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amayadartan · 2 months

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We find out what happened back in Amaya's room when Dartan provoked Arioch....

In the infirmary, Amaya had been resting comfortably in her new, lush accommodations while Olly was getting her breakfast. A light sleep had almost overtaken her when her body suddenly felt on fire, especially her neck and throat. Pain lanced through her and stole her breath. It felt as if she was being impaled, but as her eyes searched the room, she saw nothing and no one around her. The scream that was rent from her body echoed off of the stone walls and was carried to the ears of not only Olly, but also down the hall to the lab of Arch and Cruz, who had been visiting with him.

All three instantly knew who it was and traced to the room, dropping what they had been doing. The sight that met them had all three men's hearts stopping, there was obviously something seriously wrong. A light sweat was on her brow, her eyes had rolled back, and she was fisting the sheets next to her. Both of the wee chinchilla creatures at first had bared their teeth at the men, before relaxing once recognition set in and starting to chirp worriedly while hopping up and down.

"Is it more of the mushrooms?" Olly asked Arch who quickly began to examine her. Concern lined both men's faces, and while Olly was normally the fairer of the two, both currently appeared ashen with worry.

"No, I need Abriella." Arch looked to Cruz who instantly disappeared. While theoretically both siblings had the same healing powers, Abriella was far more proficient at it, and if things went badly she was the most powerful necromancer in all of creation. He was hoping that it didn’t come to that, however. "There is something mystical at work, and I do not know how to counteract it." The dark mage's piercing blue eyes rose from looking at his patient to meet the troubled ones of Olly.

"What do you need me to do?" Olly asked. “Just tell me." There was little the Horseman of Conquest wouldn't have done to relieve Amaya of the suffering she was so obviously enduring. Since lifting her off of the forest floor, he had found himself with a certain fondness for the small female, who was unfortunately all too human at the moment.

"Find me that damn spectre." Abriella’s voice was calm, eerily so, and carried the regal authority of her position. When the men looked over, her eyes had gone to a swirling silver, an indication she had tapped into powers far above those of the Horsemen. As she walked over towards Amaya, Olly disappeared to locate Dartan. He didn't know where the spectre was exactly, but he had a few ideas where to start.

Cruz and Arch could do nothing but watch as Abriella walked over, placing her hand on Amaya's forehead. The female immediately went limp and was quiet on the bed. "Whatever is ailing her is tied to the spectre. I have cut her off from him only temporarily. We need to break this spell. Then I’d like to torture him for a century or two, if no one is opposed." When she turned to face the men, her eyes had returned to normal and there was a sardonic smile on her lips. There was little doubt she was still highly annoyed.

"About that,' Arch started, "I've made some progress in deciphering the spell almost completely, and I think I know what happened and why. But, if I am right, breaking it is not going to be anything other than something that the two of them can do." He sighed heavily. It had been what he and Cruz were working on when Amaya had screamed. The information they had received from Dartan was enough for Arch to research into antiquity and lost languages, then draw some conclusions.

"Whatever it is that’s fucked up, I'd say we blame this asshole for it." Olly unceremoniously tossed Dartan, still with the front of his shirt covered in his own blood, through the doorway and into the room. "This jackass picked a fight with Arioch, and he was not winning when I showed up." There was no doubt that Olly was pissed, from both the look on his face and the sound of his voice. It was only the fact that he now knew that whatever was done to the prick wound impact Amaya that stilled his hand from delivering more pain to the spectre.

When Dartan opened his mouth to respond, Cruz pushed off of the wall to tower over him. His voice was deep, and while not loud, it still echoed off the walls around him. The Palace knew how to make a statement using acoustics when it wanted to. "I dost think it twould be most prudent for you to keep your mouth shut unless you would like one to shut it quite forcefully for you." The glare that Cruz was giving Dartan made everyone else a little uneasy, and they were glad that Amaya was in the room; otherwise violence might have commenced. Not that anyone would have blamed Cruz for flattening Dartan.

"So I don't have to hear the sound of his voice, fill me in on what happened. As much as you know." Abriella asked of Olly, glancing over to her brother who was currently seeming to keep Dartan quiet and still, by pure intimidation. It was, after all, one of Cruz’s specialties. She literally adored him for it, amongst other things.

"He demanded to see Amaya, was told no, and decided to act like an entitled prick till Arioch impaled him on his claws," Arch winced at Olly's words, "then the demon started eviscerating him." Olly glanced over to Amaya, who was now still. "Is that what happened to her?" It was clear that the Horseman of Conquest was clearly disturbed by that thought.

Abriella began examining Amaya gently and carefully. Whatever the poor human had gone through, it had obviously been traumatic, she didn't want to add any more hurt to the other female. The room was quiet except for the soft sound of breathing and the occasional worried chirp of one of the furry beings. Olly was now holding one and Arch the other. It seemed best to keep them out of Abriella’s way until she was done with the healing.

"Bruises on the neck and abdomen, internal hemorrhage, and acute anemia. Yes, she suffered the same as him." Abriella finally announced, which made Cruz growl and Dartan wither. "I've repaired everything but this is a setback." She sighed and turned to Dartan. "So, what exactly do you have to say for yourself? And keep it brief, if you wax on poetic, or in some kind of monologue, I will bind your voice and make you learn sign language, you odiferous stump of a slug’s tail.”

For a minute, Dartan’s gaze alternated between Abriella, Cruz, and Amaya. Guilt boiled and bubbled in his gut, as he tried to find the right words to explain, as well as the courage to do so. While enduring the pain has not been anything remotely akin to pleasant, it could have killed Amaya. All because he challenged the demon in the hallway out of anger. In wanting to see her, he once more caused her harm.

“I wanted to see my wife." Dartan finally answered, his eyes now cast to the floor he was sitting on. There was no fight left in his voice; he was obviously defeated.

""Your what?!" Olly, Arch, and Abriella asked in unison. All were incredulous that NOW he referred to her as such. Abriella felt a twitch in one eye and wondered if she could still get migraines as a diety.

"She art your wife, as the snow dost belong to the mountains. That hapinstance did curse her with falling into your life, dost not make her yours. Hast you not done enough harm to one who did none to you? What crime hast she committed to you for you to punish her so?" Cruz’s deep voice seemed to fill the room as he spoke, anger growing with each syllable that vibrated through the ether. As he looked to Dartan for an answer, the other male could almost swear he could see flashes of lightning in the large male's pupils that were surrounded by deep blue irises; and he was afraid. Dartan was not the first to feel such fear, but he might be the one to live the longest after experiencing such, solely based on the fact obliterating him would most likely do likewise to Amaya, and none wanted to do her further harm.

Once more Dartan’s eyes fell to the floor. He was a proud male, but at the moment he was also a deeply ashamed one. Never one to be considered "good", he had also never caused such harm to an innocent person as he had to Amaya twice in less than twenty-four hours. Worse yet, he could not even come up with a good explanation WHY he had insisted on seeing her to the point of driving Arioch to violence. Cruz, in his archaic way of phrasing, was right. Amaya didn’t belong to him and they were the farthest thing from a traditional married couple in any concept of it.

"I know what I said," Dartan started, then sighed deeply, "and I know what I've done. I was mean to her verbally," he looked up and met Cruz’s intense gaze that had not wavered, "but I did not intentionally set out to hurt, or lose, her yesterday. I had no idea my fight with your demon would do it today." Once more he sighed and ran his fingers through his thick black hair that has a few random threads of silver. "I can not explain it to you in a way that will make sense, but I needed to see her. It felt like…" he struggled to find the phrasing that would fit.

"Like there was an integral part of you missing, and the longer you were apart, the harder it was to breathe. It was like you were starving, and Arioch got in the way of you getting to the kitchen when you could smell dinner cooking." Now all eyes turned to look at Arch as he completed Dartan’s explanation, which it was clear from the spectre's stunned expression was all too accurate. What did the mage know? More importantly, what did this mean for Amaya?

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