The Other Side: A Second Chance

I rushed towards Kegan as fast as I could. My little heart was racing rapidly in my chest; I mentally cursed myself, dammit, dammit! Of course, the first time, the first time I'd be recognized! I couldn't have left him there; Kegan said things looked terrible. What if he had passed while we were getting the medicine? I couldn't risk it, but of course, I immediately got caught the first time I did it.

I groaned before gasping when my face collided with the side of the doctor. Kegan grunted and stumbled forward before turning around to look at me. "Luna," he said, "what has you in such a rush?" He asked.

I wanted to lie, yet I knew it'd be pointless. Kegan would be coming back here in the evening if I didn't just tell the truth. Looking around, I saw we were a little ways away from the tent, and only a scattered few lurked around us, paying no attention. I gulped and looked up at him.

"I took care of Mr. Marco," I said. "He's cured. We don't need to come back."

Kegan looked at me, confused for a second, then blinked. "Wait," he said. "You used your magic?" He smiled. "I thought your parents made a deal that you weren't supposed to."

"He was not doing well," I said, "like you said, he needed medicine ages ago."

The doctor took a deep breath, fixed his shirt, and said, "You're right." He nodded. "He wasn't well at all." He lowered his voice and motioned for me to follow him as we continued walking. "The infection was rapidly spreading; honestly, I wouldn't have been surprised if his condition worsened while I was out getting the supplies."

My head perked up. So, I was right?

"Even if I got to him in time, there was still no guarantee the medicine would help him, as it's been so long." He sighed but then looked over his shoulder. "But, because of your help, I won't need to worry about that now, so thank you." I smiled as I felt my heart flutter, but such a flutter quickly transitioned into a sinking sense of dread when Kegan's face hardened. "But that doesn't explain the rush and your disturbed look. Did something happen?"

I opened my mouth, but all that came out was an incomprehensible sound as I tried to formulate my words. "They, uh, didn't expect, uh, me to use my magic." I laughed nervously. "Kaleb started mentioning stuff about miracles, so I, uh, ran."

The doctor's brow arched, and I could tell he knew something else was up, and I couldn't help but cave. I groaned and once again glanced around. I couldn't help but feel like I was being followed. I looked back at Kegan and said, "Kaleb recognized me. Apparently, after the Kassel incident, he stayed at the same refugee camp we went to after sailing over the river. He was there when apparently I had cured everyone in the hospital they had."

"Like in the same room? I was there, and I never saw him," Kegan said.

I shook my head. "No, but word spread fast all around camp after I did that." I bit my lower lip. "There aren't many kids who can do what I do," I said. It would be best if you had thought of that before acting off your emotions, dummy. I sighed. "So it's no wonder he knew who I was."

Kegan took a deep breath and stuffed his hands into his pockets as we walked towards the clinic. Looking forward, he said, "I see. Well, I don't see any harm in what you did. Genuinely, I do. You saved that man's life, Luna. Others may see it as a miracle, and perhaps it is. Though, I don't see any harm coming our way."

I nodded. "Maybe, but aren't you concerned this will attract a lot of attention?" I asked regretfully as I kicked myself. Mom and Dad are going to be so mad when they find out.

"It may," Kegan said with a slow nod. "Or it may not. If it does, then more people who need aid will come to us, and I look forward to providing whatever I can. Perhaps, though, I'm just not one for seeing the big picture of things." He shrugged but said, "However, if you're concerned, you can lay low. Keep that head down, and surely news of this will pass. You can work in the back with your brother."

I pouted and puffed my cheeks. "Okay."

 

---

 

We returned to the clinic as evening began to settle in. The sun hung low in the sky as it began to set. I hadn't told Isa or Varis about what had happened, mainly because I feared what Isa would say and, at worst, tell my parents. I'll admit this is not the child in me, but just myself. I had seen my mother furious only a handful of times, and I did not wish to be on the receiving end. I was not mentally ready for such a thing yet.

The remainder of my first day at Kegan's clinic went well. A handful of people trickled in, which the doctor and Isa tended to while I helped Varis at the back of the tent sort and organize dozens of tonics and medicines I'd never heard of. I don't know why my brain still defaults to stuff I was familiar with in my past life; you'd think my brain would've rewired itself to this world after seven years, but nope. Now and again, I find myself wondering why Kegan doesn't have morphine or some opium, only to remind myself that I'm dumb and that such drugs don't exist in this world.

Well, they probably do, in one way or another, but they are called something different. Most likely, though, they don't and instead are replaced by something else. For instance, a drug the good doctor has is something called Xanatri. It looked like pieces of bark from a tree—just small, wooden shards in a vial. During one of the quiet moments of the day, I asked Kegan about it.

"Xanatri?" He smiled. "It's a natural painkiller; it's bark stripped from a Xanati tree."

"You mean Xanatri?" Varis asked.

The doctor shook his head. "No, Xanati, that's the name of the tree. Xanatri is its bark."

Varis blinked. "That's so confusing; why name two things like that?"

The doctor snorted and shook his head. "Don't ask me; ask the people of Xing where the tree was first discovered."

I glanced at the bark in the vial and then back at Kegan. "So, do you eat it?" This made him laugh.

Shaking his head, he said, "No. Say if you were having dental pain or a horrible mouth sore. You'd suck on it. The oils in the bark will soothe the pain, or you can soak the bark in water and then rub it gently on your body wherever you're sore. It's not as effective as sucking on it, but that's why it's considered a minor pain reliever," he explained. "I do have a refined variant called xanaglycena."

"What…?" Varis asked with a blank expression.

The doctor chuckled. "It's this." He went over to the shelf we were organizing and plucked a tonic off the top shelf. "Here are the oils from that bark, extracted and put into this glass." He held the bottle out to us. "Keep in mind that the amount of oil in the bark is nothing compared to what's in this here. There's enough xanatri in this bottle to put a dragon to sleep. It's what we call in my field an anathesia, the first of its kind." He smiled. "Twenty years ago, doctors would have to operate on your awake."

"Huh?!" Varis gasped. "You mean, they would cut me open while I'm awake, wouldn't that hurt?"

Kegan smiled and nodded. "It would; that's how my father used to work." He hummed as he straightened up and put the bottle back on the shelf. "If there was no form of magic around to help you, there's only one way to save someone, and that's the old fashioned way. Every day, the world of medicine continues to develop; now that we have anesthesia, I no longer have to worry about causing great harm to someone while I operate."

"Have you ever had to operate on someone before?" I asked as I returned to work while listening.

"Oh yes," Kegan nodded. "Many times. I wouldn't be licensed if I hadn't performed surgery on someone."

"Why cut someone open, though?" Varis asked, still hanging up on what Kegan had said before. "Magic is everywhere? Momma always had healing scrolls whenever Luna and I got hurt. Why risk killing someone if we can just?" He slammed his fist into his palm. "Fix them like that!"

"Varis," I said. "That's rude."

Kegan shook his head. "No, no, Varis brings a valid point." He smiled. "My field has always been at odds with the clergy regarding this. Medicine isn't just about healing people in the old and natural way; it's also about understanding our species. What makes humans so different from elves or serelli? How do our bodies work, and how can we learn from them?

The clergy values purity and our connection to the gods. They believe our bodies work the way they do because the gods demand it, and we should respect their design. Like how a chef keeps their family recipe a secret."

"I take it you don't agree with that outlook?" I asked.

"Of course I don't," Kegan said, crossing his arms. "But I do respect it. Perhaps it's true what they say about us humans, and that's it's my nature to be curious about everything."

"What?" Varis tilted his head.

"Oh, have you not heard of that phrase?" Kegan smiled.

"I don't have any human friends," Varis pouted.

The doctor smiled. "Human nature. It was coined nearly thirty millennia ago after the event known as the Consolidation of the Planes and First Contact. Are you familiar?" He asked.

"Momma told us about the Consolidation and the creation of Vinland," I said with a nod and a big smile. "But, uh, what do you mean "first contact?" " Does he mean aliens? Well… I guess you could argue humans were alien to this world.

Kegan smiled. "First contact was when my kind encountered what is known as the Elder Races." He gestured to Varis and me. "The Elves, Dwarfs, Serelli, Halfings, and God Touched. Pretty much any race that lives beyond a century," he said. "When humanity first met the other races, it was noted by how curious and unfocused our kind was and still is." He smiled. "It was always in our nature to be curious, and some say that due to our detachment from the divine, our curiosity holds no bounds."

As a former human, I agree with this. I thought with a nod.

"Huh," Varis said, thinking. "So, wait, do humans not live beyond a century?"

Kegan shook his head. "Not normally," he said. "It depends on where you live, how you live, and what treatments there are. This applies to all species. But we humans, here in Heinmarr last, I checked, have the average lifespan is about eighty years."

Holy shit, that's better than the United States back in my old life. I thought.

Varis blinked. "Wa-wait, you'll only live to be eighty?!" Varis gasped. "That's younger than momma!"

Kegan blushed and rubbed the back of his head. "I'd be happy if I made it to that age."

"No wonder you're a doctor then!" Varis pounded his fist into his palm again. "You're trying to discover a way to immortality!"

Kegan snorted. "Yes, of course." He played along.

I guess it makes sense why Alexander prolonged his life as he did.

I couldn't imagine what it'd feel like to live in a world where almost everything else will outlive you. I guess I got fortunate this time around. I thought to myself.

As the sun began to set fully, Kegan announced that the work day was coming to a close. We had finished organizing much of the back and grabbed our things when Isa walked over to my brother and me.

"You two ready?" Isa asked. "The air is getting a little chilly out this evening again, so we better get moving quickly before it gets too cold."

"Why is it getting so cold?" Varis asked. "Summer is supposed to be hot."

Isa shrugged. "I don't know, but sometimes the weather in Heinmarr can be funny." She patted each of our shoulders as Kegan whistled to get our attention.

"Don't run off just yet," He said, "I have your payments."

"Money!" Varis exclaimed and rushed over to Kegan, who was sitting at his desk.

"Indeed, money," he said, smiling. "As promised, each of you will be getting five coppers."

"Heck yeah!" Varis bounced excitedly, and I couldn't help but smile at him as Kegan handed us each of our coins.

"Now remember, Varis," Isa said. "We're trying to save our money for the train tickets. Don't spend all of this at one place."

Varis pursed his lips. "Okay. I'll try."

Isa smiled and tussled his hair.

"Well, I hope you all have a nice weekend," Kegan said.

"Wait what?" My head perked up. What day is it again?

"Today is Field's Day," he said. "Tomorrow is Rest Day; this clinic won't be open as I'll be running the one in Helmsworth. So you all will have free time."

My eyes widened. Time off? Already? Hell yeah, I'll get to explore more! I smiled widely as Isa placed a hand on my shoulder.

I glanced up at her, and she nodded at me. What? What's that supposed to mean?

As I pondered what that was, Kegan showed us to the outside, and immediately, we came face-to-face with a small group. About a dozen people stood before us, many wearing familiar priestly garb, while the others looked like refugees. Father Kaleb and Father Marco, who were now healthy and seemingly a couple of years younger, were in the group's center.

"Oh, I see you're standing," Kegan said to the priest.

"Indeed, I am," Marco said, sounding significantly healthier. "All thanks to your wonderful companion."

"What is going on here?" Isa asked.

"Yeah, who are you, people?" Varis asked bluntly, and I hissed at him.

"Apologies, Madam," Marco said as the other clergy members bowed. "I am Father Marco Hensler. Hours ago, I was a dying man, but, you see, Dr. Kegan and his assistant came to me in those fading moments. As I waited for Salvation to come and take me, I was instead greeted by none other than Charity. It was you." He pointed to me. "Who came with Charity's offerings and granted me the generosity of prolonging my life? For that, I, and those of the church." He and the rest of the clergy bowed once more. "We offer you our deepest gratitude. May God and Heaven witness this event, and may he offer you peace."

As the clergy bowed, I could hear Isa's neck popping. She slowly turned to glare at me, saying between clenched teeth, "Luna, what did you do?"

Goddammit… I should've known this was coming. Fuck.

I curled my lips inward, thought for a second, and said bluntly, "Man was dying, so I touched him, and now he's alive still. What did you want me to do?"

Isa bit her lower lip and looked at the group in front of me. In a language I couldn't understand, she said something I could only guess was a curse as she facepalmed.

Please don't tell momma… was all I thought.