It seems young Mathis finally bite off more than he can chew...Stop smiling like that. It is extremely creepy...and that's coming from someone who wore that tag proudly. Just for that you will have to wait for the rest of there as we go back to the angel and the goblin...Even though they will have a grand fright soon it should numb your happiness...Now sit down and listen.
Wilt was sitting out the front of the mine with a bottle of Sand Storm and a parchment of Ember Root. He had not smoked it in years but he felt like he deserved a good rest tonight as he had spent the day mostly helping the patient back to the bar and explaining what the sad and crying sister will have to do. Every time he thought of her crying eyes it made him mad as he took a swig of his drink then lit the parchment with a small vial that he shook then tapped before releasing the cork. Only three or four hits of the parchment and he saw a bright green appear inside the cave making him sigh and put it out on the rock, finish his drink and walk in expecting to see a visage of the princesses on Recocto but was shocked to see them both along with the queen and Jericho all smiling as they ran and hugged them.
Wilt hugged them back before he spoke,
''What in the hells are you lot doing here?''
Jericho walked and placed his hand on the goblins shoulder before he responded,
''Well to see if our brother and his friends need any help of course! The queens orders!''
Wilt looked over to Yyvonne who seemed to be scanning the area making his laugh before he spoke,
''Your brother is not here right now. He should be back any minute now though your highness.''
The girls face dropped before Orelia leaned down next to her and smiled as she spoke to Wilt,
''He is with that women correct?''
Both hers and Yyvonne's eyes started a silent glare at the goblin making him feel like Ice had entered his veins but before he had time to answer the doors were slammed open by a bleeding and bruised Sophie, panting as Wilt and the rest started making the goblin speak,
''Where are the other two? Being laz-''
''Get the bird ready! Mathis is hurt badly! One did some light surgery but he needs the bird! Bee will be here with him in five!''
Kyu burst out of his hut as Yyvone grabbed and started tugging on her older sister's arm, tears welling in her eyes as she saw her older brother drop to his knees and start muttering to himself with Orelia seemingly frozen in place. Kyu and Wilt began preparing the centre hut, pulling out the dirty wrapping and bedding as the goblin began rubbing down the walls with alcohol and yelling for someone to change the sawdust of the floor. For the young girl it's seemed both like a life time and an instant as Bee came rushing through the door with the suit of Lytesbane and One sitting on his shoulder, Mathis looked like he was merely sleeping minus the blood dripping from his skull and mouth but as he came past the family, all but Yyvonne were tall enough to see the damage that had been done. A large half a foot hole in the centre of his stomach was gaping through,
''Daedalus no...You may have not loved him but he was your kin as much as mine...Please don't let this be it...He only...Only just…''
Jericho stopped speaking, tears now rolled from the old man's eyes as Bee was escorted by Kyu and Wilt, steadying his body as they rushed in the centre hut.
Jericho came back into reality as he forced himself to move, each step harder than the last as he heard the sounds of ingredients being mixed along with invocation being cast,
"Forlorn mother of the moons I beseech you. My ally and your true son's right hand has fallen and only your forgiving light can fix him. I beg you to turn back the tuning of fortune or give me the strength to remould his destinies for it is not fulfilled to its true potential.''
Jericho moved the curtain and nearly vomited at the sight, making the angel snap at him in a serious tone,
''Get over yourself. You are a healer in a way? Get over here and assist in the saving of your brother.''
Before Jericho could move the girl entered with a bag making the angel make a face of angel,
''What are you doing-''
''Mathis said before he passed out that these might be helpful!''
The angel did not have the time to argue, snatching the bag before he ushered the girl out and marvelled at what he saw inside, knowing this may be a way of saving his friend and keeping his promise to Baarias before Wilt spoke with no one listening,
''You fucker...Fine I guess it will save you so I can scold you for it.''
Kyu continued pulling out the draconic organs, still feeling the life force coursing through and feeling like the blood was flowing warm inside as he smiled, thanking the gods for dragons immortality as he started going over to Mathis. Opening his eyelids before doing the same to the sacred apple green eye. A harsh gold overwhelmed the hut as all sounds disappeared and the door swung open and closed in a loop. Leaving the Price family and Sophie almost blinded from the light as it dimmed to a harm glow of gold with a ring of white around it. The three women of the Price family were all tearing heavy before Orelia dropped to her knees before Sophie picked her up and spoke stern,
''So your Ores? Mathis talking about you seemed like the only time his smile was genuine...We should check the hut and at least leave it ready for there return.''
The girl only nodded as she was helped to her feet by Sophie and Baarias, the young queen grabbed her still sobbing as she picked her up, holding her tight as they walked into the hut.
Stromcaller was unravelled on the floor with its sharpened dagger at the tip stabbed into the ground. The apparatus were gone making Orelia seem to hug Yyvonne tighter before Baarias lifted her hand and help Orelia's as she spoke,
''Vocaburis you will help your right hands family. Show me the true location of this glorious chains master.''
The pick aura she was known for seeped out over the chain before turning a cloudy grey and then shattering cracks came through the cloud and shined a ball of pure white up showing them all a sight they did not know what to think of as Orelia spoke softly,
''Oh gods...Please no.''
The air was cold and still, almost like being within a small abandoned mine. Wilt felt as if he was summoned to the peak of a tall mountain as his vision came back into sharp focus. Looking around he saw he was still in the hut, Mathis and Mathew still breathing but there was a pale glow on everything looking almost as if Wilt just woke up before rubbing his eyes and complaining,
"What's with the lights all of a sudden, Kyu wha-"
He was cut off as a voice almost unfamiliar to him invaded his mind, taking the goblin off balance stumbling back, falling before hitting the huts wall. It's form dissolving into ash and air as he heard the voice wrench into his mind,
'It is Kyuuwin Kurama and here I will go by my proper name Wilt Grove. Now Jericho D Price breath now life into your kin's body. Purge the pain from his vessel.'
Wilt looked up to see Kyu, his body almost formless as a green, white and gold spirit commanded them to work, they barely noticed as the hut completely faded into nothing revealing an endless sea of white dust and sand, stretching as fair as the eye could see making the demon look annoyed as he shouted to the entity,
''Oi bird! I can't do anything helpful here!''
The multi coloured creature looked and spoke,
''You're right. You're useless. Goodbye.'
Before the dwarf could utter a response he was back in the hut seeing the sad faces of the girls being scared by his outburst,
''The fuck that mean birdie?!...Oh sorry''
Orelia moved to Bee and placed a hand on his shoulder before she spoke through the tears,
''Is...Is he-''
''The bird may be a asshole but he is the best healer I've ever seen so trust him okay?''
The family was still anxious about what was happening. While Bee sat down regaining his composure from the pressure change and dizziness from the phasing. As he asked Sophie to grab him a drink before telling the family what transpired over the last half a human week, after telling the tale he got up taking a deep breath before downing one of the last remaining stash from Wilt's collection of Sand Storm.
After hearing the story Orelia now wore a face of pure hot rage as she twisted to the girl, pulling a dagger from her adventuring days as she walked forward, stalking in rage as she drew closer, Sophie instinctively started stepping away until her back was hitting a wall. Realising there was no escape for a chance to run, she cowered and froze as the elven princess was only a couple feet away, bringing the dagger up and stabbing it between the girls arm and neck, cutting into the rock behind Sophie as Orelia punched her upwards, snapping her nose and forced her head into the wall behind before walking back to her sister, scoffing insults at the young human who was barely maintained her conscious,
"You better be happy Otto is not around anymore. If he was, you wouldn't be walking away at all."
Orelia' voice sounded like that of a mother whose children were in danger before returning and hugging the young Yyvonne As bee collected Sophie being her into his own hut laying her in his old bed before closing the door and returning to his seat grabbing Wilts second to last bottle of Sand Storm, observing the family and the centre hut at a distance anticipating their arrival.
The prince and the young man already had more glow to their bodies as a breath could be heard crackling out of Matthews mouth. The entity was stitching the prince shut with a shining blue coming from the patient before he spoke to the goblin,
''See his condition now Wilt Grove, Jericho D. Price you will take over with your brothers stitching. I will see if the young one is ready.''
The elder man looked at his brother's body with a stern look, nodding and took the thread and needle, his hands as still as you could imagine as he began to take over. Kyu moved and scanned the young man before he spoke,
''Matthew of the potential forlown...You seem close to the final step.''
He moved his arm over him, sparkles of gold and green flaked down and landed on the still rough skin before his one remaining eyes fluttered open as the entity spoke once more, stopping his hand over his face,
''Your soul is stable enough to see what your future will be.''
The blurred vision he was seeing this multi-coloured creature from was suddenly crystal clear but he was now looking at the back of it as Wilt spoke next to him,
''Calm down kid...We need to talk to you.''
He was confused but did not move when Kyu turned and spoke,
''Matthew. You remember the injuries you sustained in the sands?''
The young man started to rub his head as he noticed he was not in his body but just a pure hazy blue visage of himself, only being brought back to what was happening by the angel barking,
''Answer me!''
He jolted his head up and nodded like woodpecker forming holes in a pine making the entity shake his head before speaking much softer,
''Listen...You have suffered serious damage and will need months if not years of therapy to learn certain skills again...Are you willing to see what has become of your body?''
''Y-Ye...YES!''
Matthew seemed so confused by all that was happening before Wilt spoke softly to him,
''A fair warning...It is bad. You will not like what you see in the slightest...Ya might not even think its you.''
Matthew spoke very cold but not towards the goblin, past the entity,
''I will fulfil my dreams. No matter what state my body lays...If by the end I will walk again then I will crawl through the sands until my mission is complete.''
The visage looked at the prince in horror, continuing and walking past the entity, seeing himself for the first time. His vision started to blur and shake again looking at the husk of a body he had left. A missing arm and no real skin to speak of remained on his face. The entire right side of it was crumpled inwards with stretching muscle and random skin. Stitches seemed together with no rhyme or reason in the young man's eye as he felt as if he should heave but he had no way of doing so. The angel's eyes pierced into him, freezing him in place before telling Mathew an ultimatum.
"You can be a cripple for the rest of your days, having to rely on everyone around you for almost everything or….Well there is the second option...abandon your humanity and consume the power of the dragon...but what will happen is non reversible. Out of the domain of all but those that can turn time like the switching of the tides. So Mathew of a clan unknown to me what is your choice? Will you live a life almost as worthless as a Gnome simply suckling off the lifeblood of your community? Or will you burn away what makes you human outliving even the gods of the world. You have but a moment so decide. Do it Mathew of the sands. The name I anoint you under the light of our world."
The young human did not know what to do. He was torn between the idea of being a creation for the rest of his days or being close to death and nothing but a hindrance on his family. He made his choice as he looked at Kyu with a look of solid conviction before he nodded, making the angel raise his arms out and making the beautiful sands below him start to twist and dance around them, making the once calm plane look like a sand tornado bigger than most mountains was rampaging through.
Bee started twitching, his leg going up and down at a increasing rate before he stood and looked over the others, The girls were all sitting in front of the hut as he turned to hear the doors of the mines slamming open, seeing Regal run up to him,
''Is she-''
''She is in the hut there. She messed up.''
Regal looked distraught but was grabbed by the demon before he ran,
''But Mathis said she showed promise…. How is she only got a couple wounds from her trip but gets a proper uppercut from Ores when we get back...poor girl might have a concussion or worse.''
Bee let go of the old man, huffing out as he pointed to the dagger still in the wall before continuing to the old druid,
"If Ores wanted to kill the girl it would be too late and Mathis is one of the only reasons she's alive. So deal with her quickly before they get back. Kyu and Wilt can't deal with all this by themselves."
The demon said before pulling out the last bottle of Wilt's Sand Storm. Sitting down and going back to watch for any signs of them returning while keeping a distance from the family just outside the medical hut.
As the golden light re-emerged, blinding everyone in the cave as the sound of cracking and streaming reverberated around the cave. The hut crumbled into small pieces that glided through the air momentarily weightlessly before falling to the ground, smashing into fragments of dust and white sand. Bee almost choked while he took a drink from the bottle as the girls all jumped to there feet in a stance, except Orelia who only raised her hands as the men were seen once again, Kyu now looking like himself but to everyone's horror was bleeding from his eyes and ears as he fell to the ground. Matthew went to stand as he stumped off the bed and looked at the people around him, all scared as the angel laid face down. He heard the demon scream but it was blurring as Bee pulled the old man to the angel and began work. He felt a hand on his chest and saw through the blurred vision his little sisters tearing face smiled at him.
His sight was different as it seemed to be able to see further than before. He tried to take a step only to start falling onto his back but being stopped and pushed back up, he turned his one good eye to his left side and saw it. A bright blue dragon's tail that seemed to move with his thoughts before his sister helped him back to sit on the bed. He clearly heard Regal and looked to see the other three casters all sharing there power with the druid before he bellowed out his incantation,
''This angel has not served his purpose! Only done a great deed! Return him to the state he was before this horrid nightmare began!''
The emerald green shined so bright the cave was not even visible for a second till it dissipated and showed the angel slowly starting to move his limbs, his ears and eyes seemed to have stopped bleeding but he rubbed his head letting out a massive sigh,
''Why does my head hurt? Who used filthy nature magic again?''
The crew all smiled and laughed at the Angel's expense before the laughter was broken by the sound of metal slamming into the ground. The crew all looked to see an angry Mathis now sitting up on his bed, Orelia and Yyvonne seemed so happy before his raspy voice came out, no eloquence that they were used to,
''Oi goblin...Get your little ass over here. I want my Sand Storm back now!''
The goblin sighed through a smile, laughing and pointing to the bag near his bed,
''Well you robbed something that is whole lot more valuable so keep it as pay-''
The goblin was interrupted by Lytesbane flying past his face before reforming in the princes hand, using it to stand and walk towards the goblin as he began to run and hide but still heard the shouts of the manic prince,
''Hiding just makes this worse! Come out now and we can talk about it!''
The crew all did not care but more than anything were happy to see the False Heroes were not to be stopped here.
So we find our adventures forcing the young to make important choices though it is harsh and seemingly without reason, pain and learning go hand in hand I'm afraid. As an old age goes, pain creates fear which makes your blades sharper and your wits faster but relying on these will always bring back the blade to bite you or something like that. Monks are awfully wordy…. Though back to the subject at hand the idea of potentially tampering with someone's fate is a funny business, there is a reason helpers are viewed with such hmm...pity? Maybe not the word ah never mind let's get back to the False Heroes and their transgressions against the world...Hm? No I am not surprised by their actions directly after major surgery...If I woke up from a similar operation and someone had lit my candles then...No I'd probably do worse now that I think about it...Stop judging a god. That must be against your tenants or something right? Whatever let us see what happens next as they move away from swinging their blades and start to wield their quills as they start to rebuild and become something that will make their enemies think twice before invading...Possibly...Okay delay would be the correct term not stop talking and let me continue.