off his helm as he said, “I’ll find it. Just one vial?”
She slammed her eyes closed against the pain, nodding slightly. One should be enough. If it wasn’t, she’d wait until she was alone. “Water after.”
“I’ll have it ready. Keep your eyes closed for now.” His voice was steady, reassuring. “I have to raise your head. It’s going to hurt.”
It can’t get much worse, she thought as she nodded. She felt his arm slide under her shoulders and raise her slightly. Something touched her lips and she opened her mouth. The bitter liquid went down quickly, and she gratefully drank the water that followed. “Thank you,” she said as he lowered her back to the ground.
“How long?”
“Not long,” she said. The drug moved through her system, numbing her enough that she could breathe without cringing. Opening her eyes, she looked at him. “The others?”
“On the way. We’ll wait for you to get where you can heal yourself enough to ride, then head back. There’s nothing in the city left for us to do.”
“Do you know what he meant?”
“About what?”
“About Lolc Aon being alive in me?”
He pushed her hair back from her face, “It’s garbage, Thia. He was a demon. They lie. It’s what they do. There’s nothing about you that is even close to what she was. Not even the color of your eyes.”
She relaxed at his words. The codal began to dive deeper into her body, and she raised her arms. “That’s a good sign,” she said. “I was worried they were broken.”
“Your arms aren’t.” Jinaari’s voice was calm, but she heard the concern.
Pushing herself up on her elbows, she glanced at her legs. The left one was twisted in three directions. “Oh, that’s not good.”
“You’re the best healer I know, Thia. And you’re stubborn. I have no doubt you’ll be fine.”
She laid back down. “You’re going to have to put my leg straight before I can fix it.”
“That’s going to hurt like hell.”
“I’m as numb as I can be and still get the sigil right. Don’t tell me, just do it.”
She bit her lip to keep from screaming as he straightened her leg out. Tears fell from her eyes, but she kept her breathing steady. Forming the sigil in her mind, she released the spell and waited for the bones to mend. The magic dissipated, but the pain remained. She recast the spell, panic overcoming the pain as her body refused to accept the healing. “Jinaari,” she whispered, “something’s wrong.”
“What?”
She stared at him. “I can’t heal myself.”
“Adam!” he screamed, “I need you!” Turning his head back to Thia, he said, “Did you feel me do something earlier?”
“Yes.” Reaching out, she touched his cheek while visualizing the sigil. The bruise on his cheek faded. “I can still heal you. Why isn’t it working on me?” Panic flooded through her body and her breath came in short gasps.
“I don’t know, but we’ll figure it out. Gnat, go find some pieces of wood. We’re going to need to splint her leg.”
“Gnat find what Friend Thia needs!”
Caelynn’s face came into focus, and the other woman grabbed one of her hands. “What’s wrong?”
“We don’t know yet,” Jinaari said, “but she can’t heal herself. I’ve given her a dose of codal, done as much as I can, but she’ll need more. Enough to get her back to the monastery and let their healers work on her.”
“Splint it first, please,” Adam said from near her head. “I’ll have to restrain you, Thia. Not much, but enough so you don’t move. I don’t want to heal bones that aren’t straight.”
“I understand,” she said. The codal was deep in her muscles now, and she was feeling sleepy. “Do what you need to do. I’m not feeling much pain.” One question screamed through her mind. Why can’t I heal myself?
Too many questions. What had Corse meant about how he could smell Lolc Aon in her? Why could she heal Jinaari but not herself? Is part of Lolc Aon still living in me? Is that why? Keroys, you said you’d answer if I needed you. Where are you?
A ghostly finger of pain made her open her eyes. Jinaari and Caelynn were securing the splint around her broken leg. “Do we make a litter? She’s half asleep from the codal,” Caelynn said. “She can’t walk unaided, and you can’t carry her the entire way.”
“Sayge left when we saw Corse fall,” Adam said. “She was going to tell the monks what happened. They’ll come in if we don’t come out, eventually.”
“I don’t want to leave her out in this weather while we wait.” Jinaari looked at her, then at Adam. “Can you transport us outside to the horses? Or back to the monastery?”
“Not with the codal in her system. It could cause too many other reactions.”
“There,” he pointed behind her, but she didn’t have the energy to see what he was talking about. “We get her in there, keep her warm. Then one of us can get the monks while the others build a litter.”
“I can walk,” Thia said, trying to push herself up.
Jinaari put his hand on her shoulder, gently pushing her back down. “I know you think you can.”
She closed her eyes again, too tired to argue with him. Someone picked her up, but it wasn’t Jinaari. “I’ve got her,” Adam said. “It’s not far and you need your sword arm free.”
“There’s nothing left in here for me to fight.”
“No, but I’ve seen that face before, old man. You’re ready to break something, and Thia’s already hurt.”
Thia’s body began to tremble. Why? I don’t feel cold. “I’m fine,” she muttered.
“You will be, Thia. We’re family. That means we’re going to take care of you.”
She rested her head against his chest and gave up.
* * *
Her body ached, but it wasn’t the sharp, stabbing pain that she’d felt in Tanisal. She was warm and laying on something soft. Opening her eyes, she saw the opaque orange curtains that hung from the ceiling, surrounding her bed. The Temple? How? She sat up, trying to remember how she’d gotten there. The last thing she recalled was Adam carrying her.
“Are you awake?” Jinaari’s voice called out softly.
“Yeah. How’d I get here?” Thia saw his outline rise from a chair and walk toward her. My leg! She moved aside the blanket and looked. The splint was gone.
“We got you into a house, then Caelynn led the monks into the city. We built a litter, hung it between two horses, and put you on it. It was slow, but we got you here.” He pushed aside the curtain and sat next to her. “The healers spent hours working on you before they were happy. I think every single one had to heal something, as a matter of honor. It’s not often they’d get the opportunity to help the most powerful healer in Avoch.”
She looked at him, swallowing the lump in her throat. “If I’m so powerful, why did my body reject my attempts?”
“Try now. Something small. There’s bound to be at least one bruise on you somewhere that they missed.”
Thia closed her eyes. She could see the sigil clearly in her mind. Releasing the spell, she felt it touch her skin, then dissipate. Opening her eyes, she looked at him. “It just goes away.”
He took one of her hands in his. “The sparks are still here. And you healed me, after you got hurt. This could be temporary.”
“What if it’s not?” Panic tinged her voice.
Brushing her hair back from her face, he looked at her. “Then we’ll adjust, deal with it. You don’t get into direct combat anyway. Adam and I will make sure you get healed, if you need it. We can take our time heading south; Gnat’s home will be there.” He shifted. “We can’t leave until Adam comes back, so you can go walk the garden again. Maybe Keroys will visit you and give you answers.”
“Where’d he go?”
“Back to Almair. He transported himself once he’d rested and knew you’d be okay. He said he needed to check something in one of the books back in his room. I didn’t argue, because I knew you needed the rest. Even if you don’t want to admit it. Are you hungry?”
“Are you trying to change the subject?”
“Some, yes,” he admitted. “But I also know you need food to get your strength back.” His face grew serious. “Something’s wrong with you, Thia. It’s not a simple cold, either. Your personality shifted when we were in Tanisal. You said things that surprised all of us. Just as quickly, you were your normal self again. Then, your magic won’t work on you. It doesn’t make sense.”
“But I feel fine!”
“I believe you, but that doesn’t change what we’ve all seen. You can’t deny it, Thia. Not anymore. Whatever’s wrong didn’t start with that cough, and I fear it’s going to get worse if we can’t figure this out.”
“Worse how? Are you keeping more secrets from me?” Her tone was bitter, and she saw him flinch at her words. “You say you want me to have your back, but you don’t tell me what I’m walking into so I can!”
“Garret told me not to. I can’t defy him any more than you can defy Keroys.”
She tilted her head to one side. “Really? You’re going to fall back onto that excuse? I bought it when you said that’s why you didn’t tell me I was Marked, but I thought you trusted me enough now that you could tell me the truth!”
Jinaari rose. “There’s food on the table. Caelynn will be outside if you need something. I trust you, Thia. Garret said you were the only one that could unlock Corse’s cage, but that knowing it would make you hesitate. That you’d balk at casting the last spell because you didn’t want to face him. I argued that you were smarter than that.” He walked to the door, glancing back at her. “Maybe it’s you that doesn’t trust me enough to realize I won’t lie to you. I may not tell you everything you want to know, when you think you should know it, but I’ve never lied to you.” He left, closing the door behind him.
Thia fell back on the pillows, tears stinging in her eyes. Jinaari’s right. Something is wrong with me. But how can I find out what if I can’t heal myself? And why am I blaming him for things that are completely out of his hands? If Garret told him not to tell me, he can’t. He swore an oath!
Sighing, she pushed aside the blankets and swung her feet onto the floor. A tray with small bowls sat on a low table between two chairs. Maybe if I eat something, my head will clear up. I’m not thinking straight.
She tested her left leg, making sure it would hold. It felt weak but supported her. Halfway to the table, the room spun violently and she fell, blacking out before she hit the ground.