Chương 6: A Lost Coin

"Look Aaron. Have you ever seen a wild bird so well domesticated?" A look of pure glee shone across Tim's face. The crow was sitting on his knee eating seeds out of his hand. The happiness was infectious.

"Wow! He really seems to like you."

"I think so too!" Aaron forced out a smile, but was overcome with a sudden wave of concern.

"How is his soul?" The joy in Tim's face dampened.

"I don't know how to tell."

"Look at his spirit, are there any shadows in the flame like yesterday?" Tim stared intently at the bird for a moment.

"No, I can't see any." Aaron let out his breath. He hadn't realised he'd been holding it.

"That's good. He's stable. We have some time. Keep checking and let me know if it comes back."

"You're the Spirit Healer. Shouldn't you be keeping an eye on him?" Aaron looked at the ground, avoiding eye contact. He didn't want to tell him about his class evolution as he knew he would blame himself. But there was no use hiding it. He'd find out eventually.

"When I did the Cleanse Curse ritual, your curse fought back. It evolved my class into a Necromancer and I don't have access to my Spirit Healing anymore. But I knew the risks when I decided to try to cure you. This is my fault." Tim jolted to the front of his seat. His cane clanged against the floor and rolled across the room.

"What? No, that can't be. We need to change it back. Master Addison will know. If not, there's other masters in the city. We can get your healing back." Aaron interrupted before he could spiral any further.

"Tim, there's no use. You can't un-evolve a class."

"This is all my fault. I shouldn't have agreed." Tim forced out his words between fast panicked breaths. He reached out to Tim and grabbed the back of his hand gently. It was sweaty and quivering.

"It's okay. It was worth it for a shot at fixing you. We can make it work with my new class." Tim's hand suddenly went stiff.

"Wait, is that what happened to the bird? Did you try Necromancy on him?"

"I… he was dying. I couldn't use my normal healing, so I worked with what I had. I have some Necromancy spells which manipulate flesh and bone. I used it to heal his wounds, but I couldn't do anything for his soul. I've never heard of anyone healing this way before and I knew it was risky. But what choice did I have?" Tim frowned and leaned forwards on his chair slightly.

"Show me these new spells. Maybe it can help us figure something out." Aaron took the tome out of his bag. It was still moist from the previous night and smelled like a damp shoe. He opened it to the first page, splattering water all over the table. Class: Necromancer Proficiency: Novice Innate ability: True Sight (level 2) (Evolved) Description: The ability to see the unseen. Nearby objects out of sight may be revealed to the user.

With practice, it may be used to reveal objects further away and from different times. Visions at lower levels are faint and difficult to interpret, but with increasing skill, they become more clear. Note that it will only show the caster physical properties. It cannot sense into the spirit. Tim sniffed and wiped his eye with the back of his hand. His voice was shaky.

"At least your sight is somewhat similar. I've heard of abilities evolving. But Necromancer?" A tear dripped down from Tim's eye.

"What have I done? This was all a mistake."

"Tim, it's okay. It was my decision to try the ritual, not yours. I'm sure I can train in my new abilities and find a way to do some good."

"No you can't," Tim sobbed.

"Maybe if you changed to a seer or warder. But Necromancer?! I thought they were a story made up to scare children. Everyone had heard the tales of liches raising armies of undead and draining souls straight out of people's bodies. Imagine what they'll do if they found out it's real. They'll kill you!" Aaron rubbed his brothers back and spoke softly.

"We'll figure it out. No one has to know. I asked Master Addison for advice and he told me to avoid using it. He will let me stay at the infirmary if I keep it quiet."

"Wait, you told him? We need to go now!" Tim shuffled back and started to get up, but Aaron quickly patted his shoulder and interrupted him.

"He won't tell anyone. He's on our side, I promise. We're okay." Tim relaxed somewhat and sniffed deeply.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, of course. We are safe. Let's focus on Cuthbert." Tim cleared his throat and straightened his tunic.

"Okay, show me the abilities you used." Aaron turned the page to the"Manipulate" skill. Tim's eyes darted left to right as he scanned the page.

"I used this to restart his heart." Aaron paused, he was concerned about how Tim would react. He looked upset still, but his eyes were focused on the page, scanning back and forth across the text.

"I had no idea I could do this, it just kind of.. It happened. I felt so connected to him. I could see his heart in my mind. My spirit could react out and wrap around his heart and restart it." Tim must have noted the Somatomancy school of magic under Manipulate, Tim flicked through to the magic school section. There was a branching tree of abilities and talents, just like when he was a Spirit Healer, but all his old ones had been replaced.

Heart Mastery was at the bottom along with several other boxes, including Bone Mastery and Flesh Mastery. Heart Mastery was the only one assigned a rank. This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

"You have something called heart mastery Aaron, it says you are roughly ten percent better at manipulating hearts, but that doesn't explain Cuthbert's fading soul." Aaron held his head in his hands.

"I knew there was a risk. Addison warned me. But I didn't know I could damage his soul."

"For what it's worth, I thought Necromancy was evil and corrupt. That's what the stories say. You've managed to turn it into something good and saved this bird's life. Manipulate sounds like it has lots of applications in healing. Maybe it's not so bad after all." Aaron looked up at his brother.

"You think so? What if I use it again and it harms other people?"

"Do you have any spirit healers you can trust? Can they restore his soul? Maybe the powers work well together?" Aaron sighed.

"I do… but it won't work. Spirit Healing rebalances souls and paves the way for the body to heal. But this is far beyond anything I've ever worked with. If anyone could help, it would be one of the masters, and they.." Tim finished his sentence.

"They are scared of Necromancy and would refuse. We're lucky Addison only warned you against using it, rather than turning you into the royal guards."

"Yeh. That." Aaron said.

"I have an idea." Tim said.

"Go on."

"The Sacred Library contains all of Mnemo's knowledge of the continent and its magic. If there is any information about Manipulate and Necromancy, it will be there. I'll go today and see what I can find. I'll also get out your spirit healing books and see if I can piece anything together about what might be happening to his soul."

"That's a good idea. By the look of Cuthbert, he's much more stable today and he'll be fine for now. I need to go to work, but I'll try to indirectly get some information out of the other healers. And see if there's any books there that might help."

"Be careful. Don't make it too obvious."

"Of course. I'll be subtle." Aaron grabbed his bag and rushed out the door. His knees quivered with each step, still exhausted from using his magic the day before.

Breathless and aching, Aaron stumbled through the infirmary door. The grandiose voice of Master Addison bellowed through the halls.

"And here is our ward. With twelve beds, our highly skilled healers treat over three thousand patients per year. The facilities are, however, worn and require rejuvenation and embellishment. With your investment, we will be able to treat an additional five hundred per year!" Muffled chatter simmered through the walls. It had a particular intonation which suggested nobility. Nobles often invested money in places like hospitals and schools as the law gave them tax benefits for making charitable donations.

It also earned them favours with other influential masters like Master Addison. Aaron slipped past, carefully placing one foot after the other as the wooden steps to the basement creaked beneath his feet. He didn't want to be seen arriving late. The scent of cleaning spirits and vinegar stung his eyes as he entered the laundry room. Gowns and bedsheets were crumpled up into baskets, which were piled high on the counters. Despite the chaos, a gentle melodic humming soothed the room.

"Good morning!" A cheery voice called out. Aaron jolted in shock; he had no idea anyone else was in the room with him. He turned to see the brown haired girl from the other night. She was watching him with an amused smile. She wore a long, ankle-length apron over a knee-length dress. The apron was worn and stained, and had damp patches at the front. She was slightly shorter than Aaron, with a slim build.

She had soft brown eyes and brown hair, professionally tucked over her ears and tied behind her head in a near bun. Aaron winced. He'd hoped he could sneak in unnoticed.

"Sorry I'm late."

"Don't worry." She waved him off.

"I won't mention it. Master Addison is far too occupied to care today anyways. What are you serving time for? Did he find out about the other night?" Aaron forced out an uncomfortable smile. He didn't like it that she was talking so loudly about it.

"No. I just forgot to bathe Mr Jones""Uh huh." The girl smirked. Clearly his lie was as blatant as the mould growing in the corner of the cold, tiled basement floor. Aaron blushed and thought to himself, Great! I've barely spoken to her before and she can already tell I'm a bad liar. Real smooth.

"I'm Paige. What's your name?" The laundry girl extended her hand. Her fingertips were wrinkly where she had been submerged in water for so long. He extended his hand to meet her.

"Aaron."

"Ok, let's get to it then, Aaron!" She made a show of rolling up her sleeves.

"Seeing as you're late, you can start with that pile over there." She pointed to a rancid pile of clothes in the corner.

"Good luck." Aaron was relieved that they got straight to business and Paige didn't have any more questions about the other night. The soiled linen and pus stained clothes were piled high like stalactites in a cave. Aaron fought to keep his face from screwing up at the thought of spending all day cleaning the disgusting rags. He glanced over at Paige as their eyes met over a pan full of puke. They glimmered in the light like sapphires. At least I've got nice company.

The brief moment ended as the distant chatter grew louder and the stairs creaked under the stomping boots of several men.

"This is our state of the art laundering room. A vital cog in our infirmary. Every patient here deserved the finest, cleanest cotton." Aaron grimaced. The sound of a shady salesman didn't sit well in his stomach. If this was the finest cotton, he'd hate to see the bad stuff. Five men stood before Master Addison, each dressed in flamboyantly embellished robes, trimmed with silk and gold. Their eyes scanned the room, darting straight past Aaron and Paige. Aaron kept his head down, suddenly feeling embarrassed.

The sound of scrubbing, splashing and pouring of water rumbled on in the background of the tour. Yet Master Addison left without so much as a word to him, the men, clearly disinterested in the infirmary basement. Something pinged down the stairs and Aaron glanced up. A coin rolled across the floor below, eventually stopping next to an old wooden cupboard.

"Sir," Aaron called out, as he rushed over to collect the lost trinket. The chatter and footsteps grew more distant. No one heard him, or cared. He stepped over a woven basket full of towels, the weave of the basket was tired from years of use and poked out like thorns on a rose bush. He reached down for the silver piece. As he touched it, he felt his spirit reach out through his hand and latch onto the coin. The hairs on his arm stood on end.

The room faded around him, the walls pulled away and were replaced by a grey haze. He felt his True Sight ability pulling him into a vision. He could sense the people who had touched the coin as if they became part of it. They were faint, but clear enough to identify faces and voices. Suddenly, Aaron heard a roar of wind and the grey border of the room zoomed to his left, replaced by a blur. He crouched down to the ground to steady himself.

He hadn't experienced anything like this before, but he somehow knew that his vision had shifted back in time by a few minutes. As the room came to a stop, he could see one of the men holding the coin. Master Addison was talking in the background, but Aaron couldn't hear him. Every sound was muffled and mute, as if they were underwater. He saw himself in the background of the doorway, sneaking quietly towards the basement. This had all happened about five minutes ago.

"Thank you Master Addison, your facility is truly splendid." The unassuming voice cut through the muffled buzzing, like a knife through butter. Whoever it was, his spirit had imprinted on the coin stronger than everyone else. He was the coin's owner. The room snapped back into place around him, the haze swirling and dissipating through the walls. Aaron felt pain as he was launched onto his backside. He looked at the coin.

It was made of silver, engraved with a sun at its centre, rays of light like little squiggles around it.