Kidnapping or Murder? (1)

Malcom watched the masked man, who gathered energy again to end his life. The previous attack had proven to him that only a direct hit was what it would take for that man to eliminate him.

'Fuck! You need to calm down!' He chastised himself.

Malcom already expected that he would be fighting someone strong, but seeing it with his own eyes still made him feel terrible.

With clenched teeth, Malcom took his hat to activate it and have a chance while in his mind, the idea that this man was really trying to kill him did not stop tormenting him.

"Let's see if you laugh now!" The masked man said as he gathered energy for another attack.

Malcom frowned. The man's voice was raspy, and for some reason, it sounded familiar.

However, he did not have enough time to think further, as an enormous amount of energy was already in front of him. The masked man was about to attack the Marked, and this time he was not sure if he could evade it.

Just as the masked man was about to launch his attack, a bright flash fell from the sky, and blue flames shone all over the place.

Malcom, who was breathing hard, felt the familiar magic presence. Then he saw her.

Skyler's short hair appeared in front of him from behind the flare.

The masked man drew back a little, because his magic was not canceled out yet.

Malcom could feel both magic pressures clashing with each other.

"Twin Suns!" Skyler yelled after she concentrated so much magic power in her hands.

However, instead of the intense orange color that her hands usually generated, these intense blue flames glowed brightly as her attack flew in the direction of the masked man.

The attack hit the palms of the man's hands, who, using a great amount of energy, managed to stop it. Still, his body fell back until he reached the alley entrance because of the girl's power.

She opened her eyes in surprise. The man had received her attack directly and did not have the slightest wound on his body.

Malcom could not help but smile bitterly. If Skyler had not gotten there, who knows what would have happened to him.

The Marked could have died in the masked man's hand just like that. While the other, after receiving a strong attack from one of the strongest mages of her generation, only had burns on his palms.

While looking at Skyler, the man sighed in frustration. He was about to leave, but not before looking at the Marked with an anger that was almost tangible.

Skyler wanted to chase him while some city guards came to her position. The man was fanning the ground with speed, but before the fire goddess went into pursuit, she saw how her friend sitting on the ground lost consciousness.

Malcom woke up looking at the ceiling lights of the hospital again. He felt intense pain in one side of his body.

When he tried to get up, he saw how his right arm was shattered on one side of his body.

He tried to get up, but an intense pain prevented him, and he heard the voice of a doctor who precisely applied a cream on his naked torso.

Malcom looked at him expressionlessly. He was about to get up but was stopped by the doctor.

"Do not move! Welcome to the world of the living, Malcom," The doctor said with a smile.

Malcom raised a brow. He could not help but wonder why the doctor sounded really delighted that he was still alive.

He was still looking at him curiously when Skyler spoke on the other side of the gurney.

"Are you okay?" Skyler asked with unmasked concern. Her eyes surveyed him with a frown.

When he saw her friend's face, Malcom relaxed and dropped onto the stretcher to reply, "I'm fine."

But at that moment, a light of the doctors' hands touched the cream in his body, and a sharp pain made him cry out as if to contradict his statement. Malcom glanced back unhappily.

"Sorry, kid! You have three broken ribs, and the whole bone in your right arm is pulverized," the doctor explained.

Malcom smiled wryly. He was not surprised.

The doctor seriously continued, "Whoever did this to you is an incredibly powerful man. Repairing bones, even pulverized ones, is not such a big problem, but for that, your magical connections must be intact."

Another huge wave of pain caused Malcolm to clench his teeth. He was doing it so much that he could almost taste blood.

"I am sorry, just bear with it some more," The doctor apologized, again while the light of his hands made the cream work on Malcom's body. "But as I was telling you, your magical connections are shattered, that man's attack not only broke your body, it broke your bond with your magic circuits at a very deep level, and particles of his magic are still preventing yours from being restored."

Malcom laughed bitterly at the situation.

"Were you able to see who that attacker was?" The doctor asked while looking at Skyler.

Skyler shook her head. Her gaze shifted back to Malcom, "But he was powerful. He stopped my best attack with his bare hands. If I had arrived a little later, he would have taken you with him!"

Malcom, while still enduring the pain, replied stiffly, "That guy wasn't trying to kidnap me. He was going to kill me..."

His voice sounded bitter, and his gaze was fixed on the roof of the room when he continued, "If it hadn't been for you, he would have done it!"

Malcom gave a grateful look to the girl, who smiled with her hand on the Marked's shoulder.

Armand, who was standing in the corner of the office, said, "Doctor, can you heal it?"

The doctor adjusted his glasses, and answered, "Yes! But it will take time."

He then added while staring at Malcom, "Your bone I can regenerate in seconds, but the magic particles that the man left inside you would destroy it again. They are very hostile, so I must eradicate those magic particles, restore your connections and then rebuild your bone."