by J. M. Briggs
The room’s layout was identical to Alex's own with two beds, two desks, two dressers and one large window. One of the beds was fairly bare, with a blue corner sheet and scattered books on it along with video game boxes. On the shelf above it was a fairly good sized flat screen TV that made Alex pause with appreciation. Bran was seated sideways on the other bed on a much more decorated side of the room. A large periodic table poster dominated the far wall along with a Star Wars movie poster. Walking past Bran, Aiden strode into the room to the small fridge and opened it to retrieve a bottle of water. Nicki went to one of the dressers and plucked up a bottle of pain killers. Alex stepped back and silently waited as Bran took one of the offered pills and swallowed it with a glup of water. He took a few long breaths before easing himself back on the bed and hauling his leg up. With careful, but practiced movements he loosened the leg brace and removed it from his right leg.
“How you doing?” Aiden asked, taking a seat at the desk.
“I've been better,” Bran admitted, closing his eyes and leaning back against the piled up pillows. “But we're alive.”
“Yeah,” Nicki sighed, pulling her phone out once again and placing it on the desk between Aiden and Bran. She glanced at Alex and then looked down at her hand. “Alex, we'd better take a look at that.”
Allowing Nicki to lift her hand up for inspection, Alex flinched as she saw the long, but thankfully swallow wound across her palm and on the inside of her fingers. Nicki reached for the water bottle and a roll of paper towels before pulling Alex over to the free bed. They shoved the games and books aside and sat down at the edge with the paper towel wrapped around Alex's hand. Nicki gently poured out some water and started cleaning away the blood.
“You may want to get stiches for this,” Nicki observed with a deepening frown. “It looks shallow, but I really think something like this will scar. Plus I bet it hurts like hell.”
Alex opened her mouth to reply, but ended up only shrugging. “Not really,” she admitted softly. “I'm not… not really feeling anything now.”
“We're all alive,” Aiden reminded her.
“But I didn't-”
“We're alive,” Nicki repeated sternly to Alex. “Everything else is secondary.”
“But so many people saw the Hounds this time,” Ales argued with a shake of her head. “We can't ignore that.”
“We aren't going to ignore it,” Aiden agreed, the tone of his voice made her look over to him. His foot was tapping nervously against the floor, but he seemed calmer and met her eyes evenly. Nodding, Alex swallowed and looked over at Aiden who was breathing more normally now, but still tensed up. Bran's fingers were drumming a pattern on the comforter beneath him with shark and jerky motions. As if sensing her gaze, Bran looked over at her and forced a smile.
“Hey Alex, it's not like I did a whole lot either,” Bran told her in a forced cheerful tone. “I just don't have the strength and energy I used to have.”
“I'm beat too,” Aiden told them. “I feel really cold. That was pure adrenaline.”
“Me too,” Nicki agreed, glancing again from Alex's hand. “I'm pretty pleased with that wall of ice trick.”
“No kidding,” Aiden chuckled with a shake of his head. “Your powers are awesome. Both water and ice.”
“I wonder if I could do steam,” Nicki asked thoughtfully as she carefully dabbed up the blood closer to Alex's cut.
Alex glanced down and flinched, with the blood cleaned up she could see the dark red streak across her palm with raised edges of skin along both sides of it. Biting her lip, Alex pushed down her dinner and snapped her eyes shut.
“Bran?” Nicki called, “Do you have bandages?”
“Uh, there should be some gauze and antibiotic pads in the top drawer of the right dresser,” Bran answered, gesturing towards the dresser next to Alex and Nicki.
“Thanks,” Nicki replied, releasing Alex's hand and going to the dresser. Taking in several more slow breaths, Alex tried to stay calm. Nicki returned a moment later and Alex kept her palm still while Nicki wiped the wound with a gauze pad and then spread cool ointment over it. Alex hissed at the sting, but didn't pull her hand away. A moment later she felt the light bandage being laid across her hand. Nicki was carefully wrapping her palm when the phone rang.
Snatching up the phone, Aiden answered it and turned on the speaker.
“Hello Nicole,” Merlin's voice greeted. “Is everyone there?”
“We're all here,” Aiden answered, cradling the phone in his palm and holding it out so everyone could hear. “And we're mostly alright,” Aiden added.
“Good,” Merlin sighed gratefully. “That is a relief to hear.”
Morgana's voice broke in with a hint of urgency. “There were five hounds correct?”
“Yeah,” Alex managed, flinching in pain as the bandage caught on a tag of rough skin at the edge of the wound. “We killed five.”
There was an audible sigh of relief on the other side of the line and then Morgana said, “Good. When I scryed that was how many I saw. You should be safe tonight and able to return to your rooms.”
“Should be safe tonight?” Aiden asked with a hint of anger. “What happened to the seasonal days?”
“Indeed,” Merlin cut in smoothly, “We were not expecting more hounds until February 1st, Imbolc, the next seasonal shift day. The arrival of these hounds means that the Sídhe have successfully created a tunnel system into our realm once again.”
“The Sídhe tunnels are magical constructs, built of stone from their world and earth of ours.” Morgana explained, sounding very tired to Alex's ears. “Passing through the tunnel is a magical and metaphysical act that gives the Sídhe and their creatures greater immunity to our world. Iron still kills them, but it is what allows them to enter our world even on days when our realms defenses are still intact. They will now be able to come through when they wish.”
Alex looked over at the others, trying to hide the fear that was churning in her stomach. She felt both relieved and even more frightened when she saw Aiden swallow thickly, Bran tense up and grit his teeth and felt Nick's grip on her hand tighten. There was silence in the room for several long and uncomfortable moments as Morgana gave them time to take in the news.
Bran spoke up first, “So on February 1st there'll be a lot of Hounds?”
“Most likely,” Merlin answered, sounding far too calm for Alex's tastes. “And unfortunately it is likely that several Sídhe warriors will come with them. They are known as the Riders.”
“Riders,” Aiden repeated slowly before chuckling darkly, “Simple yet ominous.”
“It is likely that their mission will be to kidnap children,” Morgana explained, ignoring Aiden's comment. “Therefore you shouldn't have to deal with them, the Riders will be ignoring mages in favor of normal humans. They will leave you to the Hounds.”
“Taking humans, you mean like Changelings?” Nicki asked, looking over towards the phone.
“I doubt they will bother with leaving one of their constructs in place of a human,” Morgana replied in a sharp tone. “They have after all been without human slaves for nearly three thousand years and Earth blocks their access to any other worlds. I suspect that the labor population has decreased drastically unless the Sídhe have learned to take better care of their conquered worlds.” Her tone was doubtful and angry in a way that sent a shiver up Alex's spine.
She could see that Nicki wanted to ask for more information, but remained silent. Alex assumed that it was the same fear of what she might hear that was keeping her quiet. Glancing over at the boys, Alex noted that Aiden looked pale, but had a stern look of determination. Bran's breathing was still labored and he shifted slightly, only to hiss in pain and grip at his right hip.
Jumping up, Aiden moved over to Bran and helped him shift into a more supported position. Merlin and Morgana were quiet over the phone and Alex wondered if they knew Bran and her conditions. They hadn't asked what mostly alright meant, Alex realized with a col
d pang in the stomach. Her hand ached and she flexed her fingers as far as she could around the simple and bulky wrapping that Nicki had done. She could feel the torn skin stretching and contracting, a bit of blood still oozing. Giving her a stern look, Nicki stilled her hand and tightened the bandages slightly.
“What about healing magic,” Aiden questioned suddenly, frowning and giving the phone a hard look. “Is it possible to heal injuries with our magic? Our own or another's?”
“How badly are you injured?” Merlin questioned, worry now filling his voice. “We didn't need to have this talk right away.”
“Alex's hand is sliced up,” Nicki informed Merlin, glancing away from the bandaging and towards the phone, pausing in her first aid.
“Plus Bran-” Aiden started to say, looking over at Bran who had an oddly closed expression on his face.
“Healing magic is not something to use lightly,” Morgana interrupted through the phone, her voice carrying a chill. “It is a dangerous use of magic. Even Merlin and I only use it the most grave and desperate circumstances.”
Bran shifted on the bed, barely holding back a groan of pain, but visibly flinching. Rolling to the side, his arm shook as it supported his weight, but in a clear voice Bran asked, “Why is it dangerous?”
“Healing magic requires the caster to put their energy and magic into the body of another,” Merlin explained in a calm voice.
“But we release our energy as magic in fights,” Aiden countered. “What is different about this?”
“Healing requires you to channel their own magical energy into another without harming them. For instance Aiden, your fireballs impact the body of another and cause damage, not just because of the element they are made out of, but because it is the raw energy of another, different being,” Merlin explained gently, his voice sad and wistful. “Healing magic allows the user to pour magical energy into the target's wounds, which then is converted into the victim's own life energy and as such they become healed. Transforming your own energy into that of another is a difficult and draining process. The act of healing a simple cut becomes more draining than an entire battle with the Sídhe. It will leave you weak and vulnerable.”
“By extension,” Morgana added in a tight voice, “Trying to save another from a deadly wound will most likely kill the magic user and fail to save that life. Energy is lost too easily and wasted too frequently for healing magic to be a viable way of using your powers.”
Silence took over the room again and Alex made a point of not looking at Bran's face. The hint of hope that had appeared on his voice, even momentary before Merlin's words told her a great deal. He never talked about the vision that had made him grab the steering wheel in the car from his mother or about what his life had been like before the injury, but his expression had been revealing.
“How do you make the conversion between your own magical energy and the life force of another?” Alex asked, surprised to hear her own voice. “How is it done?”
“You don't need to know that,” Merlin answered gently, giving a forced chuckle.
“How is it done?” Nicki echoed, giving Alex a quick look out of the corner of her eyes.
“Children-” Merlin began to argue.
“How is it done?” Aiden repeated, leaning forward. “You've explained the danger Merlin,” Aiden added, looking at Alex and the others. “We understand that, but magic, this destiny of ours has taken a lot of choices from us and put us at risk anyway. Give us something that is our choice to use or not to use if the time comes.”
Heart beating faster, Alex felt herself smile with pride at Aiden. A glance at Nicki revealed a wide and proud, but watery smile on Nicki's face. Bran's face was blank of expression, but his eyes seemed brighter than they had been a moment ago.
“Nicki,” Morgana's voice called through the phone, warm and resigned. “You have the most control and ability to visualize… if you really want to learn this then you are the best choice to demonstrate.”
Shifting, uncomfortably, Nicki glanced between the phone and Alex's hand. The layer of bandages were tinted red as the wound continued to ooze blood at a slow rate. By this time, the active pain had eased to a dull throb that Alex figured had more to do with her brain ignoring the pain than it did with the wound actually improving. She was tempted to encourage Nicki to take the offered magic lesson while also fearing the words of their teachers.
“Nicki,” she whispered, trying to make sure that the phone wouldn't pick up their conversation. “It won't kill me. I'll go to the hospital and have it checked. It's easy enough to say that a kitchen knife slipped and I tried to catch it on instinct.”
“A double bladed kitchen knife?” Nicki teased, not hiding the fear in her voice very well. “I've never seen one of those. That is the reason it is called a dagger and not a knife. Knives have a single cutting edge while a dagger is recognized in modern times as having two cutting edges.” Nicki swallowed and shook her head, “And I'm rambling.”
“Nicole,” Merlin's voice called through the phone. “You don't need to learn this and certainly not now after a battle.”
“But this is when we are most likely to need it,” Nicki countered, raising her chin in a show of bravery. “Injuries will raise questions and I'm sure the campus gossip mill will be all about the strange dogs that were running loose on campus. I just hope they headed straight for us and didn't hurt anyone else.”
“Very well,” Morgana conceded, “Are you next to Alex? It is easiest if you can face one another.”
Nicki climbed all the way onto the bed, folding her legs under her. Mindful of her hand, Alex shifted to copy the position in order to fully face Nicki and held out her hand.
“One second,” Nicki told them through the phone. “I probably need to remove the bandage, don't I?”
“Indeed,” Merlin replied calmly. “Contact with the injury and being able to see it are key to successfully healing someone.”
As Nicki gently unwrapped the bandages, careful not to tug at the damaged skin, Aiden stood up and moved over towards them with the phone and his chair. He stopped and sat down in the chair after checking to make sure that he wasn't blocking Bran's view and held the phone out closer to them.
“Okay,” Nicki said as she set the bandages aside on the bed, careful to fold them so the blood wasn't touching any of Bran's things. “We're ready.”
“Close your eyes and breathe,” Morgana instructed smoothly, her voice taking on a hypnotic quality. “Inhale slowly and exhale slowly.”
Nicki obeyed, her eyes sliding closed and taking in slow breathes. Morgana repeated the words several times and Alex could see Nicki's shoulders easing slightly. The room was still and the noise of people in the halls and in other rooms seemed muted. Looking down at her wound, Alex found her revulsion fading slightly and barely noticed when Nicki brought her hands back up to cradle her hand. Alex closed her own eyes and took in several long and slow breathes, urging herself to relax.
“Connect to your magic,” Morgana commanded gently, keeping her voice calm and even. “Find it Nicki and hold it close.” The instructions confused Alex, but she heard Nicki release a soft sigh and remained still. “Gather it together, allow your magical energy to form an orb in your mind. Don't bring it forth into the world, keep it inside,” Morgana instructed in her hypnotic voice.
There was only the sound of Nicki's slow breathing in the room as everyone, including Alex had softened their own breathes. All other sounds were so far off and Alex felt like she was drifting away as she sank into herself, the ache in her hand easing with her disconnect from the pain.
“Now, reach for Alex's energy,” Morgana told her, shattering the silence, but not the stillness that had taken hold of the room.
Alex braced herself, coming back to reality a bit at Morgana's words, but she felt nothing. Taking another slow breath, Alex wondered if there was something she was supposed to be doing. Then there was a tingling over her skin. She shivered slightly, trying to stay still
and reclaim the calmness, but the tingling sensation increased. It wasn't quite a tickle, she felt no need to laugh, but a sense of discomfort was spreading over her body. Her skin felt a little too tight and there was a feeling like a feather being brushed over her skin very gently, just enough that she could feel it. Swallowing, Alex forced herself to stay still and resisted the urge to rub her arms and scratch her nose. She heard and almost felt Nicki exhale in front of her.
Opening her eyes, Alex gasped, the air rushing from her lungs. A light blue glow was surrounding Nicki, illuminating her auburn hair and making her freckles stand out sharply. It shimmered around her, pulsing gently with Nicki's breaths, shifting between a lighter and darker shade of sky blue with each inhale and exhale. Alex had a strange instinct to reach for the light, to gather it up, but forced the impulse away. Taking in a shaky breath, Alex felt her hand begin to itch and tingle. She shifted it, but Nicki's grasp on it tightened and the glow intensified.
