high_seas | Mixing it up

"Oh. Hey." Brady glanced up, not having expected...

Oh. Oh, no. By Naga.

He stares in abject horror, but he knows now is not the time to gape or cry. He held out his staff, causing it to glow green - the girl would feel energy flowing through her body, the pain going away blink by blink. Brady kept his eyes on the stumps - now the blood would come to a halt, no longer risking death by blood loss. The stumps would heal naturally, and Brady runs a hand through the girl's hair.

"It's gunna be okay." He murmured softly.

He lets the ice melt away as he watches what is going on with mild curiosity, taking in the green light and Brady's expression. He was a good kid. Kuzan had come to understand that, but it was reassuring to see it, especially for what lay ahead.

The girl tenses at Brady's touch but then relaxes and begins to cry quietly, murmuring something into his coat. He can't understand what she's saying but he gets the gist of it.

"Can you replace what she's lost?"

"No." Brady answers automatically. Not even the most powerful healer or cleric could ever replace what was taken. "... The bleedin' will stop, and she won't get infected. But I can't..."

Now, he could allow himself to cry. Large tears rolled down his face - children didn't deserve to get hurt.

"... I'm sorry, that ain't... I can't replace a limb." He kept stroking the girl's hair, trying to be strong for her despite his wet cheeks. "...What a brave kid... Not screamin', or yellin'..."

He nodded.

"That's enough." Brady could only do what he could do. The girl clutched at him but he couldn't soothe her beyond that. It was something she would have to deal with and, hopefully, become stronger for it. He watched Brady, trying to gauge his mental state. It's difficult to tell if the tears are empathy or a combination of that -- or more if he would be crippled by it.

Well--they don't really have the time.

"Finish what you need to here." He rose, shifting the girl in his arms. "Meet me by the north edge of town, where the cow pasture is, do you know it?"

He managed to wipe away the bigger tears on his sleeve, sniffling but regaining some composure. This wasn't the first time he'd seen such a horrific injury - but it always hurt to see them this way.

He slowly nodded, straightening his back. "I'll finish up here, and meet you there soon. Just wait for me a bit."

He nodded slowly, reassessing Brady yet again for a brief moment before turning and walking away.

By the time Brady is drawing near, Kuzan has deposited the girl with the local hedge witch who seems largely sympathetic to her plight. He can't tell for sure if the woman is entirely trustworthy, but the girl seemed to trust her and there was an undeniable bond there.

Now he is waiting by the split rail fence.

Well...lying down beside it anyway, taking a brief nap. Feel free to disturb him.

"Oi."

Kuzan will feel his forehead being tapped by the butt of Brady's staff. He hadn't taken too long, but he had stopped by to make sure everyone he had healed was doing all right. As a result of all the magic he'd used, he's very exhausted - sweat on his face, breath coming in shorter, and he's leaning on his staff like a cane.

"Sheesh, callin' me for a meeting and sleeping the day away..."

What did Brady had a better idea to do while he waited? Might as well get his sleep when he can. Either way, there's 'sleep' and there's sleep. He felt Brady on his way but snoozed until the tap and opened his eyes.

"Ah... is it night?" Either way. He rose to his feet and scratched the back of his head. "This place is pretty dark this time of year."

Brady resisted the urge to roll his eyes, and leaned on his staff. "I'm gunna go ahead and guess you didn't wanna talk about how pretty the night sky is."

He blinked, realizing he had his sleep mask on and pushed it up. It was indeed twilight. Well-- that couldn't be helped.

"No." He looked down at Brady. "Are you prepared? It's going to be harsh."

He blinked a few times. What kind of ridiculous question was that?

"Of course I am." He replied, a little insulted at the insinuation. "I'm always ready for battle and war. My home's hell on earth, I faced crap like that every day." He jabbed a thumb back from whence he came. "Just cause I care about every victim doesn't mean I can't handle seein' em."

"Fair enough. My apologies." There were all kinds and he didn't make judgements about anyone when he first saw them. Most of the medics he'd seen were steely eyed throughout, crying after, but they were trained Marines, he supposed-- and even they weren't immune to crying during particularly hard cases.

He folds his hands in his pockets and starts walking, keeping a fairly quick pace, but nothing Brady couldn't keep up with.

"What do you know about this place?"

He grunted, but followed alongside his superior. Thankfully the pace was good enough that he could follow without further exhausting himself. Did Brady always have to keep proving himself to people? No wonder he was so weak...

"A few things. But the biggest thing I heard was about witches. We've got people back home who have strange magic, and it sounds like the same kinda stuff. Be good to a mage, they'll be good to you."

That bothered him.

"Good is such an arbitrary word." Since it could mean, be good to a mage by being a decent person treating another person decently. Or it could be, please take my cow and only possession and don't hurt me. That was why there were laws in existence to prevent that kind of thing. Maybe not defining 'good' as it were, but certainly informing people what not to do. Otherwise who could ever know?

But that was a little off topic. "Maa, forget it forget it. Now..." ... wait. "What were we talking about?"

He raised an eyebrow, wondering what was meant by that. What was wrong with using the word good? It was true. Some people were just plain old good...

But any hope for an emotional connection is cut, as, well, Kuzan is Kuzan.

"HEY! You called me out here and asked me what I thought! At least keep track of the conversation!"

"Maa, chill out. It's a convoluted conversation." He scratched his temple. He couldn't remember where they were but... well forget it.

"About a mile or so from here is a village, one of those witches took revenge somehow." He wasn't sure the whole story but that didn't matter at this junction. "That little girl got the worst of it, but there are others who need aid, some fairly badly. Moreover she may be still lurking around."

Another glance at Brady. "Can you counteract magic?" He didn't really believe in magic per se but...he knew that was a thing that was said could be done so-- may as well ask.

Then stay on topic, you stupid old man! - He wanted to shout that, but it would not be polite, no. Besides, this was taking a serious toll again. He rolled his shoulders, suppressing his anger for now. "If she made them sick or hurt them, I can fix that. And my body's been blessed... I can survive most stuff that would kill folks on first impact."

'Miracle', for those who were unaware of such skills. He could survive a lethal blow. But just the once.

He was in the highest echelons of command. Staying on topic was someone else's job.And since Brady is the only one around well, it fell to him. In any case, Kuzan took what he said into consideration.

"In that case I may use you as a shield should I need it." Since Brady could survive and Kuzan could not. Well most likely not anyway. "But it may not come to that."

On the other hand, it may.

"Will healing and things of that nature tire you out? Do you need food? Water? Stimulants?" He wasn't sure where he could get the latter but he was sure they had coffee here.

Surprisingly, he wasn't offended at the idea of being a shield. He merely nodded - he'd gone and used himself as a shield for his comrades before. It was a noble purpose, as far as he was concerned. If his life could be used to save another, why wouldn't he do it?

"Yeah, it's tiring." He answered. "I mean, it's like exercising and fighting... I'm sharing my lifeforce with these people. I need time to catch my breath. Just a small bit of food and water every now and then, and a break once in a while, and I'll be good."

"I'll make sure you're provided for." Somehow or another. They may be reluctant to help until they know he is efficient but after he proves himself, he's sure they'll look after him themselves. That will give him freedom to guard the perimeter.

"Then I suppose we'll have a word with this witch." And try not to get themselves killed but...mah...well...that sort of thing didn't matter too much in this place, did it?

Mixing it up

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