The moment Astasha had lost consciousness, the pain had ceased in Calder's chest and the panic rose. "Tasha!" He shook her hand and reached out for her face. It was pale and fragile. "Is she...?" He couldn't bring himself to say the word. If she was... He couldn’t even fathom the things he would do. Errant focused his energy over her heart. "There is a pulse of life within her still, though it’s faint. Hurry. I cannot help her like this." Zephyr used his power to help lift her on the air and carry her through the palace, while the older Fire Witch and Errant used theirs to try to hold back the bleeding, and no doubt, the demon. But Calder refused to let go of her hand. Finally, they reached the Healing Ward and called for servants to bring fresh linens and warm water. Astasha was placed gently on a bed, but the sight of the still open wound running down her chest made Calder sick to his stomach. He didn't care what pain it caused him, she needed to be healed. “For fuck’s sake,
Calder had insisted Astasha rest and heal before anything further was discussed or done, but she was adamant that the conversations needing to be had couldn't wait. So he called for fresh clothes, food and water, to be brought for her while they filled her in on what had happened during and after the attempted Extraction Ritual. His hand never left her own, no doubt his way of showing he had no intention of leaving her side. And while it was a comfort, she couldn't help but notice Errant's persistent glances towards the show of affection. Cal had become extremely protective of her, and so it was no surprise he refused to let Bryn apply an herbal salve to her wound, insisting he could do it himself. But it simply wouldn't be as potent without the Earth Sorcerer’s energy, and so she squeezed her Prince’s hand in reassurance. "It's ok Cal. Trust me." she said to him gently. From the look in his eyes, she couldn't imagine what hell he had been going through. More than that, there was
The Royal Magic Advisory made quick work of bringing the essentials for the ritual to the healing ward. The King had forced his way into the room despite Errant's pleas, citing the magic Helia had felt in the connecting scars as proof enough that Astasha was in control. Beside himself with fury at all that had occurred while he was barred from the room, he was even more furious that there was to be another Authentication Ritual involving his son. But Astasha had watched as Calder calmed his father, reassuring him that everything would be alright. It was extremely rare that the ritual was performed on two people at once due to the risks of traversing multiple minds at the same time, but it was argued that with their connection, it could be potentially more dangerous with only one. And so, with the room at last ready, Astasha and Calder laid down next to each other on two beds that had been pushed together. While she knew this was their best chance of finding answers, it still
Five days that were supposed to be spent celebrating the return of the Prince had been turned to hell and horror. No one outside the Advisory and the royal family had any idea though. To keep the people from panicking, things had carried on as if nothing out of the ordinary was happening. And so, while Astasha and Calder had been suffering and fighting for each other and their lives, the people of Trenue had drank and sang and danced. And now, as Astasha sat in her room, a prisoner to her circumstances, the closing festivities were in full swing. Once back in her chambers, she had immediately used her fire to pull energy, but the power that flowed into her, for some reason, burned harder and brighter than before. It was strange, but then, all of this was strange. Helia had been able to piece together part of what was happening, but there were still so many things that hadn’t been explained. After cleaning off the grime, and sweat, and blood of everything that had happened, she ap
After the King had excused himself, they could hear Errant's furious protests over allowing the Prince to stay with Astasha alone for the night. The two had listened from inside the room as Josnen raised his commanding tone, insisting if he was so worried, Errant could stand watch himself outside her door till the sun rose. The argument was settled faster than one would assume, as the King gave his final word and strode away, leaving the Grand Sorcerer swearing under his breath and barking orders. At last, the group outside dispersed, and Astasha turned to Calder. He was watching her, and she could feel the heartbreak stronger and stronger the more he did. "Cal..." She stepped toward him. "Run away with me." His words stopped her in her tracks. "What?" He crossed the remaining distance between them and took her face in his hands. "Run away with me. We'll find a way to banish the demon and live happily ever after together, just, come with me, anywhere but here. Anywhere but where
As much as they longed for it, willed it, time would not stand still. It passed like the moon overhead as they made love again and again, shared stories of their time apart, and reminisced about memories of their time together long ago. They refused to allow sleep to take them, not wanting to miss a single second of the time they had left together. Naked and curled up in each other's arms on the bed, Calder ran his fingers through her hair. Astasha’s eyes were fixed on the little window in her ceiling, unable to force herself to look away. “The light will be here soon." Cal pulled her closer to him and kissed her forehead. "Don't think of that yet, my love." Her mind had been working overtime, thinking of the way their scars reached out to each other each time they were in the throes of passion, hers a flickering gold, his an icy blue. She kept thinking of the feeling she had had when Cal had sent out the blast of energy in the healing ward, wondering what it all meant, what was
Time moves on. No matter the magic one possesses, or the desires or wishes for it to stop, it is of a singular mindset; to continue forward despite all obstacles or pleas. And thus, the sun rose. Light crept through the little window above Astasha's workshop, and despite her and Calder's desperate desire for it to crawl back behind the world, it smiled its bright face and called to them of the future they did not wish to come. As slivers of daylight crept into the room,Tasha curled herself deeper into Cal's arms. She nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck and pleaded with the Gods and Goddess to grant them more time. But she knew they wouldn’t. His fingers slowly trailed along her back, his lips pressed into her hair. There was a nervous anticipation, not of excitement this time, but of dread. It flowed between them, each moment, one closer to their last. Neither knew what to say, or do, but it felt as though a part of them was slowly being hewn away. Astasha refused to
It took all of the strength in her for Astasha not to collapse in tears. So to keep herself from breaking, she reached inside and pulled the fire within, wrapping it around her heart, shielding it, cutting off her heartache. Her focus turned to the older Fire Witch who stood before her, watching her, reading her. "Please, come in." Astasha stepped out of the way for Helia to enter her room and followed behind, closing the door. She couldn't bear to look at her bed, so she led the way to her workshop. "I take it you have some ideas about how to do this?" "I do, but first, I just wanted to see how you were doing. The past couple of days can’t have been anything but horrific for you, and it seems everyone’s concerns have fallen far outside the understanding of basic human emotions and needs." "I am fine, Sorceress—" "Please, call me Helia." “Thank you Helia. But really, I’m fine.” She was far from it, but pity would do nothing for her now. Helia nodded once, watching Astas