Exton

I glide into the room in Ob's wake. I had promised Pandora to help him if I could, but I know this will be done by him as much as the sword. Ob takes off his shirt and lays it on a chair. The scar on his chest glows brighter, taking on the shape of a scimitar. He stretches out his arm, palm up, and begins to sing. The melody warbles, echoing in the small room. Once the blade solidifies in his hand, Ob raises it, clasped two-handed, above his head.

My voice is soft, so as not to disturb Ob's magic.

"Josephito is The Minstrel. Only The Minstrel of our People can wield Allah's Light. His song calls the Power, whether to heal or harm. Tonight, he calls forth Healing. The words he is singing are Arabic, a gift from the sword itself. When they are merged, his eyes will shine as white as the blade."

I spare a glance for my cousin. "At that point, he will see as the blade sees. Once he is focused on the damage, he will push the blade into the wound. It will hurt, Raina. That cannot be helped. There will also be a deep burning as it breaks down the new scar tissue and forces it to regenerate healthy flesh."

She nods, sleep glazed eyes watching as Ob turns. His eyes are paler than their normal ice blue, glowing softly. His voice murmurs the song over and over as he kneels at her side. The song doesn't so much still as flow into a question.

"Healing I bring. Do you accept the pain, to walk whole again?"

Raina nods slowly, closing her eyes and leaning back against Nick. Ob hums the music, swaying as he draws the blade's edge along her wound. The music changes and he tips the sword on its point, pushing it in. Raina jerks, uttering an involuntary scream. I hold her ankle to keep her from jerking again.

"The blade will seem to disappear, to go completely through or into her leg. Nicholas, hold her still, while I hold her leg. She will jerk even with medication."

Ob goes still, voice muttering the song over and over. The blade seems to melt into her flesh, merging with her. His eyes flick back and forth, a fast movement following nothing that we can see.

"His sight is now the sword's. They are seeking the twisting flesh, melting it away." Raina bucks under our hands, I let Ob flood my mind with what he sees. "The muscle is damaged, but it is not too late. The withered flesh is melting, smoothing, reshaping. The flesh is becoming firmer, filling in where it would have been sunken. The bone itself is fine, bruised, but nothing broken."

I hear Raina scream, but it is distant. "The blood is flowing again, moving into regrown veins and flesh. He knows this is hurting her, but to stop now means no blood to the muscle itself."

His song changes, becoming more soothing. Raina's tension seems to ease, letting her relax back into Nick's arms. After a few more moments, Ob begins to rise, pulling the sword from her leg. Impossibly, the blade parts from her flesh leaving, not an open wound, but new pink skin.

Ob holds the blade out over Raina's limp body and bows, singing slowly as the blood on the blade turns into ruby droplets. The blade flares, blinding anyone with their eyes open. Gone is the blood that clung to its surface, replaced by the silver of new steel. Ob points the blade upwards, yodeling the last note of the song. At its end he turns the blade and thrusts it deep into his own chest.

He drops to his knees and I let go of Raina's leg. He shakes his head when I offer a hand, rising slowly on his own. His voice is rough, the husky sound of gravel on sandpaper, when he talks to Rowan. "She should sleep for an hour or so, she still has pockets of infection that were hidden in the twists of flesh. Your antibiotics should be able to take care of it now."