Tales From The Emerald Isles: Hope Chest

14

Ash wiped the sweat from his brow. His eyes were glassy. Farrah could see it when he turned to look at her. "He's going to be okay." She said, as she rubbed the back of his head and kiss his brow.

"It looks like he is." Euan said, seeming less excited than the rest. He stood watching Marric. "Water. He needs water." Ash said scanning the area.

Farrah gripped his shoulder, "You both do. I don't know how you pulled that one off, but-" she was interrupted by Marric as he coughed. Ash turned to Marric to see blood dripping from the side of his mouth. Euan shook his head. Ash ran to Marric.

"What is it? I sealed the wounds. What?" Ash asked Euan.

Euan rubbed his eyes allowing his hand to drop down his face to his chin, "But you couldn't heal the wounds inside, Ash. You bought him more time. If there is anything you want to say to him. Do it now. He won't live for much longer."

Ash knelt next to Marric. He placed his head in his lap. His palm supporting Marric's head. He ran his hand over the wounds he had just healed in Marric's chest. "I thought I fixed it. I thought I saved you." Marric tried to speak but could only cough.

Ash remembered how Euan had held him similarly when he healed him. He gripped the back of his head and pressed his palm onto his chest. Euan closed his eyes. But there had to be more than that, Ash thought to himself. If I needed to visualize fire to conjure it. If I had to feel its essence to understand it. Ash thought back to the feeling he felt when Euan had healed him. The warmth.

Euan had said he was giving him his energy. Ash closed his eyes and focused on his breathe. He could feel the energy coursing through his body. Each breathe moved it throughout his body.

"What are you doing?" Euan asked, as he turned to Farrah, "What is he doing?" he asked.

She looked to Ash then to Marric, then back to Euan, "It looks like what you did when you healed Ash earlier."

Euan's eyes widened, "He can't do that. That's far too advanced for him. I had to give him my own energy just so he could walk out of here. He'll die. He has nothing to give."

Euan ran to Ash. Farrah to Euan. Ash could feel the warmth at the points of contact between him and Marric. Euan could sense the energy moving from Ash to Marric. He reached for Ash's arm. Farrah stopped him.

"What are you doing? He'll die. You'll lose him," Euan said.

Farrah took a breathe, "Whether he lives or not is up to him to decide. If I tried to stop him. If I robbed him of his choice, I'd lose him anyway," Farrah said, her voice trembling.

Euan ripped his hand from hers. "If you die, I can't bring you back to life, you fool." Euan said, as he turned and walked away.

Ash felt Farrah's hand pressed gently on his back. The chest stopped vibrating. The light was pulled back inside the box. Euan moved closer to the chest. It had not sealed itself again. He gripped its lid and pulled. It still would not budge. He tried it once more. Marric coughed, but no blood fell from his mouth. Ash continued to allow his energy to pass into Marric.

Farrah reached for Marric and placed a hand on his shoulder, "Ash, I think it's working." She said. A burst of light forced the chest's lid open. The light beamed high into the sky, and then moved outward in every direction. Farrah turned to look to the chest. Marric's eyes widened. Ash broke his contact with Marric as the light reached them. The ground to rumbled under their feet.

Ash turned to look at the chest. It was open. But, there was something else in the chest. It was not the dragon's heart he had placed in there weeks ago. The heart had laid below the top of the chest and could not be seen unless you looked down into it. This however, was a large oval shape. Like an egg. An egg of red. A blood red with waves of black spiraling their way down the egg's shell.