Malignant Transfiguration (Endeavor Series Book 2)

by A E M

“Okay, Dwarves 101. Their home is called a den. There are five dens in this country; the Rockies and Appalachians each have one, respectively. This is their third. The men like to call it—” he paused and looked at Lilybet.

  She laughed her full-throated laugh again. “They call it Maternity Mountain.”

  “It’s part of an old mountain range that has been worn down to hill status.” Vincent explained.

  “I know my state’s history.” Charlotte told him. “Keep going with the rest. Do dwarves travel here to give birth?”

  “The women live here.” Lilybet said. “They give birth and raise their children. When the males hit about seven, they go live with their father or apprentice in another den.”

  “I remember Alcott or Barnabas mentioning they apprenticed in both the Rockies and Appalachians.” Charlotte said.

  Lilybet nodded. “It is very common to spend time in all of the dens at some point. We are very fond of Alcott and Barnabas. They chose to serve here after their apprenticeships.”

  “Okay, why do the men and women live apart?” Charlotte asked next.

  Lilybet smiled. “Considerably less female dwarves are born. It is unclear why. At some point it is rumored that female dwarves were nearly extinct, which of course, would have led to complete extinction. The men decided to hide away the few females left, and made sure they were cared for well. Over time, our numbers stabilized, but the practices remained. When we migrated to this country, the women were settled here in the middle of the country, while the men settled closer to the coasts. They felt it was safer this way.”

  “Do you marry, then?” Charlotte asked. “Wouldn’t keeping the women separate reduce the amount of births?”

  “Portals.” Lilybet said. “The men and women easily visit back and forth between dens with the portals. We do marry, but it’s very common for males not to marry since our numbers are so uneven. Most of the ones who don’t are in the Maguard.”

  “So the group of women we just met, what is that? You all looked ready for war.”

  “We are always ready for war.” Lilybet said solemnly. “What you saw was a branch of our version of the Maguard. Women only. We call ourselves the Aeguard.”

  They reached a large door. Lilybet turned to them. “We will be entering our hospitality center now. Normally our temporary guests enter from another section of the den, but those with injuries or who are unexpected typically end up here. I brought you here through an older entrance because it was closer. You will both need to be checked first before we let you in our community, and I believe rooms have already been readied. Follow the hallway to the right.”

  “Thanks.” Charlotte said.

  “We appreciate your thoughtfulness.” Vincent said with a small bow.

  “You are most welcome.” Lilybet said with her own bow. “I hope to see you both again tomorrow.”

  Vincent pushed the heavy door. It creaked open across the white stone floor. Lilybet took a left, while he and Charlotte went to the right. The long hallway had normal paintings hung along the wall between potted plants led to a single white door with a stained glass window showing a dwarf healing another in the middle. A bell rang softly as they entered and a dwarf in pink scrubs walked around the long, shiny red counter to greet them with a bow.

  “Good Morning. My name is Carroll and I’m pleased to have you two stay here.”

  “We are pleased to be here. Thank you for the accommodations.” Vincent said with a bow.

  “I’m sure you both would like to catch a little sleep.” She smiled and pointed to two doors. “Charlotte, your room is on the left, and Vincent your room is on the right. You each have a private bath. I will be right outside if you need anything.”

  “Thank you, Carroll.” Charlotte said.

  “Carroll.” Vincent said. “We would like to bring Charlotte’s private physician to heal her when he is able. Do you have a portal in this section of the den?”

  “No, I’m sorry.” She said. “He will have to arrive downstairs in the portal hallway. Would you like me to contact him?”

  “I will, thank you.”

  She walked back behind the counter. “Please let me know if you need of anything. I am a healer if you need me for anything.”

  “Thank you.” Vincent said again. He peeked in Charlotte’s room. It was softly lit by lamplight. There was a bed with many drawers underneath, paintings on the walls, a small bookshelf near a chair, and fresh flowers in a vase. The room smelled of lemon and lavender. There was a crocheted blanket of roses on the bed and a cup of hot tea waiting on the nightstand.

  “Sit down. I’ll be right back.” Charlotte looked paler. “I’m going to contact Sebastian. Drink the tea.”

  His room was much like hers. He pulled his Quire out and set it on one of he bedside tables. He ran his finger down the right side of it. When it came on, he tapped the video chat button and pressed David’s name.

  David came on the screen, disheveled and bloody. “Good. I’ve been worried about you two.”

  “We are just as worried about you.” Vincent said.

  “I’m fine. Most of the blood is not mine.” David said as he ran his hand through his thick hair.

  “I need you to send Alcott or Barnabas here with Sebastian as soon as he has time.”

  Charlotte burst through the door. “David!” She hobbled over and sat on the bed. “How is everybody?” She asked nervously.

  David sat back in his chair and rubbed the stubble on his face.

  “I haven’t had time.” Vincent said to him. He knew exactly what he was thinking.

  “No, you haven’t.” David said to him with a small smile.

  “David?” Charlotte insisted.

  “The fauns are dead. We lost a few hobs, too.” He looked her over. “You don’t look too great.”

  “The breaking spell was still on her when she went through the portal.” Vincent explained.

  “Oh.” David said. “I didn’t even think about that.”

  “Neither did I.” Vincent said. “We will fill you in on the details when we meet again.”

  “Who died?” Charlotte asked weakly. “Is Phoebe okay?”

  David sat forward. “I’m sorry, sister. I’m not sure. It’s still too dark to properly identify anybody.” He looked over at Vincent for a moment. “I’m going to stay here a little longer, but I’ll join you both as soon as everything is settled here.”

  “I’m glad you are okay.” Charlotte said quietly.

  “Me, too.” David laughed. “I kinda like me.” He turned and disappeared from the screen for a minute, then popped back up. “Looks like I’m needed here. Vincent, take care of my kid sister. I think it’s best you heal as much as you can. Sebastian will be busy here for hours. Sister, you should probably stop running into people’s rooms without a knock. It’s unbecoming or something like that.” David turned his side of the chat off.

  “Speaking of invading people’s space.” Vincent said and wiggled Charlotte’s ear. “Knock next time.”

  “You invade my space all the time.” She argued.

  “Invading your space is my job.” He stepped out into the hallway. “Carroll, can you help me? It looks like we will need to heal her now.”

  “I would be honored to help you.” She said. “What can I get for you?”

  “She’ll need something to knock her out.” He said. “She’s got broken bones to mend and shards of glass to pull out.”

  “I’ll be right there to help.” Carroll said as she rummaged through drawers.

  Vincent helped Charlotte back to her room, and then unwrapped the bandages around her foot and arm and examined her cuts. Carroll came in soon after with a case and handed him a vial. He sat on the bed. “Drink this. You’ll have a nice sleep, and we’ll fix you right up.”

  “No, please.” She said. “I want to be in control so I don’t accidentally burn either of you.”

  “You are going to be in a lot of pain.” Vincent told her. “At some point you wi
ll need to rest or your body is going to be overloaded and you’ll burn somebody anyway.”

  “Please.” She asked again.

  He looked over at Carroll. She shrugged. “She’s as bad as one of the Aeguard.”

  “Do you have gloves?” He asked Carroll.

  “Yes.” She replied. “I’ll be right back.”

  Vincent turned back to Charlotte. “Are you certain?”

  “Were you under when Sebastian fixed you?” She asked.

  “Yes. I have no need to prove my manhood through unnecessary suffering.” He replied and put the vial down by the lamp. “You can take this at any time. I don’t think you should be doing this, but it’s up to you.”

  “Thanks.” She said.

  He shook his head at her. “You need to get undressed. The glass shards have ripped your suit up past use anyway. I’ll get a sheet so we can cover you up where we aren’t working.”

  He left the room and pulled the top sheet off of his bed. Carroll was standing by Charlotte’s door when he came out. “Would you give this to her?” He asked.

  “Yes, good idea.” Carroll said and took the sheet from him. “I’ll call you in when she’s ready.”

  The call came quickly. Carroll was already pulling glass out of her arm as he entered. “I can take care of the medical side of things if you will keep her calm and focused.” Carroll told him as she put a sliver of glass in a bowl by the bed.

  “I can do that.” He said and sat down next to her. “Think of a cool, empty cave. There’s a small breeze gliding though it. Follow its path.” He said as he reached for her good hand.

  At last the glass was all pulled out and her arm and leg and side were cleaned up. Carroll excused herself to clean up and prepare for the bone settings. “How are you doing?” He asked Charlotte when she opened her eyes.

  “Okay.” She said. “How much is this next part going to hurt?” She asked him.

  “A lot.” He answered. He fought the urge to ask her if she wanted the vial of medicine.

  “He’s going to have to help me hold you down since you didn’t take the medicine.” Carroll said as she returned.

  Charlotte paled. “I could take the medicine if it would make your job easier.”

  “It will help me a lot.” Carroll said encouragingly.

  Vincent swallowed the smile and the laugh he would have rather shown. He handed Charlotte the vial. “It will only knock you out for a short time.” He said. “Just long enough for Carroll to do her work and let you sleep for a bit.”

  She paused with the vial at her lips and looked at him.

  “I’ll watch out for you.” He said. “It’s my job to be the fire department now.” She nodded, but looked doubtful before she swallowed the medicine. Vincent looked over at Carroll as soon as Charlotte was completely out. “I’m going to have to help you hold her down anyway, Carroll.”

  She smiled at him. “I have treated many stubborn children over the years. I have grown creative with my excuses.” He laughed before she added, “I could have gotten you to take it, too.”

  8

  The Apprentice and the Darkness

  Isaac held the sleeping child in his arms. “I see what you mean.”

  He ruffled the small boy’s hair and kissed his head.

  “He has seen far too much darkness for such a small child.”

  “What do I do?” David asked.

  “His behavior is horrible, and it frightens me to come down hard on him.”

  “You will have to be his father. His family.” Isaac said. “Give him new memories to build on.”

  He rocked the boy back and forth. “Love him and scold him and discipline him and always be there for him.”

  David sighed. “Papa, I’m frightened.”

  Isaac chuckled. “Then you are already his father, my son.”

  Charlotte dreamed of screaming and wailing and crashing and slicing. She wondered what part of her brain stored the bad memories she seemed to be collecting in a crashing wave after crashing wave. She didn’t know what to do with them. Should she store them on the shelf with her happy memories of an untainted childhood? Should she lock them away in a cabinet? Could she learn from them? If she let them run loose in her mind, would she eventually turn into a monster? She shuddered at the thought and curled up under the blanket of crochet roses, imagining that she could hide in the softness of the petals under the protection of the thorns. In those dark moments she wrestled with the darkness inside her own mind. That darkness born of recent events slithered through the goodness that had been built over the years. It snaked around the roots of everything she had ever known, slowly prodding everything for space.

  In the back of her mind she heard the knock, knock, knock of somebody requesting entrance, but she turned over and slipped further into the abyss. When she had been in the midst of the killing and screaming and world changing, it had been easy to stay aware and focused. But here, in the aloneness and stillness of the aftermath, she could barely catch her breath between the crashing waves of emotion and the undercurrent of hopelessness. Finally, she screamed the scream that had been building for hours. She opened her eyes when her blanket was pulled down to the floor, and sat up in shock as the coolness of the room struck her body and her eyes adjusted to lamplight. The dreams faded away.

  “Get up.” Vincent stood next to her bed, rubbing his beard. He had bathed and changed recently; the smell of soap lingered on his skin and his hair was still damp. “Take a bath and get dressed.”

  She held the flat sheet up against her body, panting for air and recollection. Her body was sore, but she could breathe easily now. Her foot felt fine. Her skin itched where the glass had been, but the wounds were healed days ahead of what they should have been after only a couple of hours. She looked down at her right hand. She flexed it and groaned.

  “It’ll take more time for your hand.” Vincent folded the blanket up at the end of the bed.

  She offered him no response. The cup of cold tea sitting untouched scolded her. Her clothes lay in a pile on the floor, and that blasted vial rested up against the teacup. She knew that medicine would be a mistake. She wrapped herself in the top sheet and threw her legs to the side of the bed. The cold floor nipped her toes. She headed to the bathroom; glad she could walk unassisted now. The floor of the bathroom was a mosaic picture of a seashell. The sink and the toilet, both decorated with shells, were to the right. A large bowl shaped bathtub painted like the waves on the sea, sat on the left. Even the mirror was framed with seashells. She stroked the towels as she passed the rod that held them. She paused and sunk her fingers into the softness when her fingers reached the edge of the last one. She tugged it gently and placed it on the floor in front of the tub. She plugged the bathtub and turned the cold water on.

  She dumped her sheet and underwear by the toilet and peeked into the mirror. Her hair was a mess of red curls intermingled with a few white curls. She made her way to the tub when it was full, immersing herself in the cold bath she had drawn in hopes in would shock her system. She shivered in the bath furiously, but she was glad to focus on the cold pain of the water and the pain remaining in her body instead of the feelings swirling inside. She ran her hands over her skin to wash away the darkness, but it remained at the corner of her mind, teasing her with its growth. She scratched her skin now and closed her eyes. Suddenly, all of the pains overwhelmed her, and she sat up with a bolt as a blast of light and heat exploded from her body. The light bulb in the room exploded. Her bath water was instantly hot and the stone of the bathroom was as well. She pulled the stopper for the tub and stepped out onto the towel.

  Charlotte wrapped the nearest towel around her body when she heard the handle of the door twist. Vincent held the door wide open and crooked his finger at her. She stepped past him and walked to her pack. He stepped inside the bathroom, leaving her to dress. She did so quickly, watching him out of the corner of her eye as he worked through the bathroom, cooling the interior with a breeze and re
placing the light bulb with another he found in a cabinet. He picked up the sheet and the rest of her clothes and added them to the pile in her room. She looked at him, fully expecting him to say something, anything, but he remained silent. He stepped over to her tea, warming it with magic from his hands. He handed it to her and nodded towards the chair. She sat and held the teacup silently.

  There was a knock at the door. Vincent opened it. “Stay here until I come back for you.” He told her before he slipped out and shut the door behind him.

  Charlotte tried to listen to the conversation in the hallway, but the dwarves had done well to make thick walls and doors. Several different voices rose and fell. She recognized Barnabas. He was asking long questions. Vincent’s answers were short. A loud, stern female voice whipped through the air, nudging the other voices out of its way.

  Charlotte sipped the mint tea slowly and waited and thought. She scanned the titles on the bookshelf. Dwarven History. The Sky in the Kite. The Hole in the Ground. Legends that aren’t True. Legends that are True. The Art of Dwarvish Homemaking. Homemaking in the Hill. Dwarven Pregnancy and Birth. Healing with Herbs.

  There was a pause in the conversation then, and a voice spoke that made the muscles in her legs leap out of the chair with joy. Beau was here. She crossed the room as fast as she could and flung the door open, all while holding her breath and the teacup. There he was, hair swept wild by the wind, tanned skin across his bare chest, khakis hung around his waist, and a loving look of relief spread unashamedly across his face.

  “Lottie!” He yelled happily. “I was so worried!”

  Charlotte placed the cup on the counter, jumped into his arms, and gave him a forceful kiss that melted into a long kiss. “I’ve missed you!” He smelled of sweat and trees and dirt. She stroked the muscles of his back and laughed carelessly as he twirled her around.

  He set her down and nuzzled her neck. “Caramia.” He whispered into her ear. “I have missed you, too.” He folded his wings around them. Charlotte felt safe in the soft caress of his wings. Here the world stopped and nothing could come between them. He locked his fingers in hers and kissed her, first briefly, and then again for a long time. She stumbled back, starry eyed, when he released her. She grinned hopelessly at the suggestive lift of his eyebrows and the pleased smile spread across his lips.