Elmer laid Lona down on the ground. She couldn't be dead. She
just couldn't be! His mind slipped into automatic pilot to get past the
almost debilitating fear the sight of Lona like that was instilling. He
leaned over her and gently blew into her mouth. "Please. please," he
whispered as he started down at her for a moment hoping for some sort of
change before forcing another breath into her lungs. Deep down, he knew
that it couldn't possibly work but didn't he have to try something? He
started to press his lips against hers once more but then he stopped,
gathering Lona into his arms and gently rocking her as the reality of the situation started to sink in. Rationally, he knew that he should keep trying, shouldn't give up on bringing her back, but at the same time, he knew that the odds of success with them trapped down here without access to the technology and medicines that would be needed to save her.... He looked around the room, hoping against hope to see something, anything, that might make a difference before staring down once more into her pale face for a moment, his eyes closing in despair. It was him, it had to be him. First his brother and then his mother and now Lona and their baby. A hand moved down to her stomach and rested on it, feeling the weakening movements of the baby within. It had never even had a chance.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he whispered to the baby, to Lona, to the world in general. Suddenly, Elmer felt an intense cold feeling on his face, causing his eyes to snap open once more.
Michael pulled his hand back, satisfied that he had successful grabbed Elmer's attention. He glanced worriedly down at Lona's limp body,
his eyes widening slightly at the swell of her stomach. "This would be the perfect time for my colleagues to make a rescue attempt," he murmured under his breath before focusing on Elmer. "Check her again. Do you know exactly what that boy did to her?" Okay, he wasn't a healer but that boy was radiating dark power and if there was one thing he knew it was the dark. This was fixable. It was just a matter of being able to do it quickly enough.
Elmer eased Lona onto the floor once more and pressed his fingers against her throat, hoping to find that he had made a mistake. She was so cold. Maybe he just missed.... Nothing, there was nothing, though. He shook his head sadly as he looked up at Michael. "It's too late." He whispered.
"No, it isn't but I need to know exactly what that boy did."
Michael extended a hand, careful not to touch Lona but probing as best he could, trying to sense what could be the cause of the problem. He glanced up at Elmer with an impatient look. "Young man, quickly please. I might be able to fix this if you'll tell me what happened."
"I don't...." Elmer looked at him in confusion for a moment before somehow grabbing on to the last vestiges of calm that he could find. If this man, whoever he was, thought that there was something that he could do to save Lona and the baby.... He forced himself to focus on exactly what he had seen when he had turned and found that boy there, standing over Lona and hurting her. "He was touching her, kind of squeezing like he was trying to crush the baby or something." He shook his head. He was really as useless as Lona normally found him. He should have been able to have protected her, to have prevented this from happening at all.
Michael's hands moved to Lona's stomach, gently, slowly probing.
He was aware of the time rapidly passing but if he didn't know exactly what the problem he was dealing with was before he took action he could compound the situation. His eyes widened slightly as his probe finally detected something. "There was something wrong before, wasn't there?"
Elmer nodded as he looked down at Lona once more. He hesitated for a moment before speaking. The problem sounded crazy, even to him and he had seen it with his own eyes. "It's the baby, I think." Elmer said slowly trying to find the words to explain what had gone wrong. "Last night.... Well, Lona was doing an experiment with me down here and...."
He hesitated for a moment before continuing, embarrassed but willing to reveal anything if it would save her. "I was under the scanner and somehow we ended up in this morgue. Only it wasn't the hospital morgue, it was some other morgue, one that really needed a cleaning service or something.
We... Well, things kind of.... We were trying to get home and.... Lona woke up like this this morning and she just kept getting sicker and sicker." Elmer looked up at Michael, panic on his face now. It had been so long, too long. "Listen, if there's something that you can do to help her, don't you think you should do it, now?" If Lona could be brought back somehow, would she even be okay at this point? And the baby....
"Patience." Michael murmured, aware of the time yet at the same time knowing the need for care as well. He finally moved his hands away,
thinking for a moment before speaking. "Blankets. Get blankets. Now."
Elmer pulled himself to his feet and hurried over to the closest bed, pulling the blanket on it free and bringing it back. Somehow having something to focus on seemed to be helping him slightly. He moved between the other beds, quickly gathering the rest of the blankets as well. If he could just see that guy, whoever he was, actually taking some sort of action now.
Michael was still studying Lona's pale face when Elmer brought the rest of the blankets back. He could undo the damage the boy had done but there was still the underlying problem of.... He glanced up at Elmer,
decision now apparent on his face. The original problem could be dealt with after the immediate problem was fixed.
"Be ready to get those blankets over her," he murmured as he placed a hand over Lona's chest, gently probing for a moment before suddenly plunging his hand into her body and rapidly pulling it out once more.
"What did you do?" Elmer shouted as Lona's body suddenly twitched and she let out a moan of unbelievable pain. Wait a minute, moaning? She was.... He suddenly felt himself starting to smile. Moaning was a good thing! If she was moaning then she was.... He started to reach out to touch her face, to reassure himself.
"The blankets, young man," Michael said, motioning for Elmer to cover Lona quickly as his hands moved once more to hover over her stomach,
slowly working to correct the damage that had been done by Paul's attack.
They were far from out of the woods.
gathering Lona into his arms and gently rocking her as the reality of the situation started to sink in. Rationally, he knew that he should keep trying, shouldn't give up on bringing her back, but at the same time, he knew that the odds of success with them trapped down here without access to the technology and medicines that would be needed to save her.... He looked around the room, hoping against hope to see something, anything, that might make a difference before staring down once more into her pale face for a moment, his eyes closing in despair. It was him, it had to be him. First his brother and then his mother and now Lona and their baby. A hand moved down to her stomach and rested on it, feeling the weakening movements of the baby within. It had never even had a chance.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," he whispered to the baby, to Lona, to the world in general. Suddenly, Elmer felt an intense cold feeling on his face, causing his eyes to snap open once more.
Michael pulled his hand back, satisfied that he had successful grabbed Elmer's attention. He glanced worriedly down at Lona's limp body,
his eyes widening slightly at the swell of her stomach. "This would be the perfect time for my colleagues to make a rescue attempt," he murmured under his breath before focusing on Elmer. "Check her again. Do you know exactly what that boy did to her?" Okay, he wasn't a healer but that boy was radiating dark power and if there was one thing he knew it was the dark. This was fixable. It was just a matter of being able to do it quickly enough.
Elmer eased Lona onto the floor once more and pressed his fingers against her throat, hoping to find that he had made a mistake. She was so cold. Maybe he just missed.... Nothing, there was nothing, though. He shook his head sadly as he looked up at Michael. "It's too late." He whispered.
"No, it isn't but I need to know exactly what that boy did."
Michael extended a hand, careful not to touch Lona but probing as best he could, trying to sense what could be the cause of the problem. He glanced up at Elmer with an impatient look. "Young man, quickly please. I might be able to fix this if you'll tell me what happened."
"I don't...." Elmer looked at him in confusion for a moment before somehow grabbing on to the last vestiges of calm that he could find. If this man, whoever he was, thought that there was something that he could do to save Lona and the baby.... He forced himself to focus on exactly what he had seen when he had turned and found that boy there, standing over Lona and hurting her. "He was touching her, kind of squeezing like he was trying to crush the baby or something." He shook his head. He was really as useless as Lona normally found him. He should have been able to have protected her, to have prevented this from happening at all.
Michael's hands moved to Lona's stomach, gently, slowly probing.
He was aware of the time rapidly passing but if he didn't know exactly what the problem he was dealing with was before he took action he could compound the situation. His eyes widened slightly as his probe finally detected something. "There was something wrong before, wasn't there?"
Elmer nodded as he looked down at Lona once more. He hesitated for a moment before speaking. The problem sounded crazy, even to him and he had seen it with his own eyes. "It's the baby, I think." Elmer said slowly trying to find the words to explain what had gone wrong. "Last night.... Well, Lona was doing an experiment with me down here and...."
He hesitated for a moment before continuing, embarrassed but willing to reveal anything if it would save her. "I was under the scanner and somehow we ended up in this morgue. Only it wasn't the hospital morgue, it was some other morgue, one that really needed a cleaning service or something.
We... Well, things kind of.... We were trying to get home and.... Lona woke up like this this morning and she just kept getting sicker and sicker." Elmer looked up at Michael, panic on his face now. It had been so long, too long. "Listen, if there's something that you can do to help her, don't you think you should do it, now?" If Lona could be brought back somehow, would she even be okay at this point? And the baby....
"Patience." Michael murmured, aware of the time yet at the same time knowing the need for care as well. He finally moved his hands away,
thinking for a moment before speaking. "Blankets. Get blankets. Now."
Elmer pulled himself to his feet and hurried over to the closest bed, pulling the blanket on it free and bringing it back. Somehow having something to focus on seemed to be helping him slightly. He moved between the other beds, quickly gathering the rest of the blankets as well. If he could just see that guy, whoever he was, actually taking some sort of action now.
Michael was still studying Lona's pale face when Elmer brought the rest of the blankets back. He could undo the damage the boy had done but there was still the underlying problem of.... He glanced up at Elmer,
decision now apparent on his face. The original problem could be dealt with after the immediate problem was fixed.
"Be ready to get those blankets over her," he murmured as he placed a hand over Lona's chest, gently probing for a moment before suddenly plunging his hand into her body and rapidly pulling it out once more.
"What did you do?" Elmer shouted as Lona's body suddenly twitched and she let out a moan of unbelievable pain. Wait a minute, moaning? She was.... He suddenly felt himself starting to smile. Moaning was a good thing! If she was moaning then she was.... He started to reach out to touch her face, to reassure himself.
"The blankets, young man," Michael said, motioning for Elmer to cover Lona quickly as his hands moved once more to hover over her stomach,
slowly working to correct the damage that had been done by Paul's attack.
They were far from out of the woods.