Abaddon's Call

Forty

At the first strike, Graydon became aware of a Seven secret. It was one his father likely assumed his grandfather had taught him, but was also the sort Graydon's grandfather wouldn't have shared, thinking it trivial.

The pain that lanced through him reflected the strike delivered to Naena. Sudden unexplained pain had been near constant during his childhood, which was the only reason he didn't flinch at the strike or scream.

He turned toward the school, terror working its way in as he realized he needed to get her items, but he couldn't leave her alone with that pain. He met eyes with AfPan who indicated they had already collected her things.

Pan bore witness to Naena's discipline.

If it was first blood, her response would be long in coming. Theon's first blood had ripped apart witnesses. 

As they finished, Graydon moved forward, and several family members moved with him. AfPan came around his side. Trild was off the platform before they stepped onto the collapsed remains. With a sheet and motions they had practiced time and again, they created a stretcher and carried Naena to the room on her belly. They took her into the bathroom and laid her on the cold, tiled floor.

The first task was to strip her. Her clothing went in one bowl, items in the other. Graydon pulled Trathor's spelled pocket from Naena's pants. The item had been balled up and stuffed at the bottom of a pocket, though he wasn't sure why it had been so carelessly carried.

Graydon and AfPan went to work cleaning Naena's back and applying salve. Throughout the process, Naena made few sounds and barely moved, but Graydon saw the twitch of her fingers as they worked. He knew AfPan's presence was likely what kept her silent.

When it came to the bandaging, she sat up and braced herself with an arm on the bathtub. Graydon knelt in front of her, AfPan behind. Once she was bound, they helped her to bed. She didn't so much as protest.

AfPan motioned to the cleansing bowl, then took his leave.

As Graydon locked the door, he glanced into the cleansing bowl and spotted Trathor's pocket. He hesitated for a moment, simply staring at it.

Naena hadn't mentioned taking the pocket to class with her. The whispers Graydon had heard said Naena destroyed an heirloom as Kaulu stood watching. She used a spell that she destroyed even as Kaulu attempted to take it from her.

Heirlooms couldn't be altered or changed by magic.

But they could be teleported.

Graydon grabbed the pocket, reached in and pulled out a Kaulu switch which protested quite angrily under his fingers. Pain lanced up his fingers and through his wrist. He pushed his hand back into the bag, released the switch, and then set the pocket back into the cleansing bowl.

Any of the Seven could use the switch, but only Kaulu could hold it without it causing them pain.

Naena's intentions were something they could discuss later when she was alert and not quite so vulnerable. In the meantime, Graydon knew he needed to distract her from the pain. He hoped someone had the presence of mind to send something to ease her suffering.

He moved to Naena's shelf. His finger drifted down the titles and hesitated on theoretical coven magic. A page marker had been placed with a list of books and chapter references, even page numbers. The books came with two categorizations: the standard library indexing and something new.

He took the paper to the desk and made a copy, interested in the new categories. That would be something for him to look into while Naena spent time recovering.