Near the fire, in the combat circle, were two pallets and resting on them, were the still forms of Yrsa and Latham, just as silent and still as they were when they had left them in the main lodge building on that first day.

They joined the rest of their pack and Huan Li who were standing a respectable distance from the two fighters and the bon fire. The clearing was populated with a good number of people and it looked as if the healers were still near their patients. Michele did notice that Yrsa was holding what looked to be a bone of some kind.

"What's that Yrsa is holding?"

"That's the galdr I was telling you about," Rorric said casually.

Keva nodded, "So what happens now? Does this mean Yrsa is healed?"

Rorric shook his head, "No, now the real healing begins. Their bodies have been prepared but are still weak and broken. Now the healing of the spirit takes place, and with it their bodies."

Before Keva or any of the pack could respond or ask any more questions, a loud, solemn horn blared into life, belting out it's long low, bass sound into the night sky that reverberated and echoed off the surrounding trees.

It's one note held for long moments, filling the air around them. The horn was soon joined by the soft beating of a single drum, and that was joined by another drum, and another. The long base horn sound died out and was repeated as it too was joined by what sounded like two other smaller, higher pitched horns. Then the pack watched the musicians, beating on drums and softly clapping bones together in time. The music rose and washed over everyone in the clearing. The primal sound of the horns and bone and drums mixed and just when the droning sound of the music threatened to overwhelm them, a clean voice rang out over the sound in song.

Michelle was spell bound by the beats and the clear voice that was singing. She couldn't understand what the woman was saying, but her voice was strong and sure and mixed in perfect harmony with the surrounding music.

Javier was equally in awe of the music. The female voice was soon joined by a masculine bass voice that echoed what the woman said. If not in exact words, the feeling was a mirror image of both voices. The pain, joy, fear, and hope from both voices mixed with the music and stirred such feelings in him that he let the tears that had formed in his eyes flow freely down his cheeks.

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He didn't need to look, but he saw the same reaction from Keva and Michelle. He knew that Keva still blamed herself for the death of Erato. He blamed himself for that death too, if he had just been stronger, or smarter. Michelle was feeling all of those emotions and more. The three of them stood, transfixed in place by the hypnotic music and the roaring blaze of the fire. The healing chant, the galdr, washed over everyone in the assembly.

For how long the music played, for how long the chant endured, for how long the fire roared, no one could say.

The realization that the night sky had turned to day, and the thick midnight black of the sky had been replaced with the icy blue of morning had been lost on the observes of the ritual. It was only when the music finally died, and the drums ceased to pound, and the bones stopped their rhythmic thumping, did the pack become fully aware that the night had completely passed them by.

Javier came to his senses and blinked as he looked around himself. The rest of the pack were shaking themselves as if coming out of a deep sleep. The fire was still hot, but much smaller now than it had been during the night.

He turned around to see Rorric standing just as he had been. Javier asked, "Is it done, is Yrsa healed?"

Rorric regarded the young Shape shifter and his pack, even taking the time to acknowledge the two wolves, sitting proudly on the ground. "I'm sure you're healing techniques are much faster than ours, as you have said. But our magic is something that only the one receiving it can explain. It would be impossible for me to say if Yrsa or Latham is healed. We will have to wait."

Javier looked over and saw Yrsa still lying on her pallet. "Is it alright if we see her now?"

Rorric shook his head softly, "No."

"But why?" Javier asked.

Rorric replied, "I have said all I will on this subject." With that the healer turned and walked back inside the main lodge.

The pack was left looking to Huan Li for some kind of explanation. The Elder regarded all of them as he said, "I'm in the dark as much as you are. We are still guests here. I do believe that we were witness to something very special and powerful last night. If my guess is right, and if her heart and spirit was open to the healing then I would hazard to guess that the ritual worked. They used very powerful magics last night and this morning, as I'm sure you all felt."

The young pack nodded, as none of them, probably, could tell the others what exactly had happened, or where the time went. One moment night was just beginning to set, and now it was clearly mid-morning.

"Shall we all go get something to eat? I don't know about the rest of you, but I am starved," Huan Li said with a smile.

Javier looked back towards to dying bon fire, "Are we just going to leave Yrsa out here in the cold?"

Huan Li nodded towards the pallets, "As you can see, the two have their healers with them, and if you look closely, they are still chanting, if only in whispers, only for their patients to hear. And, as Rorric said, it is not our place to interfere or question their customs. In this, I do agree with him, we are just guests after all. Come." With that, Huan Li turned and followed Rorric's steps up to the main lodge and disappeared through the large wooden doors.

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