Chapter 7

Aislin leaned back, suppressing a sigh, with a mug of red-leaf tea in her hand; its warmth slowly seeped into her bones. Only moments before, she had awoken unhappily to find herself in the Castle’s Solar.

Right off the Great Hall, the Solar was the entrance to Lord Kelvin and his family’s private residence; with its warm atmosphere and beautiful furnishings, it was a living area in which the family could find peace from the hectic work going on inside the castle. The same space now allowed Aislin to contemplate what exactly had happened during Sir Miles's odd healing.

Taking another sip of tea, she had to smile. To everyone’s surprise, including her own, the healing turned out better than expected, especially when Sir Miles tried to get out of bed. Aislin, however, didn’t fare as well, but she knew the fault was hers.

Not understanding how much strength would be needed, she threw all of her power into the healing. Thankfully, Sir Nevan caught her before she collapsed on the floor. To save from further embarrassment, as the group passed through the Solar, Aislin was awake enough at least to tell him not to put her in a bedroom.

“You should eat something, Milady.” Gillian shook her head in wonder upon reentering the room. To her surprise, the young healer woke up in Sir Nevan’s arms demanding to be put down. What surprised her even more, the young healer should have collapsed hours ago, not be sitting in a chair drinking tea.

“So have you assisted Mistress Olina as well?” From the herbal tea and food placed before her, Aislin surmised that this was not the first time the woman had helped a healer who had pushed herself a little too far.

Assessing the Kings Healer heath, as the set down another platter of dried fruit, she nodded. “Yes Milady, she knew I had spent several years working for the King’s Healers.”

“Oh.” Aislin gave a half-smile, a blush like a shadow running over her cheeks; so much for someone not recognizing her attire.

Her eyes now full of mirth, Gillian explained. “I followed my late husband, may the gods grant him rest, on campaign when the old King fought against the Trodaá.”

“During the wars on the Western Coast?”

Although she had never been one to be interested in wars, Aislin enjoyed reading about Kingdom history and already knew a little about the warrior race.

For many years the warriors raided the Kingdom from across the Western Sea, burning towns and villages up and down the western sea coast. At times, even the Kings of several coastal Kingdoms would pay the Trodaá not to invade their lands.

Finally, under the firm rule of Giric, the old King marched his armies westward, making war against the Trodaá strongholds. With the help of the Kingdom Engineers, they also ended up reinforcing all of the western towns’ defenses. With the campaigns being so successful, the Trodaá Raiders had almost vanished as a threat from the west coast.

It was also the last time the Kingdom of Dájl Riata, another coastal Kingdom that bordered their lands to the southwest, had allied against the Raiders. With the Trodaá no longer a threat, the two countries had been in a constant state of war, clashing over villages and towns to the west and south of her village.

“Yes, Milady, he fought under King Conall’s banner, that is, when he was still a Count.” She said proudly.

“Well, I, for one, am very glad you here.” Giving her new assistant a grateful smile, Aislin asked. “Oh, do we have any more of that cheese from lunch?”

After a few more bites of food, feeling better, the young healer tried to understand what exactly took place when she healed Miles. One thing for certain, his spirit had been repaired, something as a healer she should not have been able to do.

As a general rule, the spirit world was the domain of the Thaumaturgist, who summoned sprites or elementals to do their bidding. Even the rare Seer, such as the Milady Tiresias, who worked for the King, used her gift of augury to peek into the spirit world for her divinations.

But Healers, although they could feel the energies that surrounded their patients, often using it as a way to direct their own magic, could not touch it directly. To actually to heal the spirit had not seemed possible until today. Sir Miles’ condition just didn’t give Aislin much of choice.

Odder still, with the knowledge of having helped her grandmother and the number of books she read on the subject, it seemed more like a wound.

“It was almost as if he was attacked,” Aislin said to herself, her mouth half-filled with bread. If so, where did the attack come from? Suddenly, the food tasted like ash.

It all made sense; her grandmother had expected something to happen with the removal of the monolith, but it had also been damaged during its discovery. Where was the black stone now? Was it still in the castle?

“Milady?” Gillian asked her voice filled with concern.

“Where is Sir Nevan?”

“I’m not sure Milady, do you need him?”

“I do, but I would like to heal one more person.” Aislin looked thoughtful as she motioned for the older woman to take a seat.

First things first, Aislin knew that since lunch, Mistress Gillian had started not to feel well. Perhaps healing her, who just started being ill, might give a better understanding of what needed to be done. It should also take less strength compared to Miles, who was on death's door.

Hopefully, then, Aislin would then be able to explain to her grandmother and Macha how she had healed Sir Miles; right now she had no clue.

“Is that terribly wise, Milady, considering how much work you have done today?” Her voice drifted to a hushed whisper, it wasn't her place to question the young woman, but she was concerned.

She could already see like most of the King’s Healers; Lady Aislin gave no thought to working past the point of exhaustion to the detriment of her own health.

Aislin nodded in understanding. “I cannot do this by myself; I won’t last very long. So I must be able to explain it to the other healers.”

“Oh, you mean the Wisewomen of your village?”

“Exactly, so Mistress Gillian, I know you haven’t been feeling well.”

The surprised look on the servant's face only lasted a moment, of course, Lady Aislin had noticed. Holding her hands, Aislin released her healing senses. Confident that some force disrupted the natural balance, she slowly repaired the damage done to Gillian’s spirit.

As for Sir Miles, he had been fortunate, his body and spirit had almost separated, which would most assuredly be fatal. The second spirit healing did not take as long, but the young healer still ended up swaying in her seat as if drunk.

“Milady!” she reached out to grab her in shock but pulled her hands back.

Aislin began to run her temples, feeling suddenly drained. “How do you feel?”

“Just fine now. Oh, I am feeling better.”

“Good, as I hoped.” Sitting back, Aislin closed her eyes, surprised at how much the healing sapped her strength.

She now had little hope that this damage would heal on its own; there was no choice but to believe that her grandmother and Macha could help. Otherwise, the prospect of healing all those afflicted in both the castle and the village seemed rather daunting.

“Why are you still awake?” Sir Nevan lounged casually against the door frame, his words full of concern.

After quickly filling him in on what happened and how the healing with Miles went, Sir Nevan looked less than pleased.

“I still don’t see why you have to go back to the village tonight, Aislin.” Sir Nevan grumbled unhappily as they left the Solar. At least she was wise enough not to get back on a horse. Motioning to one of the guards, he informed him of the need for an escort and the carriage.

Passing through the Great Hall, she lowered her voice in volume. “Nevan, I need to speak to my grandmother. There are too many people sick now. If the two of them can help those in the village, then I’ll be able to spend all of my time in the castle.”

“What happens if your grandmother and her apprentice cannot?” The young Knight kept his voice down as well; it would not be good if the castle’s populace discovered how difficult the task of healing was going to be.

The young healer looked down. “I don’t know.”

Sir Nevan reached over and gently took her by the hand. “Either way, it’s not your fault.”

“Am I that obvious?” Aislin laughed.

“Yes.” The young Knight smiled. “I also think you are correct, though, moving the black stone must be the cause of the illness.”

Nevan cursed himself; it had been against his better judgment to touch the monolith. If Master Maolmuire wanted to study the thing, he should have made the trip to the forest.

Entering the courtyard, Sir Nevan motioned for the carriage to come forward. Aislin looked up in surprise as a half a dozen men-at-arms mounted right behind the carriage.

“In the morning, I’ll send a detachment to try and catch up with Sargent Aed. If what you’re telling me is true, all of his men might already be sick. We will also do as you suggest and bring the stone back here and leave it in the tourney field.” The area lay on the other side of the castle, near the lake and isolated.

Aislin grimaced, worried about the armsmen who had been away from the castle for two days. Another part of her was concerned that the damaged black stone might spread the illness to other villages as well.

“The Royal Thaumaturgist, although he insisted that we unearth the stone would still be the best person to study it. If I’m not mistaken, the village Farrier, who first became ill, also found the stone.”

“Mistress Gillian, if you would please accompany Milady Aislin for the evening.” Sir Nevan motioned the old servant forward.

“Nevan”

“Your grandmother has her apprentice, you need the help, and it would make me feel better if someone watched over you.” From Sir Nevan’s expression, Aislin could see this wasn't something that he was going to back down from.

Sir Nevan knew that Aislin if given a chance, would try and heal some of the villagers. When he took her by the hand, the young Knight noticed the very unsteady way in which she walked. Taking the servant aside, he expressed how unhappy he would be if Aislin started healing before the morning.

Climbing into the carriage, Sir Nevan took Aislin by the hand and kissed it. “I will send someone for you in the morning. “

Raising her fine arched eyebrows, she started to protest then relented, seeing the determination in his eyes. He completely understood the situation. If her grandmother and Macha were unable to help, people were going to die.

Sir Nevan felt terrible, but he had responsibilities that lay outside the small village in which Aislin lived. For the castle to run properly and to be able to protect her village and the other villages in Lord Kelvin’s lands, it was essential that members of the Keep be healed first.

Tired from her day’s work, Aislin spoke very little as the group made its way across Lord Kelvin’s land with the carriage entering the village long after nightfall. Looking about, from what Aislin could tell, most of the households were still awake. For people that awoke with the dawn, that meant that a good portion of the village was now ill.

As Gillian watched the carriage and escorts depart, she asked with a little tremor in her voice. “Do you really believe it to be a curse, Milady?”

The two had spoken a little about it just as they were leaving the keep but stopped; it was an uncomfortable discussion. Curses were old magic, dark magic that most thought was only in stories. Some magic powerful enough to destroy the mind, body, and spirit, in turn, created creatures out of nightmares.

Old names best left forgotten such as Athrá, shifters who took the image of your beloved or the Caoranach, shadowy creatures that kidnapped young girls to use as sacrifices by the Black Sorceress.

“I don’t know if it’s a curse, but it’s a good as explanation as any. I really don’t know, Gillian. Whatever malady has befallen those in the castle and village, for certain it’s no illness. Which makes me very concerned, if I hadn't healed Sir Miles this afternoon most likely he would not have survived the night.”

Looking around the darkened village once last time, she felt conflicted. Not because they had always treated her poorly, that never entered Aislin’s mind; no, she knew that she was needed here as well.

However, as much the young healer hated to admit it, it was beyond her capacity tonight. And with it beyond her capacity, there was a good chance people were going to start dying this evening.

As two women entered the cottage, Aislin began to call out for her grandmother, but upon seeing her walk out the back room, the young woman ran over to embrace the Wisewoman.

“Why are you here, child?” Ina looked down at Aslin concerned; the girl was exhausted.

“I was worried about you.” She closed her eyes, resting her head on her grandmother's shoulder. Panic gripped her heart. Throwing her healing senses out, she had to know if the illness had progressed.

“Aislin.” The Wisewomenpulled the child back from the embrace, knowing exactly what was going on. “I'm all right, so I hope that wasn't the only reason you're here. Sir Nevan shouldn't have let you leave; you’re about to fall over.”

“I already did that once today.” Standing back, she sniffed. “There are things I need to tell you. “ Swallowing hard, Aislin held back tears as she introduced her companion. “Gran, this is Mistress Gillian, she has been helping me all day.”

“Thank you for taking care of my granddaughter. I assume she didn’t give you any trouble.”

“Gran,” Aislin groaned then frowned. “Where is Macha?”

“She’s not feeling very well, I’m afraid. You should let-“

Heading towards the backroom, before her grandmother could finish, Aislin went to look for her friend with any thoughts of her own well-being falling to the wayside. Macha was sick, and she could do something about it.

“Macha?”

Walking through the bedroom door, Aislin’s heart suddenly lurched madly. Her friend lay on the bed; her eyes suddenly opened as Aislin stepped into the room. Something clicked deep inside her heart, Aislin just realized all she wanted to do at that moment was throw herself into Macha’s arms.

“I thought you were going to spend the night at the castle.” Her friend’s eyes sparkled with pleasure, though so exhausted she could hardly make herself sit up in the bed.

Reaching out for each other’s hands, Aislin gulped hard; touching Macha with her healing senses required too much effort. Even without them, she could tell like her grandmother, Macha’s illness would soon pose a problem.

As the two soaked up each other’s presence, Macha said. “I’m more tired than sick.” Pulling Aislin’s hand to her cheek, she smiled contentedly. “But I’m happy to see you.”

“You need to take better care of yourself.” Aislin chided her, her own steel blue eyes filled with fatigue.

“So should you.” Ina walked into the room with Gillian right behind her. “What the good Mistress here has been telling me, you were able to heal Sir Miles.”

“Did you really, Aislin?” Macha sat up but still not letting go of her friend’s hand.

Aislin sighed. “I did, but it’s a little more complicated than simple healing.” Taking a deep breath, she started to bring them up to date.

The two women stared at one another in shock, what Aislin just explained didn’t seem possible.

“How did you?” Macha looked at her friend in wonder.

“I don’t know, but I am hoping I can show you.”

“Tomorrow.” Mistress Gillian looked at Ina, who nodded.

Sir Nevan had been emphatic about his desires that Aislin healed no more today. The older woman could tell that the young healer wanted to treat both her grandmother and her apprentice.

“Mistress Gillian will share a bed with me tonight; I suggest that the two of you get some sleep.”

Waiting for the door to close, Macha turned with a seductive smile on her lips. “Let me help you undress.”

Before Aislin could say anything, the young apprentice pressed her lips against hers. The kiss was warm, inviting sending a shockwave of pleasure through her body. Aislin gasped, as her clothes started to fall gently to the floor. Slowly, methodically, she could feel gentle touches as ties and belts from her dress were removed.

When the last article of clothing hit the floor, Macha took Aislin by the hand, gently easing her down into bed. Any thoughts of objecting were covered up by soft, delicate kisses.

Now lost in the sweet taste of Macha’s lips, she moaned as she felt warm hands moving across her body once more. However, as the passion grew between the two, Aislin knew she was fighting a losing battle. Closing her eyes with a contented sigh, she dropped her chin on her girlfriends' chest.

Macha silently giggled. She, too, closed her own eyes, falling asleep their two bodies intertwined. Her love and her desire for Aislin seemed overwhelming sometimes. Suddenly, a sense of protectiveness washed over the young apprentice. The days ahead were going to be difficult for Aislin, but no matter what, she would always be by her side.

--0--

“So you and the Sergeant seem close.”

Two servants made their way from one of the towers, empty platters, and cups in hands.

The younger of the two women smiled to herself as she spoke. “Promise you won’t say anything, but me mum talked to Alaric.”

“So, it’s Alaric now. Well then, I expect you be wearing yellow ribbons in your hair soon.”

Nodding, she was disappointed at her friend's lack of excitement. “Marla, what’s the matter?”

“Nothing, it’s just you getting married and all and I almost twenty with no hopes of marriage.”

“Don’t say that.”

“Tis true, Selene, you have a good dowry. My mum has very little with all of my brothers and sisters to feed.”

Like many, Marla arrived at the Keep looking for work to help out her family back at her village. If nothing else, it was one less mouth to feed at home.

“You should do what my mother did; she too didn’t have a decent dowry being an orphan and all. Follow the drum.”

“What?”

“Listen, when the King calls up levies march out with the men. They always need someone to wash their clothes and cook their meals.”

“I’m no camp follower,” Marla snapped.

“Don’t be daft. Me mum, don’t you see, walked through the camp and found the most handsome of men. He was what you call a file leader. He has men under him, making him important. For a bit of coin, agree to cook for his men, wash their clothes, and the like.”

“And what then?”

“You know.” Selene smiled. “Be nice, pay particularly close attention to him. Men always like when a woman is willing to take care of them.”

“I’ll think about it.” Suddenly the two of them looked at one another and started to giggle.

Crossing the courtyard on their way back to the kitchens, the two women missed a catlike shadow lurking just out of the torchlight.