White Blood – Oh Wonder

Jax leaned up against the wall, wrapping the blankets around him. He was careful not to bend the arm with the needle in it.

I flexed my own arm, watching the clean metal needle move around underneath the thin bandages. If I spoke, my voice would be rhaspy and sore. I wouldn't need to speak to Jax, anyways. His tongue was gone to a poxy reaction to some of the grubs here.

Warriors were saying Jax's food was spiked with acids. It's all they could think of that'd cause such a big reaction in his mouth. I'm not sure. I think it was Jax's time to go. I said he should've had a female blood bag; it might mix better in his system than a male blood bag would. Then again, I had a male blood bag….

The ropes tweaked to my side, and I moved a little more away from the bloodbag.

He was a strong, fresh blood bag with plenty of fight in him. All the better to get me out of here.

The medical chamber was away from the Grubb halls and war halls. So far away from anything exciting or new. Everyone in the medical halls was busy dying.

Unlike me.

I went back to sleep, waking long after the rays of sunshine by the bay doors had gone. Dessert crats whistled and chimed to the thick minstrel's song they made. It sounded so different from the wives' music, and yet I loved this racket all the same.

Horrass was stumbling around the fires beyond my feet with something, and I grunted to get his attention.

"All the better?" Horrass creaked up to me. His fatness was traditionally a great sign of health and well being, but I couldn't see it as a good thing, with the way he flopped around the tables and wheezed with each breath.

"Better than you." I croaked, leaning forwards to sit up and realizing I had to go back down. "Not. Not better than you." I croaked some more, feeling my mouth with my gritty, solid tongue. I lifted the leather holsters off of my chest, recognizing that even without the metal weight, it was too much to be on me now.

"No. Not better than me, if you're here, Jex." Horrass lifted the paper from my toe and nodded. "You got the poxy tongue from Jax?" Horrass giggled crudishly.

"He'll keep his poxy tongue and I'll keep my bullet wounds." I nodded over to the sickly thin piece next to me. The blood bag sighed, shuddering a little more noticeably than before. "She's shaking like water."

"How would you know?" Horrass wheezed his way over to the blood bag and pushed her slightly. Jax's mouth opened like a gaping fish, suddenly, and his wide eyes stared up at Horrass.

"We're all seeing new things now." I stammer-muttered, closing my eyes again to fend off hunger.

And the next time I woke? I got Grubbs from Horrass, along with the other brokens nearby me.

"Horrass?" I wheeled around to him. "How's why I'm sleeping as much and staying as long?"

Horrass did his routine shove at Jax's bloodbag, and shrugged over to me.

"You and Jax are longest to stay here. One day, in full. Half-day spent with these upside down, too. You're coming off soon." He nodded to the tag on my foot.

Without bending my needle-arm, I stretched my leg up to my waist and grabbed at the paper. Grey scratchings covered one side in a methodical manner. But none of it came through my brain-screen, like the words did on the wives' books.

"No more needle?" I dropped my foot and stood up tall to show Horrass my strength.

"No more needle." Horrass nodded as he fed Jax crushed up Grubbs.

(Which, in all honesty, probably aren't any different than the Grubbs I ate.)