The Elder Blood Chronicles Book 3 From the Ashes

by Melissa Myers

  Jala looked back up to the road and she watched in confusion as several armored knights approached. The lead rider swung down as they pulled to a halt and the woman advanced quickly, her eyes barely glancing across Jala and Vaze as she stopped in front of Valor. She stared up at his face for a long moment, her expression unreadable to Jala.

  I don’t think she even saw me. I’m getting rather sick of that reaction. Bendazzi are to be feared, not ignored. I think it’s the white fur. It makes me look peaceful. When I had black fur even you feared me, Marrow complained, shifting his position for a better look at the horses who most certainly noticed him. Their restless shuffle and nervous whickers seemed to soothe him and he settled back farther against her leg. At least the animals have proper respect, he grumbled.

  “My Lord Valor,” the lady knight said in a voice that was near breathless. Dropping down to a knee before him she bowed her head deeply. “I am here to serve,” she said with such a fervent tone that both Vaze and Jala turned to stare at Valor.

  “Bridgette,” Valor said in a stunned voice, looking down at the woman with an expression of shock on his face. “Bridgette, by all of the Aspects, what are you doing here? Get up. I have no time for dramatics,” he said as he shifted back from her, looking rather uncomfortable. His gaze rose to the remaining knights who seemed amused by the display.

  “I’ve come with your regiment. I’ve been Commanding officer in your absence, Lord Valor. I have reports for you, of course,” Bridgette said quickly as she rose to her feet and brushed the dust from her armor. She seemed to notice their disheveled state then, her eyes locking on Valor’s torn clothing and utter lack of armor, then moving slowly to Jala who stood huddled beside him wrapped in the torn filthy cloak Valor had loaned her. By the woman’s expression, though, she didn’t notice the dirt and blood at all. Her attention seemed focused instead on the black and silver color of the cloak, the colors of house Hai’dia.

  “No time for reports at the present, Bridgette. Where can I find Neph?” Valor said impatiently. He still seemed uneasy in the woman’s presence and Jala noticed his eyes flick to the waiting knights more than once as he spoke.

  “Not sure why you would want to find him, but if you truly do, he is near the center of town at the big house with the purple doors,” one of the knights offered with a smile.

  “Thank you, Foster.” Placing a hand carefully on Jala’s back he urged her forward. “Come on, Neph will know where Ash is,” he said gently, his other arm moving quickly to steady her. Glancing over his shoulder, Valor nodded to the knights. “Allow me time to see to Lady Merrodin’s needs and I will find you for the reports, Bridgette,” Valor said in a louder voice.

  “Well that could be interpreted several ways,” one of the men behind them mumbled and there was a round of muffled laughter.

  Jala felt Valor tense beside her but he remained silent. She fought back the urge to look up at him. Her feet were too unsteady. It was better to simply focus on the ground and moving as quickly as she could. With her good hand braced solidly on Marrow’s powerful neck and Valor’s support at her side, she urged her feet to move faster and ignored the stumbling.

  She could feel Vaze’s eyes on her as she walked, but didn’t spare time to glance at him, either. There was only one thing she wanted to see right now and that was a large house with purple doors.

  “People are already muttering, Jala. You aren’t making a very good impression as the returning High Lady,” Vaze whispered beside her.

  “Bugger their gossip,” Jala muttered, her eyes moving from building to building desperate to see the color purple.

  “I’m afraid there is going to be quite a bit of gossip after my unfortunate choice of words,” Valor sighed beside her.

  “Bugger that gossip too,” Jala muttered once more. There was a time when words had cut her to the bone. Cassia’s scathing remarks had hurt then. Now, however, it seemed laughable. She knew what true pain was, now. Words were nothing when compared to having someone you love die in your arms while you sat helpless to save him. Insults seemed pathetic compared to watching a friend agonize as Valor had when faced with the fight in Death’s hall. They could gossip all they wanted, as long as she had Finn and her friends safely beside her.

  “There it is, not much farther,” Valor assured her quietly. She nodded as they drew closer to the house and nearly sagged with relief as the purple door swung open and Neph stepped out.

  “Neph,” Jala gasped, her eyes growing glassy. The pain in her stomach and hand had become a steady, unbearable pulse. “Neph, I need Ash, please,” she added frantically as the big mage rushed down the stairs toward them.

  “Jala!” Neph cried, his expression filled with panic as he took in their appearance. “What the hell happened to her, Valor?” Neph demanded in a tone filled with accusation.

  “She fought Death. Be glad she still lives,” Vaze answered before Valor had time to reply. “She also insists on raising Finn before she is healed because she is a stubborn ass. So could you please locate the missing Soulreaver before your High Lady falls over from blood loss?”

  “I have no idea where he is. I haven’t seen him since you left Merro,” Neph answered with apology clear in his voice.

  I smell him now. The Soulreaver. The scent is coming from the house, Marrow cut in, his head tilting toward the open door behind Neph.

  “Inside,” Jala gasped, pulling free of Valor and stumbling forward. The child kicked inside her and her throat grew tight. It was the first time she had felt her son move. The muscles of her stomach tightened and pain ripped through her savagely. Knotting her hand in Marrow’s fur, she staggered up the stairs and through the door. She could hear the others behind her but they didn’t matter now. All that mattered was Finn and her unborn child. If she acted quickly enough perhaps she could save both.

  “Jala he isn’t inside. I just came from inside,” Neph said as he quickly followed her up the stairs and through the door, his words trailing off as Ash stepped out of a side door and bowed his head to her. “Well he wasn’t in here,” Neph muttered sourly. “I will have words with Sovann about his wards of protection.”

  “Ash, do you have his body still?” Jala gasped as she stepped quickly toward the Soulreaver. Her feet tangled as she moved, and had it not been for the massive Bendazzi beside her she knew she would have fallen.

  Ash studied her with his pale eyes and slowly nodded. He was dressed, as always, in pure white tunic and pants that seemed to flow around him. That, combined with his pale skin and snow-white hair, made him seem like one of the spirits of the Darklands. “I have him prepared. They told me you had left the Darklands. I came here at once,” Ash said, his voice soothing and calm. Stepping back, he motioned her past him into the dimly lit room.

  “I’m sending for a healer. I don’t like the way she is staggering. I thought you were guarding her, Valor,” Neph snapped as he turned back for the door.

  “I was guarding her and I did what I could to protect her,” Valor objected weakly.

  “He protected me from everything he could, Neph. This damage, he couldn’t save me from. I brought this on myself,” Jala cut in before the conversation could turn more heated.

  Nodding to Ash, she stepped through into the parlor. Finn’s body had been laid out carefully on the table and she moved as quickly as she could to his side. “Soon,” she murmured, tracing a finger across his face. Swallowing heavily she withdrew the spirit stone from her pocket and handed it carefully to Ash. “I’m not sure how much time we have. I didn’t kill her. I only weakened her,” Jala told him quietly, her gaze never moving from Finn’s too-still face.

  Ash took the stone from her silently and moved to stand on the other side of the table. He closed his eyes as he turned the stone over in his hand and then tightened his fingers around it. After a long moment his eyes opened again and he tilted his head a bit to the side. “Jala this soul is damaged.”

  Jala looked up sharply, panic rising in her che
st. “Damaged?” she gasped. “Can you fix it?” Her voice was pleading and her heart was hammering at the thought that he might say no.

  Nodding slowly, Ash looked down at the stone and nodded again more firmly. “I can, but I am more concerned with how it was damaged. Did you have difficulty with the stone?”

  Light-headed with relief, Jala barely heard the question as she sagged against Marrow’s side. She shook her head slowly. “The stone worked perfectly. I wasn’t even aware that the soul was damaged, but if you can repair it there is nothing to worry about, right?”

  Ash shifted and his eyes locked on her desperate expression. After a long moment he nodded once more. “We will see,” he said quietly.

  “Can it truly be repaired or are you soothing her because of her condition?” Vaze asked as he moved to her side.

  “There could be complications,” Ash admitted softly as he turned the stone over in his hand once more, his eyes scanning it as if searching for damage to the stone itself. “It truly depends on how the soul was damaged, to know what complications,” he added and let out a long sigh. Looking up at Jala once more he shrugged at her. “If you wish me to continue, I will.”

  Jala stared down at Finn’s body, her eyes going glassy once more. Looking up, she searched Ash’s face, looking for some sign of his true feelings on their chances, but his expression was simply serene. She turned to Vaze and found him frowning down at her. He gave a slight shake of his head. Slowly, she turned back toward the doorway and found Valor leaning on the frame. He had the look of someone preparing to meet the executioner and she could relate completely. Simply the thought of everything they had endured in the Darklands being in vain, was almost as painful as the throbbing of her wounds.

  Turning back to Finn, Jala pressed a hand against the cold flesh of his chest. “I would give anything to see Finn’s eyes open once more, to feel warmth in his skin, to hear his voice.” Her throat was tight and she spoke each word carefully to ensure she was fully understood. Moving slowly, she traced her hand up his chest and rested it gently on his cheek and felt the warmth of tears trace a path down her face. She swallowed heavily through the tightness of her throat and looked back up to Ash. “If you can give him back to me, I will owe you more than I can ever repay. If there is any possibility that he can be raised, then I want to try. I need Finn.”

  “As you say,” Ash agreed with a slight nod. Stepping back from the table he raised the stone in his hand and met her eyes once more. “First, I break the stone, and then I repair the spirit. Depending on how severe the damage is, that could take a long while. It will be some time before he awakens, though. Once the spirit is back in the body, he lives, however, so when you see the rise and fall of his chest you will go to the healers. Is that understood, Lady Merrodin?” His tone was firm and while she wanted to argue to stay with Finn she knew it would be a useless waste of her waning strength. With Valor and Vaze both in the room, it would be three against one and she was in no condition to win against those odds.

  “Agreed and understood,” Jala replied weakly as she slowly drew her hand back from Finn and crossed it over her stomach. She felt the child inside her kick once again as if in protest to her ignoring him and braced herself for another spasm of pain. Her muscles seized and she let out a weak ragged breath as Ash closed his fingers around the tiny soul stone and began to chant in a language that was utterly foreign to her ears. “Soon,” she murmured once again. This time to her unborn child as well as Finn.

  There was a sharp crack and a faint glow emanated from Ash’s pale hands. Carefully the Soulreaver lowered his cupped palms to the body on the table before him. With a touch as gentle as new falling snow, he brushed his fingers across Finn’s forehead and traced a path down the center of his face and neck to rest on his chest. The glow faded from his hands and seeped into the skin of the dead flesh. Ash continued to chant as he carefully raised his hands back away from the body. There was a long moment of utter stillness in the room and then the ever so faint rise of Finn’s chest.

  Jala choked back a sob and forced herself to remain still. She wanted so badly to wrap her arms around him, but the signs of life were still so fragile that she feared disrupting the magic. His chest rose and fell again with more strength and she watched the color slowly seeping back into his smooth bronze skin.

  “He lives. Now you go to the healer,” Vaze said sternly beside her.

  “One more minute, Vaze, please,” Jala pleaded, her voice filled with desperation. She knew Ash said he wouldn’t awaken for a long while but she could swear she had seen his eyelid flicker. The motion came again and she held her breath as his eyes fully opened staring blankly at first and then blinking. “Finn,” she breathed, joy and relief rising so quickly that a wave of dizziness washed over her.

  “Soulreaver?” Vaze’s voice sounded cautious, but she ignored him completely.

  Finn turned his head slowly and looked up at her with his beautiful dark green eyes. “Jala,” he murmured, his voice thick and hoarse. He blinked and licked his dry lips with a growing expression of confusion on his face. “Jala, what have you done?” he gasped.

  “I’ve brought you back, Finn. Everything will be fine now,” Jala promised, her hand reaching to take his. She felt his fingers wrap around hers lightly and the warmth of his hand was more soothing than anything she had ever known before. Tears coursed openly down her face but they were tears of relief. Every fear and pain that she had felt in the past weeks had been worth it simply to hear him speak her name once more.

  “Jala,” Finn gasped as his body writhed on the table. His expression of confusion was replaced with one of agony and his grip on her hand became crushing.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Jala gasped, her eyes flying to Ash who had been steadily working his magic despite Finn’s early awakening.

  “Step back from him!” Vaze yelled as he took hold of her arm roughly and tried to pull her back.

  Finn’s grip on her hand tightened again and she felt her bones scream in protest. “Finn!” she screamed, more in concern for him than her own welfare.

  Finn’s back arched, every muscle in his body taut, then slowly relaxed. Still gripping her hand he slowly sat up, his green eyes locked on hers once more but no trace of warmth remained in them.

  “What the hell is happening?” Vaze demanded trying once more to pull Jala back from the table.

  “Jala, step away. This isn’t right. He should not be moving yet,” Ash’s voice called to her before breaking into another chant that held no trace of the soothing tones of his awakening spell.

  “You stupid bitch. Do you have any idea what you have done?” Finn demanded, his voice filled with hate as his free hand caught her fully across the jaw in a backhanded blow. “Did you really think you could meddle with the Divine and win?” Finn snarled.

  There was a flash of movement to her side and then Valor was between her and Finn, his fist crashing into Finn’s face with a sickening crunch. “Let go of her!” Valor commanded, his voice filled with fury.

  Finn’s hand released her at once as he turned to face Valor fully, his eyes still cold and hate–filled, but a smile forming on his lips. “Brave protector, eh Val? You have never beaten me in a fight before. What makes you think you can now?” he asked as he flexed his hand and formed a fist.

  “This is not Finn. She is soulriding him,” Ash called loudly with fear clearly written in his voice. “That is the Dark Lady herself. Move away from him quickly!”

  Finn lunged toward Valor with the savagery of a hunting cat and Jala felt Marrow’s full weight pushing her farther back from the fight. Finn’s first blow caught Valor in the side and the breath exploded out of him as his ribs caved. Staggering back, Valor reached for the sword he always wore at his side, but it wasn’t there. The memory of handing it to Jala flashed through his eyes as he clumsily dodged Finn’s next swing and landed a glancing blow of his own across Finn’s jaw.

  “Stop them!” Jala wailed as she str
uggled to break free of Vaze’s grip. “Finn, no! Fight her! That’s Valor you are trying to kill, your closest friend! Finn, please!” Her voice rose frantically, but her struggles against Vaze were as futile as her words to Finn.

  Ash had retreated well away from the fight and she could see him preparing another spell. The look on his face was filled with doubt, however. She knew the fear the Soulreavers had for Death, even speaking the words Dark Lady made Ash nervous.

  Shadows began to rise around the table and Jala spun to look back at Vaze, her eyes searching desperately for his intent. Perhaps if he could simply restrain Finn long enough they could find a way to force Death from his body. The sound of splintering wood brought her attention sharply back to the fight and she saw Valor rolling quickly from the broken table. Finn stalked after him, stooping to pluck a table leg from the wreckage as he moved. He gave a wicked smile as he hefted the wood in his hand and examined the jagged broken edge.

  “Ready to see your sister again, Val?” Finn asked as he kicked another piece of the table from his path.

  Valor had regained his feet and squared his shoulders. He watched Finn approach with no fear on his face at all, despite the wounds he had already taken. Jala wasn’t sure if the knight had noticed the ring of shadows slowly surrounding Finn’s feet or if he simply did not fear the thought of dying. Whatever the case, Valor simply nodded with a faint smile of his own. “You always did spit on the most important things in life, Finn. I know you have willpower, you bastard, but you never use it at the right times.”

  Finn let out a bitter laugh and raised the table leg for a swing. “Sage advice, coming from you,” he chuckled as the shadows rose swiftly from the floor completely shrouding him in darkness.

  Jala sagged back against Vaze and looked hopefully at the shadows praying that they would hold Finn long enough for Ash to cleanse him.

  Valor staggered slightly and leaned back against the wall, a trickle of blood coming from the side of his mouth and more matting his fine silver hair. He looked across the room toward her, his eyes filled with concern. “Are you OK?” Valor asked softly.