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-Essence
Chapter 54
Frynda jumped back as a plank of flaming wood came raining down from the ceiling above. She was almost out of the burning Hospital and the girl in her arms was starting to get heavy as exhaustion started to catch up with her.
I've got to get out of here, she thought desperately.
Looking around, she spotted an opening where the light of the sun outside shone though. She smiled to herself and made her way towards it, glad that this has ended so easily.
Then again, nothing was easy for Frynda.
Her hopes were dashed when a large shard of smoldering wood fell right between Frynda and her escape, setting the whole entrance ablaze. The red-skinned girl let out a curse and turned around, searching frantically for another means of escape.
The girl in her arms started to come round, disturbed by all of jostling around Frynda's jerky movements was doing to her. The small brunette looked up at her rescuer, confusion etched across her pale—yet strangely pretty—features.
"Who are you?" she asked meekly, so soft that Frynda barely even noticed she had spoken to her. It was when she felt the presence of violet eyes looking so intently at her that she knew the girl had awoken.
"What did you say?" Frynda asked her. "I didn't quite catch what you said earlier."
"I asked who you were," the girl replied, her feeble voice a little more firmer than last time.
"Right now?" Frynda didn't even bother to look down at the girl in her arms as she continued to move through the Hospital. "Well, right now I'm your savior. This building's burning to the ground and we've got to get out of here as soon as I can find the exit."
The girl then couldn't help but bury herself deeper into Frynda's protective grip, even though the red girl was a complete stranger. Frynda's red skin wasn't what had fazed the younger girl, however, it was the mere fact that she was in the girl's arms at all. The last thing the brunette remembered was falling asleep in her hospital bed and waking up to a choking cloud of smoke.
The brunette then noticed her 'savior' was taking her the wrong way. Instead of leading her out of the Hospital, Frynda was carrying her further into it.
"Hey," the girl whispered to Frynda, gently tugging on the white robe that covered her surprisingly warm chest. "Hey, you."
Frynda paused in her frantic searching to look down at her. "What?" she asked breathlessly, the desperation evident in her voice.
"You're going the wrong way. The exit's the other way."
Frynda wanted to slap herself if the girl hadn't been in her arms. "Oh. Right. Of course."
The girl could only close her eyes as Frynda did a complete about-face and started heading the opposite direction, the smoke starting to penetrate her frail lungs. She let out a series of hacking coughs as they rounded a corner.
"This is getting me nowhere," Frynda impatiently growled to herself as she came to yet another dead end. A feeling like ice crawled down her back as she heard the ominous sound of creaking and splintering wood around her. "By the Named God," she breathed to herself, officially panicking now.
"Go into the hall to the left, miss," the girl in her arms whispered. She had been following Frynda's progress through the narrow slits of her eyes. "There's a door that should have an 'exit' sign or something on it."
Frynda raised a brow but silently followed the girl's instructions, practically flying down the hallway that was to her left and coming to a complete stop at a door, just like the girl had said. The problem was, however, that there was no 'exit' sign at the door.
"Are you sure this is it?" Frynda asked her worriedly, her rapidly beating heart thumping against her chest. She was sure the girl in her arms could feel it if not hear it too.
"I'm pretty sure," the girl whispered, her words only coming out in wheezes.
Frynda looked over her shoulder but saw nothing but a black cloud of smoke. She let out a cough and kicked at the door, but to her dismay, it was locked.
"Oh what the hell!" she screamed, giving the bolted door a few more kicks. She was starting to grow frustrated with the whole situation. If she just would have gone right outside and not tried to be a hero…
The girl in her arms let out a series of gut-wrenching coughs, breaking the red-skinned girl out of her thoughts.
I needed to rescue her, Frynda thought as she once again tried to kick at the door. I can't let someone die like that…not if I can help it.
"Don't you think you need these?"
The sudden voice almost made Frynda drop the girl in her surprise. She turned around to come face-to-face with a dirty-looking Gorilla, her lab coat caked with grime and ashes from the fire looming behind her. A set of keys dangled from her large fingers and Frynda couldn't help but let out a cry of relief.
"I followed you out," the Gorilla said as she brushed past Frynda and fumbled with the lock. "I had thought you were one of my patients because of the hospital garment you wear, but when I saw your red skin I guessed not."
Frynda just kept silent as the Gorilla continued to fiddle with the keys and lock, occasionally cursing under her breath.
"Where is that damn key?" the Gorilla hissed to herself. "I knew I should have labeled them—"
A click then sounded and not a moment too soon. The walls started to cave in just as the trio rushed out of the Hospital, covering their heads as the wood came raining down on them like a downpour.
Frynda nearly dropped the terrified girl as she stumbled into the clear day, the Gorilla right at her heels. She heard the Hospital crumble behind her and the ragged breaths of the Gorilla behind her as she ran as fast as her legs could carry her.
"By the Named God!" she heard the Gorilla call out and Frynda stopped right in her tracks, slowly turning around to see the Gorilla fall to her knees, tears streaking down her furry, black face as she took in the sight of her beloved Hospital smoldering on the ground before her.
"My Hospital!" the Gorilla wailed. "My life's work…ruined!"
Frynda felt her heart sink at the Gorilla's desperate tone. She looked down at the girl in her arms. Her eyes were closed, meaning she had either fallen asleep or lost consciousness again. She then heard the faraway voices. She turned to see the Wizard's convoy start to move, no doubt in search of another doctor to help cure the Wizard.
Frynda let out a sigh. I guess we can never win, she thought dismally.
Frynda stared at the mourning Gorilla for a few moments before timidly walking up to her, not sure whether or not to bother her.
"Uh…"
Suddenly the Gorilla's head snapped up to look at the obviously uncomfortable girl above her. The Animal doctor slowly got up from her knees and wiped her tears away with the back of a big furry hand.
"I-I'm sorry," the Gorilla apologized, sniffing. She then gestured to her patient on Frynda's arms. "Here, let me get her. You look exhausted."
Frynda wasn't sure whether or not to trust the doctor, but she figured since she was a doctor after all…
The red-skinned girl handed the unconscious girl to the Gorilla, who cradled her easily as if she was a baby. Frynda couldn't help but breathe a sigh as her arms were relieved of their burden.
The small girl let out a moan as she buried herself deeper into the doctor's dirty, white lab coat. Frynda saw that the Gorilla's golden nameplate read 'Dr. Yanz' and her brow rose in recognition. She has heard of a certain Dr. Yanz a few years earlier when she was still tucked away in the Red Palace.
"Do I know you…?" Dr. Yanz suddenly asked the young girl, her brown eyes narrowly as she studied her. Her eyes then blinked as she recognized the red-skinned girl.
"Of course! I should have recognized the peculiar red skin!" Dr. Yanz said. "You must be Frynda! Her Highness's daughter!"
Frynda blushed, still unused to the attention that her mother's title gave her. "Y-yes, doctor…"
"Oh, please, call me Dr. Yanz," the Gorilla said, baring her teeth in a way that resembled a smile. "I wish we could have met in a better circumstance, but I feel as if we need to get out of here soon. I'm afraid the Wizard has discovered the location…well, the past location of my Hospital."
"I know," Frynda said, her voice small. She glanced at the girl in Dr. Yanz's arms and the Gorilla followed her gaze.
"She must have breathed in too much smoke," Dr, Yanz murmured, more to herself than to Frynda. "And her lungs were already frail enough…"
She then looked up at the obviously concerned Frynda. "She's one of my longer-term patients," Dr. Yanz explained to her. "Her name is Kora. I fear that if I don't get her to a proper facility soon, she…she might not make it. All the equipment I had used to keep her breathing in check had been burned in the fire."
Frynda's heart practically stopped when the doctor told her the very grim news. The red-skinned girl panicked and stammered, "B-But can't you help her now?"
"I'm a doctor, not a miracle worker," Dr. Yanz said seriously.
Frynda raked her mind for possible solutions but only one surfaced that looked halfway doable. She needed to get both Dr. Yanz and Kora to the Red Palace where she was sure the Infirmary would have the necessary equipment in order to take care of the obviously delicate girl.
But the Red Palace seemed so far away and Kora only had so much time.
Oh no, Frynda thought to herself feverishly, holding her forehead as her head started to ache uncomfortably. What am I going to do?
***
"Eleka garthen dormtae!"
Bolynda stared intently at Razaf's unmoving form after what seemed like the hundredth time she had tried waking him up with her magic. She let out a low moan of frustration and threw herself on top of the unconscious man, wanting to kill herself for being so inept at magic.
"I'm such an idiot," she mumbled into Razaf's green uniform. "I should have listened to my mother. She was right. How could I be so damn stupid?!"
"You're not stupid."
The voice made her freeze. The blue-skinned girl hesitantly looked down at Razaf, feeling her heart fluttering inside her chest. Could it be…? Has he…?
"Stop looking at me like that, Bo. Actually…I much rather you don't. You look so pretty like that."
Bolynda couldn't stop herself as she bent down to kiss Razaf for all he's worth. The man was obviously surprised at her bold move, but he felt himself return the kiss, his hand reaching up to stroke the black hair that cascaded around them.
After what seemed like an eternity, they parted, breathless.
Bolynda looked down at Razaf, feeling his brilliant green eyes penetrate through hers in such a way that made her already frantic heart skip a beat.
"Razaf," she whispered to him. "I thought I had lost you."
Razaf gave her a boyish grin and moved his hand away from her hair to cup her blue-skinned cheek. "You can't get rid of me that easily, Bo."
Bolynda smiled and kissed him again, feeling tears start to swim in her eyes both out of her happiness and relief. She felt the sparks fly in her head when Razaf deepened the kiss, her mouth opening to grant entrance to his waiting tongue.
Razaf chuckled when they finally ended the kiss, feeling himself quite lightheaded from being kissed by the beautiful blue-skinned witch above him. "I guess that means you love me too," he whispered to her, looking deep into her ice blue eyes.
"You don't know how much," Bolynda exhaled softly and brought him in for another intricate kiss, feeling like she could never get enough of Razaf's tender—yet electrifying—kisses. What had she been thinking when she had said she loved Fiyero?
The way Razaf made her feel was something so extraordinary that she couldn't even begin to describe it. It felt as if she could float away and never come back down. "Razaf, I love you," she whispered to him after the kiss.
Razaf then took her hands between both of his, feeling the way she trembled with emotion. He looked deep into her blue eyes and replied with all the conviction he could muster, "Bolynda, I love you too."
Bolynda, her heart feeling like it was soaring to the heavens, opened her mouth to reply but a sudden pounding on the door interrupted her. She let out a frustrated sigh, knowing it was Fiyero who had ruined their moment of confession.
Giving Razaf one last, light peck on the lips, she turned around and opened the door to the janitor's closet.
Fiyero was outside, his hair disheveled and his blue eyes opened wide in fear, as if he had just seen a ghost.
Bolynda noticed this. "Fiyero, what's wrong?" she asked him.
"Bolynda, we have to leave," he said quickly, looking over her shoulder to Razaf, who was slowly rising out of the small cot. "It seems you were wrong."
Bolynda was getting annoyed now. "What do you mean I was wrong?"
Fiyero looked straight into her eyes as he replied,
"Morrible's still alive."
***
"Oh, Elphie!"
Elphaba held her trembling blonde lover as she brought her down from a rather intense climax. She softly kissed her sweaty forehead and felt her ragged breathing against her bare shoulder.
"El-Elphie," Glinda started to stammer before her green love shushed her with a quick kiss to her lips.
"Shh, my sweet," Elphaba whispered to her. "Now is not the time for words."
Glinda gave her a smile before kissing her, trying to convey all of her passion in that one solitary gesture. She moved her hands all around the green body she had memorized over and over again, tracing over every small contour and finally landing on that spot that drove Elphaba crazy.
"Glinda," was all the green woman uttered, her voice husky.
"Shh, my love," the blonde whispered in her ear before starting her shameless lovemaking to her Elphie.
"Now is not the time for words."
***
Zafryna was about to knock on the door to the guest bedroom where she was sure Elphaba would be located when she heard something rather…peculiar. Her expert hearing caught the faint sounds of heavy breathing coming from within the room.
Her brows knitting together in confusion, the yellow-skinned woman dared to turn her head and press her ear against the wooden door.
What in Zo…? she thought as she heard shuffling and shifting of bed sheets. Her emerald eyes then opened as wide as twin moons as she realized what she was eavesdropping to.
Hearing Glinda's squeak of her lover's name was all Zafryna needed to do a complete about-face and head back down the hall, her yellow-skinned face turning a deep orange in embarrassment.
***
Melena wasn't sure if she was going to make it to the Emerald City. She felt her body becoming steadily weaker as she followed the Yellow Brick Road. She could feel Hazel, who she now named 'her horse', start to grow wearier from their desperate plight across the yellow bricks.
Melena felt sorry for the mare, but now was not the time for pity. She needed to get to Bolynda—and fast. If what she had heard was true, there could be nothing good from her blue-skinned daughter as the Magic Grand Vizier.
Magic Grand Vizier? Melena thought incredulously. Bolynda barely even knows how to cast a spell, let alone handle an entire land's magical affairs!
She gritted her teeth as she remembered what she had seen in Zafryna's crystal ball before she had left Zo. She recalled seeing the bulky shape of Madame Morrible's fishy face in the glass's hazy image.
Morrible must be desperate in order to incorporate my magically handicapped daughter into Oz's government, she thought.
She knew she was in the wrong to think ill of her daughter that way, but she had always known Bolynda would not become the witch Melena had trained her to be. The blue-skinned girl had never paid any attention in their lessons and when it came to actually use her magic, Bolynda would disappear out of sight, as if she had casted a Disappearing Spell on herself.
Melena briefly wondered if that was the case, but she shook her head. Bolynda and magic are like oil and water, she thought. They just don't fit well together. That's how the little brat got into this mess in the first place.
Her clouded thoughts were interrupted as she caught sight of the glowing lights of the Emerald City. She felt a wave of nostalgia hit as she remembered those times when she had to visit the famous city either out of necessity or leisure. When she had been a student at Shiz, she had always loved to stroll down the green avenues and shop in the myriad of boutiques and accessory stores.
Now there is no time for such foolish endeavors, she thought, feeling a little disgusted at the airheaded socialite she had been all those years ago. Then she felt Hazel slow down underneath her and she patted the brown mare's neck.
"That's it girl," Melena said, feeling that it was appropriate to say that to a horse even though she had never had a minute of training in her life. Hazel slowed down to a canter, her nostrils flaring as she tried to regain her breath. She might not have been a Horse, but she was smart enough to know what her new master wanted. Hazel has been to Emerald City before with the officials from Munchkinland, but never like this. Not with someone so inexperienced on her back.
Melena watched as they approached the tell-tale jade-colored gates of the Emerald City. For some reason, she felt hesitant.
She was not sure how she did it, but she managed to convey to Hazel to veer off to the side of the Yellow Brick Road and stop near a particularly tall patch of grass. The mare let out a nicker as Melena carefully slid from her back, feeling the wound on her abdomen throb more than ever before.
"Damn this stupid wound," Melena breathed, clutching unto Hazel's shoulder for support. The horse whinnied in response, not quite understanding why her rider was feeling so ill all of the sudden.
Looking down at the hands gripping the brown-furred shoulder, Melena grimaced. She could see the cracks on her pale skin getting worse. Peels of skin have been flaking off and now exposed the aged olive-colored skin she should have had if she had aged properly.
"I can't go into the Emerald City looking like I just come out of a crypt," Melena told herself, stepping away from Hazel. She watched as the horse trotted away to nibble a patch of grass nearby. The older woman let out a deep breath and felt the now familiar throb of her wound as she did so.
As Melena thought to herself of possible solutions, she noticed pierces of her skin fly away as the wind blew around her. The sky above her looked as if it was about to rain and she silently cursed herself. The last thing she needed was rain.
"I'm going to have to go back to an old habit," Melena said and closed her eyes as the all-too-familiar words came into her mind. She was going to cast the Transformation Spell on herself for the last time.
"Transforma santira elira," she whispered, waving her hands in a figure-eight motion above her head. She felt the tingling sensation of her magic weave itself into her skin. She saw the unsightly cracks lining her arms starting to recede and she couldn't help but smile to herself.
That's much better, she started to think but cried out as a wave of pain rushed onto her all of a sudden, causing her to fall towards the ground in a heap. She let out a scream of agony, clutching at her stomach. The pale woman had never experienced such an intense pain and she figured no one else ever had. It was as if her body was being completely torn apart by both ends.
"F-Fuck," hissed Melena, her curse coming out in short gasps. She bit her lip from crying out again, for fear of attracting any unwanted attention from passersby who happened to be traveling to the Emerald City. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Hazel warily walk towards her, ears flicked forward in apparent confusion and curiosity from all the noise she was making.
"Go away, girl," Melena hissed to her. She guessed this was the end for her. The pain was too much to bear and death would be better than suffering like this. The mare stood her ground, sniffing curiously at Melena's dirty clothes.
The agonized woman then felt a hot breath on her arm. She pushed the inquisitive horse's snout away, feeling a jolt of pain in doing so. She grunted and rolled over, glad that the tall grass surrounding her prevented her from being seen in this rather embarrassing situation.
C'mon, Melena, get up, she told herself. This was to be expected. You have abused your body so much that this was bound to happen one day. You can't give up now. Bolynda is still out there.
On shaky legs she managed to stand up, using all her strength just to keep herself from crying out loud in pain. Unaware of what she was doing, Melena reached out and grabbed Hazel's shoulder for support, the mare giving a surprised nicker at her master's rash gesture.
"By the Named God," Melena hissed to herself, trying to regain her footing. "This is worse than giving birth."
Hazel just gave her another nicker and touched her snout to the pale woman's shoulder, eliciting a brief moan to escape from her dry lips. Melena gritted her teeth and turned around, half-stumbling, half-climbing onto Hazel's back. The horse, to her luck, stayed put as she attempted to posture herself the best way she could without hurting herself too much.
"Okay, Melena," she said to herself as Hazel carried her away from the shelter of the grass and unto the Yellow Brick Road again. "You've got to get inside the Emerald City now."
She tried to ignore the sharp jabs of pain that shot all through her body as she rode Hazel, but she couldn't help but give a little whine of pain every once and a while. In what seemed like forever, the pale woman could see the green glow of the gates. Her gaze took in the defined, extravagant designs on the emerald-laden gates surrounding the bustling city within them.
She then closed her gray eyes, feeling as if the weight of the world just fell on her shoulders.
This is it, she thought. It's now or never.
Holding her head a little higher than usual, she allowed Hazel to carry her towards the Emerald City gates. She didn't notice the eyes that had been watching her long before she had even came close to the gates.
It was a Gale Force guard.
And he didn't look too thrilled to see her.
