Bliath: Shattered (4 page)

Chapter 4

His pace was faster than she remembered. “Oren, what is going on, how long have I been out?”

“Focus” came through loud. “Oren, you want me to do what I did with the bird?”

“Yes!”

“Ok, give me a moment.”

Fera, takes a few deep breaths, then reaches out and touches his neck to let Oren know that she is ready.

“You have been out a while, something is not right here, the forest is uneasy. Hang on.”

As soon as his voice left her head the blood began to flow from her noise, her ears were ringing and her head was buzzing.  “Ok, I am just going to lean down on you, I don’t feel so well. I trust you.”  Oren puffed up a little at that.  “Oren?”  His ears perked up to let her know he was listening. “I like how you sound in my head, you’re my best friend, but it is finally good to really hear you.”  The blood flowed for a while, but she kept wiping it off on her shirt sleeve, she would change it the next chance she got. 

Just after sun rise Oren came to a sudden stop, he froze, he did not which way to go, but someone else was there, and he got the impression whomever they were, knew Fera and himself were there too. “FERA!”  He screamed in his head to her.  She finally sat back up in the saddle. “What is it, Oren?”  “DANGER!”  With that she gripped him harder urging him forward.   She could hear the sounds around her, like someone, or thing, was gaining on them.    Her heart was going mad banging in her chest.  She felt so woozy she knew she could not stand and fight them, their only chance was to out run them.  Fera knew Oren was so tired, but he was going as fast as the path would allow.

The minutes seemed like hours to Fera, her head was spinning, a cold sweat was across her body, uncontrollable tremors were ripping through her.  Oren knew she was in trouble, but could not afford to stop, not knowing what was out there.  Fera was losing her grip, she couldn’t sit up any longer, leaning down again Oren, her vision started to fade in and out.  The air was so heavy she could not breathe.  She pulled herself back up, something hit her. The back of her arm throbbed as she struggled to figure out what hit her.  An arrow was sticking out of the back of her arm, a few inches above her elbow.  Fera fainted. Oren came to a fast stop before she could fall off him.  When she hit the ground she started to come to.  Panic over took both of them, Fera couldn’t stand up.  She crawled back against the closest tree.  Oren stood in front of her, both waiting.

Three riders came crashing through the path.  They looked like they were on a hunt, one spoke, “Who are you? State your business for being on the King's land?!”  Fera tried to focus on the one talking, he looked regal.  She could hardly form words as she looked up at him, eyes filled with tears, “Please.”  One of the others addressed the regal one “Sire, it’s just a girl.  She does not look well.”  She was slipping under a heavy fog, fighting to stay coherent with only sheer determination at this point driving her.  The third rider was off his horse, he was slowly approaching Fera.  Oren caught on and blocked his way lashing out at him.  Telling him without words, no one will touch her.  Once again, the regal one spoke “Vance, what are you doing?”  Vance looked back at him, slowly putting his hands up so Oren and Fera could see they were empty. “Sire, she is hurt and sick, one of your arrows hit her, but there is a lot of blood on her, and look at her necklace, it is a royal seal, from another kingdom, Sire, I think she is a Princess or at least a lady in waiting?”  At that, the other two were off their horses as well.  The one called Vance was attempting to talk Oren down with little luck.  Fera drew in a breath. Her voice was a whisper, “Who are you?”  All three men looked at her, as did Oren.  The Regal one squatted down on her level though he was a few feet away, “I am Prince Leo from the kingdom of Nevire, this is Tuck” he gestured to the bigger of the other two men, “He is a knight and this is Vance,” Gesturing to the one trying to talk Oren down, “He is in charge of the royal stable, and grounds.  We are not going to hurt you, I am sorry I shot you.”  Fera squeaked an “Oh” out.  Leo not taking his eyes from her, “I thought you were part of the Resistance or Powers; we are neutral, and they are not allowed here.  You are safe though, I am so sorry.”  He held out his hand to her.  Fera just looked at him, then up to Vance who was still trying to talk to Oren.  Something was so familiar about him but her mind was heavy and spinning, to make sense of most things.  Her focus went back on Leo, his eyes were so blue, “What is your name, where are you from?”  Still not sure of anything, Fera looked back at Oren, whispering his name, he dips his head to help her up.  She clings to his neck trying to stand, she feels like the ground is moving beneath her.  Oren tries to hold her steady, but she is so weak right now.  Trying to gain leverage on her words and the situation, she looks at Leo, “What are you going to do with us?” it was hard and pained when the words came out.  All three men couldn’t help but take her in, she was small but mighty, clearly not just letting go with them, she looked like she had been through hell and back.  As Leo started to tell her, he would take her to the castle to the healer, her knees buckled, Vance swiftly caught her, two things happened in that moment.  Oren squealed in protest and shot forward at Vance touching her, Tuck caught his reins just in time to check him back.  At that second, a shock wave shot through Vance.  He was magical, an orphan, taken in by a healer who moved here for a job as the castle healer, he was powerful, but the power that coursed through him from her was like nothing he had ever felt.  This was a human kingdom, and magic was down played for fear of the backlash it might have since the war, and this also be a neutral zone that had not sided with either scorned elven party. Fear for this girl hit Vance hard.  He scooped her up, turning to Oren, and addressing him like a human, “I know you want to protect her, as do I, no harm will come to her with us, but we must take her to my mother at the castle, she is very ill.  She cannot ride by herself, you must follow us, nod if you can control yourself to do so?”  Oren was mad, he was snorting, but he understood so he nodded.  Vance went to put Fera on Aloine his horse, but Leo stopped him, he was already on his mount.  “Vance, hand her to me.”  Vance knew not to go against the wishes of the Prince, but he just did not want to give her to someone else, to trust her fate to someone else.  He reluctantly handed her up to Leo.  They were off.

Oren did not know what he could do, he made promises and swore oaths, as much as he hated the situation at the moment it might be for the best in the end.  In that moment he hated that fate made him a horse.

Fera was in and out of conscious, she knew Leo was talking to her, rubbing her arm, telling her help was near.  Vance watched the Prince take care of the girl, soothing her with his words.  This irritated him, on a deep primal layer, he felt magic should be with magic.   Oren too was ticked off.   As they came closer to the castle, Tuck sounded some kind of alarm, it startled Fera, Leo, once again reassuring her they meant her no harm, that Tuck was just sounding the call for help meaning injured were with the party.

People started coming out of the castle, as they drew closer, Leo called, “We’re all fine, but we found a girl, she is in bad shape.  Vance thought to himself, she would be in better shape if you would have listened, and saw what you were shooting at.  Biting his tongue, he saw his mother, hasten out of the side door.    When they were right next to the small crowd that gathered, Vance went to get Fera down.  Leo would not relinquish her.  He gracefully flipped to one side and slide down with her in his arms.  “Vance, you take the horses to the stable, calm hers down and check him for injuries, then bring me her saddle bags.  Maybe they have some clue to who she is.   Vance said nothing, but gave a small bow, and did as he was told.  Leo walked the girl over to the Healer, Vance’s adoptive mother Desree.  She was a short older woman, the grandmotherly sort but not near as sweet; she liked to simply tell you how it is.  Desree took one look at her, and she went pale herself.  “What did you do to this poor child?  Prince Leo, that is your arrow!”  Her eyes narrowed in on him.  Tuck piped in “They ran we gave pursuit, it was a warning shot, we did not know what she was, for that matter we still don't.”  Desree glare followed over to Tuck, and she made a 'hppph' sound, letting him know her displeasure.  Turning back to Fera she put her hand on her forehead, an energy wave shot through her, hoping no one else noticed the energy shift, “You better take her up to a room, she is burning up, and I need to get YOUR arrow out.”  The healer acted like a nanny to Leo and his old brother Landon, and he knew not to question her.  “Thank you Ree, I will put her in the Rose room.”  The Prince was off and Desree turned, a little unnerved, and followed suit. 

Chapter 5

As soon as Leo stepped in the main hall on the way to the rose room, his little sister, Larin, came bounding up to him. “Leo, you found a girl, are you going to keep her?”  Before he could even answer Desree informed the girl to go get some bandages, being 7 cycles old, she was all too eager to help just so she would feel included but she would not be kept at bay for too long.  

Leo laid Fera down on the big bed in the Rose room, she was barely responsive, almost looking through him with dead eyes, her voice pleading through a hoarse whisper, “Please don’t leave.” Leo’s heart never felt such pain for another creature.  He could not leave even if he wanted to - he was transfixed.  Fera had no clue that she was asking him to stay, because her mind was not there, she was back being haunted by the ghosts of world’s past.  Desree started to clean her up, praying if she had the mark of magic she could catch it before Leo saw it and possibly cover it, not that Leo would do anything, but it would keep things easier. There was no mark, but Desree was not fooled, she knew the energy pulse came from the girl, and she knew that girl was Fera. She had not seen her since she was but a few weeks old but the magic never lies. Working to clean her up and taking in an account of her wounds, to her surprise, the arrow was the worst of the exterior wounds. She had a few scratches, but nothing to account for the blood all over her shirt.   Desree could tell the girl was burning up.  Her magic that she helped bind when she was so new was coming undone, with her body struggling to adjust.  She sent Leo and Larin to the kitchen for ice and towels, they had to get the fever down a non-magical way, putting any more energy into Fera’s body, would prove fatal. 

Vance walked in looking for his mother, he needed her help in the stable, Oren’s temper was getting the best of him, and Vance could not control him, he was like no horse he had ever dealt with.  Upon walking in, he saw the girl on the bed, the arrow was out of her arm and bandaged, and she still looked to be in bad shape.  “Mom, you can’t heal her?” He whispered. She could heal almost anything, this is not good.  “It is much more complicated than that, I could try, but in her case it would make it worse.   I will tell you more when I can, right now I just have to get her fever down.  I need blarice root.  Please go to our cupboard and get some.”  “Why? She is already passed out.”  “It is for Leo, he is not going to leave until she is ok, maybe not then, and there is going to come a point when it won’t be safe for him to be in here.”  Vance looked perplexed at his mother, then to the girl.  “I can get it, but I am having an issue in the stable.  Her horse is, well not like a normal horse.”  Desree had animal empathy but she could not get away in that moment.  “Vance, I cannot leave her right at this time, why don’t you go get the blarice, hide some in a sugar roll and drug the horse, it should just take his edge off, maybe make him sleep, then bring the rest to me, and if I can get away tonight, I will see to him.”  Vance nodded and left as Leo was walking in with a bucket of ice, followed by his little sister toting a stack of towels taller than she.  Desree went to work cooling Fera down, and despite the occasional sigh or moan, Fera’s mind was not in that room. 

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After going back to bed for a bit, Fera woke with more questions, she needed to find Markus, foregoing dressing, she stumbled out into the hall in her sleep shorts and matching shirt.  Her wild hair still in a ponytail, she clearly was on a mission without regard to how people might see her.  Her first thought was the library, bursting through the doors; she scared Sara the maid half to death. “Sara, have you seen Markus?”   “No Princess.” She turned and rushed out heading to the garden.  No Markus there.  While almost running down the East hall, she ran into Azer, one of her father’s strategic advisers, “I am sorry princess, are you ok?” She must have looked like a bit of a wreck, but things were clicking in her head, she needed Markus to talk them out. “I am the sorry one Azer, I need to find Markus.”  “He is with your father, and a few of the other advisers, I am headed that way now.  May I walk you?”  Fera nodded.

As Azer opened the doors, she tried hard not to push herself in the room ahead of him.  They all looked at her like she was crazy, “Sweetpea, are you well, do you need something?”  Her father asked as he looked at her questionably.  “I am fine, I just need to - I mean, May I please speak to Markus?”  Looking around, it looks like all of the council members were there, which is not normal unless there was some sort of problem. “Father, is everything ok?”  Her father’s face let something slip, Markus stood, “Nothing for you to worry about, shall we talk in the hall?”  He followed Fera out.