Chapter 24 MY LITTLE SORCERER
Xyra sighed a bit as she watched over Magnus. Darren had gone to get some water from a nearby stream. The sorcerer's temperature was insanely high, so they had to do what they could to keep it down. Hopefully, the next town is close by. We don't need you dying for us. How else am I supposed to get rich? Maybe Darren had been right to a certain extent. Maybe all she cared about was money. However, people mattered too. Any idiot could figure that out.
"I'm back," called Darren as he arrived with a wet cloth. He bent down and set it on Magnus's forehead. This was all he could do right now. Hopefully, the sorcerer would last until they made it to the next town.
"This didn't have to happen," said Xyra just as Darren sat down. "He could've just killed them all from the start."
"It takes time to cast a spell," Darren told her. "When he got injured, he had finally gotten enough time to conjure something."
"…It's our fault, isn't it." There was no doubt in her voice, no question. The statement had been full of absolute certainty.
"Yeah." Darren looked over at Magnus for a moment. He began to wonder if this was the first time the sorcerer had ever gotten this hurt. Otherwise, he would have died long ago. "Guess he's not used to having companions. Probably can't watch another's back while guarding his own. It's no surprise though. Most can't."
"He shouldn't have had to." She reached to her side and ran a hand down the hilt of her sword. "I'm pretty good at fighting, but those demons caught me off guard."
"I know. It was almost like they had planned that. Perhaps they're smarter creatures than we give them credit for."
Xyra only nodded and then returned her attention to the surrounding forest. She definitely wasn't used to this type of surrounding. She didn't travel much, probably because she didn't often have a reason to. Staying in one town was good enough for her. However, finding work was slowly getting harder. For some reason, the influx of bounty hunters had increased, and even though she had no bounty on her head, they were just as bad as official peacekeepers. They'd catch her in a second. If she wanted money, staying with Magnus was her best choice.
"Hey Darren?" she asked suddenly, snapping him from the small trance he had been in. "You know why I'm traveling with Magnus, but why did you decide to follow us?"
"You two looked like you were having fun," he told her with a playful smile. "I love fun. I love killing demons too, so traveling with another hunter seemed like a good idea." His expression fell a bit, his dark eyes dimming. "But it seems even I'm a distraction to him."
Darren stood up and stretched his arms a bit, a yawn escaping him. He walked over to a large stone and got on top of it. He sat down again, looking out into the forest. He was going to keep watch. They couldn't afford to slip up again. If ambushed, they'd have to rely solely on their sword skills.
"Get some sleep," he told Xyra. He was sure she would protest, and she was about to, so he cut her off. "I'm going to keep watch tonight. I'm used to it, so don't worry. Just rest up. We have a long day ahead of us."
Xyra opened her mouth to say something but instead closed it. She got down on the ground, wrapping her cloak around herself. She was exhausted, so sleep would be a good thing, but she wasn't sure if she would be able to get any. With Magnus out of commission, she didn't feel all that safe. Sure, Darren was capable and rather reliable, but he was still human, and humans needed sleep. Hopefully, he'd be able to stay awake through the night. They were depending on him, after all.
"Finally!" Darren shouted as they approached the entrance to a small town. It wasn't much to look at, but they didn't care. This was the greatest thing they had seen all day. Now they could finally get Magnus to a healer. They only hoped that he had been right about there being one in this town. He desperately needed one. His condition was still getting worse.
Darren and Xyra ran into the town while holding onto Magnus. They had to find someone who could tell them where to go. Hopefully, someone will talk to them. However, they luckily didn't need to find anybody. A few structures from the entrance, they found what they were looking for. It was a small house, a sign hanging on the door that had the word "healer" written on it. Without hesitation, they took off.
While Darren took on Magnus's full weight, Xyra rapped a few times on the door. Nothing happened at first, but not long after knocking, the door opened. A woman walked out, decked in white robes. She appeared to be quite young compared to most healers, but her demeanor alone stated that she was capable of whatever task they had for her.
"Can I help you?" she asked kindly.
"He needs help," Xyra said as she pointed to Magnus. The healer's eyes widened just a bit, but she didn't let them see it. They probably hadn't noticed anyway.
"What happened?"
"Poison," said Darren, and that one word seemed to answer it all.
"Bring him in."
Xyra returned to Darren and began to help him get Magnus into the house. Despite what the complex had looked like from the outside, it was actually well-kept. Everything was neat and tidy and incredibly open. The whole bottom floor was just one room, full of different books, all on medical procedures.
"Put him down over there," the healer directed, and they obeyed instantly. They went over and set Magnus down on the bed she had pointed to. She walked over to him, monitoring his condition. There was a grim look on her face, but her eyes held hope.
"Well?" asked Xyra, praying that they hadn't been too late.
"You can wait upstairs while I take care of him. I'm sure you're both exhausted from the trip."
"Thank you," said Darren as he and Xyra began leaving. They had no reason to worry anymore. Magnus was going to live. Finally, they could get some sleep since neither one had been able to the night before. Darren had kept watch the entire night, and Xyra had kept him company.
When the healer was sure the two of them had left, she looked back to Magnus. His skin had a slight reddish hue to it. His body was suffering from a fever brought on by the poison. He had been lucky to survive this long. Most would succumb within a day.
"Foolish boy," she whispered as she placed a hand against his hot forehead. There was a soft smile gracing her lips. "I thought I told you before to be careful. Always getting into trouble, aren't you…my little sorcerer."