The Chronicles of a Scalebound Sage: Wandmaker Vol.2

WM [72] Beyond Mana

Bjorn followed as he was slowest in the group though he kept as close as he could behind Aurelius and Fuyumi. Failsafe kept trying to get his attention but he was too worried about Tanisha to listen. They ran until they came to one of the large monolithic rock formations in the volcanic area. The shadows under the formation were odd, almost like moving through a semi-liquid. The corrupted mana density was so high to the point of being near tangible.

His attention snapped back as Aurelius gently laid Tanisha down. Bjorn was at her side in an instant. His many eyes scanned her, and his breath hitched. Her clothing was torn to near ribbons and what remained was streaked in blood. Her breathing was fine but she looked pale and she was sweating profusely. Bjorn felt the bond between them, it was strong which was a good sign.

When he saw her like this his mind went back to the days they spent in the troll cave at the very beginning of their adventure. She was clinging to life by the barest thread after what that creature did to her. She looked so fragile, so breakable, that it made his chest ache. This time he was the monster that did this to her.

Aurelius and Fuyumi spoke in hushed tones a short distance away, their expressions grim. Bjorn watched their lips move, frustration building as he failed to understand their words. He needed to know what they were saying. Why couldn't Failsafe decode their language by now?

"Failsafe, why can't I understand them yet? What have you been doing?" Bjorn yelled internally. "What are they saying about her?"

"Woah, Bjorn I have been trying to talk to you." Failsafe said placatingly. "Languages are hard to map out for a spellform. The fact I can do it for one language was already supposedly impossible, but I am working on it."

"Work faster." Bjorn's thoughts lashed out like a whip. "They're talking about Tanisha, aren't they? Is she... Is she alright?"

"She is, but she lost a lot of blood." Failsafe said finally, his tone careful. "She's stable. If we weren't as high level as we are, or if she hadn't been using her UCP wisely, it might have been fatal. A normal wendigo probably wouldn't have made it... but she's not normal. And in a few dozen levels, blood loss like this won't even be a concern."

"I almost killed her?" His voice was barely a whisper, trembling under the weight of guilt.

The realization hit him hard as he looked down at her. They had been through so much together. Faced so many odds stacked against them and especially against her. After all of that, after surviving monsters, druids, skinwalkers, werewolves and everything else, the thing that nearly killed her was him. He couldn't help but be painfully aware of the blood staining his claws and it made him sick.

"You didn't mean to, Bjorn." Failsafe was quiet for a long moment. "She saved us, take a look at your core. I know it seems unrelated but do it."

Bjorn wanted to lash out, to scream that it didn't matter whether he meant it or not. Intent didn't undo what had happened. Failsafe's final words gave him pause. She saved us? His mind snagged on the thought. What had she done to his core?

He lay down beside Tanisha, his serpentine body coiling protectively around her. He encircled her like a living fortress, his scales shielding her from any further harm. Only when he was certain she was as safe as he could make her did he close his eyes and turn his focus inward, seeking the truth Failsafe had urged him to find.

Bjorn's awareness plunged into the depths of his core, and the change was immediate, stark and undeniable. What had once been a harmonious dance of two orbs, one radiating golden aether and the other shimmering with silver mana, was now altered. A third energy coursed within him, dull and muted gray, flowing like a quiet storm through the streams of power that defined his essence.