Location: Thornhaven Village
Date/Time: 11-12 Ashwhisper, 9938 AZI
Realm: Mid Realm
The pain began behind Lyria's eyes and worked its way down.
Not the sharp, sudden agony she'd braced for—Vaelith had warned her the first session would be uncomfortable, and Lyria had prepared herself for something violent, some wrenching recalibration of flesh and bone. Instead, the healer's essence moved through her like roots seeking water, patient and relentless, and everywhere it touched, it found damage.
Old damage. The kind that had become so familiar, Lyria had stopped noticing it.
"Breathe," Vaelith murmured. Her luminous hands rested on Lyria's shoulders, the vine markings along her fingers pulsing with a soft green-gold rhythm. "Your body has been compensating for weeks. It built walls around the damage to protect you—crude walls, emergency measures. I need to take them down before I can repair what's underneath."
