Time crawled as Dominicus and Henry brought over every survivor they could find. There weren’t many.

  A woman with antlers.

  A dwarf with a burn that covered most of his chest.

  A few teenagers with pointed, elf-like ears.

  And—twisting a knife deep in my chest—a toddler with two stubby horns, tiny hooves, and a lamb’s tail.

  I’d treated all of them. All but the toddler, who now sat curled in my lap.

  The boy was so small his hooves could fit in the palm of my hand as I looked him over. His white curls, matted with sweat, dirt, and blood, clung to his head. I absently ran my fingers through them while I checked him for injuries.

  Nothing obvious. No cuts, no bruises, no burns. But something still felt wrong.

  His skin gleamed with sweat, his clothes stuck to him like a second skin, and his scent—

  It was sweet. Sickly sweet

  None of the others smelled like that, and the stench curdled something deep in my gut.

  He shuddered, snapping me back to the moment as he shifted in my grip. I loosened my hold, not wanting to frighten him, and spoke softly. “Hey, little buddy, can you open your eyes for me?”

  His brow furrowed and he stretched, pressing his hooves harder into my hand before nestling closer to my chest with a soft huff. Normally, I’d let him sleep—he’d more than earned it after everything—but something itched at the back of my mind. A warning.

  He wasn’t okay. Even an idiot could tell that.

  But I couldn’t fix him if I didn’t know what was wrong.

  I nudged his side. “Come on, just for a minute, okay? Open those eyes for me.”

  He frowned, but one eye cracked open. The brown orb was hazy, unfocused—and a stone of worry dropped in my gut.

  I pressed a hand to his forehead and hissed at the heat radiating off him. He was burning up.

  Hovering my hand, I channeled mana and whispered the spell. “Verdant Renewal.”

  The magic flowed from my palm and sank into him. Slowly, his frown eased, and his other eye blinked open. The haze faded, and I let out a breath of relief as the fever bled away.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  “Hello.”

  He blinked at me, still clearing the fog. “Hi…”

  His voice was a whisper, soft and hoarse. But the moment he looked past me—at the smoke in the sky, at the injured bodies nearby—his eyes widened in horror.

  He scrambled from my lap, stumbling to his hooves before collapsing beside the others, eyes brimming with tears.

  He babbled, voice rapid and panicked, none of the words making any sense. But the desperation—

  That was universal.

  When no one responded, a sob tore out of him. I knelt slowly and waved to draw his gaze.

  “I know it’s scary,” I said gently. “But they’re going to be okay. I already healed them. Once they rest, they’ll be good as new.”

  His gaze lifted to my ears—then he lunged, throwing himself into my arms. I barely caught him.

  I rubbed his back as he cried, wishing there was more I could do.

  Dominicus passed by, gaze full of sympathy as he laid another small—too small—body next to the others.

  “This one looks pretty bad,” he said. “I can take him if you need me to?”

  The girl looked a few years older than the boy. Human, by the looks of her. Long black hair fell around her waist, and a vicious gash stretched from under her eye all the way down her side.

  The boy twisted at the sight of her, letting out a cry that carved straight through me.

  He shoved away from me and dropped at her side, pressing his hands to the wound.

  “Rara!” he cried, over and over—name? plea?—then turned to me with eyes full of raw, urgent desperation.

  He reached out. I went, gently guiding him toward Dominicus before focusing on the girl.

  Closing my eyes, I cast the spell again. Verdant Renewal.

  I pictured her wound knitting together, the bleeding stopping, the skin mending.

  From the side, I heard the boy suck in a breath.

  When I opened my eyes, my stomach dropped.

  Colorful mushrooms—like the ones I’d seen on Astra’s wound—were now sprouting along hers too.

  Alarm surged through me. Piecing it together, I called over my shoulder. “Both the kids were poisoned. Keep an eye out!”

  Henry scowled, grim as he nodded. Dominicus frowned deeply. “They both smell… odd. The poison, if I had to guess. I’ll try to find others with the same scent—they’ll be in critical condition.”

  “Thanks,” I murmured.

  Dominicus set off again, leaving me with the kids. The girl was breathing easier now, thank the spirits. I gently shifted her beside the other survivors. The boy crawled after her, curling up against her side with a miserable sniff.

  I patted his back, but I felt useless. More and more bodies were being found, and too many of them were already gone.

  The only reason anyone survived was because they’d been buried, hidden, or overlooked.

  In the girl’s case, she’d probably been injured badly enough they thought she’d die on her own.

  Hopefully, she’d wake soon. The boy was too young for real answers, but she might know what happened here.

  Or where the raiders had gone.

  The adults might have answers too—but none of them had stirred since they were brought over.

  Now, all I could do was wait.

  And I hated waiting.