A Templar's Gifts by Kat Black

anxiously. “I’ve not been trained to heal and I’m in no good state myself.” The words were truer than I let on. I was a mess and the lad’s trauma was combining with my own.
    â€œI don’t care. Do something! He’s breaking my heart.” Tears for the bairn rolled down her face. Her hurt, his fear, all too much. It had to stop.
    â€œHere, take my hand and no matter what happens do not let go of me.”
    For once she had no words, no questions or chatter. She quickly latched on and immediately the peace I felt whenever she touched me returned. I took the hand of the bairn then and focused my attention on the levels of power in the soil at my feet.
    The earth was rocky and the ground long trampled. The energy was deep below the surface, but I could see the network of silken strands that crossed and wove. Focusing on the peace that Aine exuded, I tugged a tendril of power. For some reason it felt strange beneath my probe. Like the dew that coated the morning grass, it beaded and scattered as I tried to call it toward me. Frustrated, I focused more sharply and felt the blood in my body race.
    Somewhere off in the distance, I recognized Aine’s humming. And then, as if it were the simplest thing in the world, the power came to me. Without the chaos to confuse things, the energy pulsed into my mental grasp and in turn I directed it into the mind of the bairn.
    Immediately, I was immersed in his memories. Brutal images fluttered against my mind, like the frantic beat of the trapped wings of a bird. I pushed through, reaching into his past for anything that might calm and comfort him. Memories of life before, people he knew and loved, places that were special to him, and then I found it.
    The doll was not much more than a pile of scraps. Leftover linen, thread for the mouth, tiny tin buttons for eyes. Its smock was worn thin from use. The image was strong. Safety and love clung to its memory like cobwebs in a corner. I seized on it and pressed it into the fore of his mind.
    The lad became still quite suddenly, and I knew that I had found his comfort. I sent the image to Aine so that she would understand. Her humming paused for a moment and she gasped. Then she let go of my hand and bolted off down the road.
    My mind reeled with the sudden loss of contact. Energy swirled within me, and riots of tension rolled through me. The bairn’s terror came again, and this time it was more than I could bear. I was crashing, overwhelmed by the emotions piercing my mind. I needed to let go of him. I pushed away, desperate to make it stop. My ears were filled with a furious buzz and my heart pounded with pain.
    Then, without warning, I saw him, my vision sharp and clear.
Alexander!
I screamed as the chaos enfolded me.
Ground, Tormod! Focus and shield the power away. Let go!
    I shoved with all my heart and mind, pushing the energy, the power back down into the ground at my feet. The land rumbled, the path split, and the bairn and I were knocked apart.
    I lay stunned by the suddenness of it all. The vision of the Templar, so much as I had seen him last — strong, real, whole — hung before me. “Thank you,” I whispered to whatever had brought him to me.
    Aine’s running footfalls pulled me from myself and suddenly anger replaced my calm. “Why did ye let go ofme?” I bellowed, unable to control the wrath. “I told ye no’ to let go! No matter what!”
    Aine’s face was a most unnatural white, and her chest heaved with the exertion of her run. I turned to see what she was staring at.
    And the world roared. The bairn lay still and unmoving, his body twisted at a strange angle.
    â€œNo!” I screamed, scrambling to him. How could it be? He was so still. I laid my hands on his tiny chest and felt for his breath, but there was nothing. Tears blurred my vision and torment filled my heart. I called on the power.
    Please, Lord, help!
But nothing stirred. It was as