Page 84 of What Lies Beyond the Realms

I must have dozed off, because I’m jolted awake when Nyx’s feet slam into the ground, and he starts banging on a door. The door is built into a large tree that seems to grow into the side of the mountain.

“It’s about time,” says Athalda's hoarse voice, pulling Nyx inside. I feel a whoosh of wind, and his wings disappear as he carries me into the tree.

The inside of the tree opens up and extends deep into the mountainside. It’s decorated almost like a normal house here but filled with the strange smells of pungent herbs. I’m not sure what I expected, but I didn’t expect this. I thought maybe she’d have some big cauldron smoking on a table.

“Quickly. Lay her down over here,” Athalda says from somewhere behind me.

Nyx carries me closer to her voice and lays me down on a large wooden table. It's not exactly comfortable, and a moan escapes my mouth as I try to reposition but can’t. I have no strength; I hadn’t realized I can’t even lift my head up much on my own. Athalda’s face comes into view as she leans over me. Those jagged scars and deep black eyes are unmistakable. “I told you I’d come find you after the funeral, girl. Then you disappear and show up here like this.” She starts grabbing glass jars and placing them around the table. I can’t see her, but I hear lots of clinging and rummaging.

“The whole damn Lycan Realm had to have felt that blast of magic. I will set a spell to camouflage my home and confuse anyone that comes looking for you two, but I can only buy you a day or two at most, then you need to leave,” Athalda says.

“Yes, I understand. Can you help heal her?” Nyx asks Athalda, and his voice sounds strained. My heart hurts for him, but I can’t raise my head to look up.

“Get her undressed so we can assess her wounds. I’ll be back after I set the spell.” Athalda’s voice is gruff as she grumbles in the distance.

“I’m going to get you cleaned up. I need to remove your clothes so we can heal you. Just rest, okay?”

Nyx soothes me by rubbing my hair out of my face, and Chepi lies down next to my head, the tip of his wet nose tickling my cheek. Nyx unties and pulls my boots off one by one. Luckily, I don’t have much clothes on. They’ve all been shredded and burned. He grabs the top of my shirt under my neck and pulls with both hands, ripping it in two all the way down my front until he reaches the end near my thigh. He lifts me up slowly, tucking one arm under my shoulders and pulls the torn shirt free, then rests me back onto the table.

I hear him fumbling around in what must be the old Sorceress’s kitchen, because I hear lots of clinging and clanging of dishes. He comes back with a large bowl of warm, soapy water that smells amazing after the stench of rotting flesh and mud all night.

“This may sting, but I need to get all this mud off you so I can see where you're hurt. Athalda is hiding us, so I’m going to try to avoid using magic,” Nyx tells me softly as he starts pressing a warm towel to my body.

He lathers it with soap and warm water then gently dabs and brushes my body with it, ridding my skin of the nightmare I endured. He repeats this process over and over again. Every now and then I hear him sigh or hiss, which leads me to believe I must look bad. The water stings when it gets near a wound, but it’s nothing I can’t take. I have no energy to react anyways.

“Lyra, you said you weren’t hurt that badly. This wound on your side is deep.” He starts pacing, and it makes me uneasy.

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry. It’s just I wish this didn’t happened. I’m going to fucking kill Samael,” Nyx says through gritted teeth.

“Move over. Let me get a look at her,” Athalda says, coming up into the room. “Girl, that side is going to need to be stitched up.” She pokes and prods me.

If I wasn’t so drained, I’d probably feel embarrassed. I don’t like lying here naked. Nyx seems to sense my train of thought and drapes a towel over my waist.

“Your other wounds are not so bad,” she says more to herself.

“Now, boy, I’m going to need you to hold her down while I stitch her side. Think you can manage?” Athalda says to Nyx while moving around supplies. I don’t much like where this is going.

“What can we give her for the pain?”

“I have a tincture I can mix with alcohol,” Athalda says.

“Why the long pause? What’s the catch?”

“It’ll help with the pain but will also cause hallucinations. Should only last a couple hours,” she says, mixing some liquids in a glass. She hands it to Nyx, and he brings it over, lifting my head for me to drink.

“Wait. I don’t want to hallucinate . . . I’m afraid.”

“It’s okay, lover. I’ll be here the whole time. Once she starts threading through your wound, trust me, you’ll want this.” Nyx brings the glass to my lips, and I do my best to gulp it all down.

It's a bold and complex blend of flavors with a tangy, almost savory quality that mingles with a subtle alcohol kick. I wish I had more alcohol, but I don’t say so aloud.

“How will we know it’s working?” I hear Nyx ask.

“We’ll know. It should only take a few minutes,” Athalda tells him, and she already sounds so far away.

My body feels heavy, and my chest feels tight. A sense of dread creeps in. My vision seems to be a little distorted. I try to find Nyx and Athalda in the room, but I can’t lift my head. It feels like a boulder, and it’s too heavy to do anything but drop.