Fight or Flight

CHAPTER TWENTY

The next morning was slow, thank the Moon Mother. Frustration had burned through me for most of the night at my lackluster ability to sleep, even though I should have fallen under instantly with the day's events and the weight of my injuries.

Finnian was still in bed when I had entered his room, but was making significant improvements during a visit from Desmon. The crew's healer had brought many medical instruments and herbs with him from his office aboard Finnian's ship, all carried in a large bag. He really only used the magic in his hands, though, as the smell of citrus pierced the air again near where he worked.

Magic... it still baffled me. The glowing from Desmon's hands was such an unusual force. It didn't make sense to me how anyone, especially Riem, could have forgotten such a beautiful tool.

Once the healer finished with Finnian– leaving him with only scabs to heal naturally and instructions to rest his shoulder– he turned his attention to me. "How is your wing, Aria? We could probably dissipate most of the bruising around your neck, but the gashes along your back will take a few more sessions and some time."

"My wing is able to maintain lift again, but I might have used it a bit too early," I rubbed at the spots where it had broken, soreness subtly gnawing at them. The pain wasn't sharp and biting anymore, which was a welcoming relief. "Do what you think is best, Desmon." I gave him full permission.

He wielded the warm light from his palms again, hovering them just around my collarbone. Heat spread through my bones and muscles, snaking and winding until it had flushed out the affected areas around my throat. When he finished a few minutes later, his large eyes auditing the bruising– or lack of it as he said, "There. The color's gone and the pain shouldn't be as aggressive, but it will take some time to heal the rest on its own. Your essence is stubborn so it doesn't respond to my mending in the way Finnian's does."

"Hear that, lass?" Finnian scoffed a laugh at me from behind the healer, "You're stubborn!"

"What's my 'essence?'" I ignored Finnian's playful quip, cutting his laughter off with my question and a sidelong glare.

Desmon also did his best to ignore Finnian as he explained. "It's the magic you have within you– within each of us." He smiled to ease my misunderstanding. "Essence is magic within us, aura is magic around us. Only the owner can wield their essence, while aura can be shared."

I found my mouth working ahead of my brain again, but I needed Desmon to tell me more. "We are having a meeting downstairs in an hour to discuss a text Finnian and I recovered from the Nexus," I left out the part about it being stolen. It wasn't important. "Would you be willing to join us?"

My unabashed offer made Finnian sit up from his lazed position in bed. "Are you sure, lass?"

I nodded at his question but kept my focus locked on Desmon's expression. "I'm sure that Desmon knows more about magic than we do."

Finnian shrugged at my explanation, not putting up much of a fight, "Sounds good to me."

"After our session, I'd be more than willing to lend a hand." His large eyes squinted in concentration as he returned to his work. I watched as his hands began to glow, again, although they now hovered around my back instead of my neck. And again, the pain was flushed from my skin and muscle.

"That's incredible," was all I could find to describe the scene before me.

"It's your essence, I'm just willing it to heal with my own."

"So I could theoretically heal myself?"

"Not theoretically, literally. In fact, it's far easier to heal yourself than it is for others to heal you. If you knew how to wield your own essence, that is." I didn't shrink at his words because I could tell he hadn't intended them to bite.