Authors: Rain Oxford
It occurred to me on the second day that the problem
wasn’t a sickness but something caused by the disappearing names in my book.
It was just before sunrise when we reached Shomodii.
Sammy stood, clutching his stuffed dragon and wobbling in the heavy wind.
Others meandered off the boat sleepily while Edward, Sammy, and I waited for
Mordon.
Finally, the man emerged. He looked more confident,
though not particularly happy. Fortunately, he didn’t look starved. As he
approached, I could feel that he had made a decision and was sure about it.
When he reached us, Sammy squealed and wrapped his arms around Mordon’s knees,
the dragon toy flopping to the ground, forgotten.
“What did you decide?” I asked.
Mordon picked Sammy up and hugged him. “Rojan and I
decided that saving the universe was more important than one person. You have
Edward, and that’s great, but you need our help, too.”
“Unfortunately, I cannot be too much help this time.
I can help you on Duran, but I am currently grounded here,” Edward said. We all
looked at him in shock. “My own magic was damaged by the unbalance in the
fabric of time and space.”
“Your book is gone,” I concluded. He nodded. “Names
in my book have been disappearing. I checked it again on the ship.”
“I would suggest you work quickly then. The reason I
haven’t been able to heal simple bruises is because my book is missing. For a
Guardian, your nominal energy is as important as physical energy; and it is the
same in its absence. That’s probably why you’ve been sick.”
“Sick?” Mordon leaned towards me and sniffed. “You’re
not sick.”
“No, probably not. I have a headache and a slight
fever, and I feel a little low on energy. I’m fine, though,” I said.
Edward frowned at me as if he expected me to collapse
at any second. “How many worlds have you healed so far?” he asked.
“Only Vaigda and Malta.”
“You have to move more quickly than that. There’re so
many worlds that need saving.”
“On Malta, we had to travel from tribe to tribe. How
many places do we have to visit on Duran to save it?” Mordon asked.
“We have something better,” he grinned.
“The haunted springs.”
“Yes.”
“No.” Mordon demanded. “It is too much for you to
heal the entire world at once.” That was the overprotective Mordon that I knew.
I was just glad he remembered to speak quietly in Sudo, not in English, as we
were in public.
“He does not have to. The surface of Duran is
primarily water, and he can heal the entire world through those channels,
because water is a very good conductor of nominal energy.”
“But I’m not using nominal energy,” I said.
“Yes, I figured that out. Then Divina showed me proof
that you are not just a Guardian,” he said cryptically. I wanted to ask him
what he meant, but he didn’t pause for questions. He never did. “Iadnah magic
can be transferred just as easily through the hot springs. In small amounts,
you can save Duran within a day. Then I suggest you heal Earth, as it is
suffering a lot.”
The walk back to the cabin took a few hours, during
which we told of our separate adventures. I laughed at Edward’s description of
Vivian. Edward was very interested in Sammy’s magic, particularly his
language-learning skills. He was also very interested in Mordon’s dragon.
Unfortunately, Edward knew little about real dragons and so none of Mordon’s
questions were answered.
It felt so nice to see the cabin again. We were only
gone for a few days, but I missed my bed. We opened the door and Shinobu immediately
bound up my leg to curl up on my shoulder. She rubbed her tiny snout under my
neck in affection.
There was a weird huffing sound from Mordon and we
turned to look at him. “Sorry,” he said. “Rojan doesn’t like Shinobu or how
close she is to you.”
“It makes your skin crawl when you want to protect
someone from something so badly and they just act like they are in no danger,
doesn’t it?” Edward said.
Mordon nodded. “Rojan knows those creatures are
dangerous and he wants to chase her off. Even though we can smell there’s no
desire to hurt him, we know that it’s too risky. He acts like she’d never hurt
him and I want to smack him.”
“Try seeing her sleeping in his bed every night.”
Mordon shuddered and his hands shifted into claws.
“Would you get her off your neck please before Rojan starts burning things
down? My teeth are itching. I know she doesn’t want to hurt you, but her claws
and teeth are venomous.”
Shinobu stopped nuzzling my throat and hissed at him.
“Shinobu, that’s my friend. Be nice.” She laid her head down and wrapped her
fluffy tail over her eyes.
“Kitty!” Sammy screamed, suddenly struggling to get
out of Mordon’s arms.
“Not a chance,” Mordon said, holding the baby still.
Sammy looked at him with wide eyes, unsure why Mordon
wouldn’t let him down. “Kitty?” Sammy asked.
“No,” I answered, “you can’t pet the kitty. It’s a
mean kitty.” Shinobu peered up at me like I said she was dinner. “Don’t look at
me that way, Shinobu, he’s a baby.” She put her tail back over her eyes, but
both Mordon and Edward were looking at me like I finally understood she was
dangerous after years of obliviousness. “I’m not stupid; I know she could kill
me. But even if she didn’t want to hurt him, he is a baby. He could squeeze her
tail or pull her hair and she could snap at him or scratch him.”
After setting our bags down and leaving Shinobu
locked in the cabin, we headed to the springs. I had spent many days and nights
here, practicing my magic. It was a beautiful, peaceful place… that was haunted
by a little girl who is only sometimes dead. That’s not too unusual for Duran.
“Do what you normally do to heal the damage, but keep
control of it; don’t let the world take too much. Heal only a small amount. I
will keep watch around us, because you never know what may be attracted by that
degree of magic. Mordon, you make sure he doesn’t try to do too much,” Edward
said.
I took off my boots and socks and rolled up my pants
to stick my feet in the water. I focused on my book and my connection with
Earth. She knew the drill now, and offered up her magic and support like her
goddess would. Every time I healed a tribe on Malta, I felt more and more
damage from time that she had sustained. This time, when I reached for Duran,
he reached back easily. The magic of Duran supported me now that I was home.
Perhaps the powerful world knew it was his turn to be healed.
I linked the two worlds so that Earth could give
Duran strength, then searched out Vaigda and linked easily with its ambitious,
eager magic. Vaigda still liked me. It was the new force that surprised me.
When I had healed Malta, I used magic from Vaigda. Somehow, I could feel
Malta’s magic through my link with Vaigda. Malta was as eager as Vaigda, but it
felt very humble, too. The people of Malta cherished their world and the world
cherished them back. I could feel that in its magic.
Earth and Duran were strong together, used to this
after I healed both Vaigda and Malta. Vaigda barely waited for command and
Malta’s magic was gathering. I could feel all four worlds ready to heal the
unnatural damage.
I focused on the damage already done to Duran and it
was like opening floodgates. Vaigda and Malta were strong, as they had already
healed all their damage, so they knew what was supposed to be done; they knew
what was wrong and how to fix it. Earth was supportive, but still deeply
wounded, so only her magic was helpful. My healing magic fused with the magic
of all four worlds and spread throughout Duran, healing what was wrong.
Some wounds had to be burst open because they were
too damaged. That was probably the oddest feeling; a mistake that had to be
completely rewritten or an accident that had to be undone. Time twisted and
flexed throughout all of history. Whole eras needed to be corrected.
“Stop.”
I heard the word from somewhere in the distance and
ignored it. It was very beautiful to see the world become healthy. Most
important was the closing of the void. The worlds felt like the void was vile
and toxic. It was infecting the wounds and confusing their ability to heal.
“Dylan, stop now!”
I continued to send out my healing magic until I felt
my body jerked. I couldn’t stop even if I was being attacked.
Then I felt too hot. It was uncomfortable at first,
enough that the magic stopped flowing and the worlds hesitated. They wanted to
recoil from whatever was making me sick, but they couldn’t. I broke my
connection individually as gently as I could. Finally, when I let go of Earth,
I came aware of my surroundings.
I was lying down with Mordon crouching over me. I
should never have taught him CPR.
“Stop,”
I said. Immediately, the heat
dispersed until I could breathe.
“It was the only way to wake you up.”
“Giving me heat stroke will not wake me up,” I said.
Edward took his place and I felt energy rush through me, healing damage caused
by the heat. “Did one of you shake me?” I asked.
“You stopped breathing. We couldn’t wake you up and
Rojan suggested that my fire could make you sick and would make you shut down
the connection. It looked like that was better than you continuing. You already
healed more than half of the world.”
“No way, I was only doing it for like half a minute.”
They both glared at me. “We have been here for three
hours,” Edward said.
I smiled. “Maybe I’m getting good at it, then. Next
time should be easy.”
Edward turned to Mordon. “Never let him do this
without you there to wake him up,” he warned.
Mordon nodded. Edward’s magic was done, so he helped
me stand up. The moment I was on my feet, my head swam. I felt myself start to
fall, but that was as far as I got.
* * *
“You linked Earth and Duran before you healed
Duran. Why?”
It took me a few seconds for everything to stop
spinning. I was back in Divina’s almost-real cabin, but I still felt sick. “I
don’t know. It felt right. Why am I sick?”
“Because you
linked Earth and Duran before
you healed Duran, you idiot!”
she yelled. I guess that would be my nickname
for a while.
“You partially healed them both!”
“Why are you mad about that? I helped Earth.”
“You nearly died! You would have died if Mordon
had not stopped you!”
She was yelling in my mind now.
“You are sick
because you used too much magic and now you are creating more. Your body has to
accommodate for that!”
“Are you saying I’m getting more powerful?” That
would
not
go over well with the gods.
“Yes! Regivus thinks you are doing this to become
more of a threat.”
“I can’t undo what I did. I don’t know why I
connected Duran and Earth. It wasn’t my intention to heal both at the same time
or use so much power.”
“I know, but my brothers will not see it that way.
You were following your instincts to save as many worlds as you could. I will
discuss this with Avoli, Madus, and Enki. We need them to intercept if Zer,
Regivus, or Azenoth decide to kill you… It is disappointing, because Vretial
would have been on your side, too,”
she said.
“Do you regret killing him? Do you miss him?”
“I cannot regret destroying him, as he would have
destroyed me, you, Earth, and Duran. But yes, I sometimes miss him.”
* * *
I woke up in my bed. The horribleness with which my skin
crawled made me sit up. Luckily, I was alone in the dark. My muscles cramped,
my stomach churned, and I had a fever.
Apparently building energy in massive quantities had
symptoms similar to being in college… or the flu. The problem was I had too
much energy. I got up slowly, wobbling on shaky legs. As I moved across the
floor, static snapped between me and the wood. I could feel and hear it crackle
all around me, but it didn’t hurt. I reached the door and locked the latch just
before someone on the other side tried to open it. Even without consciously
using my magic to feel my surroundings, I could sense it was Edward. I knew he
could unlock the door with magic, but I wanted it to stay locked, so it would.
I needed to get rid of some of the excess energy, but
I couldn’t just let it go like nominal energy. Or maybe I could. Iadnah energy
would do anything I wanted it to. The most reasonable thing I could come up
with was through my lungs. As I fell back into a sitting position on the steps,
I imagined my lungs, probably quivering with my abnormal gasping, and then
imagined the excess, green energy flooding my lungs. It felt like my lungs were
filling with smoke, but when I breathed out, I expelled a small puff of
silvery-green mist. It took several minutes to expel enough energy that I felt
more stable.
After a few more minutes, I left the bedroom to find
Edward and Mordon playing cards at the table. Shinobu sat watching them from on
top of the stove and Sammy played with a “shapes and sounds” game on the floor.
He looked up at me and smiled.
I smiled back and sat down at the third stool at the
table. “Who’s winning?” I asked.
“Has anyone actually
ever
beat Edward at
cards?” Mordon asked.
“Divina thinks she has. I was watching, though.
Edward won,” I answered. Mordon slapped down his cards.
“I forfeit.”
“What? You never quit!”
“It’s a card game, not war. I don’t even know how to
play. Edward makes me play because
you
always refuse and he says it’s my
duty as your friend to stand in your place,” Mordon grouched. Edward grinned
and I rolled my eyes.
“Did you have a nice conversation?” my mentor asked.
I put my head down. “She said I’m getting more
powerful. I don’t know what to do. The more I use my magic, the more powerful I
get, and the better I can save the worlds, but the more the gods want to kill
me.”