Day: 22

Days Left: 5458

Lives Saved: 0

At first, Corinna thought that she had imagined the voice. The only times she had ever heard her name being spoken in The Eternal Abyss was by Ivette. Back at home, Corinna's name was called continuously by her older relatives asking for assistance with chores and by her young relatives for play and bedtime stories. Her name was called so often she would occasionally imagine hearing it even when no one was saying it.

The voice spoke again, from behind her, speaking her name:

"Corinna."

The young woman turned around.

It was Harmony. A wide and toothy grin spread across her jackal face. The chimaera coughed and cleared her throat. She was still not used to speaking hence the pain and soreness.

"Harmony?" Corinna paused, still believing that she had just imagined it all. "You can speak now?"

"Yeah." The chimaera held her paw at her throat, feeling the vibrations as she spoke. She grinned. "My- my voice is back," she croaked.

Corinna stepped close to the chimaera, about to touch her furry face, but hesitated and pulled her hands back. "That's great-" Her legs buckling, Corinna collapsed onto the floor. She tried to move her legs, but they refused, they twitched and grew numb, like they weren't there at all.

Harmony caught Corinna as she fell to the cave floor. The young woman grasped onto the chimaera's arms but soon her hands too drooped and fell lifeless and limp to her side.

"What's happening..." she asked, speaking through her teeth as she was incapable of moving her lips.

"It's the venom," answered Harmony, pulling up Corinna's sleeve to inspect the bite wound on her wrist. If The Eternal Abyss hadn't been keeping her alive, Corinna would have likely died already or at least be unconscious from how much blood she had lost.

"You have... an antidote?" Corinna mumbled, her face now stiff and unmoving. Her body paralysed, she lay cradled in the chimaera's arms, nestled in thick black fur that she could no longer feel on her skin.

Harmony nodded. "Yes." Whilst still supporting the young woman in her arms so that she wouldn't collapse onto the cold and hard cave floor, the chimaera gently held her injured hand in hers and began licking her wrist.

Even with her body numb, Corinna felt the heat rise to her cheeks, wanting to look away in shyness but her paralysed neck forced her to watch.

As Harmony cleaned out the venom with her saliva, her attention could not help focusing on the spell on Corinna's wrist. She sensed that it was some sort of magically binding contract that restricted the young woman from speaking about it, but Harmony struggled to think of anything worth such a spell. What did Corinna need to keep so secret that she accepted such an agreement? The only explanation Harmony came up with was Corinna's brand. She was imprisoned for treason according to it, which any mage could read the magical footnote in the spell brand to learn the specifics: sedition and lese-majesty. Whatever Corinna did, it seemed it caused such an offence to the queen that it must never be spoken. This only intrigued Harmony even more.

Eventually, feeling returned to Corinna's body and she adjusted herself, sitting upright but still weak enough to have an excuse to keep holding onto the chimaera.

"The venom should be fully out of your system soon," said Harmony, raising her head and sitting up straight. She cleared her throat, attempting to ease the soreness, but she fought through it. The pain was worth it if it meant she could talk to Corinna. "I'm sorry, Corinna," the chimaera rasped, grunting through the discomfort of her external fangs that dug in and abraded the sides of her mouth every time she spoke. "I forgot about my tail's venom. I should have... treated it sooner. I shouldn't have caught you with my tail anyway."

"No, you shouldn't be apologising, Harm," said Corinna, resting her hand on top of the chimaera's. "You did what you did to save me. I would have fallen to my death- well, not death since we can't die here- but I would have been paralysed, all my limbs broken, skull cracked, my brain probably damaged so I would lose all of my memories..." Corinna paused. "So, yeah. I think you made the right call." She beamed at the chimaera.

Harmony lowered her head and nodded, no longer feeling as culpable as before, but her eyes still lingered on the burn marks on Corinna's legs and the other injuries across her body. "And I shouldn't have left you alone."

"No," said Corinna. "You shouldn't have. But neither of us knew it was going to go after me this time." Her eyes followed the chimaera's to her legs, where the skin was red. "I don't suppose you have any of that magical ointment on you?"

Harmony looked at Corinna, who stared back.

There was a long silence.

"Oh..." said Corinna, heat rising in her cheeks. She looked at the wound on her wrist and found that the snake bite had almost completely healed. "You mean that was all..."

The chimaera nodded.

Corinna swallowed. "Your... saliva has... healing properties?"

"Do you want to get in a more comfortable position?"

Corinna almost let out a squeal, her face now redder than her burned legs.

Lying down on top of Harmony's green cloak, Corinna clamped her mouth tightly to stop any sound escaping as the chimaera licked her legs, healing them. At first, the burns stung, causing the young woman to clutch the cloak in her hands from the pain, but soon her skin soothed, no longer agitated but rather-

Covering her face with her hands, Corinna attempted to calm herself down, hiding how heated and flushed her cheeks had become.

Harmony, however, interpreted this as the young woman being in pain. She glanced upwards at Corinna and asked if she would prefer if t she went slower, which only caused Corinna to squirm even more.

After Harmony had finally finished, she reassured Corinna that the burns would fully heal in a day or so. Then, she suggested that as there was still a few more hours before daybreak, they should catch some sleep before returning back to the house. Corinna agreed.

As she had used the duvet to defeat the clay golem, they had to share Harmony's green cloak to sleep on. Corinna shut her eyes. Harmony had fallen asleep straight away, but Corinna was still awake. They lay facing opposing sides, their backs almost touching. Corinna didn't if she was capable of sleeping in these conditions.