Page 72 of Magic and Medicine

My former lover used the eve of Forefather’s Day to exit the Nether, coming to Czernobog’s aid. I cursed silently at the memory, reliving that awful moment.

When the song came, I’d been battering the heavily warded door, its magic bowing beneath my fists. With the melody came words of a love that spanned centuries, never truly ending even as we lived apart. However, if I stopped fighting and held my heart’s desire in my arms again, we could live as the gods we were born to be in this brand new world. Jurata’s dainty hands stroked down my spine, even as my fists crashed into Rostov’s wards, soothing my rage. She had smiled when I turned toward her. She had told me how she’d dreamed of living together, ruling together, the union of the sea and forest as it was meant to be. She’d told me she never stopped loving me.

I’d listened, a part of me still wanting to believe she cared. My body sagged, mellowing under the sea goddess’s touch. I’d fought hard not to despair when she betrayed me, and the power of Jurata’s song reminded me of those days, promising a return of the love I’d felt. A lover, a companion, a woman I could cherish.

I felt myself succumbing to the seductive lies, Jurata’s magic using my fear of losing love again to cloud my mind, when a discordant scream tore the illusion apart. I looked up to see a lone siren striding from the sea, singing with enough strength to disrupt the magic of her goddess.

When her purposeful steps brought her closer, I recognised the tortured siren from the dockyard, and now I could hear the words inside the agonised tune. I turned to look at Jurata as she listened to the song of betrayal and abandonment and a people cast adrift to suffer until someone worthy found them and offered their protection. The fury that distorted the sea goddess’ face showed her true disdain, and as she raised a hand to punish her subject, I hit her with the full power of the forest. Vines grew so fast they shot upwards, encasing Jurata’s body and gagging her. The sea raged, a storm gathering offshore, but the land was my domain, and I held back her fury easily before turning away to face the temple doors. In a flash of inspiration, I forced my vines to grow thorns, piercing the skin of the helpless goddess, stripping away her power to the point her spirit fled to Gedania, and I used the stolen energy to destroy Rostov’s wards.

From that moment, everything went downhill fast. A second, stronger ward slowed my progress until something within me snapped, and I grew, a berserker’s fury erupting from within as I tore at the doorway, my hands sprouting massive bear claws that shredded both magic and door, allowing me access to the terrifying sight of Sara dangling helplessly from Czernobog’s grasp, his fangs embedded in her neck, and I gave in to the bear’s fury, charging head first into the wall of another spell.

I tore away at the magic, lost to reason for what seemed forever, until the spell weakened, and I saw Czernobog, still holding my lover but this time looking at me, taunting my helplessness. I didn’t care; my eyes focused solely on Sara, and she proved he hadn’t broken her yet, mouthing her instructions to me. I nodded, knowing I needed her help, but the acceptance in her eyes terrified me, and I knew I had to stop her before she became a Godkiller. If she succeeded, Czernobog’s power would consume her, remaking the dark one in her image, or god’s forbid, the world would break if the transformation failed.

I’d felt the depths of the betrayal Sara felt when I stopped her, but she accepted my explanation even as the dark god’s venom left her helpless.

Tears continually blurred my vision as I rushed Sara home, calling everyone I knew, paramedics, healers and witches, telling them to meet me at the manor, desperate to save her life.

I watched them working on her, trying to lower the fever, injecting antivenom, chanting spells, and filling her with healing energy. Everyone was fighting for my love and their friend, but despite their efforts, her breath grew shallow, and the heart that beat in her chest slowed down and stuttered. Her face was so pale, like a funeral mask framed in her honey-gold tresses.

‘Move,’ I’d said, taking back her hand, pressing it over my heart as I laid my free hand over hers.

Magic poured from me. I’d already given her my blood, but what I intended to do now would need so much more. I’d always known I would sacrifice everything for Sara, and now I would prove it, happy to pay the price. I forced my will into my essence, using every ounce of power Sara had returned to me, and slowly, painfully slowly, my spirit splintered. A kernel of my being, a mere splinter of a god’s essence, drifted toward her, called by my blood before embedding itself in her soul, sealing her fate forever. I heard a gasp from behind, Veronica’s reaction as she recognised what I’d done.

I looked at Sara, colour returning to her face despite her battle against Czernobog’s venom, but I couldn’t face it, her agonised screams tearing me apart. I could burn the sickness out and restore myself later. I looked at my woman’s face. Sara was still human, though now her body wouldn’t age, sustained by my spirit for as long as I lived, but if fate took her away, I too would die.

I shook my head, dispelling the dark memories. I was selfish, but I was tired of walking alone through the endless path of life. Sara showed me what love could be, and I wanted this to last or die with her, only now, the woman I gave myself to wouldn’t even look at me, and I couldn’t blame her.

I poured another glass of whisky just as the doors opened, and Michal walked in.

‘Sara is leaving. She packed her bags and asked me to call a taxi to drive her back to her apartment.’

A humourless laugh escaped my lips, and I shook my head. I’d expected this after seeing the haunted look in her eyes. This was the answer to my unspoken question, but stopping her now would once more force my will upon her choices, making my dreadful situation even worse.

‘What did the healer say? Is it safe for her?’ I asked, noticing Michal’s frown.

‘Yes, but…’

‘I can’t force her to stay with me, but make sure someone trustworthy drives her and carries the luggage. Phone our men in town. I want them to stock her apartment with food and ask Adam to inform Nina. I need someone she trusts to let me know if she encounters any trouble, but don’t disturb her life in any other way.’

‘Leszek, you love her. How can you let her go?’ The condemnation in Michal’s words goaded my anger, and I slammed the whisky tumbler on the table, shattering the glass and embedding a sizable chunk in my hand.

‘What do you want me to do? Lock her up here like a bird with clipped wings and watch her waste away? I love her so much that it terrifies me. I did something unspeakable to keep her alive, so she is right to be angry. Maybe she will come to terms with it, but I have to consider that she won’t. Even so, I want her to be happy, Michal. If living her life far away from me will give her peace and happiness… I can deal with my pain.’

‘I still think you are making a mistake, but I will shut up if you let me remove that glass from your hand.’

He left after roughly pulling the shard from my palm, and I watched the wound close. I meant every word I’d said, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t a large part of me wanting to run upstairs and beg Sara to stay, and if it wouldn’t make things worse, I would already be there on my knees. Instead, I sat there like a fool when I felt her presence sweep through the building as she left.

I couldn’t think straight, but sitting there in my home, suddenly stripped of her presence, I knew it would consume me. It was too much. A sense of abandonment tore away the polished, civilised facade I showed to the world, and I ripped off my restrictive clothing, escaping to the forest. Here, in the shade of the trees, I fell onto the moss and dirt, roaring my grief to the sky.

‘SARA!’

I’d lost her, my mate, my Firefly, and now I had to face eternity living without her.

The following month was a blur. I followed the well-worn path of a wealthy man working and publicly helping the community, a role I had played for years without caring. I ate to regenerate my strength after saving Sara, going through the motions of life, and agreeing with everything my advisors suggested without questioning them. All trade routes were restored. Thanks to the disruption, our amber was selling at a premium, and I now harvested the benefits.

The temple and the altar chamber on the hill provided plentiful materials at minimal cost, and I split the profits between the pack soldiers. We’d won with total, unquestionable success. The enemy shifters were dealt with by Tomasz, who declared them rabid and executed them in an unknown location, while the humans had their minds wiped and were arrested for whatever crimes the local police wanted to charge them with.

Nadolny visited me a few days after the battle. It was an informal meeting, without pressure and posturing, and I found it strangely comforting to share my thoughts with a man who, in the human world, was my equal. We agreed to continue cooperating. Sharing warehouses and patrols, ensuring that Tricity was secure and no further incidents like this could happen. After all, we both had our businesses and people to protect. At the end of the meeting, he looked at me, and I saw understanding etched into his expression.

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