When Lloyd regained consciousness, he found himself covered in blood and viscera. As he struggled to regain his bearings, the sound of crying reached his ears. Confusion gripped him until memories surged back, propelling him to his feet. The snake lay dead on the shore, a gaping, human-sized hole through its head. Sheena had been pulled from the snake’s grasp and lay motionless on the ground. Colette knelt beside her friend, her hands glowing as she desperately worked to heal her. Colette’s tears fell steadily onto Sheena’s still body. Shallow breaths barely moved her chest. Milla rested her muzzle on Sheena’s lap, her fiery fur dimmer than ever.

  “What’s happening?” Lloyd demanded, dropping to his knees beside Sheena and Colette. Regal stood behind Colette, and for the first time, Lloyd saw his brother utterly lost as to what he should be doing. They had trained for battle, not this. They had no power here.

  “Heal her!” Lloyd shouted at Colette, desperation thick in his voice.

  “I’m trying! But I can only mend her bones,” Colette choked out, voice trembling.

  “Mana potion! Now!” Lloyd snapped, pointing his brother toward the scattered packs.

  The command jolted Regal from his stupor, and he sprang into action. He returned swiftly, blue potion in hand, and thrust it toward Lloyd.

  “Yeah, I’m low on mana, but that won’t help. I can’t heal ailments. You know this.” Colette said she stared down at Sheena’s body.

  The poison, like the serpent it came from, slithered insidiously through her body.

  Lloyd gripped Colette’s arm with his right hand and placed his left on Sheena’s forearm.

  “Heal her! I don’t care what you think you can or can’t do. Don’t let her die! Please, I can’t lose someone else...”

  “Turn her over,” Colette said.

  With Lloyd’s right hand still wrapped around Colette’s upper arm, he used his left hand to grab Sheena’s left side and turn her sideways so that her back was exposed. Colette shifted her hands over the entry wound. Her familiar golden light shined bright—yet Sheena’s condition remained unchanged. Lloyd’s eyes squeezed shut, his grip tightening on both Colette’s arm and Sheena’s. Once again, he wasn’t strong enough. He wanted to be—had to be—stronger. For himself, for everyone. He needed everyone around him to be stronger. Although his Mana felt dangerously low, he felt the tendrils of his magic reach out to both of the women. Please don’t let her die.

  A soft gasp escaped from Colette, breaking the silence. When Lloyd opened his eyes, he saw that Colette’s hands had changed from the familiar yellow glow. Swirling hues of green, blue, and gold seeped into Sheena’s skin, driving the poison back. Lloyd knelt there in awe as minutes passed, and the poison was finally eradicated from Sheena.

  Milla gently nuzzled Sheena’s chin, her fiery fur softening against her friend. Colette collapsed backward, resting the palms of her hands on the grass. Regal moved beside Colette, pulling her into a comforting hug as they watched Sheena. They could see the steady rise and fall of her chest. Milla licked the side of Sheena’s face as she started to stir and push the fox away from her. A collective exhale was released from the group as everybody unknowingly held their breath.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  “Well, that would have been embarrassing if I died,” Sheena muttered, opening her eyes to meet their anxious gazes.

  Colette collapsed onto Sheena, wrapping her in a fierce hug. Sheena wrapped her arms around Colette with the bit of energy she had. Lloyd exchanged a silent, relieved nod with Regal. Now, knowing that Sheena was not going to perish, Lloyd could feel the absolute drain on his Mana. Looking down at his arms and legs, he could also see cuts and scratches, likely from being tossed around during the fight. He would have to have Colette heal him at some point, but for right now he didn’t care.

  “Okay, okay. That’s enough,” Sheena said.

  Colette removed herself from her friend as Sheena unsteadily got to her feet. Milla found herself pinned to Sheena’s side and merely accepted the soft pets from her Beastmaster.

  “How are you feeling?” Colette asked softly.

  Sheena stretched her limbs, checking for any lingering wounds.

  “Pretty good, considering we just fought a giant snake,” Sheena remarked, glancing at the serpent’s lifeless form sprawled along the shore. “I felt the poison spreading through me... How did you heal me?” Sheena asked, turning to Colette.

  “I... I’m not sure. I tried everything I knew, but my magic couldn’t touch the poison at first,” Colette admitted, her voice trembling. “Then, in the end, something changed, and I could identify the poison. My magic was altered, and I could heal it.”

  “A mutation?” Regal asked, his brow furrowed in disbelief.

  Colette shrugged sheepishly, meeting Regal’s gaze. “I guess so. I’ve heard of people getting mutations, but it always seemed so rare. I wonder if being an Omega makes it easier to mutate...” Colette mused, her eyes drifting skyward in thought.

  “Well, however it happened, I’m just glad you pulled it off. Without you, I’d be a goner for sure,” Sheena said, walking over to give Colette a quick hug.

  Old pain, raw and familiar, bubbled up in Lloyd. Too slow. Not strong enough.

  “I’m sorry,” Lloyd choked out, the words barely escaping his lips.

  The group turned to Lloyd, confusion etched across their faces.

  “For what?” Sheena asked, voicing the question on everyone’s mind.

  “For letting you get poisoned. I couldn’t stop it,” Lloyd replied, his voice heavy with guilt.

  Tearful glances passed between Colette, Regal, and Lloyd while a wry, almost maniacal smile spread across Sheena’s face. A quick chortle and brief laughter shortly followed it. Everyone looked at Sheena with confusion painted on their faces.

  “Are you serious? That thing had me dead to rights. I was the one who was too slow to react to what the snake was doing. I saw it going after you, so I thought I had a couple of free hits. By the time I felt the tail wrap around me, it was already too late. If you didn’t hold off its fangs for as long as you did, there would have been no way I would have survived. Maybe no way any of us would have,” Sheena said.

  “Here, here,” Regal said, gripping the blade of his sword and raising his sword’s pommel to the sky.

  “Definitely,” Colette agreed. “We’re all alive, the snake’s dead, and it looks like I can heal poison now. I’d say that it all worked out pretty well.”

  “You should take the head, Lloyd,” Sheena said as she pointed over her shoulder to the serpent. “You got the killing blow.”

  Lloyd walked over to the corpse of the snake. Its head had been separated from the rest of its body. A human-sized hole had blasted through the bottom of the snake’s jaw, all the way through to the top. It severed the head so that the top of the head with the eyes and fangs remained. Lloyd worked for a few minutes to dislodge the fangs and then turned the head into a shield on the back of his pack. He noticed the blood and gore still on his robes, so he took a quick dip in the river to wash off, the rest of the group doing the same.

  “So, how about we get far away from this River and find a place to crash for the night?” Sheena addressed the group.

  “Sounds like an amazing plan to me,” Lloyd responded.