Eyes of Ember (Imdalind Series #2)(5)

My eyes opened wide in surprise at his power filling me so aggressively. If the way Ilyan’s magic burned into my body now was any indication as to how powerful he was, I was beginning to understand why he was revered.

Moments after his hands had touched my skin, my back relaxed and straightened. Some of the bone pain had also left, and I was feeling blissfully relaxed.

“Are you alright?” he asked, his voice strained.

“I think so,” I said. I shifted a bit, but decided against any larger movements as my body protested again.

“What happened, Joclyn?” Ilyan asked, “Do you remember anything?”

“Not really. I remember my head swelling, and then I was falling, and someone was laughing...” I looked to Ilyan, concerned I sounded like a mad man. He moved aside the thick braid he had obviously placed in my hair and pushed his hand against my neck. My nerves jumped a bit in confusion about what had happened.

“Someone was laughing? Do you know who?”

“No,” I whispered.

Ilyan’s hand still rested against my neck, his magic reaching into every part of me. It was warm and comforting. And though it was not the magic I wished for, it still helped.

“Are you going to heal me, Ilyan?”

“I’ve been trying, Siln?. I am not sure I can.” My eyes grew wide and my heart raced. His magic surged again and my nerves calmed.

“Trying?” I repeated, my eyes falling to the dark spot on the carpet. “What happened, Ilyan?”

Ilyan’s line of sight traced mine, and I saw him stiffen at the large dark splotch. “You fell, and then you began to bleed a dark fluid. It wasn’t blood, but it was foul. Your whole body was shaking. I thought...” He lowered his head, hiding his glistening eyes. “I thought I had lost you.”

“I was bleeding?” I asked, confused.

“It’s the only way I know how to explain it. Something formed on your skin. It poured out of your eyes and ears.” Ilyan looked away and closed his eyes. I could feel his stress rolling off of his body in waves. It added to my fear and I grabbed his wrist, needing some form of connection.

“It’s okay, Joclyn. You’re going to be okay.” His voice was strong, but I could hear the lie. He didn’t really know if I would be alright, and it scared me.

“I guess you never should have forced me to get out of bed,” I joked, trying to lighten the mood. Ilyan’s head snapped up to look deep into me, the intensity of his gaze like a pressure against my soul.

“I guess not,” he said, his hand moving to trace the lines of the braid.

“I heard what you said to Ovailia,” I said. Ilyan’s body stiffened as if I had caught him saying something he shouldn’t. “About how my magic isn’t fighting you anymore,” I clarified. He relaxed a bit, surging his powerful tendrils through me again.

“You are the only one I have ever met who actively fights me, or is strong enough to do so.”

“What?” I let my question trail away, not knowing what to ask, but needing clarification.

“My magic is stronger than most, Joclyn. Most of the time it floods into another person and at times I have trouble controlling my own strength. But you have always fought me. You are as powerful as I am it seems.”

My eyes opened wide as I tried to process what he had said. I wasn’t sure if he was kidding or not, his tone could go either way. But regardless of whether I was normally powerful or not, I still couldn’t reach my magic right now.

“I tried... I tried to use my magic. But it didn’t respond.” Ilyan’s eyes grew wide and my heart thumped again in fear. “What’s happening to me, Ilyan?”

“I don’t know,” he said. “But, I have ideas.”

“What?”

“Do you remember at the party?” he asked, and my body stiffened automatically. “When Ryland sealed himself to you, completing the Z?lství?”

I didn’t respond. I only stared at him, waiting for him to continue.

“When magic is sealed together it is a permanent union. If Edmund has made Ryland break the connection between the two of you, your magic would be separated from half of itself. When one of our kind who has mated dies, they take half of their partner’s magic but leave half of their own behind. But, if Ryland has broken that connection…” Ilyan paused and dragged his hand heavily through his hair, his eyes darting away from me.

“He’s broken…” My voice caught as the air sucked itself out of my lungs. The Ryland I knew was gone, but breaking our bond would mean there was no hope of getting him back. The thought terrified me.

“So what makes you think that this could be caused by a broken bond?”

Ilyan looked away, making me nervous about what he was about to say.

“Ilyan?”

“I have seen it once before, when my Mother died. With half of her own magic gone, and none of my Father’s to replace it, her body began to shut down. It would be akin to what happens to humans when an organ in their body does not work. They fade and suffer until they die.”

“So I am dying,” I cut him off.

“I believe so.”

“And you can’t save me this time?” Panic clenched my stomach, spreading pain deep into my legs. I ignored it. “Ilyan?”