Beneath the Blood Moon

Chapter Ten: A Big Effing Joke

- 6 days -

Water. Cold water across her forehead. Soft swirls of a damp cloth. Down her cheek, brushing her lips. Her tongue stirred and darted out to touch the source of her relief. It pulled away the moment she made contact and a grunt tried to break free from her throat, but got caught. Everything was stuck together and dry as chalk dust.

"Shh, that's no good for you."

Elrick's voice pierced the veil and light sliced across her dark vision. Her eyes opened, pain as the lids pulled away from parched pupils. Sight limited to blurred shapes, Nnandi vaguely made out his figure. He was close, closer than she would have liked, not that she could do anything about it. Opening her eyes was the most moving she could manage in that state. And since he was the wielder of the wet rag, she was completely at his mercy.

His shape stirred, pulling away before returning. Something cool pressed against her lips. Her tongue searched it. Glass. A single drop fo water on the rim drove her mind into a frenzy and she whimpered, trying to will her mouth to cooperate and latch around the edge.

After a few seconds of fumbling, his hand slid beneath her chin and steadied her long enough for the cup to slid in place. When the water flooded her mouth, her eyes burned. Of course attempting to cry would have that affect, but she couldn't stop the emotion from welling in her chest. She was alive. Water entered her body and soothed every terrible, panic-inducing fear that populated her mind before the darkness took hold. And he hadn't killed them yet.

"Slow down, you'll make yourself choke."

His warning didn't come quick enough as she gulped down a large air bubble and sputtered out everything in her mouth. Her chest was on fire and room spun as she coughed violently. Enough to bend herself in the middle and raise her from the mattress. Once she was upright, everything tiled in her vision and she clenched her eyes shut.

Another bad move. Head pounding, face betraying her discomfort. She was a ball of pain. Elrick's hand found her chin again and lifted it, his thumb parted her lips and he held the cup in place again.

"Slower this time."

She obeyed and carefully nursed the cup. When it was empty, another replaced it and she continued sipping until her strength returned and she could hold her head and the cup on her own.

"Is she going to be okay?" Sarai's voice called from beside her. Nnandi wanted to see her companion, to confirm that she wasn't delirious from the spontaneous dehydration, but thought better of repeating her earlier errors.

"Nnandi was subjected to their cruelty longer than you. More of that poison runs through her veins."

She choked again and her eyes flew open, in spite of her better judgement. Surprisingly, it wasn't as painful as before. Her eyes were moist, throat no longer scratchy and rough. A few more glasses of water and she'd be back to normal. Or so she hoped. The magic word vibrated in her ears.

"Poison?" Sarai asked where Nnandi's voice still failed her.

"Ambrosia, you're both familiar with it, yes?" Elrick asked, standing from Nnandi's bed after giving her a final once over with his mismatched eyes.

Nnandi and Sarai nodded in unison.

"A rare treat for the coven, only pulled out on special occasions and the most important ceremonies. It is a delicacy that only the Ram enjoy on a regular basis. But I can assure you, it is no treat." His voice lowered, barely above a whisper as he revealed the secret truth that plagued Nnandi's life without her even realizing.

Elrick didn't pause or soften the blow. "They spiked it with a binding elixir. They stripped you of your power and continued to poison you every evening with their 'special treat'. You were never weak links needing to be culled and slaughtered for the survival of the strong."