The Hidden Crystal

Chapter 10

Stone grated against stone, jolting Iris out of a restless sleep to sit bolt upright in the cot. She shrank back against the wall, pulling her knees to her chest and the blankets up to her neck, her heart pounding as the stone door rolled away. The lighting was dimmer than usual, but she easily recognized the man who stood in the doorway. It was Char. His green eyes met hers for just a moment, and then he scanned the room, stopping briefly when he saw her dinner, untouched in a tray on the floor. He looked back at her and walked over to stand above the cot.

"What have they done to you?" he asked quietly.

She hesitated and then pushed the blanket back, showing him her golden hands and the gold encrusted amulet. "It's to keep me from using magic," she explained cautiously. The muscle was pulsing in Char's jaw again. He was angry, but not with her.

"Those idiots," he finally muttered under his breath. "Come on." He took her hand and pulled her up from the cot.

"Wait," she said, planting her feet when he started walking. "I don't want to get you in more trouble."

He turned back to her, his green eyes intense. "You can heal Srot?"

"I...I don't know," she said nervously. "Maybe before, but now..."

"'Maybe' is better than 'no.' Come on. We don't have much time," he said insistently, turning away and tugging her along again.

Iris let him pull her out of the cell. The stone hallway was dim, too. She wondered why everything wasn't bright anymore. Did the light level correlate with the time of day? She looked at Char's broad back in front of her, the occasional glimpse of his stern face in profile as they reached an intersection and he paused just briefly to glance around before resuming his silent, purposeful journey. The winding path they took through the varied caves was very intentional, and very deserted. Was it the middle of the night?

He stopped and cursed under his breath, stepping back and pushing her against the wall behind him. She didn't speak a word. It wasn't long before she heard the muted voices that made him stop, coming closer and closer. Char didn't move, his hand resting lightly on her arm behind him to hold her in place, his back pressing into her chest.

"Won't be long now, not if they can't get the bleeding to stop."

"I would've thought our mage could do something."

"He's done everything he can. They sent for another mage, but I doubt he'll make it in time."

The voices faded away again. Char's hand tightened around Iris' arm, and he started walking at a much more brisk pace. She had to trot to keep up. Her stomach twisted as the two men's words replayed in her mind. The mage who sealed her magic couldn't do anything for the dying man. Why did Char think she could? This was just going to end in three people dying: Srot, Char, and her.

A horrible moaning reached her ears. Her heart stopped, her eyes widened, and the whispers burst through the golden wall around the amulet, loud and intelligible.

Iris, heal him. You can heal him.

Char cursed again. "Kelnor..."

She pulled free from him, ignoring his surprised shout, and ran into the darkened room. Her eyes immediately focused on the man lying on the bed. His head turned from side to side, moaning and groaning, his face slick with sweat. Blood stained the bandages on his arms, soaking through the layers of cloth someone was pressing to his stomach. The voices on the outside were a dull murmur that she didn't care to make out. She shoved somebody aside, tearing the bloodied rags from the open wound. It was deep. So deep. She gagged, but the whispers wouldn't let her look away. They were telling her what to do. She lay her left hand flat on the gaping hole, taking the amulet in her right hand. Searing pain shot up her right arm, temporarily muting the whispers. She cried out and squeezed her eyes shut, clenching her fingers tightly around the blazingly hot stone, forcing the heat up her arm, across her chest, and down her left arm. The man on the bed cried out, too, and she flattened her fingers against the wound.