Illuminated by Jackie Castle

Author:Jackie Castle
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Tags: Epic, Sword & Sorcery, Fantasy, Science Fiction & Fantasy, Christianity, Fiction, Christian Fiction, Classics & Allegories, Teen & Young Adult, Religion & Spirituality, Christian Books & Bibles, Literature & Fiction
ISBN: 1481194623
Publisher: Castle Library Publishing
Published: 2012-12-04T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 21

“I had such a strange dream.” Jerin rested in one of ten beds lining the temporary medic room in the Meeting Hall. Alyra sat beside him on the edge of the straw mattress, a bowl of Marya’s herbal soup, made from the fruit of the white tree, heating her hands.

She tipped a spoonful to his bruised lips, urging him to drink down the healing concoction.

He swallowed. “That’s really good. Did the healer make this soup?”

His eyes darted nervously toward Lotari who busied himself with helping Marya make more bandages. Jerin’s splinted leg hung from a sling post attached to the foot of his bed. He’d also suffered a cracked rib and numerous bruises. The leg was broken when some kind of trollish beast, as he described, stepped on him. Issah and Marya worked together to set the broken bone.

“Yep, she’s a great cook.” Alyra held up another spoonful for him. “What was your dream?”

“I was walking around a dark cave and kept hearing someone call my name. The voice sounded like the Prince’s. If not for him coming to our aid, we all would have been dead.” His eyes took on that distant, lost appearance she’d seen several times since he’d returned.

She hadn’t seen any Prince, and wondered if he’d hit his head harder than they thought. What she did remember was how worried she’d been when Issah and Marya worked so diligently on him after he’d passed out. Issah remained at his bedside, quietly calling to him and whispering in his ear until the fever broke and the danger passed. Before Jerin regained full consciousness Issah left, needing to take care of other things, Marya explained.

His pale brows knit over his blue eyes. “I’m sorry, Pr—, I mean, Alyra. For all the stuff I said. And did.”

Her words clogged into a large, painful lump in her chest, so she offered more soup instead.

After several attempts to clear her throat, she managed, “So what happened? Where’d you go?”

“Well….” He scooted higher in the bed, wincing.

Alyra adjusted his pillows and when she tried to give him another spoonful, he took the bowl and began feeding himself.

Between sips, he continued, “I didn’t realize I’d even gotten off the path until I drank of the good water from the stream I was following. Then everything seemed to snap in place and I realized you weren’t with me.” He shrugged. “Probably just as well. You might not be speaking to me now if you’d heard all the stuff spewing out of my deranged mouth. Again, I apologize.”

“Can’t be much worse than... well, never mind. In the past, right?”

“Right.” He gave a nod, grinning. “Carah told me that if I got off the path, to remain heading east until I found it again. But then I came to a small town and found out that I could reach the White Road within a half-day’s journey.” He went on to explain that a group of men were traveling in the same direction, so he joined them.

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