Elva looked at Lyta, amused at her reaction at everything, from finding out that Ysaryn was an elf, to the wide-eyed shock on her face when Ysaryn pointed out that she was a Wyvern. It was always entertaining to see how other people reacted to an encounter with the kind of otherworldliness that had now become everyday business for Kire and her family. She waited for the three to disappear, then turned her attention back to Lyta. “[i]A Wyvern, yes, as the lady pointed out,[/i]” she said, pulling up a chair to sit by the bed, though not too close, not wanting Lyta to feel crowded. “[i]But if it helps you ease your mind, I am simply your healer right now. Just as that awkward cousin of mine has Wyvern blood, but if he makes you uncomfortable, you are free to smack him upside the head. If you would rather not, I can do that for you.[/i]” She grinned cheekily. 

Soup was brought in, and Elva had the attendant set it down on the bedside table. “[i]Ysaryn said this magic of yours responds to your fear. [/i]” Elva began, though she seemed to be thinking out loud more than to Lyta. After a thoughtful silence, Elva looked at Lyta again. “[i]Healing is a difficult, tricky business, especially when you need to heal both your body and mind. You have been through much. But I will ask you, as I always ask the patients who come through that door and stay under my roof, that you will do your best to want to heal.[/i]” Elva tapped her temple as she spoke. “[i]Mind and body are one in that regard. It is harder to believe that you will get better, and if you don’t put faith in that, it will be doubly difficult for us to help you.[/i]” Elva shrugged a shoulder, then gestured at the soup. “[i]Now, do help yourself. They make good soup here in the North, will warm you right up. First step to feeling at ease is a happy belly, after all,[/i]” she added with a chuckle.

--

When Kire had returned to camp, Gavin was shaking and pale, slumped against the walls of the town, while Myka did her best to rope the camp into order. “Was it me?” he asked the moment he saw her. “Was it because I let go?”
“Gavin, no,” Kire frowned, concern in her expression as she crouched down beside him. “Look. The way I see it, the goddess was going to find a way to take him. But at least it looks like her power is confined to the forest and to the people in camp. With the wards you had worked on, so far things are contained.”

Gavin pursed his lips, bowing his head. “I should be back there. I should be helping Ruli look for him.”
“I won’t lose you, too,” Kire said firmly. “I need you here. Is there a way to maybe find him? Tracking spell? Anything like that?” 
Gavin rubbed his face. “Maybe. Yeah. There might be. But I need Ruli’s help. Daryll, too.” She could tell his confidence was shaken to the core by this; even if he would have been certain with his answer, now he would second-guess his every move.
“It’s [i]not your fault[/i],” she pressed, a hand on his shoulder before perking up, sensing Ysaryn’s return nearby.

“There seems to be more people in camp,” Narda said, jerking her thumb at the tents. 
Kire nodded. “We have an urgent situation in our hands. Envy is missing.” 
Narda’s eyes widened. Kire gave an account of what happened: Gavin seeing a vision, Envy disappearing, the remaining townsfolk that had appeared, wielding fire in a trance. The giantess growled. “Well? Are you going to let them worship this mad god?”
Kire pinched the bridge of her nose. “I told them I need time to give them an answer. Till then, they are confined to the warded camp.”
“And Ruli?”
“Ruli refuses to leave.” Kire sighed. “I’m going back there later to check on him and to make another search.”
“Sounds to me like this goddess is holding him ransom,” Narda said. “If she wanted him dead, she would have made an example of him.”
“Exactly my thinking,” Kire said. “But there’s so much about this goddess I don’t know yet. I don’t know why Envy. If this is Solaralai, I’d have thought she hated elves.” Kire rubbed her nape, glancing at Gavin, who had flinched at her last statement, the young mage still wracked by guilt. She looked at Daryll. “What happened to your search?”

“We found her,” he replied. He looked torn now. Kire had noticed the excitement on his face when they appeared and had expected good news from him, but after Kire’s news, it seemed the scholar didn’t know what to feel now. “Kire, she has magic. She can move objects with her mind, but it depends on her emotional state. And something else, too. Something, or someone, is blanketing her whole town with sleep. We are—were planning to go back there to investigate it again. But…” He glanced at the camp. 
“Gods. More,” Kire muttered.