The Broken Song

Chapter Twenty-Three

—Kiverryn, Iskendryn—

Where was she? Her steps were stilted, her mind foggy. She had been doing something important. Hadn't she? What was it? There was something tugging at the edge of her mind. A...was it a throne? Her eyes were heavy. She was struggling just to stay awake, the urge to give into the call of sleep nearly insurmountable. But every time she tried, every time she felt herself drifting away, another rumble tore through the ground beneath her feet, urging her to keep walking.

Taking a deep breath, she tried to clear her mind. A sharp pain made her stumble, a cry escaping her throat. Lulu stilled, her right hand reaching toward the source of the pain. Her fingers squished in her own blood. A jagged, terrible wound dripped steadily, but she couldn't remember where she had gotten it. That couldn't be right. No one could get a wound like this without knowing where it came from.

There it was again. That strange tickle at the edge of her memory. She was supposed to remember something. Something important.

"Here is not the place to linger."

A voice, feminine and velvety soft spoke near her ear. Lulu whirled around, but the figure, wrapped in a long black cloak that billowed behind them, was already far away at the end of the winding leaf-covered trail through the thick forest.

"Your path is to the left, mortal child," the figure raised a crystal hand to gesture in the correct direction. "I suggest you not stray into the forest. Dark things lurk in the shadows."

Behind her, a wolf howled.

*************

They could hear the screams outside. They were getting closer. Idelle shifted nearer to the bed, watching Lulu as she struggled against the black sludge trying to push its way through her veins. Her heart was beating erratically. Sweat rolled off her forehead and dripped to the pillow and sheets beneath her, soaking them through. Her limbs twitched, and every strained moan carried words too weak to hear. Every minute, Lulu's condition was deteriorating. Ori had stopped the bleeding almost as soon as they had returned to the inn, but still, Lulu couldn't wake up. The Sorceress had done something when she threw the spearhead into her friend's gut.

On the other side of the bed, Ori stood in meditation, her hands stretched out over Lulu's body, bands of white light scanning Lulu continuously. Her magic enveloped the room and beyond, barring entry and guarding every street that led to the inn. The city guard was sweeping the streets on the Sorceress' orders. The moment they stepped foot into this district, Ori would know. But that was hardly the end of it. Ori had to heal herself and Sir Thancred, banish the hex from Idelle, and now she had to try and save Lulu. Idelle wasn't certain how her cousin had the strength to stand.

Ori was the best healer she had ever seen, even better than Aunt Teryn herself. There was a reason many people believed her to be the Savior. But for all her skill, Ori couldn't pull the sludge from Lulu's veins. Each attempt had hurt Ori as well as Lulu, and Idelle knew Ori couldn't sustain this level of magical ability for long. If she depleted every ounce of aether she possessed, Ori would be as useless to them as an unskilled child.

When Ori sighed in frustration, her shoulders sagging, fingers reaching up to pinch the bridge of her nose, Idelle felt her heart wrench sharply in her chest. This couldn't be it. Lulu couldn't die like this. She wasn't meant to die like this.

"I can't..." Ori whispered. "I can't...I...Fuck!" Her shout startled the rest of their party, the men jumping as she whirled around and slammed her fist into the wall. Sahn was the only one unperturbed and approached her slowly.