Between Worlds

Chapter 16

Malyn had followed a dirt road with Shadow on the back of his motorbike for a few minutes until they'd found a field, and then he'd stood next to the fence with Luther and watched with shared amusement as Shadow had snuck up on a group of sleeping cows. At some point, he stopped watching without even realising it, and it was only once Shadow was walking back towards them with the bags of blood held triumphantly in his hands that it occurred to him that Shadow must have used his ability to avoid notice.

Malyn was usually the chatty type, but Shadow hadn't said a word since they'd departed on this trip. Malyn found something about that funny, so he kept silent as well as they got back on the motorbike and drove back.

As they neared the bus, the atmosphere felt immediately tense. Finch stood by the bus door, his arms crossed and his face etched with concern. Tyla was kneeling on the ground, gasping for air, the acidic scent of vomit carried on the breeze. Adin, who had been trying to comfort Tyla, stepped away upon noticing Malyn.

Tyla stood and took a step in Malyn's direction, but then he faltered as though holding himself back.

Malyn kicked up the bike's stand and closed the distance between them. "Tyla, are you alright? You don't look so good."

Tyla took a moment, his throat working as he swallowed hard. "Can you take me somewhere? Just, somewhere, on the bike. We need to talk." His eyes flicked towards Luther, then back to Malyn. "Alone."

"Uh, yeah, of course," Malyn replied, slightly perplexed. He shot a quick look at Finch, who only offered a noncommittal shrug. "Alright, let's go. There are some cool cows not too far from here."

As Tyla climbed onto the bike and held onto Malyn tightly, Malyn couldn't shake off a growing sense of unease. Tyla had been off since the fire, maybe even before, and while there were plenty of reasons for that, this felt different. More serious.

They stopped next to the field of cows and Tyla climbed off the bike. He already looked steadier on his feet. Why had he been getting sick so much lately?

"Are you okay?" Malyn asked again. "You're scaring me."

Tyla's lips parted, but it took a moment before he found the words. "I've done something very bad."

"Well, I'm sure it's okay," Malyn said. "Whatever it is, we'll figure it out."

But Tyla's expression twisted into a grimace, his gaze shifting away. "I don't know if this can be fixed."

"It can't be that bad," Malyn insisted.

"It shouldn't be bad at all, but..." Tyla's voice trailed off. He groaned in frustration, rubbing his eyes. "I can't believe this happened. I didn't even think it was possible..."

"Tyla, you're freaking me out. What's going on?"

Tyla took a deep breath in and let it out. "Talan romance is, in many ways, not so very different from human romance. Our conventions may differ somewhat from yours, but we do things like date and get married. The only major difference is that, on very special occasions, our magic complicates things a little."

"Complicates things how?"

"When two Talan are very, very close, they start to share the most intimate parts of themselves. The very essence of their souls. Their magic. I didn't think this was possible with a human because you have no magic of your own, but..."

Malyn's eyes widened. "Wait, are you saying your magic is somehow... inside me?"

Tyla gave a grim nod of his head. "I didn't want to see it before, but now that I'm looking... yes. I'm certain of it."