“Arturyn, why does everyone keep staring at me like that?” Erin asked, looking around furtively at the people they were passing and trying not to show that she noticed them watching her. “I mean, they’re used to seeing humans here, aren’t they?”
“Mostly because you’re with me. Anyone I go out in public with gets plenty of attention no matter what species they are.”
“But people kept looking at me when I was out with Kirchel the other day, too.”
Arturyn glanced over his shoulder at her. “Well, your hair probably has something to do with it as well.”
“My hair?” Erin repeated, surprised. “Why? What’s wrong with it?” She automatically raised a hand to feel along her French braid. It seemed all right.
“There’s nothing wrong with it,” Arturyn said with a faint chuckle. “The color’s just unusual, that’s all. Silmariths never have red hair.”
“Never?”
“Not unless they’re part human.”
“Oh.”
Erin considered that, holding onto Arturyn’s shoulders as he turned their paskjy off the palace bridge and onto a road leading along the lake shore toward Zeiryn. Since she was riding behind him, Arturyn had thought it was more proper for her to sit sidesaddle, which she wasn’t used to. With the paskjy’s smooth gait, it wasn’t too difficult to keep her balance, but she still felt a little uneasy whenever they changed speed or direction.
A few minutes later, they were passing through a large gate set into the stone wall that ran around Zeiryn. It seemed almost like they were entering another world. The sounds of the bustling city outside faded away as soon as they were inside the walls. The buildings and surrounding landscaping seemed to glow with color, and the air itself was so thick with energy Erin felt like she could almost taste it—not a busy, frantic energy, but a deep and quiet power, like an unflickering flame.
They stopped just inside the gate, and the two guards escorting them both dismounted quickly and moved forward. One of them lifted Erin down from the paskjy’s back, and the other held onto its bridle while Arturyn dismounted.
When they were both safely on the ground, the guard holding their paskjy led it back over to the one he'd been riding. Taking hold of its reins as well, he led both paskjys toward a long, narrow building that was against the wall to their right. Arturyn spoke briefly to the second guard, who replied and saluted. Then he turned and started after his companion, leading his own paskjy.
“Aren’t they coming with us?” Erin asked, remembering the recent attempt on Arturyn’s life. It seemed strange that he would be willing to go anywhere without an escort after that. Of course, it had been two of his escorts who had tried to kill him....
Arturyn shook his head. “We don’t need guards here. Powerful magic protects this place and everyone in it. But they’ll wait and go back to the palace with us. Come on.”
Erin followed him along a wide stone path lined with bushes and trees that led to a large building made of pale green stone standing directly in front of them. They weren’t the only ones going there. Six or seven other people were also heading toward the green building, either along the same path or another one that led straight from the long building the guards had taken the paskjys to, which Erin assumed must be a stable.
“Is this a hospital?” Erin asked, looking up at the building.
“Yes, it is, although I expect it’s rather different from the hospitals you have in your world. The Silmarith word is ‘eyathar.' It operates in conjunction with Zeiryn so that the healers both teach and practice healing. That way the school and eyathar aren’t competing with each other for staff, and they can both benefit from having some of the finest healers in the world.”
As they approached the large wooden doors of the eyathar, the right hand door swung silently open, apparently of its own accord. Erin paused, looking at the door with raised eyebrows. But Arturyn didn’t seem to think doors opening by themselves was at all unusual. He went on through the open doorway, and after a second’s hesitation, Erin hurried after him.
They entered what looked like a reception area. It was a large, circular room with at least a dozen doors set at intervals around the wall, which seemed to be made of white marble. The floor also looked like marble, but it was dark green.
Against the walls near the doors were two counters made of dark, polished wood with several people seated behind each one. Each counter had a large sign written in Silmarith on the front. Some of the people Erin had seen outside heading toward the building were standing at the nearest counter speaking to the people behind it.
Arturyn and Erin had obviously been expected, because as soon as they entered the room, a young woman with blonde hair stood up and came out from behind the counter on the right. She and the others were dressed in matching green clothing that seemed to be a kind of uniform. The young woman spoke to Arturyn, smiling and inclining her head respectfully, and then turned and started walking toward one of the doors.
Arturyn put a hand on Erin’s arm. “Stay close now,” he told her. “This is one of the easiest places to get lost in you’ll ever find.”
They followed the woman through the door and along a short hallway to another door near the end. She placed her hand flat against this door for a moment, and it opened and swung in. She entered, gesturing for them to follow, and Erin heard her speaking to someone inside as they went through the door.
The room they entered resembled the hospital rooms Erin was familiar with, though without the machinery. Light was coming from a window covered in sheer curtains on the far wall. There was a high bed in the center of the room with small tables standing on either side of it. An assortment of jars and instruments were spread out on the nearest table.
A woman with light brown hair pulled up into coiled braids on top of her head was standing next to this table. She looked like she had just been readying the items on it. There was a dark pattern on her left cheek, and Erin realized with some surprise that it was the same woman she had seen at the Nylad. But instead of a fancy ball gown, she was now dressed in a green and white uniform. She spoke briefly to their guide, who replied with another polite nod of the head and then left the room.
“So this is our new Anaurian, is it?” the woman with the mark on her face asked, turning to Erin with a warm smile. She spoke perfect English.
“Yes, this is Erin,” Arturyn said, putting a hand on Erin’s shoulder. “Erin, this is Kimoja Lin-Jerani. She’s one of the master healers here. And that’s her husband, Legan.”
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He nodded towards the wall on the other side of the door, and Erin, turning, saw the man who had been with Kimoja at the Nylad, sitting next to a girl with long, dark brown hair. She was dressed in an all white version of the eyathar’s uniform, but Legan was wearing regular clothing.
“It looks like he’s going to be Kimoja’s assistant today," Arturyn said with a wry smile. "But he’s normally Head Magister of Zeiryn.”
“I like to think of it as a promotion,” Legan said with a chuckle.
“Well, we’re very glad you’ve come to Silmar, Erin,” Kimoja said, still smiling kindly.
“Thank you,” Erin said, smiling timidly back at her.
“Arturyn told me about your leg,” Kimoja went on. “And we’re going to do the best we can to help you with it. There’s a healer waiting to see you now, and I’ve asked Melanie here to go with you.”
She nodded at the girl next to Legan, who stood up and gave Erin a little wave and a brilliant smile.
“She’s an emerged mage, like you, and she speaks your language. She’s also studying healing magic here at Zeiryn, so she’ll be able to help you understand everything.” Kimoja ran her gaze over Erin, who felt oddly like she was being scanned. “You’ll probably finish before Arturyn does. You’ve got more damage to fix, but the eye is so sensitive that we have to take extra time and precautions to make sure it heals exactly right, especially since I’m sure he would like to be able to use it again right away. So, if he hasn’t come to find you by the time you get done, just come back here to wait. You’ll be right next door, so it shouldn’t be hard for you to get back, even if Melanie has to leave for her shift downstairs. All right?”
“Okay.” Erin felt a little nervous about leaving Arturyn, not being sure exactly what was about to happen to her. But Kimoja seemed very kind, and Erin felt she could trust her.
“Let’s go, then,” Melanie said, looking enthusiastic. “The sooner we get you in to see Healer Sil-Gaeryn, the sooner he’ll have you all put back together.”
She led the way out of the room. Erin shot one last glance at Arturyn, who gave her an encouraging smile, and then followed her.
“This is your first time in Katan Jyrat, isn't it?” Melanie asked as they walked down the hall. She was tall and slim with waist-length, chocolate-colored hair and a friendly, round face. She looked like she was nineteen or twenty. "Have you been enjoying the huge party they throw here for Council week?"
“Well...I guess? Going around the city with my cousin was fun. The palace is a little scary, though. It's full of people running around and looking anxious all the time. But the garden is nice. I spent most of yesterday out there."
"Did you get to go to the palace ball?" Melanie asked eagerly. "Kimoja told us a little bit about it. I'm so jealous that she gets to go to fancy events like that! I'd love to go and see all the royals dressed up in their amazing clothes and jewelry and doing elegant dances and everything...." She let out a wistful sigh.
"Um...yeah...I went," Erin said, feeling a little awkward. "And the clothes and things were really nice. But...well, I don't speak Silmarith, and I still don't know that much about the culture here, so I felt pretty lost."
"Oh. Right." Melanie nodded in understanding. "I had a hard time when I first came here, too. The language still trips me up once in a while. And the fact that I'm studying medicine doesn't really help." She laughed. "I accidentally ordered steamed femur bones at a restaurant once because the word sounds similar to a type of vegetable. Fortunately I was with a native classmate who helped me get it straightened out. After she stopped laughing her head off, of course...."
They had reached the next door. Melanie pushed it open, and they went inside. This room was almost identical to the last one, with a bed in the center and tables on either side of it. But here, both tables were laden with supplies. A woman dressed in a green uniform was standing next to the table on the right side of the bed. She seemed to be mixing something in a small ceramic bowl. When they entered, she looked up and smiled, and she and Melanie exchanged a few words in Silmarith.
“This is Firasa,” Melanie told Erin. “She’s an assistant healer, which is kind of like a nurse. She’s going to be helping Healer Sil-Gaeryn. She says he had to go to the supply rooms for a minute to get something, but he’ll be right back.” She gestured toward the bed. “Go ahead and sit down. We’ll start getting you set up.”
As Erin approached the bed, the woman called Firasa said something in Silmarith and made a gesture with her hands. The bed began to move and bend, taking on a shape more like the chair in a dentist’s office. After Erin had settled herself onto it, Firasa waved a hand, and the left leg of Erin’s pants seemed to melt away, leaving her leg bare except for her brace and a few inches of cloth left on her upper thigh. With another flick of her hand, Firasa made Erin’s shoes slip off her feet and fly over to sit on a chair against the wall. She spoke to Melanie in Silmarith again, gave Erin another smile, and then went back to whatever she was working on in the bowl.
“Here, let’s put this on so you don’t freeze while you’re waiting,” Melanie said. Turning, Erin saw she was holding what looked like a folded blanket. She shook it out and spread it over Erin’s legs. “There. Are you comfortable?”
Erin nodded. The bed was well padded and had a flannel-like cover over it that felt soft and warm against her skin. With the added warmth of the blanket, she might have felt ready for a nap if she hadn’t been so worried about what was coming next.
“We’re not going to take your leg brace off yet,” Melanie went on. “We’ll let Healer Sil-Gaeryn do that when he’s ready to start on your leg. We don’t want to hurt anything.” She beckoned to one of the wooden chairs against the wall, and it slid across the floor to stand next to the bed. Melanie sat down on it, facing Erin. “I’m supposed to go work in the nursery in a few hours, but hopefully we can get you all finished before then. I might be able to miss part of my shift, too—it will depend on how busy they are.”
“Oh. Okay.” Erin didn’t like the idea of being left on her own with no one who spoke her language, but she didn’t feel like she ought to complain.
The door opened, and a man in a white and green uniform entered the room. He was thin and had sandy brown hair and tanned skin. Like many of the Silmariths that Erin had met, he didn’t exactly look old, but his face had an air of experience to it that made her suspect he was much older than he seemed at first glance. He was carrying a wooden box about the size of a shoebox, which Erin assumed must contain whatever supplies he had been getting. He closed the door behind him and then gave the box a kind of push. It flew across the room and came to rest on the end of one of the tables. Then he walked over to the bed, smiling at Erin.
“Erin Lir-Anaurian?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“My name is Somarid Sil-Gaeryn. I am a healer, and I hope to help you.” He spoke rather hesitantly, as though unsure of the words, and with a strong accent. “I speak a little English only, but Melanie will help us understand each other.”
His kind face and gentle voice reminded Erin of her father and made her feel more at ease. He was still smiling, and she managed to offer him a small smile in return.
“I need to see your wounds a little,” Healer Sil-Gaeryn continued. “Then we will talk before we begin the healing.”
He pulled the blanket down to reveal Erin’s legs, leaving her bare feet still covered. He stared intently at her left leg, as though he could see through her skin and the black cloth and plastic of her brace and was examining the bones and muscles inside.
After a few minutes, he started unfastening the straps holding the brace onto her leg. Erin tensed slightly as he started pulling the brace off, expecting to feel pain shooting through her knee as it was moved and bumped. But before removing the brace entirely, the healer touched her skin lightly in several spots, and she felt her leg stiffen very slightly. Then he carefully slid the brace off, without causing the slightest twinge of pain in her knee.
Erin stared down at the bare skin of her leg, feeling oddly naked without the brace. She normally only removed it when she took a shower. She couldn’t repress a slight wince as she looked at the ugly rope of scar running down her knee.
Healer Sil-Gaeryn continued his examination of her leg, first slowly running a hand up and down in the air a few inches over it. Then he began gently laying his hands on her skin, holding them for a moment, then moving to another spot.
Erin watched him with interest. From the look of concentration on his face, she was sure he was somehow able to feel past her skin and was inspecting the damage inside her leg. Would she be able to do that someday if she kept learning about magic? She wondered what her father, the doctor, would say if he found out his daughter had turned into a human x-ray machine....