Magical Engineering [Progression Fantasy, LitRPG] (Book 3 Complete)

Alex

"Fuck!" Alex yelled in pain.

She knew what was causing the pain. Her water breaking had preceded the contraction a few moments ago. She had been hoping to make it to the meeting hall before this had occurred, as she had the downside of being alone, reading a book when it started.

The loud thumping alongside her reminded her she hadn't exactly been alone. The moose had been keeping a very close eye on her the last couple of days, and she now understood why. She didn't understand how it had known, but somehow it seemed to have.

Another painful contraction hit her hard, just as she passed the pavilion, causing her to almost drop to her knees. "Buddy, I need you to find someone. I hope the pain is normal, but I'm having trouble getting there on my own. Please find someone," Alex shrieked out the last few words as another contraction hit. Were they supposed to be this close together? She didn't think so.

As the moose sprinted away with her cry, she hoped he had understood her. From what the others had said after the paladins had visited, the moose should be a lot more intelligent than an average animal, which was already somewhat obvious. But the real question was, was it smart enough to find help?

Alex took a deep breath and forced herself to take another step. She couldn't rely on the moose alone. She had to keep walking. Dammit, how had she managed to go into labor the only time no one seemed to be around?

"Hey, are you okay?" a small voice asked from behind her. It was Orglina, Glorp's youngest sister.

Alex groaned before mustering up the energy to answer. "No, the baby is coming, can you help me to the clinic?"

"Oh! Yes, come on, let's go quick," the young girl said, putting her body under Alex's free arm and starting to help her move toward the building.

They had made it several more steps, Alex leaning heavily onto the younger girl as the waves of pain flowed through her before the moose reappeared with Pryte, John, and Maud behind it. As much as she was grateful for Orglina's help, she was glad to see the others, especially her brother.

"Alex, are you okay?" John asked, worry in his voice.

"Don't think so. Contractions are coming too fast." The words came out in between gasps for air. "Pain getting worse."

"Maud, go find the midwife. John, get her to the clinic. I'll call the doctor and try to get her here as fast as possible. Has anyone seen Dave?" Pryte asked, running off before anyone had a chance to answer about her father's location.

"John, need mom too," Alex said, as the pain started to overwhelm her.

John

"Mom is on her way. I think Maud found Dad," John said to his sister as he held her hand. Her hard clamp down in return told him just how much pain she was in.

He was glad the moose had found them, even if he hadn't understood what it was trying to say. There easily could have been another ten-minute delay in getting her here otherwise, and with how hard the midwife was already at work, he had no idea what that could have cost her. What the hell had happened in the pregnancy, though? Every other scan had come up with it going well.

Alex looked up at her brother from the bed and smiled weakly as she spoke. "Good, kind of want Dad to come scan me again. Even if I'm not sure it was working before."

"Oh, I think it was working, ma'am. Whatever change happened happened recently. I need you to drink this," the midwife said, tilting a small glass of a cloudy pink liquid over Alex's face.

"What is it?" she asked as she turned her head to the side.

"Looks like it's a pain killer mixed with some kind of mana-enhancing drug. I'm not great at spotting or identifying those yet, but it's safe. You should drink it," John said.

He had briefly triggered his ingredient identification skill while he focused on the glass. It had been one of the first things Rabyn had drilled into him. If he wanted to make food on the fly in any environment, he had to be able to tell what was safe and what was poison at a moment's notice.

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Alex reached a hand up to the glass and tipped it into her mouth. She drank it down in a single gulp. John thought he saw some of her pain vanish, just before the door opened.

Dave

"What's going on? Why does she look like she's in such bad shape?" I asked the second I opened the door and spotted her lying in bed.

I had passed Maud in the hallway on my run to the room. Rabyn had been accompanying her, and at the time, I had had no idea why, but now, seeing Alex in the shape she was in, I had a guess. He may not be a healer in the traditional sense, but the man knew how to make food that rivaled modern medicine in its effects.

"Sir, I'm sorry I don't know. The baby seems to be unusually active. I've given Alex something to calm the pain as best I can, but I don't want to do anything for the contractions until the doctor arrives. It's too risky for them both," the midwife answered, with some panic in her voice.

"It's okay, Redna. I know it's not your fault, sorry, just worried about them. Any idea when the doctor will be here?" I asked as Rabyn and Maud entered the room.

"Pryte went to find her. So hopefully soon. Have you scanned her yet?" John asked, the worry in his voice plain.

"I already did. The problem is the baby has a core, and that core is draining a ton of energy from Alex. Without her own core to keep up, it could easily accidentally kill her," Rabyn said, pushing past me as something appeared in his hands. "Eat this, it's going to taste terrible, but I don't have time to hide it in anything, and that would dilute its effect anyway."

Alex took a bite of a blue flower, and I realized just how much color was draining from her face. Dammit, what could we do? "She's early!" a shrill voice said as a scaly, small figure entered the room.

It was Doctor Scalestone, the Kobold, who specialized in human pregnancy. I had no idea how Pryte had managed to find her, but according to Elody, she was one of the best, and we were lucky to have her. Surprisingly, she didn't push Rabyn out of the way, and instead hopped up on the side of the bed next to him.

"Was that an ice crawler in its blue stage?" the doctor asked, looking at Rabyn.

"Yes, and the only one in my stocks," he replied, not taking his eyes off Alex.

"Good good. Though I wish we had more. Damn, a core baby in a world with such a weak mana flow, don't think I've seen this before. He must have formed it recently or we'd have noticed," she said, continuing to examine Alex.

"So what's the next move? Is there anything I can do?" I asked, growing more worried by the second.

"Quiet!" the doctor ordered. "Redna, we need mana shards, at least two pounds worth. Rabyn, whatever mana-infused foods you have ready to go. I need the strongest you have. Dave, sit down, do not move, and conserve your mana!"

To my shock, Rabyn ran after Redna, both in pursuit of their orders. Then again, considering I was currently sitting, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised he was willing to leap at her orders. I hoped whatever it was she had planned would save Alex.

Over the next several minutes, John's face went from an attempt at stoicism to full-blown panic as Alex worsened. I did my best to hold him together, but Maud did the real work there. His sister's life was in very obvious danger, and while the doctor seemed to be doing what she could, Alex looked worse by the second.

Redna returned first, dropping a collection of mana shards onto the table next to the bed. Dozens of them, all in different colors, shimmered slightly as they clanked onto the surface. Rabyn followed almost immediately after.

"Alright, what are we doing?" I said not willing to wait quietly for more information.

"We are going to build Alex here a core. It will be weaker than your normal core, but it has to be done for her to survive this," the doctor answered as she started channeling mana into the pile of mana shards, quickly shaping them into an odd form.

"What do I need to do?" I asked.

"Get over here and start infusing mana into this cobbled-together mess of a core. Rabyn, start feeding her. Redna, hold her down. Her soul isn't going to like this!" Scalestone barked out these orders, and we all jumped to obey.

Alex

Alex was only hazily aware of the events occurring around her. After the doctor had ordered Redna and Rabyn for supplies, everything had started to go foggy. Had she said something about her baby having a core? That couldn't be right, could it?

Something deep inside her suddenly screamed at an intrusion. Every single nerve flared to life. It was more pain than she had ever felt before. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't get the words out.

"Alex, listen to me, don't fight this. I know it hurts, but trust me it will get better," her father's voice called, cutting through some of the pain.

"Mom, listen to Grampa," another, much more faint voice said.

Where had that one come from? She didn't know, but she knew it was correct. She did everything she could to let herself accept what was happening, to let the strange energy flow through her. She even let the new sensation start to grow in her chest. No matter how much it hurt, she let it happen. Her child was coming, and she would do what was needed to make the birth go correctly.

Rarely a baby exposed to a strong enough mana can form a core while still in the womb. This can be incredibly dangerous for the mother of the unborn child, because if their own mana generation isn't strong enough to keep up with the drain, it can easily kill them both. Despite these dangers, royal lines often do their best to birth their heirs in these conditions, as it is one of the many ways to ensure powerful offspring. Great care must be taken in the delivery of such children, even in the best of circumstances.

Medicine, Healing, Life by Gerald Grall Skreel