Pharro sipped the revolting harix tea slowly, giving Colleena and her assistants enough time to return from taking the girl back to her room. The second he heard them in the hallway, he gripped the handle of the purple door, whispered his destination and stepped through.
Two Kovei stood guard at the girl's bedroom door. They didn't acknowledge him as he slipped inside.
"You may just be more trouble than we anticipated," Pharro said, setting his cup and saucer on the bed next to the comatose girl. He dug into his coat pocket and pulled out the folded letter and small, black box. He read back through the instructions carefully, annoyed by the constant blurring of his vision and shaking hands. "You really did a number on me," he said angrily, dropping the two items on the bed. There was no way he would be able to do it himself in the state he was in.
He tapped his heel against the floor twice. The door opened and one of the Kovei stepped inside, eerie clicking noises emanating from his helmeted head in response.
"I need a steady hand," Pharro said, beckoning him over.
The Kovei bowed, responding with more clicks, and came forward.
"Turn please. I cannot allow what is about to take place to remain in your memory."
The Kovei turned without a response.
Pharro pressed his thumb against the reader on the back of the creature's suit. A small panel slid away next to it to reveal the small screen that controlled the mechanics of the helmet. "Mental marker at one minute and thirty-two seconds ago. End in five minutes from this moment." The numbers flashed across the screen and the panel snapped back into place. "Very good." He handed the black box to the Kovei and read through the instruction letter one more time, taking a deep, shaky breath. A heavy sigh escaped him, and he shook his head.
The first part of the instructions was the last thing he thought he would ever have to do. He grimaced as he placed his hand on the back of the girl's neck, covering the brand with his palm, and pushed Poeir into it. It didn't matter what Poeir he used. It simply needed confirmation that he was neither human nor Oria in order to activate it.
"No matter what happens, you will not awaken and will sleep soundly for the next twenty hours." The brand turned hot, accepting the command, and he let go. "Apologies," he whispered.
He took the box from the Kovei and opened it onto the creature's hand. A silver vial no larger than a small marble rolled out. He moved his teacup to the foot of the bed and sat beside the girl. Placing three fingers at her throat along the length of the perfectly unmarred, white ribbon around her neck, he whispered the familiar Oriac words as instructed.
The ribbon dissolved, exposing the glowing spectacle beneath it. The glittering ice diamond was as big as his thumb, set into an embellished, two-inch, oval plate, surrounded by six smaller diamonds, and a hair thin, curling chain held it in place. The ice diamond radiated cold and the pearlescent light inside it swirled.
"Alright. It's your turn," he said to the Kovei. He grasped the girls jaw and pulled her mouth open. "I will hold open her mouth and keep her tongue out of the way. You will pour the vials contents down her throat only." With anyone else, he would've had to warn them of the dangers of missing her throat, of getting any on themselves or him. But Kovei were too accurate to understand the concept of mistake.
The creature unscrewed the top of the vial and steam hissed out. The sharp, acidic scent punctured the air and Pharro was grateful the Kovei was there to do it as nausea rushed over him and his shaking worsened.
He concentrated as hard as he could on keeping her mouth still. The Kovei bent forward and moved to pour it but paused. Clicking noises emanated from its helmet and it pushed Pharro's hand out of the way, taking the girl's jaw in its long-fingered grip. It emptied the steaming liquid in one swift move.
Pharro stumbled away from the bed as the girl gasped, her eyes flying open. But she wasn't awake. Her eyes glowed white. Her back arched and the veins all over her body glowed blue and the ice diamond turned black. He threw a Thet Veehm out, immobilizing her hands to her sides as three-inch, black claws shot from her fingertips and she tried to impale the mattress. Visible evidence of this was the last thing he wanted to worry about right now.
The entire bed moved as her seizure worsened, and for a moment he feared he might have made a mistake.
But it stopped as quickly as it started. Her eyes closed and the glow in her veins disappeared. The black in the ice diamond faded back to white and the ribbon materialized over it all as though the stone had never been there. Pharro released her hands of his Veehm and let out a long, shaky breath. It was done. Her radioactive core would be shielded from them when she chose to use her Poeirs.
The Kovei placed the vial back into the box and held it out. Pharro pocketed it and the letter, scooped up his teacup and saucer, and turned to go. But a wave of dizziness caused him to falter and he set the dishes back down next to her. The dizziness turned into vertigo and his body forgot which way was up. He wasn't sure if he fell, but he recognized the Kovei holding onto him.
"Take me to Colleena, please," Pharro said.
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YOU ARE READING
The Opelux and Other Monsters || Book One
Teen FictionHer memory was taken. Her skills were not. Her very presence is a threat to everything he has ever cared for. They might make a powerful team... if they don't kill each other first. Once upon a time... In a land where the most powerful can be ki...
