The morning of the execution, Lyana forced herself to stand beside Lady Wyn as Emeltra was executed. Lyana had felt nothing but an odd numbness as she watched and sensed the life of the woman fade.
Lyana knew she shouldn't take death so lightly, and she wondered if she had lost a small part of herself at some point, when not an ounce of pity had crossed her mind. Something about how Emeltra had made Shiar suffer had eliminated the humanity in Lyana's soul, at least while watching Emeltra die for her crimes.
Returning to her brother's side, Lyana and Wyn had battled the effects of Emeltra's death. Braced against his screams and struggles, Lyana could feel the waves of fever that were wasting Shiar's body wash over her through their connection. Whatever the poison had been, Emeltra's demise had shocked his body, as if the contamination was connected to her very life force and had been suddenly released to run amok in Shiar.
Lyana watched him go through a cycle of withdrawal that would have killed him if she hadn't been with him and keeping his body fighting with her power. With her help, he survived the violent fever but mere lapsed back into and unconsciousness that initially seemed no different from the previous several weeks. Lyana ducked her head, closing her eyes against the feelings of despair that threatened to shake her resolve.
Wyn remained silent, merely rubbing her back until Lyana regained control and turned to assess Shiar's condition. Lyana hesitated upon detecting a change in him, her hand moving to his forehead to note break in the feverish heat he had been suffering from.
It was nearly imperceptible, but she knew there was something different coursing through him, a new strength in her brother in place of the physical craving of what Emeltra had addicted him to. Fighting back tears, Lyana washed him down before she coaxed him to drink broth and water. Shiar didn't wake, but he didn't resist drinking either, which was another small change from the battles they'd had trying to keep him alive.
Lyana then used what was left of her and Wyn's energy to bolster Shiar's body for recovery, before sending her friend back to bed. They both needed rest to continue this fight for her brother's health, and Lyana could see it taking its toll on the other woman, just as surely as it was eating away at her.
She had been telling her brother a story he had loved when she was younger when he opened his eyes. They focused on her, his expression lucid as he smiled and brushed his hand over hers. "Little bird, you need to go find her for me."
Lyana's heart broke at her words, meeting his gaze and saying with a hard severity. "Emeltra was executed this morning, she was making you sick. You won't see her again."
Shiar gave her a confused look and shook his head stubbornly after a moment. "Who? No. She told me she would wait for me, but I haven't seen her in months."
Lyana frowned at him, but knew that whatever he was saying was still marred by his fever dreams and the struggles he was going through. Instead of correcting him, she kissed his brow and assured him that whoever it was would be waiting for him to get better.
He nodded and lay back, closing his eyes and falling into an easy slumber, his expression untroubled. She watched him sleep far more peacefully than he had since becoming ill until one of the other healers came in and told her she needed rest.
Lyana had finally given in and left her brother alone with his dreams, starting the short walk back through the palace to where she was staying with Lady Wyn. She felt a weariness in her whole being that seemed to threaten to swallow her whole as she fell into introspection and doubt over what would be waiting for her in the morning.
Lyana stopped at a large window that overlooked the city, glancing out towards the sea in the darkness. She often found herself looking at the harbour, waiting for good news from their friends across the bay in absence of any here. With the change in Shiar, was it a sign of good news for all of them? It had been weeks since Wyn had mentioned any word from Aupana other than bland trade information.
"Lady Lyana" A voice pulled her from her half-asleep reverie and she turned to look at King Caelur as he walked up to her, giving her a soft smile. "It is late."
She nodded slowly and bit her lip. "I'm afraid of sleep, my mind gives me the same nightmares that Shiar has if I rest too soon after healing him. And I've seen enough of those dark alleys and evils in the last couple weeks to be full of them for the rest of my life."
"Do they stay with you? The memories and dreams of others?" Caelur asked softly, his expression tender.
Lyana let out a slow breath and shook her head as she forced herself to shake off the cobwebs of her thoughts. "Sometimes, the deeper I search and the more often I go, it lingers. I still feel a connection with Nerini, like I could stand on the docks and point to where she was across the bay, I think. But I was practicing with her for a couple months. I was trying to look into her mind in different ways and built a connection with her that isn't like what I've felt with anyone else. Already I can feel the residue of Emeltra fading. Already, I feel like the evil I saw in her. It couldn't possibly have been that bad. With Shiar it's hard, he's always been more connected to me, so it's easier to get lost inside there, confuse his world with mine."
Caelur nodded slowly, frowning and looking out the window for a long while before murmuring. "Is he going to be alright? If he recovers?"
"Will he recover, you mean?" She shrugged helplessly, chewing on her bottom lip before finding an answer to give him. "He's hazy, and he's just now letting go of his biological need to be around that woman. But he let go, I just don't if he'll be the exact same as before. He has fallen very far, very quickly, and his body has a long way to come back."
"What did she want from him?" Caelur asked finally and looked to Lyana, though neither one of them knew the answer. "Why did she target him?"
"Power. I guess. Control. She loved the feeling of having complete command over someone, breaking every connection they had and having them prostrate in adoration for her, both physically and in their soul." Lyana shuddered at the memories that she did know.
There was still a great deal that she had not found in the woman's mind, so many facets and motivations that made it more complicated than one specific plot or reason. Emeltra had wanted someone to love her and yet wanted so much more. The woman had believed herself invincible, because of this talent she had with men.
Caelur nodded again. They had run over those thoughts and feelings a thousand times before, it seemed. Finally, the King looked to her with a pained expression. "I feel lost. Your brother has been at my side for as long as I can remember. I've always felt that he was the infallible one out of all of us, and I can't even begin to understand everything that happened, and how vulnerable we all are or how easy it was to lose him."
"I know." Lyana said softly, shivering and looking up to him for a long moment, then back out the window as she answered. "It really is a tough lesson to realize just how fallible the strongest of us are."
"And how strong we all are too." Caelur let out a breath, reaching out to wrap his arm around her shoulders and pull her close to him, giving her a gentle squeeze. "As needed as Shiar is, we have all demonstrated to ourselves and everyone else that we can carry the burden if required. You've proven that you are strong enough on your own to save anyone's life."
Lyana blushed, but hugged him back tightly. They clung to one another for the moment with the familiarity of siblings. They had both always been so dependent on Shiar to have the answers or solution. All their lives he had been around, calming their fears and helping them win their battles. They had both proven they could be strong for Shiar, but it didn't seem as empowering as one would assume.
It made her feel as lost as Caelur was.
"Do you think it was done on purpose? Or was she just a chance, an unseen force in the big game? It just seems odd that Shiar was attacked within the same time Lord Kannein disappeared." Lyana leaned against him, relaxing in his embrace, trying to work through the worry of things she didn't understand.
Caelur shook his head, looking down to her. "I don't know. I've been trying to figure that out myself. Either way, it has given us quite the stumbling block, though they don't seem to be capitalizing on it."
"Unless they're using it for something else." Lyana frowned and looked out into the harbour as if trying to see across the water. "Maybe there's something else they want more, that we don't yet see."
"We could get caught up in what-ifs and maybes till we drove ourselves crazy, little bird." He said gently, offering her a smile. "All we can do is our best to fight our own game and change theirs."
Lyana frowned at his words, but finally inclined her head in agreement. There were so many unknowns that there was no reassurance in any of their theories. After a few more moments of watching the water, they separated and took themselves to bed.
Perhaps the morning would have better news.