Hola! This update came a little faster than most, which I'm happy about. More exposition, emotion, nothing too significant. Alright, it's a filler, but it's an important one so pay attention! A lot comes to light, especially for Vert.
P.S. You're finally going to learn what caused the mutation in this chapter. Read on!
Chapter 7: Clarity
"And, then I woke up here," Vert concluded his story to Sage. He hadn't been able to gauge the Sentient's reaction to his account, due to the bandaging over his eyes, but her silence was making him uneasy.
"Vert… I am afraid that your story matches up perfectly with everything I wanted you to disprove," Sage said finally, sounding bleak.
"Sage, whatever it is, I can handle it," Vert said vehemently. "Don't you trust me?"
He heard a loud bang, as if she had slammed her hands down on a table. "I trust you with my life, Vert!"
A pause, calm, the silent eye of the storm, and finally, Sage let out a troubled breath. "It's yours I'm worried about," she added quietly, the words he had been dreading.
"I thought you told me that you had fixed everything," Vert said suspiciously, and Sage sighed, a heavy action that made her sound eons older than her actual age.
"I… may have withheld the truth." He heard her sit down in the chair beside him. "After healing you, I found an unidentifiable toxin in your bloodstream. I've been tracking it, and the count multiplies exponentially with each day. I've asked Sherman and Tezz to investigate it with me and we have yet to determine exactly how your body will react to it. All we know, gathering from what we've found and what you've told me, is that after the beasts concluded the conflagration, they must have extinguished it with an unknown chemical, the same one that is inhabiting your body now."
"Is there any way to remove it?" Vert asked, hardly able to take everything in.
"No. Unfortunately, what we have deduced is that this substance resembles some form of DNA. In an extremely complicated and perverse way, it was what saved your life after the fire, somehow cohering to your damaged cells and mutating them just enough to keep you alive. Removing it now…" Sage trailed off and shook her head, and Vert figured he wouldn't like the answer. "Sherman, Tezz and I have run every possible simulation but I'm afraid that at the moment, the solution simply isn't in our grasp."
"Sage, I think I would know if there was some sort of virus in my own body—"
"The toxin hasn't reacted yet because its growth has not accelerated enough or taken over enough cells, but we believe that, unaided, the reaction should occur within the next week," Sage said.
"And then what happens?" Vert swallowed hard. "I die?"
Sage shook her head. "That is…something we have not yet determined," she said, rather stiffly.
"You're hiding something," Vert accused, leaving no room for argument.
"Vert, why would I—" They both knew that he could see right through her. She didn't know why she was bothering with the fabrications.
"Please don't lie to me," Vert said, sounding weary. "Haven't you done enough of it?"
Sage stiffened, defensive. "We were only trying to protect you!" She snapped. "Tezz and Sherman thought they might procure an antidote!"
"I'm their leader, Sage!" Vert countered. "If anyone should know, it should be me!"
"Mutation!" Sage shouted over him, sounding more human and emotionally distressed than she ever had before. "The most probable result is mutation! Now calm down before you set all of your monitors off!"
Her outburst left him at a loss for words.
"Who else knows?" Vert asked finally. He could hear the Sentient bustling around him, checking on his equipment.
"I believe," Sage replied, sounding calmer now, "That your teammates elected to withhold this information from Agura."
"Agura… She doesn't know?" Vert asked in disbelief. Sage shook her head, forgetting that his eyes were concealed.
"No," she remembered to say. "She doesn't."
Vert paused, trying to decide on a course of action.
"I need to talk to Sherman and Tezz."
Sage nodded, glad that they would no longer be shouting at each other. "I'll send them in."
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"But I swear, Vert, Tezz and I have been working nonstop on a solution ever since you got back to the Hub." Sherman was trying to lift his leader's spirits.
"Sherman is being too broadly optimistic," Tezz corrected. "In reality, we have run several different tests on possible treatments for this affliction and so far, none of them have been successful. Whatever this poison is, it's going to be very difficult to cure."
"Tezz!" Sherman cried indignantly.
"Sherm, it's fine. Really. I need you guys to be honest with me now more than ever," Vert said. "I appreciate all of the time you're putting into this."
"You're welcome."
"Well, obviously."
"Thanks guys. If anything new develops, let me know, okay?"
Both scientists nodded, sensing their cue to leave.
"Oh, and Sherman?" Vert called, as he heard the footsteps retreating away. "I know that you won't, but…"
"Don't let Agura find out?" Sherman guessed, and Vert chuckled weakly.
"Yeah. Thanks, man."
"No problem." Sherman forced the answer through clenched teeth, and although Vert did not detect it, Tezz gave him a curious look. The former scientist ignored it, and together they returned silently to the lab.
"How are Tezz and Sherman?" Sage asked cautiously, reappearing once the pair had left. She deeply regretted their earlier shouting match.
"They're working hard. If anyone can figure out, it's those two," Vert answered vacantly, and Sage caught the hint that he wasn't in the mood to converse with her. There was tension between them, the aftershock of their first real argument, and she fervently wanted to dispel it.
"I believe that your ocular bandages could be removed by the end of the day," she stated, in an effort to resume conversation.
"Great," Vert responded dismally. Sage frowned.
"You seem upset?" She questioned, hoping to prompt an answer.
"I…don't like fighting with you, Sage," Vert finally said. "We're supposed to be a team. Not just Battle Force 5 as a whole, but specifically you and I."
"I— I would agree," Sage managed, stunned by his depth.
"I mean, we're supposed to lead them," he continued. "They look up to us, you and me both. We have to communicate more than any two people here and fighting isn't the way we should be doing it."
"What exactly are you proposing?"
"I just really need you to be honest with me, Sage. This virus doesn't mean I get to be put on a need—to—know basis, and right now it feels like I'm totally in the dark. Until the day that this thing inside of me does activate, I still want to be treated as this team's leader, whether I'm stuck in the infirmary or not."
"I understand completely," Sage nodded, resting her glowing fingertips along the side of his cot and staring pensively at him. It was difficult, listening to Vert without any eye contact whatsoever. She was not well versed in human communication but what she had learned from her time with the Battle Force 5 was that eyes and body language played a substantial part in it. Now, Vert's eyes were bandaged, and his movement was restricted by tubes and cords. She wanted desperately to convey that she supported his plea wholeheartedly.
"I… trust and care about you very much, Vert." She finally found the courage to say. "I hope we remain a team for a great time."
Her trailing fingers found his hand, and she rested them there for the briefest of moments, as it was the best way she could see to contact him. But then Sage recalled in her memory watching Agura do the very same, sit there for hours clutching his hand as if it was the only thing keeping her connected to life, and drew back instantly. She did not want to infringe on the chemistry between the two.
However, Vert proved her wrong. He caught her hand and drew it back to him, clasping hers between both of his own, and looked directly at her. Despite the gauze barrier, Sage could feel the intensity of his gaze.
"We will," he said firmly.
Sage smiled sadly, but the warmth of their moment flooded her belly nonetheless. He had saved her life, after all. They had met by chance but been cast together by fate, ever since day one. She hadn't known him much longer than she had known the rest of the Battle Force 5 but just knowing that he had made the decision to drive in between her and a pack of bloodthirsty Vandals made all of the difference.
What they had was special.
Obviously not Vert and Agura special, and maybe not even Sherman and Spinner special. No, it was an inexplicable sort of intimacy, difficult to pinpoint but there all the same. They were bound to each other, not just by purpose but by something more, and she realized then that she really, truly cared about him. He had kept faith in her even when Krytus had tried to convince him that she was planning to destroy the Multiverse. They were allies, partners, teammates, companions, friends. He had saved her on that fateful day, from not just the Vandals but from the loneliness of being the last surviving Blue. And she guessed that, by a different means, she had saved him too. An aching sadness seized up in her chest and seemed to radiate throughout her entire shell. Sentients were not capable of crying but thanks to the past few week Sage was all too acquainted with the concept, and she wished in envy that she had some external way to relieve the miserable, staggering sorrow she now felt.
Sage slowly extricated her hand, wishing she could hold on to him that much longer. "Thank you, Vert," she said softly, and thought, I hope you're right.
She heard his breathing slow and, realizing how emotionally drained he must be, Sage quietly snuck out.
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"Sorry, guys. He just dozed off mid-sentence," AJ was saying as Agura entered the rec room. Although she didn't know it, it was merely his cover for keeping the others from visiting Vert, or more accurately, his bandages.
"But I'm sure you'll be able to see him by tomorrow," AJ added nervously upon seeing her. He figured that Agura would feel guilty for consuming the majority of Vert's visiting hours, and was trying his best to be understanding.
He only hoped their other teammates felt the same way.
"That's fine," Spinner said, speaking for himself and the assembled Stanford and Zoom. As the oldest present, he felt responsible for keeping spirits up. It was certainly an aberration for him to feel any form of team-related responsibility on any level other than protecting Earth, but they were in the midst of tragedy. He decided it was his job to, for once, step up and act his age, especially when two of the most mature people in their little family were so preoccupied. In fact, it seemed their entire team was split by the loss of their leader, what with Sherman and Tezz constantly in the lab, Sage, typically avoiding the living levels of the Hub, Vert immobile, and Agura and AJ almost in a sort of secret alliance. You would think it would have brought them closer together but thanks to every deviant in knowledge of Vert's condition from one person to the next, he personally had never felt they were farther apart.
"Yeah, makes sense that the bloke needs his beauty rest," Stanford added jokingly, in an effort to lighten the mood. He owed it to Agura, with everything she was going through, and true to his train of thought she gave him an appreciative smile. They had a fascinating dynamic, those two.
Zoom said nothing.
"AJ's right, he's drained," Agura joined their conversation awkwardly. She too felt disconnected from her teammates; she had ditched them to spend time with Vert after everything they had done for her in the past week. "But yeah, he can totally have visitors tomorrow, probably for most of the day," she added all-too-brightly, a weak effort to smooth over bruised feelings.
At that moment, Zoom stood up and left without saying a word. Agura glanced after him in distress; things were still rocky between the two ever since Vert had been brought back to the Hub, charred and unconscious.
"I just…wish you guys would stop trying to protect me from this stuff."
"They burned him alive. They lit his body on fire until everything was burned away and his skin was scorched black, black like ashes and red like blood, and in some places there wasn't any skin left and then all you could see was what was underneath…"
Her own pronouncement throbbed in her head like a grim echo. She couldn't remember choosing to say the venomous words, they had just…made their way out. And now there was no way to take them back.
She stood up, meaning to go after him.
"Agura…maybe…" AJ began quietly, intending to stop her, and she looked to him in disbelief.
But…he's my responsibility, her pained eyes seemed to say.
"Luv, let it blow over," Stanford advised.
"He needs to be alone for a while," AJ agreed. "And you need to do something that isn't sad."
She sunk back onto the couch, defeated. "You're right. But I wish I hadn't yelled at him."
"If it makes you feel any better, you didn't really seem to be yourself at the time," Stanford said, with a half-smile.
"He'll come around," AJ added
"Yeah, and in the meantime, can you make dinner?" Spinner interrupted them all, rubbing his hands together in childish glee. "I've been craving stir fry for like a week and a half."
AJ and Stanford were about to criticize him for bringing up such a selfish point when Agura brightened.
"You know, Spin, that sounds like a great idea. We'll all have dinner together," she smiled at the thought and left the room.
Stanford and AJ looked to their remaining teammate in surprise, and Spinner sighed, all signs of previous immaturity gone. "Agura needs something to keep her mind off of things. Considering we don't have any of the ingredients, stir fry will take a long time to make." The Cortez snapped his laptop shut and stood up, slinging it under his arm.
"I'm gonna go help Agura. See you guys," he waved, and disappeared, leaving Stanford and AJ to gape at each other.
"He doesn't get as much credit as he deserves," Stanford finally said, and AJ nodded wholeheartedly in solemn agreement.
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In a few hours, Agura called her team together for dinner. It was like strange, watching everyone migrate to the upper level like they had before everything had fallen apart. Sherman and Tezz would be pulled away from the lab, the former looking significantly more relieved than the latter. Whoever had been watching TV or playing games in the rec room emerged, squinting momentarily at the bright light like animals pulled from hibernation. At least one member of the team was always sweating, usually Vert or Zoom having just finished a workout. They would all come together on the elevator, exchanging nods or smiles or make small talk or wisecracks, the way boys do, and travel piece by piece to the upper half of the Hub, the massive cylindrical central support where the housing amenities were located.
And Agura watched them all file in, drawn by the aroma of whatever was cooking. That was when conversation began.
"Smells awesome, Agura!"
"I'm starved!"
"Thanks, guys, but Spinner actually did a lot of the work tonight," Agura smiled appreciatively at her assistant.
"Spinner?! Oh, yuck, I'm not eating," Stanford joked.
"Hey, I only set the fire alarm off like one time!" Spinner rolled his eyes as his teammates grabbed their plates.
"I mean, twice…" Agura chuckled.
"I'm taking the risk, this smells amazing," AJ shrugged, loading up his plate.
"There's rice in the pot on the stove," Spinner added. "Compliments of moi." Finally, everyone had been served and seated.
"So, no Stormshocks in over a week," AJ said absently. "Anyone else find that weird?" He received a subtle glare from not only Spinner, who felt like he had been doing Agura-damage-control all day, but from Sherman, Stanford, and even Tezz. Didn't AJ know better than to talk about anything Multiverse-related around Agura and Zoom? Tensions were obviously high between the two, and it would only further serve to remind them of Vert in the hospital.
"It's definitely strange, AJ, but I'm sure there's nothing to worry about," Agura commented, taking another bite.
The mention of Stormshocks hadn't even bothered her, Spinner noted in relief.
"Yeah. If the Sark want to take a break from invading, that's fine by me," he said quickly. "Hey, speaking of invading, did I tell you guys that I unlocked a new level on Slugbots today?"
A series of groans filled the air at his comment, but Spinner couldn't have been more pleased.
Possible conversation about Vandals, and crisis, averted.
"Mm, Spin, you should help with dinner more often." After he had finished dinner, AJ leaned back in his chair and patted his stomach.
"Nah, Agura did most of the work," the Cortez shrugged. "I stirred a pot of rice for eight minutes."
"There are no small jobs, only small people," Stanford teased, causing Spinner's cheeks to redden.
"Hey!"
"Alright boys, that's enough." Agura couldn't hide her grin or ignore the pleasant warmth spreading through her. The return to normality was truly a beautiful thing. "Thank you guys for all coming up to eat. Even though Zoom, I know rice isn't your favorite." She cast an enthusiastic smile his way, but the Scout didn't even meet her eyes. Instead, Zoom stood up so quickly that his chair rattled against the tile floor.
"Zoom!" She called, but he was already gone, the cold, picked-at food on his plate the only clue that he had ever joined them to eat.
"Agura, let him go," Spinner said quietly. She sank back into her chair in despair.
"Why does he hate me?" Agura sighed, pushing a solitary grain of rice around on her plate. She knew it was a melodramatic statement to make, but maybe her teammates could offer her advice.
"Agura, there is more behind Zoom's current behavior than you know. Don't take it so personally," Tezz said vaguely, and she gave him a curious look.
"Tezz is right. This whole thing has been tough on him," AJ tried to add helpfully. When in fact, there was no way to tell Agura the real reason Zoom was upset: Vert was dying. Yes, a small part of his frustration was that she had a monopoly on visiting hours, but that was just a speck of sand in the massive ocean that was this big mess. His leader, his best friend, his father figure, was dying. And there was no way Agura, poor, compassionate, blind Agura, could comfort him regarding that.
"Doesn't he realize that it's hard on me too?" Agura muttered the aside under her breath, but took it back just as quickly.
"What?"
"Nothing," she assured AJ. "I'll clean up the dishes."
"You sure?" Sherman asked, and Agura nodded.
"I've got it. You guys watch a movie or something."
They didn't end up watching a movie. Instead, everyone wandered off on their own, the dinner that had been meant to lift everybody's spirits putting a damper on them instead. Agura was still perplexed over Zoom and everybody else was starting to worry that she had been given false hope.
"You know, Spin…maybe it would have been better just to tell her."
Sherman looked up from the novel he was reading, already tucked into bed at just nine thirty. Nobody had really had the heart to stay up and do something together. Spinner was brushing his teeth in the bathroom they shared, and he spat in the sink before answering.
"What do you mean, little bro?"
Sherman sighed. "Don't you think we should have just been honest with Agura right away? I mean, I hate seeing her so cheery, acting and thinking as if everything is going to be just fine. Zoom's already throwing a wrench into that, and now she's going to have to deal with us betraying her trust along with Vert…changing? Isn't that a lot to handle?"
Spinner, out of the bathroom now, plopped down onto his bed, next to Sherman's, and shrugged. "Yeah. But there's really no easy way of going about it. Either way she's going to be heartbroken, and personally I'd rather prolong it."
"But what if it were me?" Sherman pressed. "If it were me dying in there? Wouldn't you want to know right from the start?"
"Sherm, you have to remember, we might still pull out a cure," Spinner said, crawling under his covers.
"Either way." Sherman did not yield. "Whether my death was certain or not, wouldn't you want to know? So that you could at least make your peace?"
"I don't know, Sherman! Okay? Yeesh, lay off. No one's dead yet," Spinner grumbled; the question had obviously ruffled him.
"Sorry. We should get some sleep. Lots of lab work to do in the morning." Spinner reached up to turn off the light, but his comment felt awkward and forced, and each lay there a long time before being able to fall asleep.
Tezz tried to go back into the lab and finish running tests on a blood sample from the captain, but ended up slumped over his desk in exhaustion.
Zoom fell asleep feeling more frustrated and alone than ever.
Agura didn't take very long to finish the dishes, but was disappointed to find that her teammates had all retired. She walked past the infirmary, and would be lying if she said it was incidental, and peered in. Sage was nowhere to be found, and Vert was lying motionless, most likely asleep. She opened the doors and crept over to his bedside. She waited for a moment before determining that he was out, and then collapsed into the chair next to him, exhaustion overcoming everything else.
