The Other Shoe

Annafrid

How about it? I ask the Crystallic.

Negative mistress, was the artifact's reply. While I could easily draw upon your remaining stamina to accomplish that task, there is the certainty that it would so drain you that you would either go into a coma that you might never awaken from, so draining would it be to normal human beings, or you would simply drop dead on the spot! Your very heart would not have the strength left to pump any more blood!

The Crystallic goes on to qualify this, saying that with proper magical means from the others (some heroic life saving means) I probably could weather the strain until my body recovered enough. However, being that we really don't HAVE such things within our grasp (magic or science based) right now AND I loath to try to scrounge up anything from that fell Belboz's laboratory back below, the Crystallic pretty much is stating I'd be risking my very life!

Well, haven't really mentioned--nor really plan on mentioning--anything about me being immortal because of being a Champion. Don't really know how it would take that, being that dragon rumor from long ago stated that the very Celestrials intervened in the creation of the Crystallic, forcing the very Atlantian mages themselves to put limits upon this artifact! The exact details I don't remember, but the gist of my worry is that the Crystallic might get. . . . angry at me because of the association.

Frankly, I so do much do NOT want this powerful artifact angry at me. It's built to serve, but who knows what it might be capable of if pushed in that direction!

Besides, I…kind of don't WANT to upset it, really. I'm not the type to needlessly upset people, you see. One has to have some manners, right?

Finally, there IS the fact that even NOW we're rather short on able bodies right now. Meaning that if I knock my self out in healing everyone, I'm still putting us in a even more difficult position. See, we all would still be so dragged out from fatigue that we'd still have to camp in these dangerous caverns (what with Belboz's henchmen still running about, I wont). With me right now as I am, I'd be an able sword. Without me.... ?

Yep, nothing for it, I guess.

Well, I sigh and put it down as a good try. At least I'd had enough strength (as Jenny had hoped when handing off the Crystallic to me) to manage to help Checkers with the Crystallic.

Yes, she could have done it herself (at less cost to her than me), but like I said before she'd been busy with the injured tengu. Remember? Wouldn't do to let a friend die attending to some other patient who's (as far as we could tell) well enough off at that time, eh?

I'm about to just settle on trying to lift the blindness from my husband's eyes when I and the others yelp as the very ROOM spins around us!

And we find ourselves…..elsewhere. Outside and somewhere else….

1. A rather regal (and courtly) long nosed tengu (high blood indeed folks!) looks just as disoriented as the rest of us as he stumbles….into Checkers?

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