Keepers of the Flame (39 page)

“Fries,
already?” Marian snagged her husband’s arm.

“Some
from the proper bag of frying potatoes,” Sevair said, “but the farmers’ guild
has found potatoes are prolific.” Now he grinned. “With a little nudge from
Power.”

“I
bet they have,” Alexa said.

“Better
watch out,” Marian mounted her volaran, as did Jaquar, whose Song held
amusement and curiosity. “We don’t want a kudzu situation here.”

“Kudzu?”
Jaquar asked.

All
the women frowned. “A too-prolific plant that has turned into a menace.”

“Potatoes
are being grown in contained beds,” Sevair said.

“Too
bad that didn’t happen with the frinks,” Marian said.

Just
that easily the optimism of the evening faded. Sevair’s face went blank, but
Elizabeth saw the deep blue of disappointment.

Marian
winced. “Sorry.”

Alexa
elbowed Marian. “Not your smoothest lately, kiddo.”

“Kiddo”
translated to Lladranan as “thoughtless youngster.”

But
Alexa beamed at them all, ran and jumped onto her large volaran, obviously
using Power for both the spring and landing. “Come on, there’s a plate of fries
with my name on it waiting, right?” She stared at Sevair.

“Right.”

Then
she swore, pointed at two small specks in the distance. “Those sly folks. Calli
and Marrec have already left. They’ll beat us all there!”

Laughter
bubbled up in Elizabeth. She knew how to teach the medicas to cure the frink
sickness! A victory equal to earning her medical degree. She would help save a
land! Around her was the friendship and fellowship from people she valued. She
hugged Faucon hard. He looked surprised, grinned, lifted an eyebrow at Sevair.
“You can put me in touch with the head of the farmers’ guild. I’ll invest in
these ‘potatoes,’ be the first to have them on my land.”

“Too
late,” Sevair said. “I purchased a small estate between Marian’s island and
Alexa’s place.” He looked at Faucon. “Near your own home holding. Potatoes are
already growing there.”

Bri’s
mouth fell open. Shock flashed through Elizabeth. Sevair was planning ahead, as
if he expected Bri to stay. As if he thought Elizabeth would, too, at Faucon’s.
Her stomach tightened, and she shared an uneasy glance with Bri. For once she
had good advice for her twin.
Live in the moment.

Bri
switched her gaze from Sevair and Mud to Elizabeth.

Elizabeth
said,
I’m learning that lesson. Enjoy the moment.

Yesss,
hissed a voice.
Nuare alit, startling the volarans into the sky until only Elizabeth and Bri
were still on the ground.
A good idea. Now come, both of you. I, too, would
like to try these “fries.”
She stuck out a leg for them to mount, but she
had no tack, no reins or perch.

Bri
smiled with nearly her usual sunniness. “Good advice, and we’ll not be the last
there.” She got onto Nuare, held out her hand. “Hang on tight. It’s going to be
a wild ride!”

An
understatement. Laughter tore from Elizabeth at the roc’s speed. They landed
before everyone except Calli and Marrec.

The
fries were devoured in minutes, accompanied by burgers. Happy murmurs came from
other diners.

Alexa
lifted a glass of iced tea in a toast. “To the Exotique Medica twins, Elizabeth
and Bri, heroines of the hour.”

And
so French fries were renamed. Lladrana knew them as “Twin Fries.”

T
he next
afternoon at the Castleton house, before the regular surgery, Elizabeth opened
the door to medicas. They came from within easy flying distance to gather in
the dining room. Other representatives were there, all the Exotiques and their
men. Every crystal ball in town was in the room with her, organized by Sevair.
A televised lecture, how nice.

She
wasn’t really nervous, had performed often enough under pressure. When she
coughed, the dining room packed with red and white tunics fell silent. Bri sat
near her, grinning with pride, and that was better support than anything she’d
had in her career.

“We
have discovered why we Exotique Medicas can heal the frink sickness and you
have been unable to. We will teach you this. More, we will teach you to tap
into the greatest Power you will ever know.” Good grief, she was beginning to
sound like a self-help seminar. She straightened, gave them her best
intimidating professional smile. “This is the truth.”

Zeres
coughed.

“Zeres,
of course, has learned this lesson, but has been unable to explain it,”
Elizabeth said.

Bri
interrupted, “I haven’t been able to put it into words myself, didn’t figure
out the essential aspect needed for such healing.” She beamed again at
Elizabeth.

“Our
civilizations are very different in some ways,” Elizabeth said quietly. She
scanned the room, making sure everyone was paying attention. “Our particular
society has gone into space.” She waved a hand. “Off planet, to our moon. We’ve
sent machines into space to see the universe and return images.”

She
took a breath and waited for the awed comments to fade, looked at Zeres. “Tell
me, when you link to your great Power flow, do you see the blackness of space?
Stars—great globes of fire, and your sun?”

From
the way Bri was wriggling on her seat, Elizabeth already knew the answer.

Brows
knit, Zeres said, “Ayes.” He gazed at her, spread his hands. “A huge darkness,
raging balls of fire that would sear me to ashes in an instant.”

“Space,
the sun, the universe,” Elizabeth said. “It is vast, and though the skies here
on Amee are filled with many more stars than on Earth, the darkness between the
stars is greater than one can imagine comfortably.” Her voice went quiet. “Our
people have been to space and are accustomed to the images and ideas. Yours are
not. Yet.” She reached to the table and sipped water, took the time to meet
each person’s eyes. “Bri and I and Zeres can teach you how to think of space
and the universe. How to connect with the Power flow. Using that flow you can
burn out the frink sickness in a patient.”

“Burn
out?” asked a medica.

Elizabeth
smiled. “Of the four elements, I am fire.”

Encouraging
nods came. She said, “Bri is water and feels a healing stream.”

“I
feel a cold wind rushing through me.” Zeres shivered.

“There
would be the heaviness of a mass descending through a person, perhaps,” offered
another medica.

“Ayes,”
Elizabeth said. “We will teach you today. Then you can go and teach others.”
She held out her hand and Bri hopped to her feet and linked fingers, raised
their hands over their heads.

“We
will win!” Bri said.

Applause
broke out. Elizabeth felt heat in her cheeks, but inclined her torso a little.
Bri did a boogie.

A
moment later, Luthan, representative for the Singer, pushed away from the wall
where he’d leaned with arms crossed. “This is a great step indeed.”

Elizabeth
tensed, managed a tight smile. “But?”

He
gathered the gazes of those around them. “It is not enough to teach the medicas
how to heal. We need to find something the common people can administer for
themselves.”

Elizabeth’s
mind flipped through medicines, antibiotics, herbal remedies. Her link with Bri
told her that her twin was thinking along the line of meditation techniques,
personal faith healing. They shook their heads together.

“I’m
sorry.” Luthan inclined his head. “That is the Singer’s prophecy. Each person
must know the cure. This does not address the Chevaliers’ Sickness, since you
have been unable to cure that.”

Man,
that’s twice we’ve been riding high and had a downer, lately,
Bri said.
“Thank you,” she said stiffly.

“I
am sorry,” he repeated. “This is good progress. I must report to the Singer.”
He left.

There
was a snuffle and a sob. Everyone turned to see one of the medicas at the table
holding her head in her hands. Elizabeth didn’t know her. She looked up, face
puffy with tears. “I am the only medica for three villages,” she said thickly.
“I have had to stand by and watch my people die. My relatives die. No matter
what I did, drawing on Amee’s Power herself, I could not heal my friends and
family. I’ve been helpless.” She stood, walked unsteadily to the twins, threw
her arms around them. “This is a great, great boon.”

“Ayes!”

“Ayes!”
The medicas’ cheerful shouts soothed Elizabeth.

“Wonderful,”
Marian said. “Congratulations.” She wiped her eyes with her handkerchief.

Bri
choked, sniffed, said, “The sooner we teach you, the sooner you can go home and
heal.”

The
sessions went well. Elizabeth and Bri first worked with Zeres and three others,
stabilizing the man’s vision, teaching him how to accept and control his Power.
The other medicas took longer, but by the time evening fell, the weary but
enthusiastic medicas were winging away to spread the word.

Alexa,
Marian and Calli linked with Elizabeth and Bri in the last set, the twins nearly
staggered by their Power. It was a real experience, trying to control the
differing magic. Alexa the warrior, used to being a part of a battlefield
healing team; Marian more detached, more interested in the how and why; Calli,
eager to learn so she could tell the volarans, her people. The other three
Colorado women easily understood the concepts and images. When they were done,
they sagged in silence, hugged and left almost silently; they’d shared thoughts
and feelings enough.

“What
with what Luthan said, looks like the Snap isn’t coming tonight,” Bri said
shakily.

Elizabeth
stared at her twin blankly. She hadn’t considered that. “Guess not.”

“Mom
and Dad will be back home tomorrow.”

“I
know.” Elizabeth frowned. “Didn’t Marian have a hopeful glow to her?”

“Yeah,
maybe.” Then Bri gasped.

“What
is it?” Elizabeth demanded.

But
Bri was giggling a little hysterically and holding out her forearm. On the
tender skin underneath her wrist, a line of five colorful tattoos ran up her
arm. Starting with a golden caduceus near her wrist bracelet lines, then a red
shield with a white cross, a green baton topped with orange flames, a black
volaran, a book with a lightning bolt. “We’ve bonded.” She pointed to the
caduceus. “I think that’s you.”

“I
didn’t feel anything.” Elizabeth glared at her own arm. A fancy brown patterned
hand was under her wrist, then all the others, with the book first, the baton,
the volaran. “I don’t have the shield.”

Bri
peered at Elizabeth’s arm, her own, sighed. “I think that’s Zeres.” She touched
the brown tracery of a hand. “I like that one for me. Like a henna pattern on a
hand. I’ve had mine done like that occasionally.”

“Bonded.”
Elizabeth could barely force the word from suddenly chill lips.

Bri
met her eyes, spoke the shared thought. “This doesn’t mean that we’re staying
here, does it?”

Elizabeth’s
teeth clenched. “Not if it means forsaking our parents.”

Tears
welled in Bri’s eyes. “No, not if it means leaving Dad and Mom.”

B
ri went home to
her tower after Elizabeth flew to the Castle. The guild masters had been busy
when she was gone, finishing up the restoration and furnishings. It now showed
a rich, eclectic style. She touched the carved newel post of the stairs, a roc,
gazed at the dark jewel-toned carpets that suited her exactly. They’d learned
her style.

She’d
bonded with the other women during the healing sessions. She supposed she
should be glad she didn’t have a roc and a volaran and other medicas, too.
Shoot. Despite everything, she didn’t think she could stay.

She
was on her bed, staring up at the gold-embroidered maroon canopy, when the
doorharp sounded. Knew it was Sevair. Didn’t know what to say.

He
came in anyway, trod the stairs with even footfalls, entered her bedroom and
sat down next to her.

She
didn’t look at him, mutely held out her arm. From the corner of her eye she saw
a flash of surprise and pleasure, then he schooled his expression. In a rare
gesture, he lifted her hand to his lips, kissed her palm tenderly. All the
sexual tension building in her over the days with this man surged through her.
Her body wanted his. Her heart wanted the slow smile he saved for her. Her mind
wanted to run away, go home to Denver and her parents.

“I’d
like to show you something,” he said.

“What?”

“Not
here in the tower. It’s a beautiful evening. The sun is setting.”

“Everyone’s
on the streets, then. I don’t know if I can face them. They’ll all want to talk
about today.”

He
kissed her forehead and she liked the sweet press of his lips. Too much. “We’ll
go by back streets. You like our narrow passages.” His mouth pressed gently to
hers. “Come with me.”