Priestess

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Jarrer advanced; Ara blocked him, pivoted inward, and barely managed to stop her momentum before jamming her practice dagger in his throat.

Jarrer stumbled back, his arm reaching out to stop his fall. He hit the ground with a grunt and went limp.

Her dagger clattering to the ground, she knelt next to him. "I'm sorry, Jarrer!" she cried as he rolled over, his arm cradled against his body.

He groaned in pain.

She so wanted to help him. She bit her lip. She hadn't been able to Heal since her mother. What if Jarrer was wrong about that? At any rate, she felt drawn to try. Without asking for permission, she Entered, cringing when she felt Jarrer's withered soul. He tried to press her out, but he was weak with pain.

Blood, muscle, sinew, and bone inundated her. The muscle around the jagged bone pulsed with pain. She gathered light into herself. But she didn't keep it there as she had the last time. Instead, she let it flow through her like a sieve. There was a soft snapping sound.

She'd done it. She'd really done it. Startled, Ara pulled back her Fragment in a rush.

Jarrer's shocked gaze met her own. Gingerly, he touched the place she'd repaired and then carefully rotated his arm. Only a purple bruise remained. "You did it," he said in disbelief.

She couldn't help the smile that spread across her face.

He shook his head. "You should know, there are many wounds even the most talented Healers cannot fix."

Ara's smile faded. "Like what?"

"Burns. Healers can repair damaged tissue but not destroyed tissue. In addition, poisons and sickness are nearly impossible. To heal them, you have to find and cleanse the sickness one small area at a time. It takes enormous concentration and strength with little advancement."

Probing the place she'd healed, Jarrer nodded. "Ara, I believe I've taught you almost everything I know about swordsmanship. Follow me."

He approached what appeared to be the blank kitchen wall but was really a tracer door. He placed his finger in a small chip missing from the wall. Following the natural grain, he traced it down, then up in a large oval pattern. He stepped back as the granite slowly sucked back into a hidden hall.

Hunched over, they entered a passage that was meant to accommodate the shorter Miners. They followed the gently sloping passage deeper into the mountain. Just when Ara's back started to cramp, they came upon another tracer door. Jarrer traced a different pattern on the rock and stepped back as it slid inward.

They entered a long hall flanked by balconies with arrow slits at mid height. "I trust you will not to embarrass me?"

Ara fought to keep her glare down. It won't help, she reminded herself. But Jarrer hadn't anticipated a response. He'd already moved through.

After a series of confusing twists and turns, she stepped into a spacious hall, filled with Miners at various tasks. Almost unconsciously, she ran her Fragment over them. Stone, stone, stone and stone. She was surrounded by living, breathing stones.

Somewhat used to them, the Miners barely looked up.

One of the women came over to them. "What assistance can I be, Jarrer?"

"I'm looking for Bomin."

She gestured to a hallway. "Yoreg's in the kitchens today. Ask her."

Like the center of a giant underground spider web, halls lead off in all directions. But the comforting smell of baking bread and steamy cooking drifted down this one.