Spiritual Reinforcement

Within the depths of the forge, the Dragonsmith awaited. Unsure of when or how the present conflict would end, he poured his entire being into praying for his friends, his people, to be safe. Guilt-ridden because of his powerlessness, he could only do so much, a feeling that was entirely new to him. Never before had he been in such inner turmoil, torn between his duty and his desire for his people to be safe. At the same time, it had been the first time in his entire life he witnessed such an event. Even if not actively participating, it was taking a toll on him, making him doubt himself. Every time, he had to recenter himself, remind himself that his task was far greater than himself. Not only did he craft in honor of a superior being, for all of his brethren. He was effectively a keeper of ancient knowledge, myths, and legends. Maintaining the culture, keeping it alive through steel, magic, and sweat was his calling, engraved in his very DNA. If he stopped or died, a pillar of that culture would perish on Namek.

But then, why did he feel so distraught?

He would have no time to reflect further on his uneasiness as the door would slam open, waking him from his trance-like state. Sihai, the small earthborn dragon would wake up at the same time from his slumber, cooing before yawning and standing up. Turning himself around, he saw as the cloud descended from the house part of the building down into the forge where he meditated. On it, he saw the bodies of both Nero and his brother, Pankaa. Quickly, he ran towards him, assessing their situation. They probably left the fight as soon as it ended, coming to his place right away. “By Porunga, what kind of horrific battle did you two go through?”

He placed a fatherly hand on both of their hands, his magic attempting to assess their physical state. On Nero, he felt something peculiar…A strange power of…or, no… He couldn’t quite place his finger on it. Though, he knew it was not malevolent. He noticed how he held his head in pain, wondering if the enemy had assaulted his mind as well. On the younger brother, however, he felt the traces of something far more malignant. Evil, he would think. Which emphasized that he needed to act, quickly. “This way, please.” He instructed the cloud, guiding upstairs once more, making a turn into a closed room, seemingly the same as the main room, only a bit smaller. Minimalistic, too.

He laid the brothers down on mattresses made from various foliage found around the planet, side-by-side. As he concentrated, the light in the room seemed to dim, or rather, it converged towards the old Namekian. A golden aura emanated from the man, filling the entire room. Scriptures and symbols etched into the walls of the room began lighting up in response to the surge of magical energy. The ground would light up as well as two wisps of energy began tracing symbols of power on the ground, around the two. Similar to his craft, his talents as a dragon caste Namekian had a special flair to them. Instead of mending the wounds, he would use his skill to “reforge” people to their best state. Removing impurities and restoring them was a fine-tuned process that decades of dedication to his craft allowed him to perform such a feat.

“Porunga, answer my prayer! Grant me your boon so I might heal their wounds. Grant them your peace so they may find peace from their pain. Grant them your mercy so they can rise again!”

Feeling a surge of energy welling up within him, Tambo placed his hands over both Nero and Pankaa, their bodies glowing a bright golden color as if a cocoon of pure energy enveloped them. Impurities within their bodies would rise to the surface, flaking and detaching from it to be expelled outside as the magic restored their body. The process continued a while longer, slowly dissipating with time.

“Hang in there, you two…”

It took every ounce of his concentration to maintain the barrier intact, but unfortunately, even he was aware that his attempt was not yielding the expected results. The source of this corruption was sticking like glue to its host, in this case the young Pankaa. Probably sensing this sense of urgency, Nero quickly snapped back at him, ignoring his advice and jumping straight into it.

For a response, Tambo let out a grunt, displeased at the sudden outburst from the child of Namek. At the very least, he was certain he was not the one who taught him this kind of behavior. As for now, he couldn’t do much but let it slide since he was physically unable to stop him. But he would make sure to give him an earful, after that.

From surprise to surprise, Tambo could barely keep up with all that was happening. Just before the Avali would attempt and strike him, he noticed the energy coming from Nero. That energy, he would recognize anywhere. Was he to take his initial impression at face value and assume that the young one had been chosen? The surprise made him lose concentration, just enough so that the angered Avali would have been able to connect his tail swipe if not for the rapid intervention of the Nimbus cloud.

Due to the clash of powers happening inside the small hut, the roof of his humble abode eventually gave out, the light of day shining on both brothers as they duked it out. A brotherly feud with a lot on the line. “By all that his Holy…just what happened back there?” After being swooped by Nocti, the spell he was maintaining began to wear off. Truth be told, he wouldn’t be able to put another one in place again, as this kind of feat was very taxing for someone like him. Helpless for now, he could only stand and watch from above, realizing for the first time the hidden potential of them both.

Aside from petty quarrels, he had never seen them showing their power. Deep down, he knew that both surpassed him greatly in power. Yet, he wasn’t out of this just yet. Focusing on the fight below him, he tried and analyzed as best as he could, in the hope that he could find a weakness to exploit and help revert Pankaa to his true self.