As Max’s face grew green, Subuntu began to giggle and giggle and giggle. The immortal God of Healing, a revered and prominent figure across all of Nava, was laughing. Tears began forming in his eyes because of the humor he found in Max’s reaction. It had been too long since the elderly man had laughed like this, which for some reason made it funnier to him. The giggles turned out to be contagious and found their way to Vel. Again, Max was stupefied. Vel, his teach and mentor, laughing at him. But as he thought about that for a moment, it made sense actually. Vel was an asshole.

Manus and Fen looked disturbed. They, unlike every other Healer in the room, knew the true identity of the laughing man. Having your deity boss laugh like this left a weird impression. Should they be laughing also? They became more disturbed when Vel joined. Now they knew, with confidence, that they should not laugh.

Emi, feeling her partners embarrassment, decided to take matters into her own hands. With a leap and a flutter of magic, she torpedoed herself into Subuntu’s gut. The word to describe the distance she bounced, would be nothing less than epic. A barrier of protection repelled the small monster far into the air who was able to catch herself in a bubble of water, while simultaneously drawing the eye of every Healer.

“Oh!” Subuntu shouted. “Sorry little one, I forgot I had an Aegis in place. Forgive me. And you too, Max. I do not laugh often at the misery of others, Hells, I don’t laugh much at all.” Subuntu fell into a pondering state. He thought through his long memory trying to find the last time he truly laughed. He eventually shook his head, unable to recite the memory.

Max sighed. “Can someone show me how to use the projector thing? It looks complicated.”

Manus moved with Max to the center of the room. Max muttered something to Emi about old people and how much they suck, just loud enough for the two elders to hear. Their reinvigorated cackles filled the chamber. Manus showed Max the projector. He explained that he was not proficient with runes, but the ones on the contraption had been simplified for ease of use. The projector was a large cylinder with a cut outdoor. A light source shined through the bottom up the short walls and into a strange crystal. From a simple cursory look over, Max could see many runes carved into the crystal.

It seemed the instrument worked by using a simple light rune followed by complex series of visionary runes. The ease of use came not from the crystal carved runes but the housing apparatus that allowed for many forms of media. A small plaque along with Manus’s instruction told Max of several items that could be projected. Thin paper with ink drawing, etched stone, memory globes, and a few others. The projection of the bird was a memory stone, a connection Max kicked himself for not noticing earlier.

“How long until we start?” Max asked.

“Not for another ten minutes. We can delay if you need that tonic…” Manus sounded concerned. His glance back to the, now chatting, laugh devils proved as much.

“I prepared a few drawings but now that I know memory globes can be projected, might as well use those. Animations may be helpful.” Max began removing the required items for memory etching and began to work.

“I didn’t know you knew about runes.”

“I really don’t. This is about all I can do, but I’ll be taking classes at the Mage Guild in about a week, however.”

“You just keep surprising me, Max.” Manus said with a completely serious face.

Max placed the glass sphere on the rune and focused on the memory he wanted. He had found though some experimentation that Belopi’s method of creation was slightly flawed. She used a powerword to bind the memory to the globe. It was a fine method for short memories but when Max tried to remember entire movies from Earth, he found the globe would break. He hadn’t quite figured out how to create globes that lasted hours, but he did find that if he used a stray hair or fingernail shaving as the binder the picture would be much clearer.

“I keep surprising you?” Max asked.

“Indeed. I’ve met a Lost One before and she was nothing like you.”

“She? I thought Lester was the most recent Lost One besides me.”

“Most recent Human Lost one besides you.” Manus corrected, and with a sigh said. “Inthuth was a unique being to this world. Maybe fifteen years ago she appeared and until the day she died, she was sick. As she explained to me, her race needed some kind of powder to keep their bones and skin strong. We could not find the powder… And she eventually couldn’t live with the pain…”

“Calcium.” Max said locking eyes with the man. “Dairy, Milk, cheese, green vegetables. Calcium.”

“Calcium?” Manus asked, testing the word. “Inthuth couldn’t ingest Dairy. She said it would hurt her stomach.”

A strange realization overcame Max. Nava was behind, significantly, on science. If Max was diabetic or needed glasses, he would be screwed. Magic has created many great contributions to the world, but how many lives could be saved from simple inventions or broader medical knowledge.

“She was probably lactose intolerant.” Seeing Manus’s fearful expression Max added, “Look, I’m not sure if calcium would have helped her, but weak bones and skin is a symptom of a calcium deficiency. Dairy has calcium but also something called lactose. I’m not really sure what lactose is, but some peoples stomachs get upset by it. Sure, its gross and makes them feel bad but if it were that verses brittle bones… Bones… She may have been able to eat bones… Gride them up into a powder? It may not be the same potency as the powder Inthuth was used too but it may have done something.”

For a second Max caught Subuntu’s eye. The God had heard Max’s words from across the world. A smile and nod were all Max received, but his off handed teaching had already begun to spread across the many Healers of the world. Subuntu relayed the information to other high ranking Church member who proceeded to tell those who were under them. Max set the spark, Subuntu brought the kindling.

Max eventually finished his memory globe. “Do the other Healers here today know about my title?”

“Yes,” Manus said breaking out of deep thought. “They all have been marked by my Lord, however. If one speaks about you with someone not in this room, depending on the severity, justice will be issued.”

Max gulped. “I see. Well, I’m ready to start.”

“Alright!” Manus cheered. “Shall I introduce you?”

Max nodded causing Manus to bang his hand three times on the projectors table. With an ounce of mana to amplify his voice, he spoke.

“Attention everyone.” He waited for the chatter to die down. “Thank you everyone for coming today. There are many of us here and I know we are all eager to get started. With that, I present you with Lost Lord Max.” Manus gestured to Max before giving a curt bow and finding his seat.

There was a short and timid round of applause. All of the Healers had been informed in advance of who Max was, but not what he looked like. Max felt multiple Inspect attempts, each pinging off with failure. A murmur sounded from the room. Questions about his arm and his bond seemed to be the focal points. Max cleared his throat and tried imbuing mana to his vocal cords. He had done it once previously, but the technique proved difficult. After a few attempts to get the volume pitched correctly, he was finally able to speak.

“Hello. I am Max. Before we begin, I would like to make a disclaimer.” Max judged the room before proceeding. “I am twenty-two. A baby to most of Nava. I also make no claim to be successful in the field of healing or medicine on Earth. My chosen profession was for the maintenance of a technology Nava has not seen. A technology that I cannot recreate. However, in my schooling and in life in general, I picked up bits and pieces of information that may prove helpful to you and those like you.

“I am Human. I come from a world dominated by Humans. Meaning all of my knowledge is for Humans only. That does not mean it is not applicable for other races. I’m sorry to the Beastkin, Centurion and Naga in the crowd today, but our body may be completely different. Again, I hope to not simply dump my knowledge on you all. With some luck I will be able to explain basic concepts and ideas that will help propel research and possibly jump start a medicinal renaissance.” Max waited for some semblance of life from the crowd. They watched him unmoving and unsure. “Please, I want to make this as open as possible. If you have questions, please ask.”

Murmurs shot through the crowd causing Max’s nerves to find a foot hold again. He turned back to see a bored Vel and a smiling Subuntu. Manus gave him a reassuring nod while Fen look uncertain.

“Umm… Excuse me?” A voice sounded from about midway up the rows. Max searched for the voice, finding a bunny Beastkin. Long droopy ears with mixed with a button sized gave the woman an eternal nervous expression. But as she was the only one to speak out, Max found her the bravest.

“Yes? Go ahead.” Max said.

“Why do you think you know more about healing than us? I’m not sure how your limited knowledge will be useful.”

“Ah, I see.” Max thought for a moment. “The best explanation I can give is a brief overview of my world. Earth has no magic, no mana, no potions. People died of sickness and injuries in the millions when we were first getting started. Pretty soon researchers and scientists started making discoveries, ones that saved everyone. Hospitals that could house thousands and doctors with immense knowledge started popping up around the world. Unlike Nava, my world was more connected. A message could be sent and received in seconds. People, most people I should say, wanted to help each other. If a doctor couldn’t find the answer for a patient, they could easily ask others for help. Even if the other doctor was across the world.

“Over the centuries records were kept. Very rarely was knowledge lost, meaning there was always innovation. There was a term call peer-review. A concept that I hope you all begin to implement. As a simple precursor, before anything is finalized a peer checks it over. Again, there is more to it than that but is enough to get the point across. If someone makes a mistake, there will be others to catch it. Using concepts like that, my world sky rocketed advancements. We went from living in caves to visting the moon in only a few centuries.”

The crowd was silent. Eventually the bunny-woman spoke. “No magic?”

“None.” Max reconfirmed. The Healer fell back into her seat. Chatter sounded against the vaulted ceiling. Max took this as an opportunity to set up the projection. He placed the globe on the light rune and turned it on. A 20-meter-tall skeleton appeared, causing a ripple of gasps from the audience.

“Remember, this is all Human based… Also ask questions. No question is a dumb question.” Max gestured to the skeleton, marveling in the crisp image. “This is a skeleton, I’m sure you all could recognize that. Starting with the very basics of what makes us who we might be review, just stop me if this is common knowledge.”

Max began to talk about bones and joints. 206 bones, cartilage, ligaments, and marrow. A second globe was inserted, and a familiar skeleton appeared but this time with internal organs. Livers and hearts, lungs, and diaphragm motion. Intestinal system and the circulatory systems. Layers of skin and what hair and fingernails were. Common ways to set bone and sterile practices.

Nevers and pain, and their connection to the brain. Concussions and head related injuries. How the body helps itself fight off infection and a brief explanation of what cells are. That got a reaction out of the crowd. Max spoke in ramblings and unfinished thoughts. He talked fast and about things that had seemingly no connection. At first, he thought that he was being poorly received, but soon he could hear the familiar scratching of quills and pens.

He talked well past his hour timeslot and into the evening. No one seemed to be complaining, however. The constant question that resulted in tangents and rabbit holes were proof enough that everyone who was there was interested in being there. Along the lines, Subuntu slipped away. Max had wanted to discuss some things with the God but figured it wouldn’t be wise for a God to remain on the mortal plane for too long. Eventually Max found a stopping point. His explanation of antibiotics had run dry. To his surprise, a resounding applause filled the room.

“Very well-done Max!” Manus said over the applause.

“Thank you.” Max replied.

“I wanted to introduce you to someone but since today has already gone long, I think it would be best if we hold off until next week.”

“Oh, sure.”

“Shall I walk you out?” Manus asked who proceeded to gather Vel and Emi. They moved through the Church hallways towards the main exit.

“Subuntu was not what I was expecting.” Vel said when they were out of earshot of everyone.

“I’ve met a few Gods in my time as [High Priest]. Subuntu has always been the most genuine. That’s why I follow him, and that’s why others follow him. Sure, he is the God of Healing, but what really creates his Godhood is his compassion. He’s never forgotten his roots on Nava, something the other Gods may have.”

Vel stayed quiet, rethinking if her biased views of the Gods had been skewed over the years.