The Guardian Crusade

                                           Volume III

                                                              Chapter Eight

Rayne knocked on the door to Nalia’s room and waited for a servant to answer but she wasn’t too surprised when Bussa answered the door.  She had come to Kalica after meeting with Nick and Alex at the Healing Springs where Mela was, now Alex and Nick were making plans for the Tokia Refugee’s.  Not wanting to stick around and listen to all the things the Dwarves were doing to this place she decided to go see her friend, someone she hadn’t spent much time with since she had returned. 

“Is she awake?” Rayne asked.

“Yes she is.” Bussa replied with a smile and let her in.  When Rayne looked over at Nalia’s bed she frowned for a second when she saw her sitting up against some pillows, the blankets draped across her and the white silk bandage across her eyes.

“Who is it Bussa?” Nalia asked as she looked in their direction.

“It is me.” Rayne replied as she stepped towards the bed.

“Rayne.” Nalia smiled.  “Still good to hear your voice, even though I can not see how alive you are.”

“I am sorry I have not been by much…”

It is alright things are very busy.” Nalia replied.  “I just wish I could do something besides sit here.”

“You need your rest.” Rayne told her as she sat down beside her on the bed.

“You sound like Nick.” Nalia teased with a sigh.  “How is he doing?” She asked. “Honestly.”

“He is doing well under the circumstances, he seems to be focused on figuring out what is going on with Rossi and getting you better.” Rayne told her.

“Sounds better than when he is with me.” Nalia said sadly.

“What do you mean?” She asked.

“Besides the fact that he can not look at me without crying?” Nalia replied.

“He is very worried for you.” She told her.

“I know” Nalia said with a sigh.  “He has not been around much, at least when I am awake and I know he has much to do with dealing with Rossi and Tokia, the people there need him but I need him too.  Even when he is here I miss him.”

“Miss him?” Rayne replied a little puzzled.

“I miss waking up and seeing him, I miss turning a corner and seeing him, I miss opening my eyes after a kiss and seeing him.” Nalia told her as she looked down.  “I miss his silly smile when he made a joke that he knew I would not understand and his eyes, oh Rayne how I miss them.”

“Nali…” Rayne spoke sadly.

“The first time I saw him was when they were bringing me into the Springs from Kalica, I was coming in and out of it and I looked up and saw him, saw his eyes looking at me with concern and worry but he did not know me.” Nalia told her.  “I saw the strongest bluest eyes I had ever seen looking back at me and they told me he was something special, something amazing…” She stopped talking and looked towards Rayne.  “And I miss them so much because I need them to tell me it’s going to be ok.”  Rayne’s face fell in sadness as her friend started to cry, she pulled Nalia into her arms and held her, telling her words she knew were empty.

“It is going to be ok Nalia.”

“Can I ask you a question?” Nalia said as she pulled away from her friend.

“Of course.” Rayne replied wondering what she wanted to know.

“Do you think Nick and I have what you and Alex have?” Her friend asked and it kind of took Rayne by surprised.

“What makes you ask that?” Rayne wondered.

“I do not know.” Nalia sighed.  “Perhaps it is just because of everything that has happened, on top of the fact he and I have been fighting since Ashmourn…”

“Please tell me you do not blame him as well.” Rayne quickly spoke up.

“No, no.” Nalia replied shaking his head.  “well he does think that but it is not true, I just did not agree with the way he acted towards Alex, he was so lost without you Rayne and he needed time but Nick was determined to keep going.”  Nalia picked at the blanket she held in her hand.  “I know the girls on Earth are very different than us and he was hurt by them a lot, Alex too but he has been here a while now and every time someone mentions marriage he either turns it into some big joke or ignores the question completely.  Maybe he does not love me like I love him and feels he needs to be here with me because we are Guardians.”

“Nalia you know that is not true.” Rayne said sadly.

Then Nalia’s attitude changed and she growled in frustration as she put her head in her hands. “I know, he could not have saved me from Uldice if he did not love me.  The spell he used, I have never heard nor seen it before, there were hundreds of skeletons, at least I think they were skeletons, all I could hear were bones breaking and clacking together and Rossi’s men were screaming in terror about them.”

“There is much we do not know about Warlocks; he is the only one who has been able to withstand the isolation.” Rayne said.

“When I was in the room I heard them bring him in, I did not know it was him at first, and it took him a bit to come too.  When he saw me, saw what they had done to me…” Nalia paused remembering how angry Nick was, the scream he let out as his anger and rage released from him.  “Something happened, I do not know what but I could feel this wave of hate and emptiness maybe even death flow past me like a river and I know it was going all to him.”

“Like when he would drain those demons in Ashmourn?” Rayne asked.

“Yes, like that but this wasn’t coming from demons, what ever it was, was coming from the mountain itself and he was pulling it all in.” Nalia told her as the two sat talking.  “His scream was filled with nothing but rage.  I was terrified something had happened to him but then he picked me up told me he was getting me out and the last thing I remember was the sound of the door breaking from the hinges.”

“We found you two outside, I had a Snow Hawk scouting, Nick saw it and flagged it down, and he looked like death worn over when we got to you and him.  I am not sure how long you guys were out there but he gave you his coat and he was almost blue when we arrived, shaking like a leaf on a Winsk tree.”  Rayne told her.  “Alex told me that Nick has been very worried about you, worried about your future.  I know he loves you as much as Alex loves me but Nick and Alex are two different people although they have been hurt the same way.”

“I know” Nalia sighed.  “As I said he could not have done what he did at Uldice if he did not, I just worry he will not see me like he use too, I am not a strong Warrior anymore.”

“Yes you are.” Rayne told her as she took her friends hand.  “You are the strongest Warrior, you are a Guardian Nalia it can not be taken away from you, and we will figure something out, we will find a way.”  A small smile broke from Nalia’s lips but the sound of the door flying open and Nick storming into the room caused it to retreat. 

“Oh, hi.” Nick said when he looked up and saw Rayne sitting on the bed with Nalia.

“Is everything alright Nick?” Nalia asked.

“Yeah, it’s fine.” He replied as he walked over to his desk.  Rayne looked at her friend and saw the reaction on her face.

            “I will go now; I need to see Alex about dinner.” Rayne said with a smile as she lightly squeezed Nalia’s hands.

“He’s still in Winnol.” Nick spoke up and Rayne looked at him.

“Alright” She replied as she stood up.  “Get some rest.” She told Nalia before she left.

Nalia sat on the bed under the blankets listening to the noise being made.  She could tell there were papers being tussled around and they were coming from the direction of their desk.  Slowly she slipped out from under the blankets and carefully put her feet down on the floor.  Getting her bearings she started to make her way towards the desk, using the bed and its post as a guide.

“Nalia what are you doing?” Nick asked as she shuffled her way across the room trying to remember where the table that tripped her last time was.

“Coming to see you.” She replied as she heard the soft squeak of his chair being pushed back.

“Than you could have asked and I would have come over.” Nick said as she felt him beside her.  Then his hand rested on the small of her back and he began to turn her around.

“Is everything alright?” She asked as he walked her back over to the bed.

“Yeah everything’s fine; you just get back in bed and get some rest.” Nick told her.

“No” She replied as she stopped moving and put out her arm against his chest.

“Nalia.” Nick sighed.

“Tell me what has you so upset, why did you come storming in like you did?” She asked as she looked in his direction.

“You don’t need to worry about it right now.” Nick replied as he tried to get her back into the bed.

“Damn it Nickolas!” Nalia shouted and pushed him away.  She couldn’t tell what expression was on his face but she knew shock was in there somewhere.  When she turned away from him she reached out, her hand grabbed the bed post and she began to walk over to her dresser.  Putting on her robe she tried to picture the room and where she wanted to go next.  Slowly she made her way towards the doors that led to the upper floor of her Mothers meeting chambers.

“Nali, where are you going?” She heard Nick say as she heard his footsteps coming towards her.

“I am going to see someone who will talk to me.” She replied as he took her arm and she quickly pulled it away.  “You want to treat me like a child fine but I am still a Guardian and…”

“Fine you want to know what’s going on, Mela is dying.” Nick snapped at her.  That stopped Nalia dead in her tracks and she turned around.

“Dying?” Nalia replied shocked and confused.

“There was a Tokia ship that ran ashore to the North West, I went with your Mom to check it out and the boat was filled with people running from Rossi, including Mela and Barco.  She was in really bad shape when we got there and I sent her to the Healing Springs, the Priests there said she hasn’t got much time left and…” Nick stopped and she wasn’t sure what he was doing.  He made no noise but she continued to walk in the direction his voice came from. “…and I…”

“Nick?” Nalia said as her hand felt his arm and she rested it there.

“And I don’t know if I can trust her.” Nick finally spoke up.  “What if she is telling the truth and Rossi did that to her because of me.”

“You?” She replied a little confused.

“I asked Mela what had happened, she told me that when Rossi found out I got you out of Uldice he blamed her and he started hitting her and when she woke up she was on the ship with Barco.” Nick told her.  “And even if she was lying why would he do that to his own wife just to get to me?”

“I do not know what is going through Rossi’s head.” Nalia replied quietly.  It was a question she had asked others and herself many times since Nick got her out of Uldice.  Why was Rossi acting the way he was.  “What does your heart say?”

Nick scoffed and sighed.  “My heart says she’s not lying and I should be there with her right now but it’s been wrong before so can I really trust it.”

Nalia stood there in the silence, it was something she was trying to get use too but then she heard the quiet whimpers of the man beside her.  A frown broke from her face as she gently and lovingly squeezed his arm.

“Nick?” She spoke and waited for an answer but the only answer she got was him pulling her into his arms.  Not saying anything more she slipped her hands around his back, rested her head on his shoulder and let him cry as they stood in their room.

“I feel like were back in the cave at Ashmourn, being pulled in all kinds of directions and I don’t know where to go.” He told her through his tears.  “They were one of the reasons I stayed, I wanted a second chance at having parents who cared about me but even here that is falling apart.  They lie to me, deceit me and play with my emotions.”

“Go see her.” Nalia said as she pulled away from him.  “Go and talk to her, be with her, even if it is a trick, she is still dying and…”

Nick interrupted her.  “Will you come with me?” He asked.

“Of course.” Nalia replied with a light smile.  Even without her eye sight Nalia could see there was nothing she could do but that, go with him, be with him and stand by him.