A Breath of Life

I had no words.

I couldn't see the body itself, but from the sight of it, it looked like it belonged to a young girl. Too young.

"Alex," Rina said quietly, kneeling down by the tall woman. "Kai is here." She said, gently touching the grieving woman's shoulder.

Alex flinched and looked at Rina. Though the green scales on her face hid most of her emotions, they couldn't hide her red, swollen eyes. She looked at her petite friend with an empty, soulless expression. A tear rolled down her scaly cheek.

"It's Kai." Rina showed a bitter smile. "He's here." She patiently said.

Alex stared at her for a few more seconds before finally turning her gaze on me.

"Kai…?" She asked. Her voice was weak, her spirit clearly broken. It took her a moment for her to recognise me. Life returned to her eyes for just a moment as she whispered. "You're alive. I'm glad."

"I'm glad too," I said, finally getting rid of the knot in my throat. "Is that…?" I asked hesitantly, glancing at the covered body.

Alex's shoulders dropped. "My sister." She whispered with a cracked voice. "My little Amy." She clenched her fists as tears rolled down her cheek. "I couldn't save her." She said, shaking her head. The young girl beside her sniffed and hugged her.

"I'm sorry," I mumbled. I was at a loss for words – there was nothing I could say that'd make her feel better. There was nothing I could do.

"I need some time alone," Alex said after a short moment.

"Of course," I said quietly. "I'll be outside, Rina." With that, I quickly left the room and closed the door behind me. I felt sick, down to my very soul. Someone so young had died because of this stupid game.

I clenched my fists. If only I had come here one day earlier… If only we hadn't gone to Baile Chailce…

I felt something tug on my cloak. I looked down to see a little Ereth child. "Mister, mister, can you help us?" He was barely tall enough to reach my waist. His tiny little wings were folded and wrapped in bandages.

I knelt on the ground beside him. "Hey," I said as gently as I could. "What's wrong?" I could see the fear in his eyes.

"You're the Keeper, aren't you mister?" He asked with a shaky voice. I nodded, though it pained me. "Can you help us?" He asked again.

"I can try." I said slowly. What did he want? He smiled, though it was a pained one. He took my hand and led me to a nearby bed, where a young Ereth lay unconscious. The kid that brought me here ran up to the bed and held the other one's hand. "Look, brother." He whispered. "The Keeper is here."

It felt as if someone had stabbed a blade into my heart and was twisting it with each word of the child. I gritted my teeth, wasn't there something I could do to save these people?

"Can you help him, mister?" The child asked with reddened eyes. I forced myself to smile as I approached the bed. Could I help him? Soul's Respite only healed me but what if I unlocked that mass healing skill? Couldn't I save everyone here?

"Kai?" I head Rina's voice calling my name. She ran towards me but fell silent once she saw the little child and his unconscious brother. "Oh."

I pondered, could I save them? I opened my status panel, then scrolled down to my available skills. There it was: 'Keeper's Haven' I quickly read the skill's description.

'The Keeper must channel this ability. Creates an area around the Soul Keeper. All living beings in the area are constantly healed. The Soul Keeper may not use any other abilities while the spell is active.'

I hesitated, from the description of it, it seemed like it'd be useful, especially now.

"Oh, what the hell?" I mumbled as I allocated a skill point.

"What's that?" Rina asked, leaning forward and rising on her toes in an attempt to read the pale blue text.

I took a deep breath and focused as my interface faded. I felt the new skill activate as a dark circle burst out from beneath my feet. The young Ereth child screamed as the area expanded. Soon, it encompassed the entire building.

The air grew heavier as a silver – green mist slowly settled in.

Moments later, I felt my mana drain at an incredible speed. The spell was finally active – I could move again.

"What is this?" Rina asked as souls left my body. I could see them as they dashed towards the wounded.

"Healing." I said through my gritted teeth. "But I don't think my mana will be enough." As the souls jumped from person to person I shivered. What little mana I had left was almost depleted already.

"I can help with that." Rina said with a faint smile. She gently reached out and placed her hand on my chest. Immediately, I felt her mana flow through me. It felt like an ocean was trying to fill a small dam – I couldn't help but be amazed by her incredible power.

"Mister?" The small child asked with fear in his voice. "What is this?" His little hands tightly grasped the wrist of his brother.

"I'm helping them." I said after a moment's hesitation. "They'll be fine, I promise."

I saw a glimmer of hope in his eyes. I forced a smile, then glanced around. Some of the unconscious patients were starting to move and shift on their beds. Slowly but surely, their wounds started to disappear.

"It's working!" Rina said. It was the first time I saw her genuinely smile. I nodded.

It took about ten minutes for everyone to wake up. Rina let go of me as the last of them opened their eyes in confusion and fear.

"Mister?" The little child tugged my cloak again. "Mister, will you help the girl in the back too?"