| From: | The Fount of Evil <phinar@**.CENCOM.NET> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | Nex, again. |
| Date: | Wed, 3 May 1995 22:24:34 EDT |
will allow me; Nex is back to requiring a near full-time watch. As I said earlier, he has
taken a nasty turn for the worse. And again, I ask that you indulge me, and grant the
opportunity to explain.
It was nearly dawn on the second, and I was sleeping fitfully, not
having quite adjusted to the time shift just yet. The wan light of
morning, further foreshortened by the haze over the city, was
beginning to replace the chemical glow of the streetlights. I blinked,
looking around for what had awakened me -- it was the rustle of
feathers. I sighed, preparing to go to the window again, when my eyes
focussed on the room, and noticed two very peculiar things, in
extremely rapid succession: first, that the bird was circling and
diving above THE Nexus, and was not at the window at all; the second,
more alarming, was the bluish light that was surrounding Nex. The
bird's peculiar flight alerted me that something was amiss; as has
become habit, I reached within myself and opened to assense.
I cannot say for certain what I saw; nor could I say for certain what
it looked like. I am reminded of the works of one H.R. Giger, most
famous for his then heretical set of renderings entitled The
Necronomicon, though his other work, Aliens, is that which draws me to
recollect. Large teeth, strands of drool, vaguely lizardlike skin...
it is all too strange for my mind, even after sharing Nex's darkest
memories, to contain. I remember seeing the bird swooping, driving for
what must have been eyes -- then I was back in realspace, staring at
the invisible fray, my cheek stinging from Dr. O'Keefe's slap.
"Help him HERE," he commanded, and I looked back at him, dumbfounded,
as he stepped forward, reaching toward Nex. A spark leaped from Nex's
swelling aura, and I could swear I heard O'Keefe mutter, "Ooh. Nice,"
as he let himself down to the floor and released his psyche into the
astral.
Still a bit shocked, I watched as the aura around THE Nexus grew,
sparks arcing to the bedrails and the lamp, exploding the lightbulb.
Bruises began appearing all about Nex's face; his arm began erupting
blood at an alarming rate. I had not been witness to this end of
astral combat before; I must confess, it is quite unnerving.
Meanwhile, the birds swoops and dives began migrating away from the
bed, toward the window. Soon, the bird ceases flying, roosts on the
sill. I stand and approach the bed, taking care to step around the
good doctor's prone form. As I approach Nex, he begins to "cool down,"
the intensity of the light diminishing, the sparks becoming less
frequent and less intense. I begin the healing rituals. When the aura
completely fades away, the blood leaking from his arm had become a
mere dribble; the sheets were soaked, and the bedside was cherry red.
I thought, as I prepared to lay on hands, that I could see a gash
across his stomach, and that his intestines were clinging to the
sheet, but then I touched him, and things warped; his injuries erased
like a poorly sketched portrait, the vast wounds contracting into
tight lines, leaving at last only a laceration on his arm, which
continued to slowly ooze visible to my eye. As the force of the spell
washed through me, I myself fell unconscious.
When I awoke, STREETWOLF was busy over Nex. Various medical
paraphernalia had been moved into the room, and several candles,
sigils, and other mishmash had been arranged about the room. Beside
him, O'Keefe looked truly weary; I fear he fared only little better
than Nex, though the wounds were not so obvious. Beleagured myself, it
took enormous will to stand and join my efforts to the spell the two
were weaving -- truly more than I understood, but the mana seemed to
understand its direction. Since that time, we have been working, hand
in hand, to sustain that spell, stopping only briefly to rest,
spelling each other in hour long shifts.
I repeat my request now: any of Nex's chums who might be adept in the
ways of warding, please do contact me privately, as soon you are
able.]<<<<<
