The Immortal Guardians: Book IV

Chapter 3

Occasionally, there were hands on my face. It felt like if I was coming in and out of consciousness. I was finally able to open my eyes. There were blankets around me. I shivered into them and pulled them closer.

"We are heading to see Master Taak" Henri grasped my face. "Sleep."

"Wha?" I cleared my throat. He was staring at me with concerned eyes. My voice was stuck in my throat.

"Hang tight." Henri peered into my eyes. I closed them, and fell back asleep.

Soft hands were on my face. I stirred, opening my eyes. There were heavy blankets on me, and I could see a fire flickering.

"You are finally awake." I heard a soft familiar voice. I turned to see Charlain kneeling next to me.

"What are you doing here?" I tried to sit up but she pushed me back into my bed.

"You have been out for almost two weeks." She shook her head with a frown. She lifted a cup to my mouth. The cool water felt great in my mouth. It cleared away the nasty taste and helped open up my throat. I glanced around the room. We were in a small hut, and I was lying on the ground.

"Am I in ....Africa?" I turned to her with wide eyes. She got to her feet with a nod.

"Yes."

She started to take some blankets off of me. I felt like I had been baking under them. The room was too hot.

"How did we get here?" I stared up at her. She wasn't letting me move.

"Taron and Henri brought you here." she smiled at me. She looked really pleased to see me. "When I saw you. I didn't recognize you." She brushed my white hair back from my face.

"Do you know what is going on?"

The smile on her face slipped slightly.

Uh-Oh. It wasn't good.

"My brother saw you and so did Master Taak. Let me get them to explain it to you. This is out of my scope."

Charlain had been one of my close friends during my visit in Africa. She had been a physician but had returned home when her husband had died. She had short curly thick black hair and gorgeous dark skin.

She left and I sat up pushing the rest of the blankets off of me. We had wasted two weeks because I had gotten sick. It was ridiculous. I felt fine. It was probably the flu.

Master Taak and a Healer walked in. They both bowed to me. I put my palms together and bowed to them in return. Master Taak was a tall well fit man with bright markings on his face. He represented the Southern Tribes in Africa. I had spent the summer learning to heal from his tribe and the Healer standing next to him.

"Sir, I am sorry to have bothered you." Taron and Henri strolled in behind them. Charlain also walked in. "Why did you bring me here?" We were going to have to slip back into Warlock territory.

"Iris sit down." Master Taak pointed at the loft on the ground. "You need to rest for a little longer."

I opened my mouth to argue with him but he shook his head.

Master Taak blinked at me.

"The charms backfired onto you." He surveyed me critically. There was a frown at his lips. That wasn't a good sign. "You need to transfer it back onto something like the necklace-"

"Or?" I gulped. My heart had stopped beating. My palms were sweating.

"It is going to spread, and kill you." Master Taak replied in a low tone. I held my breath. "It needs to be something made from a Mage because that's what had originally been charmed. Mage Magic is too powerful to be contained in a human body. It is going to slowly work on you. You won't be able to use your gifts the longer you have it on you." Master Taak added grimly.

Taron put his hand on my shoulder. I grasped his hand for comfort.

"But-" I shook my head. Damn it. I should have just kept that stupid necklace instead of trying to destroy it.

"and we need a Mage to perform that kind of magic." The Healer added with a grimace. We stared at each other.

"Where can we get Mage-made objects?" I asked Master Taak trying to get rid of the annoying silence.

"Underground." Master Taak took a deep breath. "Taron" he gave him a dirty look. "You might be familiar with the network."

"Getting Mage-made objects is going to be difficult." Taron was pacing around the room. We were going to stay another week or so. The Healer wanted to keep an eye on me and see how far the charm had spread on me. "It leads to questions. They are going to be curious." He was tapping his fingers against his chin.

"What if Ezra and Thomas got it?" I asked him. He stopped pacing. "Your brother will think you are up to something if you go asking around and he is going to get suspicious. I can't be seen. Ezra and Thomas on the other hand-"

"That could work." Henri took a deep breath. "Okay, now the problem is where the hell are we going to get a Mage?" I fell back on the wall. Taron took my hand and squeezed it. "We can't just stroll in into Mage territory and demand for one especially if Anika is on them."

"She used Mage magic." I reminded them. I had told them the story of my supposed killing so many times. "They know her, and it is going to-"

"Isn't the Old Queen a Mage?" Henri asked us. Taron and I looked at each other.

"There is no way we can get near her. We don't even know where to find her. Besides, I'm supposed to be dead." I reminded him. Henri nodded with a sigh.

"We might have to find a Mage that is on our side." Taron grimaced, squeezing my hand. "Let me see if I can get a hold of one."