“How would we do this?” Gryffon asked.
“By using a combination of the items that Katya sent back from the tribes along with the stone to override the original magic. But like I said, we believe it will be important to use the original magic to our purposes rather than simply break it. The healing water from the Dakelh’s properties can be spread through Phoenix to help heal those who are very far advanced so that their bodies can get back to a point where they can heal themselves. The twisted wood of the gnarstal from the Gwich’in can be used to twist the effects the curse causes to be the reverse of what they once were: Removing any trace of the old disease and encouraging the person’s body to heal.”
“This all sounds like a good thing,” Layna commented, “So why do you all seem hesitant to tell us about it?”
“There will be a sacrifice that needs to be made,” he answered.
“Whatever it is, I will pay it,” she said resolutely.
He pressed his lips together. “Unfortunately, Your Majesty, it cannot be you who pays the price.” He paused. “It will be Phoenix. In order to do this, her magic must be used. But since she is not yet old enough to access the rivers of power around us and control how it is used, it will simply burn out her personal magic.”
“Jezebel learned to use magic again after hers was burned out,” Gryffon pointed out hopefully.
The mage shook his head. “She had used hers before so there was a path for her to follow back to it. Phoenix has never felt what it was like to use magic.” He glanced to the ceiling, trying to come up with an easy explanation. “It would be like suddenly going blind for someone like Jezebel, and trying to find your way back to a place you have walked a thousand times before. It is an adjustment to find it again, but then you count your steps and it becomes easier and easier. But for Phoenix, it will be as if she was born blind and never saw the place she’s trying to find. She could wander around forever and never find it, and even if she did there’s a good chance she wouldn’t realize that it was what she was searching for.” He looked them both square in the eye, meeting one’s gaze for a few moments before holding the other in its grasp. “By doing this, Princess Phoenix will be denied her talent.”
They both stared at him, dumbfounded, while the minutes ticked by. Layna had been prepared to do whatever she had to in order to save her people and break the curse, but Phoenix’s talent? She looked at Gryffon, feeling the pressure of tears on the backs of her eyes, and willing it away. The lineage of the royals had always been strong talents, it was necessary for maintaining their control over the country. Taking away this important tool would make Phoenix’s life exponentially more difficult.
Gryffon looked back at her morosely, the pain etched cleared on his face. “We have to,” he whispered.
Layna reached down and swept Phoenix into her arms once more. She cuddled the babe to her face, making soothing noises to her, though she was oblivious to her parents’ distress. She grabbed at Layna’s hair and yanked on it, giggling.
“There’s no other way?” Layna finally asked the mage, who was standing patiently, waiting for them to process this information.
“None that we have found, Your Majesty. We all agreed that this would be the best way.”
Layna looked around the group of mages, and all nodded to her soberly. Layna glanced back down at Phoenix and smiled at her baby girl. “Well, my dear, it appears you are going to have to become a martyr before you can even speak in full sentences.” She set the Princess back down and waved her hands for the mages to form the circle. Gryffon came to stand beside her and he took her hand, squeezing it in shared sadness for their baby’s loss.
With the awkward conversation behind them, the mages all became talkative, explaining the details with enthusiasm. Layna tried to listen, but her mind was distracted. She hadn’t even known she had possessed magic until a few short years ago, and she had done fine without it, hadn’t she? But how would Phoenix know that she would have been able to manipulate the power around her, and with two strong parents, she was extremely likely to have been very powerful herself. It could have proven invaluable when the day came when she was left on the throne to manage it herself.
Luckily, all the mages really needed her and Gryffon to do was control the powerstone and direct its magic towards where they would fine-tune the spells they had devised, so her inattention didn’t matter. When they had all readied themselves, the leader motioned for them to begin.
Layna obediently opened herself to the power, connecting automatically to Gryffon as he did so at the same time. Their talents snapped together like two magnets and she immediately felt the euphoric feeling of completing one another. Was she taking this feeling away from her daughter as well? Her control faltered as she felt sadness rushing to overwhelm her, and immediately a wave of calm flowed over her from Gryffon. He filled her with love and hope. Phoenix would never be without the feeling of love as long as the two of them were alive, but they only would be so by Phoenix’s sacrifice.
Layna was unsure how much time passed as the mages slaved away over Phoenix, but when she felt the tug that indicated they were finished and she could come out of her concentration, the sun had dipped far below the horizon, and baby Phoenix was sleeping peacefully at their feet. She saw that Natalya and Alina had snuck into their circle, though she was sure they had cleared it with the mages first, knowing how dangerous interfering with magic could be, and had curled themselves protectively around the Princess.
Alina’s face was a more normal color, and she slept comfortably. Layna took a step towards them and laid a gentle hand on the girl’s forehead. It was cool to the touch. She no longer had any fever. She raised her eyebrow, impressed. Had it truly worked that quickly?
“Can you tell if it was success?” she asked the mages. Since she had tuned out exactly what they were doing, she wasn’t sure herself.
The elated expressions around her gave her the answer even before the leader spoke. “Yes, we believe it worked!” he exclaimed happily. “She should now be spreading the cure to the curse, and healing all those who she comes in contact with. Furthermore, it retains its original mode of transport, so now all of us will also spread the cure, and so on and so forth.” He glanced fondly down at Phoenix, “It will, of course, work much faster being exposed to the Princess herself, but we should begin to see improvement all over the city in a matter of hours!”
“Will it affect anyone who wasn’t infected?” Gryffon asked.
“That’s the beauty of using the stone to adjust the original spell rather than use something that would negate it. It will recognize its own use and only target those people. Only the healing water’s effect might be spread to those not infected by the curse, but that is hardly a problem.”
Gryffon smiled hugely. “Let’s bring Phoenix to the infirmary,” he suggested.
Layna brightened. Seeing all those poor people cured of the disease would help her forget the cost of that cure. She extracted the Princess from the sisters’ embraces, accidentally waking them in the process.
“Did it work?” Natalya asked nervously, looking at Alina thought she directed the question to Layna.
“Yes,” she answered happily, a rush of joy spreading through her as the stress that had been a permanent fixture on Natalya’s face of late melted away.
Alina blinked her eyes sleepily and seemed to be taking stock of her health. She felt her own forehead and stretched her limbs experimentally. “I feel better already!” she reported.
“We’re going to go visit the sick, would you like to come?” Layna asked them,
“Yes, please,” both girls answered, now fully awake in the excitement, and they jumped to their feet. The mages all declined, drained from their exertions, so Layna, Gryffon and the two girls set out for the infirmary alone – save the entourage of aides – for the ultimate test.
They all held their breaths as they entered; even the usually neutral entourage exuded a tension that was nearly palpable. Th
e great hall was filled to the brim with the cursed, and they slowly made their way to the nearest make-shift beds. The ones here were not far along, like Alina, having only a slight flush as a visible effect. Layna could have sworn she could see them returning to normal color before her eyes, but she couldn’t tell. The change was too subtle to tell if it was real or if it was just her imagination wanting it so badly that it was causing her to see it.
They moved inward, finding those who were more obviously infected, those who had begun to get the sores and pustules appearing all over. As they approached, several of the people moaned, and Layna halted her steps in worry. Was something wrong?
But even as she watched, she could see on the person nearest her that his sores were visibly shrinking away to nothing. And it was most definitely not her imagination. He tossed in his sleep, and let out another moan, disturbed by the healing, but not enough to wake.
Layna moved forward and felt his forehead as well: Cool.
She felt his pulse: Strong.
She glanced excitedly up at the rest of their little group and they hurried on to another section. They were met with similar results, and soon someone woke and their happy exclamations woke more and more, until the great hall resounded with the cacophony of blissful voices. It was a wonderful change.
They moved through the rows of the infected, followed by shouts of excitement and glee. People actually jumped out of their beds and hugged her and Gryffon, much to their guard’s chagrin, but the mood of the hall was permeated by happiness. Layna felt tears of joy stream down her face, and didn’t bother to try and stop them or wipe them away. Everyone was caught up in the moment.
They made their way to the back of the room where Amelia was. The woman moaned slightly in her sleep, obviously in agony, which lessened at their approach. Her thrashing movements stilled, and she blinked sleepily awake. She tried to focus her tired eyes on them as the pustules on her body healed before their eyes.
She seemed confused by their smiling faces and the shouting around her. She glanced around the great hall.
“Am I dead?” she asked.
Layna completely abandoned all propriety and reached down to hug the woman. “No,” she assured her, unclasping the straps that held her to the bed. “No, you’re not dead. You are cured!”
Amelia looked down at her healed body and flexed a few fingers experimentally. Then she burst into tears.
Layna started, stepping back a pace in surprise. The woman brought shaking hands to her face and covered her eyes, sobs wracking her body. “What’s wrong?” she asked in alarm.
Amelia sniffled and wiped her eyes a few times before she could speak. “I was so sure that it was the end…” she got out before another wave of sobs took hold.
Layna sat on the bed and held the woman until she stilled under her embrace. It was hard to believe that it was over. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like for Amelia. Granted she and Gryffon had known that their fate could possibly be the same as those Bricrui they found out in the city, but they had been able to be out doing something about it, still healthy. Amelia had been stuck on a bed, wasting away, spending her days knowing she was dying.
She hugged the woman closer. For once, she wasn’t scolded for her improper behavior. Eventually, she got hold of her weeping and pulled away.
“You’d better be moving along,” she told them, “there’s plenty more who’ll need it.”
Layna hated to leave her friend, but sitting so long next to Phoenix had healed her almost back to normal, and she was right. There were lots more who needed healing.
When they had moved through the entire hall, they stood off to the side, watching the people getting up and hugging one another, dancing around in joy, and general merriment. They had gone from the brink of death, to healthier than they had ever been.
“Shall we try the dungeons?” Gryffon asked, hesitation in his voice. They had already determined that the body would not be able to come back from the damage it had incurred by the time they were sent down there. Would Phoenix really be able to do anything? And if not, would they traumatize her for life seeing them?
“Maybe we should put her in something for that,” Layna suggested, “So that she can’t see or hear them. We could bring her in her basket and magically soundproof it.”
Gryffon looked relieved. “Let’s do it.”
They made their way down the winding stairs to the dungeons slowly, and without the two sisters. Natalya and Alina had opted not to witness whatever was about to occur, and Layna could hardly blame them. Even if by some miracle the people were cured, seeing the Bricrui at this stage was extremely frightening.
They opened the door to the cells and moved inside, stepping in front of the first cell. Its occupant looked up at them with its red orbs, growling ferociously. The sound stopped almost immediately and the beast cocked its head to the side, looking almost thoughtful. Then its features started to change. They melted and shifted from the horrifying creature it had become back into the human it once had been.
Layna watched in excitement. It was actually turning them back! Her excitement faltered as the creature’s previously tense stance fell limp. The woman, as they could now tell she was, collapsed into a heap on the ground. Then she suddenly started convulsing, writhing around in the hay. Layna rushed forward, but Gryffon’s restraining hand on her arm kept her from getting too close.
As abruptly as it had begun, it stopped. The woman tilted her head towards them and opened her eyes. They seemed to be draining of blood, it trickled out like red tears, running down her now completely human-looking face. The blue eyes blinked at them a moment, a brief moment of rational thought flashing behind them. Layna thought she caught the slightest hint of a smile playing on the woman’s lips before her eyes closed completely. Her whole body seemed to relax farther into the ground, and her mouth hung open limply in death, her chest no longer rising and falling to her breathing.
Layna resumed her own breathing just in time to prevent herself from passing out and she let out a strangled cry. “We killed her!”
Gryffon pulled her close by the arm his hand still rested upon and buried her face into his chest. “We saved her,” he disagreed firmly. “Did you not see the peace in her eyes before she went? She had the dignity to die as a human being and not as a raving beast. They all deserve that much, come on.” He tried to drag her and Phoenix down the hall, but she stood her ground stubbornly.
“No,” she croaked, “No, I can’t be responsible for their deaths.” She shook her head vigorously, accentuating her point. Much softer, she repeated, “I just can’t.”
Gryffon looked ready to argue, but finally relented. “The spell will spread through this one to the others quickly anyway,” he pointed out, “They will all find their peace within the night.”
“That’s good,” Layna said, relieved she wouldn’t be forced to watch them all transform back to their rightful self, only to find that their bodies had nothing left for them. And during it all to get back that one spark of understanding she had seen flash across the woman’s eyes. She shuddered.
Gryffon felt the motion, and adjusted his route, moving towards the door. He tugged her arm gently this time, and she gave no resistance, eager to be away from the woman’s body. Even knowing they had put her out of her misery did nothing to relieve Layna’s own at having nothing else to do for these people but put an end to their existence. But, as they had already known, those being housed below, whose eyes had turned red – were already dead. That knowledge didn’t make her feel any better.
The people in the great hall above were still wandering about in awe, their miraculous recoveries a source of amazement. At their party’s reappearance, an even louder noise rose above their happy chatter: A tremendous cheer rang out, directed at them. People shouted and pointed at them and Layna soon realized that it was Princess Phoenix that their attention was focused on.
Natalya wove through the crowd to her side and smiled shyly.
“I’ve been telling them all about how Phoenix sacrificed her talent for their recovery, hopefully you don’t mind?”
Layna’s mind raced to defend her daughter, not wanting the secret of her lack of talent to get out. But almost immediately she chastised herself. They would not be able to hide Phoenix’s lack of talent anyway, and their daughter would need to learn to grow strong in other ways instead. And she had known that they would need to mend the strained relationship her daughter currently had with her people. Despite their best efforts to keep the fact that the curse had started with her a secret, there were rumors already spreading.
But the fact that Natalya had managed to get these people to so fervently embrace her and her sacrifice, was inspiring. Those housed here were most likely to have recognized the relationship between those who first fell ill and those who were in direct contact with the baby, as they had been witnesses to those who had grown ill the fastest and were sent down below. Layna silently mourned those who they had not been able to help. The number had been far too great.
“Thank you,” she said to Natalya, realizing the girl was still waiting for an answer, “Obviously however you told them was exactly right.” Indeed, the girl did seem to have a way with words, correctly interpreting and guiding people’s feelings. The speech she had made right after finding out that Layna had failed to see Telvani’s evilness and allowed the massacre of her town was inspiring, and now she was at it again. She seemed to be Layna and Phoenix’s devout champion. Layna really should knight her, or grant her nobility, for all she had done. She tucked away that thought for later. The girl deserved something for all she had been through.
When they had exhausted themselves with congratulatory hand-shaking and hugs, they finally had to excuse themselves, and they brought Phoenix back to their bedchamber with them. It had been tempting to march her into the city this very night to relieve all those suffering within the walls, but all her advisors were adamantly against it. She and Gryffon were in no state to protect her, and it would be too dangerous. Before Layna was satisfied, however, she had made them promise that those who had already been touched by the new enchantment would wander the cities themselves to spread it as best they could, as quickly as possible.
Light the Reign (The Forgotten: Book 3) Page 17
