Chapter 28: Noah was heard, and he might regret it.

Chapter 28: Chapter 28: Noah was heard, and he might regret it.

"Taliah!"

Draven fell to his knees beside her as his dagger vanished from his hand, which he did not care about and he did not look again at Greydarn’s corpse.

All of his attention was on Taliah.

"Taliah, answer me!"

She did not respond, so Draven placed his only hand over the wound on Taliah’s torso and the blood immediately spilled between his fingers.

"Come on."

He pressed harder and Taliah breathed, very little, but she breathed, so Draven felt a relief that lasted less than a second.

"It’s fine."

His own voice came out unsteady.

"It’s fine, I just have to..."

He looked at his bracelet, since he had several potions there, recovery potions, wound potions and medical items.

Everything was stored inside the storage bracelet Zenash had given him.

Draven tried to activate it, but nothing, so he frowned.

"Come on..."

He tried again, but the bracelet did not react.

"Please..."

Nothing happened, and Draven felt desperation.

"No."

He tried to send more mana into the bracelet and then an intense pain ran through the left side of his body, and Draven let out a scream.

The wound where his arm had been began to bleed again.

He had managed to reduce the bleeding during the fight by using mana, but he was at his limit.

Almost all of the reserve he had left was being used to keep his own body from losing too much blood.

The bracelet needed mana to open the dimensional space and he did not have enough.

"Damn it."

Draven pressed on Taliah’s wound again and thought.

’The potions...’

He could not take them out.

’Then, with magic.’

He could try to heal her directly, so Draven closed his eyes, concentrated mana in his hand and a faint light appeared around his fingers.

He was not a specialist in healing magic, but he knew the principles and had practiced basic magic, so he could close small wounds, as well as stop a minor hemorrhage.

Maybe he could buy time and that was enough, so he only needed time.

Draven placed his hand over Taliah’s wound and the light increased slightly, so the blood began to lessen.

"Good."

But the pain returned and this time it was worse, so Draven clenched his teeth.

What remained of the amputated arm began to burn, the wound opened even more and the blood ran down his side.

Draven lost concentration and the magic vanished.

"No!"

He tried again, but he felt more pain, to the point that his vision blurred for an instant, so he had to brace his hand on the ground to keep from falling.

’I don’t have enough.’

He had reached the minimum.

Every experienced fighter tried to reserve a small amount of mana.

It was necessary for many things, such as keeping the body functioning, reducing hemorrhages, helping stabilize wounds and allowing minimal recovery.

Draven was already using practically everything he had left to keep from bleeding out.

’If I keep spending mana...’

He could die, but that no longer mattered to him, so he put his hand back on Taliah.

"Come on."

He tried to heal her, but Draven was breathing with difficulty and his own body was starting to fail.

But Taliah was worse, much worse.

Draven withdrew his hand slightly, since he had to see the wound and understand what was happening, so he carefully separated part of the damaged clothing.

When he saw, he went still.

"No..."

The attack had pierced too deeply, so it was not simply a superficial wound, but the damage had reached the inside.

Draven had studied enough to recognize it.

There was internal damage to more than one organ, though he did not know exactly which ones, but that did not matter.

A common potion was not going to fix that and even a high-quality potion would probably only stabilize part of the damage.

They needed a healer and not just any healer, but someone capable of reconstructing organs with enough control to repair internal tissues.

’An expert healer.’

But they were in the middle of the fields of Nerathis, far from the capital, from the town, without transport and without enough mana.

Draven looked at Taliah, whose breathing was growing weaker and weaker.

"No..."

He shook his head.

"This can’t be true."

It could not end like this, not after everything.

Draven remembered the moment when Taliah pushed him, taking the attack and then her body falling.

For years it had been the same, since Taliah always ended up trying to protect him and sometimes too much.

Draven had even mocked that many times, but now...

"Taliah."

There was no response, so Draven looked around.

There were only trees, destroyed earth, the corpse of the vocier next to Greydarn’s corpse, but there was no one else.

"Oram..."

There was only silence, so Draven lowered his gaze.

"Please, Oram..."

He had never tried calling him directly and he did not even know if it worked that way, but he had no other option.

"Oram, listen to me!"

He waited, but nothing, so Draven clenched his teeth.

"You gave me this blessing."

Silence.

"You made me follow your path."

Draven breathed with difficulty.

"So answer!"

Nothing happened.

"Please."

The word cost him and Draven looked at Taliah.

"Please."

Nothing resembling a response.

"I’m asking you."

No light appeared, nor voice, nor sign, so Draven began to tremble.

"Please, help her."

Silence, so Draven closed his eyes.

"Please..."

Nothing happened, so he opened his eyes and his desperation began to turn into rage.

"Sasri!"

He waited, but nothing.

"Sasri!"

Draven raised his head.

"Sasri, answer me!"

Silence.

"You brought me here!"

His voice spread through the area.

"You didn’t ask me."

There was no response.

"You didn’t give me any choice!"

Draven breathed with difficulty.

"You pulled me out of my world because it seemed fun to you!"

The wound on his shoulder kept bleeding, but Draven did not even look at it.

"You told me you wanted to see what I would do!"

Silence.

"Well look at me!"

His voice broke.

"Look at me now!"

Draven looked at Taliah and clenched his teeth.

"Both of you decided to drag me into this."

"..."

"And now..."

Draven breathed.

"Now that I truly need help..."

His fingers closed against the dirt.

"Neither of you shows up!"

Draven shouted.

"Damn you both!"

His voice spread among the trees.

"Damn the both of you!"

Draven lowered his head.

"What good are you then?"

His breathing was unsteady.

"To appear when it suits you?"

There was no response.

"To give blessings?"

No one answered.

"To play with other people’s lives?"

Draven looked at Taliah again.

"Answer me!"

Draven felt his strength diminishing and his vision darkened again for an instant.

He could not stay conscious much longer and he knew it, since he was losing too much blood.

Taliah was also in critical condition, so Draven placed his hand over her wound again.

"Don’t die."

His voice was much lower now.

"Taliah."

"..."

"Don’t you dare."

He tried to use magic again, but nothing came out, not even a light, so Draven lowered his head.

"Please..."

Then he heard a voice.

"What an unpleasant way to ask for help."

Draven went still while he could not breathe for several seconds and his entire body reacted to the danger.

He did not know how to explain it better, but his instinct was telling him not to move.

Draven slowly raised his head.

The voice had not come from Taliah, nor from the trees, but from behind.

Draven tried to turn, but his body did not respond immediately.

The exhaustion, the blood, the pain, everything was accumulating, but he forced himself to move, so he turned partially and looked toward Greydarn’s corpse.

Something was happening to it.

The skin was beginning to deteriorate, first around the wounds and then on the face, where the flesh seemed to lose stability.

Draven opened his eyes.

"No..."

The voice returned.

"At least one of you understands quickly."

Draven felt cold, since he knew that voice and not because he had heard it many times in that life, but because Sam had played against him.

Draven stared fixedly at the corpse and could only say one name.

"Elfin."

The god of destruction had heard his plea for help.