Seekers of the Stone Maker
Deadly Diagnosis

When Ana awoke, she wasn’t sure of what time it was. The consistency of sunlight had been a welcoming sight each morning, but the lack of it in Avernus made it hard to tell whether she had fallen asleep for only an hour or days. Further, she felt intensely cold, as if her bones were made of ice. She put her coat on and walked over to Sir Nibs.

“It’s time to wake up, Nibs.”

The squirrel stretched, slowly crawling up her arm and into the coat’s hood.

“I know you want to use the bloodstone we found, but I need it for a little longer. I promise to give it to you as soon as we leave.”

Ana walked out into the hallway and could smell breakfast cooking.

I must have slept all day and night!

Ana could feel her teeth chattering and her body shaking from the cold. As she entered the main room, she saw the fireplace on the other side of the table. She walked past everyone as they started to eat. She moved a chair closer to the fire and tried to warm herself. The fire felt hot next to her, but it didn’t seem to warm her. She rubbed her hands together and scooted a little closer to the flames.

“You okay, Ana?” Rhokhishi asked.

“I’m so cold…”

“Cold? It’s the warmest we’ve been since Stillmight Campground!” Leaf exclaimed.

She couldn’t focus on them well; the cold seemed to sap all her attention.

“Maybe you’ve come down with something?” Myla asked, concerned. “Mr. Tennison, do you have any medical supplies?”

“I do. Here, Ana. Come with me.”

Alyk rose and helped Ana down the stairs at the end of the room. On the floor below, she could see rows and rows of bookshelves. He led her to the left into a small room. The walls were adorned with various items, only some of which she could recognize from her trips to the doctor when she was little. In the center of the room was a table, which he gestured for her to lay on.

The cold was intense, but she pushed past it to lay on the table. She watched as Rhokhishi, Lyla, and Myla stood at the door, watching Alyk as he moved from one item to the next, using the various instruments to gauge her temperature, pulse, and more. After half an hour, he placed a device back on the wall and sighed.

“From what I can tell, there is nothing wrong with you physically. I think this calls for a deeper test, but I don’t do this often, and I want to warn you that it will hurt a little.”

Ana could feel fear rising inside her, but she nodded anyway and closed her eyes. He didn’t touch her or say anything, but the next moment was one of the most painful moments of her life. She felt as if her skin was being torn from her body. She opened her eyes once the pain stopped. Whether that had lasted one second or centuries, she wasn’t sure. She lifted her hand to her face and saw the silver, translucent appendage.

“This is your soul, Ana. This is you, in all your essence, in a living state. What I want you to do is tell me about when you died. What do you remember?”

“I remember,” She started. “I remember us fighting the dragon. I remember sending a message to my mentor, Mikella. I remember everything going black. There was nothing else until I returned.”

“You didn’t go anywhere?”

“No. Does that… Does that mean I lived a life not worthy of going to some form of heaven?”

“Ana…” Alyk sighed again. “It isn’t always an immediate transition. There are many types of heaven and hell. The Aesir, Vanir, and Olympians share the same Nine Hells, but we all have a different version of heaven or the places in between. Some you travel to immediately, some need a guide. I cannot speak for the life you lived, but I can tell you that everyone goes somewhere. That’s what Hermes and I do. We make sure the souls who aren’t guided are taken somewhere in the end.”

Ana stayed quiet, unsure of his response. It was calming, his voice, but it didn’t answer her question or reassure her. She waited until he spoke to her again.

“Rhokhishi? Can I ask how your magic has been since the revival?” He asked.

“I haven’t used much of it since, but it feels fine. Why?”

“These threads…”

She could feel something tugging behind her as if connected to her back in different places.

“They’re not very strong, like they usually would be. Have you ever tried to revive someone before?”

“No. Ana was the first.”

“And I imagine you were pretty tapped out?”

“Yeah. Most of my magic had been depleted.”

Ana could feel herself being pushed back down. She closed her eyes, expecting more pain, but none came. After a moment, she opened her eyes again and saw that she was again back in her body. She sat up slowly and looked over to Alyk.

“What I believe happened is that when Rhokhishi revived you, her abilities were beyond their limits. She must have tapped into something older, something ancient, to make the spell work. Because of it, the spell worked, but it wasn’t complete.”

“Does that mean I’m going to die again?”

“I wish I could give you an answer to that. It definitely seems like your wounds aren’t healing like they normally would. You’re not cold to the touch, but you’re feeling cold inside. I think the best thing to do is to wait and try to find someone who can maybe do another revival or cast some greater restoring power than your friends’ current ones.”

“You can’t do anything?”

“I’m sorry, Ana. Healing magic isn’t something I’m particularly good at. My abilities lay with souls and the occasional transportation needed to carry souls across long distances. I know those who can, but I cannot guarantee they would help, even as a favor. Your best bet would be a Midgardian healer.”

“We were talking about going to Berkton today,” Myla stated.

“Yeah. Leaf said that he wanted to finish his training, and Berkton is a pretty big city,” Rhokhishi added.

“That will be your best bet, then. Ana, I know there are some clerics there who worship the Olympians. They call themselves the Duodenary. Try them.”

Ana felt hopeless as she looked at those around her. A deity with no answer, a healer without training, a poisoner, and someone who couldn’t even look at her. She felt the pity, the distrust, the worry. She wasn’t sure whether to ask for help or return to her room and wait for it to end. Instead, she thanked Alyk, walked back up the stairs, and sat by the fire, hoping that the warmth would come and that maybe it was nothing.

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