Wayne watched the scanner readings above his patient's head fluctuate, then patted the Web victim's stumpy right arm. Nodding to the Web Riders who had remained by the stricken sprite through the transfer into Mainframe's infirmary, the doctor rose and padded noiselessly across the room, where an obsolete sequencer and a retired Command.com waited patiently.
"How is she?" Phong asked in his soft, age-hoarsened voice.
"Dying," Wayne said frankly. He dropped into the chair in front of the sequencer. "And there's not a thing I can do about it."
Phong steepled his long, delicate fingers and bowed his head.
Wayne rubbed his eyes with the thumb and forefinger of one hand, then swept his hand down his face. He stared at the sequencer's dark screen for a long moment, then took a deep breath and activated the bulky machine. "Let's see what we can get done before Turbo and Davic get back. You said you had a scan of the carrier virus?"
Phong wordlessly opened his drawer, and took out a data pad.
"Good. Now all we need is a few thousand lines of code and a lot of Guardian luck."
There were odd noises echoing down the halls of the Ward. Running feet and chattering voices were the normal sounds of a major hospital. Deranged cackling, drunken singing, and thunderous booms were not. Davic and Turbo slipped in through the loading-dock doors, which were wide open, and ducked into a storage room Copland indicated was unoccupied.
Davic's eyebrows lifted as he took in the noise. "Sounds like they're having a good time. Yike!" He jumped back as a bedraggled but grinning sprite stumbled through the wall.
"Oh, hello. Are you looking for something? Ask me, I've probably found it. Though I don't know where it is," she said, her smile becoming a frown. She waved her hand distractedly, coming within a hair's-breadth of hitting Turbo on the nose. Since there was a squealing Null in her hand, the Prime prudently ducked. The infectee turned and looked at Turbo in surprise. "Oh! Where did you come from? Would you like to meet my friend? This is Pookie." She held the Null out toward Turbo.
"Very nice," Turbo said awkwardly. "We really have to be going, though."
"Going? Where?" The green-eyed sprite looked troubled, then shrugged and took Turbo's arm with her free hand. "I guess it doesn't matter. Here is all right as long as it's someplace else." She turned and caught sight of Davic again. "Oh! There you are. I thought you had gone. Did you go someplace interesting?"
"This sounds like Philosophical Theory class," Davic muttered. "Caen, would you—"
"Belay that, Caen," Turbo said. He carefully extricated himself from the grip of the infected sprite. "Maybe we can go somewhere another time."
"Or perhaps just stay right here," the sprite said agreeably. "I'm not picky, as long as it's somewhere where I'm not." She faded, then disappeared with a teeth-rattling boom and a puff of acrid black smoke.
"You know, I used to think viruses walking through walls were scary," Davic said. "But seeing the Doc and now that kid do it—that's enough to make your hair stand on end."
"Because she's getting closer to deletion every time she does it," Turbo said. "Not to mention what that Null is probably drawing from her."
Davic shuddered. "I hope the Doc's right about write-protection."
"He is. Otherwise he'd have knocked us both cold and relieved me of duty." Turbo opened the door and threw a quick glance up and down the hallway.
"I didn't know he was on the chain of command," Davic said, slipping out into the hall.
"Son, if things get much worse you're going to be next in the chain of command."
"Is that supposed to be motivational?"
"Hi-dee-hi-dee-hi-dee-hi!" Argus bellowed, grinning maniacally and jumping up and down, apparently unconcerned by the tattered bandage flapping off his very swollen ankle. He stopped, his green eyes disapproving. "It's your line," he said, frowning.
"I'm real sorry, Argus," Turbo sighed. "Copland."
The keytool beeped, then sent a dull red ball of light at Argus's foot.
"Hey! That hurts!" Argus bounced backward, away from the threatening ball. Copland buzzed, and the ball rolled across Argus's bare toes, singeing what remained of the bandages. "That really hurts," Argus growled. "I just wanted to have some fun." His right hand curled into a fist, and he pounded it into his left palm. "Let's play another game." He leaped.
A cloud of black smoke erupted between Argus and Turbo. There were several thumps and a squeal from a keytool.
"Boss!" Davic yelled, peering into the smoke.
"I win I win!" cried a happy feminine voice. "I've got two of them down!" Geri blinked as the fog of her arrival cleared. She sat rather precariously on Argus's shoulder blades. Beneath Argus, Turbo's eyes were half-focused as he tried to regain the wind Argus's charge had knocked out of him.
Davic kept his eyes on Geri as he bent to offer Turbo a hand. Geri beamed at him. Argus, however, was down but certainly not out. His long arm shot out and grabbed Davic's ankle and yanked. The Guardian would have kept his feet, if it hadn't been for Geri's triumphant grab. She grabbed his outstretched wrist and twisted. Davic followed the pull, shoved Geri backward, and nearly regained his balance before Geri swept him off his feet with a fast sweep of one leg.
"That's three!" Geri crowed.
"Not for long," Turbo growled. He heaved, and dumped Argus and Geri into the wall.
"Nobody attacks me and gets away with it!" Argus cried. Since Geri was within reach, he threw a punch toward her.
Geri's hand came up, and caught Argus's wrist. "I attack anyone I want!"
Davic rose, and watched the two infected instructors wrestle. "The infection doesn't seem to have affected those two much," he commented. He stepped carefully around the struggling pair.
"Some things never change," Turbo agreed. "Let's get out of their reach before they decide to gang up on us."
"Good idea."
"That's what I'm paid for."
"You get paid?"