"Have you got enough?" asked Jasmine, when Lief came back with a scant load of firewood.
"I think so," Lief replied, then asked, "Do you recognize this?" holding up a glass sphere full of what seemed to be fire.
Jasmine gasped. "I lost that a few years ago when I was getting chased by the Wennbar!" Then she fell silent, thinking, and finally decided on something.
"What were you thinking about?" Lief asked, with a confused expression on his face.
"Nothing. I'll tell you later, when I'm… ready for it." Jasmine replied shortly. She then took the fire-sphere and broke it. To Lief's amazement, a single spark jumped out of the roaring fire inside to leap onto Jasmine's outstretched hand; not even burning it, and then the glass resealed itself by magic.
"What was that?" He asked, when he got over his amazement. "Your magician friend?"
Jasmine shook her head. "Mother."
A sinking feeling took over his stomach, and he felt his face grow red. "Sorry."
Jasmine waved her hand as if trying to dispose of the thought of her mother. "No, you needn't be. You're not the one that killed her." (A/N: Tell me if this is wrong, please. Thanks. Or at least assure me it's right.)
They lit the fire and got comfortable for bed in silence.
"Good night, Jasmine," Lief said, but she was already asleep.
Jasmine sat up, rubbing her eyes, for she had seen a mirage.
…Or was it?
A huge shape towered over the valley, with Lief shadowed by it, with his sword out.
Rubbing her eyes again vigorously, Jasmine got up to run towards it, taking her fire-glass with her.
An un-armoured ghost of Gorl stood there, at the edge of the Valley, casting a huge shadow over Lief.
"Gorl again," Jasmine breathed.
"I am not Gorl. He is the one who lives. I am Greddok, second of the Three Knights," the shadow replied.
There was a sharp intake of breath from both Lief and Jasmine.
"Greddok, the slain one? But you're… dead. You couldn't possibly be standing there!" objected Jasmine. (Typical Jasmine. Will get into a bloody situation some day.)
"Really? Then see if this is real," said the knight, floating towards her. He then, in a split second, unsheathed a sword that had appeared from nowhere and plunged it through Jasmine's stomach.
As she toppled onto the ground face first, she shouted a string of incoherent words that seemed to do nothing.
Then, from out of nowhere, a tsunami of colourful birds came shrieking out from both forests on either side of the valleys – First Wood and Mid Wood.
They sped towards Greddock, who made no movement to ward them away. Their shrill cries filled the air as they started to attack a wisp of mist.
Greddock waved and pasted an evil grin on his face as he faded away, leaving the birds with nothing to peck at.
They milled around, confused, then slowly flew away, uncertain if their friend was safe or not.
All this Lief had watched, and now he came running towards her, calling out her name. "Jasmine! You're not dead yet. There's still some hope. Oh please, let there be hope!" he prayed to the gods, if there were any.
Jasmine struggled to right herself into a sitting position. "Lilies… Life…" her voice faded away like dust on the wind. She collapsed again. Lief dropped to his knees.
"No, Jasmine can't be… gone," Lief whispered. "She's not completely gone yet. I need to get her the nectar…" he struggled with himself – to be with Jasmine in her dying minutes, or to give her some hope of living?
He decided that Jasmine would like the latter better, and stood up again, brushing his tears away impatiently.
He started for the edge of the valley, his sadness washed away, leaving only a white-hot anger and determination to survive and save Jasmine.
"You poor boy," someone behind him whispered, and he spun around to face an old wisewoman.
Her face was wrinkled in a kind way, and had sparkling chocolate brown eyes that contrasted against her white – though slightly pockmarked – skin. She wore clothes of the olden days, before Thaegan's reign of terror. Her head was kept warm by an old grey-green shawl draped around it and her shoulders.
"Who are you?" he demanded. "I've had enough surprises to last me a lifetime," he growled.
"Oh, you'll get enough surprises alright," she chuckled, then immediately grew serious again. "Now, to the girl. What did that to her?"
"It's not a what, it's a who," he muttered, still not believing what Greddock had done to his beloved.
"So who was it?"
"Who are you?" Lief asked stubbornly.
"Look, your life lover and soul-mate has only two minutes of life left and you're asking who I am? Come. Who did this to her?" She asked again, pointing to Jasmine, lying like a limp rag doll on the ground.
Ignoring his questions for Jasmine's sake, he answered simply, "Greddock."
The woman shook her head sadly. "Thaegan and her children again," she muttered. "Look, I'll get the nectar for you, and you stay here to tend to her wound," she instructed, and disappeared.
Lief closed his mouth. It had been open to ask the woman about her identity and how she came to be here, and how she knew so much about… everything.
She was back in a painfully long sixty seconds with a glass flute of golden nectar. Then, telling Lief to look away, she turned Jasmine over and applied most of the nectar on her wound. The rest she dabbed on her lips.
"Why isn't this working?" Lief cried angrily. "Why?"
"Hush," the wisewoman soothed, stroking the king's back. "I had to gather some ingredients for the strengthening of the nectar – that means your dear friend will be immune to most common diseases for a few years, for the Lilies of Life make a girl's immune system weaker by healing them. Since their bodies aren't the same as men's, the nectar takes some of the healing from the person's body. You will need to wait for a while longer for the nectar to start working, but she will live. I am certain of it."
About a day passed before there was any sign of movement from the wounded girl.
It was a day Lief spent with dread inside him, even though he knew that Jasmine would live. He didn't bother talking to the woman about anything save Jasmine's condition. He wasn't in the mood.
At about the same time as the time Jasmine was hurt, she twitched only her smallest finger, but when Lief and the woman saw it, they were relieved to find the nectar had worked its magic yet again.
She moaned, a low, slight sound, but a moan nonetheless. "How many hours have I been asleep for?" she asked in a tiny voice, not opening her eyes.
Lief almost burst out in laughter, but managed to control it. Instead, tears began flowing from his eyes.
"Don't worry dear, cry all you want. I won't laugh at you," the woman assured him, and he gave a watery smile.
"Who was that?" she said in a slightly louder voice, opening her eyes only slightly. When she saw the woman, her eyes widened and she sat up. Or rather, she tried to sit up, but her body failed her and she fell heavily back into the grass.
Lief rushed to prop her up against his torso. Jasmine smiled, and whispered a 'thank you'.
Then, directing her attention to the woman, she breathed, "Tamm…" and blacked out.
What do you think? Should Jasmine die or should something be done to prevent this from happening?
Muhahaha… I love Jasmine getting killed and brought back to life… I'm a sadist… or am I?
You decide, I haven't got the time for it.
