Mostly Normal: Magic Cannot Cure Sickness

Chapter Eighteen: Sunshine's End

Rain clouds hung low over the camp, and again Nia was bedridden. Her lips were now a bright orange, and since she was so sick, she was in a room by herself. The silence rang in her ears as she tossed and turned angirly. Hot tears still slipped down her face as she thought about her lost sister. "I failed you," she croaked, her voice near gone. "My little sister. You're gone."

A knock sounded at her door and Will entered, followed closely by Nico. Both boys were wearing surgeon's masks to avoid catching the sickness.

"Hey Nia," said Will, sounding subdued, "Here's a little ambrosia. Can you see if you can keep it down?"

"I can try," Nia whispered miserably. Nico went and stood on the opposite side of Nia's bed, watching his boyfriend as he stooped to feed Nia her ambrosia.

The oldest child of Hecate ate the ambrosia, forcing it past her swollen tonsils and bright orange throat. Will took out a thermometer from his medical bag and stuck it into her ear, testing her temperature. Before the temperature could register, Hanna burst through the door, her large blue eyes were filled with tears. "Nico-I. The body, and. Sunshine-" her voice broke several times. She was almost hysterical as she spoke.

Will's eyes widened and he rushed over to his half sister, "What happened? Breathe Hanna," he soothed, placing a hand on her shoulder. Her breathing evened out as tears spilled from her eyes, wetting the mask that covered her nose and mouth.

"Sunshine was sick. She didn't tell us. She just passed away. She could've made it if we had been able to see that our sister was sick! And we could have saved her if we had made sure that she made it- and- and-" Hanna gasped.

Nico slipped silently out of the room.

Nia watched Will comfort his half sister and felt something inside her shatter. She knew she had to get better--for Natalie, for all those campers out there that needed her. She was determined. Already something like a song formed in her head, a song she felt like she needed to sing for Natalie--but her voice was gone. She couldn't do it.

Or could she?

The plan just got better and better, and so did Nia. She felt the fever ebbing, but not by magic. Something else, something more powerful than magic was at work here.

She forced a croak out of her throat, though it was not said with her vocal cords, as there was no longer anything there. Instead, magic rushed through her body, he skin emitted a faint glow. The world slowly slipped into another set of colors, other than orange. The aching warmth that had took over her body for the past three weeks, finally left and she was left with a welcomed shaking cold. She forced herself to sit upright, looking out of the window that lay on the East side of the infirmary room. Hanna finally came to her senses and returned back to her work. Will did the same, turning around to see Nia.

"How did you? What?" he asked baffled.

"I think I overcame the sickness," she said softly, not wanting to overextend her new, magic infused voice.

"How are you talking?" Will asked, coming over and examining the place where her vocal cords once rested. "You don't have any vocal cords and it doesn't look like you were cured by anything magical. Did you seriously just overcome Orange Cough by sheer will alone?"

"I'm a daughter of Hecate," she said with a sly, yet sad smile, "I'm funneling magic into my voice so that I can talk. I just thought that I had to do better for Natalie, and all the other campers. I may be able to help the others by lowering the death toll with my magic. I mean the fevers so that the death toll will go down, my mind is all foggy. Where are Jackie and Jeremy? Are they sick too?"

"I think that you should rest for a little while before we use your magic to help the sick. Jackie and Jeremy are on a quest to find the cure," Will replied, "Don't you remember?"

"I don't really remember anything since the fever set in. I'll rest for now but if Jackie and Jeremy come back, wake me up as soon as they come back in," Nia said, laying down in the bed and shutting her eyes, allowing herself to drift into a demigod dream.