Charlie lay beside Gaelen, her eyes closed. She had rested for a while then woke up in the middle of the night. While she truly was trying to get to sleep, she couldn't help but feel sad for the warriors she had seen in the Great Hall. They were morose—that much she could tell. She didn't have the emphatic abilities that the shei'dalins had, at least not towards people. But the look they had, watching Marissya and the other shei'dalins give the blessings to the warriors, Charlie couldn't get it out of her head.
Charlie felt her throat tighten. She remembered her Dad. Anybody who fought for their country should never, ever have to be treated like that.
Deciding that she needed fresh air, she got out of bed. Slowly, she pushed the blanket off of her and slowly placed her soft slippers on. She carefully walked to the door. She didn't expect the cold air, but it's not as if she could go back to get anything, Gaelen unwove all her clothes when he wove her a new one. Her lose tunic with short sleeves and trousers would have to do.
The corridors downstairs were littered with Fey warriors. They lay on pallets side by side. She walked past them carefully but swiftly. She walked past them until she found an inner courtyard where no one currently was, she sat there, leaning against one of the columns.
She sighed, calling forth her power, wrapping the golden threads around her hands. She looked at the sky, at the two moons, the Mother and Daughter Moons. She then looked at her feet, wondering why she was given these stupid powers. Why was she even here? She looked up again, feeling exasperated.
If you want me to help anyone, I think you honestly chose the wrong person.
A gentle breeze went past, rustling her hair and making her tremble slightly.
I don't usually ask for signs, but... What was she even doing? "Whatever." She sighed, standing up, deciding to go back to sleep.
She was about to turn a corner when she abruptly stopped.
"Charlie?"
"Ellie?"
"What are you doing here?" They chorused.
"Taking a walk."
"Just walking."
Ellie raised her eyebrow and Charlie narrowed her eyes as soon as they heard the other's answer. Then they both let out a laugh.
Charlie decided to speak first. "I was just getting some fresh air. I couldn't sleep."
Ellie expression changed. "Is it because of the rasa? Because that's why I couldn't sleep." She pulled the robe she wore tighter around her.
Then, Charlie realized something. While she didn't have empathic abilities, or they were in glamour or what not, Ellie's must've been going haywire. "You feel their pain, don't you?"
Ellie nodded, "like knives."
Charlie sighed. Ellie was too compassionate, it seemed. If she was anything like Greta, which she was, Charlie knew exactly where this was going.
"You're exactly like Greta," Charlie sighed. "You're planning to heal the rasa, aren't you?"
Ellie's eyes widened, and Charlie knew that she just got this girl busted. She led Ellie to the place she was sitting at, and they now sat side by side.
"It's not fair," Ellie said. "Those Fey warriors fought for the Fading Lands all their lives, and now they live in a semi-exile. They can't touch or even come close to women of their own kind." She took a deep breath. "I felt their pain. I saw them stand by as the shei'dalins gave their blessings." She paused, getting too exasperated. "It's not fair."
"I know," Charlie said. "I saw them, too. Gaelen said he used to be like them. The look on their faces… it's too much pain." She looked at Ellie for a while. "I can't feel it like you can, but… there's much sorrow."
"I want to heal them," Ellie said, determined. "At this point, I'm the only one who can—aside from you, of course. But you're weary, and I can't ask it of you."
Charlie hugged Ellie tight. "I don't know how I can help you, Ellie, but I will." She pursed her lips. "Show me how to heal them, and I'll do it. I'll help, and between the two of us, we might be able to get them all."
Ellie stood up and grabbed Charlie, heading to where the rasa were. "Come on, we don't have much time, Rain will wake up, and he'll be mad."
"Of course he doesn't know," Charlie sighed as they resumed a regular pace.
"He doesn't want me to touch them—he says it'll bring them dishonor, it'll hurt them to know they're hurting me." Ellie frowned. "But he doesn't understand that I can't let them just be like that."
Charlie remembered that Ellie had to heal by touching, and she was suddenly afraid of what would happen if Rain found out—they'd all be fucked. When they made it near the gates that guarded the Keep, she pulled Ellie back.
"Okay, I'm not sure we thought this through," Charlie said. "We need a plan." Ellie didn't say anything. "Do we just go in there and, like, say 'we're going to heal you, but don't panic, because we actually can do this'."
"I haven't thought that far ahead yet," Ellie said, eyebrows scrunching together.
"Well, neither have I," Charlie said, pacing back and forth. "We'll just wing it."
"'Wing it'?" Ellie said, confused.
"It's like…" Charlie pursed her lips. She snapped her fingers, thinking. "Like, we don't have a plan, but we're just going to go there and do what we do."
Ellie nodded her head. "I think we can 'wing it'."
"Alright," Charlie nodded, swallowing. What was she even doing for real?
She knew it was the right thing to do, though. No questions about that. People were suffering and Ellie and Charlie had the power to change that. They needed to do something.
Evil triumphs when good men do nothing. It was a motto that Charlie tried to live by.
Before they reached the gate of the Keep, Ellie turned back, narrowing her eyes at the dark corridor behind them. Charlie looked back, too.
"What's wrong?" She asked.
Ellie frowned. "I know you're there, Bel. Show yourself."
There was a shimmer and Bel appeared, stoic as usual.
"If Bel is here…" Charlie frowned. That's when she felt it, a shimmer of awareness in her mind. There were two. "Okay, I'm pretty sure one of you is Cyr, show yourselves."
There were two shimmers as Cyr and Kavril showed themselves.
Charlie sighed. There was another presence there—and it wasn't any of her lu'tan. "And, of course, Gaelen's too arrogant to trust you two, so go ahead and show yourself, Gaelen."
There was another shimmer and Gaelen appeared.
"I'd like to just note how vel Jelani was the first to be caught." Gaelen said, triumphant, arrogant smirk on his face.
"I spun the weave exactly as you showed me," he said. "The fault lies in your instruction, vel Serannis. Not my execution."
"It wasn't the weave," Ellie sighed. "But how'd you do that? Hide yourselves from Fey detection?"
Gaelen shrugged, then answered. "It was something dahl'reisen have learned over the years. Many Eld weave Spirit, too, so we've had to learn to mask the signature of our magic even from those to whom the flows would normally be visible."
"That's really, really useful," Charlie said.
Gaelen smirked. "Most useful. I have been saved on at least half a dozen occasions."
Charlie decided she didn't like the idea of him needing saving—or more like nearly dying.
"Is this something you could teach the other warriors—the ones who are leaving for Celieria?"
"Why are there warriors heading to Celieria?" Charlie asked. That's why there was so many—and that's why the shei'dalins were giving blessings.
"The Feyreisen promised the King of Celieria warriors to help secure the border," Gaelen answered. Turning to Ellie. "I could teach the strongest Spirit masters among them, aiyah, if there were time. And if they are willing to learn from one who was once dahl'reisen."
Charlie frowned but before she could say anything, Ellie spoke up. "How much time would you need?"
"I taught vel Jelani in just a few bells, but he was very skilled to begin with"—at that moment, Bel looked surprised but pleased—"The others, like these two," he indicated to Cyr and Kavril, "might require more practice."
Kavril and Cyr looked disappointed, and Bel looked smug, though he quickly masked it.
"I doubt delaying their departure a day or two will do much harm on the borders, but it seems to me that having Fey warriors trained to hide their presence even from the eyes of a Mage could save many lives," Ellie said.
"There is still a matter of Fey pride," Gaelen reminded her. "I was dahl'reisen. Even though you restored my soul, my honor remains tainted. A chatok should be above reproach."
Charlie frowned, her jaw clenching. "This isn't about honor. What kind of warrior would let their pride get in the way of protecting their country?" She scoffed. "If they don't want to learn the things that have kept you alive for a thousand years fighting Mages, fine, but they should know that their death is more certain that way." She clenched her fist and looked away. She was too angry. "And so is the death of the Fey."
Ellie spoke. "Gaelen, she's right. You have knowledge and skills the Fey need in the upcoming war. Kieran, Kiel, and Bel were willing to learn from you, as well as Cyr and Kavril. Why should the rest of the Fey be any different?"
"Because the Fey you mentioned serve either your quintet or Charlotte's own. Their loyalty was towards either of you." Gaelen spoke softly. "But with your quintet, kem'falla, if you recall, even they would not accept instruction from me until you ordered them to do so."
Bel interrupted, his gaze serious. "At the moment, I am more interested in knowing what you are doing wandering the halls of Chatok alone in the small bells of the night. Where is Rain?"
Ellie looked away, blushing. "I wasn't alone, I was with Charlie."
Charlie took that as a cue to interject. "Neither of us could sleep. I took a walk for fresh air, and saw Ellie, then we decided to walk together. I think the Fading Lands should be safe enough, and I'm pretty sure I saw at least a thousand warriors in this place."
Gaelen raised an eyebrow at her, but her face didn't betray her.
"It is not the walking that concerns me this time, kem'falla," Bel said, looking at Charlie then to Ellie. "It is the destination."
They were silent for a moment, then Ellie spoke. "You cannot stop us. We will do this."
Charlie sighed, turning to Ellie. "You fess up too easily." Then she looked at Bel, then at Gaelen. "Those warriors are suffering, and we will help them."
"Ellysetta, did Rain not forbid you to touch the rasa?" Bel said, then he turned to Charlie, his gaze was piercing—scolding. "Charlotte, are you fully recovered from what happened after entering the Mists?"
Charlie looked down, knowing that she was not.
"Rain told me that the rasa would feel shame if they hurt me, but I healed you, Bel, and I did it without a twinge of pain," Ellie reasoned.
"The glamour," Bel said. "The glamour that hid your abilities must have buffered your empathic abilities. And you had built a hundred Spirit weaves on top of that. But both the barrier and the weave are gone now. You will feel the warriors' pain almost as strongly as you felt Gaelen's when you laid hands upon him. We cannot let you do this."
"You're assuming that without any proof that it's true," Ellie countered.
"I was there the night you restored Gaelen's soul," Bel reminded her. "I saw what happened to you, and I remember the way you could hear everyone's thoughts and feel their emotions so strongly after Marissya unraveled your Spirit weaves."
Charlie interjected at that point. "You don't understand, Bel. She feels their pain, it hurts her more to not do anything." She took Ellie's hand. "We were both given the power to heal souls, and people who are clearly in need of our ability are right in front of us. You cannot stand in our way."
"We will do this, with or without your approval," Ellie said, squeezing Charlie's hand.
"You both are going into harm, you're asking all of us to stand by as we watch you be in pain." Bel turned to Gaelen, Cyr and Kavril for help.
"Charlotte, I can't let you do this, you aren't fully recovered," Gaelen said, eyes pleading for her to understand.
"I'm recovered enough," Charlie said. "Ellie's going to heal the first few to show me, then I'll join her."
"This is madness!" Bel hissed. "Simply touching them is going to hurt you, Ellysetta. I cannot be sure about Charlotte, but once she starts healing, her powers will be depleted anyway."
Ellysetta spoke, her voice determined. "We are shei'dalin. You cannot hide us from pain, it is and will always be a part of our lives now."
"And it hurts us more not to do anything. Standing by as other people suffer when we clearly have the power to give them peace." Charlotte frowned, looking at Gaelen. "We need to do this."
"Doreh shabeila de. If this is your choice, I will stand by you," Bel said to Ellie after a few moments.
"Beylah vo, Bel."
Gaelen didn't say anything, though he did follow them to the Keep.
The first four were healed by Ellie, and Charlie observed the weave that she used so that she could try to recreate it consciously. Of course, shit went down when Rain came upon them. Charlie said nothing, mostly because she couldn't follow the conversation at some points because they were being done in Spirit weave, but once Ellie had healed the third one, Charlie became worried.
Healing Tajik vel Siborreh had taken a tremendous amount of power—she could tell how worn out Bel and Rain had looked when Ellie took power from them. The next two seemed easier, and she showed Charlie how. The two, like Tajik, had sworn their bloodsworn oaths to Ellie, giving her powers—but they weren't enough. Then the fifth one came and her conscience couldn't let Ellie do it anymore.
Before Ellie could touch the man, Charlie grabbed her hands into hers.
"You are in too much pain, Ellie. I'll try this one," Charlie said, guilt eating her inside.
She was the one that encouraged this.
She'd made a mistake.
Ellie looked pale, and the only thing keeping Rain from taking her away was the fact that they did have a point—they needed the rasa for the upcoming war.
"I'm going to figure this shit out," Charlie mumbled as she looked at the next person who was up for healing.
She approached the man and held his hands and she called forth her power, calling for the golden weaves to wrap around her hands. She closed her eyes, willing the threads to cover the man—it was hard to control though. When she opened her eyes, nothing had happened.
Charlie looked at Ellie, then at Gaelen, unsure. "Why isn't it working?"
"Maybe you are not fully recovered, shei'tani," Gaelen said, touching her shoulder.
Charlotte shook her head. "No, I feel fine, I can summon the weave." She held up her hands that were covered in golden swirls. She swallowed, feeling doubt.
"The first time that you had healed souls, there was no touching," Bel said. "And you were singing. Singing may be your key. It's what bridges your powers to what your desires."
No other choice but to test it out.
She turned to the man in front of her—she didn't know his name, and he didn't know hers, which was a good thing because she didn't want his bloodsworn oath. She opened her mouth and started to sing, low, just so that he and those around them heard it. At first, nothing was happening, then a few moments in, her hands started to glow as the golden threads got out. It started to surround each of them—the man in front of her, Ellie, Rain, Gaelen, Bel, Ellie's lu'tan and her own. The golden threads shone bright then subsided, then the man fell to the floor.
"How do you feel?" Charlie asked, nervous. "Are you in pain?"
"Nei, kem'falla, my soul is light." He bowed to her. He bent his knee to kneel and reached for his dagger, but Charlie held him up by his elbows.
"Nei," Charlie said, determined. Her face was fierce and her voice commanding. "No bloodsworn oaths. I will not have it."
"It is his right, shei'tani," Gaelen said, eyeing Charlie's hands with clenched jaws.
"No!" Charlie said, letting go of the man to look at Gaelen. "No! No more. I will not have any more." She turned back to the man. "Please, I beg of you. Don't do it." She looked down. "But if you must, I ask that you think of it. That you think about it for at least a week." She looked at him pleadingly. "Gaelen found me right after he had been restored, you have a chance, too, please. Teska."
It took a long while, but the warrior gave a reluctant nod, and Charlie sighed in relief. She turned to the group behind her.
"What do we do now?" Charlotte asked.
Rain took the chance. He knew that she could heal several in an instant, and that would mean that it would be enough healing for Ellie. He hugged Ellie close. "Gather the rasa that will accept healing into the Great Hall, we will have Charlotte sing there." Rain paused. "We will do the healing in groups of two hundred. Will you be able to handle that, kem'falla? We would not ask of you what you cannot give."
Charlie nodded. "My strength has returned. I am alright." She looked at Gaelen. "I can do this." Maybe.
"Just don't touch any of them, shei'tani," Gaelen said, going to her side. "I will slay any that lay their hands on you."
"I will not," Charlie promised. "That is my gift, isn't it? I heal souls without having to touch." She looked at Ellie. "I'm sorry I didn't step in earlier. I saw your pain, but I…"
"It's alright, Charlie." Ellie said, still pale. "Even I didn't think it would be that painful. But I am alright now, if a little weary."
She turned to Gaelen. "How long do you think it will take to gather the rasa?"
Gaelen thought carefully. "A bell, at least. There will be those who will not believe, then there are those who will not wish to do the healing, and other reasons."
Charlie turned to the warriors. "Tell them that I heal without touching, so they can't bring their pain upon me. Explain to them." She swallowed.
They all nodded and, with a sign from Rain, they all went to gather the rasa.
She turned to Gaelen. "Gaelen, shei'tan, would you weave sleep upon me for one bell? Just until everything is prepared?"
Gaelen frowned, obviously not liking the fact that she needed it.
"It's just for precaution, shei'tan. I've gotten rest today, but I will need all the rest I can get," she smiled to touch his cheek. "And I'm getting nervous, and it builds up to exhaustion, you know."
"Alright," he said. He changed her clothes into something warmer, then picked her up.
"You promise to wake me in one bell?" She asked.
"Aiyah, shei'tani," Gaelen answered.
She kissed his lips and set her head on the crook of his shoulders. She closed her eyes and slowly felt the weave take power, pulling her into sleep.
Gaelen carried Charlotte to the Great Hall, it seemed that Fey were already gathering. Those already in the Great Hall were told to go outside for the meantime, to await for further instructions. He wove a sofa where the head table had been, making sure it was warm and comfortable for his shei'tani as he set her down, weaving a blanket on top of her when he pulled away.
"Can she do this, vel Serranis?" The Tairen Soul said as he wove a chair for Ellysetta near the arm rest of the sofa where Charlotte lay.
Gaelen sighed. "She's the only one who can, Feyreisen. Ellysetta's healing takes long and requires touch, causing pain. Charlotte will do what she thinks she must."
He looked at her sleeping face, wondering if he was endangering her by letting her do this. She was the only one who could—mass healings were unheard of, and she was the only one who could heal so many souls at once. He knelt in front of her, clearing the hair from her face.
"She's doing the right thing, Gaelen," Ellysetta said, placing her hand on the arm rest. "Charlie and I were prepared to do everything we could to heal them."
The corner of Gaelen's lips curved up for a moment. "That's why I cannot stay angry with her. She knows she's doing the right thing." He caressed her cheek. "And she does it for me—or, at least, Fey warriors who were like me, nearly drowned with the weight of souls." He sighed through his nose, standing up. "She's quite fierce, my shei'tani."
Ellysetta smiled. "She's your equal, Gaelen. And you are a Champion of the Fey, regardless of honor. You are strong."
Gaelen returned her smile. "Beylah vo, Ellysetta Feyreisa. If you are ever in need of anything, do not hesitate to ask me, kem'falla. I will forever be grateful to you, for restoring this soul of mine. You gave me the opportunity to have a truemate bond."
Rain interrupted them then. "The first warriors are now outside, Tajik is asking if she is ready."
"Nei, I promised her one bell," Gaelen replied, pursing his lips. "She still has a few more chimes."
He summoned Earth to weave a table in front of the sofa. He wove a pitcher of warm water, accompanying it with a goblet at the side.
"How many have come for healing?" He asked the Tairen Soul.
"The rasa are more than a thousand or two in number, I cannot predict how many will come," the Feyreisen replied.
Gaelen pursed his lips—this could go on all night. "She will rest every two hundred, for at least ten chimes."
"Aiyah, of course. We would never push her more than she is willing to go."
They waited for the chimes to pass by in silence and he woke Charlotte, just as he had promised, when she had gotten one bell of sleep.
She sat up, yawning. She looked at the doors. "Are they outside?"
Gaelen nodded as he handed her a glass of warm water. He sat next to her on the sofa. "Are you going to do those warm up exercises?"
Charlotte gave him a look. "Of course, as if I'd sing in front of people without doing my warm ups. Shame on me." She stood up, she gargled the water then drank it. "Just give me around ten minutes—ten chimes." She looked at the door again as she started to stretch, a look of nervousness passed her face. "Are there a lot?"
"There will most likely be a thousand," the Feyreisa said.
Charlotte gave a nervous laugh. "It'll be like a concert. I have to give it my best shot then." She paused for a moment, then she looked at Gaelen. "Shei'tan, do you mind weaving a privacy dome around me?"
He raised an eyebrow at her, but wove the dome anyway where she stood, just a few steps away from the sofa. After a few chimes, she asked him to take it down.
"Gaelen," Charlotte called, taking his hands into hers. "You're tired, I can feel it, you need sleep." She looked at the Feyreisen and Feyreisa. "I think you should all go back to sleep, I can do this alone."
Gaelen grinned at her. "Not until you do, shei'tani."
Ellysetta leaned back. "It's alright, I was prepared to go all night anyway."
"And I'm not sleeping without Ellysetta," Rain said as he took a seat on the sofa, on the opposite end from Gaelen.
Charlotte took a deep breath and exhaled. "I'm ready. You can send them in."
The first two hundred warriors entered with Tajik in the lead. They looked unsure—this was the first time something like this was happening. But they also looked excited, hopeful. Gaelen understood how they felt. More often than not, the fate of the rasa was death, or becoming dahl'reisen. Healing was unheard of, and the only real chance the rasa had was to find a truemate—but that was rare.
They stopped a little away from the front, and Charlotte looked back at Gaelen. He walked up to her and held her hand, with the contact, he felt the nervousness and the doubt that crept in.
"You can do this," Gaelen said, squeezing her fingers. "You'll heal many tonight." She seemed unconvinced, so he kissed her forehead. "Just sing as if it were to me, shei'tani."
He stood by her, just close enough so that he could feel her presence, and she could feel his.
With another deep breath, she spoke, looking at the rasa in front of her. "I hope I can bring you peace." She gave a bow from the waist, then when she stood upright again, she closed her eyes for a few moments, her brows furrowed in a silent prayer. She opened her eyes, swallowing down the nervousness that had built up inside her.
Then she began.
"May it be an evening star shines down upon you. May it be when darkness falls your heart will be true."
Her hands were covered in golden threads and she stretched them out to spread the weave over the rasa.
"You walk a lonely road. Oh how far you are from home."
She deliberately continued to thicken the weave, putting more effort than before, and she glanced at Gaelen, who was smiling encouragingly at her.
"Mornie utulie. Believe and you will find your way. Mornie alantie. A promise lives within you now."
The bright weave, now practically a blanket, separated into strings as it went to each rasa in the room, enveloping them in light. She closed her eyes, holding in her focus.
"May it be the shadow's call will fly away. May it be you journey on to light the day. When the night is overcome. You may rise to find the sun."
When each rasa was fully enveloped in light, the threads sunk into their skin. There were gasps from several, and some fell to their knees as a flash of bright light came from their skin.
"Mornie utulie. Believe and you will find your way. Mornie alantie. A promise lives within you now. A promise lives within you now."
Charlotte prolonged the last note and Gaelen's heart clenched. The song, like all the songs that she sung, was different and he'd never heard of it. But just listening to it, grasping its meaning, it was just so poignant.
So very appropriate for this moment.
As soon as the song finished, some warriors went down on one knee, the others attempting to do lute'asheiva were already on their knees, shaking and some were in tears.
"No," Charlotte whispered as she got down the elevated platform. "No! Stop!"
The warriors all looked at her, and she looked back at Gaelen, and he could see the clear panic on her face. Then, before any of them could tell what she was going to do next, she knelt on the ground, sat on her heals and touched her head to the floor, hands on the ground beside her head.
"Shei'tani!" Gaelen growled out as he knelt beside her.
"No, Gaelen!" She hissed, as she looked at him, then resumed her position. "I'll beg if I have to. I'm not going to take any more bonds." She took a deep breath. "Fey warriors, I am begging you, teska, please, do not bind yourself to me."
"Shei'tani, it is their right as warriors." Gaelen placed his hands on her shoulders, urging her to stand. "It is a warrior's right, a gift that no shei'dalin can allow or deny."
Thankfully, she lifted her head and sat up, but she didn't stand. She looked at the warriors who kneeled. "By binding yourself to me, you risk losing the chance to find a truemate of your own." Her voice thickened with emotion. "You can't say that there's no one out there for you right now, because Gaelen found me—despite the fact that he's lived so long. Moments before he was to do a bloodsworn oath, he found me." She touched her head to the ground once again. "Teska. I am begging you. Do not throw that chance away for me." She raised her head, lips quivering and eyes brimming with tears. "And if you still think you must, and if you still want to, swear it to the Feyreisa—"
"The lute'asheiva does not work like that, shei'tani, they have chosen you to bind themselves to," Gaelen said.
"But this was all Ellie's idea!" She looked at him, then to Ellysetta. "If you have anyone to thank for restoring your souls it's her not me." She sighed, closing her eyes. "I could not have healed you without Ellie."
"Shei'tani," Gaelen said, placing his hand upon her cheek to turn her face to him. "They give you this honor, out of their own will. And they will do it with or without your permission."
"But I'm not someone you die for, Gaelen," Charlotte said as the tears fell from her eyes. "You die for someone like Ellie, or Marissya. But no one should die for someone like me."
"You have brought us hope, kem'falla," one of the warriors said. "You have brought us light in our existence. We live or die by the decree of the gods—that is the life of the rasa. But you have brought us hope in these pain and sorrow filled days. I would gladly give my life for one such as you."
"Aiyah," other Fey warriors agreed.
Gaelen brought her up on her feet, and he could feel her reluctance. "You must let them do this, shei'tani. You dishonor them by being this way."
She looked at him with a conflicted expression that Gaelen just needed to hug her. He pulled back to cup her face with both hands. "Shei'tani, lute'asheiva is a Fey warrior's right. They honor you with their bond—they will serve and protect you in this life and the death that follows. You cannot stop them from doing this, you have to understand that."
Charlotte was silent for a while, and Gaelen thought that she'd protest when she opened her mouth to speak, but she surprised him by saying, "Fine, I will not protest their bond, but I will not welcome it either."
She turned her back on the warriors and got up the platform. Gaelen also went back up and stood by Charlotte as the warriors said the sacred words of lute'asheiva. Each warrior that became a new lu'tan approached her and knelt in front of her, offering his bloodsworn dagger. With a glance at Gaelen, Charlotte accepted each dagger without a word, placing it in a trunk that Gaelen wove beside her.
The warriors that did not do lute'asheiva made their way out of the Great Hall, and soon, it was once again just the four of them.
Once the door closed, Charlotte turned to hug Gaelen.
«What is it that makes you so convinced that you are not worthy of being protected?» He led her to the sofa and made her sit down in the middle beside the Tairen Soul. He took a seat beside her and poured her a glass of warm water.
«I just don't want anyone else to die for me, shei'tan.» She replied, sipping the water slowly. "Can you make the water hotter, shei'tan?"
"The song you sang, it was very beautiful, Charlotte, and quite appropriate," the Feyreisen said while Gaelen was heating the water, weaving Fire into it. "Thank you for sharing it with us."
Charlotte smiled as Gaelen handed her the water, steaming slightly. "Thank you," she said to him, then she turned back to the Tairen Soul. "It's a song we used to sing at the Conservatory—usually just acapella, though, or prerecorded music, I've always wanted to sing it with an orchestra."
A look of sadness passed her face and Gaelen pulled her close to him, giving her comfort through touch. They had no bond threads that connected them as of yet, but for Fey, touch conveyed a lot.
"I'm alright, Gaelen," Charlotte said as she stood, placing the cup down on the table. "It's time I stop being such a baby over this. I mean, I'm in a new world with magic, for God's sake. Magic. I should be happy I get to go on an adventure like this!"
Gaelen sighed.
The Feyreisen spoke. "You don't simply deal with grief like that, kem'falla.. You could spend a thousand years mourning, and it would still be painful." The Feyreisa reached for his hand, giving him a reassuring squeeze. He must've been thinking of Sariel—his mate whose death caused him to scorch the world a thousand years before.
Charlotte bit her lip. "It's just… There's so much I can do in this world, and I'm wasting time and effort just crying over a world I'll never see again." She inhaled deeply. "Speaking of wasting time, send the next ones in."
"You cannot do what you did earlier, shei'tani," Gaelen said. "You cannot use a Fey warrior's instinct to protect women from pain against them." The look on the warrior's faces as they saw Charlotte beg—they were truly conflicted.
"I won't," Charlotte said, turning around, a rueful, bitter smile on her lips. "I'm slowly learning that nothing keeps you guys from your oaths."
For the next two bells or so, she continued to sing and heal—receiving lute'asheiva bonds every time she finished healing a group. Gaelen saw her frown after the song, when several warriors would kneel to give her their bloodsworn oaths, but he also saw that despite not liking it, she took each dagger with care and a short prayer—to never need the protection of the giver.
After the end of a fifth rendition, she staggered to the sofa, Ellysetta and Gaelen were beside her in an instant.
"You should rest now, shei'tani," Gaelen said as he held the cup of warm water to her lips. "You're weary."
Charlotte turned to Rain. "How many more are left?"
"Just a little more than three hundred, kem'falla," Rain replied. "You don't have to continue if you can't."
"I'll see to the rest of them," Ellysetta said. "You should get some rest, Charlie."
Charlie shook her head, straightening her back and schooling her expression. "You'll be in pain, Ellie. I'll be fine." This time, she looked at Gaelen. "I'll finish this, shei'tan, and then I'll sleep."
Gaelen clenched his jaw, seeing the determination in her eyes. "I wish our bond was more complete so that I could give you strength."
Unexpectedly, she grabbed him by the cloth around his neck and pulled her to him, bringing his lips to hers in a quick kiss. When she pushed him back, she had a wide grin on her face. "That gave me quite a bit of strength, shei'tan."
«Well, if that's how it is, I can think of something that might just revitalize you» Gaelen smirked as he pulled her up, wrapping his arm around her waist, flattening his palm on her stomach. He saw the blush on her cheeks and grinned.
Good to know he wasn't the only one affected.
The rest of the warriors that sought healing entered and he held her close to support her, but making sure he didn't impede her hand movements. In the four chimes it took her to sing her healing, he felt the weariness that weighed upon her body, and she leaned against him for support to hold her up. She was doing all the healing without any help from her lu'tan, her lack of practice with Spirit made sure of that. The fact that their bond wasn't complete also made sure she couldn't get help from him.
«This is the last, Charlotte—if any more come in, I will slay them where they stand.» Gaelen clenched his jaw, he'd done it so many times this night that he felt an ache.
Charlotte resisted the great urge to roll her eyes at his words. She knelt down to receive the daggers of those that had bloodsworn themselves to her. And when the Great Hall was empty again, Gaelen carried her in his arms. She yawned as she settled her head on the crook of his neck.
"You know, you should really teach those thousand soldiers that are leaving in the morning how to do the invisibility weave—it'll help," she said as he stepped down the platform.
"Nei, they will not listen to me," Gaelen said.
The Feyreisen and Feyreisa came up beside them. Ellysetta spoke, "The soldiers will have a better chance at survival if you teach them, Gaelen."
"Teska, shei'tan," Charlotte whispered, saying nothing further as she fell into a deep sleep.