Legend's Echo Chapter 02

Robin shot up from her bedroll with a gasp, horns blowing in the distance.  The first light of dawn had barely begun to peek over the surrounding mountains, casting everything in pale light.  The horns blared again and Robin was on her feet, attempting to take stock of what had set everyone off. 

Bronze ranked Healers scrambled to put their robes on, others had to double back to grab their Foci.  Not Robin, she had slept in her robes in preparation for the day and her staff was right at her side, the crystal within shimmering in time with the beat of her heart.  Robin’s Foci was nothing special, just a shiny river rock that had seemed to resonate with her, and after fifteen years, it was perfectly in tune with her Mana. 

The world shook as Robin clutched her ears, the sound overwhelming to a degree she had never experienced.  A dark shadow passed overhead, bringing a bellowing gale in its wake.  Magic pulsed through her, the damage inflicted receding with each pulse of her heart, which promptly stopped when she saw the source of the shadow. 

Blotting out the very sky was a creature of black scale and wing.  Four legs were tucked close as it flapped once and banked, circling the camp.  Fire licked at the beast’s jowls, as it lined itself up for a pass of the army’s camp and cold dread replaced the raw fear that had clenched her heart.  The dragon had come, and they were not prepared to face it.

Another flap and the beast was moving forward as if in slow motion, but Robin knew better.  The beast was simply so large that it appeared to be moving slow.  The dragon’s jaw opened, almost unhinging itself as a torrent of liquid poured forth, only to ignite into a cascade of orange flame.  Fire cut through the centerline of the organized camp, no doubt killing dozens if not hundreds of the men there.

Right, casualties would be arriving any moment, she needed to get ready!

“Healers!  To your stations!  Prepare to receive casualties!” 

The words were as much for Robin as they were for the others, anything that might get them moving in the face of the winged death above.  The dragon hadn’t stopped to admire their handiwork, she simply rolled through the sky and prepared to strike once again.  Robin braced for what was sure to be another swathe of fiery death cut through one of their camps. 

The dragon screeched as a flash of metal impacted their side, knocking them off course, sending the beast into a spiral as it vanished over one of the mountain sides.  Robin hadn’t seen what caused it, but she didn’t need to.  The Legend had joined the fray and would keep the big bitch busy while they moved into position to face her brood. 

Biting her lip, Robin looked back towards the soldier’s camp and breathed a sigh of relief when she spotted the numerous dirt and stone barriers that had been hastily erected to shield them from the fire.  It wouldn’t prevent all the injuries, but it was something that might lessen the load on the rest of her team. 

Everyone was mobilizing, she could see the dots in the distance moving like angry ants.  Which was why she wasn’t surprised when her ears picked up distant screaming that steadily grew louder over the next few moments.  Robin hurried over to the cots, the things were little more than woven bamboo that could be rinsed off quickly to make room for the next unfortunate bastard that needed a healer’s touch. 

And oh did the first arrival not disappoint.  His arm was blackened with the char of overcooked meat.  Well, what was left of it at least.  The arm ended abruptly just before his elbow, which meant for a fairly complex restoration.  The soldier was taken straight to Donovan, which Robin tried to not take personally. 

He was closer to the path that led to their little dip in the mountains, and such an injury was well within his ability to handle.  There would be no shortage of people to heal for everyone soon enough, and the distant screaming would only continue to filter in as the day progressed.  Well, for those who didn’t die in transit, like the one they’d just rushed right to her. 

Really off to a great start there… 

The next to be brought to her was better off, a large gash across his stomach had been cauterized enough that he didn’t bleed out.  Sure, it would have been a painful death, but it would take hours for him to actually expire.  Had they been dealing with more pressing needs he might have even been bumped down the triage list.

Robin’s Foci glowed brightly as she channeled her magic, directing the flow so it would mend the wound and regrow missing flesh and restore his blood.  It took her less than a minute to bring him back completely.  It took just over a minute for him to realize he was getting help and had already been fully healed. 

“Why am I so blasted hungry?” the man demanded as he sat up from the cot.  

“Because your stomach was carved open by flying debris,” Robin said.  She’d already moved on to another patient, though this one had fallen unconscious from the shock.  Losing everything below the belly button would do that to a man.  “I imagine all the food you ate last night is charred ash back where they found you.” 

The soldier muttered something but an attendant not currently on healing rotation was quick to move him off towards the recovery area.  He’d get refitted for battle there and be sent back to the lines, assuming the lines were even needed yet.  She hadn’t seen any injuries that would be the result of a drake or wyvern. 

“Has the horde arrived yet?” Robin asked her next patient, a young boy who had half his ribs crushed. 

“No sightings,” he whispered, then winced as his last rib was mended.  

“We think that she flew ahead of the horde to soften us up for them.” 

Robin blinked as she caught sight of Ser Bran walking in with a pair of sour-faced escorts.  He had minor injuries, but someone had clearly insisted he be checked by a healer before the battle truly began.

“The Legend has engaged?” Robin asked. 

Ser Bran scoffed as one of the Silver ranked healers began to mend his injuries.  “That crazy bastard all but threw the dragon into the neighboring mountain range.  They’ve been slugging it out ever since.” 

As though to punctuate that very point, the air trembled from the mighty roar of the beast only to be silenced by some impact that none of them could see. 

Horns sounded and Ser Bran cursed.  “Speak of the devils and they shall be at your gates.  To arms!  Make ready to receive the hellspawn!” 

The two men escorting Ser Bran let out a resounding cheer, which was mutely answered by the recovered men.  Funny enough, the man currently under her care raised his arm and let out a wheezing breath.  An impressive feat given the shard of tentpole currently lodged inside his lung.  Robin put a hand on his sternum and pushed him back down, getting an aborted cry of pain as he bit his own tongue off. 

Great, more things she would need to repair. 

A quick tug on the wooden rod, a pulse of healing power, and the man was good as new.  Well, aside from the bloodied clothes.  At least he hadn’t been wearing his armor at the time, it would likely have made the whole process all the more tedious.

Small mercies. 

The new healers couldn’t manage to be nearly as quick with their healing.  One Bronze ranked kid was working on a decent sized cut while one of the Silver handled the gut wound that nearly killed the man.  It said something that the gut wound was closed before the otherwise superficial cut. 

Robin could remember being that slow when she was still new, but that was more than a decade ago.  Instead, she restored an arm with barely a strain on her capabilities.  Even Donovan struggled to restore limbs at the speed she could, and quickly flagged when he tried to keep up with her.  That he was nearly the same rank as her was an insult to her ability.

Screams filled the air as Robin continued to treat man after man, the battle raging less than a kilometer away from them.  Occasionally one of those bringing the injured would provide updates, but the chaos of the battlefield meant it was hard to tell if things were dire or not.  Those she treated tried to embellish what happened to them in some strange attempt at flirting while covered in blood and bile. 

“Come on, it was bigger than that!” a man yelled as he glared at her with hatred.  He was nude from the waist down on account of having been torn in half by two of the beasts.  They didn’t bother to recover the rest of him. 

“Magic doesn’t work like that,” Robin said, gesturing for the next in line.  “If it did, I would make quite the fortune enlarging men in the capital.  I’m afraid what returned is all you, for what little that is worth.” 

The man snarled as if he was going to try something, but one of the guards was already taking him by the arm to get him some clothes and back on the front lines.  With luck she wouldn’t see him again, but someone that insecure would certainly do something stupid to prove themselves and wind up right back on her table. 

“If he returns, send him to Donovan, no matter how bad of shape he’s in,” Robin said, already moving to examine the next patient.  The guard nodded and made a note on the scroll they kept.  Perhaps having a man explain why his dick was so small would silence him for good.

With that no longer a concern, Robin focused on the man being laid out before her.  This one was out cold, which was probably a good thing given the claw marks that cut his torso open.  Magic allowed many things and battlefield preservations spells were common enough that even dire injuries could be held in stasis until they could see a medic.  

Such skills were uncommon, but useful enough that adventurers and soldiers alike were willing to pay a premium to keep capable people close at hand in times of conflict.  Healers could manage something similar, but it was often better to simply heal the injury rather than delay things until later.  A full retreat would be one such exception, and Robin certainly hoped it wouldn’t come to that. 

Robin stumbled, quickly grabbing hold of the frame so she didn’t fall.  Sound washed over them a moment later, the echoing cry of a dragon unmistakable.  Somewhere out there The Legend was still battling with the true foe of the day.  She could only pray that he was winning, because she couldn’t think of a single instance of it taking hours for him to kill anything. 

A part of her wished that she was out there, if only to witness the battle.  Robin wasn’t delusional, she knew that none of the soldiers were getting to witness what had to be an event worthy of song as it happened.  No, they were all fighting for their lives and she was there to put them back together when death came calling. 

And that’s exactly what she kept doing, even as the younger healers rotated out, even as the Silver ranked had to take a break.  Even as Donovan began to flag, Robin pressed on, keeping as many men in the fight as she could.  Hours passed, the sun shifted towards the horizon, but she stayed strong. 

Robin defied the clutches of death herself. 

The soldiers continued their rotations, with the most recently injured staying behind to allow their prior guard to join the lines refreshed.  Few adventurers passed through in comparison, but those that did were always problematic in comparison. 

“I can’t go back,” the man whispered. 

His armor laid beside where he sat on the ground, his eyes staring off into nothing as he kept repeating his words over and over to himself.  The metal was shorn through, from where one of the wyvern had ripped into his bowels and made a snack of them.  That he lived through that was a testament to those around him who acted quickly.

His spear had even been recovered, it sat a few feet shorter than it had once been based on the splintered end.  He hadn’t even given it a passing glance.  Robin directed the soldiers to move him to the recovery area, what they did with the traumatized man was their business. 

Donovan has stepped away from his cot for the first time, taking his first break of the protracted battle.  Her apprentice was glistening with heavy sweat, and once again she had to bite back a laugh.  Robin was winded, but not spent, and she would keep going just to prove a damn point.  She kicked the spear aside and gestured for the next person. 

Only, they weren’t bringing anyone.

Robin looked up with a frown, only to pale as she watched the soldiers backing away from the path with weapons raised.  Three wyvern stalked forward, snarling and snapping at the exhausted men who were meant to protect her.  One brave man lunged, only to get swatted aside by the muscular tail.  The man who she had just put back together was just sitting there, watching without seeing, uncaring of the death that was coming for him.

It wasn’t until the soldiers retreated past him that the tension broke.  One of the Wyvern snapped down on his leg and pulled him off the cot, his body making damn sure he knew to scream.  Robin watched in resigned horror as a second wyvern turned and snapped down on his head, silencing him with a sickening crunch.  And now the wyvern were eyeing another man who was laid out where the Bronze healers had been working.  She was about to watch a second man die when she could be doing something to change their fate.

The tension hung heavy as the predators stalked forward.  One soldier turned to run, and that was all it took to break the morale of everyone present.  The soldiers weren’t going to be of any help, not without someone to rally them, and everyone that might have managed it was being useless. 

The other healers had slipped away, heading towards the horses that would carry them far away, but something kept Robin from joining them.  Donovan met her eyes, worry etched on his face.  Robin could only smile at her apprentice.  Fleeing now would doom the line to collapse.  The healers would be run down before they made it to the next town and then the hoard would have their pick of the farmers as they feasted upon the defenseless population of Alvon. 

Damn their standing orders. 

They were all going to die, but like hell she would just sit there and allow herself to become lizard food.  She eyed the discarded spear and not seeing any other options, bent down and hefted it up.  Something was better than nothing, even if it had been more than a decade since she last held a weapon that was larger than a knife.  She didn’t need her Foci to heal, it just helped lessen the strain of channeling the power into another person.

Robin held the broken spear tight and stepped forward, knowing full well that it would doom her no matter the outcome.  The first wyvern didn’t even notice her approach, so focused it was on getting a snack of its own.  It certainly noticed when her borrowed spear went right through its throat.