Fiat Lux II: Part IX

"Build ye houses, and dwell in them; and plant gardens, and eat the fruit of them" Jeremiah 29:5

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Ian looked up as Skye came back in from the garden, cuttings of roots and leaves in her Hands; but he could sense by their soulbond that his wife was disturbed by something.

"What's wrong, love?"

She shook her head. "Ian, I don't know. Something about the garden, I can't explain it. This feeling of wrongness, I suppose, just came over me." She set her cuttings out on the top of the chest at the foot of Branwen's bed. "They have plenty of plaintain, thank the Goddess. I'll make a tea with it and some other herbs I brought with me."

"Plantain? Isn't that the one you used for the poisoned arrow wounds last year?"

She nodded, teeth worrying at her lips. "Ian, I can't put my finger on it. It could be any number of things. But plantain is efficacious for all sorts of ills, not just poison." She turned to looks at him fully. "I will do what I can for her, but if I can't, then it will be up to you."

"I know, love. I will Heal her if nothing else can help." He grinned. "If someone tries to kill me in my weakened state after, he can deal with you, the poor bastard." The jest got Skye to smile, which was what he had hoped. "We may have no choice. Penally seems to be a hotbed of disease, don't you think?"

"We should send back to Camelot for more healers of all types. So far whatever it is seems limited to a select few, but it can break out into a full blown epidemic overnight. I can't say that it will, but I'd rather be over-prepared than caught wanting."

"Alright. I'll mindspeak to Corwin."

Her face lit up. "Could you? And could you have him send the things your friend Ibrahim sent me?"

"For you, my firedragon, anything!"

Her lips twitched. "Anything? Hmm. I'll have a list for you later. We'll discuss it. Diligently."

Long after he left the room, she could hear him laughing.

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In a room in Castle Amber, a dark haired man sat in chair and smiled across at his wife. He was just about to suggest they retire for the eve when a voice spoke clearly in his mind. By the expression on Susan's face, she was hearing it as well.

::Corwin?::
::Aye, brother. Is something wrong?::
::Yes and no. Skye and I are fine. But there is a problem here. Let me show you::

Ian opened his mind to his brother and Corwin's was flooded with the images of the day's events, as was Susan's through her link to Corwin. A smothered snicker came from her as the sending ended with the talk about Skye's list. Corwin grinned. ::What do you need of me, Ian?::

::Could you send a rider to Camelot? Tell Uncle Ashe to get a group of Healers together and take them here by the Road? And there's some things Skye needs.:: He showed Corwin what the packages looked like and where in Skye's herb room they had been stored. ::Could you ask Ashe to bring them as well?::

::I'll do better than that. I'll bring them myself. It may take awhile for Ashe to get his party together. I'll be there two hours after dawn. Where shall we meet?:: When they had finished making plans and Ian ended the sending, Susan sat and waited as Corwin wrote a message to Ashe and sent it out with the man she summoned. Then she smiled and held out her hand to Corwin. "Come, husband. I've a list of my own to discuss with you."

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Ian let loose the last tenuous weaving of mindspeech fade away and glanced up at the clear Autumn sky. A wonderful night. He wondered if Skye would consider a discussion of her list beneath the stars. He chuckled and went back inside to Branwen's room. From the deep shadows on the far side of the garden, a figure stepped away to stand and stare at the door Ian had entered. Then it stepped back into the dark and through a hidden door, and only a small click as it shut behind him gave witness it was ever there at all.