"Ow." Miraria held her head in her hands, praying desperately that the orb would not leave her shoulder all together and explode. She kept her eyes shut tight, trying to ignore the two dwarves seated on the bridge of her nose, hammering away at her forehead with their war hammers. She moaned quietly and pulled the pillow over her face, momentarily debating if it wouldn�t just be easier to let the pillow smoother her to death than try and cope with this immense, pounding, constant, unrelenting pain.
Valinra felt trapped beneath Reorx�s hammer. I�m really very sorry. The violet dragoness hung her head and prayed for forgiveness, both from her goddess and her mistress.
Miraria managed a smile, but it was hidden by the pillow still laying across her face. "It�s okay Valinra. It was mostly my fault."
Miraria had never been very good in school. She knew that there was some magical force that kept her feet on the ground, and she knew dragons, with their own magic, could defy this force and therefore fly. It seemed to magical force enjoyed Miraria�s company to much to let her go, even with the aid of Valinra�s magic. The dragon went up, the unprepared cleric went down...hard.
Are you sure you don�t want to see the healer? Valinra, who was growing quite large, put her front feet on Miraria�s bed and removed the pillow.
Mish, believing in his little iridescent blue mind that the sun could cure all ailments, flew to the curtains and pulled on the cord, bathing the room in sunlight. The blue, realizing that it was much nicer outside than even he had imagined, took off after a few of his friends.
"NO!" The violet-rider blinked repeatedly and shielded her eyes from the obnoxious sun that dared shine brightly through the window onto her face. She calmed down, realizing that her reaction to the Cy healer might have been a little extreme, but she wouldn�t subject herself to that treatment if it was the only available health care...which it was. Miraria was shocked and horrified that the healers here only used herbs and potions to cure injuries, no god-given power at all. She was shocked when the healer had simply put his hands on her, feeling around like a blind man for her malady. She�d leapt from the table in righteous anger and called the man lower than a fifth age mystic before storming off. It wasn�t until she, with her rapidly deteriorating ability to think, reached her room that Valinra informed her that the healer had no idea was a fifth age mystic was.
Would you like me to heal you? The dragon seemed very excited about this prospect.
"You?" Miraria tried not to sound insulting. The violet dragon, with her superior psychic ability, was much better at contacting Mishakal, but whether or not the goddess could use the dragon as a vessel of her power was debatable.
She�s a goddess, Miraria. Valinra�s feelings were mildly hurt by Miraria�s implied doubt. She can use any living creature to her glory. Besides, she told you how impressed she was with me last time we prayed.
"I didn�t mean to hurt your feelings dearheart, but... It takes years of study and devotion to achieve the ability to channel Mishakal�s healing light." Miraria put one hand on her lifemate�s head and the other over her own eyes. The constant pressure was beginning to make it difficult to reason.
The dragon raised her head proudly, determined to win this chance to help her rider. I have been a cleric-in-training since the moment I hatched. I�ve known about the presence of Mishakal for my entire life. Valinra nudged Miraria with her nose, unknowing causes ripples of pain to crash against the inside of her skull.
Whether Valinra�s argument made a difference, Miraria got divine suggestion or the pain just became too unbearable is entirely debatable, but either way, the cleric gave Valinra her permission to try.
Valinra beamed for all of about thirty seconds before a serious air came over her and she began her own prayers. Mishakal, Holy Healer. Come, see your servant unjustly suffering. See her pain, Blue Lady, and help her. Grant me the power to relieve my mistress� headache, so we may continue your work...
Miraria opened one eye to see her lifemate with an almost holy aura around her. It was not like Miraria�s aura, a bright, piercing blue, more of a gentle violet, an extension of the hue of her hide. Miraria was amazed, and thankful. She could feel the pressure on her nose start to disintegrate. The dwarves were being sent out to lunch. Miraria was just beginning to believe that her dragon could really pull this trick off.
<Mishakal, Holy Healer. Hear your servants....woah! With that last �hear your servants� the ancient bed that Miraria had been resting in gave it�s last creak and collapsed, sending purple dragon down onto unprepared cleric.
The dirt that had been trapped under the bed since the dawn of time was forced into the air, clogging throats and making noses itch. The sunlight sparkled off the liberated dust as it sparkled out the window and coated the ground below. Miraria and Valinra, once they got their limbs sorted out, ran coughing for the door, slamming it shut behind them.
Collapsing in the hallway, they both took some deep thankful breaths, and wiped their noses and eyes. Miraria could feel the presence of grim all through her hair and could see the dust staining her robes. She could taste the musty lining that now coated her throat and made her gag. The only place you could see her skin was along the two tear-line from her watering eyes. She was miserable, but she would live. She turned to her lifemate to make sure the dragon was alright.
The cleric collapsed again, wiping her eyes, and laughing. Before her sat a completely miserable and sulking grey dragon.
Miraria held her stomach as she desperately tried to control her hysterics. Mish�s decision to see what all the excitement was about by entering through the dust rimmed window caused a minor disturbance and valiant rescue by the already musty cleric. The iridescent blue let both rider and dragon know exactly what he thought of this whole situation before he headed towards the lake.
Miraria took one look at her lifemate and collapsed into laughter again.
Valinra pouted and held her head high. Got rid of your headache didn�t I?
Valinra keeps growing...
Miraria impressed Mish from Cy Dragonstake.
Miraria impressed Valinra from Cy Dragonstake.
Background from Morion Designs.
