A.N: Chapter 9, and about a little more then halfway through the story. There will be a couple surprise appearances, but not crossovers. You'll see when I get to those points. I'm sorry that I took so long to update. I've been unable to use my computer for the past two weeks. I hope to make up for lost time.


Waiting Room

"Someone, please! I need help!"

Ion burst into the hospital though the automatic doors, cradling his unconscious empress carefully in his arms. She was almost completely limp, and her breathing was labored and weak.

His outburst caused almost everyone in the front room to look up at him, some in utter shock. Then, after a moment, a few nurses and a doctor rushed to see what was wrong.

"Please…" Ion panted in growing desperation; he had just barely beat the sunrise outside, but the hospital provided protection," Please…there's something really wrong with her. She's really sick. I fear she may die if she doesn't get help soon…"

The female doctor reached out gently to touch Seth's forehead; she pulled back immediately, as if burned. She looked very worried and studied the sickly girl for a minute before turning to the others.

"Definitely a sick one. She should be taken to the ER Her fever is extremely advanced," she explained, " The boy is right. Her illness appears to have reached a critical point…"

The others nodded, and the main doctor asked him if he wanted her to brought in by a stretcher. He politely declined, insisting he would carry her himself. The doctors then led him into the complex maze of hallways; Ion looked down at the sleeping Empress before following.

The halls seemed to go on forever; countless number of patients and doctors inhabited this clean, white haven. Some threw the blond weird, if not curious, looks, but he ignored them. All the earl could think about was Seth's steadily failing health. He hoped she would find someway to pull through this mess, and that she would be able to return to Byzantium as well as she was before this ordeal.

The doctor in front of him stopped, bringing him from his forlorn thoughts. They had paused in front of a room, one that didn't stand out in any particular way. The female opened the door to the room and ushered him in.

Inside was like any usual room in a hospital with a single bed. No one else occupied this room; Seth would have it all to herself, meaning more privacy.

Curious, Ion wandered inside. It seemed an all right room. Knowing already what to do, he strolled over to the bed, pulled back the covers, and tenderly placed Seth down before drawing the blanket back over her slightly trembling body. He stared down at her grimly for a long moment before moving aside to allow the doctor to do his job. The blond stood off to the side, watching carefully, making sure no more harm came to the empress.

The man checked her temperature first, obviously worried about the height of her apparent fever. He felt her forehead softly, leaving his hand on a bit longer then the first one had down. He then took his hand away and frowned deeply, succeeding in worrying Ion to no end.

Anxious for answers, Ion questioned him, although he knew he didn't know much about Seth's condition yet, " What's wrong with her? She's going to be all right…isn't she?"

The Terran looked over at him gravely, " Truthfully, I don't know yet whether or not she'll recover but, at the very least, I do have a theory of what may be wrong with her," he informed, " Do you know how she became like this?"

Ion was a bit surprised by his sudden question, his mind racing to be able to voice was had occurred in the past few days, "Well, sir…you see she was kidnapped from Byzantium, by these thugs. I managed to rescue her though," Ion began, " And she's a strong fighter herself. I don't understand how come she just didn't knock them out. Then, on our way back, a bunch of bandits tried to jump us. Seth fought them off fine, but then, she had a sudden fever. She fainted and I brought her here…"

The doctor nodded, taking it all in," These thugs wouldn't happen to be Rabb's men, would they?" he asked almost curiously.

Ion started at this, "Why, yes they were. How'd you…"

The man sighed sadly, "This isn't the first time this happened…" he informed," But your friend's one of the lucky ones. Most others are found dead on the side of the road…"

Ion felt a silent rage boil in his veins. Rabb had done this before, had devastated other women in his perverted practice? It was unthinkable, the crimes that man must have committed against other human beings.

The glint of a needle in the fluorescent lighting caught his attention. It was empty, but the intended action made the blond's blood drop a few dozen degrees, although…he wasn't quite sure why. Maybe he was just being jumpy. After all, it was the empress of his people and his lover that lay, near dying. He knew he was just afraid of losing her, terrified…

Ion gulped, "What's that for?" He questioned quietly.

The doctor gave him a warm smile, although somewhat solemn, "I'm just going to get a blood sample. It'll tell whether or not Rabb's poison is really the cause of her illness,"

The earl settled down a bit. Yet another thing bothered him: How would the doctor react to the nanomachines? Just wondering about it was unnerving, but he was afraid to ask if the Terran knew. He just prayed the man would be accepting and open minded.

He forced himself to remain silent while the man walked over to the sleeping girl and gently pricked her white arm. Seth only stirred ever so slightly, but other then that she perhaps knew nothing of what was happening around her; the syringe filled up quickly with her fresh blood. The doctor then pulled the needle away and tapped at the glass chamber briefly, holding it up to the light. With only one last glance at Ion, he strolled out of the room, leaving the anxious boy and the sickly girl behind and alone…


It seemed like hours before anything happened. Every minute that Ion counted past he knew it was yet another minute off the little time Seth had. All he could do though, was wait; he sat in a half comfy chair beside her bed, and stared grimly down at the Crusnik's sleeping expressions.

Seth was near silent herself. Only a few sleepy groans breached the quiet, if at all, seemingly ones of pain or distress that made Ion fidget all the more with unease.

The door suddenly opened and the long absent doctor wandered in; the grave look on his face twisted Ion's stomach with dread. The man didn't speak to him right away; he just found his way straight to the ill girl and gazed down at her strangely.

"The girl's a Crusnik?" He asked suddenly. Ion hesitated for a moment before nodding. He didn't know if he saw him but he went on, "How unfortunate…"

The blond started at this and jumped to his feet, "What? What do you mean?" He demanded, growing ever nervous.

The Terran looked back at him, " A Crusnik, a rare and noble vampiric race of human. I've heard of the tales that surround them, but never did I think I'd see one…" he muttered almost sadly, " And it sorrows me, but there's nothing more that can be done for her…"

Ion's blood ran cold and he could only stare, absolutely speechless. After a long minute he rediscovered the ability to speak.

"Wha-what? What do you mean?" Ion stammered ghostly quiet at first. A sense of desperation and disbelief washed over him and sobs began to breach his voice," You can't do anything? You're a doctor; you have to be able to do something! She can't die, she just can't…"

The other male's face was a study with a grief of his own, "I'm sorry. But the poison has too strong of foothold to be dealt with by everyday medicine. It is an extremely rare and potent type, only a special kind of cure can stop it now…"

The boy fought back rising tears as he clenched his fists hopelessly. This couldn't be the end! There had to be something! A sudden idea came to mind:

"What about Rabb? Wouldn't he have an antidote of some kind? Back at his mansion, I mean…" he grasped for a shred of hope.

The doctor seemed a bit surprised by his idea, if not thoughtful, " He might…"

Ion became more assertive, " He has to! It's her only chance and I'm going to take it!"

The Terran was quiet for minute, studying him intently, before sighing, "You love her, don't you?" He ventured and Ion blushed, confirming the doctor's hunch wordlessly. The man chuckled softly for a moment before becoming grave once more, " If you believe the cure is there, then go. I, for one, have no clue what that man keeps there, but there is no other opinion to save the girl's live,"

The blond nodded and began out the door. Yet he paused, "How long does she have?" He questioned solemnly.

He wasn't answered right away; Ion guessed he was going over his findings and notes, " The Crusnik's has about three hours before even the cure would be proved useless. Do you think you'll be able to make it in time? Its broad daylight out there…"

Ion was silent himself for a minute, running over the situation in his mind, "I can't afford not to try…" he began, " I'll save her, no matter what…"


A.N: I hope this story is regaining interest. I've had a bit of writer's block during the time I've been away from my computer and my stories. I know the end of this chapter was kinda corny but I hope that you enjoyed this one. There will be more action from now on, especially when the RCO step in. R&R