Rythian had thought that he'd hit his lowest point when he and Zoey had been separated after he had yelled at her. The enderborn had paced the marble floors like a caged animal, slowly becoming more ghostlike with every passing day. He had been a plant without the sun, and the darkness had been made more sinister by the fact that he had known warmth and light. He had thought that it could never be worse than it had been back then.
He was wrong, this was so much worse.
"ZOEY!" his voice was breaking as he screamed out for her, his violet eyes searching frantically among the ruins of what had been their home. Heat washed off of the crater in waves, making the air thick and difficult to breathe in; ash and debris were falling like poison rain.
Tee was scouring the ground for any sign of the girl they both loved, though in different ways. The dinosaur's thick scaly skin protected him from the worst of the heat and radiation, though he knew that his clawed feet would be horribly burnt and sore for quite some time. The forest around what had been Blackrock Hold was unnaturally silent, all the animals having fled at the fiery explosion. A few of the shrubs nearby were ablaze, but Tee ignored them as he skirted the edge of the massive hole.
"ZOEY!" Rythian approached the edge of the water that lay over the hill away from Blackrock. "ZOE-" His voice cut off as something plummeted from the sky, causing a spout of water to splash into the air as it hit.
Catching a flash of red, he threw himself into the water after the sinking object, narrowing his eyes as the salt stung them. The water around him was turning red, so red, as he caught hold of Zoey's burned clothes and began kicking for the surface. Gasping in the thick air as he surfaced, he swam awkwardly to shore where he turned to look at his pitiful burden.
Zoey was covered from head to toes in horrific burns that turned her usually pale skin into swaths of angry red and black. Her clothing was singed and in tatters, and her beautiful red hair was shorter by several inches and scorched black at the tips. There was a harsh scratch over one of her eyes that bled sluggishly... and her arm—
Rythian choked back an exclamation of horror as he saw that Zoey's right arm was now a ruined mess of burned flesh; he could see the white of bone protruding from the stump, which ended above the elbow. Blood was pouring from the wound in a crimson tide, staining the sand an ominous red. Rythian tore his eyes away from it as he knelt by Zoey in the sand, leaning down to press his ear against her chest.
…bdump…bdump…..bdump
He was unsure as to how, but Zoey was still alive and breathing. Hurriedly the man tore the purple cloak from his shoulders and wrapped it around the technomancer's arm to staunch the bleeding. His thoughts were racing as he scooped her up into his arms. Where on earth could he take her? There was no one in the area with the medical knowledge to help Zoey, and she had precious little time with the extent of her injuries.
"TEE!" he yelled urgently, "Tee come here!"
The dinosaur in question topped the hill and dashed towards his human friends, an expression of worry pasted on his face. He gestured frantically with his arms at the sight of Zoey, eyes wide and frightened.
There was nothing for it, he only had one option. "Tee, grab my arm. We're going to find help." His friend obeyed promptly.
Taking one last look around at the scenery that was so achingly familiar to him, Rythian shut his eyes and searched for the magic that resided within him. I don't care where you put us, so long as it isn't Lalna's place. Take us somewhere that can help her. Hurry! Darkness swirled around him and he felt the fabric of space ripple slightly. Tee looked around the blackness in awe as he suddenly felt the sensation of speed; he knew that if he were to let go of Rythian's arm he would be placed somewhere entirely unfamiliar to him.
The feeling of acceleration cut off suddenly and the darkness receded; Tee was aware of sand under his feet, and the bright moon overhead. They were in a village of sorts, a quaint little thing with buildings of sandstone and what appeared to be a ball court of some kind. Rythian winced as a huge amount of magic was taken from him; he sank to his knees exhaustedly, taking Zoey with him. Looking up, he realized that he was on the doorstep of a building, and he reached up shakily to pound at the door. A light torch was lit, and the door opened to reveal a person clothed in long robes. A turban covered their head and a face cloth left only their yellow eyes visible. The villager started with surprise at the sight of strangers on his doorstep, and asked a question in a strange language.
Rythian looked up at the figure imploringly, his voice hoarse with weariness, "Help me!"
Catching sight of the unconscious girl in Rythian's arms, the villager shouted into the night and bent to help Rythian carry her inside. Rythian was gratified to see that he had been set down right outside of a hospital. Other villagers appeared and fussed around the first one, who appeared to be in charge of the place; Rythian decided to call him Doctor. The enderborn stood against the wall, watching anxiously as the medical staff spoke to each other in urgent tones. Tee went to stand beside him, a silent stolid presence.
Machines were brought out and hooked up to the injured girl, beeping and whirring, making Rythian supremely uncomfortable. They're to help her. He recited to himself. They are to make her well. The machine that had kept up a steady beeping suddenly let out one long beep, and Rythian threw himself forward through the hospital staff to Zoey's bedside. His magic reached out of its own accord, seeping into the girl and racing through her body. Gritting his teeth in pain, Rythian took her good hand in both of his.
"Zoeya of the Mushrooms you will NOT die on me!" he muttered furiously, "You will not go and leave me alone again. I refuse to lose you! You're crazy and naïve and I should have never let you try to defuse that nuke and if you try to leave me here I will follow you and annoy you for all eternity!"
There was a moment of silence before the machine started its incessant beeping again, and the whole room seemed to sigh with relief. Some of the nurses were looking at Rythian with amazement, while one was staring nervously at Tee. Rythian stayed beside Zoey as the Doctor and nurses cleaned and bandaged everything that was damaged. Zoey looked reminiscent of a mummy when they were done.
Tee stood guard as Rythian's head drooped lower and lower in exhaustion before he fell asleep. The room was quiet except for the sound of the machines beeping and the soft puff of breathing.
Zoey was fully unconscious for nearly a week. Rythian and Tee never left her side, and Tee finally had to shove Rythian before he would take enough time to eat. The dinosaur was worried for him; he looked drawn and pale, and was in constant pain as his nearly consumed magic tried to regrow. He had tried to take Rythian from the room to get some rest, but not only had the enderborn thrashed wildly in his grip until he was released, but also Zoey's heartbeat had accelerated wildly and then dropped sharply, causing Tee to leave well enough alone.
Now on the seventh day, or rather seventh early morning, Zoey was beginning to turn and mumble in her sleep. Rythian woke instantly and knelt beside her, his violet eyes riveted on her face. One day ago the Doctor had come in with a metal arm, which he had fitted to the stump of Zoey's old one. Rythian eyed it somewhat distrustfully, hoping that it wouldn't cause her any pain. An eye screen also sat above her damaged eye so that she would be able to see clearly when she woke.
Zoey was confused. Why was everything so dark? Why was the air so dry? What was that strange beeping noise? She racked her memories, what had happened? It came to her suddenly: The nuke! Was everyone ok? Was she dead? She didn't feel dead. Was Fishton ok? Ringo? Tee? Rythian?! Where was Rythian?! Was he ok? She struggled to speak, but her mouth felt so dry.
"R'thn?" she managed to force out. There was no response, and fear gripped her. "Ry'ian?!"
A hand settled on hers, and she was aware of a familiar comforting presence. "I'm here, Zoey." She reveled in the sound of the voice of her favorite person, the familiar way that his accent turned the Z of her name into a soft S sound.
"Tee?" his name was much easier to say. A claw rested on her shoulder.
"Tee's here too. We're all ok, thanks to you." Rythian's voice sounded rough somehow, like he was fighting back tears. That couldn't be right though; Rythian didn't cry. Something wet dripped on her nose. Was he crying? Was he ok?
"S'wrong?" she managed to ask? "Y'hurt?" Oh how she wished that she had the strength to open her eyes!
"No, Zoey." Rythian's voice was thick with emotion. "I'm fine. Everything's ok now. Are you ok?"
Was she? Her arm hurt, and there was something cold there where it wasn't supposed to be. She ached all over, but she was alive. Blackrock! It must be gone now! All her fault…
As if reading her mind, Rythian squeezed her hand. Not the cold one, she noticed. "Zoey, Blackrock is gone, but it doesn't matter. All that matters is that we're all safe." His voice took on a half teasing half awed tone. "You're tougher than obsidian, surviving a nuke like that."
She managed to tweak one side of her mouth up in a smile. She was beginning to get tired, "Nuke? I eat nuk's f'r breakf'st." she slurred, before falling asleep.