The Cast Die

Vac woke up to see himself being tended to. There were tubes going in and out of him, as a blonde-haired man sat next to him while taking notes on his condition. Vac called out to the man in a hoarse voice.

The man, Asclepius, noticed and put down his notepad. With a smile Asclepius said, “You're awake, excellent. I've removed most of the mana in your body, but some still remains. Your muscles have been torn, your ligaments have been strained, and a good portion of your blood was corrupted. For the latter, I've replaced it with some fresh blood. Any questions?”

Vac shifted his body slightly to face the healer and asked, “Who are you?”

The healer blinked. Vac frowned as he looked at his eyes. ‘Huh, he has green eyes.’

Asclepius rubbed the back of his head sheepishly and replied, “Ah, right. Where are my manners? I'm Asclepius, a doctor. How much do you remember of how you came here?”

His head hurt, but he focused his thoughts. One vague memory came to mind, though he wasn't sure if that had actually happened. “Was there somebody riding on a flying horse, or did I hallucinate?”

Asclepius chuckled and replied, “No. That wasBellerophon riding on Pegasus. It's an awe-inspiring sight, isn't it?”

‘Pegasus? As in the Pegasus? Incredible.’

While Vac was trying to wrap his head around the concept, Asclepius asked, “This isn't really my business, but would you mind sharing your story?”

‘I could hide it, but I'm at this guy's mercy anyway. He doesn't seem like a bad guy, and I could use his help.’

And so Vac began to share his story. When he reached the part where he first stole the die, he suddenly realized that he didn't have it in his hand. He strained himself to pat his pockets, and to his horror it wasn't present there. ‘Oh no, did it fall out of my hand while I was falling through the air?’

Asclepius realized what Vac was stressed about and said, “Hey, don't worry, that thing you were holding onto is right here.”

Vac sighed a breath of relief when he saw the table Asclepius was pointing at. On it he saw his die wrapped around a cloth. On the same table there were a bunch of medical tools that Vac had never seen before; items we would recognize as a stethoscope, a syringe, an ophthalmoscope, chloroform anesthesia, and various other medical concoctions. ‘I’ve never seen tools like these. Was the world below always this advanced? I'd assumed things like these were exclusive to the followers of Minerva.’

As Vac was lost in thought, Asclepius called out to him. He continued on with the story. After he finished, there was a pregnant pause as Asclepius considered the information. Finally the man sighed and said, “I see you've had it rough. I must say, you're… Well, I won't say lucky, but you're certainly looked over by the Three Fates. First finding the die, and then falling right as Bellerophon was close enough to save you and bring you to me. They must have a great destiny in store for you.”

‘Destiny, huh. Personally I disagree.’

“I don't really think that's the case. I just happened to be the guy. I believe that some way or the other, my people would have gotten free, with or without me or someone else stealing the die. It probably would have happened later, but the desire for freedom is not something that can be quenched. I've been lucky in ways I myself didn't fully appreciate for a while. I don't believe the Fates control our destiny, for free will is the greatest force of all.”

Asclepius chuckled.

“Interesting. I suppose that is fitting for a follower of Jupiter. Well, I agree insofar as I believe we must make our own choices, based purely on two things, the facts, and the ideals, and the facts always come first. Speaking of, what choice will you make now, Vac? You can wait for Bellerophon to return, though I don’t know how long that’ll take, or you can try to find a way back home yourself, which would be incredibly difficult. Personally I’d recommend the former.”

‘Hmm. It does sound like the simplest way, but…’

“Can you tell me more about where I am?”

Asclepius nodded and answered, “You’re near the edge of the kingdom of Sicily, near the borders to the republic of Rome. The kingdom of Sicily is largely composed of followers of Demeter. The capital city is Syracuse and is where the king is. It’s about two weeks out by carriage. The king is Pyrrus, who’s famed for his military exploits against Rome.”

‘I’m not familiar with most of those names, but I know of Rome. How could I not? That’s where those bastard followers of Minerva are from.’

After some thought, Vac made his decision.

“I’ll head for Syracuse and meet the king.”

Asclepius looked surprised. He asked in a confused tone, “Why would you do that? If you’re worried about Bellerophon not returning, I can assure you he always returns.”

Vac replied, “Well I know that, but I don't want to just sit around. Even if it might be small, there's a chance that he doesn't return this time. Moreover, the followers of Minerva are after this die. They'll be looking for it, and I don't want to risk dragging you into that mess.”

‘Plus, I want to meet this king. If he's famed for fighting against the followers of Minerva, he could be a useful ally.’

Asclepius didn't look convinced, so he added, “Besides, Bellerophon rides the Pegasus, so it wouldn't take him long to meet up with me. You can just tell him where I went when he returns.”

Asclepius didn't look happy about it, but with a sigh he agreed.

“Alright, but you aren't ready to leave just yet. It'll take at least a week for you to recover well enough to try something like that. And I must warn you, there's still mana in your body. I couldn't remove it all. It will eat at you from the inside. I'll give you some medicine to help out and relieve the pain, but if you want to live a long life it's best you take it easy.”

Vac chuckled inwardly at the statement. ‘A long life? I've never once thought I'd have that.’

With that agreed upon, Vac spent the next week with Asclepius and the others in the village. It looked like an ordinary farming village on the surface, but they had access to tools and technology that Vac had never even known of. They used tools like reapers to reduce the workload, but stranger than that was the fact that a lot of them seemed to treat farming as a part time job, as they all had other fields they focused on.

‘Well it's none of my business. They helped me out, there's no need to bother them about it. It's not as though I know much about the world below, and most of what I do know is likely outdated.’

Asclepius also taught him some first aid and the recipes for some herbal medicines. ‘We have a healer on the island as well, but she was more of a priest/healer/handyman who didn't know nearly as much as this guy does.’

Vac had asked why he was being taught all this, and Asclepius replied, “I believe that the practice of medicine is something that applies to everyone.”

As the week ended, Vac finished his stretches for the day. ‘Not bad, my condition is decent.’

He headed off to Asclepius to say goodbye, who for his part was helping him pack.

Asclepius said, “All right then, I've given you a map, some notes on various things to know and look out for, medical supplies, some food, and a compass. I assume you packed the other thing you'll need yourself. I suppose it's time for you to leave then.”

Vac reached for a hug and gently kissed Asclepius on the cheek, the highest form of respect he could give as per his culture. As he left, Asclepius sighed, and quietly prayed, “Please protect him, Lady Minerva. Lend him your wisdom.”