Okay, BTFAR? is done, so of course I have to start something else right away! Yeesh….
It all started with the plant.
"No. No no no no NO. I absolutely refuse to set foot on that miserable planet!" Stanford huffed.
"Stanford, if you truly find it a discomfort, I am able to send Tezz." Sage calmed him.
"Personally, I have no greater interest in another visit to that wretched place than my teammate, but for the sake of the mission, I shall go." Tezz said boredly.
"It's just a recon mission!" Vert groaned. "We won't even run in to the Vandals! All Sage needs us to do is grab a few plants for cataloging and to fill in the Mobi's database!"
Stanford glared at him.
"No."
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"Hmm. We have arrived at Sage's coordinates." Tezz said from inside his car, where he planned to stay. After much bickering, the Russian was finally forced to come along.
"Alright. Let's grab those plants and get outta here." Zoom said, dismounting from the Chopper.
"Works for me." Vert agreed.
"Uhm…is this one?" Spinner asked, holding up a black lump.
"Uhm…that's a Vandalian Leechislug…" Agura winced, and Spinner immediately dropped the creature, muttering about sanitizer.
"Vert? I think I got one!" Zoom called, gesturing to an odd-looking bush.
"Nice job, Zoom." Vert said. Soon, four of the five plants were sitting in the back of the Buster, much to Spinner's complaint.
"Anyone see the…how do you pronounce this?" Vert eyed the holographic list illuminated by his com. Sherman walked over, glancing at it.
"Uhm…let's just call it the K-Z." He suggested. Vert nodded.
"Guys?" Agura called from across the clearing, where she was halfway into the thick undergrowth. "I think I've got something…" She strained into the vegetation a little further.
"Agura, be careful, we don't know what's in there." Vert warned, and she pulled out a little. "What've ya got?" He asked, joining her.
"Well, I think it's the plant, but I can't quite get it out." She frowned.
"Alright, I'll try going in-"
"Wait! Almost…got it…" She pushed the shrubbery aside, nearly disappearing into the thick jungle and making Vert nervous.
"Ow!" He heard her exclaim.
"What?" He panicked.
"Little guy's got quite the defense system." She muttered, stepping out with a plant in her hands and gesturing to the thorns. "I got pricked."
"Here, lemme see." Vert said, and she gave him a thumbs up to reveal the spot of blood on her thumb. "All right, it's not bad. You have a first aid kit in the Tangler, right?" Agura nodded.
"Okay, you take care of that and I'll get this in the Buster." Vert said, and in a few minutes they were back home.
"Did you retrieve the plants?" Sage asked.
"We got 'em." Vert replied. "None of those were poisonous, right? Agura got pricked."
"I do not believe so." Sage said, and relief washed through Vert. "Although our safest course of action would be to test her for any toxins."
"Alright." Agura shrugged, and the trio entered the infirmary.
"Please take a seat." Sage gestured to the table. After a quick finger prick and scan, she was cleared.
"Thanks Sage." Agura called, replacing her band-aid.
"So, Zeke's for dinner?" Vert suggested once in the game room with the team. Everyone, even Tezz, agreed, and soon they were driving across the Salt Flats.
"Hi guys." Grace greeted them. "The usual?"
"Yeah." Vert nodded.
"So Grace…" Stanford began, making everyone groan. "What are you doing tonight?"
"Uhm, I'll be working. Sorry." Grace let him down kindly, as always.
"Oh. Well, alright then. Have fun." Stanford said casually, ignoring the fact that he had been rejected yet again.
"So, what do you guys think Sage'll do with those plants?" AJ asked once Grace was out of earshot.
"Well, I think she said one of them might have…healing properties?" Spinner suggested.
"She is using the plants to complete the Mobi's database." Tezz confirmed. "In theory, one of them, when used correctly, may prove to be a repellent for the mosquitoes."
"Wonderful." Stanford muttered cynically. "One less reason for me to avoid that dreadful place."
"It's not so bad, Stanford." Sherman shrugged.
"Yeah, there's some really diverse…er, wildlife." Agura said, holding a hand to her temple and making the slightest of groans.
"Agura? You okay?" Vert asked nervously, putting a hand on her shoulder.
"Yeah…" She muttered, gently rubbing her forehead. "Headache."
"Looks like I'm not the only one who doesn't deal well with that planet." Stanford said smugly.
"Hey, I think it's pretty hot there too, eh?" AJ defended, saving Agura from having to answer. After the group finished their pizza, they entered their vehicles and headed back towards the Hub; Vert keeping a careful eye on his first lieutenant.
"Vert! It's just a headache!" Agura caught him nervously watch her get into the Tangler.
"I know, I know." He held up his hands defensively, jokingly backing off. She grinned, but he saw her hand go to her forehead. Not two minutes into the desert, Sage's voice rang over their coms.
"Team, you need to return to the Hub immediately." She said urgently, sounding scared even.
"Sage? What's wrong?" Vert asked, speeding up along with his team.
"The plant that pricked Agura…it released a highly lethal toxin into her bloodstream." Sage bit her lip. Vert immediately whipped his head to the side, where Agura had been driving next to him seconds ago, but the Tangler was stopped dead in the desert.
"Agura!" Vert yelled, reversing and sprinting over to the Tangler, where Agura was slumped over, unconscious. He would have been frozen in despair if not for his strong leader instincts, which thankfully took over.
"Buster, let's get a towline on the Tangler. Everyone else, book it to the Hub." He commanded, and due to the urgency of the situation the orders were carried out immediately.
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"Well?" Vert uneasily asked Sage after an hour. The Sentient had the infirmary in lockdown, and the team had been forced to wait in nervous anxiety.
"She is alive." Sag replied, her voice catching. A collective sigh of relief was heard through the room.
"Did you manage to get the poison out? Why didn't the scan catch it?" Vert asked. Sage seemed troubled
"I have studied the plant that pricked her. It's poison was unknown to any Sentient scanner, therefore it was not detected. The poison is similar to a virus; though at first hardly noticeable, it will slowly build up. Unconsciousness is the first sign of this stage." Sage said.
"What are the stages?" Sherman asked.
"Typically a headache and/or exhaustion are the first signs. Once the victim falls unconscious the poison has begun to work." Sage said, but it seemed she was holding something back.
"Sage," Vert began. "What's the final stage?" Sage bit her lip, nervously glancing around the faces of the Battle Force 5 and not wanting to admit a word.
"Oh…my God." Vert breathed, the only sound in the harsh silence of truth. Sage made the slightest of nods.
"What? WHAT?" Zoom, who couldn't quite push past his innocence to grasp the meaning.
"The poison…it will slowly attack Agura's vital organs from inside out, causing them to cease function." Sage tried to explain in terms she found simple, but still had no meaning to Zoom. The scout whimpered a bit and looked to Sherman.
"Uhm…she's not going to make it." The older Cortez said solemnly, and Zoom's face went ashen.
"AGURA!" He screamed, pushing past Sage and dodging into the infirmary room, to find a heart-wrenching sight. Agura lay motionless on the cot, surrounded by monitors. Even more disturbing to the distressed Zoom was the breathing tube ran into her nose and multiple IVs pumping into her body.
"Agura!" He cried again, running over to her and taking her hand. "Can you hear me?"
"Zoom!" Sage commanded sharply, about to resume her sentence when Agura's dark eyelashes fluttered, then separated to reveal her caramel-tinted eyes.
"Zoom?" She asked weakly, and Sherman had to pull Zoom back from hugging her and possibly crushing the huntress. Zoom looked up to Agura more than he dared show his teammates. (A/N: This bit goes with the one-shot I posted; "What's Wrong?") In turn, everyone crowded around the cot, anxiously checking over her.
"Does she know?" Vert whispered to Sage.
"I was unable to inform her as she has not been conscious yet." Sage responded.
"Inform me of what?" Agura asked, with a slight cough. Although usually in agreement that she was beautiful, it tore at Vert to see his once-strong friend like this. The healthy, dark glow of her skin had been replaced by an ill pallor, and even her voice sounded raspy and pained. But the eyes, the lovely, dark eyes, still remained the same, and just seeing her again made Vert tear up. This would be the last time he saw her eyes.
"Ah…" Vert gestured for his team to leave, and they complied. "Do you remember that plant we picked up on Vandal? The one that pricked you?" He asked, once they were alone with Sage. Agura nodded.
"It was poisonous." He said, gritting his teeth and forcing himself to go on. "Uh, the poison will…"
"Exponentially multiply, attacking the major organs and causing them to deteriorate and eventually expire." Sage said; it was clear to her that Vert was struggling. After spending more time with the team, these two in general, she had begun picking up on pheromone and hormone readings, and her studies had concluded that Vert possessed what humans called a "crush." She had determined that Agura returned the feelings as well, but what puzzled her was why neither human had "made a move," so to speak. Sage had decided it was best not to interfere, but the findings were certainly interesting.
Agura closed her eyes for a brief moment and sighed.
"How long do I have?"
Vert was shocked. How could she possibly maintain the calm demeanor after being told she would die? He knew Agura was no sap, but now he had caught a glimpse of her true inner strength.
"Approximately 46 hours." Sage replied factually. "I have already called for your mother and father. They will arrive in eight hours to…" Sage trailed off, unsure of how to word the sentence.
"It's okay, Sage. Thanks for calling them." Agura smiled warmly, and again Vert felt the tug at his heart. Sage glided out, deciding that they would want alone time. Entering the security room, she observed the video feed of the infirmary, wondering if Vert would confess. The Sentient had actually found herself interested in the personal relations of humans. It was almost like watching a…movie, of some sort.
"Uh, you okay?" Vert stated awkwardly. Sage giggled; she didn't need sensors to determine the hormones in that room!
"Yeah." Agura sighed. "Forty-six hours, huh?"
"Uh, yeah…" Vert said, and there was silence for a moment. "How can you be so calm?" He asked suddenly. Agura shrugged.
"I can't change what happened, Vert. I might as well not waste energy freaking out." She said.
"But, still! Aren't you scared?" He asked, regretting it as soon as the words left his mouth. Agura's face had tightened; she bit her lip and her eyes grew watery.
"Terrified." She whispered to him, and Vert, on impulse, took her hand. "I don't want to die, Vert."
"I know you don't." He somehow found the strength to calm her. "I don't want you to either." She looked up to him, and Vert reached around the tubes to wipe a tear from her cheek.
"There's something I need to tell you." He sighed slowly. Agura began coughing violently, and Vert panicked, but the fit soon died into silence, her eyes asking him to go on. Agura had hopes for what her leader would admit, but she didn't dare encourage them to the point of expectation. Still, there was that look in his eyes…
Sage leaned closer to the screen.
"Uhm…" Vert sighed. He couldn't do it. "I was the one who pranked your room last week! Zoom dared me to, so…yeah. Sorry." He muttered the last bit and nearly sprinted out of the room. In the security room, Sage groaned, surprised to find herself not only disappointed but confused at the change of events. Vert was a strong, confident young man, calm under pressure and charismatic, too. Agura and him were so obviously attracted to each other, and Sage had found that she was not the only one who thought so.
"It's honestly so stupid. She clearly likes him back; Vert needs to make a move!" Stanford huffed in the game room as Sage was walking by.
"I know." Spinner groaned. "He's always "Mr. Bravery" but as soon as he sees Agura…"
"Boom! Insta-jelly!" Stanford replied.
"Well, maybe Agura should do something." Zoom tried to join the conversation, but everyone looked to him and shook their heads.
"The guy has to make the first move! He-llo?" Spinner lectured.
"Those two…" Sherman shook his head.
She hadn't understood their words at the time, but reflecting back on her research they made much more sense. Sage let out a long sigh, but was jolted out of her musings at a knock on the door, then Vert entered. She had forgotten that, as the leader he had access to ALL the rooms of the Hub.
"You okay Sage?" Vert asked, peering over her shoulder. Sage quickly exited the screen, standing in front of it.
"Yes, I am fine." She covered.
"Building a doomsday weapon?" He asked jokingly, and it pained her to sense the strength it was taking him not to cry after being with Agura.
"No, just monitoring Agura's room." She explained. "Ah, Vert?" Sage gathered the courage to ask. It was the least she could do for Agura in her last hours to let her know Vert's true feelings.
"What's up?" The blonde asked.
"I was wondering…" Sage gulped, then decided on a different approach. "Are you alright?" At Vert's pained expression, she knew she had chosen the wrong direction. "I mean, with Agura's condition, isn't there something you should tell her?" The Sentient hinted. Vert's face showed shock, then blushed deep red.
"Uhm….how'd you know?" He asked, embarrassed.
"Oh, please." Stanford's voice came from behind them, where he was leaning on the doorframe. "Everybody knows but the person who really needs to, Vert. And that's Agura. Now if I may be so rash, get in there and TELL HER." Vert sighed; given romantic advice by a Sentient and Stanford. The sad thing was, they were right. He left to walk past the infirmary, but he could hear Zoom sniffling inside. Poor kid's probably real upset. He thought. Better leave them alone.
"But…but I don't want you to die…" Zoom whimpered, and Agura squeezed his hand.
"I don't want to either, Zoom, but it isn't your fault, okay? I'll be fine." She comforted, and Vert felt a lump form in his throat. Even in the face of death, she was still putting Zoom's needs in front of her own. Vert knew that Zoom was more fragile than he let on, and Agura's death would not only crush him but leave him truly alone. She was practically his adoptive mom! Vert almost wished he was like Zoom, young and innocent and able to cry in front of Agura and not be scorned. To be receiving the comforting hug, not craving it. He couldn't listen anymore, and he walked away.
"But I won't!" Zoom cried. "I'm gonna miss you!"
"I'll miss you too, Zoom." She whispered softly. "But I'll always be here for you, okay?"
"But…what if I have another nightmare and you…you aren't there?" He choked out.
"Vert will be." She said confidently. "You can always talk to him, okay?"
Zoom nodded, biting his lip and finally just letting out the sobs.
"Oh, Zoom…" Agura sighed, coughing a bit. She stroked his back soothingly.
"It'll be okay."
But deep down, everyone knew it wouldn't.
