This story belongs to me and my creative mind. However, most of the characters, names, and places all belong to their respective companies, so don't yell at me for copyright infringements! Remember, Italics represent a person's thoughts or the telling of past events.

Enjoy...

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:Faraway Dreams:

Chapter Six:

"Gerick!" Ruthy screamed, looking down at the fallen man.

Illis, shaking off her worry, rushed to the old man's side and rolled him onto his back. Gerick's face was convulsed in pain, and she knew that it was his battle injury finally catching up with him. She reached to his waist and untucked his shirt, lifting it slightly to see a large purple bruise already forming across his side.

"It's the wound he took in the fight, he must have succumbed to the pain after holding it back so long." She announced to everyone. "I don't think we'll be going back to the field anytime soon."

"Is it bad?" Fedrich asked.

"No, but he's just getting too old to take this kind of abuse in stride." She looked to her younger sister. "Ruthy, go and find a doctor to help us. Everyone else get out any potions you have to help with the pain."

Ruthy turned and ran down the street, looking for a doctor's office, while the other Regulators gathered up their healing potions and other remedies. Illis propped Gerick up and uncorked one of the healing potions, forcing the vial into Gerick's mouth.

"Drink up, old man, this'll help with the pain."

Despite the pain evident on his face, Gerick managed to swallow the blue liquid and open his eyes to an upset looking Illis.

"Heh...so perhaps I'm not alright..."

The dark clothed woman growled lightly. "Idiot, you could have serious injuries, but you let your manly pride take priority!"

"Can't blame me fer trying to look good, can you?"

"Actually, I can." She replied smartly.

Before Gerick could retaliate, another vial of healing potion was forced into his mouth, nearly choking the elder man as he swallowed it down. Illis let him fall to the ground, standing up and looking down the street for any sign of her sister.

"You three make sure he doesn't pull anything stupid. I'm going to look for Ruthy." Illis ordered, walking away from the group.

Fedrich looked on as Illis stalked down the street, then glanced at Gordan doing the same.

"She's certainly acting out of character." The burman commented.

"Rather, she allowed her barriers to fall down to expose the woman she really is." Gordan stated quietly.

"Come again?"

"The Illis you see is just an act, the stereotypical rough and tough woman who does not need help from anyone. In reality, she is one of the most caring and selfless women I have had the blessings to meet. It is partly due to her past that leads her to having a cold and callous appearance, but once you get to know her, you can see her for what she really is."

Fedrich remained silent for a few moments, but Gordan rubbed his hair idly and continued. "I suppose it is all how you break things down with people. I have been a social creature for many years, so it was part of the occupation to be able to read through the masks people create."

"And you really see that in her?" Fedrich questioned.

Gordan chuckled slightly. "I guess so, but like I already said, it is all a matter of how you perceive things."

"Why not just fess up and admit 'ya like her?" Gerick spoke up from behind the two.

Gordan's face lit up in a bright red, and he looked back at the elder man to see his face nearly split open with humor.

"For one thing, it is bad manners to simply blurt out one's feelings without proper knowledge of the other party's feelings. Secondly, Illis and I are but friends in the same organization, and I seriously doubt our mutual feelings go any farther than that. Thirdly, even if-"

"Ah, you can stop flappin' your gums, Gordan, I get your point." Gerick laughed.

"I hope that you do. Now please take the rest of the potions that we provided to help speed up your recovery."

"Alright already." Gerick chuckled, pushing himself to a sitting position.

Gordan nodded, then turned back to watch the streets for either of the two sisters. His eyes flicked over to Fedrich, and he could tell the burman was on the border of making his own remarks.

"Do you have anything else to add?" He asked, eyes boring into Fedrich.

"Oh no," Fedrich replied with restraint and a smirk. "I'm just fine."

"Good." The nobleman remarked with a stern nod, again looking for any sign of the dark clothed woman.

Why is it always so difficult to admit to the simplest of feelings...

"They're back." Fedrich announced, pointing a clawed finger towards a rapidly approaching Ruthy.

A few moments later, Illis and Ruthy arrived at the scene with a gasping doctor just behind them. After catching his breath, the white haired medic stepped over towards Gerick, looking at the man with intense eyes.

"So this is him?" The Doctor asked.

"Yep." Illis replied coolly. "One prideful old man at your disposal."

"Hmm..." The doctor mused, stepped around and looking at Gerick as if studying artwork. "You aren't in any severe pain?"

"Not really." Gerick answered.

"Feel anything broken?"

"No."

"Any bruising?"

"Yep, according to the sarcastic funeral attendee." Gerick replied, looking at Illis.

"Bleeding?"

"No."

"Any ill sensations?"

"Nope."

The Doctor finally ceased his pacing, then looked up at the others present. "Seems like he just has a severe case of bruising like you suspected, although I wouldn't rule out internal injuries."

"So what should we do?" Ruthy asked.

"We'll have to take him back to your residence first, there I can do some treatments and prescribe any medications he might need. Now why don't you two men get him off his feet and start moving?"

Fedrich and Gordan nodded, then proceeded to pick Gerick up from the ground and offer their arms as supports for his injured side. Illis and Ruthy followed alongside the Doctor as the three men trained behind them, heading towards the Airship Terminal.


"Well, I highly recommend that you stay in bed for two days to gain your strength back. Also, I don't want you to do anything that would stress your side for at least ten days."

"Come on, Doc!" Gerick pouted. "I can't let these kids run the show without my support fer that long!"

The white haired doctor leaned to put his face right in front of Gerick's, looking the man down with an air of authority. "Gerick MacDougal, it is highly fortunate that you didn't suffer any broken ribs, concussions, or lacerations in light of the events that happened! I understand that you want to make sure your people do their job properly, but you cannot strain yourself so greatly as before. You're getting older by the day, and sooner or later you will have to let the younger generation take over what you started."

"Bah, age is overrated as it is. I'm still fit enough to get down with the best."

"Even if it is the truth, and I'm certain it is, I cannot allow a patient to put himself into risk while under my care." The doctor looked back at the Regulators present, eyeing each one with a stern glare. "I'll insist that you follow my directions and make sure he stays put, and don't hesitate to send for me if he gets any worse."

"We will, and thank you for coming so quickly, Doctor Harris." Illis thanked.

"Just call me Harris if you need, being called Doctor makes me feel old." The Doctor replied with a smile, exiting the room and heading down the stairs for the streets.

Everyone turned to face Gerick, the elder leader resting in his bed at the Hall. Gerick tapped his side gingerly and winced at the pain, despite being on pain numbing medications and full of healing potions.

"So, what now?" Fedrich asked, breaking the silence.

"Now we're gonna have 'ta rethink the plans for the next few weeks, seein' as how I can't go along with you into the field." Gerick pondered, rubbing his beard. "Not that I don't think you can't handle things, it's just that I'd rather be with ya to provide backup in case of a major brawl, and this'll definitely affect our income."

"Well then, I guess you'll just have to trust us to do a good job without you. It's not like we can afford to wait for you to recover and let the monsters have free reign in the fields." Illis decided.

"You speak the truth, Illis. Call me stubborn, but I'm just not altogether certain that things'll stay as good as they are."

"Well, I can always go to the Castle and try to negotiate for additional patrols by the army security teams to make up for your absence." Macky offered, frowning. "I think they'd be more than happy to try and prove that they can handle things better than us."

"Yeah, those braggarts would do just that when I'm out for the count." Gerick muttered.

"But what are we going to do now? Tomorrow we need to go back out into the field, and someone will have to stay behind to look after Gerick." Illis wondered. "Are you up to it, Macky?"

"I suppose I could try, though my being busy at the castle would complicate things."

"Could Ruthy stay here for part of the day?" Fedrich asked Illis.

Illis shook her head. "She's our long range fighter, so it would only make things worse on our end if she stayed behind and a battle started up."

"Hey, I don't need a babysitter. I'm more than able to take care of myself." Gerick piped up.

"Right, like you took care of your wound?" Illis snapped, drawing a glare from the wounded man.

"So I'll assume we aren't going back to the field?" Fedrich asked.

"Not today for certain." Illis answered. "We're going to have to let the security teams handle any troubles for the day."

"Speaking of which, I should be going to the Castle to inform the Security Chief." Macky stated. "I'll leave the details to the rest of you."

Macky left the room, exiting the Hall and leaving only Gerick, Illis, and Fedrich left in the room. Fedrich looked over at Illis for a moment, the woman staring through the doorjamb with a concerned expression lining her face. For that span of time, he could see that she was indeed worried about the situation, her mask no longer hiding the person Gordan described her as. Illis looked back at the burman, seeing his eyes staring at her.

"Are you worried?" Fedrich asked before she could question him, testing her.

Illis looked ready to make a snappy remark, but something in her held back, and she averted her eyes to look elsewhere. "I guess I am...Strange, isn't it?"

"I suppose for someone like you it would be."

Illis gave Fedrich an evil glare. "What do you mean by that?"

Fedrich was quick to surrender, holding his hands up. "Nothing! Nothing at all!"

Gerick gave a chuckle from his place on the bed. "Still can't learn how to be polite, can we?"

"Don't make me break those ribs for you, old man." Illis warned.


* * *


The elderly Doctor exited the Aircab, rubbing his hair around as his legs regained their footing on solid ground. He then proceeded out of the Terminal and entered the main street, heading back towards his office farther back into the Business District. The late afternoon sky was pouring red light across the open streets, people moving through the last activities of the day. Harris gave a happy sigh, anticipating relaxing his feet and getting to his reading.

"Excuse me, Doctor, can I have a word with you?" A voice asked from his side.

Harris looked over towards the voice, seeing a young man with reddish hair leaning against a wall. "Yeah?"

"I was around when you were treating that elderly man a while ago. Was he the leader of the Regulators?"

"That he was. What concern is it of yours?" Harris questioned.

"I came here in search of a friend, and I thought I recognized one of them among the group you helped. Do you think you could tell me where they reside so I can investigate the matter?"

"You know, there is a little thing called Doctor to Patient confidentiality. You should study up on it." The Doctor muttered, turning to leave.

"Wait! Please, All I really want to know is if there was a black haired woman named Illis among them!" The redhead begged. "I don't need to know anything about your patients, really!"

The Doctor hesitated a moment, then glanced back with an expression that wanted another reason.

"Please, Sir, I've been looking for her for years across the entire Mist Continent with few leads until now. Would it be such a crime to tell me a simple yes or no and help me finish my search?"

The Doctor sighed, then turned and scratched his head. "If I remember, there was a young lady fitting that look."

The redhead sighed happily, stepping forwards and gripping the man's hands, shaking them vigorously. "Thank you so much for your help, Sir!"

"Yeah yeah, but you didn't hear it from me." The Doctor added with a smirk, again turning to head to his office.

Smiling for his own reasons, the redhead watched as the Doctor left, then turned and began walking for a place to eat.

It seems like my journey for you is finally coming to its climax, my dear Illis. I'll finally be able to make you pay for abandoning us...