James appeared inside a tattered tent, the canvas walls patched and sagging, stained with dirt and streaks of dried blood. The air was heavy with the smell of damp soil, and bitter herbs. Cots were crammed together, each holding a patient groaning or thrashing, their skin blotched with oozing boils and dark veins snaking under the surface. Nurses hustled between them, their footsteps muffled on the muddy floor, carrying trays of bandages and vials that clinked in the chaos. Voices overlapped:
"More gauze here!"
"He's seizing again!"
Thorny vines crept through gaps in the tent flaps, their tips glistening with green fluid, twitching like they were sniffing out the wounded. James's hands flexed, his mind sharp. This was his trial, a battlefield clinic, and he had to figure out his skills to keep up.
A system screen appeared, blue text steady in the dim light:
Healing Trial: Garden of Afflictions
Objective: Stabilize infected patients through corrupted disease. Manage spreading affliction. Level of Success determines rank.
"Level of Success," James muttered, scratching his head. Was it about healing everyone? Doing it fast? Or stopping whatever caused these infections? He needed to learn his Healer skills better, especially after figuring out the essence-heartbeat connection with Barrier. This was his chance to push Mend and Barrier further, to master them.
He stepped to the first patient, a lanky guy with gashes on his arm, green fluid bubbling at the edges. The man's face was pale, his breathing uneven. James raised his hands. "Mend," he said, focusing on the warmth in his palms, like he'd practiced. A faint glow spread, the gashes starting to close, but a thorny vine slithered under the cot, its tip stabbing reopening the wound. The green fluid pulsed, resisting the heal. "Come on," James said, pinching the vine. It pulled back but lunged again, like it was drawn to the injury.
He tried Mend again, but the vine kept jabbing, breaking his focus. He remembered the warmth of Barrier, how it felt like a pulse he could control. Maybe he could use it to stop the vine. "Barrier," he cast, aiming a small dome over the vine itself. The thorn froze, trapped, then withered, its green tip drying up like it lost its spark. With the vine gone, he cast Mend, the glow steady now, sealing the gash clean. The patient's breathing leveled out.
But something clicked during the cast. The warmth in his palms had flowed differently, like Mend and Barrier were pulling from the same essence pool. Could he cast them together? He focused again, picturing the warmth as a single stream, splitting it between both skills. "Barrier. Mend," he said, voice low, willing them to work at once. A small dome formed over the patient's other arm, where a boil was forming, while a healing glow spread over it. The boil shrank, the vine nearby curling away, dead. It worked, but the effort made his head spin, his essence draining fast.
A system ping sounded:
[Healer Mastery]: F+ (0/100)
Dual Casting Unlocked
His knees wobbled, essence nearly gone, but a warm rush filled him, like his body was recharging. He stood straighter, hands steadier, feeling rejuvenated. Dual casting was new, a trick he hadn't tried before. It was like flexing two muscles at once, splitting his focus but amplifying the effect. Barrier didn't just block; it starved the vines, and Mend worked faster when the interference was gone. He was learning that his skills could interact, not just stack.
A nurse with a tired face and a stained apron approached. "You're a healer? We need you on the others. It's bad."
James nodded, moving to the next cot, an older woman with boils on her neck and a patch of dark veins. He focused, trying the dual cast again. "Barrier. Mend," he said, picturing the warmth splitting. A small dome covered the boils, blocking the mist that stung his eyes, while Mend's glow shrank the veins. It was slower this time, his focus wavering, but he noticed how Barrier seemed to weaken the infection's grip, like it cut off an energy source. He adjusted, making the dome smaller, tighter around the wound, and Mend flowed easier, closing the boils. Precision mattered with dual casting.
He moved through the tent, patient by patient, testing his new ability. A man with dark veins on his leg: Barrier to trap a creeping vine, Mend to push the veins back. A soldier with oozing sores: Barrier to block the mist, Mend to heal. Barrier needed a clear target, like a wound or vine, and Mend worked best when he visualized the warmth flowing directly into the injury, not just over it. By the fifth patient, his dual casts were smoother, the warmth responding faster, though it still drained him.
A different nurse shouted from the entrance: "More wounded coming! The plant's still out there!" Snippets followed: "Forest's a mess…" "Vines keep growing…" "Gas is killing them…" James's ears caught "plant." That was the cause. The vines, the green fluid, the infections. They were linked. He kept healing, moving faster now. A woman with gashes and green corrosion. By the tenth patient, his hands shook, essence low, but he pushed through, dual casting to stabilize a man with boils and burns. The tent was quieter, patients breathing easier, but no victory notification came.
Did I not complete the challenge? James thought, wiping sweat from his brow. Healing everyone wasn't enough. The plant outside was the source. He pushed through the tent flap, stepping into a dense forest. The ground was littered with broken spears and shields, the air thick with a sour mist. A hundred yards away, forty soldiers hacked at a massive tangle of vines, its core glowing green, pulsing like a living thing. Each swing released gas clouds, soldiers coughing and collapsing, boils forming on their skin. The gas was the infection's cause.
The mist from the wound before was blocked by Barrier. Wanting to test something, he grabbed a nearby shortsword.
[Basic (F+) Shortsword Acquired]
"Foresight," he cast, a flash showing three vines whipping toward him. He stepped left to dodge the first, ducked the second, and jumped back from the third, his boots sinking into the mud. "Barrier," he cast around himself, running into the gas. The mist swirled but didn't touch him, the dome blocking the poison. His hypothesis was correct. Barrier could shield against environmental hazards, not just physical attacks. It was like an extension of his essence, adaptable if he focused right.
A vine shot out, faster than Foresight predicted. It slammed into his shoulder, knocking him back into the mud, Barrier flickering but holding. He gasped, catching his breath.