The other three dogs snarled and looked uncertainly at Lux. Since he no longer had a weapon, she expected them to tear him to shreds, but they did nothing more than look at him. He held his hand up, his palm facing them, and the beasts all began to whine, as if in pain. One of them yelped, then turned tail and started running away, and the other two quickly followed.

The dog Lux had impaled struggled to get to his feet, whimpering sadly. Lux walked over to it, and the beast cowered before him. Lux grabbed the stick and yanked it out, making the dog howl in pain. He raised the branch, meaning to finish the job, but Lily stopped him.

“Wait!” Lily held out her hand and tried to push herself up more. It hurt to breathe, and a weakening paralysis had started setting in her body. It wouldn’t be much longer before she’d be unable to move at all. “Don’t hurt him!”

“He’s a canu!” Lux said incredulously.

He wanted to argue with her about the merits of saving a demon dog, but when he saw the stricken look on her face, he knew she didn’t have the strength to argue. His stomach twisted up when he realized how much pain she had to be in, and it made it even harder for him not to destroy the beast that had done it.

Reluctantly, Lux dropped the stick and pointed away, signaling the canu to leave before he changed his mind. The dog slowly got to his feet and gave them both a confused look, unsure why it had been spared. Lux had already turned his attention fully to Lily, and the dog hobbled away without any more notice.

“Don’t move,” Lux said, rushing to her side. He reached out, wiping the mud from her face, and the warm electricity he got from her was still there, although it was dampened by his anxiety. She could barely breathe, and he found it hard to swallow, knowing the agony she had to be in.

“What are you doing here?” Lily stared up at him, and her arm gave out, so she fell backwards. Before she hit the ground, she felt his arm around her, holding her safe.

“Don’t worry about it.” He held her in his arms and moved the cloak, so he could see the gashes down her back from the canu. “You’re infected with canu venom.” He looked past her, his mind racing. “I can fix this.”

Lily tried to say something, but she’d already grown too weak to speak clearly. He got to his feet, still cradling her in his arms, and hurried towards the creek. He wanted to relish the weight of her body, the feel of her with him, but he couldn’t.

On his way to find her, he’d passed a babbling brook, and that would be his only way to save her. Clean the wound to get out as much venom as possible, then burn it to destroy the rest, and pack it with cool blue moss to ease the pain. It was a rather easy cure, but he had to get it in time.

The venom was only beginning to spread through her, and once it hit her full force, she would be in unbearable agony.

She mumbled something into his chest, and Lux ran faster, listening for the sounds of the brook. His heart pounded painfully in his chest, and he didn’t know what he’d do if something happened to her.

Relief washed over him when he saw the brook, the water reflecting the moon in the night. He skidded down the embankment, holding Lily carefully in his arms so she wouldn’t get hurt further. Gingerly, he laid her on her stomach on the soft mud and reeds next to the water. He took of her cloak and opened the back of her dress so he could have better access to the claw marks.

Lux cupped his hands, filling them with ice-cold water before spilling it onto her back. She twitched and made some kind of moaning sound, but he hadn’t even started cleaning the wounds yet. Using the edge of the cloak and the water, he scrubbed at the scratches, making the venom burn deeper, and Lily screamed.

The poison glowed in her wounds, so at least he could see it. He mumbled apologies, but he doubted she heard him over her cries. When he was certain he’d got out as much as he could, he ran his fingers down her gashes. Flames licked out from the tips of his fingers, one of the few tricks Lux had. The air smelled of burning flesh as the fire seared and cauterized her wounds, and Lily shrieked even louder.

Her cuts were cleaned and sealed, but between the venom and the fire, she was in incredible pain. Lily stopped screaming, but she sobbed loudly, her whole body shaking from the intensity of it.

Lux scrambled to his feet and looked around, knowing that blue moss had to be nearby. It loved water and death, and this area of the Necrosilvam was full of both. Lily lay on her stomach with the back of her dress torn open, and he didn’t want to leave her exposed like that, but he couldn’t leave her in that much pain either.

He jogged a short ways down the brook, still close enough to hear and see her, and thankfully, he found blue moss growing on the underside of a log lying across the stream. He had to wade through the water to get it, soaking his new shoes and pants on the way, but he barely even cared. Lily was in pain, and he’d do anything stop it.

“This will be over soon,” Lux promised her when he reached her. He knelt on the ground next to her and smeared her wounds with the moss.

Almost instantly, the burning stopped, replaced with a cool numbness. The haze in her mind started ebbing, and most of the aches in her body dissipated. Not entirely, but she felt much better. Sniffling, Lily wiped at her tears and sat up. The night air felt cold on her bare back, and she tried straightening out her dress, but the back had been shredded. Lux handed her the cloak, which held up much better because it was stronger, and Lily wrapped it around herself.

“Thank you,” Lily said, feeling embarrassed about crying so hard. She wiped at her face with the cloth, trying to get rid of the mud and tears that stained her skin.

“You're welcome.” Lux sat next to her on the embankment, watching her with an unbridled fascination. Even with dirt on her cheeks and twigs in her hair, he doubted he’d ever seen anyone more beautiful.

“What are you doing out here?” Lily asked.

She stared down at her hands, playing with a loose thread on her dress. She wanted to look at him, to make sure he was real and really there with her, but she felt too ashamed to look at him fully.

“I was looking for you,” Lux said honestly.

“Why?” Lily asked, her forehead wrinkling in confusion, although her heart quickened happily.

“I never should’ve left you alone in these woods.” Guilt washed over him, and he looked down at the water. She’d nearly been killed because he hadn’t stayed with her. He thought she’d be better without him, but the only way he could protect her was if he was with her.