Nicole stepped out of the hive-ship to find Kazic lying on the ground, sweating excessively and bleeding from many small wounds on his legs, while Vanu defended him from the remnants of the spiders with a pair of blaster pistols!
The two women quickly dispatched the last of the spiders and Nicole knelt beside Kazic, dreading the worst as she evaluated his condition. Some of the wounds looked like acid burns, while others were dead flesh surrounded by skin that was puffy and red, appearing like some kind of fast-acting, flesh-eating bacteria! He was already unconscious, his breathing labored and his pulse weak!
Nicole was deeply concerned beyond anything she’d expected, realizing in that moment, as Kazic lay near death, exactly how much he meant to her!
Looking straight at Vanu as she embraced Kazic, Nicole commanded, “There’s a medical kit in the armory! Go and get it!”
Vanu rushed away, while Nicole switched off the nullifier, embraced Kazic and started the ancient troll song of healing. It was difficult, because, as an anti-mage, Kazic was more resistant to magic than even the average dwarf. Nicole pressed her will into the magic with everything she had and sang with all her heart, just barely managing to overcome the anti-magic field surrounding the dwarf!
As she sang, she checked his pulse, satisfied to find it getting stronger, but then as she briefly sat up to check Kazic’s wounds, she saw little difference: her healing magic had stopped the progress of the bacteria, but it wasn’t a cure!
Nicole wept freely as she sang, feeling as though the foundation of reality had broken beneath her feet, leaving her dangling by a mere thread!
Vanu returned with the kit, sat down beside the two of them and unzipped the bag in front of Nicole with a clear look of panic in her eyes.
Nicole stopped singing long enough to shout, “Empty syringe!”
Searching through the kit, then finally dumping it out, to save time, Vanu located the requested item! Nicole snapped it out of the dwarf’s hand and sat up just long enough to jab it into her arm, drawing some blood, while Vanu appeared seriously confused. As soon as Nicole had a syringe full of blood, she jabbed it into Kazic’s thigh, right in one of the largest arteries, then pushed the plunger down!
Once again embracing the dwarf, she sang her heart out, desperate to save his life, because she’d only just realized she loved him!
Within a few minutes, his eyes flicked open and he noted with great satisfaction how close she was to him, causing him to mutter, with a smile, “Worth it.”
Nicole smiled with relief and her eyes blurred with flowing tears of joy, but since he wasn’t fully healed, she continued to sing.
Briefly rising to check Kazic’s wounds, Nicole was satisfied to see they were finally healing, if a bit slowly. She held Kazic in her arms for close to twenty minutes. He ended up with some nasty scars on his ankles and calves, but he was out of danger and her magic seemed unable to do much more, at least for the moment.
Nicole stopped singing and laid in the dirt beside the dwarf, exhausted from pushing her magic to the very limits. Her head ached, fiercely, despite all the recent excitement and the adrenaline that was still rushing through her veins. She switched the nullifier back on and the pressure of the spell gnawing on her mind decreased. The headache immediately started to fade.
“Why did you inject him with your blood?” Vanu asked as she re-packed the emergency kit.
“Troll blood carries our regenerative magic. It’s almost a cure-all.” She turned her head to face Kazic, who met her gaze, “Just be grateful my blood type is O-negative, or I wouldn’t have dared try that!”
“Aye. Ye have me thanks.”
Starting to weep again, Nicole rolled onto her side, grabbed Kazic’s beard and gently pulled his head close to hers, kissing him for the first time.
When their lips parted, he was grinning from ear to ear as he repeated himself, “Worth it!”
Nicole chuckled and smiled back, “I love you,” then her tone became harsh, “but don’t ever scare me like that again!”
“Me saw ye get hurt and lost me temper, but ye’re right. Ye have me word, me’ll be more careful in the future. Also, me loves ye, too.”
“What was that all about?” Vanu asked, gesturing to the wreckage of their attackers and the hive-ship.
Nicole and Kazic answered, in unison, “The Architect.”
“Who?”
Nicole started from the beginning…
“…and now I suspect the Architect is going to keep attacking us, until he gets our portion of the city.” Nicole finished, “I don’t see any other explanation for those golems shaped like me. Who else would have done that?”
With the full explanation given, Vanu shook her head and glared at Kazic, “Ye didn’t tell me ye were involved in a war!”
He sat up and protested, “Me didn’t know it, until those things showed up!” To Nicole, he asked, “Why did ye call them golems?”
“Golem is the term I’d use for magically animated materials, especially if they’re not sentient. They’re basically magic robots.”
“Wait, me could have used me anti-magic on them?” Kazic asked.
Both Nicole and Vanu groaned, then Nicole answered, “You might have been able to shut them down. Next time, use your head instead of charging into battle.”
“Aye. Me’s sorry me lost me temper.”
Ustrina walked inside and quietly made her way over to the couch she’d been sleeping on, only to find it was too small, for she’d grown from the size of a large dog to the size of a small car in the middle of the battle. With a grumble of irritation, she curled up on the floor, instead.
Walking over to the table she’d been working at, Vanu shook her head and turned over the plans she’d drawn up for the city. She also began flipping through her books.
“Me’s starting over on the design.” She explained, “Me didn’t know the city could fly until today, so me needs to rethink things, but me thinks me can save time by reusing elements of the old design and me’s definitely adding places for anti-aircraft blasters.”
“Good idea.” Kazic brushed himself off and stood up, “Me thinks me knows a few good mercenaries we could hire to defend the city.”
He appeared uncomfortable as he walked, likely due to the scarring on his legs, so Nicole got to her feet and asked in a concerned tone, “Are you okay?”
“Me legs are a little stiff.” He smiled back, “They probably just need a good stretch. Ye should stay here and defend the place, while me goes for help.”
“Okay.” Nicole leaned over and kissed him, leaving Kazic smiling as he limped his way to the transport room.
After he was gone, Nicole strapped on her weapon belt and started cleaning by mopping up the blood on the floor, most of which was her own. After that, she started collecting the broken bits of the golems, for recycling.
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As she worked, Vanu looked up and loudly grumbled to herself.
“What?” Nicole asked.
“Me just realized me owes Kazic fifty gold!”
“How so?”
Vanu smiled at Nicole, “When ye kissed Kazic, ye settled our bet. He was so awkward as a child, me bet him he wouldn’t kiss a girl before the age of twenty-five, but since it happened, he won, but me was so close to winning! It’s not so bad to lose this bet, though he had to nearly die to make it happen.”
“When is his birthday?”
“Six months. Me figured he’d never make it.” Vanu shook her head, “It just goes to show, ye don’t bet against a dwarf!”
Nicole smiled, glad to have something lighthearted to distract her from the dark thoughts of the loss she’d nearly experienced, surprised by the intensity of her own emotions regarding Kazic.
Kazic spent a productive half-hour with Lognur, the dwarf leader of a mercenary company named Vigilant Hawk, who agreed to supply them with troops for a reasonable fee. With a good deal struck, he gave them codes to use Nicole’s teleporter.
After that, Kazic went to the hospital. He hadn’t wanted to tell Nicole, but he could only barely move his legs. He was embarrassed and worried he might have been crippled for life, but hadn’t wanted to burden her with such thoughts, at least until he’d talked with a doctor.
Fortunately, the city was having a good day, with few emergencies, and he was able to immediately see a doctor. The emergency room stank of disinfectant, but the diagnostic bed he lay on was at least comfortable. Before vanishing for a bit, the doctor rolled a heavy piece of machinery over, which hung over his legs and whirred for a few minutes, scanning them in great detail.
Like all elves, the doctor had pointy ears that sat flat against the side of his head. He also had blond hair and carried a tablet computer in his hands, from which he read, shaking his head in a way that wasn’t at all comforting.
“Why didn’t you come in immediately after getting injured?” The elf spoke in a frustrated tone while he rolled the heavy equipment away from the bed, “We could have done something to reduce the scarring.”
Kazic growled back, with annoyance, “This happened just an hour ago!”
“Then how did you heal so fast from such extensive injuries?”
“Me friend is a troll and used healing magic on me, but me gathers it wasn’t working, so she injected me with some of her blood.”
“Ah, troll healing. Sorry, I shouldn’t have jumped to conclusions. Well, I have good news and bad, then.”
“Give me the bad, first.” Kazic sat up.
“Your legs are completely full of scar tissue, which is going to make walking uncomfortable and without treatment, you won’t get better.”
“That’s pretty bad. What’s the good news?”
“Troll blood is a powerful cure-all. It doesn’t work as well in dwarves, but if you’re injected every day, then you should make a full recovery within two to four weeks. We can treat you, here, but since you clearly know one of the only two trolls in the city, then you’re better off just asking her for help. It’ll cost a lot less in the long run.”
Up to a month? That was too long when expecting combat at any time.
Kazic thanked the doctor and left the hospital. As he walked the streets of the city, very slowly, concerned both for his own health and that of Nicole, he turned down a street he’d walked as a watchman, looking for a business that was always busy and often troublesome, knowing the owner owed him a favor.
The Last Chance resembled a medical clinic and, as always, there was a line of desperate people that went halfway around the block, all of whom looked like they’d give just about anything for a cure to what ailed them. Most appeared to have some form of permanent injury or were sick with some kind of disease, probably incurable. Others appeared healthy, but with the hunted look of family that were desperate to cure a loved one, at any price.
Kazic hated the owner of the clinic, since they really were the lowest of the low, nearly as bad as a snake-oil salesman, but with an important difference: the cure offered was effective against all ailments and according to rumor, it had even been used to raise the recently dead. The owner knew exactly what they had and charged far too much.
Ignoring the line, Kazic stepped inside and took in the sight of a handful of women that appeared to be of Greek ancestry, giving up tiny samples of a drug in exchange for widely-varying sums of money. On the back wall of the clinic was a large sign, which read, Rich or poor, the price is the same: one-million gold, or one tenth of all you possess, whichever is less.
The disgusting price had always made Kazic feel sick, inside. He briefly watched as a poor beggar gave them his hat for the cure, while the next man handed over a large sum of gold. The old Greek goddess of medicine, Panacea, could have done so much good in the galaxy, but had instead chosen to cash in on her restored power, rather than being noble and helpful. He particularly hated the way she and her sisters preyed on the unfortunate, making them little better than parasites.
The sisters of Panacea, also old goddesses, smiled at Kazic and one of them asked, “What can we do for a former watchman today?”
“Ye owes me a favor, as ye may recall, for the time me broke up an angry mob during one of me days off. Me’s here to collect on that favor.”
“Of course.” The goddess gestured to a door at the back of the room, “Panacea is in the main office, counting our earnings for the week.”
Kazic hobbled his way to the back and entered the office. It was a windowless room, moodily lit by a single candle, for Panacea was so miserly, she refused to pay for electricity, even though she was widely-rumored to be the richest person on the planet.
Looking up, the dark-haired goddess smiled, “Ah, my old friend, Kazic! Are you here to collect on the debt I owe you, at long last?”
Getting straight down to business, Kazic leaped into bargaining, “Eight doses!”
Dwarves were renowned for their bargaining skills and a well-earned reputation for not letting go of money unless they had to.
“One.” Panacea smoothly countered.
Her reputation as a miser was even worse than the average dwarf and the angry mob Kazic had taken care of, long ago, had been the result of a customer trying to bargain, to which she’d answered by throwing him out of The Last Chance. The angry customer had responded by manipulating the crowd into an angry mob, which Kazic had been timely enough to defuse, before a riot started.
“Six!” Kazic demanded, in turn.
“Oh, come now! We’re talking about something that can cure literally anything, even death! What’s that in comparison to a mere favor? You’ll get one dose and no more!”
“That crowd was ready to string ye and yer sisters up! If me hadn’t stepped in, they would have sent ye packing from the world, on the point of a sword! Ye’ll give me five doses!”
Looking angry, Panacea growled, “You greedy dwarf, how dare you walk into my home and treat me this way! You should count yourself lucky if you walk out of here with even a single dose! I can’t believe your nerve, daring to try and bargain with a goddess!”
“Ye’re no goddess to me!” Kazic spat on the floor and growled back, “Ye’re more like a piece of scum me scraped off me boot! Four doses or me’ll walk right outside and tell the crowd ye don’t pay yer debts!”
“I don’t care what those fools think of me!” Panacea sneered, “Go right ahead!”
“Three doses or me tells them yer cure didn’t work on me! Me knows yer power is based on belief,” he spoke calmly and with menace, “so me knows ye can’t afford any doubt, not even reasonable doubt.”
“Better men and dwarves than you have tried that threat. Now, stop arguing or you’ll get nothing from me!”
“Two doses or me goes to the Heart Forge Daily News and tells the editor all yer dirty secrets! Me knows she’s been looking for any kind of dirt on ye, since no one likes ye.” Kazic gave her an evil grin of determination.
“I won’t be blackmailed,” Panacea grumbled, “but just this once, I’ll ignore your empty threat and even give you one dose, to repay the favor I owe you, but only if you leave and never return. That’s my final offer. You can take it or leave with nothing, your choice, but you’re now banned and your money’s no good here.”
“Fine.” Kazic reluctantly admitted defeat.
He’d hoped to get at least two doses of Panacea’s cure-all elixir, one for himself and one for Nicole, but he could accept waiting for Nicole to heal him slowly, over time, if the cure could save her from the spell in her mind.
He watched as the woman poured a small amount of her elixir from an ancient, ceramic bottle, into a small, modern pill capsule, sealing it by slipping the other half of the gel capsule on it, resulting in an immediate glue-like reaction. The room filled with the scent of rare herbs and pomegranates as she worked.
Kazic silently accepted the pill and left without further argument.
Nicole was in a lengthy discussion with Commander Lognur of the mercenaries about both short and long-term defensive plans, while one of his men sat beside Vanu, giving advice on defensive measures for the city. So far, Nicole was impressed by the professional way the mercenaries behaved.
Lognur was larger than the typical dwarf, looking like he hit the gym nearly every day, appearing like the muscular epitome of the typical dwarven champion. He had a neatly-trimmed beard and mustache, though it was long and wrapped around his belt, to keep it from getting in the way.
Pop! - Nicole immediately smiled on seeing Kazic arrive, via the teleporter.
He waited for Nicole’s conversation with Lognur to finish and held his hand out to Nicole, opening it to reveal a pill.
“What’s that?” She asked.
“Panacea’s elixir, in pill form. It can cure most anything. Me was hoping it would help ye with the spell stuck in yer head. Me would suggest holding on to it until ye need it most, because they cost so much. Ye could think of it as a backup plan, in case everything else goes wrong.”
Smiling even wider, Nicole accepted the gift, which she secured in one of the pouches on her weapon belt, where it would always be available.
“Thank you, Kazic.” She stepped closer and kissed him, causing him to smile, widely.
“As for me legs, the doctor tells me ye should be able to fix them with daily injections of yer blood until me’s healed, if ye’re willing.”
“I’d be happy to.”
