A Price Paid Ch. 04

Note: Story chapter; no sex.

The events of the day were just short of bizarre for Neral to begin with. A riot erupts with no reasonable explanation. Then a reasonable explanation appeared which sent a rush of fear through her for the potential conflict it represented, and an example of how such a conflict could spiral out of control. For the first time, she could envision being called upon to fight the war that drove the mages out and underground untold generations ago once again and, with the loves of her life mages themselves, she didn't know if she would have the will to do her duty.

Then the unrest dissolves at the first hint of resistance, leaving different mayhem in the aftermath. Dead and wounded littered the streets alongside burnt buildings, with the acrid stench that assailed her eyes and nose made her home look and feel like it'd been sacked by war. Homes and business were gone now, and more were set to go up in flames as citizen and soldier alike struggled together to restore order to the world around them.

When the runner lived up to his title, coming at her full bore before seemingly defying the laws of nature by stopping in front of her as if instantly, to deliver his message, she was surprised that he didn't seem winded because she felt so just watching him pass ground beneath his feet like a horse might. "A message for you, General, from your house mistress. I'm to tell you that it was delivered to Colonel Dion, and the colonel handed it directly to me with orders that no one see it but you."

"Thank you," she said, taking the paper from him with a renewed sense of dread. Tessa would not have contacted her in such a way unless the situation were dire. Perhaps whoever was responsible for this had tried to spread chaos elsewhere in the city and Tessa thought the wisest course would be to evacuate. Her eyes scanned the paper and as they did so her jaw tightened and her blood ran cold. Even as the dread and a wave of anger took hold, there was some small sense of relief because it also provided a hint of clarity.

Neral didn't look up from folding the paper as she whistled a quick series of high and low tones to which Stenna, her mount, responded. She pocketed the paper and met her horse half way. "Major Vix," she barked.

"Yes, sir." His voice was some distance away with just as much power behind it as her own.

"Circumstances have called me away," she began, mounting her horse in a single fluid motion. "You are in command here. Proceed as you think best."

He looked around at the monumental task before him, knowing all he could do was act as a bandage for the worst of it, but, at least he could get the remaining damn fires out. He was already in the process of setting up chains of man, beast, and machine to get the last of the blazes out and was determined to see that through in any event, "Yes, sir."

Hearing him acknowledge the order was all she was waiting for before she headed of the makeshift clinic to find Deres.

* * *

Life on the side street looked normal once again by the time the two arrived at the blacksmith's shop. The hulk of a man quenched the metal he was working, giving them both a friendly nod as he turned toward them to avoid the rush of steam while they tethered their horses. "In the back."

They moved quickly, Deres slightly ahead because, despite being told that all was well right now and knowing she could take care of herself, he would be the first to meet anything unexpected, even if only by half a step. He opened the door and Neral rushed in to the small kitchen built for one. Khylen sat with a paper as Cassea hunched over, hands over hers, showing her how to fold paper into a particular shape. As soon as the young one saw who entered all else was forgotten. "Mother! Father!"

Neral dropped to her knees and squeezed as hard as she dared, pressing cheek to cheek, her eyes closed, just enjoying the feeling of being back in her presence. She was mostly successful at fighting back tears, though her eyes did reflect the light with just a bit more intensity than before as she pulled away and touched those cheeks. "Are you all right? I hear you had quite the adventure today."

"I'm fine," she said, her usual good nature in full force in a testament to childhood resilience. "Some soldiers tried to say that I was supposed to go with them, but they didn't know the right words, so Tessa and Cassea wouldn't let them take me and we ran away. We wooshed through the streets so fast it was crazy, but Cassea found this place and a nice man helped, but we're all right. Are you all right, Mother? They said people were burning things and fighting."

She sighed. "I'm just fine." She thought a moment about how she could explain it in a way that her young mind would grasp without a million other questions that she didn't have the answers to, much less the ability to explain. "People weren't feeling well and were upset that they weren't feeling well. We're getting them help now and they're getting better. Don't worry."

The look of pride suggested that she expected nothing less from her mother. "See? I told Tessa that you'd fix it."

Neral cleared her throat with zeal, pushing back another rush of emotion hearing in her voice that she was still at the age where her parents could do anything. It gave Neral something to aspire to. "I just do the best that I can." The moment she'd let her loose the little one went to her father for more hugs while Neral stood. Tessa saw how her eyes had drifted to the blood droplets on her dress at the shoulder and quickly reassured her. "It's not mine, Mistress."

She drew closer to the redhead, examining her deep green eyes, "Also good to know. Very good to know." Her fingertips grazed the pale skin of her round cheek before touching Tessa's forehead with her own. "Thank you, Tessa."

"Please don't. There is nothing to thank me for, Mistress," she said softly but firmly, "Truly. My responsibility to her isn't just baking cookies or seeing to it that she has clean sheets. She is part of our home and of my home. Aside from that, I did nothing for her that I wouldn't have done for any child in need on the street."

Neral grinned, "I know that's true. That's part of why I am fond of you. And why you are the beating heart of our House," Her smile broadened, "And do not contradict me."

She blushed brightly, her cheeks instantly becoming several degrees warmer. She might have, but the true House Mistress had commanded, and so it would be. "As you wish, Mistress."

Neral's hands lingered for a moment more before she took a step to face Cassea. She saw the fierce determination and the iron will was always there behind those blue eyes as well as the softness that, for her to show it at all, was like a gift she bestowed. "You know what's about to happen, yes?"

"Under the circumstances, it does seem unavoidable," she said, resigning herself to her fate.

"I'll be quick, I promise." Neral wrapped her in a hug and rested her chin on the other's shoulder. "Thank you for protecting her."

Cassea's tone suggested that she was speaking to the village idiot. "What else was to be done?" She found herself mirroring the embrace at the last moment just before Neral let her go. "Her House is my House. Keeping her safe saves wagon loads of tears and anxiety for everyone involved."

Neral knew she was in a better place now than she had been all day in that she had it in her to bait the woman. "Yourself included?"

"Tears? Doubtful," she began. "That said," the softness creeping in, "if I am to share a home with children, I could do worse than to have to share a home with one like Khylen. She is a credit to her parents."

Wanting to get away from the emotionalism after paying it the required respect under the circumstances, she changed the subject. "Your Private Hoben is upstairs. I don't know how she is now, but when we met her earlier, she clearly was under the influence of...someone."

She gave a slow nod. "You're sure?"

"Takes one to know one and I'll just leave it at that."

That was enough for her to take up the creaking stairs and through the gap above her head. She gripped the small railing at the top of the stairs and turned herself around to see the afternoon light waning from the small window high on the wall below the rumpled bed upon which Hoben rested. Bryana Lia's fingers hovered just above her body from her chest to her head and her blue eyes were open, though her gaze was very much elsewhere. Long, blond, natural curls came forward as she moved. She looked aristocratic even then and there with her pristine blue dress only slightly lighter a blue than her eyes, and she looked as though she were in command, which, Neral supposed, she was; in command of forces that she and Deres were masters of in ways Neral only understood as broad strokes of theory.

The general approached, the sound of her boots hitting the thin flooring hard in the enclosed space.

Bryana didn't look up as her fingertips now hovered over her head, from left to right over her forehead, and from the back of her skull to the front. "Do you know her?"

Neral studied the peacefully sleeping form and her head tilted as she sorted through her memories. "I know her face in that I've seen it more than once at the barracks, so she is one of mine. Beyond that, no, I didn't even know her name until Cassea told me just now."

"Definitely mage marks on her," Bryana stated, very much the clinician in that moment. "Very thorough, too. The only traces left are quite basic; nothing that points to one mage in particular, but the person who did this is adept in more physical manipulation as opposed to the exclusive use of magic."

"What does that mean?"

"Toxins. Chemical manipulation. The use of magic to enhance this effect and dull that one and combine different chemicals in various ways in order to do many things. It's not my specialty, of course, but it's quite versatile. Poisons are coursing through this woman."

"A guild then, perhaps?" Neral knew from previous experiences that different guilds taught their apprentices how to cast spells in slightly different ways and those differing marks could be something of a signature in itself and point to those responsible.

"Nothing definitive," she said, her eyes narrowing. "It's not uncommon for apprentices to go to several guilds before settling on one. There's no consistency in the traces that suggests any one possibility over another." She changed the subject, but not her tone. "You'll want to step back."

Neral did so even as she asked why and the answer came as Bryana rolled Hoben on her side just before her chest clenched and she vomited a dark brown, viscous slime that sprayed through the air, leaving trails on the pillow, the bed and the floor. The general looked down to find some on her boots as well and the stench of it reminded her of rotting plants in a swamp.

Hoben gasped and coughed several times before she settled back into a lighter sleep. She whimpered and moaned as though talking her way through a nightmare and back to wakefulness while Bryana eased her onto her back and wiped her face with a wet cloth that was draped over the small basin on the floor behind her. Moments later her eyelids lifted slowly, though it took her eyes a bit more time to find focus enough to show her that she was in no place familiar. She looked at the equally unfamiliar blond watching over her and decided to ask the only questions on her mind. "Who are you? Where...?"

As her eyes darted about the room, she caught sight of someone she did know. She jumped and gasped, trying to get up, only to be pinned by the other woman and a wave of nausea and vertigo. "General," she began awkwardly, now wondering if perhaps she had been caught in a compromising position. Goddess, what if my family finds out? What do I say to them? What do I say now? "Sir, I..."

"At ease, Private Hoben," she said calmly and with what she hoped was a reassuring smile "I understand that this a rather unusual way to meet, but may I have your first name?"

"Lenare, sir."

"Lenare, how do you feel?"

She took stock of herself. "Dizzy. Tired. Like I want to throw up." She grimaced, "And like something died in my mouth."

"The need to vomit is a positive sign," Bryana assured her. "Rest assured that we'll be doing that quite a bit more before we get you home and get you to sleep."

"Thank you, healer," she said, making an obvious assumption. Real sleep sounded like bliss.

Neral's voice was a bit more firm now to draw Hoben's attention, "What's the last thing you remember?"

It added to her uneasiness how little information there was in her mind with which for her to answer. Her voice gripped each fragment of memory in the hopes of willing more to come to her. "I came home from duty. I bathed. I wrote a letter to my sister." Her brow knotted. "After that I..." She closed her eyes and demanded of herself that she remember, but nothing else came to her mind's eye. Looking to Neral, she was contrite, "I apologize, sir. I don't remember anything at all. Do you know what happened, sir, if I may ask?"

Neral and Bryana exchanged glances before looking upon Hoben with sympathy. She was just another of many victims today. "I have no definite answer at the moment, but it seems a fever has spread throughout the city. You left the barracks without telling anyone, were found wandering the streets in delirium and brought here, it being the closest place."

That seemed to make as much sense as anything else, but she had to give voice to the one thing in the now that didn't. She spoke, her voice thin, "Please don't misunderstand, General. There aren't any words for my gratitude at your personal concern over my welfare, but, why? I mean, I'm just me. Surely there are more important people that have been struck by this fever, and I don't understand why you would make the effort to wish me well."

Bryana glanced at her again, wondering what answer Neral might give, but the general did not lose her footing in the slightest, "Every one of those under my command matters to me, even if I do not know every single name and face. But, just as truthfully, private, I have a report to deliver to court later this evening about the day's events and I was hopeful that you might be able to provide more information about symptoms of this malady."

The corner of Bryana's mouth turned up, but she didn't comment.

"I'm so sorry I couldn't be more help."

Neral shook her head to dismiss it. "You are in the same state as everyone else that was struck by this. None of it is your fault." Those last words carried added weight, at least for her. "I hope that you feel better soon and that you return to duty as soon as possible." She gripped Hoben's hand to emphasize the point before exhaling sharply as she let go. "While I am not particularly squeamish, your healer has made it clear that you, to put it delicately, have to expel more of your infection and I have to brief queen and court, so I shall take my leave of you."

"Absolutely, sir. Again, thank you for visiting." Another wave of dizziness chose that moment to spin her around the room, forcing her to close her eyes as she looked forward to getting what was inside of her out and finding some semblance of normal.

"Bryana, I shall see you at home once my meeting concludes."

"Indeed you will." There was an undercurrent of angst in her voice that only those closest to her might have detected. Neral suspected that she knew the why of it, but that would all have to wait.

She turned and headed back downstairs to find Khylen lifted into her father's arms, excitedly chattering away about the adventure of the day. Feeling Khylen's sense of security, she allowed herself to shed much of her own anxiety. Between the four of them with eyes on her, there was no doubt that the young one would be fine and she could deal with the problems before her with some detachment. Detachment led to an honest appraisal of things, which usually led to more effective responses.

She stepped to her and kissed the little one on the cheek. "Off I go, little one. I don't expect to be home before you're asleep, but I will wake you up for a few minutes when I get home, as usual.

It had become their ritual and the young one was glad for it. What had started as a compromise for her for when duty kept her mother away, she found that she valued it greatly. It was time with her mother that was just theirs, where she had to share her with no one. "Okay."

"Bryana and your father will see to it that you get there, without any... additional events on the way."

There was a hint of his usual roguish swagger in his voice. The grin anchored her and the determination in his eyes reassured her, "If there are any additional events on the way home, they aren't going to be Khylen's problem."

"I'm sure." She pressed her lips to his, feeling her heart come alive as it always did, and parted from him before she could rekindle her anxiety over what those problems might be.

* * *

The night was cool, as they often were. The breeze was just enough to keep the insects away before winter finally descended to put them down, and the sky was so clear that, even through the light of the city, she could count the stars. But, as she approached the balcony off her bedroom she could still see the wound the city bore. The lights were far fewer in the distance near the water and when the breeze picked up she could catch a whiff of the aftermath, which led her mind to the totality of it.

Dozens dead, scores more injured, and two blocks and more destroyed by either fire, rage, or both. The stone walls that had largely come down over the years that were once used to separate the economic classes from one another and had since been covered decorated, and otherwise disappeared into the background, combined with more than a little luck to limit the spread of the blazes. Telling herself that it all could have been much, much worse did little to make her actually feel better.

"I did not get the opportunity to speak with Private Kaven. She was asleep after my meeting and it seemed rude to disturb her. How is she?"

Deres addressed that, having seen and tended to her in the barracks after he saw his daughter and the others in his family safely home. "Well enough now. A different magic was employed in her case, though she remembers nothing either. It was more general, which tells me it was a mage not the one that took Hoben."

"The other healers suspect nothing?"

His brows went up, "See what they are deliberately not trained to see and what most of them wouldn't want to see if they could? No. Tessa did a thorough job on her eye though."

"Blind?"

"Some fluid still remained. It can be nurtured and the eye restored, though it will take several weeks."

"What does she think happened?"

He shrugged. "Your explanation of a fever explained enough of the unexplained. She suffered the fever, attacked someone in her delirium, they fought back, but the other wasn't hurt. She was remorseful, but pretty quiet after. There was no reason to push, so I didn't."

Then there was silence and the opportunity to just be with them. It was such a whirlwind of history that brought them to this point together, but they completed one another in such a way that she couldn't conceive of life without either of them. She took the third chair which put her next to Bryana. The conversation had stopped and, for however many minutes they sat there just feeling the breeze, it was like a vacation and she relished it. She knew that tonight neither of them would break it and would be content to let the cool breeze roll over the three of them for as long as she liked, so she was the one to finally pierce the quiet. "She calms me."

"Last week you didn't seem all that calm," Deres noted, "when she was trying to inform you that she was going to Annesta's without having done her chores. One of the servants was going to take her, she wouldn't be home for dinner, and that was that."