Flame of Frost (The Caelestian Chronicles: Book #1)

Chapter 21 - A Headless Body Dooms Us

"I'm never stepping out again," Devin says sitting on one of the passenger seats, words muffled by his face buried in his hands.

"It's not your fault, Devin." Clara grips his wrist, rubbing his back by her other hand. "It's not our fault."

"You should've seen her face..." he trails off.

"It's okay now." I pat his shoulder and sit down beside him. "We distracted her and ran away."

He shakes his head. "The trance doesn't wear off for like a week."

"She'll be fine. Now eat something, please."

"I'm not hungry."

Clara cups my knuckles with her palm. "You guys go eat. We will eat later."

Theora decided to drive the hover instead of Devin. I stand up head to the our side of the room. The hover sways a little under my feet, I have trouble placing my footing. A step, another, another. My eyes burn, watering and making my vision blur.

My right leg twists to the side and my body hits the aluminium base of the hover with a thud. It feels like an enormous effort to breathe, my lungs burn in effort to suck air, skin feels like it is sizzling with fire.

"Lex!" Grace rushes to my aid, but yelps when she tries to grab my arm.

"D-don't," I try to speak, except no sound comes. My throat feels scraped raw.

"What's wrong with her?" Alacritas says, or was that Clara? I hardly see anything except the small, circular white lights on the ceiling.

"Her arm — it's burning hot," Grace answers.

"What about her legs?"

Grace, don't touch me. I speak telepathically. It sends a stab of burning fire in my head and scream escapes my lips.

"She's telling me not to touch her."

I'm going to burn, and scream, and writhe — just like I killed those vampires. I'm going to die just like they died, tortured. This must be my fate for killing them, to die like—

A male voice says: "Aster, can you pick her up?"

"I can try!" she replies, voice as high pitched as ever.

I shake my head, or try to. "N-nu-huh," comes out my numb mouth in an attempt to say no. I don't want Aster helping me in any way — dying or not —though, she grabs me and tosses me over her shoulders anyway.

"Here," a female voice ahead of us says. "Place her in the bathtub or she'll burn the beddings. Grace, can you please get the water running?"

"A second," she replies.
I get lowered into the tub, water splashing out on the floor. Someone pours cold water over my head and rubs my cheeks with their thumb. I squeeze my eyes shut, unable to handle the too-bright lights. This is how they must have felt, how it must have been to be wrapped in unforgiving heat.

"Has she eaten anything?" Another female voice asks, words laced with authority — Alacritas.
The water fills up to my chin.

"She had," another male says. "At the ball, but she vomited it out."
The water warms up quickly. Too quickly.

"She has been using magic with an empty stomach? Theora, it is about time you teach her about the dangers of using magic."

"Yes, mother," Theora replies stiffly.

"That's enough of the water. Someone please bring the takeaways, she needs to eat or she'll burn herself." Her voice sounds closer as she continues. "Lex, don't converse with anyone telepathically, it's magic. It'll burn you from inside out." I try best at an attempt to nod.