Keira
The effort exhausted her, but she was rewarded with an unhindered breath.
Still, the pain only grew as the last of her magic ebbed, succumbing to the poison.
She tried to assess whether her spell had been successful, but her mind was growing addled and heavy, her senses confused.
The rest of the Blades were coming. They would find her, and then she could fix this. There was still time. There had to be.
She knew it wasn’t him. Yet some foolish part of her wanted him to have sensed her need and come for her.
“What in the realms is that!” Lilith’s unmistakable voice sounded.
“Get it off of her!” Rhea called.
Moments later, Keira felt someone try to loosen the coils.
“I can’t,” Gareth panted.
The serpent tightened its grip possessively. Pain flashed brilliant white in Keira’s vision as she felt the crack of her femur through her whole body. Her scream filled the hall.
“Kill it!” Florian shouted.
“Magic!” Keira sobbed. It was a theory, but one she was about to stake her life on. Her mundane dagger had done nothing, likely due to an enchantment on its hide. It was a common precaution in the making of constructs to ward them against nonmagical damage.
“Step back!” Rhea commanded.
“What are you-” Florian’s protest was cut short as Keira felt the force of Rhea’s weapon impact just above the bite.
She felt the blow through her entire body, back arching as pain seized through her.
But, the snake’s grip relaxed, becoming nothing but dead weight.
The pressure of its bite went slack. She felt the jerk of Rhea removing her blade.
Immediately, Keira felt the others pulling the snake off of her.
She screamed and cursed, trying to hold herself still.
The snake’s body had been acting as a splint for her clearly broken leg.
In its wake, liquid fire spread from her hip to her toes.
Tears gathered in her eyes as the sensation overwhelmed her.
“Caspian,” Keira panted.
“No, love, just us,” Florian said, kneeling beside her.
“The wedding- He’s in the village. I need to-”
“She needs bandages now,” Rhea said, ignoring her entirely.
Keira turned to see Lilith digging some out of her bag.
“Did I- Did I stop the bleeding?” Keira asked.
“No, but you’re going to be fine,” Florian promised. “I’ve seen worse.”
Keira shook her head. “My magic… it’s gone.”
“We’ll just have to do this the old fashioned way, then.” Florian said with a halfhearted smile.
“Have her drink this,” Knox said, appearing at the edge of her vision as he passed Florian a vial, a healing tonic.
Florian put a hand beneath her head and helped her as she drank.
The liquid tasted of sweet berries, almost sickly sweet, and sparkled against her tongue.
Keira choked down every drop. As she laid back her head, she felt the potion going to work at once.
It didn’t remove the pain, but it did allow her to separate herself from it.
The fire in her leg dulled to embers as the wound in her stomach began to close.
It was a temporary measure, not enough to mend bone or resolve serious internal injuries, but at least she wouldn’t bleed to death on this floor.
“Help me splint the leg,” Knox said and Lilith nodded. Keira laid as still as possible, clenching her eyes shut as they did their agonizing work.
“That should keep it in place,” he said when they were finished. “The tonic will dull the pain and speed the process.”
Keira sat up slowly. Her clothes were stained with blood, and there was no way for her to magic them clean. Her leg was bandaged efficiently, if not elegantly. The entire right side of her body ignited with every movement. But she was alive. She might even be able to stand.
“What happened?” Lilith asked.
“The bastard stabbed me and left me here with that thing,” Keira explained the obvious, casting a spiteful glance at the gilded heap resting lifelessly only a few feet away. It had grown larger than she was.
“I think she means how,” Gareth clarified. “You said that your magic was strong enough.”
“Yvette. She tried to use that magic, to alter my mind. He took the opening,” Keira added sourly. “She chose to protect that devious little shit.”
“What?” Disbelief filled Florian’s features as he planted himself before her.
“I had him,” Keira growled, “and she told me to let him go. I could feel her in my head! If she hadn’t interfered-”
Florian shook his head. “Where is she?”
“I don’t know, and I don’t care. They both left me here.”
“I’m going to find her,” Florian said, turning from them.
“Why?” she challenged, finding her feet with Gareth’s help.
“Maybe this was her plan all along,” Lilith suggested weakly.
Florian whirled on her. “Because whatever you believe you saw, you’re wrong about her!”
The room was silent.
“The Redfields were staying in the East Wing,” Keira said, pointing down the hall. “Maybe they went there. I don’t know.”
Florian nodded once before taking off.
Keira sighed beneath the weight of her injuries, leaning more heavily into Gareth as she watched him go.
“Come on,” Rhea said, setting ahead of them toward the doors.
“What?”
Lilith came beside her, looping Keira’s other arm over her shoulder. “We’ve got a wedding to crash.”