"That's enough, Aroha," Vela said with a chop on Aroha's consciousness that saw her lose consciousness. "You're just as terrifying as the grand healer said you'd be," Vela said as she grabbed Aroha before she fell. She was completely unconscious. Vela had stopped her flow of mana temporarily, forcing her to fall asleep.
Ara helped move Aroha away from the Lykan. In its current state, it posed no threat to anyone. It was utterly terrified, cowering in the corner, clutching its head, as if trying to make itself as small as possible. Its only hope was that Aroha would be taken far away from it, and when she finally was, a fragile sense of relief washed over the creature. Only then did it release a long, trembling breath.
Ara laid Aroha down on a cushion in one of the rooms within the Laboratorium, his room, in fact. He visited often enough to warrant one, and on several occasions had even spent the night there. Ara owned a room in nearly every establishment he frequented, the Healers' Nest included, and each was furnished with nothing but the finest.
He gently settled Aroha's head onto a pillow, then straightened and walked over to Zhiyi. "What the hell was that?" he asked.
"Well, I don't know either. It happened once at home but since our father calmed her down, it had never happened," Zhiyi said.
"Do you remember what triggered it then?"
"Well… I don't. I'm sorry."
"It's not that unusual, but it's rare," Vela interjected.
"You know about this?" Ara asked. He said, with a mixture of scepticism and surprise.
"Well, I wouldn't be a top-class healer if I didn't," Vela gloated.
She walked to sit beside Aroha before she continued. Gently, she stroked her forehead as if she was seeing into her memories.
"It happens with healers with high amounts of druid mana and poor control. Why it is unusual is because the time when healers possessed this amount of druid mana is almost long past. The only healers in the capital with such amounts are their parents; Gero and Miya Renoff, the grand healer, me of course, Zhiyi over there, Alex Renoff, and Miya's twin, Raya Renoff. She had the same problem that Aroha is having now. It can be triggered for different reasons. But with practice, they can overcome that problem and make that power fully theirs. With Aroha's temper, I'm not surprised she's having this many issues. The grand healer also predicted this as well. That's probably why their parents wanted to come and train here," Vela said.
Zhiyi was surprised by how much Vela knew. She knew about their aunt, Raya Renoff. Raya had been the spitting image of their mother, Miya, yet beyond the fact that she had died in the war, their parents rarely spoke of her. The same silence surrounded her cousin, Alex Renoff, her only living direct relative.
No one quite understood why, but Vela spoke very little about her family. Their father, Gero, was much the same. He still had relatives alive, though most were distant. Yet Vela seemed to know a great deal about all of them. Then again, she was the Vice Grand Healer. She would naturally have access to more information than most.
"I see. Then I suppose it's nothing to panic about," Ara said.
He had other matters demanding his attention, matters involving Vela.
So they left Aroha in Zhiyi's care. As she slept, Aroha looked almost serene. It was the only time she ever did. It might have been nice if her face could remain that way, but peace meant nothing if it only existed in sleep. How deeply must she despise human interaction to find calm only in unconsciousness? Zhiyi let her thoughts linger on everything that had happened.
***
Ara made sure they had gone a fair distance before abruptly pulling Vela into a corner. Those nearby were wise enough to give them space. Ara's expression was anything but pleased—the hard sternness in his eyes told Vela exactly what was coming.
He knew she was hiding something.
"What part of that explanation did you leave out?" Ara snapped.
He had known Vela long enough to know when she was hiding something. She was so good at it that unless you knew her well, it was easy to miss. But there was no one that knew Vela better than Ara.
"You always know, don't you?" Vela sighed.
She wasn't sure whether telling him was a good idea but he was smart enough not to blabber about it. It was sensitive information after all. If it was released too early to the girls, it could trigger a dangerous reaction from them. Especially Aroha since she was the one directly involved.
"It only occurs in people that have as much druid mana as the druids themselves. Normally, it shouldn't even be possible, but the first druid human born was like that. So, very sparsely, one of his progeny inherits that ability. Her human body can't maintain it. That's what caused her episode. I merely reset the flow of her mana but it will continue to build up and her next episode will only come faster. I suspect that Master Gero did the same as well. If she doesn't master that power, her body might give out. She'll die," Vela said. There was a glint of sadness in her eye as she spoke paused. "… just like her aunt, Raya," she continued.
"How long does she have?" Ara asked.
"I don't know. It differs. But she should have a couple of years on her belt. Unless something speeds up the reaction," she said.
"Something like what?"
"I don't know. Something."
"Vela, is there any information on how Raya Renoff died?" Ara asked.
"She was the first healer to fight on the fronts before Miya and Gero. So maybe war. But she died before she could write her name in the history books. Other than all I have said, I know nothing about her. For some reason, she's a ghost. There's no real story about her in any of the books as well," Vela said.
Ara saw nothing suspicious in her eyes, nor heard anything amiss in her voice. Perhaps she was telling the truth. There was no real reason to doubt her. And if the answer lay in Aroha's training, then she would have to steel herself for the journey ahead. Telling the girls about Aroha's condition would only make things worse. The flow of mana was deeply influenced by a wielder's emotions, and knowledge of it would only unsettle them. Unease that might hasten the very process they hoped to prevent. Ara understood this well; there was no need to dwell on it. So they did what they had come to do in the first place.
***
Aroha awoke minutes after Ara and Vela left. Zhiyi was right beside her. "You looked really peaceful you know," Zhiyi teased.
Aroha, on the other hand, woke with a pounding headache. She didn't feel even half as peaceful as Zhiyi had implied. If anything, the urge to smash something was stronger than usual.
"Hey… where did everyone go?" she asked, squinting as the world swam into focus.
Everything was still a blur. She couldn't recall the incident that had forced Vela to knock her out. It was the same as last time, her memory came back eventually, but only after a delay. This time, however, the pieces snapped into place far more quickly.
"The Lykan!" she exclaimed as the memories came rushing in.
"Relax. It's alright," Zhiyi assured her.
Aroha lay still, but rest refused to come. The thought of how much trouble she had caused the others gnawed at her. If she was going to stop something like that from happening again, she would have to master her mana control. And deep in her heart, she made a silent vow, to become better at it than anyone else.