Father Rohan knelt beside the thrashing Saintess without hesitation. Ruby was still screaming, her voice reduced to a raw, animal screech that scraped against the ears of everyone present. Her hands were still locked around her own throat, her nails gouging deeper into the soft flesh with every convulsion.
"Hold her steady," he said quietly to the two priestesses who were still struggling to contain her. Then he leaned in, assessing.
He checked her pupils first, pulling her face close to the lantern's flame. Her eyes were blown wide, the pupils so dilated they had swallowed nearly all the color, leaving only thin rings of blue around bottomless black.
Terror.
He checked her pulse next, his fingers pressing against the frantic flutter at her wrist. Rapid. Erratic. A heartbeat running at full sprint toward a cliff.
