~ Chapter 5 ~
Keli woke with a pounding headache, a mouth that tasted foul and a warm body was pressed against her back. Her open window flooded the room with early morning light. Forcing her to squint as she turned over to see who she was sharing her bed with. A pair of too blue eyes in a furry face. Yesterday's events came flooding back to her.
:Are you ready to greet the dawn?: Solaris asked as she stood and stretched, extending claws worthy of a great predator and yawning to reveal a matching set of teeth.
Keli sat up and discovered somehow in the night her tunic and skirt had been removed and she had been tucked under the blankets.
"Did you do this?" She asked, bleary eyed.
:No.: Solaris hopped to the ground. :Tris did. Of course he asked that I not tell you.:
"Well, thank you for telling me." Keli slipped from the bed.
:He left you a fresh uniform on the chair.: Solaris said as she vanished in a patch of sunlight.
Keli changed slowly and sat at the desk. She felt even worse today than she did the day before. She had wished that yesterday had only been a dream. That she would wake up in her own bed with Rodry waiting for her at the breakfast table. But she was still in this small room, in the past without Selene.
Everything was gone.
A soft knock interrupted her thought's downward spiral.
"Come in." Keli forced herself to sit upright.
Talia opened the door. "How are you holding up?" She asked as she closed the door.
"Well enough." Keli shrugged listlessly. She did not want to deal with anyone at the moment.
Talia gave her a look of pity. Keli felt the tears welling up, but forced them down.
"I am an Empath. I know you are at the breaking point." Talia sat across from her on the bed. "I can Feel your grief from the other side of the palace."
"I will be fine." Keli insisted but there wasn't much force behind her words.
Talia gave her a look saying she knew better. "Why don't you tell me?" She urged softly.
The tears started to well up again. She could barely breathe around the lump in her throat. She met Talia's gaze. She could see the concern in her eyes. There was something about Talia that reminded her of Rodry.
Keli tried to find the words but none came to her. Reaching out she rested her fingertips on Talia's temples and showed her everything.
It took Talia several minutes to recover. Her eyes filled with understanding were more than Keli could bear. The tears poured down Keli's cheeks, but she made no sound. Talia gathered her close and let her cry herself out. Keli couldn't stop the sobs when they came.
Eventually Talia sent Keli back into slumber with a touch of her mind.
With a last concerned glance Talia went in search of the Queen.
"You look rather shaken." Selenay commented when she saw Talia's pale face.
"I was just talking to Kelisiaori." Talia explained as she clasped her hands behind her back, trying to still their quaking.
"The woman who claimed she was from the future?" Selenay asked, her tone held a note of derision.
"Yes. She was radiating grief and loss so badly I couldn't shield it out so I went to see her. Everything she told you is true." Talia sat on a serviceable chair. "It is worse than she said. She lost her father, her lifebond, and her Companion, all in a very short time. I am surprised she hasn't death willed herself."
"But she arrived with a Companion." Selenay said confused.
"He was the King's Own Companion. Her own Companion severed the bond between them because she couldn't travel back in time. Kenyon chose her immediately after but she is struggling against the bond." Talia explained, her hands were still shaking.
"Perhaps it would be better to let her choose her own fate." Selenay suggested reluctantly.
"I think we should try to keep her alive. I am certain her Companion wanted to keep her alive for more than a couple days when he Chose her. We have seen many Heralds that have survived their Companions until their duty is complete. If she was only meant to survive until she gave you the message of 'fix the treaty' he would not have Chosen her." Talia said. "I don't know what to do for her though. It is almost like she is half gone already. If I were in her place and had just lost Dirk and Rolan I don't know what I would do or how I would survive."
~*~
Keli was in her palace, in her time. Everything seemed at a distance, like she couldn't touch it. She was wore the white velvet dress she had worn to the ball just weeks before. Unseeing eyes of the paintings that hung on the halls stared at her as she passed.
It was odd that the Palace would be so empty. There were normally servants or politicians cluttering the hall. She dismissed the silence as she slowly walked through the halls.
"Rodry?" She called as she wandered the halls. "Selene?"
Only the echo of her own voice reached her. Slowly she made her way through the empty halls. Once outside she started towards the Field.
She saw two white figures walking towards her.
"Selene, Rodry!" She called and ran to them, her heart light.
Rodry smiled when she approached. "Hey Sia."
Selene tossed her mane and pranced in place, sending her a warm, wordless greeting.
Just as she was about to reach them agony tore through her body, causing her to double over. When she looked back up Selene and Rodry lay on the grass, their eyes vacant and lifeless. Scarlet blossoms forming on their pristine white chests.
"No!" Keli screamed as she ran to their sides.
~*~
Talia could feel miasma of loss and depression when she entered the Collegium. It felt like a vice on her chest it was so strong. She quickly ran up the stairs and found Keli still asleep but obviously the source of the pain.
"Keli, wake up." Talia called as she shook Keli's shoulder and tried to reach her with her mind.
Suddenly Talia found herself standing in the Field. Keli was next to her, kneeling between the bodies of Selene and Rodry, sobbing.
"Keli." Talia tried to block out the overwhelming feeling of loss. "Look at me."
Keli didn't even acknowledge her presence when Talia touched her shoulder.
~*~
Tristen pushed his way through the people who had gathered around Keli's door. It was obvious that none of the gathered Heralds or trainees knew what was happening.
"What is going on?" He asked Deverell, who was closest to the door.
"I don't know. We can't wake Keli or Talia." He looked concerned.
"Has someone sent for Healers?" Tris asked.
"Yes, but they haven't arrived yet. I was coming to see if she would care for some help getting settled when I saw the crowd." Deverell explained.
Tristen forced his way in the door and through the gathered people and sat next to the two women. It looked to him like Talia was in a trance and Keli was much too tense to just be sleeping. He touched Keli's hand and was stunned to find to hot to the touch.
:Sia, are you all right?: He mind called.
She didn't answer.
A Healer pushed him aside and tried to revive the women. "What on earth happened to them?"
Tristen scrambled out of the way but tried to stay close to the pair. "I think Keli has them both trapped within her mind. Yesterday she showed me her memories; I think she has done the same thing, only unintentionally."
"How did she do that?" The Healer demanded as he felt for a pulse.
"I don't know." Tristen admitted.
"What Gifts does she have?" The Healer questioned without looking up.
"She is an Adept and she is a Firestarter, that's all I know." Tristen struggled to answer.
The Healer considered the options. "She may be a projective empath, I believe they could do something like this. Do you think you could reach her again?"
Tristen consider it for a moment. "Possibly."
~*~
Talia had given up trying to reach Keli when Tristen appeared.
"What happened?" She asked him.
"I don't know." Tristen admitted. "The Healer isn't certain either."
"I have tried reaching her but she is locked in. As far as I can tell this is a dream." Talia gestured to the surrounding field that was disturbingly different from what he knew.
"We have to stop her. The Healer thinks she is trying to kill herself." Tristen said urgently.
Talia wasn't surprised. "I have tried to reach her but she doesn't acknowledge me."
Tris stepped over the prone body of the man he knew was Rodry and knelt before Keli. "Sia, can you hear me? Please, just look up at me."
Keli seemed to stiffen and looked up. Her eyes were wide and the look in them tore his heart. It was a look of almost crazed grief.
"Rodry." She whispered and wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her face in his neck.
Tris pulled her into his arms. "Sia, you have us trapped. You have to let go." He said urgently.
Keli pulled back a bit, enough that he could see her face, eyes seemed clearer than before.
Suddenly they were back in her room. Tristen gasped for air as if he had holding his breath. Talia sat back and rubbed her temples and groaned softly. "Is she awake?"
Keli opened her eyes. "I am awake."
"How are you feeling?" The Healer demanded.
"I'm fine." Keli sat up and looked around. Her room was filled with strangers. "I get the feeling something is wrong."
"I got caught in your dream." Talia admitted.
Keli pulled herself upright, confusion written on her features. "How?"
"We were hoping you could tell us." The healer said ruefully.
"Could it be the same thing you did to share your memories?" Tristen suggested.
Keli frowned slightly. "Possibly. But I have only done it deliberately before, never by accident."
"What exactly do you do to share memories?" Talia asked.
"It's a little hard to explain. I open a channel between us and then bring that memory to the fore." Keli grappled for words, she never had to describe it before.
"Do you both experience the memories?" The Healer pressed as he took her temperature with the back of his hand, it had blessedly returned too normal.
"Yes but the other person experiences them as if it were first hand. To me it is just a memory." Keli answered obediently.
"What Gift do you use to do it?" He continued to query.
"I am not exactly certain. I just know I can." Keli was rapidly losing patience. "If you'll excuse me, Kenyon is probably about to come out of his skin from lack of grooming." Keli brushed away his hands. She was in no mood to answer a thousand questions.
Everyone moved out of the way as she strode out the door and toward the stables.
Tristen was the only one who followed her. "Sia wait."
"I have to groom Kenyon." Keli continued on.
"Do you remember what happened?"
"Yes. I am sorry it happened." Keli didn't pause.
Tristen stepped in front of her, forcing her to stop. Keli crossed her arms and waited for him to say his piece.
"Sia, is there anything I can do? I don't like just watching you go through this." Tristen asked earnestly.
"Tristen-" Keli started.
"Don't push me away little Empress." He pleaded.
Keli blinked back tears. "I am not trying to push you away and please don't call me that."
"You are trying to keep us all away." Tristen pointed out. "You let us get close then you push us away and become the Ice Princess again. You won't even let Kenyon get close. How do you think he is feeling? He lost friends and his Chosen yesterday too. He probably feels as bad as you do."
Keli dropped her hands to her sides and drew herself to her full height. "I am not used to having people hover around me."
"We aren't hovering." Tristen protested.
"I woke up with a dozen people in my room." Keli's voice started to rise. "I don't know about your past, but I have fought tooth and nail to keep people out of my personal life and I am not about to change now."
"If you want privacy we do understand!" Tristen assured her.
"If you two are through making a scene, perhaps you could get out of the doorway." Elspeth commented behind Keli.
"Not a problem." Keli said and stepped around Tris and continued on.
"That sounded like an interesting conversation." Elspeth commented.
"It was." Tristen sighed.
"How is she settling in?" Elspeth asked curiously.
"She isn't." Tristen frowned as he followed Keli.