Chapter 130 - The Demonic Influence

"What happened here? Are these horns?" Ghost was the first one out of our team to pull out of the shock. In less than a second, he was grinning as if he made some amazing scientific discovery together with the girl he was looking at.

She was just a teenager, maybe sixteen years old, and huddled in one of the comfy leather chairs, hugging her knees and hiding her face between them. Two long, goat-like horns, black and gleaming like obsidian, grew out of the top of her forehead. They pointed at the people around like a wordless warning to not approach.

This was just one of the victims, one of the closest to the entrance. I spotted another one talking with one of the helpers. I'd peg that man for a normal dwarf if not for the fact that his clothes were several sizes too big for him. Another one silently cried her soul out, but I couldn't see what's wrong with her from the first glance.

There was no less than fifty of them in total. Not everyone had a place to sit, but other were bringing more chairs and sheets inside just as we entered.

"There are the ones who were affected the least," the hopeful witch said. "We put the unaffected ones at the other hall."

"What about those who were affected the most? Are anyone in a critical state?" I asked sharply.

"No, no." she shook her head. "No. But some are in a catatonic state, and some are just- Some are just in no state to walk around. We had healers to try to negate the worst… mutations, but we had little success yet. The demonic magic is very unfamiliar."

This all could be negated. I had to believe in it. I looked at an elderly witch with eyes growing out of her eye sockets on snail-like stalks and forced myself to believe. "And this is what Elder Elena called 'not so bad of a demon'?" I murmured.

"It's not so bad of a demon," Captain cut in. "Else, they all would've been dead and there'd been no chance to fix the situation. We didn't come here to tremble and complain. You two have a job to do. Ghost, Diana, try to see if you can fix at least someone. Help the medics what you can. Seriy, Razor," he gestured at the rest of our team, "Let's see what we can dig in the local archives."

"Dig? We already have people here. You will just be meddling!" the frustrated witcher tried to cut in front of Captain, but in the last moment wisely realised that Captain, like a freight train, won't be stopped by someone's body on their way.

"We must organise our search efforts! You will just waste time if you simply go in!" the hair-pulling witcher followed in Captain's trail as he kept pulling on his hair. "Stop, let's at least count up our people!"

The fourth witch, the most silent until now, let out a heavy sigh and turned towards us, leaving the rest of the disagreement council to squabble with Captain. "Well, at least we will be able to say that we are doing something while they keep pulling that blanket on each other. I imagine you are a healer?" she asked Ghost.

"I am," he grinned proudly. "Decades of experience here. All my life just healed and healed. Mostly myself, but that also counts, doesn't it? Diana, come. You will help me look at the poor lads. I've never worked in tandem with an arch-witch before… And you can learn the ropes as you watch me. You will need that in the future."

"Should we start with the worst cases?" I asked.

"If you can. They aren't critical, but some of them had to be held down for their own sake. If you could at least ease their sufferings, I would be immensely grateful," the quiet witch said. She glanced at the noisy hall of crying and distressed people and pinched her lips. "We were gathering witnesses' reports, but with half of them borderline hysterical, it wasn't easy. They will feel much better overall if you can heal at least someone."

Ghost looked thoughtful. "Let's go to the hospital fist, then," he said after a brief pause.

"I will show you the way," the quiet witch said, and turned to walk to the hallway at the side of the main hall. "I'm Katya, Wolfbane Coven. Leader of my team, and now that the rest of the circus is gone, of the medical efforts."

"Diana, but you must know that already. And this is simply Ghost," I gestured at my… partner, I guess.

"Nice to meet you!" He beamed.

"You look awfully positive despite the situation," Katya commented, curving her elegant brows.

I snorted, amused at the irony. I just recently asked Ghost the same question. Now, as we walked down the hallway, Ghost explained to her the same thing he did to me, in very similar words, and without a hint of annoyance at having to repeat himself.

We didn't have time for the full explanations of his conditions, though, by the time we reached the hospital room. I believed the Katya got the gist, though, and got enough of impression of the Ghost to give him doubtful looks from the corner of her eye.

I didn't doubt. Elena didn't, and with the man being as old as I imagined him to be, he had a lifetime of experience to use. Now, it was another question if he remembered said experience, but… Looking into his eyes, I couldn't see anything but calm assurance of a professional.

Inside the hospital were only six beds. All were taken, and two aides stood aside, conversing in hushed tones. At our entrance, they almost jumped and then run to Katya like scared children to their mother.

"Patient two entered convulsions again while you were out. We sedated him, but now he appears to have trouble breathing. We used the facilities to give him oxygen, but… this was the third fit already, and we've sedated him the previous times, too. He can't take any more of the sedative. What would we do if he enters the fourth?"