Page 92 of In Between Darkness
“What do you mean she’s in trouble?” The wind drowns out my voice as Craize picks up the pace, going faster than he’s ever ridden with me.
I squeeze my thighs tight as if my life depends on it and swallow back the saliva pooling in my throat. The wind massagesmy face with daggers and thrashes my hair in every direction. Craize is plummeting now, and I can see Nala below. She is lying in an awkward position, unmoving, the white ice slowly turning red beneath her body. A sudden wave of nausea attacks me with the wind, and my body stiffens in shock. Kareem is sitting idly beside her with his head down.
“What’s happened?”
“It seems your friend has fallen from Kareem,”Craize explains as he sets down close to the cliff’s edge. The rocks are uneven and rough. I slide down Craize’s wing and gingerly step over the dangerous terrain, the ice threatening to trip me up on my way to her.
“Nala!” I cry as I rush to her side. Her black hair is sticky with blood, and her breath is shaky.
“Asha…” her weak voice fights through her lips. “I-I fell off Kareem,” she says between breaths as her eyes fill up with tears.
“I know…” I reply, my heart breaking with every word.
Tears threaten to stream down my face, but my eyelids bully them away. I have to be strong. I study her body for a moment, trying to locate the source of the bleeding. There is a deep gash on the left side of her head, and her shin bone is protruding out of her ankle. She struggles to move the rest of her body; there is most likely damage to her spine. She is pale and shivering on the ice. This is not good; I need to get her to the healing quarters soon, otherwise, she will not make it. I beat myself up trying to think of ways to move her without creating more damage to her body. I could probably hoist her up, but there is no way I would be able to get her onto Craize’s back; he is far too tall, and I am not that strong. And even if I could, Craize would not be able to get her there in time, based on the rate of the blood oozing out of her…she has minutes.
“I’m gonna get you out of here,” I reassure her as I try to lift her up into my arms, my elbows buckle with her weight, and shecries out to me. I try to dig my toes into the ground to steady my stance, but the ice shifts beneath my feet and I’m forced to my knees. There is no way I can move her, not on this ice.
“I’m sorry, Asha…for earlier,” she confesses, and I break. My eyelids can no longer prevent the tears from plummeting down my face. I watch as they fall and freeze when they hit the ice.
“No… I’m sorry,” I pull her closer to me. “You were right. I haven’t been honest with you,” I admit between sobs. “But I promise I’m going to tell you everything when we get you out of here.”
“It’s no use, Asha…my leg is shot and you’re not strong enough to carry me.” Nala’s words are muffled by the wind, and her lips are turning blue; her eyes flutter closed.
“You can’t give up now, Nala,” I plea with her and wrap my jumper tightly around her thigh like a tourniquet. She winces with the pressure, but at least she is alive. This should give us some more time. Maybe I can portal her out of here.
‘No child…it’s too risky, the school is too busy at this time.’Oriah interrupts my thoughts.
“I have no other choice…I am not going to let her die!” I shout back in frustration. Nala’s brows furrow as she looks up at me, confused, probably wondering who I am talking to.
‘You have the power to make this right.’Her voice echoes around my head, tormenting my brain.
“I don’t know the first thing about healing.” My frustration emanates from each word as I grit my teeth.
‘It’s in your blood, child,’Oriah states.
“What if I can’t do it and then Nala dies?” My tears stream as I confront my thoughts. “I can’t risk it; we need to get her to the professionals,” I shout into the atmosphere, hoping Oriah will understand my desperation.
‘You have no choice.’Oriah’s voice is stern and unchanging.‘A whole race is depending on you. Don’t doom them all over one human.’
Oriah’s words cut deep. She is right, but my best friend is dying, and I don’t know how to save her. The heavens open and the rain begins to fall, washing away the bloodstains on the ice and drenching my hair and body. The wind is cold against my wet skin, and my body shivers violently. Craize and Kareem stretch their wings out over us for shelter. Nala’s face is getting paler by the second. If I’m going to do this, I need to do it now. I have watched the healers before. I overlap my hands in the centre of her chest and try to channel the energy from Shirin. I struggle to see a clear picture through the water welling in my eyes. Nala’s breaths are slow, and her chest barely lifts with each inhale. I force my eyes shut and focus on the blood in her body, how it flows through each tangled blood vessel and breathes life into her cells. I try to channel my warmth into her chest like a conduit, and I can feel heat radiating through her. Is it working? She mumbles something I cannot understand, and her head falls to the side. I can no longer see the steam from her breath exiting her mouth. Her body relaxes as the life leaves her small frame.
She’s dead.
I wail uncontrollably and press her cold body next to mine.
“THIS IS YOUR FAULT!” I scream at Oriah. “IF YOU HAD LET ME PORTAL HER, SHE COULD STILL BE ALIVE RIGHT NOW.”
My voice cracks with hurt under the shelter of Kareem and Craize.
‘I am the reason the Starkind are safe from harm,’she defends without remorse.
“SOMEBODY HELP!” I scream over and over again. But my pleas are met only by the lonely wind.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Tears roll relentlessly down my face as I hold Nala’s head in my lap, rocking uncontrollably. Her face now has a blueish tint, and her eyes stare lifelessly up at me. I think of Charlie. What am I going to tell him? I cry harder.
“Come on, young one… She’s gone.” Craize interrupts my sobs, but leaving her is the last thing I want to do.
