I did not know she even remembered that, but it might work. And it was so much better than just sitting here waiting as my friend's life faded before my eyes. Using my remaining power, I forced my energy into Leafia’s body. It felt like trying to push a stick into a stone. My power did not want to enter her body. But I was not going to give up. Focusing even more I found a small spark of familiar energy. Her spark of power which leaned heavily to plant energy. I forced my energy into Leafia’s body through her spark of power. No longer did her body feel like stone. More like mud.
I started forcing my power to move around Leafia’s energy paths. I could feel the blackness starting to creep out of her arm into her body. This could not advance further or it would start getting into her organs. Just as Mist suggested, I started forming a solid wall of energy. With the wall formed blocking the blight's progress I slowly pushed the blackness back into her arm. The small tendrils of the blight that had escaped her arm fled before my power.
She was going to be fine, I thought to myself with a sigh as I managed to force all the blight to retreat past her shoulder into her arm with very little resistance. At least very little resistance from the blight. My powers were still having a hard time penetrating her flesh. If she was not so adept at plant magic I do not think this would even be possible. But still, her energy paths were narrow and I was stretching them to their limit trying to flood her with my powers.
Taking a large breath in, I focused on the next step of forcing the blight out of her arm. I began pushing the wall of energy down her arm forcing the blight back to her wound. Just a little bit more and I would finally be able to heal her wound and stop that bleeding. The blight had stopped my medicine from working. But now I was going to force this disease out the hole it kept me from closing.
The wall of my power marched forward through Leafia’s arm. The blight now had nowhere left to escape to and its only path was out through the gaping wound. Almost as if the blight had a mind of its own it started to push back on the wall, unwilling to escape into the water below. Its resistance was not going to stop me. I continued to push the wall forward as the pressure rose. My physical eyes were constantly watching the blood trickle out of her arm hoping that more of the black filth would come with it, but so far only the smallest trace of blight had escaped.
Not willing to give up I concentrated even harder, focusing on pushing my wall of power further down her arm. Despite all my exertion, I had only been able to condense the energy by a finger's width. It did not want to let go of its hold on Leafia. I stayed shut in at the pond for 500 years just because I did not want company. I was not about to let some black slime test my patience. I closed my eyes to focus all of my attention on my powers. I forced my energy forward again and felt the pressure rise.
Suddenly, I felt a give and the pressure dropped. My face contorted in horror as I watched the blight I had painstakingly corralled pierce the wall and spray like a fountain into Leafia’s shoulder again.
Leafia’s eyes shot open as the blight neared her lungs and heart. Fear and pain filled her eyes as she looked at me. As quick as I could I pulled my wall back re-enclosing the blight and forcing it away from her organs. Pleading that this was not the end, I squeezed her good hand trying to give her some feeble comfort as I vainly tried to help her.
While I was corralling the tendrils the main body of the blight continued to spread. By the time I managed to contain everything the blight had made its way well into the shoulder joint. But this time I did not dare push the blight further. If it escaped this time it was all but certain to reach her heart.
“What do I do now?” I cried. “The blight has already rooted itself too deep in her arm. I can not force it out.”
The silence did not last long until Faun whispered. “Her arm. The only way to save her is to cut the disease out. You should be able to rid the little that remains.”
“But her arm?” What was she going to do without an arm? She was a guard and a fighter. I did not see her able to keep that up with only one arm.
“Do it,” a weak voice croaked from my lap. I looked down to see Leafia’s blue-green eyes staring back at me.
“But.” I tried to counter but nothing would come.
“I want to live… with you,” her voice rasped again.
Tears fell from my eyes as I nodded. Raising my hand to her mouth again I placed one finger on her lips. “This will stop you from feeling the pain.” She drank the medicine that I excreted from my finger. It was just a moment before her eyes drifted closed as the medicine took effect.
“How do we amp…” I started to say but the words caught in my throat as I felt a dark power surge. How was Maximus still able to wield his power? I had crushed him with that stone, he should be dead. I looked over expecting to see his magic hurtling towards me but instead his power was stretched out to a pile of carrion and bones in the corner of the courtyard.
Gray seemed to have noticed Maximus was planning something. He was standing in front of Tide who was still on the ground and drawing a sword that he must have picked up from one of the fallen guards, readying himself for whatever might be coming.
A sickening sound filled the air as the bones and sinews stitched themselves together. A large head filled with many sharp teeth emerged from the leathery folds which soon showed themselves to be clawed wings. This bat, that was all it could be, turned and started to climb the walls of the courtyard. With its back to us we could see Maximus had tied himself to some sort of saddle on the beast’s back. The bat quickly made its way to the top of the wall. I saw Maximus turn to glare at us one more time before, with a rush of wings, the bat flung itself into the air.
Though it made me feel nauseous, I cast Maximus and his flight from my mind. There was no way to catch him and still save Leafia.
Thanks for the chapter!!
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