Chapter Two hundred five – Dream a Little Dream or Three

Kaden and Eleanor were whisked off somewhere. Isidor tried to follow, but one of the knights – one who had a cute little half-cape draped from shoulder to hip – placed a hand on his shoulder and shook his head.

A little while after that, another carriage arrived, and another familiar face got out. Healer Sinnett had been in charge of the people Augustus and Pandy discovered in the underground warehouse, and now he hurried over to take a look at Thaniel.

For her part, Pandy was tucked up against Thaniel’s side, because each time someone – Lian – tried to take her away, the boy began to cry in his sleep. This was clearly very frustrating for his older brother, but for once when Lian looked at Pandy, it was with a kind of thoughtful puzzlement, rather than barely concealed threat.

Healer Sinnett gently tugged Thaniel’s eyelids up, flashing a little light into them as he did so. He used what looked like a firefly trapped in a bottle rather than a flashlight, but otherwise it was comfortingly familiar to Pandy. In fact, he did all the things she would have expected of a doctor in her world: checked for visible wounds, rotated the joints, made sure Thaniel head and neck were undamaged, and even listened to his heart by placing a sort of crystal cup on Thaniel’s chest and pressing an ear to it.

At no point during all of this did he expose the heartstone half-buried in Thaniel’s chest, nor did he show any surprise when he felt it while he was checking the boy over, so he’d obviously been filled in by someone. Only after the healer was done did he allow Augustus to lift Thaniel and Pandy, tenderly carrying them back to the carriage, where she discovered that one of the bench seats had been replaced by an actual bed, with a thin mattress, set into a sort of inset box so the occupant couldn’t roll out. Thaniel was strapped in, the doctor – and Lian, after a bit of argument – climbed in, and they took off.

It was the smoothest ride Pandy had experienced since arriving in this world. She knew they were rolling over cobbled streets, and while the cobblestones were well-fitted, there were always a few that were broken, or where a gap had developed, causing a bump. But other than a gentle swaying side to side, this carriage was motionless and silent until Healer Sinnett began to speak.

“First, I do not believe Thaniel is in any immediate danger,” Sinnett said, absently twirling the tips of his waxed mustache. “I’ll have to do some more tests, but I believe this is Dark magic in one of its more benign forms.”

Augustus nodded as if he’d expected this, but Lian burst out, “Benign? As if there’s any such thing!” He was still pale, his curls tangled, and his hands trembled even as they rested in his lap.

Healer Sinnett sighed quietly. “There are, in fact, many helpful uses for Dark magic, lad.” Lian didn’t like the word ‘lad’, but he bit back his protest as the doctor continued. “Some Dark mages are able to influence the mind, and, yes, this can and has been used for nefarious purposes, but it can also grant peaceful sleep, or soften painful memories until they become bearable. I believe someone has sent Thaniel into a sleep from which he cannot wake, at least not until the caster is found and made to remove the spell.”

Lian started up from his seat, nearly falling before he caught himself on the wooden frame keeping Thaniel in place. He leaned over his brother, breath already coming faster. “I can fix it then. Dispel should work. Or Purify?”

Augustus pulled him backwards before he could actually do anything, for which Pandy was grateful. She’d lost more than a hundred Corruption Points already that night, and she didn’t want to spend any more protecting herself from the overflow of Lian’s good intentions. Besides, Lian looked like he was about to keel over, and they didn’t need him joining his brother in the hospital, or wherever they were going.

“We have Light healers who are trained to help people like this, but nothing we do will matter unless Thaniel wants to wake up,” the chancellor told the furious teenager.

“What? Why wouldn’t he want to wake?” Again, Lian leaned toward his brother, though he didn’t try to stand this time. “Thaniel, just… wake up, all right?” He picked up Thaniel’s hand and stroked it with a gentleness Pandy wouldn’t have believed he had in him.

“The way the spell works is to create a wonderful dream,” Healer Sinnett said. “Right now, Thaniel is flying, or eating a mound of candy, or,” his gaze caught on Thaniel’s costume, and he gave a half-smile, “sailing the high seas with First Mate Scrubs.”

At Lian’s surprised look, he chuckled. “My grandchildren love the Pirate Pete books. Now, whatever is going on in the boy’s dream-world, one of two things must happen. Someone must pull him out of it, or he has to choose to wake up.” The last vestiges of his smile faded. “I’ve only seen patients choose to wake twice, and they were both adults. It seems that having all of one’s wishes granted is a very difficult thing to abandon voluntarily.”

Lian looked between the two older men. “So what do we do? He can’t eat or drink or… or anything. He needs to wake up!”

Augustus didn’t pat Lian on the shoulder, for which Pandy silently applauded him. Killian would not appreciate anything he viewed as patronizing, even if it wasn’t meant that way. “We have ways to take care of his physical needs. Water, Earth, and Nature healers will care for him. We’re also looking for the Dark mage who cast the spell on him, but it may take some time to figure out who it was, if it was even one of the people on that boat.

Impossibly, Lian paled even further. “What if it’s the one I…”

Healer Sinnett frowned in confusion, but Augustus shook his head. “I’ve seen his kind before. He wasn’t a mage.” Now Lian was the one who looked confused, but Augustus didn’t let him ask any questions.

“Even if we can’t find this particular Dark mage, we can approach a different one. As you know, there are very strict requirements surrounding Dark elementalists, which means there aren’t many who’ve legally contracted with the correct elemental to allow them to help someone in Thaniel’s position. I can call in a few favors and get one here in a week, maybe two.”

Lian was already shaking his head before Augustus finished speaking, and that shaking only became more vigorous when Augustus got to the timeline. “No one is messing with Thaniel’s mind. Not again.”

His eyes flicked away, then back, almost too quickly for anyone to notice, but Pandy was sitting across from him, and she saw. This wasn’t the first time someone had used Dark magic to affect Thaniel’s mind, and she had a pretty good idea who it might have been. She knew The Father, Lord Bryan Conroy, had been one of those Dark mages with advanced certification. Augustus hadn’t said exactly what he did for the government, but he could well have been a Dark Mind elementalist. But why would he do such a thing to his own son?

Augustus started to speak, but Healer Sinnett got there first. His voice was incredibly understanding as he said, “We can talk about it again in a few days’ time. You and your brother have been through a terrifying ordeal. Once Thaniel is settled in at the hospital, and you’ve had a chance to rest and think about it, we’ll discuss your options. Who knows, perhaps Thaniel will get tired of chasing pirates and decide to wake on his own, after all.”

Lian’s hands clenched into trembling fists, and he nodded sharply, but his eyes were frigid. Those were not the eyes of a person who was going to change his mind.

They arrived at the ‘hospital’ soon after that, and Thaniel was bundled out with the same efficiency with which he’d been placed into the carriage. It turned out that the whole bed-bench on which he lay could detach, and two men wearing white uniforms carried it and him into what looked to Pandy like a particularly posh hotel. The halls were unusually wide, and they held no decorations, but otherwise the spring-green satin wallpaper and wooden wainscoting would have fit right into the pictures Pandy had seen of places like Vacation Inns and Hilyatt Hotels.

A chorus of gasps greeted them when Thaniel was brought in, and Pandy raised her head to see that the rest of their Guising party were all there, except for Kaden and Eleanor. Even Miss Cupcakes had made it here somehow, and a woman who was probably a nurse-equivalent kept giving the cat frustrated glares, while the feline licked her leg defiantly in the woman’s general direction. It took Pandy a moment to realize Lord Winston was missing as well, so someone must have taken him to the princess. That was good. Eleanor would need him.

Lian stopped when he saw them all, gaze falling on Edgar as he said, “What happened?”

Everyone had some blood on them somewhere. Hair was mussed, clothes were torn, and Lady Reedsley was sitting down with Geraldine in her lap, while her husband hovered, looking haunted. Clara was the only one who looked unaffected at first glance, with only a few of the feathers on her wings out of place, but then Pandy noticed what looked like tear-tracks when she turned her face, and wondered what could possibly have happened to flap the unflappable heroine.

Edgar started to speak, then shook his head, at a loss for words for once. Dorian stepped up, hands behind his back, shoulders squared. “We were assaulted by an unknown number of assailants. Nathaniel and Miss Ellie were taken. When the spell covering their abductor’s escape faded, we discovered that,” he paused. Swallowed hard. “Lady Reedsley had been badly injured. Thankfully, Miss Clara is a Light elementalist, and was able to heal her.”

Everyone looked at Lady Reedsley, who was indeed wearing someone else’s clothes. This dress was almost normal, made of a pretty blue material with a skirt that didn’t attempt to occupy the room and take hostages. What had happened to the one she was wearing? Lady Reedsley smiled wanly over the top of Geraldine’s head, which rested beneath her chin. The girl’s eyes were closed, and she looked like she’d cried herself to sleep.

The gazes turned to Clara, who didn’t even bother to glance at them. Her face was pale as ever, her slender hands clasped in front of her, the simple column of her dress accentuating her fragile beauty. Pandy turned to follow her gaze, finding that the girl was staring out of the window, into the darkness beyond, as if it held some deep meaning only she could understand.

“We’re just waiting for the healers to release us,” Lord Reedsley said, voice hoarse. “Everything is… fine. Now.” Fine. Of course it was. That’s why they all looked like someone had died, even though they were clearly upright and relatively uninjured. 

Reminded, Pandy sent Minor Heals around the room, hitting everyone for a few HP except Lady Reedsley and Clara. Apparently Geraldine’s mother was at full health, in spite of her haggard appearance, and Clara could probably take care of herself. Still, everyone else actually seemed to be in fairly good shape, too, which only confused Pandy more.

Another of the white-clad people came hurrying down the hall. She smiled at everyone, then waved a hand over Thaniel’s bed, which was on a sort of table that seemed designed for the purpose. “We have a room ready for Thaniel now,” she said, then held up the hand that wasn’t still hovering over Thaniel. “Immediate family only, please, at least until we’ve had a chance to get him settled in.”

She smiled at Healer Sinnett and added, “Other than you, of course, sir. We’re honored to have you here.” Then she seemed to notice Pandy and froze. “Ah, I’m sorry, but someone will need to take this animal away. Pets are strictly forbidden within the hospital.”

To Pandy’s shock, it was Healer Sinnett who stepped forward. “The rabbit stays with the boy. By my order.”

“I- Sir. Yes, sir. I’ll need you to sign something to that effect, sir,” she said, eyes wide, and he nodded, then motioned for her to continue. She finally completed her hand motion, and Thaniel’s bed lifted from the table, moving as if on an invisible conveyor belt, down the hall ahead of her.