Chapter 22:
Twilight Star: First Goal
“Timed that right,” Deven said looking at the group, lying on the ground. “Where is the blood… not that I am complaining about not seeing it.” Using magic, he widened the door so he could use air to bring them in. “Together or separate?” he asked softly already feeling his heart race, they looked horrible. Cuts, bite marks, deep sword wounds, and a strange brown-green crusty substance.
“Mara is out, and I don’t really care,” Londra mumbled as he set them on the cool floor. They all moaned and sighed since they were in so much pain while being so hot.
“I don’t have enough energy to look,” Zeke tried to joke but it came out muffled. Alden just shrugged lightly while trying to keep his marbled blue-green eyes open.
“Together works, I hear my wife now and lots of feet?” Deven mumbled, still surveying the group. What was he supposed to do? He could feel the waves of pain radiating off from them. “I hope one is Alexander because I am at a loss other than removing your shredded, yet mostly clean clothing. Why is it clean… just dirt, grass stains, and a few burns from fire magic?” He heard them all whisper and plead for magic. “Magic removal it is… why is there a floating ball before me?”
“Oh, hello Deven, this is Ester, and my husband Barton is over with the guys. How are we starting?” Ester’s voice came through the floating ball.
“Nice,” Deven mumbled looking over his patients. He wasn’t a healer, exactly for this reason but they trusted him so... “Removal of the clothing, gentle or with magic.”
“Got it,” Barton responded. “Don’t worry, we have a small army in these two bathrooms.”
“I am glad to know that,” Deven responded as his wife ran in, barely breathing while her Elven ears were vibrating to show her range of frantic emotions.
“I grabbed every competent Elf I trusted and they are starting the antidotes. The workshop has never been so full,” Darcy mumbled trying to find air. “I just had to see… then I will go. I trust them all and the instructions are stellar. Alexander is answering questions, they don’t know what they are making just that it needs to be done yesterday.”
“Good,” Deven mumbled, looking at the wound in Trenton’s leg. Now that they were naked, he could tell they were covered in that strange substance. Darcy moved closer. Her softly accented, oval, light honey face only inches from his own while her violet eyes focused on the strangle looking wound. Without thought she gathered her shoulder length golden hair with streak of blue, green, and yellow behind her neck in a short tail.
Alexander came in before Darcy could say anything, jogging towards them. “I don’t have any…” he started, tears forming in his steel grey eyes while worry showed in his cognac, square face. His nervous, strong, left hand ran through his short, auburn hair while his prosthetic one flexed. Before he could continue Londra tossed him a bottle and jar, lying back down amazed at how much it hurt to move that little bit.
Now there were tears streaming down his cheeks for other reasons. “My wife is still alive…” he whispered recognizing the tiny, yet perfect, print on the bottles. Clearing his throat, “we need to work on the wounds first. It doesn’t matter if there is M-M blood around it or where it is. Oh, the blood is that dried brown-green substance that doesn’t act like blood. Be prepared,” he said to Darcy and Deven not realizing that his voice was traveling though the glowing ball to the others. “Take a fingertip of the Battle Antidote,” he paused opening the jar and taking out just enough to coat his fingertip while moving closer to Trenton.
“It is like purple putty,” Darcy commented as Deven mumbled in agreement, both focusing on what he was doing and how the Battle Antidote looked, smelled, and moved. “It and the other has mandrake in them. Good thing I only played with a little… fate is strange.”
Alexander began to take inventory of all the wounds on Trenton. A few sword slices on both legs and some claw marks on his left forearm. He moved to the hole in Trenton’s golden pecan colored leg. “This first,” he mumbled. He hovered his finger over the wound and what happened surprised everyone awake enough to notice. The putty came to life, slowly leaving Alexander’s finger and moving into the wound. When it was completely off a little tail motioned, as if asking for more. Alexander dipped his finger into the jar again, coating his finger with purple putty and hovering it over the wound. The putty within the wound reached up to take the rest off from his finger. This was repeated two more times than the putty flattened on the leg turning pale pink.
“Okay, for those waiting,” Deven started, blinking his dry amber eyes while rubbing his ebony, oval face trying to calm his racing heart. As a potion maker that was awesome to see but knowing how injured they were made his stomach quiver. His voice was even, “Open the jar, dip a finger in, coating it with purple putty. Then hover the finger over the wound. It comes alive… very interesting to watch… if it needs more it will signal to you, but just one fingertip at a time. When it is done, the putty becomes smooth and pale pink, Alexander?”
“Londra, did you happen to purchase the one called wash? It is a simple thing but necessary. I had our friends start on batches for each and it should be done…” Alexander paused wondering why Deven was talking to a magical sphere.
“No,” a voice said from the floating ball above him responded. He was proud that he didn’t jump or drop the jar. “Wash didn’t seem as important as antidotes. Guess it should have. Especially when he made the comment that nobody bought the set, but they should.”
“It is okay… Robbie,” Alexander responded, hoping he recognized the voice correctly. “It can wait for a bit. There are other ways but since we have the ingredients and people making it, we will go that way.”
“I will go help get the wash done!” Darcy yelled, taking off. “No mandrakes in that, pity, but that was so enlightening… I am going to make the wash fast!” Deven smiled a bit, taking the jar from Alexander to get a fingertip for himself. He began the task of filling the claw marks on Trenton’s arm. Alexander nodded and began to work on the slices.
“Do we need anything else?” Deven wondered while watching the magic purple putty trying not to smile because it was amazing. He couldn’t wait to read its ingredients.
“Well, the Battle Antidote takes around twenty minutes to make then it can be cooled by magic… Helen had detailed notes, so I am sure everyone is doing fine,” Alexander paused, letting his emotions clear out of his voice. “I always hoped she was alive and since I hadn’t aged… anyway that can wait. We need someone who can use water magic. The wash and the Blood Antidote are mixed with magic water, at least level five.”
“I assume the Blood Antidote is to get rid of this strange substance and the wash is to clean off the wounds. Can we do the Blood Antidote while we are waiting for the wash?” a male voice that nobody recognized asked. “We have Peter’s wounds done but there is plenty of blood to wash off.”
“Yes,” Alexander answered slowly after Deven motioned that he would check Trenton’s back. He nodded, moving over to Mara who had the same types of wounds. “As long as it is not near a wound, it could stop the healing process. A mage makes a level five water ball and adds five drops to it. The bottle is designed to only give out a drop at a time. Once again, it starts off purple, so when it is mixed in the water ball will be completely purple. Now take the ball and move it towards the blood, or what you called strange substance. Now it will come alive, circling and collecting.”
“That is amazing,” Robbie mumbled as his active mind wanted so much to watch while his body was telling him to sleep. “It is dry, and we couldn’t even chip it off with our fingers… it is really itchy,” he defended.
“Now once the ball has turned black it can no longer absorb any more. It will hover above the person so the mage can take back control,” Alexander explained looking to see if there were any more wounds on the front of Mara. He frowned, seeing that the putty was almost gone. He handed the jar to Deven since his short fingers couldn’t reach the bottom. “Now you can do one of two things, add it to another water ball then let it go down a drain or purify it so you can just release the spell. Then it starts all over again. If there is nothing left to collect on the person… oh you have to flip them the magic is good but not that good… anyways, it will return to a ball and wait to be used on another. The black will be very noticeable.” He helped to steady Mara as Deven looked to see if there were any wounds on her back… the putty would be gone before they could start on the other three.
“You are right,” Barton they heard mumbled. “Jay was just standing here watching this purple water flow over Peter’s arms and chest then in an instant it was black.”
“My Battle Antidote,” a female voice started, “has turned deep red. What now?”
“That means it is done, or at least as much as it can do,” Alexander answered. “Sometimes it takes more than one treatment. For now, just leave it. That is what the Wash is for. It mixes with level five water ball and slowly removes and purifies the putty. It doesn’t change color, just remains white. It will not touch the putty if it can’t take anymore. Like the other, you mix it with another water ball or purify it before releasing.”
“Waiting causes…?” Deven asked since they had finished Mara and Trenton’s wounds.
“Just pain, but they are in so much now it won’t be too noticeable,” Alexander sighed. “Since they are all strong it won’t leave any lasting effects… they will just need sleep.”
“Sleep is always the answer,” Londra slurred, laying on the cot that had appeared minutes after they had decided to stay together.
“I have the wash; it is white right? I also have a few jars of Battle Antidote and bottles of Blood Antidote,” Darcy yelled, running back in. Deven looked up to see her light honey, oval face was covered in perspiration while strands of her shoulder length golden hair with streak of blue, green, and yellow had escaped the binding, fizzing around her face and long Elven ears. Her violet eyes glanced at him but focused on the injured.
“It is,” Alexander confirmed with a nod moving to take the Battle Antidote. “We need to send the Wash to the others first…”
“Just push it through the ball of light,” Londra said softly. “It is stable enough. Barton and Ester, not sure which it will pop out of… so be ready.”
“We are,” they said in unison.
Darcy just shrugged, pushing five of the six bottles of Wash into the ball of light. She was about to ask something when Deven was before her, looking horrible. There were tears in his amber eyes while his black, oval face looked defeated. Even his short, dark red hair with orange highlights was flat against his head making his long Elven ears look farther away from his head. “What?”
“Alexander is going to handle the Battle Antidote; he might need a little help checking their backs while you are in charge of the Blood Antidote and Wash. It takes a level five water ball… that isn’t me. I will go help work on…” he looked at Alexander then nodded. “Wash.”
“Wait, there was a fourth that you wanted done,” Darcy started. “It takes longer and I assume they don’t have any of that. Maybe start there?”
“Good idea,” Alexander mumbled, letting the purple putty attach to a deep scratch on Zeke’s forearm, his leg was next… so much damage. Londra was close enough, so he tried his other hand, the prosthetic. He was happy to see the putty reacted the same. Two hands, twice the wounds covered. “The last is call Rejuvenate. It is to help those who witness the horrors sleep so their body can finish the healing process. They drink a full bottle and that should include the Familiars. They might have not been in the battle, but they seen it through Londra’s eyes and the negative energy up there is thick… this will help. All will sleep for a solid three hours, then be awake for three before needing to go back to sleep. They will need to eat during the hours they are awake and drink another full bottle before they go back to sleep so we will need forty bottles. Do we have enough materials?”
“I think so,” Darcy mumbled doing a mental checklist while waiting to be told what to do. She nodded to them both, “if not, I grabbed some of the Archduke’s Knights… they can find things quickly and anywhere in his area.”
“Good,” Alexander mumbled, wiping the sweat from his cognac forehead.
“Copy,” Londra slurred, her mind battling to stay awake. She would not fail… “Think I am the only one awake,” she whispered.
“Better idea,” Deven started. “I am going to go see who you captured. You will need more water ball makers and fingers. I just need a little eye break. Barton and Ester, do you have enough of the Battle Antidote?”
“All the ladies wounds have been covered once and we have one jar left,” Ester replied. “I would say yes. We got the wash and are starting to work on that. Amazing potions… or whatever they are. Belle and Zerina might need another dose, but we have enough. For the Blood Antidote, I do believe we will need another bottle. Even though it goes a long way they were covered in layers of blood. The Wash came to me, and I took Barton two.”
“We have the wounds done as well,” Barton reported. “Rus is the only one that looks like he might need more at this point, and we have another full jar so we should be good on that. We will need more Wash… maybe three bottles by the looks of it. They too are covered in blood… maybe two bottles of Blood Antidote.”
“Wow,” Alexander mumbled, looking at the wounds that he had yet to treat. “You have six females and five males to do right?”
“Yes,” Ester chuckled a little. “When mom says go, you do so even if you are not working.”
“I am sending down more helpers,” Deven yelled, running towards the doors. He knew what needed to be done now.
“Alexander,” Londra started weakly. “Thanks… I hate to say this, but we need to collect on our promise. When we are awake for those hours… could you bring us all that you have, please? Otherwise, we won’t rest well, even with the potion’s help.”
“I understand,” Alexander said, moving to the other side since two large Elves were coming to help move people. “You need to relax, like the others. Let us do this for you.”
Londra closed her hazel eyes as she heard voices, she recognized talk about how to use the antidotes and wash. She was so glad that she had friends here…
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