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The princess removed her talisman and poured the boiling liquid over her patient's injuries. White bubbles frothed up in the open cuts, though not to the extent she had expected. She had assumed the scout's blood would be so full of wicked contagions that it would continue to lather until her waterskin ran empty. Instead, the fluid quickly cleared and began to stream from his wounds in red-tinged ru
The scout's eyes popped open. "Bri… an… na!" he croaked. The effort of speaking drained even more color from his face. "Giants!"
Noticing that his gaze was fixed over his shoulder, Bria
Bria
Given the power of the shaman's magic, the princess was not entirely sure that was true. But if Goboka did find a way past the gate, Bria
Tavis grabbed her head and pulled her car close to his mouth. "No. Can't… trust… giants!"
"Be quiet," the princess said gently. "You're not strong enough to talk."
Bria
Bria
By way of comforting Tavis, Bria
The scout hardly seemed to notice the arm. "Just make me strong enough… to protect you." Then, so quietly that even the princess could barely hear him, he gasped, "In case you're wrong… about Noote."
Bria
"We'll worry about that later." Bria
"But-"
The scout's objection changed to a hiss of pain as Bria
The princess had to concentrate to keep her attention focused on the task at hand. Her thoughts kept wandering back to what had happened when she purified Tavis's wounds. The lack of froth suggested the scout was exactly what she had originally believed: a rather naive, self-sacrificing firbolg incapable of treachery. Yet, that could not be so. Even if she dismissed his accusations against her father, she had seen with her own eyes that Tavis was a thief. The two incidents were contradictory, and she did not understand how she could have witnessed them both.
Bria
The princess placed her hands on both sides of the black circle and pushed down, steadily increasing the pressure. Despite Tavis's howl of pain, she was pleased by what she felt. The sternum had not moved and probably was not cracked. Next, the princess grabbed the dome of swollen flesh and worked it back and forth between her fingers, drawing even louder cries from the scout. The lump felt soft and watery, with no sign of anything solid inside.
"If you're… trying to kill me, just slit my throat," the scout growled. "It'd hurt less."
"Don't be such a coward," Bria
With that, the princess touched Hiatea's talisman and cast her last healing spell. The spear's silver flames flickered to life, sending a wave of searing heat deep into the scout's abdomen. He gasped in pain, his eyes rolling back in their sockets as a thin line of yellow fire shot from the slash. The flames continued to burn for a moment then, begi
Once the spell was finished, Tavis's eyes rolled back into their normal positions. He was even more pale than before Bria
"Now will you listen to me?" he asked.
"If that will make you feel better," Bria
Bria
"No!" Rog's voice shook the entire platform. "Wait!"
Bria
"First fix Greta." The hill giant locked a threatening glare on the princess.
Bria
"Liar!" Rog stooped over and pressed a huge finger to Tavis's bruised chest, drawing a groan of pain from the scout. "Him not die from little bruise. You say that!"
"Still, this spell is for him," Bria
"No, use it on Rog's wolf," Tavis insisted. He took her amulet off his chest and returned it to her, at the same time pulling his lips to Bria
"I doubt Hiatea will grant her magic on behalf of a dire wolf," Bria
"Why not? She's the goddess of the hunt as well as the family," he pointed out. "And dire wolves are nothing, if not hunters."
"But-"
"Save Greta!" Rog insisted. "Rog's other wolves all dead. You not tell him about ogres!"
"There wasn't time." Bria
As the princess spoke, Morten stepped to her side, axe in hand. Bria
Rog seemed to know this better than the princess. He dropped to his hands and knees, in the process brushing Morten aside and nearly knocking him from the platform.
"Not matter," Rog growled. The hill giant, eyes narrowed, hovered over Bria