Healer

He was rocked from his slumber.

But not the kind of rocking that puts you to sleep or gently woke you up, it was the kind of rocking that shook you awake, uneven and loud.

His eyes slowly opened and the first thing he saw was the roof of a carriage, a carriage he was in. He groaned and sat up, his head ached and his body trembled from the inside. He opened his palms upward and noticed his trembling fingers, slowly he clenched them into fists and took a deep breath in. The sun was up and very bright, shining in hot through the windows but it came with a chill in the wind, promising of an early winter season. He sat awhile in the carriage, trying to gather whatever strength he could conjure from within him before he pounded his fist on the side of the carriage twice.

It came to a halt almost immediately and Xanth ran to the carriage door, just as Ryder flung it open. His body was weak, he could tell and Xanth could sense that too, he placed a hand on Ryder’s shoulder to stop him when he tried to get out of the carriage.

“Don’t. You don’t look too good.

Ryder patted his hand on his shoulder and pulled it off him, then stepped down from the carriage. The heat from the sun hit him more than the chills in the breeze and he felt his head spin, so he held on to the side of the carriage until he felt he was stable enough to stand on his own.

“Where did you get the carriage?

“From the outskirts of the village.” Xanth replied, supporting Ryder by holding his other arm.

Ryder nodded and walked painfully forward. “So we moved. How close are we to Eldham?

“We are back in Kilead.” Xanth replied, helping him to the horse. Ryder grabbed on to the reins and turned back to Xanth, a frown on his face. “When we found you, you were passed out deeper into the forest, with blood on your hair but no injury. You must have healed.

There was a sudden eagle call and Ryder looked up to the skies to see two eagles circling high above their heads. “They came?

Xanth nodded. “They found you.

He turned away from Xanth and quickly got on the horse, Xanth took hold of the reins to keep the horse from moving forward, then he looked at Ryder with a tight frown. “What are you doing?

“I will ride the rest of the way.

“But you’re not in the best health to do so.

Ryder looked down at Xanth and repeated. “I will ride the rest of the way to Kilead.

*   *   *   *   *   *   *

The moon was already shining above their heads by the time they galloped into the castle grounds, Ryder was on his last strength, and not only Xanth could see that but the rest of the men also could. They watched from behind as his horse slowed down to a walk when they passed the castle’s gates. Xanth rode beside Ryder, his eyes were on him the whole time.

“Ryder?” Xanth called, watching as his Lord slowly slumped onto the horse’s back, his breathing was strained and he could only manage to hold on for so long.

“Ryder.” Xanth called again, only a little louder.

Ryder panted, like he had just run the whole journey from the outskirts to the castle, his chest constricted tightly and he struggled to breathe. His horse still moved, he could feel that, but he could not tell in what direction it moved, and neither could he control it. He heard Xanth call out to him as he slowly slumped on the horse’s back and the night became darker, so dark he could barely see, and then he felt his body move. He felt light, so light like he was floating, and then he felt his body hit the hard ground. 

He blinked, trying to keep his eyes open. Xanth came to his side but all he could see was a blur, he heard the voices but it sounded very distant, what he could hear clearly was his own pained breathing, shallow and rasp and then he could see nothing else as he slipped into the darkness that welcomed him. He slept now.

*   *   *   *   *   *

She was there again, the same woman he had been seeing in his dreams for the past centuries, and with each time he saw her she became even more real than the last. She never harmed him physically but she did cause him pain, making him feel extremely weak and vulnerable and leaving him when he was down, only to come back again. He had no control over how often she came, or when she came, and he had absolutely no control over her whenever she came.

He could not move and neither could he see her, but he could feel her. This place he had never been to had become familiar to him because she brought him here every time she had control of him, only that this time it was not just her. The last time he had seen Lyra, and this time he saw her again. She smiled at him and stroked his face gently and spoke. Her lips moved but he heard no words, she assured him of safety and he relaxed.

“You have got to help him.

She looked up from Ryder laying on the bed and troubled in his sleep, to Xanth, a bewildered look in her eyes. “How can I do that? I don’t know what to do or how to do it.

The maids came in with a bowl of hot water and a towel, placing it on the bedside close to her before leaving the room as Xanth wanted nobody else with them. Lyra looked back at Ryder and she felt pity for him, for the first time since she knew him, she was seeing him so vulnerable and so distraught and having no power to do anything. Instinctively, she reached out her hand and stroked his face, cold beads of sweat broke out on his forehead and his body was cold. So cold.

“He’s cold.” She said and reached for the towel, soaking it thoroughly in the hot water before squeezing it and placing it on his forehead. He shivered at the touch and his brows knitted tightly. “What happened to him?

Xanth moved closer to them and ignored her question. “Can you heal him?

She looked up to Xanth, the towel in her hand suspended over Ryder’s face. “Heal him? I do not possess such powers Xanth.” She looked back at Ryder and although her expression softened when she looked at him, the tone in her voice sent a different message. “I am just a kidnapped princess from Dragonsbane.

“But you’re Khione.” He got on one knee before her and took a hold of her free hand. Lyra turned to him, confusion in her wide eyes. “And Khiones have the ability to heal.

She looked at him confused. “What is a Khione?

His shoulders dropped when she asked the question and he looked away from her, slowly, he let go of her hand and stood up. Right, she still had the mind of a sixteen-year-old. He sighed out loud and turned back to look at Ryder, the last time this had happened was thirty-eight years ago, nobody could tell what exactly was wrong with him and some said it was some sort of long-term poison that had a condition attached. Xanth knew what condition was attached to what ailed him, but he did not know what poison this was. Or who had planted it in Ryder.

He would not die, no yet and not immediately, but he would remain like this for days; troubled and restless until the day he would wake.

Lyra watched Ryder, a part of her wished there was something she could do to help but she knew that she could not do anything. She took his hand in hers and placed another on his forehead. He was still cold. She felt his hand flex and his grip on her hand tightened, she looked at him and he was still unconscious but he spoke. Words she could not understand and his head jerked to the side so often, she stroked his face to quiet him down but he squeezed again, and this time she felt the pain.

He needed warmth.

She stood up to get more hot water for him but was pulled back down to the bed, he would not let her go. Xanth became cautious. She tried to pry her hand away from his grip but he only squeezed tighter, four of her fingers trapped in his.

“Xanth, help me.

And he did. He tried, but could not get her hand free. His jerks became more violent and his grip tightened. Lyra felt more pain as he squeezed and she struggled more to be free of him.

“Ryder, let go.” But he could not hear her, he kept squeezing as Xanth and Lyra tried desperately to pry her hand free from him.

She panicked, her fingers hand turned red, the pain was becoming unbearable and at one point, she thought to bite him to get her hand free.

“Ryder!” She yelled, frantically clawing at his hand, and then there was a crack of bones breaking. Lyra screamed and a blinding white light of energy grew from their joint hands, so bright that Xanth had to look away to shield his eyes, and then he heard a gasp and a soft “thump”.

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