Emergency Situation

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Orianna utters another word of powerful healing magic, dipping her fingers into the silver chalices floating beside her and running the shimmering liquid across Vulcanax’s skin. She draws a net across the hole where his right arm used to be, weaving ancient constellations and arcane ruins of healing, mending, and rejuvenation. The final thread of it hooks into his skin and with a final muttered word it sinks into the Archwyrm’s body. As it settles, Orianna lets out a sigh, her brow glistening with sweat. A figure comes up beside her, and she sees Elarris, holding his own kind of healing light in his hands.

Her hand catches on his arm. “Are you sure?” she asks, voice low and quiet.

Elarris nods. “Yes, I know what’s needed.”

Orianna holds his gaze for a beat longer before returning his nod. “I will help you, later.”

As the bright light of healing begins to knit together the Archwyrm's side, Orianna turns away, unhooking the crystal foci and holding it up to his magical light.

“Stellarum. It is Vulcanax. He is hurt, badly. You need to come, now.” There is no elegance to her words, no poetry in her Draconic unlike the last time he heard her call to the Mother of Starlight. “We have healed what we can, but I do not have the power necessary to fix this.” Her voice breaks on the last word.

There is no special or magical entrance this time there is just a flash of light in the shape of a bright star next to Orianna as Stellarum teleports into the house.

She immediately falls to her knees besides Vulcanax, looking him up and down assessing the damage. She takes his one remaining hand and holds it close to her chest, closes her eyes and begins to speak a spell in Draconic. As she does, her hands begin to glow with a beautiful white light that slowly passes into Vulcanax. When the first pulse of light enters him, it ripples across his entire body. With every consecutive wave, his wounds slowly begin to close. They all hold their breath, so still is the air. Nothing moves, no one else dares to speak. Only the sound of Stellarum’s soft voice fills the room.

After a few minutes, Stellarum finally stops her chanting, yet the light continues to pass from her into Vulcanax. She does not let go of his hand as she turns to look at Orianna.

“What in the Hells happened?” she asks. “What did this to him? Are you all okay? Are the pieces safe? Are we facing a new unforeseen foe?”

Now came her least favourite part, retelling the horrible events of what led them here.

“We were retrieving Vulcanax’s piece from the Swamp of Oblivion- from Phystal’s stronghold. Vulcanax met us there. He had been scouting the place before us, so he informed us that Magdara was also present.” Her voice is steady, but her hands are clasped tightly on her lap, knuckles almost white despite periwinkle blue of her skin. “Magdara had used the piece to create a supervolcano. The theory was that the Primordials were planning to make it erupt in order to weaken the spells around the locks, and destroy any of the Guardians.”

Her violet eyes are locked onto Stellarum’s, but the moment she mentions the Guardians, the Wyrm Queen sees the thought pass through Orianna’s mind, clear and bright as the light she was pouring into the fallen Vulcanax: They needed to warn Thalistrasza.

But Orianna was not finished. “We found an entrance and made our way to the very unavoidable confrontation with the First Eruption and the First Slime. We were… still taken unawares, Matches most of all. They had managed to fuse Vulcanax’s piece into the body of his imi-ib*, Honey, whom he had thought had perished two years ago.” She purposefully breaks eye contact to look at Calla. “Words were exchanged. They-…” She can’t hold on to it. Calla is too cold, detached. Orianna’s gaze falls to slowly drift over to the gold necklace on the side table. “Matches had to face something he should never have had to. Certainly not a second time…” She turns back to Stellarum. “But we kept on task. Vulcanax had said, when we had his piece to give him a signal. So that is what we did. Then he-” She glances down to Vulcinax’s pallid face and she nearly loses her breath. “He covered our escape and took on two of the Primordial Incarates on his own. By the time we returned here, so did he, like this.”

“Two of them managed to do this?” Stellarum breathes in disbelief. There is a look of confusion and shock, even a small inkling of fear as she looks down at Vulcanax. “For them to do this to Vulcanax is truly a worrying sign. They have managed to enhance themselves far beyond what we thought they would be able to…”

Uneasy looks are exchanged at her words.

“But I am glad that you are all safe,” Stellarum continues, “and that you managed to stop their plans whilst also confirming that they are looking to strike against the locks and their Guardians.”

She turns her attention over to the gold necklace. “I am truly sorry for what they did to you, Matches. That was unnecessarily cruel and vindictive. Whenever you are ready, you have a family here who can help you through your grief. Wounds like the one you have suffered only fester when we are alone, but together can we heal each oth…”

Stellarum’s words trailed off as she slumped over. The light, still passing from her to Vulcanax, now she seems visibly paler.

“Stellarum!” It comes out more like a strained squeal than a shout. Hands unbinding themselves, Orianna grasps at her, trying to prop her up. Her stomach drops at the ease in which she can move Stellarum, which did not feel right.

“Thank you, Orianna,” Stellarum says, her voice a little weaker. “This is taking more than I expected. His wounds are deep and regenerating an arm is no small feat. But I will be able to restore him back to how he was. It will just take a little more.”

The light continues to pass from Stellarum to Vulcanax. Still helping her to sit up, Orianna finally gets a closer look at her and she notices that the Wyrm Queen has a few more wrinkles than she did before. A pit of cold fire forms in her gut.

“You are doing more than just regenerating his arm,” she says. It was a hunch, and though Orianna has not done such grand healing magics herself yet, she was certain Stellarum was putting more of herself than would be required to bring Vulcinax back.

Stellarum smiles at her. “Astute as always. You are correct. Vulcanax requires more than just a little magic. I am providing him with a bit of life force. It’s not too much and I have plenty to spare.”

Orianna looks to Calla, who meets her gaze, then back at Stellarum, terrified by what such a statement could mean. She has no words, only worry and the cold fire of terror burning her from within.

Elarris finds his hand gripping the hilt of his sword so tightly it sends spikes of pain up his forearm. Stellarum had offered him the best hope of life, hope he had not had in years, and now she was visibly suffering. And Orianna… these beings of immense power wrestling with forces beyond his comprehension but who he owed so much to. He swears to take the sunstone to find Eroshira, the Archwyrm, at the first opportunity. He will no longer be a helpless observer in this struggle. He will join the fray.

Calla seemingly snapped out of her detached and academic mode, suddenly realising that her sister’s in distress.

“Is there somewhere we can go, somewhere secret or unexpected, where we can take from the world and not you? The Wellspring, maybe? Or the edge of the plane of life?”

Silently, with no attempt to make himself known, Matches rematerialised. The gold necklace floats into the air and the man forms from it, starting from the heart. His eyes are red, bleary, and he looks exhausted. His shirt has a burned hole over his stomach, through which they can all see his skin and scales are burned. He falls to his knees next to Vulcanax’s unconscious form, and talks without looking at anyone else.

“Is there anything I can do for him?” he asks.

“Be here for him,” Stellarum says softly to Matches. “Be his anchor to this realm and his light to guide him back from the edge of death. I have healed his body… but I can do no more.” She releases Vulcanax’s hand. His form flashes a few more times with light then the glow begins to fade. As all their eyes adjust to the dimming light they can see his body is back to its original condition but he, himself, is still unconscious.

Stellarum begins to stand but struggles to do so on her own. Together, Elarris and Orianna help her over to the closest seat, easing her into it with great care. Now that she is not so close to the light they can all see the effects of what she has done. Her human form appears to have aged thirty years. A ripple of solemn quiet goes through them all as she breathes shallowly exhausted from the healing.

“We have… a relevant primordial on our side if this problem persists,” Calla takes a long look at Stellarum, “for either of you.”

Orianna nods in agreement with Calla’s words, looking at Stellarum. It is hard to do, and something she cannot do for long.

“Let me make you some tea, in the meantime,” she mumbles, brushing a strands of Stellarum’s shimmering white hair away from her face. Orianna stands, brushes by Calla, then quickly and quietly leaves the room.



Continued in ‘A Quiet Aside’ & ‘Responsibilities’ 💫