Luck be Damned

19

^^ Healers Staff ^^

— Alice —

The dwarf beat a hasty retreat, away from my irritated face, and I shook my head, sending the Staff into The Holding, a section of my Dark Heart that was separate from the others, between the gaps of the 'ventricles', gathering whatever scraps of magic it could safely take and imbuing whatever was in the space with the mana; I intended to use it for the types of enchantment which would take longer to manage, freeing up my own time for other work.

The gong rang, shaking me from my thoughts, so I cleaned myself up, then headed towards the hospital wing, where the Healing Class was located. That an entire section of the academy was dedicated to a Hospital both worried and pleased me, of course; Worried, because clearly people getting hurt was not uncommon at all here, but Pleased, because they apparently had more than enough people here to handle the situation when it inevitably happened, and it was made into a learning experience.

The pragmatism and detached morality of the setup spoke to me of logic and progress unfettered by base emotion, something that irritated me quite a bit. The idea that progress should be stifled for the common man's perception of good and evil was a baseless, stupid theory that had doomed My earth to never progress at the pace of discovery, but rather the pace which we could slowly trick the common man into thinking it was normal. The introduction of pain-killers for childbirth, blocked by Christianity because 'the pain of childbirth was women's' punishment for being born women', was a good example, as it had eventually given way to common practice.

"Still, my knowledge of Common Chemistry and Physics is useful here, as most magic is based in science in some way... I imagine all of it is science, I simply don't understand all of it, which excites me." I chuckled, looking around the main Emergency Room of the Academy, and then almost jumped out of my skin when someone spoke behind me.

"I do enjoy when young people like to learn..." the woman stepped around me and examined my face for a few seconds, then hummed. "You're a Taurus, Yes? Your mother and I-... well, we knew each other, back in the day." She blushed through a grin, and turned to the room, walking to a desk that had previously been empty.

"Yes, I imagine you did; my mother is purportedly quite well-traveled when it comes to the women of this continent." I smirked, examining her. She had the same figure as many of the women who'd expressed affection for my mother, with ample bosoms and a derriere to match, all on a decently-muscled but not quite Amazonian frame, and shorter than my mother by a bit, at only about five and a half feet, (my own height).

"Yes, Lera does like her women, that's true... now! How may I help you? Class doesn't start for another few minutes, so you can't have come early for no reason?" She asked, getting back on track.

"Are you the Head Researcher or Healer of this Hospital Ward? I have a gift, as per my contract with Victor, for whoever has the most medical knowledge in this college, to be used in Healing Magic's. I'm a Grand Artificer, you see." I explained briefly, and watched her response.

Her face exposed a bit of surprise, and then deep thought, and finally a bit of decision. "Well... I am, but I've got all I need, in the way of magical items..."

"I see. Grab this?" I summoned the staff, and tapped it to the ground in front of her. The simple contact spread a soft spiderweb of magical energy, and it was making the air smell of raw power already. "I may have overcharged it, but don't worry, there are safeguards in place to prevent you from pulling too much magic from it and killing yourself. And me."

She blinked slowly, and then waved a hand, opening a communication channel to Victor. "Victor!!!!!" She squeaked, apparently unable to say much else.