Bride of the Dark Lord

#30 The Mage Bane III

I sighed. It was almost sundown. Carefully scraping off the foul layers had taken longer than I expected. And while I scraped some off, an hour or two later, they grew back. And so, I peeled them off again.

And now, the raw flesh below was on display. Looking as if it had been poked with a sharp object for several hours, which was kind of what happened, while scraping.

"You'll be well again, I assure you" I said to the soldier, who nodded. He's been sitting down too for hours.

I stood up, removed my gloves and tied it in a sack, it was to be burnt later. After that, I took my soap and washed my hands thoroughly.

Then, walked back to my patient. And sat down behind him. I took in deep breaths. Concentrate. Xemein. You can do this.

This was the moment that after peeling off the scaled skin, the Gifted healing is used, 'cause now, the healer was in contact with the normal skin, that can receive the healer's magic. It was also the moment where most healers were already tired, after hours of scraping off foul skin.

My bare hands touched the raw flesh, releasing my healing magic. No change! The skin still remained red and angry.

I lifted my hands, placed it again on the raw skin of my patient. Willing it to be healed. Willing it to never grow scaled skin and infectious pus again.

Once more, nothing happened!

My healing Gift knew my body was exhausted.

No. No. My heart doubled its beat. I made a promise to this soldier. Please work!

"I'm not ever going to get better right?" My thin bearded patient said.

I hesitated in replying. This task would be best for two healers to carry out, but rarely, do you see even a single healer willing to try, talk more of two.

The mage bane has built a reputation that instilled terror in the minds of healing mages, and after it befell some famed healers in the past, when they tried to cure it, it became known as the mage bane. The poison of healers. Death of healers. Those famous healing mages, ended up dying from it.

To the soldier, I repeated what I told him, when I first entered here, "have faith in me". This meticulous process has worked once in the past, with a woman who had three healing mages as blood relatives, and now, I hoped it worked again.

So, I repeated it. Placing my hands on him and muttering, "Mother of Light. Origin of our Gifts, I have faith in you".

I promised this man's wife and kids that I could heal him, 'cause I had needed their consent to try and heal him. I couldn't be the one to break the wife's heart after giving her hope that her husband could be saved.

His family would be outside the camp now, waiting to hear good news. Please, Mother of Light.

Then my thoughts changed. Unlike the successful procedure, no other healer was here with me, but for me, as a Gifted, what has ever distinguished me from other Gifted healers? The thought probed my mind.

Feeder! I thought. I'm a Feeder.

I closed my eyes. Placed my fingers lightly on the raw flesh one more time. As I focused my senses. Absorbing the magic from the breeze. And then, taking in more, from the four core elements - air, water, earth and fire. 

And I felt the fireplace that was once burning brightly, slowly extinguish.

And as if I just sucked in the Gift of someone else, and now, needed to let it out. I pushed it right out of me like a flood! With every ounce of energy left in me. Be healed! My Gifted soul willed.

And I felt more and more massive amounts of energy being drained from every part of me. From every cell in my body, soul and mind. It was as if every thing that composed me had been dragged right out of me. And now, I was empty. Totally and completely empty. A void vessel. 

I howled in pain "hah!"

To restore him, the magic was taking all of me. All of my strength.

And then, I felt myself start to fall. Collapse, faint, whatever you call it.

And the last thing I saw, before my eyes finally closed, was my Dark Lord ramming down the door with his huge body. Rage, burning in his eyes!

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