Chapter 106 - Cleansing the Curse

  We touched down in Harvard Yard, the impact of our landing sending up small clouds of dust. They’d been busy since I left. Where before there had been scattered defensive positions, now there was organized chaos. People were everywhere, hauling stones, reinforcing walls, and building barricades. Torches and magical lights illuminated the work, casting long shadows across the historic grounds.

  Catherine Reynolds waited for us, standing with a small group of armed guards. She must have been watching for our arrival, because she was already moving toward us by the time my feet touched the ground.

  “Mr. Baylor,” Reynolds said, extending a hand to Alex. "Thank you for coming. I know this is an imposition."

  “It’s Alex, please. And it's no imposition. We help where we can." Alex gestured to Marion. "This is Marion, our primary healer and the person with the Cleanse spell Cameron mentioned."

  Reynolds turned to Marion, and I saw something new in her expression. A touch of relief, maybe, even hope. “Marion, I can't tell you how grateful we are. Our people are terrified. If there's anything you can do…”

  "I'll do everything I can," Marion promised. "Where are the patients?"

  "This way." Reynolds led us across the Yard toward the makeshift infirmary. As we walked, she gave us a quick update. "We've moved the remaining injured to a more secure section of the building. We still have eight patients in total, all people who sustained some sort of bite wound during the attack. Maggie has Healed them all. The wounds aren’t the issue. The werewolf curse, though…”

  “I understand,” Marion said. “None of those others have transformed yet, then? Cam told us three of them did.”

  “Not yet, thank God. We've restrained them more securely this time, with chains instead of handcuffs and armed guards watching them, just in case,” Reynolds replied. “I feel awful ordering these sorts of measures for wounded civilians, but I don’t see another way.”

  “You did the right thing,” Alex replied. “We’ll do what we can, but we need to be ready for what happens if there’s no cure.”

  The shattered glass door had already been boarded over, the sparkling bits of glass cleaned up. We entered the building and made our way down a corridor to the infirmary. The rows of hospital beds were organized again, arranged in a grid pattern. Each bed held a patient, and each patient was secured with heavy chains. Guards stood at attention around the perimeter, spears and swords at the ready.

  The fear and desperation in the room was impossible to miss. Some of the patients were crying. Others stared at the ceiling with blank, hopeless expressions. A few were praying quietly. They all knew what was coming. They'd all seen what happened to the others.

  Maggie was moving between beds with Fred and Tara, checking vitals, offering what comfort she could. She looked up as we entered, and her eyes met mine. Relief washed across her face.

  "Cameron," she said. "You came back."

  "Told you I would," I said, moving to her side. "How are they holding up?"

  "About as well as you'd expect," Maggie said quietly. "They're scared. We're all scared." She looked past me to Marion. "Is this...?"

  “I’m Marion. Yes, I’m the one with the Cleanse spell. I'm going to try to remove the curse before anyone else transforms."

  "Can you really do that?" One of the patients—a young man, maybe twenty-five—spoke up from his bed. His voice was shaky. "Can you actually cure us?"

  "I don't know," Marion replied. "I've never tried this before. But I'm going to do everything I can to help you." She turned to Reynolds. "I need to examine one of them first. See if I can sense the curse with my spell."

  Reynolds nodded and gestured to the nearest bed. "Whatever you need."

  Marion approached the young man who'd spoken. He was chained at the wrists and ankles, the heavy links secured to bolts in the floor. The remnants of a nasty bite wound marked his forearm, mostly healed by Maggie's earlier work but still visible as angry red tissue.

  "What's your name?" Marion asked gently.

  "David," he said. "David Lennox.”

  "Okay, David. I'm going to place my hands near your wound and use my spell to see if I can detect the curse. It won't hurt, I promise."

  David nodded wordlessly, lips pursed and muscles tense. Marion held her hands over his forearm, and I saw a faint white glow begin to build around her fingers. Her eyes closed and her brow furrowed in concentration.

  We all waited in tense silence. Alex stood beside Marion, ready to support her if needed. Ruiz and Dara positioned themselves near the door, watching the room for threats. Any of these patients might turn into a lethal adversary at the drop of a hat.

  The guards maintained their positions, but I could see them leaning in slightly, hoping for good news.

  After what felt like an eternity but was probably only thirty seconds, Marion's eyes opened.

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  "I can feel it," she said. "It's there. A kind of magical taint, spreading through his system like an infection. It's foreign, aggressive, and trying to magically rewrite his biology. I get the feeling what’s happening to these people is similar to how so many animals were modified, like the spiders becoming giant spiders and the squirrels turning into goblins.”

  “Did we confirm that?” Alex asked. “The squirrels?”

  “I didn’t see one transform, but I’m pretty sure,” Marion replied. Then, she looked back at David, meeting the young man’s serious gaze. “Anyway, I think I can remove it. I think Cleanse will work."

  "Please," David said. "Please try."

  Marion took a deep breath, centering herself. The white glow around her hands intensified, spreading to encompass David's entire forearm. Then it expanded further, washing over his chest, his shoulders, and finally his entire body. The light grew brighter until I had to squint against it.

  David gasped, his back arching slightly against the restraints. His hands clenched into fists. For a moment I thought something was going wrong, that maybe the curse was fighting back. I tensed, ready to burst into action if Marion needed help. Right now she was the only chance anyone who’d been bitten had. We couldn’t let her get hurt.

  Then the light faded, and Marion stumbled back a step. Alex caught her elbow, steadying her.

  "Did it work?" Maggie asked breathlessly.

  Marion nodded, breathing hard. "I think so. The taint is gone. I can't sense it anymore." She looked at David. "How do you feel?"

  David blinked, looking down at himself in wonder. "I don’t know. I feel different, for sure. Better. There was this pressure building in my head, like something trying to claw its way out. It's gone now." He laughed, a slightly hysterical sound. "Oh God, it's actually gone."

  A murmur ran through the room. The other patients sat up as much as their chains would allow, hope dawning on their faces.

  "Can you do the others?" Reynolds asked.

  "Yes," Marion said firmly, though I could see the exhaustion already starting to show. "I need to. I'm not leaving anyone cursed if I can help it."

  She moved to the next bed. This patient was an older woman, maybe sixty, with the mostly-healed mark of a vicious bite on her shoulder. Marion repeated the process, first sensing the curse, then purging it with her Cleanse spell. The woman wept with relief when it was done.

  Then she went on to the next patient. And the next.

  I watched Marion work her way through all eight of the cursed patients, one after another. Each casting of Cleanse seemed to take more out of her. By the fourth patient, she was leaning heavily on the bed for support. By the sixth, Alex had to physically hold her up. When she was done, she collapsed against him entirely. Alex scooped her into his arms.

  “Rest now, love,” Alex told her. "Mana depletion. Marion, you need to rest."

  "I'm okay," she insisted, though her voice was barely above a whisper. "Just give me a minute."

  Around us, the room had erupted in celebration. The patients were crying, thanking Marion, thanking everyone. The guards were smiling. Even Reynolds allowed herself a small, relieved smile. Maggie was hugging Tara, both of them overwhelmed with emotion.

  I moved to Marion's side. "That was incredible. Thank you."

  She managed a weak smile. "Just doing the right thing, same as you always do.”

  "You saved eight people from a fate worse than death," I said. "That's sixteen kinds of awesome.”

  "Cameron's right," Reynolds said, joining us. "Ms. Cross, you've given these people their lives back. Harvard is in your debt."

  Marion shook her head. "No debt. We help each other. That's how this works now. It’s the only way it can work, if we all want to survive this.”

  "Okay, they’re cured. I think we should get you someplace safer, now,” Alex said firmly. "You need to rest and recover.”

  "But there's still the one they captured," Marion protested. "Toothless, Cameron called him. He's already fully transformed. If there's any chance Cleanse could work on him, too—"

  "Marion, you're completely tapped out," Alex said. "You need time to recover your mana."

  "I can rest later," Marion insisted, some steel coming back into her voice despite her exhaustion. "That man is trapped as a monster right now. Every minute we wait is another minute he's locked in that form. I have to at least try. My mana is already coming back. Give me another ten minutes and I can cast Cleanse again.”

  Alex looked like he wanted to argue, but something in Marion's expression stopped him. He sighed. "Fine. But we're going with you. All of us. And if you start to collapse, we're carrying you out of there whether you like it or not."

  "Deal," Marion said.

  Reynolds cleared her throat. "If you're serious about this, I should warn you—the containment cell is extremely secure. We had to be sure nothing could escape. That means it's also not a pleasant place. And approaching a fully transformed werewolf, even a contained one, is dangerous."

  "I understand," Marion said. "But I need to see if this works. If Cleanse can reverse a complete transformation, think of the difference it could make.”

  She was right, of course. If it could cure someone who'd already turned, it would be a game-changer for dealing with this infection. Somewhere out there, we still had the two escaped werewolves to deal with, and then the original pack who’d attacked Harvard as well.

  As easy as this infection spread, we needed a cure, badly. If we didn’t find one, they could overrun the entire city within days.

  "The cell is in the library's sub-basement," Reynolds said. "I'll take you there."

  We helped Marion to her feet. She was steadier now, though still clearly exhausted. Maggie moved to join us, but I shook my head.

  "Stay with the patients," I said quietly. "They're going to need someone they trust nearby. Make sure they understand they're really safe, now?”

  Maggie nodded, understanding. "Be careful down there."

  "Always am," I lied.

  Reynolds led our group out of the infirmary and down a flight of stairs into a darkened passage, lit by a pair of flickering lanterns. We proceeded down the passage until we reached a heavy steel door with four guards posted outside.

  "We're here to see the prisoner," Reynolds told them.

  One of the guards—a burly man with a scar across his cheek—looked uncertain. "Ma'am, are you sure? That thing has been throwing itself at the walls for the past half hour. It's violent. I can’t guarantee anyone’s safety if we open the door.”

  "We're aware," Reynolds said. “Unlock it.”

  The guards exchanged glances but obeyed. One of them produced a large key and unlocked the door. It swung open with a deep, metallic groan. Beyond the door was a short corridor ending in another door, this one with a small barred window. Angry snarling and the sounds of something scraping claws against stone came from the window.

  Toothless was awake. And he was not happy.

  "Last chance to reconsider," Alex said to Marion.

  She squared her shoulders, standing as tall as her exhaustion would allow. She glanced my way. “Cameron will keep us safe, right?”

  “I will.” I’d do everything in my power to keep these two in one piece, and against just a single werewolf, I felt confident I could handle it.

  “Then let's go cure a werewolf,” Marion replied.

  We moved forward into the corridor, the door closing behind us with a sound like a tomb sealing. Whatever happened next, we were committed. I just hoped Marion's magic was strong enough to break a curse that had already fully taken hold.