Author's Note: Thank you guest for reviewing my first chapter. I really appreciate the praise. I'm excited to get back into writing, and I'll try and update as much as I can, but I have some pretty crazy hours so I'll be updating at least once a week. As always, reviews are encouraged. Let me know what's wrong, what can be done better, and what you liked. Thank you for reading!
2. Infected
Bumblebee was walking alongside with Sam sifting through piles of concrete carefully. He remembered seeing a human femme before he was almost killed. No one has found her yet. He hoped that she got as far away as possible and wasn't hurt. It tore him up enough already knowing that so many humans had died for the cause of the Cybertronians. The girl looked so scared while watching everything that was playing out before her. Why hadn't she run like everyone else? Why did she stay and look on at the damage that was being done? Maybe his processors was dwelling on this too much. It was getting dark so the Autobots turned on their headlights to continue rummaging through the rubble. Sideswipe and Bumblebee were moving some concrete when a yell broke the relative silence. "Hey over here!" Sam yelled.
While everyone rushed toward where Sam was, they could hear someone screaming underneath the debris. Bumblebee, Sideswipe, Mirage, and some other soldiers were quickly moving the concrete and metal away. Sam shone a flashlight underneath looking for who was calling out for help. After what seemed like hours of moving giant pieces of rock and steel they saw a cut up and bruised pale hand. Lennox shouted to pick up the pace and soon enough they revealed a woman's head and shoulders as well. Her auburn hair was matted and dirty, her eyes frantic, and her breathing was labored. Lennox called for a medic as they began moving away the last pieces that encased her body.
"Ma'am, my name is Doctor Murphy. How are you feeling? Any pain?" The medic asked as his hands roamed gently around her, searching for any injury. She squinted and hissed as his hands reached her right arm. Paramedics rushed to the doctor's side and began taking her vitals. People were crowding her and she felt like it was a little hard to breathe. She just kept staring at the metal beings in front of her. Her vision started to get cloudy as she felt herself being lifted from her concrete prison and onto a stretcher.
"Her blood pressure is 150/99. Sat/oxy levels are low. Simple break of her humerus in her right arm. Bruising in the abdom…" Was all she heard until things faded to black again.
My hearing was the first to come back and I immediately heard something out of place. I pried my eyes open and was greeted with an oxygen mask over my face and could feel the IV's stuck in my arm. Sighing I took the mask off, grateful to be able to breathe on my own again. My body ached and I could feel the splint around my arm as I tried to sit up. It took some more effort than usual, but I finally did. That's when I heard the noise again. Someone was crying in one of the beds near me. Swinging my legs over the side I planted my feet on the ground. The IV's tugged at my arms and I all but ripped them out. Free from my tubular prison, I began putting weight on my legs slowly, regaining my ability to stand. Once that was done I began taking steps toward the sound. Everyone around me was beaten or bruised in some way, but all of them seemed to be asleep. Until I got to the bed by the entrance. It was a little girl.
"Hey, sweetheart. Are you okay?" I asked as she sniffled at me. Her blonde hair was caked with dirt and sweat and her small hands clutched onto a dirty, torn stuffed elephant. Her hands motioned to her bandaged side and she let out another cry.
"It hurts." She whined. My brows furrowed as I looked around for that familiar clipboard. Finding it, I walked by the side of her bed and grabbed her chart. Name: Madelyn Smith. Age: 7 Second degree burns on left lower quadrant of abdomen. Vitals. I looked up at the girl and calmly grabbed her small wrist between my fingers, feeling for the familiar heartbeat. My hand went to her forehead, and almost flinched at the heat. Definitely a fever. I went around to the other side of her and went to grab at her bandages. "Okay hun, I'm just going to take a look at your boo boo okay?" I asked. She pouted a little but nodded and she laid down. Carefully taking the tape off, trying not to hurt her, I heard someone behind me clear their throat. Turning around I saw it was the soldier from earlier. The first one I remember seeing after waking up in all that concrete.
"What do you think you're doing?" He asked. His arms were crossed, but there wasn't any hostility in his voice.
"It's okay. She said that her side hurt. She has a pretty high fever. I'm just going to make sure her burns are not infected." I said turning back to the girl. I could feel the soldiers eyes burning holes into my back but he stayed where he was, watching me. Trying to focus on the girl in front of me and not the incredibly intimidating man behind me, I pulled back the bandages and was disappointed in what I found. The wound was swollen severely, red, and pus was seeping out of the sides. It was infected, and she wasn't hooked up to any antibiotics.
"Where is your doctor?" I asked, facing him.
"Probably in his tent. What's wrong?" He asked looking down at the girl.
"Her burns are infected and she's not hooked up to any antibiotics. She needs some very soon she'll just get sicker."
"Well, here, walk with me then. You can explain that to him." He said leading the way. "Are you some sort of doctor then?" He asked me as we exited the tent.
"Yeah, at Northwestern Memorial. I worked in the ER."
The man kind of smiled. "Well that's good to know. I'm Major Lennox by the way." He stopped and raised his hand toward me. I grabbed it with a smile of my own. "Dr. Carolyn Fletcher."