The Witch And The Other One
Part 2
Robin
watched Naomi for a long time, marking and noting her changes in sleep and her
jerky, nightmare-laden movements. Sometimes, she talked, trying to escape or
fight someone in her sleep. Other times, she would tense up as though she were
in great pain. Robin knew something was affecting her, possibly even trying to
kill her, but had no way of discerning who, what or even why. It wasn't unlike
Naomi to be in trouble, she knew, but it was definitely wrong for a light
sleeper such as Naomi to be asleep for so long with such vivid dreams and not
awaken herself.
Why
should I even care about this bedraggled little crook?, Robin thought, her
memories of Naomi's faults still fresh. Her stupidity almost permanently
ended the world as we know it here in Caustria and forced me to have to watch
my loved ones disappear into...
Into
what, she still couldn't explain. She knew that in some way, Daina's mind had
created not only Robin herself, but the world around them. To Daina, the whole
of Caustria was some complex illusion come to life whose effects were real
enough to be deadly even to herself, which was why when Naomi had shot her with
a crossbow in the heart not long ago, she had actually begun to die, as had
everything she had created. Robin had witnessed this slow fading of everything
until she, too, forgot everything and had disappeared. Daina's friend Kathy,
who frequently shared Daina's "illusion" of Caustria, had helped heal
Daina, after which Daina had created and imagined everything back to normal.
The memory of what had happened still stuck with everyone able to understand.
Unfortunately,
Robin's memory also held remembrances of a time in which she, not Naomi,
had been the one in the wrong, and had truly done Naomi disservice. In fact,
she remembered, if not for me, Naomi might never had turned out like she
did. With a sigh, Robin resigned herself to helping Naomi get back on her
feet.
Were
she a healer instead of just a "pain drain", as Daina had so
eloquently put it once, she might have been able to see for certain if
something were directly affecting Naomi's inner magic light. There had been
obvious damage done to Naomi's person, but magic lights and auras were not
something Robin was accustomed to dealing with. She was a symptom healer, no
more. She had tried to see beyond Naomi's pain, to meld her light and Naomi's
the way fairy healers were trained to do, but she had had no practice with such
a task and had been repelled by Naomi's own defenses. Only someone with the
ability to see as well as heal that light could be certain...
"Marcus!"
she said aloud to herself, thinking of her husband's apprentice. Although the
boy's true desire was to be a tracker like his mentor, he had quietly developed
talents as a healer as well. Robin glanced at Naomi for a moment, then certain
she'd stay put until she returned, Robin disappeared, returning to her castle
for assistance.
Christine
slipped into the room wholly unnoticed. She peeked into the room, then, seeing
no one, she crept over to the bed Naomi lay on, then stood by it, glaring at
the figure sprawled across it. Christine hadn't forgotten what Naomi had done,
either, nor had she forgotten the look of satisfaction on her face after she'd
done it. Just like Robin, Christine had been in the room when the crossbow
quarrel whizzed across it, hitting her sister squarely in the chest; indeed,
she had been clinging to Daina at that very moment, both of them sobbing in
agony as Daina's life ebbed away.
Chris
had also had the horror of seeing Naomi murdering her sister long before it had
happened in a nightmare she had had. Such was the curse of the dreamweaver, she
knew; to have the power to deliver harmless dreams or nightmares to others, but
only have realistic glimpses of the future to sleep by, if anything at all. But
the realm of dreams and nightmares were as much a part of Christine's being as
Robin's pain stealing was of her and Chris had learned to accept this long ago.
She
hadn't, however, realized that her dreams could also take a dangerous turn if
not controlled, such the nightmare void that she had created out of rage to
suck up Naomi and Lord Corwin (the man Naomi'd been working for) forever. Even
now, Chris shuddered at the thought of her own power and the ugly side it had.
Naomi
couldn't come back again; it wasn't fair. Throwing her into the void had been
as permanent as Christine could think of at the time and, although she still
had fears and doubts, Christine still had no regrets about being the cause of
what she had assumed to be equal to the death of Naomi. Time had dulled the
pain somewhat, as had Daina's recovery, but Chris could take no chances on
Naomi being here and getting friendly with Daina again, only to try and kill
her again for a fast gold piece or two.
Which
meant only one thing...
Christine
steeled herself and began to concentrate. To put Naomi in another void such as
this with tearing up the place was going to be difficult, especially with the
amount of hatred roiling inside her now. A light breeze began to pick up in the
room as the magic energy began to collect itself. It would then destroy itself,
causing the void it had before, hopefully on a smaller scale.
Suddenly,
Christine looked at Naomi's face in horror. Her face, normally a caramel brown,
had become a dreadful ashen shade of beige as if someone were draining the
color out of her. It had contorted into a gruesome expression that more than
slightly resembled the face of unbearable pain.
Christine
stopped, afraid again of her own power. As she did, Naomi began to toss in her
sleep. What is this?, Christine thought to herself. I know her
and she'd be wide awake right now. I'm not doing any of this, am I?
She
didn't even know why she cared, but she had to know. Inhuman suffering was not
what she wanted; permanent storage was. This was too frightening to even look
at. She knew it had been different before, a simple disappearance, but
Christine couldn't be sure something hadn't changed. What if this time the
void really did kill her?, Chris thought nervously. As much as she
hated Naomi, she didn't want to kill her. Not anymore.
She
had to be sure.
And
since Naomi was deep in sleep, there could be only one way to find out.
Christine
clambered up on the bed, took Naomi's hand in hers and concentrated again, but
this time on entering Naomi's dream world.
Seconds
later, she felt the worst pain she'd ever felt in her life. She could see
nothing past it, no dream, no reality. She knew she was screaming, but her ears
were past hearing it. It, too, was part of the Nothing that had come to black
out all but the pain. It was such a complete emptiness combined with such an
utter pain that Christine was sure she would die.
The
Void.
Nothing.
The
pain threw her free of it and she was completely empty. There was no floor to
feel under her, so she curled up as best as she could to cry without sound in
the Nothing. It was too much to not see, too much to not hear, too much to not be.
She felt tired and remorseful. So this is a void, she thought, accepting
the Nothing and its accompanying pain as her own doing. No wonder Naomi
looked like she was gonna die. I deserve to die. She lay still and
tried to prepare herself for an eternity of...Nothing.
But
she was only 6. It was less than a moment before her self-imposed exile turned
into a consummate fear of this type of death, or any type of nonexistence. She
was suddenly frightened, afraid she might truly disappear forever. She uncurled
and ran, or felt like she ran. She continued to go, running on and on, not
feeling the movement, but knowing it was there.
And
then the colors came.
Colors
of all different shaded and hues, all blended in together, chasing the Nothing
away. They swirled around her, almost engulfed her, then rounded out and formed
a barrier. It was a circular wall, not around herself, but around something in
front of her. She put a hand up and could feel them moving, pulsating with
life, but she could not pass them. All her senses returned, as if the wall had
suddenly grounded her reality, and she actually heard herself gasp with relief.
The
pain came again, slamming into her like an external force, pushing her away
from the wall and around it. She shrieked in agony, trying to return to the
safety of the wall, but could not get off the ride the pain took her on. It
finally let her go, dropping her in an exhausted heap near the wall. She
reached out to touch it again and heard herself sobbing.
She
had only had a moment with her senses when the pain grabbed her up again and
forced her around for another run, then dropped her again. It continued to
attack her at intervals, now leaving her still, now trying to push through the
color wall with her as its battering ram. Christine screamed out in agony,
grabbing the wall in between passes, sobbing to be let in, to hide from the
pain in the colors, the walls...
They
were walls.
They
were not permanent.
A
voice asked, WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?
Let
me in!, Christine cried. It's coming back! I can't take anymore!
GO AWAY!!! I DON'T WANT YOU HERE!!!
I
can't!, Christine sobbed.
IT WILL USE YOU AGAINST ME. LEAVE OR I'LL DESTROY YOU
MYSELF!!!
Please!!!
Don't leave me here! Christine felt the pain reaching for her, ready to grab
her again and she cried in despair.
A
hand formed in the wall, the colors swirling about like oil on water. It
reached out and drew her in...
"What
the heck are you doing here?" Naomi demanded, towering over her.
Christine
looked around and saw the colors were gone. Only a hazy blue flame in front of
her remained. In it, Naomi's angry body was silhouetted dramatically. She
looked haggard, though, as if she'd been fighting a battle continuously without
sleep.
"I
asked you a question, you little brat!" she demanded, yanking
Christine up by the arm. "What in flaming Pyr are you doing
here?"
"I...I
was looking..." Christine began.
"You
were looking," Naomi echoed sarcastically. "He could have spotted
that breach I had to make for you or he could have used you to make one all
because you decided to go on a sightseeing excursion! He'll be all over
this shield now! How can I protect my light if I have to babysit you,
answer me that?!" As she spoke, the flame danced and turned different
shades of blue.
"I
thought I was killing you with my void!" Christine said, shrugging
irritably out of Naomi's grasp. She was starting to feel slightly indignant now
that the immediate danger was past. "I just was trying to make
sure..."
"You
do this?" Naomi laughed derisively. "This is mine, kid, my
defense system. If not for me, you'd be outside it dead by now."
"But
the void part outside..."
"Is
his doing, not yours and it's not a void. Even your little nightmare thing
wasn't a real void. Voids are completely empty, so empty that if you're not
careful, they'll drive you insane. Fairies especially." Naomi gave
Christine a hard look and added, "I should know."
"Well,
maybe now that we're both in here, I could help you...I mean, us."
Christine suggested.
"Gimme
a break, kid! Your little half fairy magic is nothing but attractive special
effects to him. Besides, I don't want or need your stupid help."
"Him
who?"
Naomi's
eyes narrowed to slits. "That's not your business. I told you I...get
down!" Naomi shoved Christine to the floor, then looked up in horror as
the blue flame began to flicker wildly. She rushed toward it and jumped in.
Christine
stayed low, but tilted her head up to watch Naomi with a gasp. She was sure
Naomi would be burned to a crisp. The flames jumped higher and brighter and
Naomi's shadow inside it seemed to writhe in pain. Christine could not take her
eyes off the flame and its living occupant, but she dared not move, realizing
for the first time she was looking directly at the magic light the kept Naomi
alive.
At
last, the flame receded to its previous light blue steady haze and a weary
Naomi stepped out of the center. She stood for a moment, then dropped to her
knees, her eyes fixed upward. "I can't," she whispered. "My
light..." then she fell forward and was silent.
Christine
felt a shudder go through the space they were in and saw the flame gradually
begin to dim. The walls around her began to grow thin enough to see the
oil-and-water color patterns outside. She jumped up with no idea what she was
doing, and hauled Naomi and herself into the flames.
The
shudder went through her own body this time and she could feel the heat. IT was
not painful, but its intensity made her wince. She pictured her own light in
her mind and brought it forth to burn along with Naomi's. The fire roared
causing both Christine and Naomi to tense up with the power...
And
now Christine could now see everything. She could see the shield and she could
see the pain, like a red beacon shining around it, probing for a way in. She
could feel it, too, as it tried to dim her light. Our light, she
reminded herself. The flame of our magic, our life. She concentrated and
the flames grew, licking the edges of the barrier, hardening it again. Naomi
stirred slightly, but did not rise. Christine put out her fingers, feeling the
magic course through her, then remembered again it was not hers alone. She took
Naomi's hand and the energy rushed from her into Naomi. The burning was good,
like a warm fireplace roaring out life. Gently, Christine let go.
The
fatigue took her away, swept her up and out. She could see her own light
vaguely. It was dim, but she smiled, lying down in its dying embers. Naomi had
really needed it more than she did and all Christine wanted to do was sleep,
anyway...
Stay
a moment, Chris, came a different voice. It was so familiar she stopped.
Marcus?,
she asked.
You
can't just leave you light dim that way, sprite. You can't live on it that low.
Suddenly, she saw another flame join hers the same way she'd done with Naomi
and Marcus appeared in its depths with her. He reached a hand out to her and
she took it, the life coursing violently, almost painfully through her as it
had before. He picked her up in his arms, then slowly moved back and let their
flames part glowing equally bright. He carried her in his and she blinked at
him in confusion.
Why
are you here?, she asked. I was helping Naomi, but you...
Meet me topside and I'll explain everything, he replied, setting her down.
Okay,
she shrugged... and woke up.