14.| Wheel Fragments (2)

I stood there stunned, chunks of coagulated blood soaking my tattered shirt and pants as I looked between the lifeless needle beast and the dark priest towering over it. It was then that I noticed something strange; a translucent level bar floating above the creature's form.

[Needle Beast]

[Level: 10]

"Once again, you've saved my life," I sighed, even though I knew we weren't completely out of the woods yet. But you had to count the small mercies, right?

The dark priest narrowed his slitted eyes at me, his expression a mix of exasperation and—was that concern? "Yeah, maybe next time you should think about that before pulling the kind of reckless stunt you did last time."

I scratched the back of my head, feeling a twinge of guilt. He was absolutely right. I had tried to throw him under the bus, but the words had gotten stuck in my throat. Still, how had he known my intentions so clearly? "How was I supposed to know I could trust you? It's not like a dark priest is known for caring about the plight of the free cities, as I've said before."

The dark priest let out a gruff, irritated sound, moving closer until he stood directly over the fallen needle beast. His long, bony fingers began tracing patterns in the air, and a bright green glow emanated from his movements. 

Suddenly, what seemed to be the creature's very soul rose up, coalescing into the form of a misty, disfigured skull that now hovered above his outstretched palm.

Despite the ruckus of Bryard and his men holding off the other encroaching creatures, my eyes remained transfixed on the dark priest and his unsettling display of power. Since the moment I had first laid eyes on him, I had felt this strange, magnetic pull. As if fate had brought us together for reasons I couldn't yet fathom. 

"What...what is that?" I managed to force the words out, my voice barely above a whisper.

The dark priest's gaze shifted to me, his expression unreadable. "This," He began, his deep voice rumbling like distant thunder, "is the extracted anima of the needle beast. Its spirit, if you will. All Daemons have them." He paused, offering me a sidelong glance. "A necessary step in my...cleansing ritual."

I blinked, both fascinated and unsettled by his explanation. "Cleansing ritual? What do you mean by that?" The implications sent a shiver down my spine.

He regarded me for a long moment, as if debating how much to reveal. "These creatures," he finally said, gesturing to the chaos unfolding around us, "Are an infection. A blight upon this land. And I aim to purge them, by any means necessary. Daemons infect animals and make them evolve."

As much as I had helped my father with the prototype, I was starting to see just how much he had improved the lore. It was so different from the half-baked dreams of my childhood. I wanted to ask the dark priest more, dive deeper into the world my father had built in hopes of finding an escape. But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Dyon stumbling.

"Dyon!" I cried out, rushing to his side as he dropped to his hands and knees. Blood was leaking from the corners of his mouth, and he began to violently vomit more of the crimson liquid.

I wrapped his arm around my shoulder, trying to pull him up, but he slumped back down, shaking his head weakly. "S-stop," he gasped. "I'm not going to make it."

I squeezed my eyes shut, willing the familiar interface to appear when I reopened them.

[Ally: Dyon]

HP: 20/100

The health bar was steadily decreasing, and panic gripped my heart. "What's happening to him?" I demanded, looking over at the dark priest.

"The needle," he said solemnly. "It was poisoned."

I felt my stomach drop. "Can't we just take it out?"

The dark priest shook his head. "It's already in his bloodstream. Removing it may slow the spread, but..."

I swallowed hard, my throat tight. After losing Anyae, the only other person who had shown me kindness in this foreign world, I couldn't bear the thought of losing Dyon too. I was just a thrall, used to being alone in my previous life, but I didn't want that anymore. Not here. I had to be better. Stronger.

Gripping Dyon's hand, I looked up at the dark priest, my eyes pleading. "Please, you have to help him."

The priest regarded me for a long moment, his expression unreadable. Then, with a deep sigh, he knelt down beside us.

"I can ease his pain, but it's forbidden to—" He didn't even finish his words before my stubbornness had me grabbing the skull-like anima floating above his hand.

Yet again, I found myself doing the unthinkable. Without a moment's hesitation, I pushed the glowing form into Dyon's chest.

"How—?" The dark priest's eyes widened in shock. But he quickly snapped out of his surprise. "Hold him steady," he commanded, his voice authoritative.

I nodded, steeling myself for whatever was to come. Dyon's life hung in the balance, and I refused to let him slip away. Not on my watch.

Grabbing hold of both Dyon's arms, I waited with bated breath. For a moment, he lay there breathing slowly and raggedly, seeming delirious. Then, in the next instant, his body began jerking around, his teeth gritting as blood oozed from between them.

"Is he okay? Did I just kill him?" I asked, the panic rising in my voice.

The dark priest's slitted green eyes found my worried gaze. "You somehow... purified it. I think it's undoing the poison. Not even I can purify an anima enough to safely put it into a human for healing effects."

I felt relief wash over me, but also a growing sense of bewilderment. How had I, a mere thrall, managed to do what a dark priest could not? What was happening to me in this strange world my father had created?

Dyon's convulsions slowly began to subside, and his breathing evened out. I watched, transfixed, as the color returned to his pallid face. The dark priest leaned in, examining him closely.

"Remarkable," he murmured, almost to himself. "It's as if the anima has become a part of him, protecting him from the poison's effects."