A Healer's Gift: Adventures of Brad: Book 1 (Adventures on Brad)

by Tao Wong

  “Where are we going?” Daniel asks once again. Perhaps this time he’ll get an actual answer.

  “Celebration. Anika,” Asin replies in her usual terse matter. Daniel rolls his eyes and is suddenly glad of Khy’ra’s presence. He shoots an imploring look at Khy’ra who runs a hand through her hair, green eyes sparkling.

  “It’s the Beastkin celebration for Anika, their First Hero,” Khy’ra says. “I believe today would mark the 497th anniversary for the founding of the city of Marloo by Anika, the first major step to the creation of Garhwa and thus the first Beastkin nation.”

  Daniel scratches his head and sighs, somewhat abashed at his lack of knowledge. Spending most of his time in the mines that were dominated by humans and the occasional dwarf, he had little knowledge of the other races. It just had never been part of his world view till now.

  Asin does not lead them straight to the Beastkin district though, instead stopping by a butcher first. Unlike many, the butcher seems more than happy to see Asin as Asin is one of her most regular and best customers. Today’s order was noteworthy even for the small carnivore and Asin quickly drags Daniel over to help with the large sack.

  “This thing must weigh a good 80 pounds! What did you do? Buy a whole pig?” Daniel grumbles as he lifts the sack. Asin’s cheerful nod makes him groan again but he stays silent as they continue the walk, Khy’ra regretfully detached from Daniel’s arm now.

  They continue to journey through the streets of Karlak, Khy’ra as always smiling and nodding to those she recognises. The elf garners more than one admiring glance as always, though most either dismiss Asin’s presence or watch her extra carefully. After a time, the trio leave the normal thoroughfares that Daniel knows, the roads becoming narrower, buildings growing older and more rundown though still well washed and well kept. The transition is gradual at first, but as they step out from another alleyway, its like walking into another city.

  The streets are filled with Beastkin of all kinds, from arrogant Wolfkin to stately Catkin, grumbly Jackals, lazy Ursines and more. As great a surprise for Daniel however are the riot of colours and smells that make up the streets. A wild divergence from humanity’s boring pastels are the vibrant colours that the Beastkin coat their dwellings in, yellows and greens and reds covering walls and wood trim and even layered on roofs. For the celebration, strings of red and white flow from one side of the alley to the other with trailing hand-painted scrolls depicting memorable scenes beneath. Food and other scents cling to the air, mixing with wild abandon and assaulting Daniel’s senses and he reels, wondering how the Beastkin are able to handle all this. Even his human senses are over-whelmed, how do they handle it?

  By his side, both Asin and Khy’ra watch with amusement, treasuring the view as Daniel struggles to deal with the overload. When he finally recovers, Asin tugs on his hand and points, leading him to a cooking pit that has been set up in front of a shop where he is directed to set the pig.

  A rumbly, growly conversation ensues between Asin and the presiding cook, both getting more and more agitated. Daniel frowns, hairs prickling on the back of his neck and he unconsciously reaches for his non-existent mace. Khy’ra reaches for and grabs his hand, pulling him close to whisper, “It’s okay, they’re just arguing about how to cook the meat. Beastkin are loud amongst themselves.”

  Daniel grimaces and sighs, watching his normally quiet companion get into a shouting match. Unsure what to do, the two lovers stand and watch the scenes around them and ignore the arguing pair, Beastkin children streaming through the streets in a never-ending game of tag, miraculously dodging busy adults without fail. A large, black Catkin dressed in a garishly coloured yellow tunic and blousy white pants strides up to the pair, hands splayed with paws facing the sky in greeting. He is a mixture of human and Catkin traits, a feline angled face but lacking the over-abundance of fur that marks Asin’s own visage. “Khy’ra and Daniel it must be. May you find safety at our fires.”

  Khy’ra copies the hand greeting and after a brief moment, so does Daniel. She intones the ritual response as well, “Elder Chetan, may your fire burn forever safely.”

  Unsure if he should repeat the message, Daniel just falls back on being silent. Elder Chetan turns to the young Adventurer, black fur wrinkling in amusement before he speaks, only the slightest of growls marring his voice, “Thank you for coming. And thank you for taking care of my daughter.”

  “Daughter…” Daniel catches on quickly enough and shakes his head. “We take care of each other. We’re partners.”

  The Elder chuffs and continues, “Yes. It is good that she has found one who is willing to accept her. Asin has not had it easy, being closer to the progenitor than many other Kin.”

  Daniel’s puzzled looks just has the Elder explain, first stepping closer to allow himself to lower his voice, “It is strange. In Garhwa, she would be exalted. Here, in Brad, we strive to be closer to you humans and she is despised.” Ears droop, the Elder shrugs. “I love my daughter, but she could have made it easier on herself too. She is stubborn and prideful, much like her mother.”

  Daniel smiles slightly, having noticed both aspects of his companion on more than one occasion. It could be frustrating at times to deal with, but so could he, he had been told.

  “Still, this is not the time for this! Come, you must drink some saboo and dance,” the Elder claps his paws together and drags the two off, growling out his intentions to his daughter who just waves him away. The argument with that obstinate cook who wishes to use wyxli spice on her pig had to be completed. Wyxli spice! Everyone knew you used jylin leaves and cracked esper spice to get the best taste from roast pig.

  The ensuing hours pass in laughter and amusement, the Elder happy to pay host to the two guests. As the day progresses, Daniel notes that his and Khy’ra’s presence are a notable exception, the Beastkin having the run of this neighbourhood to themselves. That is other than a loud, boisterous Tharuk in a drinking competition with a bear which neither seem ready to concede. Through the day, Daniel has food and drink stuffed into his hands continuously, meats of various types such that even his own carnivorous nature is more than fulfilled.

  Only once is there silence, when the sun reaches its zenith. The Beastkin fall silent, staring to the sky, the silence lingering for minutes. At first the growls are too low for Daniel to hear, though he can feel it in his bones as the voices of the assembled Beastkin surround him. Slowly, it goes higher and higher, the growls resolving into an animalistic song that tugs at a deeply hidden part of him. When the song is over, Daniel finds himself breathing heavily as if from a long run, his face flushed and his eyes sparkling. A glance at Khy’ra shows that even the Elven beauty is affected, the smouldering look she gives him makes him wonder briefly if he can find an empty room somewhere.

  Asin joins them soon after the ceremony and drags Daniel to a nearby warehouse where a small arena has been created. There, Beastkin challenge each other in various feats of athleticism. Once, even Daniel is dragged into the centre to join in the feat of strength, though he is quickly outclassed by the massive Ursine and Buffalo Beastkin who make up the majority of the contestants. It is Khy’ra who proves the surprise, laughingly dancing and stealing ribbons in the game of tag and agility that the Catkin and Snakes dominate otherwise. Eventually, even she is caught but many of the Beastkin eye the Elf with new respect.

  During a lull in the evening, Daniel finally manages to ask the question that has disturbed him all day, “Asin’s very talkative isn’t she.”

  “Yes, yes she is,” Khy’ra answers.

  “So, why doesn’t she talk to me?” Daniel grumbles.

  “Do you talk to her in Beastkin?”

  “No…” Daniel frowns. “She seems to understand me well…”

  “Yes dear,” Khy’ra sighs and touches his throat and then hers, “Now look at hers.”

  Daniel does as she says, finally looking and then slowly blinks, feeling ashamed, “She has trouble speaking doesn’t she?” />
  “In Brad? Yes.”

  Daniel falls silent then, absently chewing on the rib he is given. He stops, grimacing and puts the food down again as his stomach catches up to his hands. Way too much food. Khy’ra pushes his shoulder with her own and he meets her eyes, where she just shakes her head slightly. Getting the message, he focuses on having fun. This is not the time for such thoughts. Smiling, he holds a hand out and Khy’ra takes it, letting herself be pulled onto the dance floor again with a laugh.

  Chapter 26

  “There you are!” Liev’s sudden appearance makes the two Adventurers jump, Asin making it half-way up the nearest wall while Daniel drops into a crouch, shield up. They then both blink, after all, they’re both on the seventh floor working their way through a couple of Ogres and Liev had never been spotted anywhere close to the Dungeon before. “Take my hand.”

  Daniel frowns and Liev sighs, no longer asking and reaching out to grab his hand and Asin’s arm in short order. A surge of power takes them both out of the Dungeon directly into a room that neither have seen before. The two Adventurers stare around themselves dumb-founded, a window to the outside room indicating that they are in town and in the Guild itself.

  “How…?” Daniel says.

  “Group Teleport. It’s a level 50 Adventurers Skill Proficiency,” Liev explains as he gestures to Daniel. ‘Come, you’re needed.”

  Daniel automatically follows but stops short, Liev pointing to Asin who has started to come to. “Your presence will be unhelpful my dear. We go to see the Champion. And don’t give me that look Daniel, we need your Gift.”

  Daniel wipes the mulish look off his face, grimacing and following after the fast disappearing attendant. He frowns in thought though, surprised to find that Liev was or perhaps still is a high-level Adventurer. Liev certainly didn’t have the bearing of a fighter. In fact, the thought of Liev holding a sword makes Daniel chuckle to himself internally, the bookish and fastidious red-haired older gentleman ignorant of Daniel’s amusement.

  “The Champion and his party were ambushed. Most died in the attack and the Champion himself is gravely injured. We need you to heal him Daniel,” Liev says.

  “Uhh…” Daniel’s initial amusement is wiped away at Liev’s words as he struggles to catch up mentally.

  Liev turns, getting into Daniel’s face and speaking emphatically, “Young man, I understand your position. I almost admire it. However, this is not the time or place. The Orcs haven’t sent a raiding party, they sent a War Party. There are over 300 Orcs rampaging through the province at this moment and that man, for all of his distasteful views, is the most powerful weapon we have. If. He. Survives.”

  Daniel gulps, the thought of 300 Orcs laying waste to the countryside enough to force him to cast aside any personal feelings he had. While he was no Healer, he understood their oath – to treat all that needed it, no matter their personal feelings. Daniel nods firmly, and in silence the pair hurry to the barracks where the Champion lies injured.

  The sight that greets Daniel when he enters makes him pale. The Champion, once a larger than life presence is gravely hurt, multiple open wounds on his chest and limbs. Most dangerous of all was the distorted skull, pressure and shattered bones causing it to bulge out. For a moment, Daniel can just stare before he takes a deep shuddering breath.

  A hand touches Daniel’s, gripping tight and he notices for the first time the presence of others in the room. The Guard Captain he knows by sight, Khy’ra obviously, but the other three are unknown to him. The first seems to be another healer from the way he works on the Champion’s wounds but the other two he is unable to guess. One is a portly human with a beard, the other a female with a thick gold chain around her neck. The chain clues him in on her at last – that was the Merchant Guild’s seal on it. Khy’ra squeezes his hand again, bringing his attention back to her.

  “Can you heal him?”

  Daniel nods mutely, a part of him already assessing the damage and what he would need to do. The greater part of his mind though stalls at the cost of the healing, a cost that would dwarf anything he had done in years. Only once before had he attempted something this powerful, and in that case, he had eventually failed. No Gift could win against the ravages of time, not in the end.

  “Daniel,” Khy’ra turns her lover’s gaze to meets hers, concern etching her voice. “What’s wrong?”

  “My Gift…” he struggles against his irrational fear of telling them, the fear that they will exploit him, what they will ask of him, force on him. His hand, entwined with hers begins shaking violently.

  “What is the holdup?” the portly human speaks imperiously, pointing, “Heal him Adventurer. I won’t have the Baron’s Champion die in my city!”

  Khy’ra turns to the man, shooting a glare that would have killed if it could. Liev steps in, holding a hand up, “My lord mayor, this space is no longer suitable for non-Healers. I believe we should retire.”

  “I’m the Mayor!” Snapping, the portly man begins to set himself when the woman leans over, whispering in his ear. He grunts and finally stumps out, following closely by the woman and Liev. Just before she leaves, she casts an assessing glance at the pale Daniel before turning away. The healer, after a glance at Khy’ra moves to a corner, giving the two space.

  “Daniel, talk to me. Please…” Khy’ra implores him, holding both their hands up and placing a kiss on the top of his.

  Daniel draws a deep shuddering breath and then whispers, softly, “When I use my Gift, I lose a bit of myself. A bit of what I’ve learnt, a bit of my memories, a bit of my skills and some of my energy. The Gift, it strips me of these things when I use it. It’s normally not much, just a few minutes here or there, an hour or two sometimes. This though…” He shivers again, clutching her hand, “I could lose a lot more.”

  Khy’ra’s eyes widen, remembering all the times she blithely asked him to help her in the Clinic, all the times he seemed a bit forgetful or slow afterwards. All the times he acceded without protest when he should have said no, “You… you… idiot!”

  “Yeah,” words said, he seems to relax a bit. “This has to happen doesn’t it?”

  Lips pursed, Khy’ra nods, “It does. The Champion’s another Gifted. If he is able to use his Gift, only a Master Mage or another Gifted can challenge him on the field of battle.”

  Daniel lets her hands go, walking past her to put his hands on the struggling Champion. Almost plaintively, as he thrusts his Gift into the man, “Couldn’t he at least be a little nicer?”

  Khy’ra watches for a moment as Daniel begins then turns, gesturing for the other Healer to keep an eye on them. She has another place to be, words to be spoken. If what Daniel fears is true, he will lose much in this and she intends to ensure he is well compensated for it.

  Focused, Daniel misses the byplay. His Gift tells him all the details he needs, the punctured lung, the shredded intestines, the broken skull and the ever-growing pressure in the head, barely relieved by other methods. A normal human being would have been dead a score over, only the Champion’s stupendous health and the magic used on him managing to keep him alive. Yet his health falls with each breath and he will not last long without further healing.

  Damage assessed, Daniel begins the process of fixing things, plugging the most dangerous wounds first, healing and lowering the pressure in the Champion’s skull whilst bones shift back under the skin to the appropriate locations. Each pulse of power pulls another memory, another shudder through his body as his Gift strips him of recently learnt skills, of muscle and real memory. It is an uncaring taskmaster, removing both pleasant and unpleasant memories, caring not their origin. The Champion’s health works against Daniel now, muscles and organs that would be pliant and easy to heal in another being requiring more energy, more time, more experience from Daniel.

  What feels like hours but is barely half of one passes by before Daniel pulls his senses back into himself. He stumbles, collapsing into a thoughtfully positioned chair as the Cham
pion’s breath eases. The Champion’s wounds are mostly healed, the majority fixed and he no longer does injury to himself with every breath. Bruises and some cuts still lie across the Champions body, but Daniel knows he is no longer in danger. Regular magical healing or plain time will do the rest.

  Level Lost!

  You are now a Level 4 Adventurer

  Attribute Points Lost

  That could have been worse… Daniel stares at the little sliver of Experience he has left keeping him from falling another level and groans. So much experience, so much time lost. Months of hard work, stripped from him, his memory of recent dungeon delves and fights gone. His body aches from the use of the Gift, his nerves and muscles feel stripped raw. However, the job is not done and so he forces himself upright, placing his hand on the Champions chest and invoking his healing spell. He was so close to getting the option to learn a Moderate Heal the next time he received proficiency, so close to becoming more than he was before. Once more, he has been dragged down by his Gift and he can’t help but feel a flare of resentment. Again, he forces down the anger and resentment, focusing on burning through his Mana to finish the job. Later. Later he’ll deal with this.

  The last of his mana drained from him, Daniel turns away to leave. They can deal with the rest of this. All he wants is rest. As he steps aside, an iron grip grasps his arm.

  “You healed me,” the Champion rumbles, awake.

  “Yes,” Daniel says, tugging at his arm. The Champion releases him and stares at the youngster who dared defy him days ago.

  “Why?”

  “It was needed,” Daniel begins and falls silent.

  “And the Cost?” Daniel hears the capitalization, understands what the Champion asks. Another one cursed / blessed with a Gift at birth understands all too well the Cost incurred. It was no simple matter no matter what the others thought. The Champion’s own Gift allowed him to ignore any attack he chose to do so when invoked, but the price was paid in pain days later. The longer the Gift was activated, the worst and longer the pain it inflicted. The payment could be put-off, but not indefinitely.