DISCLAIMER: I do not own anything whatsoever in regards to Xenosaga…except for this little story of mine, conjured up in a dusty old corner of my mind But even then, the characters are not mine, and they belong to the creators of Xenosaga…..boohoo.
A/N- Thanks to my readers! I hope I haven't taken too long in updating, and I hope you enjoy this new chapter, which will FINALLY get chaos out of the hospital. Halleluja! Did I spell that right Oo?
Ch.6: Breathe
Just as chaos was beginning to doze off, the door opened. He was relieved when he looked up to see the Elsa crew, along with Jr., there to take him home to the Elsa.
"Hey there, you're looking better," Jr. said happily. "You ready to go home?" chaos looked up and smiled at Jr. "I certainly am," he replied in his typical, low tone.
Tony and Hammer both approached chaos and each patted him on the back. "Hey chaos, we missed ya," Hammer said with a grin. "Yeah, let's get you outta here," Tony added. "How ya doin' there, buddy?" Captain Matthews was definitely capable of showing concern, and it was obvious he wanted to make sure chaos felt fine before moving. "I'm doing much better, Captain. Thank you. How are the ship repairs coming along?" "Oh, don't worry about that, chaos. Everything is being taken care of…." Captain Matthews looked down with a mix of shame and disgust, "thanks to Little Master here," he motioned towards Jr. "We really got our work cut out for us for a while."
"Thank you, Jr. We really appreciate it," chaos looked at Jr. "Not a problem, man. We'll be needing you guys for some missions here soon, anyway." He knew it wasn't in the Captain to thank people. All he ever thought of was how much something was going to cost him, and how much work he'd have to do to pay it off. So chaos did what Captain Matthews just wouldn't. Captain Matthews was grateful for that…even though he never said so. chaos looked over at the Captain and smirked when he noticed he was avoiding eye contact with everyone.
"I'll tell you about the missions later," Jr. waved off the subject. "Let's just work on gettin' ya outta here, for now." He walked over to the window and sat in the chair beside it.
"So," Tony perked up, " did you get to talk to that cute nurse again? I wanted to take her out the other night, but got stuck helping with the repairs," he gave the Captain a nasty, sideways glance. "Look, you big baby," Captain Matthews whacked him with his hat, "what kind of woman wants a lazy man, anyway!? Stop your whining." "It never ends," Hammer threw his hands up in the air in defeat. "There really hasn't been a moment of peace since you've been away," he looked at chaos desperately. "I can't wait to have you back," he in a very sincere, hopeful tone. "Anyway, hey Tony, let's go get something to eat. I'm sure chaos is hungry, too." He pulled Tony to the door and they waved as they walked out. "We'll be right back," Tony grumbled.
"Do I get to leave, today?" chaos asked the Captain. "Yeah, that's what it sounds like to us," he looked over towards Jr. who was staring out the window. "Little Master?" "Oh," Jr. snapped out of it, "yeah, uh…we just need to sign him out and the doc needs to talk with us for a moment. You can finish getting dressed if you want," he looked over at chaos' clothing. I'm sure they won't need anything else from you right now."
chaos stood up from his reclined position and walked over towards his clothing. He sat in the chair beside the bed and began pulling his leather pants on over his body suit. Captain Matthews took a seat on the bed and decided to fumble through the few channels that were offered in the rooms. "You know, chaos," Jr. began, "we would have kept you on the hospital wing on the Durandal, but we thought this would better suit your needs. I hope you don't mind the walk back to the boarding platform. It's not too far." "It's not a problem," he nodded to Jr. "Thank you so much, for everything," he looked directly into Jr.'s eyes. Jr. smiled, and accepted the sincere gratitude from chaos.
"How's the medication helping you?" Jr. asked. "It's working so far," chaos smiled. I still feel a bit…run over," they both laughed. "But I think I'm going to be okay. I'm really interested in hearing about the upcoming missions," he changed the subject….as always. "We'll get to that, we'll get to that," Jr. reassured him. Just as he was about to begin explaining some of the details, the doctor walked in.
"Hey chaos!" He walked in with a grin. "So ready to leave us?" he asked with a mock sad expression. "Er, well," chaos muttered as he stopped fastening his boots and scratched the back of his head. "Don't worry," the doctor looked over his glasses towards the angel. "I'd be outta here fast, too!" He laughed.
"I promise this will be quick," he looked around the room at Captain Matthews and Jr. "I have the discharge paperwork for the chaos to sign," he plopped it onto the bed. "It looks like you've handled everything very well," he beamed like a proud parent. "I do have to apologize for the bumpy road we put you on at first. I have to be honest and say we didn't expect that, but my wonderful team was on the ball and we weren't worried for a second that you wouldn't pull through." chaos remained quiet and attentive. "So, anyway," the doctor continued, "we feel you are ready for release. Even though you were in a coma-like state for just under 48 hours, your vital signs, as recorded over the past 20 hours, have improved greatly and we don't foresee any complications. Now," he paused for a breath, "there are a few side effects from the medication, but nothing that should affect your work. You will experience extra fatigue here and there, and the medication can cause stomach upset. Rest as much as you can. Otherwise, the medication shouldn't slow you down-" "GOOD!" Jr. interjected. "you're already as slow as some of the old grandpas I see out there," he laughed, "we don't need you any slower!" chaos' eyes slightly widened and his jaw dropped, but it wasn't the first time he'd heard someone complain. "I'm sorry," he bowed his head and apologized to no one in particular. Jr. kept giggling frantically in his corner.
"So…that's it. Nothing much in the way of details, and not too much maintenance. I think you're going to like this medication much more than the last time. I hope you can enjoy the degree of normality this brings back to you," he patted chaos on the shoulder. "If you need any pain medications, please don't hesitate to let us know, and if you need anything else, you know where we are. As far as follow-ups go, I don't see any reason why they can't be done aboard the Durandal," he winked. He handed chaos a pen, used for electronic notepads, to sign his release forms. chaos quickly and happily signed everything.
Everyone stood up and the doctor shook everyone's hands. Jr. handed chaos his jacket, which he quickly donned and fastened. The doctor walked out and Jr. and Captain Matthews followed behind him. Jr. looked back to see chaos trying to make the bed. "Oh, chaos!" he whined. "Let's go man! I know you gotta be hungry! Besides," he looked over at the bed, "there are nurses assigned to fix this stuff, you don't really think they'll use the same sheets again, do you?" The angel had no choice but to laugh bashfully at Jr.'s words. "You're right. Let's go get you some food, Jr." He walked past Jr., out the door as Jr. scratched his head. "Huh? Hey! I'm not THAT selfish, am I?" Jr. followed chaos.
Everyone met up in the hospital's restaurant. As everyone ate ravenously, chaos decided to step out onto the patio to enjoy some fresh air. His stomach wasn't feeling too well, so he thought the sunlight and crisp breeze would help to wake him up. For a moment, he was able to let go of everything that weighed on his mind. He closed his eyes and tilted his head back. He smiled as the light breeze blew through his silky, silver locks, briefly exposing his entire face. He took a deep breath and slowly exhaled it. He opened his eyes and noticed a tiny silhouette on the roof of a distant building. Right away, he knew it was Nephilim. He was glad to know he wasn't completely alone…but a bit worried as to what news she may have for him.
As soon as everyone was finished with their meals, they headed out to join chaos. All of them, except for Jr. and chaos, lit up a cigarette.
The walk back was uneventful, and the crew knew that they needed to get chaos back quickly so that he could rest before their departure. He could feel himself becoming tired already, so he made no protest. He knew they'd be able to continue with their day as soon as they got him back aboard the ship.
A/N: Alrighty! We finally saw him outta that crazy hospital! Woohoo! The next few chapters will take a while to get up. I need to make sure I have the time lines correct and that nothing seems too out of place. So far, we've already cut into the games events by almost a week OO! BTW, this particular event (starting from chapter 1) takes place just after MOMO's analysis. The next chapters will hopefully give some insight as to when these issues began for chaos, and what they mean. Hopefully that'll clear some stuff up. Also, keep an eye out for a potential ahem love interest for our Seraphim in the next few chapters. Heee heee he he heee heeeee!!