The doctor rushed Jonah into surgery. Gruff was barred from entry, so the nurse led both him and the man carrying Marcia into another room. The man set Marcia on a bed, and Gruff rushed to her. Her breaths were shallow, and her heartbeat was weak. Gruff poured magic through her veins, reaching for her lifeline, only to discover another energy fighting inside her.
Taking a quivering breath, Gruff's magic took hold of the foreign energy. Healing was a delicate thing that few Guardians mastered, and Gruff knew he was not one of them. Marcia's life-force grew smaller and smaller as it struggled against the energy.
Finally, Gruff was able to grab hold of it and pull it out of her.
Marcia coughed up bile, and she woke, looking at Gruff with desperation. Her body began convulsing, and her eyes rolled back into her skull.
A nurse rushed over. "What happened?" She quickly observed Marcia's state before giving her something to stabilize her.
"Hey, kid— The old man grabbed Gruff by the arm. "What was that?"
"What do you mean?" Gruff pulled away from the man.
"What you just did to that girl. Her body was so cold, and she looked so lifeless not long ago. But now-"
The man and Gruff glanced at Marcia. Color returned to her face, and her chest rose and fell as she took deep breaths.
"Now she looks way better."
"I just stabilized her."
"But how do you-" The man paused, "How do you know magic?" The man's eyes darted around the room, and he moved closer. "Magic has been banned in the Northern Nation for hundreds of years. How?"
"Why do you even care? You guys didn't give a crap about me, so I was taken in by someone else." Gruff felt rage boiling inside his stomach.
"And your eyes are just like a dragon's eyes."
Gruff reached his hand to his eyes. "Yeah, red eyes with a slit. I was always told to keep them hidden because of the prejudice of the people of the north."
"It's not just that." The old man took a step back. "It's a little because of prejudice, but… Have you heard about the soothsayer?"
"Who hasn't? She was always going around talking about the future. Ma met her once."
"Many years before your mother showed up at our village, she gave us a prophecy. We were told that the son of a witch – a person with red eyes – would one day destroy our village. We feared that you could be that person. So, we outcasted your mother when she showed up pregnant with no husband.
"But—" the man continued, "the soothsayer also spoke about there being hope. He told us that a boy with dragon eyes could possibly save us. We did not know that boy was you."
Gruff laughed. "Do you still hold hope that I will save you?" The boy moved closer to the old man. "I hate this village and everyone in it. I would sooner help the red-eyed-" Those deep red eyes flashed across Gruff's mind. "A person with red eyes? Was it that man who will destroy this village?"
"That man? You- you've met him? The Red-Eyed Sorcerer?"
"He's why Marcia, Jonah, and I are like this. Our Ma, we left her to fight him."
The old man placed his hand on Gruff's shoulder. "Maybe she got away. After all, you three got away alive."
"Yeah… But Marcia died for a while. I felt it." Gruff held his hand over the wound on his chest. "This wound- this was hers."
The old man paled.
"I took it from her with magic," Gruff remembered feeling Marcia's lifeline fade as he used his power. "I had to get creative. I restarted her heart with my magic, but then I passed out."
"How?"
"You sure ask that question a lot." Gruff hung his head. "That was probably the energy that's attacking her right now. I'm so stupid. Ma always told me not to do whatever I want when using healing magic."
"Silly…" The old man and Gruff turned their heads to Marcia. She sat up in her bed. "If you hadn't done anything, I would have died."
"But Ma only told me to use that one spell."
"Ma doesn't know everything. Besides, you saved me with your magic, and I was able to hold on long enough until you could pull it back out just now."
Gruff stiffened, and Marcia looked at the man. "Could you leave for a while? I would like to talk with my brother."
"Of course." The old man exited the room.
Tears poured from Gruff's eyes, and he began wiping at them. "You almost died, and now Jonah."
"Come here, Gruffy."
Gruff sat beside the girl. She was a head shorter than him, but that didn't stop her from babying him as he sat on the hospital bed and cried on her shoulder.