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"We are looking, my god," Saval assured him. "We can see your eyes in Anver's body."
"Do you doubt me?!" we screamed, and the walls quaked with the force of it.
"Never," Saval promised.
"Then fix this! Train them. Teach them. Protect them. My priests matter more to me than anything else. My Chosen is here to make sure this does not happen again. Do not doubt me, because I may love all of you, but I will extract my price if I have to. This is my temple. You all serve me, andonlyme. I will not ask again."
"Oh, shit," Wraythe breathed, and I heard his steps rushing toward us.
Then Zeal left. He vanished from my body so fast that my head spun. My heart raced. My mind rolled in on itself, and I couldn't keep track of what was happening. My muscles turned to water, my ears roared with the pulse of my own blood, and my mouth went dry.
I felt myself falling, saw Saval step in, but a pair of large, strong hands grabbed me, scooping me up. My head lolled, my consciousness fading fast, and then I saw Wraythe. He had me. He was holding me, easing me down to the ground.
"Please tell me they're going to be ok?" I asked.
"They'll both live," Wraythe promised. "They're hurt, but Zeal did enough. Close your eyes, Anver. I got you."
"No," I begged. "You don't understand. He's pissed. He's grieving. He loves us all, even when we're fucked up, and he let me see. He..." I paused to swallow, but it was harder than I expected, my throat raw from Zeal's voice.
"Take him to your place," Saval said. "Jamik, get Nari. Ela, can you carry Talin?"
"I can walk," Talin croaked.
"Let me fuckinghelp you," Ela told him.
"I'm sending Priests of Action there. Harlin? Hold that boy. Someone get me a stretcher for the other. And put a cloth over him. He deserves at least a little respect. Our god demands it." She pressed her hand to my arm. "Close your eyes, Anver. Carrying a god isn't an easy thing."
It was the last push I needed. My lids slipped closed, and my body gave in. Wraythe had me. He'd take care of me.
Chapter 55
Eladehl
Jamik carried Nari, Wraythe carried Anver, so I wrapped my arm around Talin's waist and all but carried him as he staggered along beside me. The lines of lace across his neck were still there, but fading. I'd seen the same thing on Nari when Zeal went down on her, but these weren't vanishing as fast. I also wasn't about to say anything.
Amerlee met up with us as soon as we made it through the crowd. Shalsa and Irila found us halfway home. Irila moved to Talin's other side, helping me support him. The other two women hurried ahead, opening the door when we reached our suite. We'd barely made it inside when a third woman, Jola, showed up as well.
The three priestesses headed to the kitchen. I left Talin with Irila in the living room, and then followed Jamik and Wraythe into the bedroom. Anver was still out cold, but Wraythe laid him gently on the bed. Nari, however, whimpered as Jamik lowered her down.
"Wraythe," I said as I made my way to the bathroom, "Get Nari naked. The priest will need to see her wounds."
"Sheisnaked," Jamik snapped.
"He means the blanket," Wraythe assured him. "It's ok. I'll handle it. Ela?"
"Talin's covered in blood," I explained as I turned on the hot water in the shower. "I got him. You watch those two."
"Anver's out," Jamik told me. "Completely unconscious."
"That seems to be normal," I assured him as I came back out of the bathroom. "Both Nari and Talin passed out the first time. The longer they carry him, the longer they sleep."
"No, it’s the more he does," Nari said, her voice weak as if it hurt to talk. "When he rides our bodies, he can still do things, but we can't. It drains us. As a kid, I picked up Ciella with one arm. Zeal could do that, but I couldn't, so it wore me out. Talin broke down a door, but he could, so it didn't hit him as hard."
"And Anver just healed Talin," Wraythe said, smoothing back the man's hair before moving around the bed. "Jamik, go wait for the healer. Make sure he's safe to see them."
Jamik looked between the two of us, and then seemed to accept that we could handle this. He glanced at Nari one last time, touched her hand, and then walked out of the room. That was when Wraythe began to unwind the blanket from around her. I made my way over to pull the bedding out from under her.
"Lift?" I asked Wraythe.
