Real bandages. Actual clean fabric. And no moss.
Barb was bound to be ecstatic.
Jenny winced as she lifted her left arm experimentally. The burned, singed skin beneath the bandage stretched and pulled uncomfortably, but it wasn’t anything debilitating. It wouldn’t stop her from chasing Yaasha’s chickens back into their coop once she got back to Chandan Village to share the story of the last few days.
What a wild ride.
That being said, she hoped to never get hit with a tehnyga pulse again. That wasn’t fun. But if she were going to get hit with one, her left arm was probably the best place for it.
Whatever Centaur had shot her was probably incredibly disappointed right now. But now that she thought about it, whatever Centaur shot her was probably dead. After all, Meg had transformed into a pillar of light and brought the whole top of the mountain collapsing down on them.
The tent flap rustled, and one of the Atama Village medics entered with a toothy smile.
“Hello!” Jenny beamed.
The Harna bowed and reached for her foot, holding up a tub of salve.
Yes.
Real bandages had been heaven. The special Josharon painkilling, skin-healing salve was a miracle. Yasira kept a store of it at Prism Castle, but apparently some had been distributed to the surrounding villages as well.
The Harna knelt and began slathering the ointment on her feet, and Jenny groaned as it tingled.
Real bandages. Healing salve. And the scent of chicken korma and saffron rice. The only thing that would make it better was hearing that Meg was awake.
After she’d done whatever she’d done with the Light, she’d passed out. She hadn’t moved since, and that had been a day ago. They’d left Centaur Mount as a group and slowly traveled through the wastelands, through the forest, where the injured yodha had taken their leave, and reached Atama Village late in the evening.
Lashed to Danny’s horse, Meg hadn’t woken. She lay limp and lifeless, barely breathing. And no one had spoken about any of it. No one talked about anything that had happened.
Seriously, what was wrong with these people? Were they allergic to talking? Sure, maybe they were tired. She was tired too. But her sister had turned into a lightning bolt and destroyed a mountain. Wasn’t that worth talking about?
Jenny huffed and laid back on her cot, staring at the tent roof.
Barb had fallen asleep shortly after Jim helped her on to his horse, and it had taken all his concentration to keep them both upright. So no surprise that he hadn’t asked any questions.
To be fair, she had been too tired and in too much pain to say much either, so she probably shouldn’t be critical. But still? For Velanna to say nothing?
Granted, Velanna’s complexion was grayer than the spoiled baba ganoush Jenny had discovered at the back of the ice box a few weeks ago. So she probably wasn’t up to conversation either.
The female Harna finished wrapping her feet and stood with another bow. “Shara-Yodha, Kadima was asking for you.”
Jenny blinked and stared at the Harna. “What did you call me?”
The Harna frowned. “Shara-Yodha.” Then she smiled. “Word has traveled of your victory. You are most welcome here.” The Harna stepped back and let the tent flap fall.
“Wow.”
Jenny pulled a borrowed hijab over her hair and ears and slid off the cot into her borrowed sandals. She couldn’t wait to get back home to her own things. Not that she was ungrateful, but sandals made for Josharons just didn’t fit quite right. Their feet were more like paws, and half the time they didn’t even wear shoes.
But it was good to have something between her hurting feet and the earth, at least this time.
She pushed the tent flap aside and stepped into the morning air. They’d made camp on the edge of the Crescent Canyon. Below them, Atama Village nestled against the canyon wall, built into the tawny colored cliffside.
With nothing to block the view between the Crescent Canyon and the heart of Rainbow Valley, Prism Castle was clearly visible. Vast stretches of velvet green grasses and golden rustling fields pointed the way to where its shimmering white spires stretched toward the deep blue sky.
Tears stung her eyes.
She had almost allowed herself to believe she wouldn’t see it again.
As she watched, the morning sun rose high enough that its rays reached the iridescent walls of the castle, and instantly the sky filled with rainbows. Boiling and churning and swirling like a living thing, the sky wavered and shifted. Beautiful.
Meg had stood in the midst of something like that. Surrounded by shining brightness but in complete control of the arms of colored light, solid enough to move boulders and rocks.
The beauty of the sky faded in Jenny’s eyes, the memory of the battle within the mountain of fire slipping to the front of her mind. Her sister a stranger consumed by a force more powerful than Jenny knew existed.
Velanna was asking for you. She shook herself and peeled her gaze away from the colorful sky. You need to see what she wants, and then maybe she’ll tell you what actually happened.
As the sun continued its daily trek across the sky, its rays moved away from Prism Castle, and the rainbows playing in the sky disappeared.
The other temporary tent they’d set up overlooked Atama Village as well, its simple canvas walls breathing in and out with the gentle breeze. Jenny reached it and pulled the door back.
Meg greeted her with a smile.
“Meg!” Jenny gasped and ran forward to fling herself into her sister’s arms.
Meg sat up on a cot, bruised and scraped but no worse for her experience, and she shifted over to make room for Jenny on the mattress beside her. Jenny settled into Meg’s embrace and let relieved tears fall. She was awake. She was okay. She was herself again.
Meg’s fingers carded through her hair. “Are you all right?”
Jenny pulled back and made a face at her. “Am I all right?”
Meg’s expression was as hard and unchanging as the chicken-shaped boulder in the Dark Forest. Jenny rolled her eyes and lifted her arm.
“I’m fine. See?” She levered her arm up and down. “It was a scratch.”
“A bit more than a scratch,” Barb snickered from her cot on the other side of the tent.
Jenny stuck out her tongue, and Barb smirked.
Glancing around the tent, Jenny turned back to Meg. “Where are the others?”
“Well.” Meg sighed, setting her hand on Jenny’s knee. “Danny and Mickey went with a hunting party to get some fresh meat. Atama Village wasn’t expecting us all, so it’s the least we can do to thank them.”
Jenny looked at Barb. “And Jim?”
“Apparently there’s a linguist living here,” Barb said dryly. “He made sure I was breathing, and then he ran away. I feel loved.”
Jenny giggled and hugged Meg again. “I’m so glad you’re back to being you.”
Meg’s weight shifted again, and Jenny looked up at her. Meg was biting her bottom lip, and she and Barb were staring at each other with a strange expression in their eyes.
“What was it like?” Jenny asked softly.
Meg glanced down at her. “What was what like?”
“Meg.” Jenny sat up. “You destroyed the whole top of the mountain.”
The lines around Meg’s eyes deepened, and her mouth pulled into a frown. “I don’t remember, Jenny. I don’t remember any of it.”
Jenny looked toward Barb.
“She woke up in here about ten minutes ago,” Barb said. “The last thing she remembered was you taking that pulse hit.”
“Yeah. And this.” Meg reached into her blouse and pulled out Velanna’s medallion.
Jenny cupped the stone in her hand. In spite of the crack in its surface, it was a stunning crystal, sparkling in the early morning light. A swirl of light pulsed at its core, like living amethyst.
Beautiful.
“What is this?”
“It’s the Kirana,” Meg said. “Velanna’s Light.”
“Long story,” Barb chimed in. “But it’s what Tiron was looking for.”
“And this is what turned you into a superhero?” Jenny beamed at her sister. “It’s amazing! And it’s so pretty.”
Meg’s features hardened. “It used to be.” She pulled the crystal from Jenny’s hands. “Now it looks just like Velanna said it did. A regular old quartz.”
“Quartz?” Jenny frowned, gazing at the shimmering crystal with the violet pulse. “That’s not like any quartz I’ve seen, Meg.”
Meg’s stare grew more intense. “What do you mean?”
The tent flap rustled, and Velanna poked her head inside. She greeted them with a solemn nod. Her face wasn’t as chalky as it had been, even though the dark circles still bruised the skin under her eyes.
“Jennifer.” Velanna approached the cot and pulled her into a fierce embrace.
Jenny released Meg and clutched at Velanna’s robes, breathing deeply her scent of cumin and cinnamon.
Velanna didn’t say anything else. She honestly hadn’t said much since they left the mountain, but the hugs had been more frequent. Jenny loved every moment of it. If Velanna was going to get this touchy-feely, it almost made getting thrown into a volcano worth it.
Almost.
Slowly, Velanna released her. “How is your arm?”
“It’s fine.” Jenny held on to her hand and returned her other hand to Meg’s knee. “I’ll be fine, Velanna.”
Velanna touched her chin. “I believe you will.” Her eyes twinkled. “Shara-Yodha.”
Jenny beamed at her.
Arrow Warrior. That was her name. And even Velanna knew it now.
Then, Velanna turned to Meg. “Are you well, Margaret?”
Meg shrugged, folding her fingers over Jenny’s. “Yes. But I don’t remember anything.” Her eyes darkened. “And I broke your crystal.” She touched the medallion at her neck and then pulled it over her head, holding it out to Velanna.
Quietly, Velanna took it from her, regarding the crack in the crystal.
Jenny frowned at the sad way Velanna regarded it. Maybe she was seeing things. It wouldn’t be the first time she’d thought something beautiful when no one else did. Still, it seemed silly to think such a beautiful gemstone was just a piece of quartz.
“Margaret, what you did with the Kirana was extraordinary,” Velanna said. “I believe, at long last, both the Kirana and the Andhera are gone. Destroyed.” She tucked the medallion in the pocket of her robes. “It is for the best.”
“But it was your family’s heirloom.” Meg looked down.
Velanna sat on the edge of the cot and took Meg’s face in her slender hands. “It was an heirloom of shame and loss, and now it shall be a memory of triumph.” She smiled. “For when I think of the Shadow that destroyed my people, I can now think of it as the Light that saved my family.” She drew Meg closer and kissed her forehead.
Meg sagged against her with a shaking breath. “I almost didn’t.
Jenny reached for her hand. “What do you mean?”
Meg sat back and folded Jenny’s fingers into her own. “I tried to calm my mind, Velanna. Just like you said. But it didn’t work.”
Velanna stood, frowning thoughtfully. “What did?”
“I—asked it—to help.” Meg grimaced.
Velanna arched an eyebrow. “You asked it?”
Meg nodded. It was the same kind of nod that she gave after she tried to bake something in the kitchen and set the whole place on fire. That had only happened twice.
Slowly, the other eyebrow inched up Velanna’s brow. “Fascinating.” She caught her lower lip between her teeth in a very un-Velanna-like expression. “Yes, fascinating.” She placed her hand over the pocket where the cracked crystal lay and shook herself. “I am glad, Margaret.”
“You are?”
“I am.”
Meg scowled. “But I didn’t do what you said.”
Jenny turned a glare on Velanna. She’d better not say what she usually said in situations like this.
“Inaccurate.” Velanna smiled.
Yay, Velanna did have some sense of empathy buried deep inside that stony cold exterior.
“You did exactly as I asked. You simply found a way to do it that made sense to you, my dear. As you did with the gaja, I assume?”
Meg flushed. “Yeah.”
“This is wise, Margaret.” Velanna lifted her chin. “What is true may be singular, but every one of us must find our own way to it if we are to understand it.”
Jenny fought the urge to roll her eyes and elbowed Meg in the side gently. “In other words, good job.”
Meg chuckled, and Velanna glared at her with a droll face, even though her eyes hadn’t stopped twinkling.
“I must find Daniel and Michelle.” Velanna looked over her shoulder. “They should be returning soon, and once they are here we will depart for home.”
“I’m ready to be home.” Jenny leaned against Meg.
Meg pulled her close again and pressed her face into her hair.
“I’ll come with you.” Barb swung her feet out from the cot and stood up slowly. “I want to find Jim and make sure he isn’t exhausting whatever Josharon he’s quizzing.”
Velanna gave a quiet laugh and stepped outside the tent. Barb followed.
With another hug around Meg’s waist, Jenny pulled back. “I’m going to go see if they need help with the morning meal.”
Meg furrowed her brow. “You know, you can probably take a day off?” She tapped the arrowhead pendant at Jenny’s collarbones. “Shara-Yodha?”
Jenny blushed. “You heard about that, huh?”
“Barb told me.”
“She said you’d only been awake for ten minutes.”
“It was one of the first things she told me.” Meg smiled. “That my baby sister was the best shot she’d ever seen.”
Jenny beamed. “She said that?”
“She did.”
Warmth spread through Jenny’s soul at the praise. Barb didn’t bestow kind compliments easily, so they were all the more worth earning.
Meg took her hands and kissed her fingers. “I don’t mean to be overprotective, Jenny. I just—couldn’t stand to lose you.”
Jenny squeezed Meg’s fingers. “I know, Meg.”
Meg sat back. “But once we get back to the castle, let’s talk some more about you going to school.”
Jenny’s stomach turned over. “What?”
Meg’s face shone. “Well, apparently my little sister slayed a black wolf with a handmade arrow and stood up to a Centaur Lord to boot. So someone with that much strength surely can handle herself in Terran.”
With a squeal of delight, Jenny flung her arms around Meg’s neck, and Meg laughed. And a yawn interrupted her. Jenny hugged her neck again and pulled away, tears in her eyes.
“You need to sleep.” She pushed Meg down with a laugh and covered her with a blanket. “Go to sleep.”
“I’m tired of sleeping.”
“Don’t argue.”
“Isn’t that my line?”
“It can be your line when I magically destroy a mountain.” Jenny patted her arm. “Stay there, and I’ll bring you food.”
“Korma?” Meg lifted her head off the pillow.
“We’re in a Harna village Meg.” Jenny bopped her on the nose and headed for the door. “They don’t eat anything else.”
Meg snickered. “Hey, Jenny?”
Jenny paused at the door and looked back at her sister.
“I love you.”
Tears burned in her eyes. “I love you too, Meg.”
Meg laid her head down and smiled, and Jenny stepped out into the sunlight dashing the happy tears from her eyes.
Outside the tent, Barb stood staring at the rainbows in wonder. Jenny walked up next to her and leaned against her good side, and Barb pulled her close.
“Hey, kid.”
“Hi, Barb.”
Barb squeezed her. “You did good out there, Jenny.”
“You told Meg I was a good shot?”
“I did. It’s the truth.” Barb hugged her tighter. “You saved me.”
“You saved me first.”
“It’s not a competition, you little snot.” Barb flicked her forehead.
Jenny laughed and slipped out of her hold. “Well, I couldn’t just let you die, no matter how grouchy you are.”
Barb smiled at her warmly. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” Jenny wrapped her arms around herself. “Sounds like Meg may let me go to school.”
“Well, that’s a great idea,” Barb said. “Maybe you can finally find a cute guy and convince him to let you go on a date.”
“Oh, I intend to.”
Barb laughed loudly. “I’m sure you intend to, and I’m sure Meg, Danny, and Mickey are waiting with baited breath to scare the life out of him. Whoever he is.”
Jenny regarded her older friend. Barb was pale too, and her fair skin was scraped and scratched and mottled with burns. But she was smiling.
“I’m glad you’re okay,” Jenny said. “I was scared.”
“I’m sure.”
Jenny looked at the ground. “I know I’m not a fighter,” she said. “Not like you or Meg.”
Barb sighed hugely and set her hand on Jenny’s shoulder, squeezing lightly. “Don’t kid yourself, Jenny. You’re twice as strong as both of us.”
Jenny frowned.
“You never gave up. Not even for a second.” Barb smiled. “That doesn’t just take strength, Jenny. That takes guts. I’d fight by your side anytime, anywhere.”
“Really?” Jenny beamed.
“Really.” Barb nodded. “But not right now.”
“No.”
“And not in a volcano again.”
“Right.” Jenny took her arm. “You know what I really want to do?”
“I dread to think.”
“Can I braid your hair?”
Barb froze. “Can you what?”
“Braid your hair.”
“Jenny.”
“It’s so pretty.”
“No.”
“I’ll put flowers in it.”
“No.”
“Your spleen is back where it belongs, Barb, why are you grouchy?”
“You spent the last week wrapping me in dirty roots and tree moss, Jenny. You’re not putting weeds in my hair.”
Jenny gazed into her face. “Please?”
Barb groaned and sloped her shoulders. “Why are you like this?”
“Like what?”
“Adorable.”
“I’m adorable?”
“Shut up.” Barb started walking again. “Help me find Jim, and then you can braid stupid flowers in my hair.”
“Yay!”
“Just this once.” Barb shook a finger in her face. “Because you saved my life.”
Jenny hugged Barb’s arm tightly, glowing with happiness.
Barb muttered and grumbled and snarled under her breath, but as they reached the carved-out home where Jim was chattering excitedly inside, Barb pressed a single soft kiss against Jenny’s hair.
“This is only happening because I like you.” And then she cocked an eyebrow. “But if you come anywhere near me with a handful of beard moss again, I will stab you in the face.”
“I love you, Barb.” Jenny grinned.
“Yeah, fine, whatever, I love you too.” Barb rolled her eyes. “Let’s get this over with.”
Jenny dragged her into the hut with a laugh.