"Thanks, by the way."
"Uh, for what?"
"For saving me. Remember, you stabbed that man and burned his insides."
"Serax, do you know what that was?"
No response, even after ten or so seconds. From the looks of it, she's not staying silent because she wants to be annoying or anything.
I stand up and slowly walk over to her, who is lying on the floor covered in bandages. Both of her eyes are closed, and from the looks of it, they want to stay closed.
"Serax," I shake her head, "Serax, are you ok?"
No response.
__________________________
Everything stops after what felt like years, and Anra's head tilts towards the left. I stare at the back of the caravan, sweating.
"Is she still alive, kid?" Mr. Heizen says to me after opening the door with a look that gave both worry and disappointment.
"Yes, but she's not conscious," I say slowly.
The man sighs, "With an injury like that, it's to be expected."
"Are we there yet?" I ask.
"Oh, um, yes." He answers.
Thank goodness.
Mr. Heizen climbs into the caravan and makes his way to Serax. He then lifts her legs and crosses them. He then grabs her arms and pulls them upwards. He then lowers his shoulder and places Serax's unconscious body onto it.
I believe I've seen this method of carrying people before, but I just can't remember when.
I should go as well, but Anra, I can't just leave the kid, especially after what just happened.
I turn my head back towards Mr. Heizen and his daughter. They're headed straight towards the stone building labeled as Barze Verdxe's Emergency Care. It's in pretty good shape and has many bright trees surrounding it.
"You coming, kid?"
I don't know, am I? Am I really willing to risk my brother's safety for someone I have just met? Now that I think about it, I really did just get into another stranger's vehicle again, haven't I? Well, I guess I should be able to trust these guys, but who really knows? What if this really is just some trap and they're really just trying to turn Anra and I into some questionable-tasting human soup?
I mean, that's very unlikely. And it might be safer for Anra and I to be under their shield. Actually, a hospital in general would be a lot safer compared to being out in the open.
I try out the same method that Mr. Heizen uses, and it works. But, due to Anra's height, it's much easier to just pick him up the same way I've always been picking him up. It also seems to stand out a lot less.
I drop onto the floor and catch up with Mr. Heizen. We both walk into the hospital. The woman at the counter gently glances towards us. She then steps back and flinches.
"We need a doctor, now." Mr. Heizen says in a demanding tone. "She's been hit with a piercing storm, and she's unconscious!"
The girl at the counter with round glasses looks around the room, at the three other people waiting for a doctor. A wrinkly man, a middle-aged woman with brown hair, and a child sleeping on the woman's lap.
"Yes, I'll go let the doctor know…"
__________________________
I gently tap my foot on the floor over and over again. With my hands holding my head. Anra is sitting in the chair to the right of mine, and Mr. Heizen sits to the left of me. He gazes up towards the ceiling as we wait.
I know that I've just met these two, but I'm still worried about her. That was a pretty bad injury, after all. It was like having multiple large needles stabbed into you. Thankfully, she was not hit in vital areas.
Tip, Tap, Tip, Tap…
A man wearing a black coat walks into the waiting room, the doctor. He says, "Mr. Heizen, can you please come over here please?"
Mr. Heizen's attention is brought to the doctor, and he jumps up. And follows the Doctor. I stay seated while Mr. Heizen and the doctor have a quick chat. After a minute or two, Mr. Heizen comes back and says, "She's not dying, thankfully."
"How is she then?" I ask.
"Well, the doctor says that it'll take a while, but she should be fine soon."
"Ah, well, that's good."
Mr. Heizen drops a small bag onto the counter and says, "Is this enough?"
The woman opens each bag and looks through it. She picks up one coin after another and inspects them. She then puts them into the drawer.
"Sir, you're short by fifty-four Keyroes." She finally says to Mr. Heizen.
"Fifty-four Keyroes? That's a hundred Keyroes total, no way a single consultation costs that much." Mr. Heizen says confused.
"It's both the treatment and the consultation combined." The girl says while adjusting her glasses.
"Isn't that still a little expensive?" Mr. Heizen asks.
The girl shrugs and says, "That's just how things cost here."
Mr. Heizen sighs and says, "Well, I'll bring you the rest of the money tomorrow."
"How do I know that you won't just run off without paying?" She asks.
"Well, I'm going to have to come back because you know, I have someone to pick up from this hospital." Mr. Heizen says, annoyed.
"Well then, sir, can you please tell me your address so we can let you know about any updates?"
"Oh, we don't really have a home. Or, not here at least."
"Well, in that case, we won't be able to give you any updates."
Mr. Heizen stands there frozen for a second or two until he finally says, "I'll book a hotel for the night, is that fine?"
"Um, yes, that should be fine."
"Okay then," Mr. Heizen looks back at me, "If you don't mind, I'd like to talk to you in the caravan."
"Um, ok?" I say, confused.
__________________________
Mr. Heizen shuts the door to the Caravan and tells me to take a seat. He then says, "First of all, your brother. What exactly happened?"
I tell him the truth, "Back in Azraba, my brother was taken by Keyminean bounty hunters, and then we found out he was put under the hostage curse when we rescued him."
Mr. Heizen crouches, "And, what about your weapon? How did you get it?"
I answer, "It belonged to the bounty hunter who took Anra."
"Have you ever been trained to use Keyminite weapons before?"
"No." I look over at my sword, "I'm not exactly sure what happened there. I've never even held a Keyminite weapon until then. I don't even know what I did!"
Mr. Heizen sighs, "You used an attack that burned his insides, killing him almost instantly. This type of attack is not too advanced, but someone certainly can't pull it off the first time they use a Keyminite weapon."
"But I've never touched a blade in my life, I swear!" I tell him.
"Well, since the blade belonged to someone else, they may have mastered it before. The weapon does affect the power of the user, but this weapon isn't anything that special." Mr. Heizen pauses and asks me, "How much about Keyminite do you know?"
"Barely anything."
Mr. Heizen points at the red symbol on my sword, "Do you know what this is, Erax?"
I stare at it for a couple of seconds, "No, not really, but I have seen other symbols like this on other weapons."
"Well, the simplest way to explain it is that this is the fire mark. The fire mark lets you use fire abilities." Mr. Heizen pulls his sword out and points at the symbols on it, "This here is the water mark, it well, lets you unlock water attacks."
That makes sense, "So then that white symbol on the axe is…"
"The air mark." Mr. Heizen clears his throat, "Since this sword had belonged to someone else, it already has a mark. Usually, you have to go through a whole process to get one."
Before I can ask Mr. Heizen what the process is, he stands back up and puts his sword back into his scabbard. "You'll have to learn about these things soon. Bounty Hunters are after you, after all. As of right now, there are a lot of things on your plate, such as learning how Keyminite works and figuring out how to protect your brother." Mr. Heizen pauses before saying, "Are you going to hide him, or are you going to fight anyone who decides to hurt him? If you are going to hide him, where will you hide him?"
I sit there, thinking about what to say. But before I can say anything, Mr. Heizen speaks up, "Also, thank you for saving my daughter. She's like a shiny crystal to me."
"Oh, um, you're welcome." I tell him. That whole talk felt short and was all over the place.
Mr. Heizen looks into a drawer, "Well, if you're planning to stick around, you're going to need this." He throws a scabbard at me, and I catch it.
"Think of it like a thank-you gift for saving her." Mr. Heizen sighs, "Or at least, delaying her death for now."
Even though I can't read Mr. Heizen's thoughts, I can tell he's worried about Serrax. A wound like that doesn't magically disappear, or does it?
I ask him, "Can't you guys just use some magic to heal her or something?"
"Oh, well, you see, magic isn't exactly used to heal." Mr. Heizen pauses, "It's used to hurt."