A woman in her thirties stood in the entrance, her light blue dress and the apron above it, soaked in blood. Her arms covered with cuts and dirt held, what seemed to be a lifeless body of a small child. Sweat and tears mixed together with the thick red fluid that crawled over the floor towards the people standing in the room.
"PLEASE HELP! My child!" The woman's scream echoed through the now silent room, followed by a loud sobbing.
Everyone only stared at the mother who sat on her knees on the floor, crying and panting, without realizing what just happened. Bao moved first, disregarding his opponent in front of him, he ploughed through a small group of people standing between him and the woman.
"Move, make space! Let me through!" -Bao pushed away a man standing right in front of him- "Put the child on the floor fast."
Thick dark red Blood trickled down from a wound on the child's head, it looked deep and nothing that he could simply heal on the spot.
"We need a healing potion immediately! Does anyone have one?"
With hopeful eyes, the mother looked at him and at how he placed his ear on the child's chest. He couldn't hear any heartbeat. Bao looked up into the crowd around them, watching the whole scene. Everyone tried to avoid his gaze by staring at their own toe tips. He felt how anger kindled deep inside him ready to explode into a sea of flames.
"Shit! A potion for fuc..."
"Here take it." His previous aggressor, the adventurer with the greatsword, approached and handed him a small flask containing the miracle red liquid.
Bao couldn't believe his eyes, the selfish bully was helping him, the victim! No, that would be incorrect, he's probably only helping the poor mother and child, he thought. He nodded.
"I don't know how exactly potions work but they probably won't help in the case of cardiac arrest, not to mention that he probably can't even swallow the medicine. I'll therefore apply CPR and the moment he starts breathing and regains consciousness, pour the potion into his mouth."
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"Seee Pee Ar? What is that?"
"Cardiopu... Ah, we don't have time for a lecture now, just give him the potion when I say it. Anyone! Help the woman while we try to save the kid!"
If he remembered it correctly on children he should use only one hand and place it half a thumb to the left from the centre of his chest.
"Press down with enough power but still gentle in a constant rhythm"
An old song, which his grandfather loved, came to his mind whilst pressing down on the child's chest. It was even recommended by an instructor of the first aid course he took in high school, to keep the necessary pace. Ironically the name of the song was 'Stayin' Alife.'
"Ah... pant....ha...hahaha, stayin' Alive." Sweat dripped from his front down on the floor. Never would he have thought that CPR would be this exhausting. Gasping for air, Bao had finished the first set and blew into the child's mouth. No reaction.
"..., stayin' Alive... pant stayin' Alive." The words hissed out of his mouth on every push.
"Calm down madam, can you tell me what happened?" Bao heard an unknown voice, probably from another random adventurer. "I'll treat your wounds now, so please stay calm okay?"
"We... we are one of the small farmer families living outside the city walls," she started talking, "and it... it was a normal day... like every other one... we were just eating like we always do... then... then screams and... and suddenly bandits appeared who set houses on fire and... and started killing... blood... and..."
"Bandits?! So close to the city? Are they insane?" Another adventurer interrupted her sentence.
"Now!" Screamed Bao with his last breath falling on the floor exhausted. "Give him the potion quick!"
The man pulled back the chin of the shocked kid and let the potion steadily flow into his mouth. With his eyes wide open the child chugged down every little drop just before collapsing again with his eyes closed. Bao, his trembling hands covered in blood went back on his knees and put his ear once again on the chest. Nothing. He couldn't even hear a faint heartbeat. With his clenched fist, he hit the wooden floor spurting drops of blood in all directions.
"Fuck! This was our only possibility dammit!" He screamed at the top of his lungs.
Why did he even get so frustrated? These are only characters in a game, aren't they? This is not reality. They are just zeroes and ones, nothing more. And yet why did he felt that deep burning anger within his body?
"Where do you think you're going, lad?" The man with the greatsword blocked his way.
Without noticing it Bao had put on his new gear and was about to leave the guildhall with his sword unsheathed. The man who was between him and the exit.
"Move."