"But you said that it was my healing magic that made it impossible to receive the Dark Gift." Riqua nodded. "There are stories. old stories. that tell of a mage losing his magic, or
having it taken away. If we could find a way to extinguish the magic, we think the
transformation would proceed on its own."
Carina's eyes widened. "But I wouldn't be a healer anymore."
"That's right."
Carina sat down in a chair near the fire. She looked down at her hands, and turned them palm up. "When being a healer cost me my family, when my father banished Cam and me, I don't think even then I would have given it up if I could have. It's too much a part of me. I don't think that existing without it would be possible." She knew her pain was clear in her face, although she found that she could not cry. "Goddess help me! I'd rather die." "That's what Jonmarc thought you'd say," Taru said. "That's why we've focused all our efforts on trying to reverse what Malesh did. But you deserved to know all the options." She paused. "We do have a couple of ideas on how to attempt a healing. Royster is convinced that the Flow has something to do with this. Lisette told us about how the Flow reached out to you at Winterstide, and how Raen led you down to the chamber below Dark Haven to try to heal the Flow."
Carina nodded, remembering. The Flow was a great river of power that ran from the far north underneath Dark Haven and through the southern plains of Margolan and beyond. It had been damaged eleven years before, when the dark mage Foor Arontala tore the Soulcatcher orb, the prison of the Obsidian King's spirit, from where it had been secured within the power of the Flow. That damage affected the magic that drew on the Flow's power, gradually making it more unstable, aiding blood magic and impeding light magic. Of late, the Flow had become volatile, and Carina had seen the effects of that volatility on her own magic. "What do you have in mind?"
Taru took a deep breath. "Curing what Malesh did is beyond the normal scope of my healing. But if you're willing, I want to try to tap into the Flow and channel it to magnify the healing energy." She took a deep breath. "I don't know what will happen. The Flow has been violently unstable. But I think Royster's instincts are correct-the Flow is part of this, somehow."
Carina met Taru's eyes. "I'll do whatever it takes. When do you want to start?" A few minutes later, Carina sat in a chair facing Taru. Riqua, Royster and Lisette stood at a distance, watching closely. Taru took Carina's hands in hers and closed her eyes, concentrating. Carina did the same, focusing her healing power on the bond Taru opened between them. Taru reached out her magic, opening herself to the Flow.
Carina felt the familiar tingle of the Flow's power. It grew stronger, until the air around them crackled with strong magic. Carina fought down fear. She could feel the fluctuations in the Flow, random surges and drops that would make drawing on its power very unpredictable. Carina focused her concentration on Taru, who was weaving her magic to the very core of Carina's being, seeking to find and heal the tendrils of Malesh's pollution. Taru's power increased, and Carina stiffened, barely keeping herself from crying out as Taru probed at the changes that made Carina neither living nor dead.
A blinding flash of light crackled through the room, and with it, along the channels of magic, a searing blast. Carina heard a scream. The power of the blast threw her from her chair, knocking her across the room. Her head swam as if she had slammed against a rock, and the pathways of magic ached from the recoil. Carina opened her eyes as Royster bent over her.
"Are you all right?"
Carina nodded weakly, struggling against a throbbing reaction headache. Royster helped her sit. On the other side of the room, Riqua and Lisette knelt beside Taru, who lay sprawled near the broken pieces of her chair. With Royster's help, Carina made her way to Taru's side.
"She's breathing," Riqua said. She looked at Carina. "The Flow?"
Carina nodded, and wished she hadn't as her head throbbed. "It's as wild as when I went
down to the catacombs. Healing magic doesn't usually draw directly from the Flow the way
other magic does. If it's this difficult to manage healing, how is Tris fighting a war in
Margolan?"
Riqua shook her head. "With great difficulty, I assume. Taru says that a number of Sisters have gone rogue and followed him as battle mages. He'll need all the luck we can wish for him." Taru stirred, and they turned their attention to her. Lisette lifted Taru easily and carried her to the divan.
"Not exactly what I planned," Taru said with a weak smile. Carina clasped her hand. "I'm sorry that you got hurt."
Taru shrugged. "Not the first time I've paid a price for magic. Can you tell-did it make a difference?"
Carina closed her eyes and searched her power. The strange sense of floating within her own body that she had noticed when she first awoke remained strong as ever. "I don't think so." She managed a wan smile. "We could wait for daylight and see what happens if I open the curtains."
Riqua frowned. "That's not a good idea." She looked at Royster. "If the Flow plays a role in this-and I agree that's likely-we need to find a better way to channel it." Royster had a faraway look. "I have an idea. Come on. I want to check something I thought I saw in one of the old healing scrolls."
They huddled around Royster and his books and scrolls until late into the night. Taru joined them, although she remained seated and looked pale. Carina realized that Taru and Royster had reversed their days and nights for her benefit and Riqua's. Still, she could see the fatigue on their faces. Time wore on, with Taru compiling a list of books and scrolls for Kolin or Jess to bring from Westmarch or from the Citadel of the Sisterhood. Although Carina listened as the others argued, she still felt too overwhelmed to do more than answer when asked a direct question.
Finally, the fifth bells rang. Royster began to put away his books, and Taru stretched. Carina thought that even Riqua looked tired. "Riqua needs to take her rest," Taru said. "And Royster and I must eat." She looked with concern at Carina. "You shouldn't push your strength too far, Carina. After a short break, Royster and I'll come back and resume the work. You should rest."
Carina watched them go, and moved to follow.
"I thought you were going to rest?" Lisette had entered from the sitting room so quietly that Carina had not heard her approach.
Carina gave a wan smile. "I will. But my head is so full right now, I thought I might go to the chapel to think."
Lisette nodded. "We've kept you out of the sunlight as a precaution. Please, m'lady, stick to the inner corridors. Sunlight burns terribly when you're newly brought across." Carina nodded. "You need to rest, also. I'll be all right," she reassured Lisette. Carina let herself out of the room and made her way through Dark Haven's protected inner corridors down the steep steps to the chapel of the Dark Lady. Banks of candles ringed the room, and the torchlight behind the huge stained glass depiction of the Dark Lady made the figure seem to sway. As usual, the chapel was empty. Carina had never even glimpsed the vayash moru caretaker who kept the candles burning and tended the torches that lit the stained glass here in an underground sanctuary where daylight never reached. Born in Isencroft, Carina had been raised to the Aspect of Chenne, the Warrior. As she and Cam hired on with the mercenaries of Principality and Eastmark, Carina had learned the ways of
most of the other Aspects, and found that, as a healer, her heart was drawn most to Margolan's dual allegiance to the Mother and Childe. But alone in the chapel, Carina could not take her eyes from the glowing face of Istra, the Dark Lady, in the magnificent stained glass at the front of the chapel.