Magic has Benefits

Author's Notes:

Okay, this one didn't take QUITE as long.... So at least there's that!

As always, I gotta make sure you all are aware that sex isn't entirely the focus of this series, though I always ensure to have at least one spicy scene in here! If you have read my other works on this site, you know how it goes!

Also as always, all character are 18+. Also ALSO as always, I tend to like writing my violent combat. But if you're this far in the series, you know what I'm about, haha.

Enjoy! <3

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Oskar trudged into the small mouth of the cave that he had been forced to consider a temporary shelter. It was a tight squeeze for the large half orc, but with the lack of his backpack full of a lifetime of gathered supplies, it didn't take that much effort. He pressed his back against the smoothed stone and slid past the narrow passage, having to hold his hands to his side as he felt his way around the curved entrance.

In one hand, he held one of two possessions he'd managed to keep after the fight with Sir Ullian. The deer hide tube that contained his bow and a handful of arrows. The other possession was a small (for him) dagger that currently hung on his waist.

In the other hand, he held a rabbit by the feet. It dangled lifelessly in his strong grasp, still somewhat bleeding from the arrow wound that had punctured it through the base of both ears. It was the only reason he left the cave at this point, to hunt for food.

Around his shoulder was a possession unlike the rest of the rugged warrior. A sleek black bag. Something that should belong in the hands of a noble woman, or perhaps a wealthy merchant's wife or daughter.

Riley's bag. The mystical container that could hold any amount of objects in it, as long as Oskar could fit it in the mouth of the satchel.

He carried the light as a feather magical artifact like it was the heaviest thing he owned. He could lose his knife, which was the first weapon he trained to use with his mother. He could lose the bow, which he fashioned for himself when he first stepped outside of his home on the very adventure he was on now. He would mourn their loss greatly, as he had with the rest of his bag.

But he would never forgive himself if he lost Riley's belongings.

The bag held everything that Riley owned. Everything else inside his home, including the building itself, had been burned to ashes by the Church of The One Father. All that remained of Riley's lifetime of work is what he managed to shovel into this bag as the house burned around him. Oskar didn't know what he had rushed into the burning cabin to grab, but it must have been of great importance to Riley. Important enough to risk his life.

As such, Oskar would die before he let go of it.

It had also proved invaluable in the past week. Being able to collect vast amounts of resources and not having to worry about making multiple trips was a luxury Oskar had never contemplated before. It made gathering firewood and some other camp essentials a cinch. He probably could have put what he held in his hands now in the bag. But he wanted the comfort of the familiar, holding his bow in one hand and successful game in the other.

Plus, he didn't know if the blood could somehow seep into the material. So, he dared not risk it.

He pulled himself into a larger opening of the cave, where a light source finally lit a tiny portion of the cave in a dull orange glow. It wasn't much light, as the fire had begun to die down while Oskar was absent, but in the complete dark it seemed like a beacon. A beacon leading Oskar to a precious treasure.

Laying next to the dying fire, encased in a bundle of roughly prepared hides, was a small body.

Oskar's heart felt like it was being squeezed of all its blood every time he saw the slight wizard. His usually radiant white skin was always pale, but it now looked sickly. Beads of sweat dotted every inch of exposed skin. His rose gold hair was bunched into the hides with him, ensuring it didn't surround him like the angelic halo it always had. His expressive face, normally so full of confidence and mischief, was twitching in signs of clearly visible pain.

Riley Volstrand was a shadow of himself, and it was getting worse.

Oskar made his way to the small fire, reaching into the bag and pulling out a couple of firewood logs from the infinite interior. He placed them on the light source and stoked the flames with a nearby stick. The embers flared to life and caused a surge of light and heat to emit into the small cave, illuminating the rudimentary shelter Oskar had managed to eek out of the forest.

Riley was wrapped in the only furs that Oskar had managed to acquire, in a constant conflict to keep the wizard warm. Despite the sweat that was clearly visible on his body, Oskar knew that he was running very cold. No matter how hot he made the fire or how many animals he managed to slaughter for their hides, his skin was always cold to the touch.

It had almost been two full weeks since Oskar had managed to flee the Church of the One Father with Riley held in his arms. He had spent days looking for a safe place to hole up, finally scouting out this cave. He had brought Riley here and had taken to tending to his wounds.

The process was slow. Agonizingly so. Riley hadn't woken up much in the past two weeks, and never on his own accord. The only times Oskar would see the beautiful electric pink of his eyes was when he tried to feed him various soups he'd managed to make from hunting and foraging.

Riley couldn't manage anything more than the broth of the soup. Even that seemed to pain him deeply.

"D... Darling..." he'd whimper in such a voice that Oskar felt as if he was stabbing him in the chest with the land's most vicious dagger, "It... it hurts..."

Oskar would continue to tilt the makeshift spoon to his lips, saying in his softest possible voice, "I know sweetheart. I know... But you need your strength..."

He hated himself more than he thought he could at forcing Riley to do something that pained him so. But he knew that without it, Riley would starve. The fact that he had managed to keep him alive for two weeks was proof enough of that. But still, the gathering tears and the spasming of his broken body with every sip filled Oskar with the intense urge to jump from the cliffside in which they were hiding in his guilt.

Those were the only conversations they had been able to have. If Riley was awake, he was clearly in pain, unable to hold a coherent conversation for very long. Oskar had hoped in his initial flight from the clearing that it was simply his legs that had been crushed by the flaming support beam. He had been so, horribly wrong.

The first night he'd gotten Riley to the safety of the cave, and he had been able to light the campfire (A process that took far too long without his tinderbox), he had finally been able to stop and undress the unconscious wizard so that he could assess the damage. He'd wanted to weep in despair at the sight of him.

Everywhere from the middle of his ribcage down was horribly discolored. Massive bruises, ones that spoke of bleeding on the inside, lacerations and burns down almost every inch of his once perfect skin. Oskar was also entirely sure that a majority of his ribs were broken.

He cursed himself so thoroughly he ran out of words, languages, and gods. Such a beam would have simply wounded him, not leave him in such a broken state. He should have taken the blow instead. He should have been there by his side to protect his little companion.

He had dressed the wounds as best he could by ripping Riley's clothes apart, washing them in boiling water. Riley had a small pot inside his bag Oskar had seen him use to boil flowers. In simple instances, this was for tea. For more complex instances, it was for potions. Oskar had tried to ask Riley in his few moments of consciousness if he had any useful magical flowers in his bag. But explaining the process of forming them into anything useful was far beyond Riley's physical and mental capacity. The most he could do was fall into pained pleads. For Oskar to help him, to cause the pain to stop.

So, the pot was only useful for boiling the bandages that were once Riley's clothes. Oskar tried not to add his tears to the water.

Oskar had begun to forage after that, looking for useful materials. He was no man of magic, but he knew of some herbs with healing properties. He also knew Riley had been in the Horsestray specifically because of the magical nature of its flora and fauna. He assumed if he were to ever find something that he couldn't identify, it was potentially magical. He would bring it back to Riley, asking him what it was and praying to any of the gods that were watching that he had miraculously found the flower that was used in healing potions.

Riley would do his best to smile through the pain and tell him he'd done good, and that whatever he'd found would be useful at some point, he was sure. But no, it wouldn't help Riley right now.

Oskar knew he said these kind words to reassure him, but it only made him sink further and further into helpless sorrow. All he could do was find a mixture of herbs and flowers he knew would put Riley to a deep sleep. At least when he was resting, he was oblivious to the pain.

As Oskar watched the raggedy breath of his partner, he clenched his harsh jawline at the sight. Riley was impulsive and brash. He was rude and often thought of himself more highly than others. But underneath all of that was a tortured soul that craved the affections of one he could trust. And he had trusted Oskar. He had put his faith in him. For the first time since Oskar had met the wizard, he'd done something entirely selfless. He'd forced Oskar to take that potion so that he would live, even if it meant Riley had to suffer through such intense pain... Even if it meant he would die...

Oskar set to work to prepare the rabbit for the stew. He knew that he would be eating most of the meat, but he would try to prepare it so the broth was as nutritious for Riley as possible. It didn't take him long, as he had begun to develop expertise in this particular method of preparation. He eventually took the pot (which Riley had corrected him by saying it was technically a cauldron) and brought it to the side of the bundle of fur. He put his wooden makeshift spoon that he had carved with his knife into the cauldron and brought it out, full of broth.

"Riley," he clenched his jaw, dreading this part as always. He gently pressed his hand on the shoulder he knew was uninjured, "Get up, my sweet. You need to eat."

He waited a moment, but Riley didn't stir.

A bubble of deep concern and dread rose up within his chest, "Riley... Riley you have to get up..."

Nothing but stillness was his answer.

Oskar dropped the soup spoon to the ground in a panic and stooped next to Riley, pressing his ear as gently as he could to the slighter man's chest. He heard his heartbeat, but even with his especially sharp hearing, it was faint. Fainter than it had been since they'd met. Far more so than all the nights they lay together, arm and arm...

Oskar felt like yelling. He felt like screaming. He felt like crying out his soul. He felt like challenging any of the so-called gods that would DARE be trying to take Riley away from him! All these emotions battled in his chest, a turmoil unlike any other plaguing him. If only he'd had his equipment. If only he'd managed to find another healing potion in that house. If only he could have stopped himself from drinking the one that Riley had forced on him as a gift.

Perhaps his final gift.

All these emotions and what ifs sent his entire body into a form of shock. He simply sat there, trying to think of some way to resuscitate his companion. To have him sitting next to him, verbally sparring as they sharpened one's wit against the other's. To have him sing to him in that beautiful and strange laughter. To lay with him, Oskar's arms against Riley's slender back as the wizard rested his head against the warrior's chest... To hear him breathe without it causing him pain.

There was a burning in his chest unlike any other. At first, he thought of it as his emotions seeking to destroy his heart. But he felt what it really was. Since he had used his shirt to bandage Riley, he only wore his leather armor, his cloak similarly used to cradle his companion. There was only one thing underneath his garment that caused a circle of rising heat.

His amulet.

Oskar stood. He was not someone to sit here and ponder what could have been. He was a man of action. Even missing most of his tools, even running out of time, he would not sit here and do nothing. There was a confidence in him that Riley had just closed his eyes for the last time. That was, if things remained as they were. It was now or never.

Oskar went to the bag and reached in, "Energy."

Nothing happened.

He cursed, pressing his fist into his forehead, "Argh! Think Grawl, you fucking moron! Think!"

He tried to think back. Riley had said on their first night together that he could store energy into something... It was a little object Riley had said could capture worldly essence to assist in spellcasting.

A spark went off in his mind and he plunged his hand back into the back, "Crystals!"

He pulled his hand back out. A handful of various glowing gemstones of different cut shapes and sizes were in his palm. Each glowed distinctly with its own unique light. He felt his heart pull itself ever so slightly out of the muck of despair it had been in. He laid out the crystals in front of him and closed his eyes. He then shuffled them around, jumbling them in his hands and casting them against the ground, as a soothsayer would knucklebones. He reached underneath his armor and pulled out his amulet. He held it firmly in his hand and took a deep breath.

"Ancestors..." he ventured, his voice laced in desperation, "I know the energies that surround me are yours. I know not if you watch me now. But know that I have made two promises. One to my mother to return this artifact to Overkstien. The other is to keep the dying man next to me safe. If you are to preserve my honor as a warrior of the Gynja Rufan clan, then his life must be preserved at all costs. Guide my hand and body towards his salvation so that I may venture to Overkstien with my honor intact."

He waited a moment, then cast his hand forwards, grabbing at a random crystal.

He opened his eyes and looked down upon it. It wasn't any different from the other crystals. It was median in size against the others, and it had a soft yellow glow that emitted from it. It wasn't the most impressive nor the brightest.

Oskar was also sure that it was the right one.

He gathered the other crystals and quickly returned them to the bag. He shouldered it and grabbed his bow and knife. He returned to Riley's side, crouching beside him.

"Riley... You are strong and brave," He clenched his jaw and tried not to choke on his words, "I will be just as in your stead. I will return to you with a means to save you... Or the woods shall take me as my failure has taken you."

He stood, looking at the clearly unpleasant resting face of Riley Volstrand, took a deep breath, and began marching to the entrance of the cave.

He would find a cure for Riley. Or he would die trying.

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Oskar wasn't exactly sure if this was working, but he had to have faith. Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results was maddening. He couldn't keep using his ranger's abilities to explore the same areas looking for the same things that had not yet helped. He would need to put this effort into something else. Something that combined the skills he'd always had, the gift of the artifact from his mother, and the knowledge gifted upon him by Riley.

He took the small yellow crystal and retrieved his amulet from the hem of his armor. He wasn't entirely sure how this was supposed to work, but he had to try. As he stepped to the edge of the woods next to the cliffside, he pressed the crystal to the amulet, hoping and praying to his ancestors that something would happen.

And something did, surprisingly almost immediately.

The crystal began to glow intensely before fading entirely. The yellow glow went from lightly encompassing the interior of the gemstone, to being entirely gone, leaving behind a crystal-clear shard.

However, the glow had not disappeared. Simply, it had transferred. It now lit up the strange esoteric symbols across the face of his heirloom.

Oskar looked down in fascination. The once black etched ink of the amulet were now glowing softly yellow against the dark brown wood. He pocketed the now spent crystal and took another deep breath. He didn't have enough time to truly think through what he was doing. Just seeing Riley's face in his mind was more than enough to simply move. He closed his eyes and began to walk at a brisk pace, following only what he had always associated as his sixth sense.

It had helped him find Riley. Now, it was going to help him save him.

Oskar emptied his mind, using his skills as a ranger only to track where he had come from, not where he was going. If his theory was correct, the gemstone had held some kind of worldly energy that resonated with the otherworldly essence of his amulet. He was unsure of what that meant exactly, but the hope is that he had powered his mother's gift, to send his instincts into magical overdrive. He didn't need to worry about what direction he was going. The necklace would take care of that. He just had to ensure he knew how to get back to Riley when he found what his ancestors were leading him to.

The thought spurred him forwards. He began to almost jog through the woods, dodging trees and clearly low brush with long and bounding leaps. The more he moved the more a confidence grew in him. He had made the right decision in doing this. He just hoped he hadn't put the pieces together too late.

He had just ventured beyond the limits of where he usually explored, though in less than half the time. He wasn't tracking or looking for subtle signs in the foliage. He was simply moving as fast as he could through the woods. He came upon another cliffside, the woods beginning to thin as he did.

Oskar stood for a moment, not entirely sure where to go from here. The cliffside looked bland and difficult to scale. He had once had rock climbing equipment, but that was long gone. He studied the gray rocks of the cliff face, hanging foliage from above willow trees casting long down the fifty foot stone face.

Oskar looked back down to his amulet and frowned. The yellow lines were still glowing, but not nearly as bright. Was it running out? What could that...?

Nearby, there was a loud 'whoosh' noise and the splintering of wood, followed quickly by a shouting in a tongue and voice he recognized.

He turned and sprinted in that direction, coming to the other side of the cliffside clearing, peering back into the heavily wooded Horsestray.

Two figures he recognized were standing there, but he never would have guessed he'd see them together. Next to them was a tree with a large section of bark blasted from its face.

Standing in some kind of battle ready stance next to the tree was the dwarf he'd seen as part of the angry mob outside of Riley's house. He was breathing heavy, holding the large maul in his hands. The blade of the hammer had broken a section of the tree. To Oskar's surprise, in one fell swoop, the tree already seemed ready to topple.

The dwarf looked different. Oskar had been sure that each time he'd seen the man, he'd been on some level, drunk. He looked sober now, the once beady gray eyes now bright and concentrated. A large bag was strapped to his back, bulging with its unknown contents. Oskar could see a bed roll strapped to the top and a long spool of rope on the side.