Two Graves - The Song of Nephiah and Brelyna

Chapter 9: A Perfectly Valid School

Colette crossed the Hall of Countenance, moving to the exit. It was a large round hall with sleeping alcoves for the senior mages of the college built along it's wall, a blue fountain of magical light in the center. It was late, most of the teachers were already asleep. She liked to write and prepare lectures for her seminar on Restoration Magic late at night in the Arcanium, where she would be spared the harassment of her colleagues. Faralda was still awake, sitting on the edge of her bed, looking at her as she passed. Colette stopped as she noticed her. "What." Faralda snapped her fingers, making a tiny flame appear that was dancing on her fingertip. She took a deep breath and blew air onto it, making it lash out and light a candle on her bedside table. As the flame disappeared she looked back at Colette and winked at her with a superior smile. "I know what you're insinuating!", Colette said angrily. "Next time you have a cold, don't come knocking on my door!" Faralda chuckled and lay down on the bed with a book in her hands. Colette walked to the door at a brisk pace.

As she was about to grab for the handle, it was kicked open, snow blew in from the storm outside. With great surprise she looked upon a student, covered in snow, dragging somebody along. "Please help!" The young woman collapsed onto the floor from the cold and exhaustion. "Maryon, is that you?", Faralda shouted standing in the archway of her alcove. "Stop staring and give me a hand!", Colette barked back at her as she reached under Brelyna's arm to help her back to her feet. She sat her down on the edge of the magelight fountain in the center of the hall. "Please...", Brelyna said shivering and out of breath, "She's been wounded..." Colette looked down to the Dunmer that had been dragged in on a fur cloak. She removed the second cloak that had been placed on top of her. "Ysmir!" She saw the burn marks and the clothes drenched in blood and knew the situation was grim. "Faralda, take her legs!" They lifted her up and carried her over to an empty alcove to place her on the bed there. As they passed Brelyna who was still sitting on the fountain edge, rubbing her arms, trying to catch her breath, Faralda looked up at her. "Where in Oblivion have you been?!"

Upon resting Nephiah on the bed, Colette took a utility knife from her belt and began to cut the blood soaked hide armor open to get a better look at the wound. "Did you do this?", she asked over her shoulder. "She was stabbed, she would have bled out right there!" Brelyna had moved herself to the entrance of the alcove and was leaning against it. "With flames?", Faralda asked surprised, Brelyna nodded in a head movement barely distinguishable from her shivering. Faralda walked over, took her hands and pulled them to her. They had red burn marks all over. "Colette, look at this." She pulled Brelyna over to the bed, where Colette was still tossing bloody bits of hide armor onto the floor. She turned around and glanced at Brelyna's hands. "That's superficial.", she said like she was annoyed by the interruption. She quickly grabbed the hands. A golden glow pulsed from her head through her shoulders into her hands, then she let go and turned back to her patient. It was over in an instant. Brelyna looked at her hands, the burn marks had vanished, so had the pain. Colette was an expert at this, there was no doubt.

"How long ago was this?" "I don't know, noon?" "What in Oblivion happened to this girl?!" Colette looked over her shoulder with shock in her eyes. "I told you, she was stabbed!" "No, I don't mean that, I mean this!" She moved to the side, revealing Nephiah's bare torso, it's surface littered with scars left by whips, blades and fire. It was the first time Brelyna saw the extent of if, she gasped and moved a hand over her mouth, tears shot in her eyes. "I don't know...", she whispered.

Colette looked back at the wound. She lifted the shoulder and examined the other side. "Went right through?" Brelyna nodded, her hand still covering her mouth. "Faralda, get Drevis over here." Faralda was staring in disbelief. "Faralda! Drevis!" "Yes.", she snapped out of it and quickly left the alcove. "Can you help her?", Brelyna asked with a soft, fearful voice. "She will have to do her part." Colette looked worried as she lifted one of Nephiah's eyelids with her thumb to check for reactions, then feeling the elevated temperature on her forehead.

"Damn you, nefarious woman!" Drevis was drowsy after being dragged out of bed and pulled across the hall. "Will you tell me what you..." His thought was interrupted as they arrived and his eyes fell upon Nephiah. "Azura..." Then he saw Colette kneeling beside the bed, gesturing him to get closer. "There is a wound below the surface, it goes all the way through. I will have to dig deep, it won't be pleasant. If she wakes, I need you to dull her pain."

Drevis looked at Colette realizing what she was asking and shying away from the responsibility. "I... I...", he stuttered, "This isn't really my area of expertise!" "Damnit, Drevis!" Colette stood up. "I am trying to save a life! You are the authority on Illusion Magic at the College, don't tell me you can't make her think she feels no pain!" "Well, I... I... maybe for a moment?" Drevis was startled by her passion, she usually kept to herself as the rest of the mages made fun of her. He was certainly not used to her taking a commanding stance. "Just do what you can. You'll know when."

Colette put both her hands onto the fresh wound. Brelyna kneeled down beside Colette and took Nephiah's hand. Drevis tensed up and lifted his hands which began to emit a dark purple aura. He was visibly nervous as he got ready to cast his spell at a moment's notice. Faralda stepped back, crossed her arms and watched the scene unfold.

Colette began to glow in a golden light, giving off little flickers that looked like she was surrounded by fireflies. Eventually the glow got brighter, centered in her chest and then shot down her arms into her hands. Upon arriving at the wound it shot into the ceiling and to the ground, a column of light that went through both her hands and her patient. Nephiah's eyes instantly opened wide, so did her mouth. She got up into a sitting position against the pressure of Colette's hands which were trying to keep her lying down. As she moved up she audibly took in a lot of air, it must have been an intense pain to bring her out of her unconsciousness this violently. She squeezed Brelyna's hand hard. "Ou ou ou!" She just remembered that grip of hers. "NOW!", Colette yelled. Drevis released the charge in his hands, transferring the purple aura from him to Nephiah. She fell back down onto the pillow, unconscious again. The golden light dissipated.

Colette puffed her cheeks as she exhaled in exertion. "Now it's up to her." She slowly stood up and then quickly left the alcove as if she remembered something. Drevis slowly walked out, wiping sweat off his forehead. "I don't need this kind of excitement in the middle of the night!" "You don't have to tell me.", Faralda said as he passed her by. She then turned to Brelyna who was still holding on to the hand of her friend. "You and I are going to talk about your unauthorized absence in the morning." With that she left as well.

After a moment of silence, Brelyna got to her feet. She gazed upon the countless marks on Nephiah's upper body that were witnesses to a life lived in agony. She softly ran her fingers over Nephiah's stomach, the scars made it feel rough and leathery. She closed her eyes which made another tear fall. "Those aren't wounds of war." Colette had reappeared behind her. Startled, she quickly pulled her hand back and turned around. "She was tortured. For a looooong time." Colette put a blanket onto the empty chair in the alcove and put a bucket filled with water down in front of Brelyna. "Wash off the blood, then keep a wet cloth on her forehead to keep the fever down. If she lives through the night, she'll make it."

"Thank you...", Brelyna said softly and sincerely. "What did I tell you when you first came here?", Colette said, maternally moving wet strands of hair out of Brelyna's face to the left and right. "Restoration is a perfectly valid school of magic." She smiled and turned to leave. "Colette!" Brelyna stopped her, she turned back around. "I know the other teachers mock you for specializing in Restoration Magic. They say it's best left to the priests in the temple." Colette pressed her lips together, Brelyna took a step towards her. "But there is one mage that will forever respect you." Colette smiled, she didn't hear that very often. "Well then, apprentice.", she said as she turned to leave, "I suppose you better make sure you graduate.