Faded Shadows
Chapter 14
"I'm surprised you made such a quick recovery." said Agliss as he looked down on me with arms crossed. It almost looked like he was disappointed in me. "I thought you were out of commission for the rest of your time here."
"I'm surprised I'm not." I replied. "I've had so much happen to me in these past few weeks, I'm surprised I haven't died yet."
"Did you actually kill that Gnoll?" asked Agliss.
"Of course." I replied. "Who else would've killed it? Not one of those guards. It underestimated me and that's how I won."
"Fair enough." said Agliss with a sigh. "I guess I'll let you rest for now but I do believe that both the King and the High Priestess wishes to speak with you."
"I don't really have a choice do I?" I asked.
"Not really." Agliss said as he walked to the door. "Heal up." With that he walked out the door and closed it behind him. With the old man gone, I sat up to examine the room. It was nice, like the rest of the caste yet it missed the appeal of the hospital in Canterlot Castle. I slowly pushed myself up to find that I had no pain whatsoever in my back. Whatever kind of magic the High Priestess used on me did its job.
Remembering the healing took me back to what I considered a vivid dream, if I could call it that, that happened while I was out. The Nurse told me that I could harness active magic and use it, I could gain the power I needed. I reached up to my neck and felt the large metal collar still hanging there. The Nurse said I could try this collar to get what I needed. That would mean I would have to activate it somehow. If I remember correctly, Celestia said it would activate if someone could spark the magic inside it.
That's all well and good but I needed something to spark the magic. I can't go up to Agliss and tell him I need him to activate the collar. He'll see right through what I want to happen. Same thing goes for Celestia, Luna, and Yamato. I could ask Azure Phoenix but he'd probably say no as well, then he'd tell Agliss. I was out of ideas but then it hit me. If the High Priestess was able to use healing magic, she could probably spark the collar. Just then, a loud knock sounded from the door as it opened, revealing who knocked. It was King Leo followed by the High Priestess, they came to visit just like Agliss said.
"How are you feeling, Zhane?" asked Leo as he and the High Priestess approached the bed I was on.
"Better than before." I replied.
"That's great." said Leo. "The High Priestess' healing magic is the best we have in this country. I'd even go as far as to say her ability in healing rivals that of Princess Celestia."
"Stop with the gloating." replied the High Priestess with a groan. "I already have the elders of your council breathing down my neck about me using my magic to heal a foreigner."
"If it weren't for Zhane, Bloom and yourself might not even be here." replied Leo. "Now Zhane, you have done my country a great service in protecting its High Priestess from danger, even to the point of risking your own life. As the ruler of this fine land, you have my most sincere thanks. If there's anything you need, please let me know."
This was my chance.
"There is something I want to ask." I said.
"Go ahead." said Leo.
"You desire to win this Civil war, right?" I asked.
"Of course." began Leo. "I wish to restore order to my land and bring an end to this unseen force controlling Scarhide and his men."
"So that means you'll do whatever it takes to win?" I asked.
"In some aspects, yes." said Leo.
"What if I told you I could offer a way to further beat back the Rebels."
Leo looked me in the eyes for a moment, I thought he had saw through me but I was wrong.
"What is this thing you offer?" he asked.
I tapped my collar and smiled.
"Another human that can use magic."
I could see Leo's eyes get wide with either excitement or fear.
"You want me to remove the collar?" asked Leo.
"No." I replied. "I need it to be activated."
"Why would you want that?" asked the High Priestess. "You do realize what would happen? You'd receive a very nasty shock."
"It'd be worth it." I replied. "I'd be able to absorb the magic excreted from the collar and regain the ability to use magic."
"I know your history, Zhane." started the High Priestess. "I know what you've done with the magic you once wielded. How can I be sure that you won't do the same once again."
"I have no reason to." I said. "I was blinded by trivial things back then. I've had time to think and all I want now is to end this war and find out who wants to capture me and why."
"I don't know." said the High Priestess.
"You two are the only ones I can go to about this." I started. "Agliss would refuse, Celestia and Luna would slap more chains on my wrists, and I'm quite positive Azure Phoenix would burn me alive if I asked. You two are the only ones that can help me here. If you help me with this, I promise to do all I can to end this war for you. Even if that means going against the time limit that Celestia gave me."
"I know of your past." said Leo who had remained silent for quite some time. "I know of the things you did but I never met that Zhane. The Zhane I know is the one willing to risk his life for another country. However, I'm afraid of the backlash of allowing to regain you're magical abilities.
I let out a small sigh, I guess it was time to pull out the big guns.
"I don't have much time left in this world." I said. "Because of the mistake that I made in the past, I will be paying for them in the near future."
"What are you talking about?" asked the High Priestess.
"I believe that Agliss told you of my use of Soul Magic?" I asked as I received a nod from the High Priestess. "Well, because of the intensity of the spell I used and because of how many times I used it, my soul is eroding away. I have little more than a year left in this world."
"Wait, Agliss told me there was nothing to worry about." said the High Priestess.
"How would they know?" I said. "The essence of the magic I once wielded still resides in my body and it's causing the erosion to go faster than it should be. If it weren't for that essence, my soul would be fine, no erosion, no nothing. Now I'm just a dead man with enough time to right the wrongs of the past."
Several moments passed as Leo and the High Priestess looked at each other. Hopefully they would pick in my favor. I could really use the power.
"I will allow this." began Leo. "But only on the grounds that you give it your all in these next few weeks."
"You have my word." I replied with a smile. It was about time I was able to keep up with Agliss.
"Activate his collar." said Leo as he looked towards the High Priestess. She nodded and brought one of her front claws up until it was level with the collar on my neck. I sat there waiting for the bright glow of the magic being exerted from the High Priestess but all I felt was a burning twitch all over. No matter how hard I tried to move, my muscles would not obey.
After moments of that agony, the burning twitch stopped and I regained control of my body. The shock had zapped most of my stamina as I tried to raise my right arm. Whatever magic was on that collar did the trick, it certainly kept me down. Slowly, I looked over to the High Priestess with a smile of gratitude.
"I assume that's what you needed?" asked the High Priestess.
"I...hope...so..." I replied in gasping breaths. This was awful, I felt so drained that I was pretty sure my heart would just stop beating.
"From what Celestia told me." began the High Priestess. "That's enough electricity to keep you down for several hours. That the collar was something she had to enchant personally."
"It...did...it's...job..." I said.
"I guess I'll reside here for now." said the High Priestess. "Just to make sure that shock didn't mess you up too bad."
"I'm counting on you, Zhane." said Leo. "Rest well and make a full recovery. We'll need you."
I didn't watch him leave, I didn't care. All I cared about was figuring out who to use this magic. I thought for a moment and assumed that The Nurse might know what to do from this point. I did remember her saying that I could come back anytime I wanted. All I had to do was find a way back. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the room I woke up in. Slowly but surely, I could see the landscape form in the darkness behind my eyelids. Once everything set into place, I walked to the door and pushed it open. Outside was The Nurse, standing there as if she had been waiting for me.
"You're back." she said in a rather bland voice.
"Don't be too surprised." I sarcastically replied. "I'm just glad I found an easy way back."
"It seems that you were successful in getting them to use the collar on you." said the Nurse. "The magic that flooded into your body was enough to keep an electrical current rushing throughout your body for several hours straight."
"All I need is a way to control it. That's why I'm back." I said.
"My advice would be to try and use the method you used when casting Umbra's Shadow Magic. You remember how you did that?"
"Of course." I replied. "I just have to gather the magic to my hand and will it out."
"I recommend that you practice it before attempting to use the magic fully. I would also like to remind you that even though you absorbed a lot of magic, you can still run out if you use too much. So please be careful in the usage."
"Of course." I replied. "And thank you for the help. Now how do I leave here?"
"Just open your eyes." she said.
Even though my eyes felt like they were open while I looked at her, I tried opening them anyways. I found myself back in the hospital room with the High Priestess by my side.
"Are you okay?" she asked. "You passed out for several minutes there. I was worried that the electricity had stopped your heart."
"I'm fine." I said as I started to move my muscles. I found that even thought they were still sore, they weren't as sore as before. "Just trying to find a way to use this magic."
"Did you?" asked the High Priestess.
I pulled my hand up and put my index finger and thumb close together. I thought back to how I used Shadow Magic a long time ago. I focused and for a moment, I felt a small tingle as a bright light started to emit from my fingertips. I looked closer to see a small strand of what looked to be electricity connecting my index finger and my thumb. I smiled slightly as I realized that I could finally be of use now.
"I can feel the electricity coming off of you." said the High Priestess. "You sure do learn quick."
"I already knew how." I replied. "I just lacked the magic to use."
I slowly pushed my two fingers together and watched as the electricity disappeared. I opened my fingers back up to see that no electricity was present.
"I just need to learn how I can apply this and I'll be good to go." I said to myself.
"That might take longer than you think." said the High Priestess. "It took me years to learn how to even heal the simplest wound. Who knows how long it'll take for you to apply that magic to battle."
"In magic, your only limitation is your imagination." I said. "Other than that, you have free reign over what you do and how you do it. I have several ideas with what I can do. The problem would be practicing these without drawing attention to myself."
I turned to the High Priestess.
"Any ideas?" I asked.
"I have a few." said the High Priestess with a smile.