Corso reached for the bag as Bow hefted it toward him and spilled its contents out on the ground beside him. He gingerly placed Miriah down, noting that she hadn't moved on her own at all, and searched the pile of supplies for kolto gel and a stim for the fever. He wished he'd paid more attention to his wife when she was patching him up all the time, but he hadn't, and now he didn't know what he was looking for. He touched his relay, activating it, and told Risha he'd found Miriah. He answered her one question with "Not good," and asked for Guss.

"Guss, what do I do here?" he asked, the fear evident in his voice.

"What's her temp?" the Mon Calamari asked, trying to assess his captain remotely. "Use the scanner, Corso, and tell me what it says." He waited while Corso fumbled with the hand-held device.

"Temp is, whoa, one hundred four point seven, respirations at twelve, heart rate at..damn, really? Heart rate is one hundred eighteen. Help me, Guss. What do I give her?"

"Best use the green stim I put in the bag. Give her one of the red ones, too, it's an antibiotic. Does she have a wound that's infected?" That was the only reason the medic could figure out for the fever.

"Yes, and I'm guessing it's from a makrin, she's been unconscious since we found her, and there's an oozing, gaping hole in her thigh that's warm to the touch," Corso replied, letting out a sigh. Miriah, darlin', please don't leave me, he thought, brushing her cheek with his fingertips.

"Okay, squirt some kolto gel in there and let it sit for a minute, then pack it in as far as you can. Get her back here quickly," Guss replied, saying a prayer to the force for their safe and swift travel.

Corso injected the stims quickly, and took out his knife to cut away the leather pants and the dirty bandage around Miriah's wound. "Bow, can you hand me that gel?" he asked, seeing the big Wookie pacing. Corso squirted the thick gel into the wound, watched it firm up, and started to push it into the wound with his fingers. Wow this is really deep, he realized. When he couldn't pack it in any further, he filled the rest of the wound and wrapped a dressing around Miriah's leg. When he pulled it tight, she groaned, the first response he'd gotten from her. "Miriah, can you hear me, sweetheart?" He waited but there was no further response from her.

Miriah was floating along in her mind, images coming forth without any continuity. She saw her sisters and her mother, back when she was a girl on Tython. She saw her crew. Then she saw Corso, and he looked so real, so close she could almost touch him. She reached out her hand, just as something tugged on her leg, making her cry out in pain before drifting under again.

"How are we going to get her back to the ship?" Bow asked, packing the speeders up for the trip.

"I'm going to hold her in front of me," Corso replied, picking Miriah up from the ground, feeling the burn of his own recent wound as he did. He didn't care, he just wanted to get back to the ship, get Miriah where she had the best chance to heal.

"How?" the Wookie asked. "She can't hold on, and you can't use both hands." He thought for a few moments, then shrugged. "I just can't see a way."

"I'll hold her with one arm," Corso explained, "and drive with the other. We won't be able to fly, but we'll get there." Bow nodded, it was really the only way, and went to steady the speeder while Corso got on. Then Bow lifted his captain and placed her in her husband's arms. When Corso nodded at him, he stepped away and mounted his own speeder, and they set off.

They drove slowly, Miriah's face burning against Corso's scar. After about half an hour, they stopped. Corso had to reposition Miriah, and when he did, he pressed a kiss to her forehead. I will get you back, and you will recover. You have to, love. Her limp body hung over the side of the speeder, and he checked her wound. It had started to weep through the bandage, and he debated with himself over whether to change it. The thunder that started overhead made his decision for him, and they set off again, hoping to at least find shelter before the storm. They found a large overhang of rock, and pulled under it just as the drops started to fall. Bow took Miriah so that Corso could dismount, and pulled his own bag off the speeder to lay her on. Corso dug around in the medical bag and found the scanner, almost afraid of what it would say. There was no change, and he debated with himself about calling Guss again. Instead, he cut away the now soaked bandage and used bottled water to clean the wound before repacking and redressing it. Even when he knew he must be hurting her, Miriah didn't make a sound.

Miriah felt her body being carried and lowered, and wondered what kind of beast would do that. She had no idea that she was being cared for, instead all she knew was her fevered dreams and visions. She felt herself start to shake, and wished the pain would end, every movement sending waves of white-hot agony through her body. She tried to fight it, but there was no use. Her resilience was gone, and she couldn't muster enough strength to even open her eyes.

Corso was just finishing the dressing when Miriah started to shiver, just a little at first but then violently. He put his arms around her, trying to soothe her, and startled when Bow wrapped them both in a blanket. After a few minutes, the shivering slowed to being intermittent, and Corso let out the breath he'd been holding. "I don't know, Bow, seems like we need to figure out a way to get her back faster. I'm afraid she's so sick, she won't make it if we can't get her somewhere warm and dry." He looked around at where they were, and knew it was still a very long ride back to the Republic outpost.

"Didn't that officer at the outpost give you his contact info? Maybe he can send transport," Bow replied, seeing the huge grin that took over Corso's face at the thought.

"Great thinking, Bow," Corso told his friend, fishing out his datapad to send a message. They settled back to await an answer and the end of the rain, Corso still holding Miriah close, his body heat easing her tremors. They'd been sitting awhile, Corso drifting in and out of a fitful doze, when his holo chimed. It was the Republic officer, telling him they were sending medical transport to their location. After thanking him, Corso slipped out of the blanket and wrapped Miriah up in it. He stood and stretched, just as the violent shivering shook her. He quickly picked her up again, setting her against him. Hurry, he thought, please!