Chapter 19: Old Scars, New Symptoms

AN: First things first, I failed at getting the Introduction rework out in time. A ton of studying this weekend, two big exams coming up, and what I had written wasn't as good as I was hoping. Hopefully it'll be ready by Wednesday's submission. However, every other chapter received edits of some kind, mostly minor. Although Breaking the Ice did get the full replacement I promised.

Now that the four part arc is done, time for the two part aftermath! Yeah, I know, I said I'd no longer take six chapters to cover two days, but this kind of detail needs time and space. Kassidy suffers the combined wrath of Bob, Ozpin, Weiss, and Yang's innuendos.

(Perspective: K)

Ugh… why is it so hard to think? Alright, there was… there was the cliff. Big scorpion? Explosions. My leg… something tore my leg up. Had to run into the overhang. Then… ice? Cold. Got squeezed. Tried to burn my way out… couldn't move. Water? Something dripped on me. Was I flying at one point? Warmth. Then… what? Here? Where's here?

That was Kassidy's thought process the moment she came back to consciousness. She was about to move and get her bearings when she realized she heard voices. Paranoid instincts told her to play dead until they left, which she did. As the gunslinger waited, she tried to pick up more about her surroundings. She could tell she was laying down, a bed maybe? Stifling warmth told her she was practically buried under a mound of blankets. The smell of antiseptic solution was heavy. Her leg itched, but she couldn't tell why.

The conversations proved to be far more interesting. Her mind was still too clouded to be able to recognize the voices, but every now and then she could make out the words.

"… delirious… blood everywhere…"

"… lower body temperature… saved from… frostbite…"

"… how long… recovery?"

"… test results… troubling… damage shouldn't be possible…"

Focusing as hard as she could on her hearing, Kass finally managed to push out whatever fog was blanketing her mind. One voice managed to talk over the others, a voice she couldn't forget if she tried.

"What she needs now is rest. If you don't mind leaving me in here doc, I'll be able to monitor her and give you any updates."

A voice she couldn't quite put a face to tentatively answered back, "Alright, but we won't be far. That girl has never stayed down for long. Come on folks, let's give her some space. If anything happens, we'll be able to hear."

Shuffling feet and a closing door hearkened that she was the only person in the room. But not alone.

"Alright, they're gone. You can stop playing possum now."

"Ow, my head." Her body quite vigorously protested her sitting up, but she ignored it. "Always looking out for me, Bob. I think you deserve an upgrade sooner rather than later."

"Don't try to sweet talk your way out of this. You are in such big trouble."

"Well, I'm not dead, so it can't be that big of trouble."

"And that's exactly why!" Kassidy failed to notice her teammates sneaking in with Doctor Narud, but they all stopped at the AI's outburst. "I mean, seriously, how can you act so nonchalantly about your health and well-being? Do you have any idea how close you were to dying?"

"I probably would if I could remember what happened. Everything got fuzzy after I… ran into the cliff? No, I can remember ice. Ice is where my mind's drawing a blank."

"You were stuck in that ice for forty three minutes. Yang miraculously got to you in the nick of time. Did you actually lock yourself in a bunch of ice with no way of getting out?"

"I had the incendiary ammo. Was gonna burn my way out. Woulda done it too if I could move in that damn thing."

"Oh, so setting yourself on fire was your grand master plan?"

"Hey, it worked. Well, the first part anyway. OUCH! What the hell Bob?!" The gunslinger nearly jumped out of the bed as the computer somehow found a way to deliver a quite painful electric shock.

"Take this seriously for Christ's sake! You put yourself in the one situation your body was completely incapable of dealing with! The only reason you didn't die of hypothermia was because you already have a low body temperature from your specialized proteins, so you got a few extra degrees leeway that saved your life. Then you managed to lose six quarts of blood – I don't even have a rational explanation for how you survived that one. Five quarts is supposed to be fatal and doubly so for you considering how your systems rely on it so much more than the average person."

"Relax man, I've had worse."

"No, you haven't! And no, I'm not forgetting that one time. You just exposed yourself to two of the three things your body does a horrible, horrible job of dealing with, and you were planning on a double dose of extreme temperature changes!"

Kass roared back, "You think I didn't know that?!" She needed to take a few seconds, partly to breathe, partly to wince back the pain from having shouted so loud. "Tell me Bob, I've obviously been here a while, so you certainly have my iris cam's recordings by now. Please, do tell me your master plan for getting out of there in one piece."

The computer fired back, "How about not tunnel visioning? How could you seriously get so careless as to let a creep saunter on up and bite down on your leg like that?"

"Oh, so that's why my leg itches? Something tried to bite me?"

"Ugh, you are the worst." If Bob could have facepalmed, he would have done so. "No, it's not itching because you got a bug bite. It's itching because a Grimm tried to rip it off!"

Kassidy slumped back in defeat. He's not wrong. He never is, damn computer.

"Now maybe, if you were to take things a little more seriously, that wouldn't have happened. Or maybe even just, I don't know, PAYING ATTENTION?!"

"Speaking of paying attention…" Ozpin and Glynda walked into the room at this point, with the three girls and the doctor moving off to the side.

The gunslinger bug eyed when she suddenly saw she wasn't alone. She looked sheepishly down at where she guessed her feet were. "H-How long have you guys been listening?"

Professor Goodwitch answered, "We heard everything." She scowled as the dark blonde muttered a small curse before continuing. "How are you feeling?"

"Leg itches. Thinking still hurts. And no offense, but your lectures ain't got nothing on Bob. That computer is mean when he wants to be."

"Maybe me getting mean will finally convince you that –"

"I think she gets the message." The headmaster intervened, and the AI fell silent again. He wandered over to a chair and pulled it to the side of the bed before taking a seat. "You do seem to be making a habit of finding yourself in trouble."

"Believe me, I don't need to be reminded of that." She crossed her arms and huffed.

"We've been reviewing the recording from your adventure this afternoon."

"We?"

Ozpin motioned to her teammates and Glynda. Ruby tugged at her cape, Yang waved, and Weiss was completely unreadable. "While the responsibility of analyzing your tactical decisions was taken up by someone else, I do feel the need to ask your opinion of the Grimm as of right now."

Odd question. "Utterly stupid. Sure, there's the hunting instincts, and the bunch of armor, and the fact that some of them are significantly bigger and faster and stronger than me. But they practically throw themselves on my rifle. I don't think they even have a survival instinct."

The headmaster sighed disappointedly. "I would advise then that you pay more attention in your Grimm Studies class before your next outing. The Grimm are not mindless beasts, they are predators specifically evolved to hunt man and faunus alike. You would do well to show more respect to that which would kill you. Far more powerful huntresses than yourself have fallen because they did not respect the threat the Grimm could pose."

Kassidy collapsed back on the bed, not only from defeat but also because as her body began to wake up, so did the pain. Oh god the pain. How I wish my leg still just itched.

"There is another matter we need to discuss, having to do with your aura. If you girls could give us a moment?" Yang and Ruby tried to object, but Weiss just grabbed their shoulders and steered them out. The gunslinger then found herself face to face with a far more somber Ozpin. "While you were unconscious, we ran some tests regarding some suspicions we had. Unfortunately, they were confirmed."

The gunslinger muttered under her breath, "That doesn't sound good."

Dr. Narud took over the discussion at this point. "No, it isn't good. Your soul is, uh, damaged severely. There's no other way to put it. Even before a person's aura is unlocked, with the measurements we made it should still be pulsing with energy. Instead, yours is shriveled, sickly even, like its fighting just to exist."

As Kass' brow furrowed, the doctor continued. "Now, damage to a person's soul similar to what you have isn't unheard of, and neither is repairing it. However, yours is in an unprecedented state; we've simply never seen one in that bad of shape before. Without knowing how it came to be that way… even attempting to fix it could backfire."

The headmaster spoke back up. "I know you've been through a lot Kassidy, and once we have finished talking here you're free to get your rest. But first, it would be beneficial for you to tell us if you have any idea what could have caused this. With your unique circumstance, I'm afraid most of our knowledge may prove to be quite lacking."

Bob reinserted himself into the conversation. "What was it that one mad scientist type said? Something about…"

"His biggest regret was that he couldn't see what his greatest creation was capable of," Kassidy finished. When she saw raised eyebrows, she elaborated, "Right before I got here, there was this crazy guy in some sort of lab. He seemed to recognize me instantly, and acted as though we had some sort of history. History we most definitely do not share. But still…" Wincing from the pain that came with sitting back up, she thought for a moment. "I might have a lead I can look into. No promises. Bob, if you could?"

"I'll get to work on decrypting it as I have cycles to spare. Can't guarantee it'll be a particularly high priority though."

"Hm. Well, that seems to settle it for the time being. I'll leave you in the capable doctor's hands then. Unless you have anything, Glynda?"

"Actually, I do." Walking up, the professor handed a slip of paper to Kassidy. Yay, more readings. "I trust you still plan on having your evening exercise sessions whenever you recover? You won't be in the gym anymore. Meet me in the combat training classroom at that time, and make sure to study these topics beforehand."

The gunslinger eyed her suspiciously. "May I inquire as to why and what for? Knowing what I'm getting into would be a good start in getting prepared."

Did the good witch just grin? I thought Glynda never grinned. "Hence why I'm not telling you what for. As for the why… we've already spent a considerable amount of money on your well-being, Ms. Smith. And an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, after all."

After saying their farewells, the two professors left the room, leaving only Narud with the duo. "Why do I get the feeling you'll be a regular face in here?"

Kass smirked. "Think of it as job security."

The doctor laughed heartily. "Now that I already have; no need to get yourself hurt for my sake. I do appreciate the thought, however. Alright, first off I'm going to need to keep you here for a while longer. We've managed to warm you up to ninety four, but your body isn't really cooperating to go all the way back to normal."

"Ninety four is normal, actually. I've got some… unique protein structures that denature at a lower temperature than they do for most people. So my body keeps itself significantly cooler than the regular ninety eight point six to compensate."

Narud looked to her computer for confirmation, who replied, "There's a reason winter is her favorite season. Naturally, she likes the cold better than she does the heat."

"Is that so? Well then, under those circumstances, I suppose the only thing left is the Goliath in the room."

"Wait. Goliaths are those big elephant Grimm, right?"

"Yes, they are."

"Girls and their computers," the doctor chuckled. "Your left calf is in quite the damaged state. As in, it's completely shredded and almost unsalvageable. Honestly, your computer was the one who talked us out of just amputating it. We've already dressed what we could, so all that's left it to get it in the cast, assign you some crutches, and figure out a dose of antibiotics."

"Back on those again, huh partner?" Weiss apparently was no longer able to keep the two sisters from barging into the room. Ruby, true to her hyperactive nature, was already at the side of the bed rambling a mile a minute. Yang took Ozpin's chair, and Weiss settled for standing at the foot of the bed. Oddly enough, all three of them were in their sleepwear.

"Please, don't remind me. Did everyone manage to get out alright?"

Ruby finally managed to start enunciating once there was specific information to give out rather than one massive run-on sentence. "Yeah, we're all fine. Jaune had a broken leg, but between the medicine and his aura he'll only be on crutches a few days himself. Weiss and I basically had no aura left, but we've recovered it now. Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora just needed to catch their breath pretty much. And Yang… well, she's the one who went out to get you back. So she's fine."

Another wince, and this time not because of the pain. "Right… sorry for that."

The brawler dismissively waved a hand. "Eh, it's alright. I got to punch a Deathstalker. Dang you know how to find them."

"Wait, you saw it? And there Weiss went accusing me that I was seeing things! That was totally an Alpha scorpion!"

Yang chuckled. "Actually, it wasn't an Alpha. Sorry." Kass pouted a bit, then the brawler continued. "It was really big though. We also got to see what all you were up to out there."

"Yeah! You were awesome! You were like running and then pow and then you slid and then you jumped into a tree and then you made a cliff explode and oh my Oum you were amazing!" Ruby was rambling again, and somehow managed to not take a breath during the whole exchange.

Weiss decided to ruin the mood. "Speaking of which… we need to have a talk later. If you call that even an adequate form, then there's going to need to be some changes."

Oddly, Kassidy looked mortified. "Oh god, a lecture from our resident ice queen. And I know Bob's not done with me yet either." She flopped onto the bed.

"Can you please quit jerking your leg so much while I'm getting this cast on?"

"With those two waiting on me to get off this bed? Forget it. Someone just chuck a grenade in here and put me out of my misery."

"Oh c'mon partner!" Yang was overly cheery again, which given the situation could only mean one thing. "No need to give us the cold shoulder!"

Weiss wasn't too pleased. "Is that really an appropriate topic to joke about so soon?"

"Hey, if you can't joke about almost dying then what can you joke about?" The gunslinger sat back up, this time doing her best to keep her leg still. "Still, more time in the gym is obviously necessary."

"More?" Ruby was bewildered. "Don't you already spend, like, five hours a day there? And that's on the weekdays!"

"Yeah, but I gotta get a leg up on you guys somehow." Kass got thrown back down as a dog pillow came out of nowhere and slammed into her face. Yang was howling in laughter as Weiss pinched her nose. Ruby was not amused. "Geez Ruby, are you sure your power isn't summoning pillows out of thin air? Seriously, where did you even get this?"

"Well, it might or might not be one in the morning right now…"

"Really? Alright, who did Yang punch? Because I very distinctly remember you saying you'd punch whoever got you up at one in the morning."

Xiao Long stopped laughing and turned very serious. "Not funny. We were all terrified that you weren't gonna pull through. Even after you got back, it was still up in the air whether you'd recover. So we've all been staying outside your room until we got news. And, uh." Her partner quickly planted her hand over her mouth upon realizing she said those last two words.

"And what?"

"Crap. Well, whenever we were huddled together so I could warm you up…" Yang blushed. "Let's just say I didn't realize you were such a good cuddler."

Ruby and Weiss similarly blushed, while Kassidy looked perplexed. "Cuddler? You mean like in that horribly sappy romance comedy Weiss made us watch?" Three stiff nods. The gunslinger then turned redder than all three of them combined. "Oh god. That wasn't a thing. Please tell me it wasn't a thing." She flopped back down and buried her face in the pillow. "Alright, someone definitely throw a grenade in here. I've had enough of today. Or yesterday. I don't even care anymore, I've had enough. Of everything."

"Good thing we're finished up here then." Narud stood up, consulted a clipboard, and dug around in a cabinet. "Make sure to see me after lunch so we can get an idea of how you're progressing. Here's your antibiotics, here's your crutches, and in the meantime… you two have fun. But do keep in mind the littler ones. And your leg." The doctor gave a wink.

Three of the four blushed harder, while Kass was again confused. "What do you mean by – "

Bob cut her off. "Ask me later. For now, you need rest."