The Legacy: A Custodes Noctis Book (36 page)

Galen walked slowly back towards the altar. The thing watched his halting progress, he felt Its amusement ripple through him, the black tendrils were pushing at him again.
When Rob brought me back, there must have been some of that thing left in me.
Galen took a deep breath.

“What do you mean? Some of It is still in you?”
Rob demanded, his voice a shout in Galen’s head.

“I can feel It, still in me. I might not have as much time as I hoped.”

“We will finish this, Galen,”
his brother said firmly. Galen caught the edges of his brother’s fear, pain and determination to go on. Galen nodded.

As Galen approached, the thing reached out again, tearing at him with Its claws. Galen fell to his knees, but forced himself up again. He saw the shine of Rob’s blade on the other side of the Old One. Rob was moving slowly towards It. His progress was stopped when one of the dark creatures drove him to the ground. Galen started to move towards his brother when Bobby descended on the creature. Rob stood.
“I’m okay, Galen, just a scratch.”

Galen was aware of his father sliding along behind him. He drew strength from the fact his family was together. The thing saw Parry as well. Galen felt anger swell through him as the Old One recognized his father. Galen fought the connection with the thing, fought the urge to draw his father closer to the thing so It could kill Parry.

“You can’t kill me, my Emrys.”

“I can.” Galen said, stopping before It.
“Get ready, Rob.”
It thrust Its hand towards him and grabbed him in Its claws. The sharp points drove into Galen’s body like blades of dry-ice, so cold they burned as they punctured his body. He heard his voice scream in pain, but stayed focused on It, hearing Its laughter in his head. Silver shimmered beside the altar, many feet below where the thing held Galen. His father and uncle were protecting Rob.

“I have your power, I own your life,” It said, pulling him closer. The black light was flowing into him again, ripping away pieces of himself. He swallowed, trying to focus.

“No,” he said quietly. “This ends now.”

“Yes, yes it does, my Emrys,” It threw Its head back and laughed.

“Now!” Galen shouted. He thrust forward with his sword, driving it into the Old One’s chest, impaling Its heart. Darkness flowed up the sword, burning him, the thing was screaming. Galen felt Rob’s sword impact the thing, felt the blade slide through his body. It shrieked a horrifying sound. Clawing at the sword in Its chest, It looked at Galen, anger seething in Its eyes. Galen twisted the sword, driving the blade into Its body with the same motion that It had ground against his heart.

He was falling.

The thing dropped him as It fell, toppling down, black blood pouring from the sword wounds. Galen saw his brother perched on Its back, his hand still on the hilt of his sword. The thing screamed and reached for Galen, tearing flesh away from his throat.

The dark creatures suddenly stopped, their shrieks growing in intensity as they flitted towards the fallen Old One. They landed on Its body, hundreds upon hundreds of them, landing like a swarm of beetles, their wings rustling as they perched on Its body. They patted It with clawed hands, a keening shriek rising through the clearing.

With a final scream, still defiant, It died. The dark creatures rose as one, tearing pieces of the thing’s body with them. As they popped out of existence, Galen realized they had dismembered the Old One. All that was left was a pool of black liquid, slowly congealing on the ground.

“Flash!” Galen forced himself onto all fours and crawled towards Flash. He turned his friend over, the creatures had done a lot of damage before Rob had driven them away.

“Hurts, Galen,” Flash whimpered.

“I bet,” Galen said softly. “I’m sorry.” He laid his hands on Flash, letting the light flow. Flash sighed and closed his eyes, Galen tried to stay focused on the healing, consciousness was rapidly fading, flowing away from him like the blood dripping on the ground in front of him. The last of the light slid out of him. Flash’s wounds were already healing, the pain gone from his friend’s body.

“Galen! What the hell are you doing?” Rob pulled him away from Flash. “Gods, Galen.”

“Too late for me, Rob,” he whispered, “had to save Flash.”

“Galen!” Mike’s voice was rough with emotion. Galen felt a hand pressed against the wound in his chest. He cried out in pain.

“No, no, that won’t help,” Rob snapped.

“He’s bleeding out, Rob. I have no idea how he lasted this long!” Mike was shouting.

“Honey, honey, hang on,” Rhiannon said quietly. Galen felt her take his hand in hers.

He was gently lifted, propped against his brother, a warm hand was placed on his head. Rob was focusing the healing into him, he could feel Rob’s lungs taking some of the effort of breathing from his own. Rob put a hand on his chest. He felt the light begin to flow out of his brother. The darkness left in Galen by the thing blocked the light. “Can you help me?” Rob asked, tears in his voice.

Galen opened his eyes. “No, sorry. Rob…”

“No, Galen, no. Not again. Not this time.” Rob looked around the clearing. “Dad!”

Parry appeared beside them. “Galen, no.”

“Heal him, Dad.”

“I can’t, Rob. I can help, like I did during the ritual, but I can’t heal by myself.” Parry’s shimmering form glittered with tears. “Can you help, Galen?”

“Nothing left, Dad.” Galen drew a shallow breath, the healing that had been blocking his body from pain, from keeping him from going into shock, from bleeding to death, was gone. “Sorry,” he said again.
How many times is that?
“Rob…”

“Help me,” Rob said, his voice harsh.

“We need a healer, Rob,” Parry said as two more shimmering figured knelt beside Galen. One was his uncle, the other was the man from his vision, the first Emrys. Galen nodded to the man.

“I can heal. Help me, Dad,” Rob said. Parry put shimmering hand over Rob’s, Galen closed his eyes as he felt the light flow into him, warming him. The dark still blocked the healing. He knew that he only had moments left, he tried to fight back towards his family. “Rob, I’m sorry. I…”

“Shut up, Galen,” his brother growled.

The healing suddenly changed, strengthened. Power slid into his body, driving the dark away, shutting it off in a small place. The world was fading, drifting away on the bright light, sparkling like a thousand twinkling stars against the dark night.
“It can’t be completely removed. I’m sorry,”
a deep voice whispered.
“I never learned how. My brother—it took him completely before I could stop it. I never thought to pull part of him into myself as you did during the ritual. It saved you, that spark you left with your brother. Rest, Galen Emrys. Rest.”

“Galen?” Rob said desperately.

“Galen?” his father’s anxious voice joined his brother’s.

“Rest, Galen. Rest until you are needed,”
the deep voice whispered.
“Rest.”

“Galen?” A drop of water fell on Galen’s face.

“Rob,” he said to his brother. “We got to serve as Keepers. We finally got to serve together as Keepers.”

The light flowed into him and he finally let it carry him away.

Chapter Twenty-One

A nightmare pursued him through the velvety darkness. Claws glittering with blood pulled at him, pain shot through his body with each assault. Galen cried out, his voice muffled. Warmth and healing light would drift through him after he called, a gentle voice spoke soothingly to him.
Rob.
Once the light left him, the nightmare would begin again, over and over. The dark creatures perched on his chest, holding him immobile as the thing slowly took away everything he was, pain pushed him closer to the light, to sounds—but he couldn’t breech the darkness.

“He needs to be in the hospital,” Mike’s voice drifted down through the dark.

“Why?” Rob’s voice was harsh, exhausted.

“Why? Oh, I don’t know. Those wounds? Coma? None of that seems like a reason to get medical care?”

“He’s getting medical care, you’re here.”

“He needs…”

“What? What does he need, Mike?” Rob shouted. Galen could hear desperation in his brother’s voice.

“A vent would help…Take some of the stress off his body, the lungs…”

“Mike?” Rob’s voice was suddenly quiet. Mike kept talking. “Mike?” The doctor kept talking. “Mike!”

“What?”

“He doesn’t need a vent.”

“It would help him heal…He needs…”

“I’ve been breathing for him since the ritual,” Rob said softly. Galen let himself drift through the dark sea. He could feel the air moving in and out of his body, and knew what Rob said was true.
He’s assisting my heart, too.
The dark was tugging at him again, the nightmare images washing through him, threatening to push him into the abyss.

“You’re what?” The shock in Mike’s voice caused a ripple of amusement through the dark waters holding Galen captive.

“Breathing for him. The hospital can’t help this, Mike,” Rob said gently. “His wounds are healing, you know that. It’s what happened during the ritual.” Rob sighed. “I can help heal the physical damage, and some of the psychic injury, but even with Dad’s help it’s not enough. We need Galen.”
Dad? He’s still here?

“Rob…”

“Don’t start, Mike,” Rob snapped. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay, but Rob, Galen is…”

“We just need to bring him back far enough to help us. If he’d just come back a little further, he could put himself in a healer’s trance.”

“Can’t you do that?”

“No, I can heal a little, with Dad’s help a little more, but neither of us has the power Galen does. We need his help.” Galen heard a moan, it took a moment for it to register that it was his own voice. “Galen? Hang on.” A warm hand was placed on Galen’s forehead, light and warmth flowed out, the dark was pushed away.

The nightmare began again. The Old One was talking, pulling Galen with It as It moved across the earth, leaving pieces of Galen behind as It moved, filling him with Itself. Slivers of memory moved through him, his own blending with remnants of the thing. He tried to focus, tried to move through the dark sea. Rob’s words flitted across his mind. The weariness in the tone caused concern to bubble through the inky night. Galen fought his way free. Light touched his eyelids. Pain flowed through him, part nightmare, part real. Something warm was resting on his arm. “Rob?” No answer. Galen tried to draw a breath. “Rob?” he heard his voice that time, a dry rasp in the quiet room.

The warmth tightened on his arm. “Galen?”

“Yeah.”

“Galen?”

“Yeah,” he repeated. He tried to open his eyes, they felt glued closed.

“Hey.” Rob’s voice was soft.

“You okay?”

“Yeah,” Rob said. “I’m okay, you’re not.”

“I know.”

“Can you…” Rob stopped. Galen heard his brother clear his throat. “Can you heal?”

“I…”

“The healer’s trance? The sagas say…”

“I’ve never used it before, Rob. No one has used the healer’s trance in centuries. I’m not even sure I know how to…”

“Try,” Rob whispered. “You have to at least try.”

Galen tried to focus the light, tried to pull it into himself, it hovered just out of his reach. “Can you help?” he asked quietly.

“As much as I can.”

“Thanks,” Galen said. Rob laid his hands on Galen’s forehead and chest. Before Galen focused the light, he reached out, trying to get a sense of his brother. Exhaustion washed up through the contact, Rob was very near the end of his endurance.

“I’m okay, Galen, take what you need,” Rob said. “Please.”

“Rob…”

“You’re dying, Galen. If you can’t heal, I’m gone anyway.” Rob paused. “Please,” he said simply. “I’ll be okay.” Galen still hesitated. Rob sensed the hesitation and white light suddenly flooded Galen’s body. “Use it,” Rob’s voice was harsh.

Galen waited for the space of three heartbeats, the light flowed through him, he caught it and focused it, sending shafts through his body. Consciousness began to waver, to shift, he was floating on the light, warmth filling his body. A soft song began, it sounded like the song of his sword. He drank in the healing like a man lost in the desert finding water. It filled him, altered him. Right before it pulled him away, he focused a tiny bit of it back into his brother. He heard Rob’s soft sigh as he drifted away, carried on the song and the light.

Consciousness began filtering back. Galen was aware of an ache in his chest and neck, the fact he was breathing for himself, the bed under him and a warm hand resting on his. “Rob?”

“Galen?” Flash answered. “That you, man?”

Galen forced his eyes open. “Flash?”

“Welcome back, shit, man, you had me worried.” Flash grinned.