381 CCCLXXXI. The Splinter

All the warriors present, caught in an indescribable fear, crouched down and hugged each other, fearing that they had come to an end, hoping only in the strength of Egill's spell, who knew it would take a second of distraction to break the barrier and be responsible for everyone's death.

*boom*crush*baaam*

The deafening noises of the boulders chipping the outer surface of the barrier faded after several minutes, during which only the sound of the smaller rock fragments gliding along the dome was heard. 

Master Egill dropped his grip on his rod and suddenly the barrier disappeared into thin air, letting in the dense post-explosion black dust.

The soldiers began coughing, covering their faces with their arms, trying not to choke.

As the dust became clearer and the scene gradually returned to be visible, the spectacle before their eyes left them breathless again.

Everything that had been built on the snowy plain had disappeared, except the two stone dwellings covered by the magic barrier of Egill, around which the ground was burned and steaming, with grayish gases leaking from its fractures.

Less than fifty yards away from them, dag stood, turned behind, unsteady, with the hammer pointed outwards, while more fine ash continued to fall on his head.

In the sky, the vortex and dark clouds disappeared, giving way to the faint Sun, which returned to lightly illuminate the area, eliminating the darkness, which had characterized the whole battle.

Freydis and Gridd, who had been hugged trying to protect each other, opened their eyes and looked forward.

Dag turned to his companions: his body was completely covered in wounds, as was his face, soaked in blood.

Freydis with one hand in front of his mouth held a scream, seeing her man in those conditions.

On Dag's face, it was possible to distinguish a smile, generated by the fact that he had managed to save his warriors, acting as a shield to his own attack, with which he had pulverized the entire horde of enemies.

The next instant, the young Master fell to the ground without force, fainting on the terrain burned by the explosion.

...

"Take him with you, don't leave him here! I have no way to escape, but he can travel with his father! Nobody's going to look for you and with your son, you'll be able to start a new life again!" 

"If he comes with me he will be forced to flee all his life long, in fear that they will discover his true identity. Giving shape to our love was the most beautiful thing that had ever happened to me, I can not risk making it a mistake. He's beautiful, like his mother". 

"Yes, he is. He is the most beautiful creature I have ever seen, as beautiful as the sunny days on the surface when our star was full of life and with its heat warmed everything..." 

"Like the day... Dag. His name will be Dag. 

...

*WHEEZE*

A stone ceiling took shape in front of Dag's only open eye, which struggled to breathe, feeling severe pain in his ribs and unable to feel his arms and legs.

"He's alive! Master Egill! Dag breathes again!" 

A warm hand stroked his face covered in scratches and cuts caused by the rocks that had hit him before.

"Fr... Freydis" he repeated with a thread of voice, while his girlfriend's blurry face stood still in front of him.

"Yes, yes! It's me, Dag! I'm here! I'm here next to you, I won't leave you!" 

"My eye... I can't open my left eye" Dag continued, barely raising his arm and trying to touch his face.

Freydis grabbed his wrist, preventing him from reaching it.

"You've suffered some very dangerous injuries, Dag. Karl and I are doing our best to make you heal. Don't worry, in a short time you'll be back as new" Egill exclaimed, who stood across the room next to a stone table, mixing something in a clay bowl.

The Master Of Healing approached him, with light scratches on his face, limping slightly.

"Master Egill... you have to rest, you can't... aargh!" 

Trying to raise the tone of his voice, Dag felt severe pain on his side, realizing that he had broken ribs.

"Keep quiet, boy. I'm fine, but you need to rest. Who will heal you if not your old Master Egill?" he smiled, dipping his hand into the black liquid inside the bowl, which smelled disgusting.

Egill, trying to be as delicate as possible, spread the liquid on Dag's side, covering the deepest wound he had reported and put a clean rag on it soon after, tying it to his abdomen.

He did the same with cuts and scratches on his legs.

Dag gritted his teeth, trying to hold back the strong burning of the liquid coming into contact with his living flesh.

"Luckily your body has incredible regenerative power, everyone else would already be dead in your place. With my ointments and dark matter that heals you from the inside, you'll feel better soon" Egill continued, carefully smearing the liquid on his pupil's body.

"My eye. If I move it sideways it hurts a lot and I can't open it" Dag continued, complaining.

"That's because you still have a sliver of rock stuck inside of it" 

"What?! A splinter?!" he exclaimed, waving and feeling pain again on the side.

"Yes. We need to take it off as soon as possible, but there is a risk that you will faint from pain, so I need to heal these other wounds first, to prevent you from bleeding too much" Egill continued, standing up and heading back to the table, with blood-soaked bandages in his hands.

Dag tried again to move, in vain.

As he regained consciousness, the pain of his wounds grew stronger and the fear of losing his eye pervaded his mind, causing him a strong sense of anguish until Freydis's voice distracted him.

"Hey..." 

"Hey... I feel like shit." 

"Dag, we're all safe. Me, Gridd, Kjell, the soldiers... they're all fine, thanks to you!" she replied, gently stroking his face, trying not to hurt him.