Page 68 of Blood of the Stars

“I’ve been through worse,” she said.

“I’ll say a prayer to the Stars for you,” he offered.

She gave a weak smile of thanks but wasn’t sure if he saw it. They still saw the Stars dancing above, weaving in and out among the plain stars in the sky. Their darting light should have been reassuring. Surely prayers could still be heard on this side of the barrier, even if the people here worshiped the Sun.

Most of the others were occupied setting up camp and making dinner. The last few days had brought them closer to the sound dividing their peninsula from the mainland, which would supposedly bring them to a ferry that would take them down the coast all the way to Valorian. The idea of sitting on a boat instead of walking sounded glorious. Sylmar and Jasperus bent over a map nearby, the smaller man’s loud voice making Aeliana wince as they debated the safety of one road over another. When Sylmar was finally satisfied, he came to Aeliana, his intention to train written all over the scars on his face.

“I think she’s ill.” Cyrus bent forward, placing a hand on her forehead.

“She’s in withdrawal,” Velden said as he joined them, his eyes reflecting Cyrus’ concern.

“How do we help her?” Cyrus asked.

“She needs to help herself,” Sylmar said. “She needs to do magic.”

Aeliana shut her eyes at the exhausting thought. She’d fought through this before when she’d run from Arvid and Vera. It had been almost two weeks that time. But she also hadn’t been pushing her body to walk several miles a day with a heavy pack while short on rest.

She opened her eyes at a rustling sound near her head. Velden pulled more seaweed from his pack. It expanded in his hand as his water rehydrated it. He flung it in a bowl, mixing it with other herbs so ferociously that Aeliana winced, but his glare was aimed at Sylmar. Aeliana couldn’t stop watching, his motions rhythmic and relaxing as he formed a paste, even while her insides felt stretched to bursting.

Without warning, he smeared the paste on Aeliana’s forehead, then her hands. The concoction was surprisingly cool, like mint with recently thawed spring water, spreading through her body to provide a haze of relief around the areas that ached with her building energy.

As the pain relieved a fraction, her mind cleared enough for her to acknowledge that Sylmar was right. As agonizing as this process was, she couldn’t give up. The only way to subdue her magic was to wean herself from it, and the only way to wean herself was to learn how to do it. She couldn’t even think about saving her mother or finding the arrow for Cyrus until she’d accomplished those first steps.

“I’ll try again.” She sat up, closing her eyes at the dull throb invading her head. Sylmar would have to be content with teaching her here on her bedroll. At least she could keep her eyes closed. “Remind me how to transfer the energy.”

She had to think of it like getting rid of her magic, just on a smaller scale. She wasn’t getting rid of it all at once like she wanted, but she was getting rid of it bits and pieces at a time, passing it around to different people like sharing a bottle of mead around a room of friends.

Not that she had a lot of experience with friends.

“Let’s try something different instead.” Sylmar grunted as he lowered himself to the bedroll next to hers. “Kendalyhn! Come here.”

His shout brought Aeliana’s eyes open wide.

Kendalyhn came without question, but she eyed Aeliana warily. Maybe it was the strange paste coating her hands and face, but Aeliana suspected it was something else. Why did he have to choose her? The woman was probably only a few years older than Aeliana, but she was as intimidating as Sylmar. Beneath her tiny frame, Kendalyhn had a lot of bite that Aeliana didn’t want directed her way.

“Sit across from Aeliana. She’s going to place her hands on your arms and replenish your energy.” Seeing Kendalyhn’s apprehension, he added, “Velden will take over your duties by the fire for as long as it takes.”

“You just don’t want to eat her cooking,” Velden muttered before ambling over to the cookfire.

“I heard that.” Kendalyhn’s eyes shot daggers at Velden, which Aeliana preferred over them being aimed at her.

Aeliana tentatively held out her shaking hands as if asking Kendalyhn for permission to touch her. Kendalyhn grumbled something unintelligible before holding out her arms.

While Aeliana closed her eyes, she gripped Kendalyhn’s forearms as if they were locked in greeting. Kendalyhn’s hands returned the tight hold, and Aeliana tried to sense the other woman’s power, to envision it growing as it took on Aeliana’s energy. The only thing she sensed was the croak of frogs nearby and the chirp of birds overhead.

“I can’t—” Aeliana started.

“You have to give it more than a moment,” Sylmar said.

“You can do this, Aeliana.” Cyrus’ encouraging words flooded through her, empowering her in ways Sylmar’s sharp rebukes never did.

But still, her starlock lay cold against her chest. She tried to concentrate on it, willing it to send the energy in her blood toward Kendalyhn, but it was like her power had gotten too strong, clogging all the avenues of release. They sat in silence for so long that the clanking of pots and pans and the crackle of the fire started to hold a rhythm that made Aeliana’s focus drift. Kendalyhn dug her nails into Aeliana’s forearms, the pain pulling her fully awake.

“Are you using magic on me?” Aeliana gasped, eyes flying open.

“It doesn’t require magic to sense you’re falling asleep. You nearly fell into me.” Kendalyhn’s eyes narrowed, and she leaned forward. “Sylmar would have more luck training a rock to do magic.”

The tremor in Aeliana’s hands spread to her arms. “Don’t use magic on me.”

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