Cahira

~Her New Life~

During the extensive travels Magus and Anubis took together, they came across many discoveries. On one particular evening, just as the light was fading from the sky, they sensed a creature so severely injured that its imminent death overwhelmed Anubis. Without hesitating, he walked straight through the damp stone that the tunnel they had been exploring was carved from. Magus followed, having learned long ago to trust his comrade’s instincts.

Once inside the hidden cavern, they could both feel the strange magic that surrounded them, the sensation nearly suffocating. Ignoring Magus, Anubis walked deeper into the room, anticipation building within him at the thought of getting to end another life so soon after his last kill. The pain he could feel radiating from the creature still hidden from his view was overwhelming, but he could have cared less for the agony of another.

Magus followed in haste. While he and Anubis were close, he had no illusions as to the mental state of his friend. He was like a brother to Magus, a little, homicidal brother that needed to be watched at all times.

As he caught up with Anubis, he instantly felt the hurt creature’s strong desire and will to live, but could tell that there was something very wrong with it, very wrong indeed. Shadows melted away and the creature in question came into view; against the farthest wall of the cavern, laid what appeared to be a female Wildclaw drenched in blood. She laid on her side, her body shuttering with each ragged breath she took.

Magus could almost feel Anubis tremble with glee, the way he got each time they happened upon a dying creature that he ‘helped’ along its’ way. Taking one last step towards the dying Wildclaw, Anubis went for his trusty Cleaver to finish the job, only to grab at air. He spun around, scanning the immediate area for his blade. Magus was suddenly very relieved that he had the forethought to thieve Anubis’ blade from him. His friend, lost in the blood lust that led them to this poor creature, had been none-the-wiser when Magus snatched it from its scabbard and hid it in a pocket dimension, safely away from Mr. Chop Now and Ask Questions Later.

While Anubis had been plotting to murder this poor, wounded female, Magus had been reaching out for her aura, seeking information as to who she was and what had happened to her. It had taken mere moments for him to feel her failing life force, and the extent of her injuries. It had taken a fraction of a second for him to realize he could save her -- that he had to save her.

Anubis stomped away from them, cursing loudly as he went. Magus held back a chuckle, knowing his friend was off on a wild goose chase for the time being. Anubis’ tantrum caught the attention of the dying Wildclaw; she struggled to lift her head and open her eyes to see what all the commotion was about. Magus quickly leaned down to stop her from moving further, laying a hand on the side of her face to cup her cheek, careful not to catch her with his claws. A spark of knowing seemed to flow through him as he instantly felt connected to the dragon that lay before him; she seemed to feel it too, as she pressed her cheek into his palm and sighed in what seemed like relief.

“Do you wish to live?” he asked, knowing the words that he would need to ask if she said no. He desperately hoped he wouldn’t have to ask if she instead wanted a quick death. In her state, he knew he couldn’t promise a painless one.

He held his breath, careful not to make a sound lest he miss her answer. She nodded weakly, but it was answer enough for him. He quickly explained that he could save her, but to do so he would need to examine her -- physically and mentally. His eyes searched hers, noting their beautiful shade of pink, not realizing that they were unseeing. She nodded again, weaker still, and faintly said, “Do it.”

Magus was not prepared for what followed. The extent of her injuries quite literally took his breath away. Her neck alone had multiple fractures, her left arm shattered. He hissed when he moved to her ribs, noting that nearly every single one was broken as well. Deep cuts and numerous puncture wounds covered her body; her tail was barely attached to her body and she has extensive internal bleeding that began to fill Magus with doubt that he could fix it in time to save her. Her right femur alone was so damaged that it would take a miracle to salvage it.

His heart broke with each new injury he discovered, tears streaming down his face as he worked to keep all of her injuries straight in his head. A sob broke from him when he noticed that her scales where not garnet as he originally assumed, but were in fact a deep, beautiful blue that was hidden by all her blood. Whatever had done this to her hadn’t just wanted to kill her; it had wanted her to suffer.

Steeling himself from further turmoil, he took a deep breath and released all the emotions he’d be overrun with. Pulling himself together, he closed his eyes and summoned his power, wrapping it around himself like a shroud. He dug deep. Magus would need every single ounce of his power if he wished to save her.

Methodically, Magus reached towards her body with his magic, pushing his will into her. He showed her muscles and veins and soft tissue how to sew itself back together; her bones to fuse back into solid pieces, the cracks disappearing as he impressed his magical will upon them. As all bodies did, hers knew how it was supposed to be; all he had to do was push it in the right direction and super speed the healing process it would have done on its own had her injuries not been so deadly. Magus exhausted himself stitching her body back together, and by the time he was finished he passed clean out.

Anubis had found them both some time later, and had, as he told Magus many, many times, built up a fire for them both and summoned bedding to keep them comfortable as they recovered. Anubis hadn’t been happy to see that he wouldn’t be sending a soul off to the Underworld that day, but Magus was his friend and Anubis wasn’t about to kill the stranger after his best friend had nearly killed himself to save her. He wasn’t that spiteful, after all.

Later that night, Magus was woken up by her voice. “Cahira,” she had said, “my name is Cahira, and I owe my life to you both. If you hadn’t of found me when you did...well.” She lowered her head and grew quiet.

Magus noted that Anubis didn’t bother to mention that if it had been up to him, she would have been dead, and by his hand, too.

Once they had helped her back to their home, her recovery was long. Magus stayed by her side throughout, first as her friend, and eventually as her lover. Despite Magus’s best efforts during his initial healing, she still dealt with many lasting injuries to her body.
However, having a powerful mage as her partner meant that she never had to miss out on life due to her injuries. Magus went about creating devices to help with what his magic had been unable to heal: a jeweled eyepiece that gave her the ability to see shapes and most colors; jeweled anklets that allowed her to run without pain; a belt that returned the feeling to her tail; and finally, a cloak that Magus had woven his own magic into to ease any of her lingering pain. Magus even created a companion for her that could act as a magical conduit to him for when they were apart, so she never had to feel alone.

Cahira’s previous life and her accident remain a story untold to anyone but Magus. Together they are both made whole.