"I agree. Do it." I tell the shade.
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I hear screaming. It sound's like someone is having a rough time of it. I wish they would shut up. I'm so damn tired. I need to sleep.
Wait.
That's... Pain. SO much pain. The agony coursing through my brain, thoughts are getting sluggish... Each moment that goes by, the connection to my body improves, and it is getting more torturous by the second. Every one of my cells is screaming as if they are interwoven with stainless steel wool. Each contraction of pain causes extensive damage on a microscopic level. As my body tears apart itself, my muscles seize. It rips me apart again, causing my muscles to tense, a hellish merry-go-round with no exit.
"It's not working. Nothing is working. He is resistant to the hea.." I fade away. The anguish takes me away.
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The Guard:
I look at the boy sleeping on the bed. That is if he can be considered a boy. It was my job to protect the new Hero and show him the ropes. This was not in the job description. From what the [Wizard] was saying, there was only supposed to be one arrival. The other one has the [Hero] class and will be trained as one, ugh, that was my job. My. Job. Now I'm stuck with this classless monstrosity. The spell was supposed to grow their soul to the limit one can have, then create a body with stats congruent to their soul's strength.
Something clearly went wrong. Two came instead of one. And this one has a soul twice as large as what should be possible for a human. When they arrived, the first thought was that we caught some interdimensional hitchhiker, but the [Hero] knew him. Called him Michael.
The craziest part is he was rejecting his own damn body, and it was creating a feedback loop that was causing his soul to continue growing! Almost imperceptibly, but still. That shouldn't be possible at all. Lucky for me, whatever was happening is weakening his body. Containing him should be easy, which makes this boring. I hate boring. He seems interesting, but not in any way that is fun for me.
Now my job is making sure he isn't a threat to others and that he survives until he can be examined. Babysitting. Ugh, well, at least he is asleep.
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I wake up to something stabbing into my shoulder. I am surprised it woke me, as it is a small echo of the pain rushing along my nerves. I see something in the corner of my eye for a moment as I peer up. I see a pale arm and a moderately cute face of a middle-aged woman with red hair in a deep velvet dress. It's so dark I can't see the world beyond her candlelit face. She smiles at me. It's a dead smile that fixes an ominous weight in my chest, a need to run. I am trapped. As she pulls her hand back, her fingernail slides out of my flesh, and I fade back into the abyss.
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I come to, my thoughts move like chilled syrup. My body, like someone, stuffed me full of, well, duller stainless steel wool. Each cell is still threaded with the fiber but with a little slack between them. Everything feels tight, and I can feel the ache in each of my muscles as I breathe. I am tormented less by my condition than before. The pain is just low enough that I can maintain consciousness. I smell a wood fire and feel its gentle heat, yet I'm so cold. Such a ravenous thirst, my lips feel like a desert. I blink my eyes open, and they stick to my eyelids. Opening my eyes, a blue flicker goes by for a split second. Odd. Then I see the ceiling; it's wood and stone. Something is wrong.
Metal slides on paper? Wood? I don't recognize the sound. "He's up!" I hear someone say, raising their voice a little. They sounded tired and a tad surprised. I don't recognize the voice.
That's concerning; hospitals don't have wood fires last I checked. And the only tired people in the room should be family. Not to mention stone and wood are not your typical décor of pretty much anywhere common to keep sick people.
I hear a clink, then swish and click as they turn the door handle. That first sound was definitely a lock being opened with a key and from the outside. Am I a prisoner? The door opens for a moment, then closes again, and I hear footsteps getting fainter.
"Ugh." I groan. It hurts to breathe. My lungs ache as if they were bathed in fire. At the same time, my throat was grated with a healthy dose of acid. Ugh, this is why you waft. I probably breathed in direct fumes from something not conducive to life. I start trying to lean up. I don't make it very far; that was a bad idea. My thoughts are floating light and incoherent. A few thumps, and I feel a hand pushing me back into the bed. I notice manacles on my hands, binding me to the ground.
Stolen novel; please report.
I hear a gruff voice. "Surprised you are alive. Don't do anything drastic; we are locked in here together." He chuckles.
"Whaa." I try to speak. However, it just comes out as wheezing. I try to swallow, but I am not able to produce any saliva. So there isn't any spit to wet my vocal cords. So thirsty. It reminds me of... something.
"Yeah, yeah. Water, it's always the same when someone's been out for a while." He reaches to his side and pulls out a water skin. "Relax, until you are examined more, I'm not allowed to give you a significant amount." He pours some water into a copper cup and brings it to my lips. I feel the water on my lips and my mouth; it stings going down my throat. The taste of copper fills my mouth. I'm not sure if blood is in my throat or copper cups give a natural flavor to the water.
The man is in plate metal and odd-looking leather. The odd sound from earlier must have been from him standing up. "Rest, not anything that you can do at the moment. It may be a while before they come down to check on you."
I try to relax my aching form. As I start to try and meditate, a heavy pressure overcomes me, and I begin to fade away into the closest I can get to bliss, sleep.
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I hear a gentle male voice. "...seems to have settled down. Have him drink this when he wakes up. It'll put him back out, and he will feel better afterward."
I keep my eyes closed. I need to know what's going on, and I don't think they want to tell me anything important.
I hear my guard. "How much better? Sure he seems to be mostly human, but he still isn't vetted yet."
Um, mostly human? I'm entirely human, been human all my life. This right here is 100% grade A human.
"I wouldn't worry too much. The transfer did a number on his body. It could take years for him to recover."
"Ugh, hear that kid, drink this." Footsteps come my way, and he pushes glass against my lips. "Look, I know you are awake. Tricks like that don't work on anyone over 20." Being short with me. Obviously not enjoying my company.
I open my eyes; they still catch on my eyelids a bit. A green wisp of light in the corner of my eye. Maybe my eye is disconnecting or nerve damage?
"Waahter" I rasp.
"This is much better than water." He grumbles. "Drink up." He pushes down my chin and puts the bottle upside down over my face, shoving the opening into my mouth and pinching my nose with his pinky and index finger of the hand holding the bottle.
I choke it down. I expect it to be more painful than water, but the pain recedes on contact everywhere the green pungent liquid touches. Some of it gets in my lungs, and the burning vanishes after the next breath. Rejuvenation courses through me, and I start feeling more awake and energized. I sit up and smile for the first time. I'm burning with energy instead of pain. This is amazing!
"Ugh, you want to lay back down, kid." He glances over, squinting his eyes a bit, sounding concerned.
"That was transcendent! What was in ther..." I lose consciousness before I can finish speaking.
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The pain is... gone. Once again, whole and hale, I crack my eyes. The room is silent except for the guard's breathing.
I peer over to him. And he looks right back at me, displaying the beginning signs of exhaustion. But otherwise emotionless, like he doesn't much care one way or another. How long have I been here? How long has he been here?
I like my lips and swallow some spit. How am I so hydrated. Whatever that was would be perfect for a morning pick me up after a night of drinking... Well, as long as you don't always pass out after drinking it. On second thoughts, the tonic would probably be better as a nightcap when finished drinking.
"Um, hey." I say to the guard as I lean up and scoot back, sitting against the brick wall.
He stares at me, appearing moderately put out. I guess he was enjoying the silence.
"Uh, so any chance you can tell me where I am?" I ask, expecting to be talking to myself for a while. Silence isn't the most comfortable for me, and I hope he will eventually start talking.
His shoulders sag a bit as he lets out an exhausted huff. "The capital of Gale." Well, that name doesn't sound familiar at all. I should probably try and be a bit personable. I am starting to suspect I'm alone without my friends.
"So, who are you?" I say as politely as possible.
"You can call me Hammer. I'm here to watch you and be the barrier between you and everyone else." He sighs. "What are you called?"
I smile. "I am..." I frown. "I am..." I look over to him. "I can't remember my name. Did I hit my head or something? Is it a side effect of the potion?
He looks at me, his body language telling me events are going to be uncomfortable for him. The prospect of having a conversation potentially souring the atmosphere. Or maybe it's just around me. "Look, you woke up in the middle of the night. It's going to be hours before anyone else wakes. I know you are probably wide awake after coming off that potion. I don't know if there are any complications with the potion or if you hit your head. How about you ask me two questions, and then we sit here in silence. Deal?"
It's clearly a take it, or I talk to myself kind of option. Well, I have just the question to start. "Why am I here?" I ask.
He huffs, already exasperated. "That's not my place to say, above my paygrade."
"Um, I can't remember my name, and my memory is still fuzzy, but something is off. What is wrong with me?" I question, unable to keep a slight quiver out of my voice.
"From what I gather, there was only supposed to be one person. The other guy appears normal so far, and you could barely maintain your body. Now we wait."
"But you didn't even answer the first one!" I protest.
"Fine, but keep it short."
"What's up with this flickering box in the corner of my eye? I thought I was hallucinating, but it's too consistent." Thinking about it makes it flicker by again. Green again.
"A good sign." For the first time since this all started, I see a genuine smile. "Now, silence."