If you’re reading this, you either recall elementary school science or have some other experience with invisible ink. In a moment, I’d imagine you’ll understand why I took steps to hide this section. I didn’t want Aurora or anyone else reading this without me realizing it, so here we are.
About halfway through our week while analyzing Ironbriar’s journal, Geo came to me, telling me he needed my help on a potential way to cure Lenn of the brain damage that had afflicted him. I readily agreed, as Geo would likely do whatever he could to help me in my own goals, but perhaps I should have heard out his plan first.
In the time we’ve known each other, we’ve discussed many things. Magic being chiefly among them, but also concepts from my world. He was especially curious about what we had learned about medicine through our comparatively advanced science. I never saw a reason to withhold much, so I told him about quite a few things. For the sake of what I’m writing here, one thing that I perhaps should never have mentioned was MRI technology, specifically what I knew about use of gadolinium based contrast solutions.
It gave him an idea, one I really wish I could forget.
I went with him and Lenn to a building that looked fairly non-descript. He had promised Aurora that he and Lenn would make sure to keep me safe while out and about, so she remained at the inn, working on the journal. In truth, I’m sure he knew that she would object. I’m still not sure why I didn’t.
Geo knocked on the door and a small panel slid open. “State your business.”
“I have an appointment with your grand cleric. Tell him that Geo has arrived.” After a few moments, the door slid open. I didn’t even have to detect the magical auras to realize that it was being controlled with magic. In truth, it was kinda neat.
Inside the building, words were written all along the walls and numerous young wizards and clerics worked at various workstations, studying various experiments in the use of magic. It didn’t take me long to realize that we were inside some secret temple of Nethys, the insane god of magic.
Now, I don’t mean insane as in “these people do things that I find objectionable”. I mean insane as in “This god is literally insane, unable to decide whether he wants to destroy or save the world.” I’m really not sure if working with these people was a good idea. Still, I was curious as to what Geo had planned.
We followed a young woman from the entrance over to a room that was currently unoccupied. A chair with arm and leg restraints was bolted to the floor. I really should have found an excuse to leave, but I didn’t. Hostel vibe or no, I was really curious.
As we waited for our hosts, Geo strapped Lenn to the chair as he explained to me what he had planned. You see, he had been studying the tentacles growing from his arm when he had an idea. He was going to try to regrow Old Lenn from his own body.
I know what you’re thinking. I was thinking it too. “Quaid!” Right? Right.
You see, there were apparently parts of Lenn’s brain that hadn’t been damaged. Every rare once in a while, he would flash back into Old Lenn. Geo wanted to find those parts of Lenn’s brain that hadn’t been injured, cut them out and transplant them into his own head.
It’s okay, I’ll wait while you vomit.
After transplant, he wanted to use the same methods that had resulted in the growth of his tentacles to grow a properly functioning Old Lenn from his own body. He told me that he’d already used the procedure successfully on rats. Yeah, as if that was supposed to make me feel better.
On an unrelated note, anyone know the Rattish word for “Quaid!”?
He showed me a vial of dye he had made. He said it only bonded to undamaged sections of someone’s brain, and that’s where I came in. The dye became invisible when bonded, but was visible through magical detection. He wanted me to find the sections and use the same magic I had used to dye my skin for the crowd to dye the damaged sections of the brain. He would then remove them and the clerics of Nethys would regenerate the damage he had done, including to Lenn’s skull after he had sawed it open.
I asked him what he had paid to the clerics, and apparently they weren’t doing it for gold. Their services were free in exchange for the knowledge they would gain watching the procedure, as well as everything he knew about the dye he had made.
I don’t know why I agreed to help, but I knew that if he was going to have a chance to succeed, he would need a reasonably competent assistant. I wasn’t sure how sane these people would be, so I had to do it. I would just have to live with this image in my dreams for all eternity.
The clerics came in and work began. It went rather smoothly. Geo used another concept I had taught him about, anesthesia, to keep it from hurting Lenn too much. Aside from that, it was pretty much exactly what one would expect from medieval surgery: Brutal, lacking in finesse and unsanitary.
Once it was done, I had the clerics use magic to remove any infections that the two might have picked up along the way, something no one else had considered. And then we left, once Lenn had recovered from the anesthetic. On the way back, Geo explained that it could take days, or even weeks before he knew if it was working.
Back at the inn, I drank until I passed out. It didn’t help. I just relived my day over and over until I woke the next morning with Aurora standing over me. I don’t even remember it, but apparently during the night she had needed to bring me a bucket to throw up in.
I have really got to get back to Earth.
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