“We have to,” Cass said evenly. “You know we must. If I don’t do it with Davar’s help, it will take as many months if not more, and you know we don’t have that time. I’m trying to undo what the greatest wizard alive has done, that’s not going to be easy or quick.”
Wyllea grit her teeth. “What if you had more help? Would it go quicker?”
“What help?” Davar asked.
“Me. What if I were here with you, keeping all of our minds sane against the cries of that thing? Might that make things go quicker?”
“Actually, you might have something there.” Cass rose from where she’d been leaning against the table and began pacing. Davar could see the woman’s mind working, considering, developing a plan. “Do you think Senia might help as well?”
“If it gets this done quicker, then I’ll convince her. If you had all of us here, how long might it take then?”
“It’s hard to say for certain without trying it, but perhaps a couple of weeks.”
Davar looked from the one woman to the other as that hung in the air. Wyllea seemed stuck but finally shook her head with a sigh.
“I’ll take that. Leave off for now. Senia and I will be here by the call of the eighth watch tomorrow morning. We’ll see how things work then, okay?”
She nodded. “Understood.”
“Great.” Wyllea got up and left.
Davar put his arm around Cass. “So,” he said with mock innocence. “What could we possibly do until tomorrow?”
She raised a brow and leaned in to kiss him. “I’m sure we can come up with something.”
Wyllea’s voice slipped into his mind. Really?
Chapter 18
Cassine took in the other three around the table. Davar was smiling, his eyes full of love. Their ‘day off’ the previous day had been a luxurious day of love making and relaxation, taking their time, teasing and pleasuring each other, exploring desires and deepening their connection.
Next to him was Senia, looking a bit uncertain as to why she was here. Then there was Wyllea, looking upset and eager all at the same time, very obviously not wanting to be here, but knowing the sooner this was over the sooner she could get on with her life.
Cassine was very glad to have all of the others here. She’d been working with the blade for months and had made so little progress until yesterday. Her brief time connected through Davar to the sword had been nearly as productive as all the previous months combined. With the help of these three and a little luck, things would be so much faster and easier.
“When I was connected to the sword yesterday, I could see what the Blacklord had done to it and as you might expect, it was far from pleasant. Months of rituals and being forced to slay so many innocent people, children, and babies. It was horrific. It affected the essence within the blade in more ways than just as a soul. It affected the mind and spirit as well. That’s why I wanted both of you here. If we can all work on this at once, mind, soul, and spirit, I think we’ll undo the darkness three times as fast as I could, working alone.”
The plan had its risks and uncertainties of course. Cassine’s only real experience with anything like this was her work with Davar. How exactly they would need to deal with the mind and spirit elements wasn’t as clear to her. The main risk was having all of them ‘inside’ the blade with Davar being their only link connecting their essences to their bodies. If anything were to happen to Davar, they might all be lost inside the sword.
“The quicker, the better,” Wyllea muttered.
Senia shrugged. “Glad to help, but there’s a war to fight as well. In three days we’ll probably all be needed elsewhere when our forces attack those on the plains.”
Cassine nodded. “I understand and I want to thank you all once again for helping with this. Shall we begin?”
“What exactly do you need me to do?” Senia asked. “I’m not really used to working in these hidden worlds on people’s souls and minds.”
“I’ll guide you once we’re inside. You’ll catch on quick enough, I’m sure.”
The young scion shrugged again. “As you say. Let’s begin.”
They all joined hands. Cass held Davar’s and Senia’s. Senia in turn held Wyllea’s hand and Wyllea was touching the side of Davar’s head as his other hand would be on the sword. They stood in a circle around the table. Once connected, Davar touched the blade and Cassine guided them all inside. It was an odd sensation using all of her talents, spirit to connect to the others, as well as mind and soul to help them find their way into the sword, and then earth to keep herself steady and strong during all of this other taxing work.
Having connected to Senia and Davar before, even if Davar had been unconscious at the time, Cassine was able to bring them together as glowing representations of themselves within the darkness that was Shadowfang. Then she sought out Wyllea’s spirit and brought her in as well, though it took her drawing on Senia’s spirit talent to do so. Senia appeared wreathed in blue flame, Wyllea with an aura of brilliant green, Davar shone with white light, and Cassine herself appeared surrounded by a nimbus of gold.
Even before she’d begun, Shadowfang began his resistance, wailing and screaming in his warbling, inconsistent tone. Cassine clamped down on this, she couldn’t shut it out completely, but it was reduced to the level of a whisper.
“This seemed the easiest way to get everyone together and explain things.” Cassine shifted her perceptions to the realm of spirit and the darkness around them shifted. It became a writhing, twisting thing, dark forms appearing and disappearing within the darkness. “This is Starsong’s spirit. Senia, I need you to work here. This darkness represents the wounds and pain inflicted on the sword to corrupt it.”
Senia’s spirit form suddenly held a great blade, Emberthorn. “I’ll rip them to shreds.”
“No!” Cassine said, her spirit holding up a translucent hand. “Wounds can’t be healed by inflicting more wounds.”
“Oh,” Senia said, the sword vanishing. “What must I do, then?”
“Since all four elements of the body are intricately connected, when I start working on a part of the soul, you’ll see a part of the spirit beginning to change as well. It will start to shine with light, whatever color Starsong’s spirit was originally. I think it was pure white, so look for that. Go to that area, see within the torrent of spirit, sooth it, and let it reconnect to what it once was. I’ve heard that you can use your spirit power to inspire others, connecting with the living essence inside of others to uplift them. Essentially you’ll be doing that only to a specific strand of spirit within a sword.”
“Ah.” She shrugged. “I think I can manage that.”
“Now a warning,” Cassine said, “I’m about to enter the realm of Shadowfang’s mind. There will be a lot of disturbing images. Be prepared.”
Cassine shifted the perception again and the raging darkness turned into a thousand images of the dark rites and rituals, the recounting of so many slaughtered innocents playing over and over again.
Through their connection to each other, Cassine could feel the mutual revulsion they shared at the sight.
“Gods,” Senia breathed. “I’m going to need a bath after this.”
“Sounds like a great idea,” Wyllea said, her spirit form looking a little pallid.
Cassine agreed. “Wyllea, you’ll work here and when I begin, you’ll see one or a series of these images come to life above the others. You need to work within the mind of the sword reminding it that it was forced to do these things. That these acts do not define the sword, yet it must accept these happened to it to release these memories and move past them. Can you do that?”
“I’ll try.”
“Thank you.” Cassine’s spirit form turned to Davar. “Lend us what strength you can.”
He nodded.
Next, she had to do something very difficult, splintering her own perceptions such that Wyllea stayed with the mind, Senia with the spirit and she herself with the soul. It was a great effor
t, but she separated them all out. Then she began her work.
Choosing a thick, knotted cord of hate and anger, she began soothing it, seeing the depths of the emotions and helping them relax and let go.
When they all emerged back into the real world, exhaustion was written on everyone’s face and in their posture.
“Gods, that was rough,” Senia said letting go of their hands. She leaned against the small table, arms supporting her as she simply drew in long deep breaths for a moment. Her hair was damp with sweat and her face drawn.
“Yeah,” was all Wyllea could manage, looking just as tired.
“But we got a lot done today, more than I thought we would,” Cass said hopeful, despite the gnawing fatigue in body and soul. “At this pace, we should be done in less than a week.”
“Thanks to all the Gods for that,” Senia said with a long sigh. “Now for that bath.”
Chapter 19
Three days later the abbey and its allies attacked the Blacklord’s forces. As midday neared, Davar stood on the wall of the abbey watching a great battle rage below him.
He’d been denied permission to join the fight despite his knowledge of the enemy and many martial abilities. The High Abbot had been skeptical about his newfound ability to resist the Blacklord, and since his scion weapon wasn’t yet ready to use, he’d been told to stay behind.
He’d received but one concession. If the battle was going poorly or if Cassine herself was in danger, he could join the fray. The High Abbot knew she wouldn’t be able to stop him in this case. That and Cass was too important, needed as one of the six to go against the Blacklord.
So Davar kept a careful watch on the events below.
He had a detailed view of the battle despite the great distance. He used an earth talent trick of enhancing the acuteness of his vision a hundred times over. It meant he could only watch a small part of the battle, but he could see it very well. He focused on Cassine. She was well behind the front lines with the few remaining Daughters of Ehlani, healing those they could. A steady stream of wounded was being ferried back from the fighting and she looked harried and weary, tending to one man after another. Some she couldn’t help except to ease their souls and suffering as they passed from this world to the void or the heavens.
He was concerned for her, but as of yet she’d been put in no danger.
He changed the focus on his eyes such that Cassine was now much smaller, but he had a wider view of the area around her.
A dark, black-clad shape dropped in near the healers, having somehow evaded the main battle. Then another one joined it… and more were on the way. His heart skipped a beat, fear and concern flooding him.
“Assassins at the healers,” he said to the others watching on the walls nearby, then he leapt off the wall in a great jump which would take him directly to Cass and the others. He kept his gaze on them, though it became more and more difficult as he drew closer. Finally he let go of the enhanced sight altogether.
He only hoped he’d arrive in time. More and more assassins were arriving and sneaking up on the healers.
He landed hard, right behind Cass.
She started, so intent on her work that she hadn’t noticed anything amiss.
“Protect yourself! Get the healers to safety!” Davar called as the first assassin rushed him.
He was still fresh and aching for a fight. The first one sliced at him and he spun out of the way, catching the man’s sword hand and crushing it, then snatching the sword from the limp grip as he elbowed the attacker in the throat. The man dropped, eyes wide. Davar decapitated him before he hit the ground, ensuring he was dead.
More were coming from all directions.
He couldn’t protect everyone at once. He tossed his newly acquired sword hard. It slid cleanly into the head of an assassin who was about to slit the throat of another healer. Three more reached Davar, attacking him together. He slapped the flat of one sword such that it blocked a second attack, then grabbed the arm of the last man pulling him closer. He snapped that man’s neck then used him as a shield against the other two as they attacked again. He threw the dead man into one of them and dodged the attack of the other, crouching then coming up hard with a blow to the man’s chin that broke his jaw and snapped his head back so hard it broke his spine. Davar plucked the sword from the newly dead man’s hand and thrust it into the last one.
A quick spin showed only bad news. There were at least a score more assassins. One healer was down, bleeding heavily if not already dead.
“Davar, jump!” he heard Cass call. Without knowing what she was planning, he did as commanded. He launched himself into the air as he heard her shout, “Sleep!”
In a wave around her, people fell. Not all of the assassins were affected, but those closest to her staggered and fell. Several assassins, with their enhanced senses and reflexes, had heard Cass’s warning and had also been able to jump, avoiding the spell. Davar used his wind talent to push himself through the air at two who had leapt. Both were dead by the time he came down.
It wasn’t hard to finish off the remaining ones, as most were dazed if not dozing.
He found Cass next to the wounded healer, helping the girl to sit. The wound closed. The girl looked wan and weak though. She’d lost a lot of blood.
Cass turned to Davar. “Take her back to the abbey. She’s in no shape to keep working here.”
“I won’t leave you,” he said, still hot from battle.
“Yes you will, lover. It will take you hardly any time to get there and back and we’re safe for now.” Her tone was commanding, not to be disobeyed.
He grinned. “As you say. Give me one moment, though.” He wanted to be sure for himself and did a quick scan around the area. Indeed as far as he could tell there would be no more threats for the near future.
He plucked up the waif of a girl, told her to hold on, then leapt back to the abbey. Landing in the bailey, he handed her over to two attendants, two young men not yet trained well enough to be out in the fight. Then he leapt back.
He arrived to find the healers swamped with a new wave of wounded.
“What happened?” he asked one of the stretcher carriers.
The young man was covered in blood, not his own, and was near exhaustion. “The enemy broke through the northern flank and hit some unprotected archers from Fjoria. It was a slaughter, but the flank has closed again, and the enemy is dealt with.”
Cass called to him over the din of the crowd. “If you want to make yourself useful, lover, use your earth talent and heal some of these people. I don’t care if it’s pretty, just save their blazing lives!” Again, her tone left little room for debate.
He knelt next to a wounded man. The soldier was unconscious and had a great gash in his thigh. He was near death. Not knowing the finer points of healing, Davar put his hand over the wound and filled the man with his earth talent.
The man gasped, waking, eyes wide.
Davar checked the wound, and it was indeed closed. “You’re welcome,” he said with a grin. It seemed this healing thing wasn’t so hard after all. The man lay back blinking, then his eyes rolled up in his head and he went limp. Well, perhaps it wasn’t so easy after all.
Davar swore, he checked the man over, but there were no more wounds he could see.
Cass arrived next to him. “Go help someone else, this man’s body is whole. It’s his spirit that needs help now.”
“How do you know that?” Davar asked.
“You see enough wounds and wounded and you just know.”
“Ah.” He leaned over to kiss her dirty, blood-spattered cheek then did as she’d instructed and moved to another man.
She spent the afternoon healing and learned a lot in that short time, learning as he went.
Assassins attacked twice more that day, but these were smaller, last-ditch efforts by the enemy to hit a weak spot. Davar turned them all back, with some help from Cass.
By sunset the battle was decided, the tattered Blacklord
’s armies fled across the plains of Hallania. They were but rabble now. When Senia and Wyllea arrived to help ferry the wounded and weary back to the abbey, Davar got the full report. The scions had ensured that the commanders and wizards were dead and that most, if not all, of the assassins were also eliminated. This army would be no threat for some time.
Chapter 20
Cassine woke in the darkness. The screams of pained and dying men echoing around her from dreams as fresh as an open wound. Tears streamed from her eyes, filled with sorrow for those who would never see loved ones again. Gods, how she hated this war.
A large, warm hand stroked her arm. “Hush now.” Then a strong arm enfolded her, Davar’s warmth surrounding her. “You’re safe here.”
The visions of the dead lingered, dancing before her in a morbid display of blood and death.
She nodded and worked within her own soul, soothing and healing herself. She had to keep telling herself that she’d done everything she could for as many as she could. Some she would never have saved.
The war itself was over. That’s what they’d fought for. Still, she didn’t feel good about any of it.
She snuggled in close to Davar, her crying abated as weariness overtook her again.
When she woke the next day, Davar was leaning against the wall of their room watching her with kind eyes. He’d bathed and dressed and even brought her some breakfast. Beside the bed was a tray with warm bread smothered with melted butter as well as dried fruit: cranberries, blueberries, and slices of pear. She ate in bed, greedily, famished, having had little time or energy to eat the previous day.
“I spoke to Senia and Wyllea in the kitchens,” he said. “They won’t be available to work on Starsong today, they’re too exhausted and need some time before something so strenuous. You can rest more if you like.”
She sighed heavily, feeling tension flow out of her. Her shoulders slumped in relief and she gave him a weary smile. “I would like that.”
Scion’s Sacrifice Page 17
