"Can you ride?" Vannis demands. He lifts Marsino onto his horse. Sylas unties me from the tree and pulls me to Marcino's horse.
"Not really, but I can keep up if you just take off whatever is taking away my magic." I snap back.
"Not a chance, mage." He snaps. While Vannis is busy with Marsino, I drop Starshadow onto the horse.
"I'm not even technically a mage since I wasn't born with it." I grumble under my breath.
Are you sure, Leilah? You could need me. Starshadow wiggles his way into a hole in the saddle.
I'm supposed to be running anyway. I can't access my magic, so it's just better overall if you keep your distance. I explain. Keep him upright if you can. He does not look good.
Even if you can't use your magic, I still can.
I'd rather you stay safe. At least one of us has to be in good shape for if things go bad.
You got it. Stay safe. Starshadow disappears. I look back at Sylas. He's staring at where Starshadow hid. I put a finger up to my lips. He nods, promising silently to keep Starshadow a secret. Vannis takes the lead from Sylas and attaches it to his saddle. He hops onto his steed and starts a fast pace. I'm struggling to keep up and watch Marsino. He's constantly shifting and nearly falling. Starshadow pulls on my magic. I look over at Sylas to see if he would tell. His eyes are wide. He looks between Starshadow and I constantly, focused on something between us. He, thankfully doesn't say anything. He may be young, but I think he understood that Starshadow was keeping Marsino up. It's obvious that Starshadow is struggling to keep Marsino on his horse. Vannis hops down everytime it looks like Starshadow's about to lose his grip. I'm dripping in sweat. Sometimes the pull on my magic is too great and I'm dragged until Marcino's reseated. There's scrapes and bruises on my stomach and thighs, but Vannis doesn't care. The last time Vannis straightens Marsino, I catch him glaring at Sylas.
"Leave...him...Alone." I pant. Vannis smacks my face again. "What is… with your… obsession… With my… face?" I demand. I hear Sylas snicker on his little pony behind me. Vannis says nothing. Instead, he leaps onto his horse and keeps up the pace. My vision blurs to the point where I barely notice that Starshadow is struggling to keep himself large enough to hold Marsino up. We're in the middle of a clearing after running through a thicket when Starshadow can't hold on anymore.
"Vannis!" Sylas calls out in time for Marsino to fall right onto his head. I collapse and struggle to catch my breath as both Sylas and Vannis run to him
"We need to stop the bleeding." Vannis says. I hear the ripping of cloth. "Water." I glance over to see them taking the best care of Marsino as they could. Starshadow takes his chance to slither back over to my side.
Are you holding up ok?
As well as I can. Vannis needs to calm down about mages. My face can't take too much more abuse. I whine in my head.
Please. You know that within a minute of rest your injuries will be gone. Starshadow dismisses my complaints.
They haven't healed, actually. My magic is being sucked away. I point out. A little burst of magic and most of my injuries are healing.
I'm still connected to you, remeber?
"Drink." Sylas orders Marcino, pouring water from his water skin onto the man's lips. The man stops screaming for a moment.
"Are we… There?" Marsino wheezes.
"Almost, brother." Vannis lies.
"Why build...Wrenwall...so far up a mountain?"
"It's supposed to be hard to reach." I hear the irony in Vannis' voice. Marsino chuckles a bit before it turns into a cough. "Easy there, brother." Vannis watches him before turning to Sylas. "The dormisroot-do you still have it?"
"Yes." Sylas perks up a bit. I caught my breath enough to see Sylas pull out a toy, a stone, and the flower. I grin at Sylas' smile as he looks at the flower. Vannis snatchs it from him.
"At least you did something right, boy." Vannis grunts. I see Sylas curl into himself a bit.
"It's not… his fault… I should've been… more careful." Marsino disagrees. I stare at the familiar flower in his hand before I remember that I have the flower in my scarf too. Thank you old lady and Starshadow.
"Sylas!" I call. Vannis looks up with Sylas, glaring at me. "There's dormisroot in my scarf! Can you give it to him?" I ask. Sylas runs over and carefully takes out the flower, trying not to crush it. Vannis ignores my contribution in favor of peeling the petals off the flower. Once he's done with Sylas', he takes mine and throws it away.
"Hey!"
"That magic will hasten his demise!" Vannis snaps before turning back to Marcino. He offers the petals to the fallen man.
"Chew on this. It's not refined, but it will help with the pain." Vannis comforts.
"What about… the magic?" Marsino sounds scared.
"It quickened the growth and kept it hardy, but the plant is untainted." Vannis informs Marsino. He keeps feeding Marsino the petals while whispering something into his ear. Sylas gives a small shiver and looks around.
"What is it?" Vannis asks.
"I don't know…" He looks in one direction for a moment. "I thought-" I spot what Sylas spots. Dark smoke in the distance. Vannis takes no time at all to make a makeshift litter and place Marsino on it. He grabs my bonds and pulls me with them as they race for the smoke.
We come across charred things in a pasture in no time. I could feel my stomach demand to turn inside out, from both the smell and the amount of magic I've expended. I do my best to keep it down.
"What do you think did that?" Sylas asks Vannis.
"Don't know. Stay there and keep watch." Vannis orders Sylas while giving him my lead. He moves to inspect the mess. It takes me a moment to realize that it was cattle and not some weird punch of firewood. I fall onto my knees, struggling with everything in me to not throw up.
Leilah?
I'm fine, I promise.
"Maybe we should go." Sylas whimpers. Vannis turns to him.
"Do you feel anything?" Sylas studies the cattle for a moment before something else catches his eye. He turns around to the farmstead. There was a cabin, a barn, and an outhouse. Without the smoke, I doubt any of us would have found this place.
The sound of footsteps can be made out as someone approaches. Vannis raises his staff, ready to defend his brother-in-arms. An old man comes around the barn. He halts for a moment. His clothes are too large for him. His weapon of choice, a halberd, held tightly but not pointed at us. It looks like it;s rusted quite a bit, but he has the confidence of one who has used them before.
"What are you doing on my farm?" The man demands, careful to stay out of Vannis' range of attack.
"My friend's hurt." Sylas pleas. "Please, he needs help, sir." I see Vannis give Sylas a glare for saying something. I push myself onto my feet and stand in front of Sylas, hoping that I could protect him better. The man glances at Marsino before shaking his halberd at us.
"They have healers in Wrenwall." He states.
"It's over a day's ride. He'll never make it." Vannis replies.
"A beast prowls these woods. You best ride out." the old man gestures to the burnt corpses.
"What kind of beast? Is it a dragon?" Sylas asks innocently.
"Steady, boy." Vannis commands him before stepping before the farmer. "You have a duty to quarter a Demacian soldier."
"You wear the blue, but a mageseeker is not a soldier." The farmer spits.
"Aye, but I was once. Like you." The farmer's eyes narrow and he points the weapon at us. I usher Sylas behind me to better protect him. "It's that pole cleaver." Vannis explains. "A gut ripper of the old Thornwall Halberdiers, if memory serves. Far as I can see, neither it nor this old soldier have lost their edge."
The farmer looks at his weapon in fondness. "That was a long time ago."
"Brothers are for life." Vannis softens his tone. "Help us. And we'll hunt your beast down after we're done."
Marsinso takes a struggling gasp. I kneel and try to examine him. My magic just doesn't come. I grunt in frustration. The farmer takes a moment to think about Vannis' offer.
"That won't be necessary." The farmer states. "Let's bring your man inside." Vannis picks up Marsino and hurries to the cabin. Sylas follows with me in tow.
What's the plan for getting out of this? Starshadow nearly makes me jump.
We have a plan? I ask.
You need to not be bound! How does the Aspect of Hope get herself caught so many times? I really doubt that Zoe's had so much trouble. Myisha got lucky. Starshadow grumbles.
I'm not Hope, Starshadow. I'm not special enough to be the entirety of Runeterra's future. I'm just Leilah. I remind him.
"Who else is here?" Vannis asks while removing Marsino's tunic.
"I live alone." the farmer claims. I look around and see little signs that someone else, a child maybe, lives here as well. I choose not to say anything as Marsino's life is more urgent, not to mention there must be a reason as to why this man is hiding his child.
"We have to cut it out." Vannis states. Marsino starts to convulse. I try to use my magic to catch him before remembering that my magic is being sucked into my bonds. I growl under my breath.
"Hold 'em down." Vannis yells. Sylas pins Marsino's legs. Marsino's thrashing so much that he kicks Sylas right in his face. Sylas stumbles back, nursing his jaw. I rush over and check on him. "I said hold him down!"
"What makes you think a boy can hold down a grown man!" I snap. Sylas pulls away to go back when the farmer steps in.
"It's alright, son. Try talking to him." The farmer comforts Sylas. Sylas walks to Marcino's head. I notice that Marsino's struggling to breath.
"Marsino?" I feel my heart clench at Sylas's broken voice. I press one hand against the boy's shoulder.
"Hold his hand, let him know you're there. It helps with injured animals. Men aren't much different." The farmer advises. Sylas grabs Marsino's hand.
"It's going to be alright. We got help." Sylas tries to comfort the dying man. Marsino turns his blood eyes towards Sylas.
"Are we in Wrenwall?" Marsino sounds so scared. Sylas looks to Vannis, unsure of what to do. Vannis nods to him.
"Yes. The healers are working on you." Sylas lies to him.
"The dormisroot… It bought me time… some time." Marsino sounds relieved. I see him squeeze Sylas's hand. "You did good… You did good…" Sylas cries and clutches Marsino's hand tightly.
"I'm sorry, Marsino. I should've-"
"Don't...it wasn't...your fault." Marsino chokes out. He lifts his head and looks around for something. "Vannis?"
"Right here, brother."
"Tell 'em… tell 'em it's not on him." I see Vannis stare st Sylas. I move to Sylas's side, giving him silent support. Well, as much as a prisoner can comfort someone.
"Aye, bad luck is all." Vannis finally gives in.
"See… Marsino smiles weakly. "You don't need… to carry it."
Vannis clutches Marsino's hand tightly. "We need to cut it out, brother." Marsino nods his head.
"He'll need something to bite on." the farmer adds. Sylas pulls out a dagger that I didn't notice before. He places the wooden handle into Marsino's mouth.
"Good." Vannis complements Sylas. Sylas doesn't reply, just staring at Marsino's arm. Vannis moves to cut into Marsino's arm.
"Stop." Sylas says unexpectedly.
"What is it?" Vannis asks Sylas. Sylas remains silent. Vannis starts to cut. Marsino tries to scream through the dagger. I notice Sylas wince from the tightness of Marsino's grip. Vannis stops and curses. The infection has reached his neck. "It's too deep. I can't cut it out." the mageseeker steps back, looking so scared and unsure.
"What if you burn it out?" Sylas asks.
"You can't cauterize that close to the artery." Vannis scolds Sylas.
"He's only trying to help." I snap at Vannis. Vannis ignores me in favor of turning to the farmer. "Do you have any medicinals?"
"Nothing that would help." Vannis looks down to his partner, looking so burdened by a choice he has to make. "You." He turns to me. I gulp.
"What about me?" I ask.
"Are you a healer?" He asks. I look down at Marsino before taking a deep breath.
"A bit, but I've never dealt with magical injuries before, much less to this extent. Maybe I can help him be in less pain." I offer.
"Not good enough. Is there a healer nearby?" Vannis turns back to the farmer.
"The closest one-"
"Not that kind of healer." Vannis shuts him down. The farmer takes a moment.
"I don't know anyone like that." The farmer states. Vannis looks like he wants to protest, but he stays focused on helping Marsino.
"The cattle." Vannis says suddenly.
"What of them?"
"Did they ever suffer from tinea worm?"
"Yes. We burnt it out with a pulvis of lunar caustic." The farmer tells us.
"If we cut the source and use a thin band of the pulvis for the rest, it might work." Vannis explains. "Where is it?" The farmer hesitates, looking out the window. Marsino starts to twist violently. I walk up to Vannis, done with being dismissed and held back.
"Get these things off me!" I snarl. Vannis pauses before relenting, using his knife to cut off the ropes. My magic stops feeling sucked out and relaxes a bit. I make my way to him and place my hands on his head.
ARE YOU NUTS? Starshadow screams in my head. I wince, pretending that it's from Marsino's flailing.
Not the time, Starshadow. Besides, I'm not leaving. He needs help, even if it's help being at peace when he passes.
"It's in the barn, but-" The farmer starts. He gets cut off when Marsino wails. I grit my teeth and pull on the little magic I have left.
"I got it!" Sylas runs outside. Marsino thrashes and screams. I add my own screams in as I push every single bit of my magic into fooling him into that he's not in pain. A moment later, everything becomes quiet. I feel my magic curl around Marsino's mind, taking away his pain. Marsino relaxes. Vannis checks on his pulse. He gives a laugh of relief, feeling a pulse. I can barely keep my eyes open. My legs are shaking with the strain.
"Vannis? Where are you?" Marsino pleads. I close my eyes and will my magic to let him see again. I hear Marsino gasp and smile.
"Why are you so sad, Vannis?" Marsino asks.
"How can you see?" Vannis asks. I squirm, fully aware that I'm in a private moment. And that I can't get out.
"It doesn't matter. I'm dying, Vannis. Don't be too hard on Sylas. He's a good boy. And the girl, she's helping. Don't be too rough on her either." I groan with effort to keep Marsino up a little bit longer.
"Vannis, I can't keep this up! The only thing keeping him alive right now is me!" I yelp.
"You let go of him, and I'll kill you."
"It doesn't work like that! Whatever you put on those ropes, they took my magic. I'm on fumes!" I snap.
"You will last as long as you need to to get him to Wrenwall." Vannis brandishes a knife and points it at my throat.
"Oh, yes. Threaten the person keeping your friend up. That'll make my magic return that must faster. Don't be an idiot! Your hatred for magic is what put him in this place!" I snarl. Vannis pulls back to stab me when Marsino's arm reaches up and grabs Vannis'.
"It's alright, Vannis. She's doing her best. Thank you, miss." Marsino diffuses the situation. I feel his other arm reach over and pat my hand.
"It's Leilah. And you're going to get to say goodbye to Sylas too." I grunt.
"Vannis." I feel his head turn towards his friend. "Don't blame them. Don't..." I feel Marsino collapse and my magic no longer flows into him.
"No." I whisper. "No. no. NO!" I scream as I fall to my knees. I failed. I feel Starshadow swipe his tail across my back.
You didn't have a chance. At least you made his passing peaceful. Starshadow mumbles in my mind. I drop my head, feeling like I failed. Vannis just stands there, unmoving. He glares at me. I bow my head.
If I can't keep someone long enough to say goodbye to a friend, how am I supposed to be what Starshadow calls me?
Happy thanksgiving, my extraordinary peeps! This is Leilah's second attempt to heal a victim. Unfortunately, she still arrives too late to help, though that one, we can put on Vannis, huh? The dude has some serious anger issues. It sucks that Demacia hates Mages so much. They are super useful.
Also, feel free to put in reviews what Leilah should be now. She is a combination of a Darkin and an Aspect, so I'm struggling with coming up with a title for her. I'd love any suggestions you put in!