Chapter 26

Perhaps it was an after effect of the strain of the past few months, but Kyminn found himself unexpectedly worn out by the morning's exertions. Between Evin knocking him in the dirt and an hour spent pacing Derris around the square, he felt decidedly grubby. He trudged back to his room, stopping to speak to the hall boy and request both lunch and dinner be sent to his room. That done, Kyminn indulged himself in the luxury of his private bathing room.

He was unaccustomed to having so much free time and determined to put it to good use. He couldn't begin the notes on Derris until he obtained the reference materials, but nothing prevented him from getting Randen's notes out of the way. He stopped just long enough to admit the lad with lunch, a bit bemused at how quickly the notion had become routine.

By the time dinner arrived, his notes on Randen's case were complete, including sketches of the pins used in the Herald's shoulder and a description of the therapies used during the long journey. He took advantage of the pause to return to Healer's. Kyminn inquired at the duty desk as to where one might find Senior Healer Delassia's room.

"I've a stack of things going that way, I can make sure yours are added to the pile." The young woman on duty waved vaguely at a stack of similar reports.

"Thank you, I would appreciate that very much. Ah…my name is Kyminn Danner. I believe there might be some books for me?"

"Oh! So you're the one she gave a couple of moons worth of reading to!" The woman grinned and produced an impressive stack of books from beneath the desk. Along with the stack was a scrawled note in an unfamiliar hand.

Kyminn,

Please return these to me after you have finished reviewing them. The exceptions to this request are 'Foundations of Companion Physiology', 'Primary Traumas in Companions' and 'The Basic Horse'. The first two are texts I wrote. As such, I am of course familiar with their contents and do not require a copy. The third is a very basic primer, one I used during my early work on Companions. As I have long surpassed the knowledge therein, I no longer need it. You, however, will no doubt find it edifying.

In the event you wish to expand your knowledge of Animal Healing, you may wish to examine the following books. They can be found in the hall library. I imagine you can find it.

Healer Delassia

Included in the note were nearly three dozen titles, all related to various aspects of Animal Healing. He suddenly felt rich - the coins in his room were nothing compared to this! He leafed through the 'Basic Horse' text as he made his way back to his room, running his fingers gently over the margin notes, evidence of Delassia's erratic intensity.

Evening faded to dusk and thence to moonlight as he read. Dinner was cold and congealed by the time he remembered to eat, but he was too engrossed in diagrams of musculoskeletal systems to care. Here, in black and white were the structures his Gift had shown him. Pieces of understanding that he hadn't realized were missing began to fall into place. He'd always known that he was considered an acceptably trained Healer, but now he wondered how much more he could do with access to the resources of the Collegium. He was still wondering when he finally crawled into bed.

SCENE BREAK

At their session the next morning, Evin declared himself satisfied with Kyminn's progress so far. By the end of the candlemark, Kyminn was able to remain grounded three times out of five. "You had the basics, you just needed to refine your technique. Once your shields are firmly in place, we can start exploring your gifts and making sure you know how to make the most of them." Evin reached out a hand to haul Kyminn out of the dirt.

"So," the Healer said, settling himself down on the bench. "How's it going with your Foresight? Any more whispers?"

Kyminn shook his head. "All quiet so far. I have to admit that it's a relief. Can you tell me – is it that I'm shielding better or might it be that whatever was going to happen has already occurred?"

"You did say that you experienced these feelings over a long period of time," it was thoughtful. "That could mean one of two things. The first is that some people only ever get very vague warnings. In that case, it could well be that the event has already passed. But as that's not how your Foresight has operated in the past, I'm inclined to think it's the second possibility – that the event is still fairly far away in either time or distance. Your Foresight is generally very immediate and emphatic. Have you ever had impressions like these before?"

Kyminn shook his head.

"And it grew stronger as you grew closer to Haven, yes?" Evin prodded.

A slow nod.

"My gut feeling is this – whatever it is you are Foreseeing is still some ways off, that's why it is still vague. It is also tied to Haven in some way and is going to be a significant or otherwise notable event." Evin didn't sound happy.

"Is there anything I can do?" Kyminn ran a hand through his sweat-streaked hair.

"There's not much one can do. Foresight is not readily controlled. The only option that I can see is to thin your shields and see if the impressions are still present. You did say that they were constant, did you not?" Evin cast his student a querying look.

"Yes. They were happening almost all the time. It started as dreams, but by the time I got here, it was any time." A sour smile. "That's why I was so glad when I got help with my shielding!"

Evin's nod was profoundly sympathetic. "I can well imagine. It's possible," and he emphasized the word, "that if you intentionally try to access the vision, the pressure will be relieved. Your gift is trying to tell you something. It may be that your only option is to agree to receive the message."

"I've…never tried to do that. Get ahead of my Foresight I mean. Usually it just walks up and…smacks me." It was hesitant. To date, Kyminn's duels with his Foresight had not been pleasant encounters.

"I can help you," Evin volunteered promptly. "This is something gift-teachers are trained in, shepherding students when they try to consciously access their gifts. I'll be there to shield you if needed, or block if it looks like your Foresight is going to get out of hand."

"That would be a huge relief," Kyminn admitted. A wry smile. "No time like the present?"

"Indeed."

SCENE BREAK

The chamber was a quiet, interior room, containing only simple wooden chairs. Kyminn noted that the room contained no lamps of its own – Evin had to provide one. Evin caught the puzzled expression.

"There are a couple of these shielded practice rooms here and at least one in the palace proper. Gifts…can be unpredictable, so we try to control the environment as much as possible. For Gifts that could be dangerous, such as Firestarting, we work outside. If you had say, a Fetching gift, we wouldn't even start you off in this room. It's possible that you might Fetch the wrong thing and the next thing we know, these chairs are missiles."

"Oh. I see." Kyminn sat gingerly in one of the chairs. "Now what?"

"Now we link and you slowly drop your shields. Don't worry, I'll be here to back you up if anything happens. I just want you to tell me what you See."

A deep breath and Kyminn carefully, cautiously, felt for his shields. They were solid, reassuring, his mind quiet behind them. He pictured the shields slowly becoming thinner, the same way a wooden wall is thinner than one of stone. Bit by bit, the familiar chatter began to emerge from the silence. Hurry it urged him. Looklooklook. The sense of urgency rose in him again, pushing him to some as yet unspecified action.

Kyminn paused, steadying his shields. Instead of trying to ignore the chatter or push it away, he let it flow over him, trying to taste it, touch it, get a sense of its size and shape. Still too nebulous, too misty. He thinned his shields a little bit more…

"Fire!" Kyminn gasped the word. Through the link, he felt Evin's steadying presence anchoring him to here and now. "Fire…a Companion running through fire. He's…not hurt, not himself, not yet. But he will be. He's very frightened, almost terrified." Kyminn struggled to sort through the kaleidoscope of images and impressions. "There's a burning building."

"Is the Companion trapped?" Evin's calm question drew Kyminn's focus.

"No. Or at least, I don't think so." Kyminn's eyes were focused inward, on something only he could see. "There's something else…horses. Lots of horses. This Companion will be part of what happens to them. Oh!" Kyminn's breath grew ragged and tears streamed down his cheeks. "Pain! They're hurting! There's blood, and pain, and fear!" Kyminn was gasping for air now, shuddering with the intensity of what he was experiencing. With a groan, he snapped up his shields, cutting off the images.

"Kyminn, when did this happen?" Intense, urgent. Evin reached through the link again, steadying Kyminn.

"Not soon," Kyminn hadn't even been aware that the Foresight contained a sense of when. But as he spoke, he knew his words were correct. "Not before winter. Spring…maybe summer. It felt…green…".

Evin nodded, slowly backing out of the link, making sure Kyminn's shields were stable before finally releasing the bond. "Kyminn, we need to report this. The Heraldic circle needs to be informed, especially because there is a Companion – and presumably his Herald – at risk."

Breath slowing, easing. Kyminn touched his face, surprised at the wetness on his cheeks. "How…?"

"We'll write it up and I'll make sure it gets delivered to the right people. Two copies. One for Healer's, one for the Heralds." Evin slipped out, returning shortly with writing materials. Before he let Kyminn begin writing, Evin walked him through the Foreseeing several times, probing, digging out details until Evin was certain that Kyminn's vision was squeezed of all detail and meaning. Only when Evin was sure the account was complete did he commit to putting it on record.

"There." Evin slid the papers into a trim stack. "I'll take care of this right away." He looked at the Kyminn, drained and slumped in the chair opposite. "You clean up, change and get some rest. Consider that an official order from your Gift teacher and a Healer." There was no levity in his tone. "Kyminn, Foresight is often ambiguous and is notoriously hard to interpret. Given your record of accurate and clearly predicting serious events, we cannot ignore the fact that you have presented an unequivocal Sight of a Companion in peril along with an additional severe event. Should you remember any more details, or have any more Foreseeings, it is critical that you record and report them immediately. Do you understand?"

Kyminn nodded, too weary and shaken to argue. He was only too happy to take Evin's prescription for rest. As sleep overtook him, he wondered if there was ever going to be a morning here in Haven that did not end with him completely knackered.