The Endless Forest

Aluin winced as Eri burst out of his room. He turned away from the door and stared through the window at the trees that made up the Endless Forest.

That had hurt him, not as much as it did Eri, but enough. Enough that he had to restrain himself from chasing after her. She needed time, she needed the comfort of her friends, of Kyrith and Felix. His presence would only make it worse for her, for the both of them…

But I didn’t say all that I wanted. He felt indignant at the thought, at his failure to properly convey his own feelings towards her.

She was more than a student, wasn’t she? She was like a…daughter. Why hadn’t I realized that until now?

He clenched his fists out of frustration. Of course I know why. I knew where this would all end. But I left so, so much unsaid.

Some great Sage I am.

Aluin furrowed his brow and closed his eyes. He knew what his next step would be, he had spent plenty of time planning and meditating on this. I need to leave, at least for a while. Both Eri and Felix need time on their own…

A small smile formed, the thought they were together did bring him some comfort. He had hoped it would happen, even encouraged it when it became obvious that they had feelings for each other.

With a deep breath to steady his emotions, Aluin approached a small desk and pulled out some parchment. He began to write, wanting to leave one final message for his former apprentice.

A few minutes later he was done and quickly folded it up and addressed it to her. Leaving it on the desk, he reached into a hidden pocket and pulled out a small object. Something he had kept away from Felix, even lying about it…

This might be too soon, but I will entrust it to her capable hands. He set it down right on top of his letter.

“I’m leaving for a while, could I ask you for one final favor?” He asked out loud, to the sudden presence of another person.

“Hmm? Why should I?” Ithea asked from behind him.

He shook his head in amusement. “Because you’re still here. You could’ve asked me to void your contract at any time, but you haven’t.”

There was silence for what seemed to stretch on for minutes before she spoke again. “Fine.”

“Keep an eye on them for me, make sure nothing truly bad happens to them. But let them try to figure things out on their own first.”

“Always a slave driver…” She muttered. “Sure, shall I also wipe their asses?”

“No, I don’t think that will be necessary… Thank you, Ithea, I mean it. I hope you’re able to reconnect with your daughter. I wish you the best of luck on that.”

“How did– Never mind, I suppose you’ve also talked with Nevrim. You two were close friends.”

“Still are, but I must get going. Eri took off, probably looking for somewhere to hide for a while.” Aluin straightened his clothes before turning around to face Ithea one last time.

“Good bye, for now.”

Mana began to envelope him as she rolled her eyes and scoffed at him.

“Fucking Sages…”

He was gone.

“The bed! Put him on the bed!” Eri shouted, as they carried Felix into his room. A moment later, they set him down and let out a collective sigh.

Eri didn’t stop, however. She went over to his side and began ripping and pulling his clothes off. “Lorem, Yedril; help!”

They responded quickly to her request and began working on Felix’s pants, stripping him to his undergarments. Once the three were done, Eri motioned for them to step back. In any other circumstance, one would find this situation embarrassing. But she shoved any humorous or awkward thoughts away and focused.

Bruising, possibly internal bleeding? That was her worst fear at the moment, she had already tried some basic healing on him, to no avail. His body was already saturated and refused her spell.

Does… Does he know a healing spell? she wondered to herself. It was the only explanation she could think of at the moment. Her healing of his ribs shouldn’t have saturated his body.

“Noria, can you double check his injuries? I’m worried about internal bleeding, but I can’t find anything.” Her hands were shaking nervously, she didn’t trust herself in her current state.

“I can–”

Lorem cut Noria off before she could finish her sentence. “She’s still suffering from mana exhaustion.”

Eri bit her lip. Noria looked fine, but mana exhaustion wasn’t something you gambled with. That’s how you end up like this… Mana depletion.

She wanted desperately to curse, to yell and scream. She wanted to release all her anger and frustration, but now was not the time. Felix needed her.

Eri… Kyrith whined.

Not now Kyrith, I need to think. She sounded more harsh than she meant to, but she didn’t have time to apologize.

With a sharp breath, her eyes flicked over to the room’s open door. I should ask for help. Aluin– Master Aluin would know what to do…

“Keep an eye on him, I will go get Master Aluin.” She announced, already making for the door.

A few short moments later, she was staring at her former Master’s door. She hesitated. Damn it all! She knocked.

“Master Aluin! I’m coming in–” She stopped as she opened the door and found an empty room.

The door swung open fully as she continued to stare. “Where…” She trailed off as she spotted something sitting on his desk.

Her confusion turned to worry once again as she stepped in and walked over to it. With trepidation she picked up a key and what was clearly a letter addressed to her.

For the moment, she ignored the key and focused on the latter. Opening it, she tried to steady her nerves and read it…

Dear Eri,

Let me start by apologizing to you. I strung you along, I let you believe that you would one day become a Sage. It wasn’t right, nor was it fair to you. But whether you end up hating me or not, I do not regret that decision. But I do have some unsaid words for you, I can only pray you will read them.

You are truly destined for a bright and fulfilling future. You will continue to grow, with or without my help. I dare say, you will one day surpass me.

With that being said, I took you in knowing that you would not make a good Sage. Why? Because you have a fire in you that few have. But you must be careful. Do not let it retake control and consume you. Use it to make a better future, for both you and Felix.

I have to go for now, but we shall meet again soon. Use this time to become stronger, use this time to grow closer to those who care for you. You may cast your judgment upon me when I return, it is only fair.

There is only one final request that I hope you will entertain. The key. Give it to Felix when you believe that both you and him are ready for the next phase of your lives. It will unlock the door.

Take care, Eri, I am truly grateful that you were so stubborn back then. Your presence gives me hope for a better future. You will continue to touch more lives for the better, that I am sure.

Sincerely,

Aluin.

Eri lowered the letter, stunned. I’m on my own… She nearly broke out into hysterics right then. She lifted the key up and inspected it, the only thing that could distract her for the moment.

At first glance, the key itself looked mundane. It had three notches carved into black metal, all at different heights. But even just holding it, she could feel it vibrating with the ambient mana. It absorbed the mana and trapped it within tiny, intricate traces carved within the metal.

It was the work of Fea.

Eri closed her hand tightly around it, and finally turned around. I’m on my own– For a single instant, she felt like collapsing and breaking down right there. The sudden overwhelming weight on her shoulders.

But the letter reminded her.

No, we are on our own…

It was of little comfort in their current predicament, but she wasn’t alone. She had Kyrith, Zira, the other elves, and the kobolds. Even Ithea was still here, and she said she would help.

We will figure this out. They had too, or else Felix might not survive the night.

She shoved both the letter and key into a small pouch and steeled her resolve. There will be time to cry later…

She strode back into Felix’s room, with a stoic expression. “We’re on our own. Master Aluin left.” She said, keeping her tone calm.

The other elves looked at her with wide eyes, worry and concern written into their expressions.

“What are we going to do?” Yedril asked, sounding just as shocked as she had been.

Eri thought, she thought long and hard. There has to be some–

Noria interrupted her thoughts. “I have an idea…”

Eri nodded for her to continue, she was open to any possibility at this point.

“I was working on a regenerative potion… It should help with restoring mana and help accelerate the body's natural ability to heal. It can even help boost his stamina…”

Its healing properties won’t do much good, but… Mana depletion.

Mana depletion was exactly what it sounded like, entirely using up one’s own mana. It was extremely rare, as by the time one reached the exhaustion stage, they would struggle to continue. They were more likely to collapse long before using up their entire supply of mana.

Eri’s eyes flicked over to Yedril. Come to think of it, he suffers from something similar, doesn’t he? She shook the thought from her head, she needed to focus on one thing at a time.

“Can you do it? You are still suffering from exhaustion yourself, aren’t you?”

Noria quickly responded. “I am, but brewing the potion doesn’t require my mana. It can come from someone else.”

“I’ll help.” Lorem interjected. “I have decent control of my mana. Besides, I have seen how she infuses her mana into potions.”

She considered it one final time before speaking up. “Go–”

“I wish to help as well!” Yedril shouted, cutting her off. “I might not be able to help with mana…but surely I can help prepare the rest of it?”

Eri turned her gaze over to Noria. “Your call.”

“Huh– Oh, sure… Come on then, we need to hurry!”

Eri watched the three of them rush out of the room before turning her attention to the only other elf in the room. “Can you go and check up on Zira? She’s in pretty rough condition as well, but I need to keep my attention on Felix.”

“Sure thing, I’ll just need to grab my medical kit. It won’t be enough to fully patch her up, but it should help with the worst.”

Eri put a hand up to stop Solanna before she could leave. “On second thought, go to the hatchery first. Watcher should be there, he will help.”

The other elf looked hesitant for a moment but gave her a single nod before leaving.

Kyrith, take Zira to the hatchery. Watcher and Solanna will tend to her.

Okay… Eri are you–

I’m fine, Kyrith. We can talk later.

The dragon wasn’t convinced but he didn’t push the issue further…

Eri looked at the door to the room. She closed it.

They were finally alone, her and Felix. She went and pulled a chair from the writing desk on the opposite side of the room, bringing it to the bed.

Sitting down, she reached out and took one of Felix’s hands into hers. There was nothing else left for her to do.

She brought his hand to her face and kissed it. Her vision began to blur as something warm and wet ran down her cheeks. Please, be okay…

“I’ve finished the salve!” Yedril called out. He was staring down at the sticky mess that was supposed to be the medicinal salve. It’s kinda gross feeling… He wiped his hands on a small piece of cloth, getting a little of the residue off.

“This scale is a lot tougher than I thought,” Lorem added, grunting with exertion. The large elf was working the mortar and pestle.

Meanwhile, Noria was working on setting up her brewing stand. It was of simple construction, consisting of clamps that rode along a small metal shaft. She attached a vial to one of the clamps and lowered it over a small bowl filled with more of that sticky prickly vine juice. A simple wick stuck out.

“Lorem, can you light this real quick?” She pointed to the wick.

Lorem paused what he was doing and came over. He put the wick in between two fingers and a moment later it began to smoke before suddenly igniting. “There you go.” He immediately went back to his work.

“Thank you.” Noria turned her attention to Yedril. “Bring the salve over here.”

Yedril nodded, and carefully lifted up his bowl of the stuff and approached.

“Lift it up, and I will scoop it out and into the vial.”

He did as he was told and watched as she took a long, thin metal spoon and began to push the goopy medicine into the vial.

“That should be enough,” she said and leaned closer to the brewing stand, squinting. “This is where I’m just making stuff up. My mother’s notes don’t go this far…”

“Are you sure we should be using an entire dragon scale? I thought you wanted to use only a small portion.” Yedril asked, setting his bowl down and away from the fire.

“We don’t have time. Felix’s life is on the line. Besides I have three more– Actually, come to think of it, we could probably ask the dragons for more…”

Huh, how come we didn’t think of that sooner? We are effectively living with two… Wait a second! Yedril suddenly came to a realization. “That woman… Ithea, I think she said her name was… Did she say she was Zira’s mother?”

The two elves suddenly stopped and looked up at him. “I think so…” Lorem said trailing off.

“She…did– WHAT?!” Noria suddenly made the connection. “She’s a dragon?!”

They all looked between each other, trying to wrap their minds around that knowledge.

A hissing, gurgling sound started coming from the vial. “Oh! Lorem how much longer do you have?”

Lorem blinked before shaking his head. He looked down at the mortar. “Just a minute or two more, I think.” Yedril watched him quickly get back to work, picking up his speed.

Noria continued to watch the vial, occasionally moving the heat source. She was entirely focused on the unfinished potion within.

“Done!” Lorem quickly scooted the mortar over.

“Take it and slowly pour it in,” Noria said to Yedril, still keeping vigil over their experiment.

He picked up the mortar and took another one of those weird looking spoons. “Alright, adding it in. Tell me when to stop.” He began to add in the crushed dragon scale, one tiny spoonful at a time.

“Stop for a second," she commanded gently. “I think something is happening.”

Yedril stopped and leaned in himself, even Lorem came over to observe. Indeed, something was happening. The mixture was originally a mostly clear salve, but now? It was starting to turn dark.

“Quickly! Add the rest in!” Noria called out, startling Yedril.

He promptly began adding more in, nearly spilling some in the process.

“That’s it!” He shouted.

“Lorem, you’re up! Do you remember–” Noria stopped herself as the large elf stepped in and put his hand directly onto the hot vial.

“I got this," he said calmly, closing his eyes.

At first nothing seemed to happen, but then, the hissing and bubbling increased dramatically.

“What’s happen–”

Yedril was cut off by a blinding flash. Shielding his eyes, he waited for the light to die down before lowering his hands.

“What was…” He trailed off as the vial began to ignite itself. As it did, the color rapidly changed once again. It became a shimmering blue, with red and black swirls that seemed to refuse to mix together.

The flame flickered and died, leaving just the beautiful looking potion.

“…That”

Lorem opened his eyes, a wide smile upon his face. “I purified it…I think.”

You…think? Yedril wanted to ask, but he was still too dumbstruck by the mesmerizing colors of the potion.

Noria began to cackle, further drawing his attention away from Lorem. She had an expression he had never seen on her before, it was one of a mad mage…

“IT WORKED! IT WORKED! IT WORKED!” She screamed, throwing her hands into the air. “LOREM, YEDRIL, WE DID IT!”

The small elf launched herself at him, grasping his shoulders and staring up into his eyes. “WE DID IT!”

“Uh, yeah… We did.” He struggled in her grasp.

Lorem cleared his throat. “We did, but, um… Honey, are you forgetting something?”

She whipped around. “OH! You’re right! I’m so sorry!” She quickly embraced Lorem and jumped up. A moment later, she planted a kiss upon his lips.

Poor Lorem looked shocked, before quickly recovering. “Well…thanks for that, but… That wasn’t what I was talking about.”

She looked up at him, confused.

“Felix, remember–”

Noria’s eyes widened in realization. “Quickly! Grab the vial!” She stormed out of the Library before either one of them could blink.

Lorem rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. “Sorry about that. I called her honey, hoping that would snap her out of it…”

Yedril managed a chuckle and shook his head. “It’s alright, that was…entertaining. But she’s right, we need to hurry.”

Lorem nodded and simply pulled the vial free from the brewing stand. “Let’s go.”

Kyrith let out a whimper as the sound of a pained roar echoed into the hatchery. Zira was just outside being tended to by Solanna and a bunch of kobolds, including Watcher. The roar had been from them fixing her dislocated wing… It was not a pleasant sound.

Eri… He whined, hoping she would respond.

What is it? How is Zira?

He lifted his head from his hiding spot, peering up just enough to see the other dragon now laying on her side, breathing heavily.

They fixed her wing, but she let out such a painful roar! I think she is okay now, but… He tried to think of how to express himself to her. I’m scared…

You’re scared? Eri asked, sounding a little confused. Why are you scared?

She and Felix… They got hurt because of me. Now Felix wont wake up, and you are hurting. I’m scared.

Oh Kyrith! This isn’t your fault! If anything, it’s mine. I left without telling you, I even ignored your calls… I’m so sorry.

He went still for a moment. His thoughts were a jumbled mess and he gave up trying to order them and just let them spill forth.

Are you okay? You were so busy, and I was scared for you too… Then, you pushed me away and started giving orders! I thought you hated me.

He felt her mind enter into his and carefully embraced him. I’m so, so sorry Kyrith… I never hated you, I just…needed a moment to think– There was that pain again. –I’m feeling much better now, though.

He let out a whimper, she was lying. Eri… You are still hurting. Share your pain with me.

Eri almost recoiled from his mind but managed to catch herself. I don’t want to do that to you. It isn’t your problem to deal with.

But… We’re a team, aren’t we? Zira and Felix, they share each other’s–

Kyrith…

Please Eri, I want to be more helpful! I don’t like seeing you hurt! It makes me hurt!

There was silence between the two of them that seemed to stretch forever. Are you sure? She finally asked him.

He gave her a mental nod. I’ll do anything for you. Please, Eri, I just want you to smile.

Slowly, her mind grew closer to his again. They ‘touched’ and for a brief moment–

They gasped.