A Savior's Worth (Book #3)

Chapter Twenty-Five

Eldon sat on a cliff, letting his legs dangle over the edge. He listened to water roar down a stream below and watched the sun rise over a mountain. He decided the mountain was shaped like a giant bird perched on a thick vertical branch. Admittedly, that was a weird thought, but that mountain was also just weird.

He heard actual birds chirping nearby, overpowering the crickets, and announcing to the mountains and its inhabitants that it was officially dawn. Another day that would surely be filled with more dead-ends and disappointments. They still hadn't even reached the Almighty's temple.

Stupid birds. Eldon rolled his eyes.

He heard someone approach from behind, but he didn't care to look.

"How long have you been out here?" asked Henry.

Eldon barely lifted his shoulders, too irritated to even give his friend a proper shrug. He picked up a tiny sharp rock and tossed it forward. He watched as it fell stiffly down and then quickly lost sight of it the further it went. Henry sat beside him, and Eldon looked at him. The circles beneath his eyes had darkened drastically the past few days. Who could sleep well after what happened that other night, though?

Eldon sighed and saw his breath come out in a swirl of clouds. "How are ya?" he asked Henry, despite knowing the answer.

"I am..." Henry slowly ran his fingers through his tangled locks and scratched the back of his head. "I'm managing. How about yourself?"

"Yeah," Eldon lied, because it was better than explaining himself.

"Are you hungry? Cora is making a stew—"

"I'm fine, Henry." Eldon stared out at the weird mountain again, squinting.

"No, no you are not. And I really wish you would speak to me."

"You ain't gotta worry 'bout me, Henry. As long as yer alive, I'm fine."

"I'm—" Henry paused. Then he shook his head. "Has your healing ability gotten better?"

Eldon glanced down at his thumb. The morning after that night, he'd gotten cut pretty deep by a thorn in a bush. Blood had stained his coat's cuff. Though his magic had quickly slowed the flow, it took longer than usual for the wound to close. It also hadn't happened without giving him a major headache. The scar that followed also didn't heal as fast. In fact, it had only disappeared last night.

"It's workin'," he answered, which wasn't entirely a lie. It was actually working—just not at its usual speed. He wasn't sure if he could heal anyone else, though.

Eldon hadn't bothered to heal Henry again. Henry hadn't gotten too sick in the past few days either. Cora watched over him and made remedies for him using plants they came across. Most were a strange color and shape, and she spent hours explaining how these plants only grew up in these certain areas. The plants loved the cold, died in warm weather, and were perfect for creating medicines. She then explained how exactly they these medicines worked and what their uses were for. Eldon tuned her out at some point after that. He thought he heard her mention one of these plants saved the life of a past queen, but he didn't care enough to have her repeat that.

Henry stared at him for a moment. "Are... are you sure?" Eldon showed him his thumb.

"Like it never happened," he murmured.

Henry just pursed his lips and nodded.

They sat there—quietly, listening to the whistling of the frigid wind and the crashing of the water below. The birds finished their morning songs and were replaced by the distant thumping of jack rabbits.