I Can’t Heal Him!

Kanie’s eyes opened, his vision slowly returning to him.

Into his sight came a vast, open chamber with high ceilings. Countless torches lined the surrounding walls, their flames dancing about in silence. Far across the chamber, he could see Mylo resting on the floor, body curled up in a ball.

“So warm…” he said, running his hands across the surface beneath him. It was soft as he gripped it, its texture plush and velvety to the touch.

“… A comforter?”

“Oh, you’re finally awake, Kanie Misawa!” said a voice. He whirled.

To his left stood Kimora, dressed in her usual, regal attire.

“… Kimora?”

Kimora puffed her cheeks and placed her hands on her hips. She shot Kanie a look of annoyance.

“You really scared me back there, passing out like that,” she said. “For a moment, I thought you were a goner!”

Kanie was confused.

“… Huh? I passed out?” he asked. “But how? I remember feeling totally fine!”

“That was my fault,” said a voice from across the chamber. It was Eric.

He hovered over, the teal glow of his staff reflecting off of the glossy tile floor.

“Ah, perfect timing~” Kimora said. “Back from relieving yourself, Erika Chandler? … Or sorry, what was the saying you used, again? ‘Taking a dump,’ I believe it was?”

Eric blushed.

“Never mind that,” he said. “Anyway—”

He turned to face Kanie.

“That platform we were riding was sitting directly on top of molten lava. You didn’t have a shield up and were taking continuous damage, but your absurd pain tolerance made you oblivious to that fact. At some point, your body must’ve given out.”

“Ah, so that’s what happened…” said Kanie, head still resting on a pillow.

“I still feel silly for not noticing,” Eric said, shaking his head.

Kanie propped himself up using the pillows behind him.

“Aw, don’t worry about it, man,” he said. “You were probably just spent—the past day’s been kinda crazy for both of us.”

He glanced down at his left leg. It was neatly bandaged and lay secure in a solid brace.

“… It’s really broken, huh?”

“Broken? Ho-ho, your left tibia was shattered, human! It was quite the challenge to reassemble,” said a voice. The voice startled Kanie, causing his heart to jump.

“Who’s there!?”

His eyes darted around the chamber, but he could see no one besides Mylo, Kimora, and Eric.

It was then that he felt something drop onto him from above.

“—Woah!” he shouted, jolting his upper body. “A snake!?”

“A snake? How rude,” it said. It spoke with the voice of an elderly woman.

“My name is Oltrix.”

“Oltrix?” Kanie repeated, looking into the snake’s beady eyes.

“She’s my medical specialist,” said Kimora proudly. “Oh-so-knowledgeable, that one~.”

“Whatever did you do to injure yourself so gravely, boy?” asked Oltrix, coiling herself on top of Kanie’s chest. “Your leg was nearly beyond saving, even for me.”

“He and the witch were busy fetching Mylo for me,” Kimora said. “He leaped from hi~gh up in the Hvashknon Range—SNAP!—breaking his left leg in the process!”

“Oh, it was so cool, Oltrix~!” she exclaimed. “You should’ve seen it!”

“… Stop it, no!!!” said Kanie, wincing. “Hearing my own failure narrated like some anime recap is too much for a guy to bear!”

He paused. Something Kimora said had caught his attention.

“… Cool? You really thought I was cool, Kimora?” he asked.

“No! I-I didn’t say that at all,” she stammered. “You must be imagining things.”

Oltrix shifted her attention toward Kanie.

“Her Majesty has always had trouble admitting her true feelings,” she said, forked tongue darting in and out of her mouth. “The attentiveness with which Queen Kimora watched me operate on your unconscious body—I could tell she was concerned about the state of your well-being.”

“Na—!”

Kimora stared at Oltrix, her mouth wide open. Her face was bright red with embarrassment.

“O-Oltrix~!” she said. “Why’d you have to go and tell him that?”

“My apologies, Your Majesty. I only wished to be of assistance. Are you not fond of this boy?”

“Most definitely not! I just owe him one, that’s all!

Did I not tell you when I called for you that these heroes are my enemies—the ones who terrorized our world a century ago?”

“We’re not,” said Eric.

Oltrix sighed.

“… Again with that story,” she muttered, shaking her head. She looked up at Kimora, a deep pity present in her eyes.

“My queen, forgive me. In all my medicinal knowledge, I’ve yet to find a way to cure the false memories that continue to plague your mind.”

So, Kimora really does have false memories! thought Kanie. Looks like Eric and I were right.

“… Oltrix, I’ve told you this so many times before—I’m not crazy! And my memories aren’t false!”

Kanie’s eyes lit up. An idea had dawned upon him. He glanced over at Eric, who was standing near the foot of the bed he lay on.

“Hey, Infinity Mage~. Think you’ve got a spell that cures false memories?”

“Sorry, Kanie, but I already checked my spell roster back in Vorax Thicket when we met her. Unfortunately, I don’t have any magic with that specific effect.”

Kanie’s shoulders slumped in dismay.

“—What, so that’s it, then?” he said. “We literally can’t do anything to help her?”

Eric shook his head no.

“Afraid not,” he said. “At least, not with magic.”

“I don’t need any help,” interrupted Kimora, overhearing their conversation. “What I do need is for you two to vacate my chamber so I can finally have it back!”

She turned to Eric, her eyes meeting his.

“… Erika Chandler,” she said. “You remember what we agreed on, right?”

“I do. Oltrix said that she couldn’t heal Kanie’s leg—only reconstruct it. Something to do with him being human, right?”

“Yes,” Oltrix said. “Rebuilding his leg and stopping the bleeding was possible, given my understanding of structural anatomy. My healing magic, however, was never designed for humans—only my fellow guardians.”

“… Basically, it’s up to me to heal Kanie,” Eric said.

“Bingo~,” Kimora said. She turned to face one of the chamber’s tall, arched windows. Outside, the sun hung high in the sky.

“You said you didn’t have enough magic to do it this morning, but it’s past noon now. Has your supply recovered?”

“It has,” Eric said. “I’ll go ahead and do it now.”

He pointed his staff at Kanie. Its teal jewel began to glow.

Well, this really sucks, he thought. Now we’ll have to find some other way to stay in the castle.

“Healing Magic!”

Eric attempted to cast the spell, reciting its incantation, when suddenly—the jewel atop his staff beeped. Its glow turned from a minty teal to an aggressive crimson. A message popped up on his HUD. As he read it, his eyes widened, then narrowed in frustration.

“… Shit,” he muttered.

“Huh? What’s wrong?” asked Kimora.

Eric lowered his staff and looked at her.

“I can’t do it…” he said. “I can’t heal him!”