Questbound

Chapter 4-1

Xanna and Kai sat there speechless. Lady Sia was dying?

The thought was absurd; she was only in her middle years and one of the most skilled healers that Earthias had ever known. How could this be happening?

‘I know what you are thinking,’ Sia said. ‘It is true that as a healer I should be able to cure myself of most ailments. But this one, like the other that swept our dear forest all those years ago, truly eludes me.’

‘Is...is it the same one?’ Xanna asked tentatively.

Sia shook her head. ‘No. If it were, then I would have realised sooner and isolated myself from everyone, for that particular disease was highly contagious. Fortunately, this illness appears to be far safer.’

‘Safer?’ Kai spluttered, half-rising from his seat. ‘How in Earthias can it be safe if it is killing you?’

‘Calm down, Kai. Anger and panic will not help anyone,’ Sia said, waving him back down. ‘What I mean is that it is still safe for me to be around our people without fearing they, too, will become ill. In any case, as we have had no travellers here in recent times, whatever it is that binds itself to me must be from another source.’ She looked them in the eyes, her own growing steely. ‘You must not worry; I have no intention of letting this illness eat away at me while I do nothing. I mean to fight it, until the end, if that is how it must be. But I require your help.’

Xanna inhaled and gave a short nod. ‘What do you need us to do, Lady Sia? We will do anything you ask.’

‘I would like you to search through Grandfather Heen’s books and see if there have ever been any similar illnesses among our people. I have already searched through the few books I have here, but nothing is of relevance – though I will look again in case I have missed something. Nevertheless, I know that his collection is far greater than mine,’ she said softly. ‘I would go with you, but I do not wish to cause alarm among the others. Until the time comes when I can hide this illness no longer, I want you to keep this strictly between ourselves and Grandfather Heen.’

‘You have our promise, my lady, and we shall leave at once,’ Kai said, standing up. But Sia held up her hand.

‘You need not rush off. I believe I have time enough to see the coming of summer, so one more night will not hurt. Relax and get some sleep, Kai," she advised, before turning to Xanna. ‘Unfortunately, there is one more thing I need you to do for me. This illness is as much external as it is internal. To find any reference in the books you search, you must first fully understand what it is that you are searching for.’

for‘You want me to examine you and give my own diagnosis?’ Xanna asked, moving to shoo Kai from the room. He didn’t hesitate; already he was making a mental list of all the ancient books he’d read that contained passages on treating illnesses. If he could find a good starting point, then at least he and Xanna wouldn’t have to search through the entire lot.

‘Now, then,’ Xanna said, once she’d firmly closed the hut door behind him. ‘Where should I start?’

Lady Sia smiled at Xanna’s determination, and showing not even the slightest sign of embarrassment, quietly slipped off her golden gown. Underneath, her skin, which had once been as supple and richly pigmented as Xanna’s own, was now blackening out from her heart, tracing hard spirals across her chest down to her arms, abdomen and legs. It looked like she had become entangled in a particularly vicious vine, and with every beat of her heart, the spirals pulsed.

Xanna swallowed, her throat becoming dry. ‘May I?’ she asked, motioning for a closer look. Sia calmly held her arms out to her sides so Xanna could see the full extent of the condition clearly. With trembling fingers, Xanna gently put her own hand on Lady Sia’s shoulder, directly on part of the black spiralling. It wriggled under her touch and she pulled back sharply.

‘Are you sure this is not a parasite? It looks to me like another creature has invaded your body completely,’ she said breathlessly.

‘That was my first thought, but if that were the case, I believe it would have eaten me from within long before now. If I am honest, I feel strongly that I have been cursed.’

Xanna frowned. ‘Cursed? I thought curses used to be a form of human magic before they lost their powers.’

‘They were, but unlike other human magics that took effect immediately, a curse could take centuries to develop. If this is the result of one, then it might have been cast back when we were at war with them. Or even, dare I say, when we became allies against the demons. Any Wise One from then on might have developed it. I just happen to be the one it settled on,’ Sia said.

‘Then there really was a time before the Last Battle when we waged war with the humans? It is hard to believe our people would take part in such conflict,’ Xanna replied.

‘Yes, there was. Only I, Grandfather Heen, Kai, and now you know it is true. Like other Wise Ones before me, I wish to keep it a secret from our people so it does not cast anger into our hearts and drive us to pit ourselves against them once more. The Last Battle helped us find common ground with the humans in our joint efforts to save Xylantria, and though the passage of time has made us distant from each other, the resulting peace has not faded," Sia explained, slipping her dress back on. "However, I am aware that there are bad crops within all of us."

‘Is that why you have not ruled out the chance of a curse being cast at a time when we were supposed to be united?’

‘It is. I am sure there were many who thought we had no place in such a battle. I imagine Kai and Grandfather Heen, knowing as much about our history as they do, would agree with me.’

Xanna was silent for a moment, contemplating Lady Sia’s words. ‘My lady,’ she said at last, ‘why do you think the humans lost their magic?’

‘That is a question I would dearly like to know the answer to. Unfortunately, every reference I have found implies that they simply lost it overnight, without any other explanation."

‘Is that possible?’

‘Who can say what is and is not possible? One thing is for certain, though. Magic does not simply leave living creatures without good reason,’ Sia said, raising a hand to stifle a sudden yawn. ‘But enough of this, it is time for us to rest and leave these troubles until the morning.’

"Not yet. Tell me what other symptoms you have."

Lady Sia picked up a notebook

‘Kai, are you awake?’ Xanna whispered, rolling over in her bed so that she could make out his dim silhouette on the floor. He"d refused to sleep in the spare bed, saying it would be too strange for him; at least the floor always felt like the floor. With a rustle of covers, he shuffled around until he faced her, the moonlight reflected in his eyes.

‘How could I sleep? I have no chance of getting any rest knowing that Sia is so ill,’ he said, trying to whisper but letting his temper get the better of him.

‘I feel the same.’

‘Then let us leave. If we head off now, we will make it back to Grandfather Heen’s by mid-morning,’ he said, reaching for his boots.

"Alright." She got up and opened the trunk at the end of her bed. In it was her travelling bag which was full of the essentials for safely navigating the dark side of the forest. She checked it thoroughly, making sure it was fully stocked, and ignored Kai"s impatient mutterings. Satisfied she had everything, they left the hut.

They made their way through the village as silently as they could, careful not to attract the attention of the few still celebrating. Reaching the rock serving as the village"s boundary marker, they took one look back at Lady Sia’s hut before disappearing into the trees.

The moonlight was all they needed on the fair side of the forest, but as soon as they crossed the river, Xanna withdrew two Lightus bulbs from her bag, handing one to Kai. Then she took out her flask and sprinkled each one with water. The bulbs glowed, lighting the area just enough for them to pick their way through the undergrowth.

Along the way, the sounds of scurrying creatures met their ears, and in the distance a series of howls echoed across the night. To their relief, whatever it was – whether Hasward or otherwise – it never got any closer.

As mid-morning hit (though the trees were so dense now that it was hard to tell what time it was), they spotted Grandfather Heen’s sturdy hut jutting out in front of them. Walking up to the front door, they knocked.

Silence.

Then there was a thump behind them, and they turned to see Grandfather Heen sprawled on the ground with his backside covered in moss and lichen.

‘Grandfather Heen! Are you alright? Whatever happened?’ Xanna cried, rushing over to him. But the old man pushed her hands roughly away and sat up.

‘What in Earthias" name are you doing back already?’ he said, looking past her at Kai. ‘I thought you would be gone at least a week. Instead you waltz right on back and disturb my nap on the roof.’

Despite her concern, Xanna giggled. ‘So that was where you were. No wonder you hit the ground with such a thud.’

‘Now, now, my girl, no good will come from teasing me,’ he huffed, but she caught a smile rippling through from the depths of his wrinkles. ‘As for you,’ he called, staring back at Kai, ‘fetch some water from the stream so I can make stew for lunch. Then perhaps you can tell me why you returned so soon, and with your sister no less. By the looks of you, it cannot be anything joyful.’

Kai did as Grandfather Heen instructed. He was far too used to the old Earth Healer’s sharpness to argue, so taking the large kettle from beside the fireplace, he strolled down to the stream. Surprisingly, he didn’t run into anything on his way, but then most of the creatures he had to be wary of weren"t active until late afternoon.

Filling the kettle up to the brim, he hurried back to the hut, trying desperately not to spill any water as he stumbled on the loose stones that made up the path. Grandfather Heen watched him select one of the cooking pots piled around the hearth and empty the kettle"s contents into it. Then, without warning, he hit him smartly over the head with a wooden spoon.

‘Ouch! What was that for?’ Kai said, massaging his head.

‘That was for not telling me straight away why you were here. If I had known it was something as serious as this, then I would not have bothered fussing over lunch,’ Grandfather Heen replied.

‘Xanna told you?’ Kai asked.

‘Of course she did. Now, go and wait with her in the library while I finish preparing lunch. As soon as it is ready, I want to hear everything that you know.’