Fic: Heart and Soul 4/10

[amedia]

Title: Heart and Soul 4/10
Author: Amedia
Summary: An attack on Glitch draws Cain, Raw, and the members of the royal household into a mystery with magical overtones.
Rating: PG for implied violence and mild slash.
Warning: Slash. Cain/Glitch.
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by Imagiquest Entertainment. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Note: I need to give a shout-out to my very hard-working beta reader, who commented on three drafts with precision and insight.
Also posted here on glitch_wyatt and here on tin_and_straw.

Part One may be found here.
Part Two may be found here.
Part Three may be found here.



Cain knew when his opinion of Glitch had gone from disdain to respect. He didn't know when it had gone from respect to attraction, but it was undeniable, and, he had thought, known only to himself. He had no idea whether Glitch felt the same way and no interest in embarrassing himself to find out.

It was all he could do to listen calmly to the others discussing the situation.

"It seems obvious that Cain was somehow possessed during the attack," said the Queen.

Azkadellia looked thoughtful. "It was more than that," she said. "I don't think Cain was there at all. It was someone else entirely." She gave a rueful chuckle. "Believe me, if anyone knows what it's like to be possessed, it's me."

"Az is right," said the Royal Tutor. "This is evil magic indeed. I've read of such a spell in my studies of ancient magic, a spell to drive out one's soul and replace it with that of another."

"Is it like what I—the Witch used to do to kill people? Like Lonot?" Az asked hesitantly.

"Not exactly," said the Tutor. "The Witch would suck out the life energy from a person's body, leaving it completely drained. Once the body was dead, the person's soul would leave as if the body had died normally."

"Then I—she—wasn't actually feeding on their souls?"

The Tutor shook his head. "No," he said.

She sighed with relief. "I used to have terrible nightmares about that. I didn't understand what she was doing, and I was afraid those poor people were trapped forever. But I couldn't stop her."

"Toto, how come my soul didn't leave when she killed me?" DG asked. "The Witch, I mean," she added, with a hasty glance toward Azkadellia.

"I believe she made the attempt too soon, when she was still struggling to control your sister. Azkadellia wouldn't let her drain you completely; your mother was able to restore your life energy before your soul would have departed." He turned to Azkadellia and smiled at her. "It took great power, and great love, to resist the Witch like that," he said.

"I didn't resist her much after that," she confessed.

"You couldn't. Keeping her from completely draining DG had exhausted your resources. By the time you recovered, she had taken over." Azkadellia looked relieved. The Tutor continued, "What the Witch did was exactly the opposite of what happened here. Cain's life energy appears intact, but somehow his soul was forced out. Very few have heard of such a spell, and fewer still know how to perform it."

"And of those few," said the Queen, "which of them would want to hurt Ambrose? And why?"

Part Five

Comments

[koslorollo.livejournal.com]

Excellent comparison between this soul-excusing spell and what the Sorceress did. At least Azkadellia received a little comfort from that.

This is very entertaining - and so well written!

*reads on*

[amedia.livejournal.com]

Excellent comparison between this soul-excusing spell and what the Sorceress did.

Thank you - I was hoping it wouldn't be too much of a tangent, but I really wanted to draw the comparison. I appreciate your kind words!