Chapter 33. Heal You
Maya didn't remember much from their initial return to Sanctuary; everything was happening very quickly once they arrived at the fast travel. She vaguely remembered the cool pavement on her knees, before the feeling of Lilith being torn from her arms. She tried to protest, but someone was already scooping her off the ground to take in their arms as well. Someone was shouting, but she was to exhausted to try and decipher where the voice was coming from. She felt horribly sick, and her ribs were screaming in pain. Before long, she allowed unconsciousness to grip her, now that Lilith was safe.
Waking up was a miserable affair; it was quiet, save for the faint hum of machines and a low beeping coming from across the room. The bed she lay in was soft and faintly smelled of bleach, piecing together that she must have made it to Zeds. As her senses came flooding back, so did the intense waves of pain in her side. She groaned and curled back into herself. She wanted desperately to sit up and see where Lilith was but the shooting pain in her ribs didn't allow her much movement.
She heard a rustling behind her, and she was about to force herself to roll over to see who it might be, when she felt a strong yet gentle hand grip her shoulder. It felt familiar.
"Hey, whoa, settle down there Maya. Don't need you falling out of bed now."
The voice had her turning over quickly, pain or no pain.
"Axton!" she cried, relieved to see his goofy smile looking down on her. He gave her an awkward one armed hug, minding her injured side. She clasped the back of his head and buried hers into his shoulder. "Axton, thank God you're okay, I was so worried that something happened to you. Where is-?"
He chuckled in his throat, patting her arm as the stepped back, "Don't worry Maya, Brick and Mordecai are fine too, save for a few bumps and bruises. The fucking constructor I was shooting blew up in my face, tearing down the walls of the entrance to the cave. I tried everything I could to blow it out of the way, but the buildup was too much. Good thing there was a fast travel in there for you to use." He waved his hand, "Anyway, I doubled back to where Brick and Mordecai had been fighting the loaders off the ship. The whole thing got destroyed, turns out Brick and Mordecai were able to jump off before they got incinerated. The fucking place was still crawling with loaders, by the time we got through and Brick smashed his way into the cave you were already gone. We found Jack's body, and rightfully assumed the best," he finished, smiling.
"Yeah, not so sure about the best," she said, wincing and gesturing at her shattered ribs.
He tousled her hair, "You'll get through this. You've seen worse," he joked with a wink.
"Not so sure about that," she replied, before she turned serious. "Where's Lil?" she whispered, as though she were afraid of the answer. If she was being honest with herself, she was.
He pursed his lips together, exhaling through his nose. She followed his eyes across the room, and tucked in a bed in the dark corner was Lilith.
Maya let out a small gasp, and started moving without even realizing it. She was quickly shocked back to reality when the stabbing pain nearly knocked the wind out of her. Axton rushed forward, gently trying to push Maya back down to the bed.
"Maya, you gotta stay in bed, you're pretty hurt," he pleaded, concern evident on his face.
"Axton," she breathed, her eyes as pleading as his, "Please…help me to her."
She needed this, and she hoped Axton could see that. He sighed, looking between her and Lilith as though he were judging the distance there.
"Okay…okay, let me help you."
She used her good arm to link onto his bicep, and Axton being so strong, lifted her off the bed with ease. Every slight movement was still agonizing, and she signaled him to stop for a moment once she was on her feet. She groaned, digging her nails into his bicep.
"Maya, are you sure?"
She squeezed her eyes shut and breathed deep. Now that the adrenaline from the battle had worn off, she felt every bruise and break in her body with every step she took, and she thought how miraculous it was that she managed to even carry Lilith to the fast travel.
They reached Liliths bedside and Maya grabbed onto the guard along the frame for support while carefully releasing Axton's arm. Maya was grateful for the few steps he took back after that, in order to give her some privacy.
Looking down at Lilith, Maya's relief waned slightly as she assessed the other womans injuries. Her appearance was startling, to say the least. She was frail, as though she lost too much weight, and it dawned on Maya that, sadly, it was probably the only reason she was able to carry her out of the Vault.
Her eyes had dark circles, standing out in stark contrast to her sickly pale face. Lilith's complexion had always been light, but now it was unnaturally so. Her breathing was also shallow and slow, and as Maya grasped her wrist for her pulse it was found to be very weak. Almost like she were dead.
Maya swallowed hard. She spoke, her eyes never leaving Lilith, "What…what did Zed say?"
Axton was quiet for a moment, doing nothing to abate her anxiety. She clenched her fists on the cold metal of the rail, bracing herself for his answer.
"The Eridium wreaked havoc on her body. She had it pumping into her for so long…her body is weakened without it. Almost like she's going through withdrawals. Zed put her in a medically induced coma to help heal her body, while also sparing her from the intense sickness, pain, and other side effects."
Maya closed her eyes and sucked in a sharp, painful breath, as the tears that were filling her eyes with every word he spoke began to fall.
Lilith, what has he done to you?
She sniffed, brushing a stray hair off of Lilith's clammy forehead. "When will she wake?"
"Zed said it should be within the week, but it will be quite a while still before she's back to normal. The initial shock should be over, but she will still be very weak. But, she will make a full recovery, it's just going to take time."
With that Maya breathed a less painful sigh of relief. Lilith would recover from this, and after everything they had been through, this would be the easy part. Lilith would bounce back, as she always did, and Maya would be there to aid her.
"Okay," she muttered, mostly to herself, and she signaled Axton to come and help her back to bed.
Once he carefully laid her back in her own bed, she notice how tired he actually looked, and she suddenly felt guilty. He must have stayed up ever since he got back waiting for her to wake, and they hadn't even slept for days before that. The dark circles under his eyes and the scruff of his beard were every indication.
"Axton, you need to go get some rest," she said, clasping his hand in her own.
"I just wanted to be here when you woke up. Wanted to make sure you knew I was okay." His words were playful, but he was right, she was genuinely grateful he thought to let her know. She would have been terribly worried waking up alone to wonder about the fate of her friends.
"Thank you," she said genuinely, her own eyes feeling heavy. "For everything."
He smiled and gave her hand a squeeze as he stood. "Anytime, sis. I'll come find you in the morning okay?"
She nodded, and with one final smile he was off, turning the bedside lamp off with him.
The room was filled with nothing but the hum once more, and Maya drifted off to sleep looking at the corner where Lilith lay, the monitors next to her bathing her in a soft red glow. She slept deeply, with not a nightmare to plague her.
Within a few days, Maya was able to move about herself again, and began to help with preparations for Roland's funeral, though everyone knew better than to hold the ceremony until Lilith was able to be present. When she hasn't at Lilith's side, waiting for her to wake, she was helping the gang with that along with repairs throughout the city. After Jack's attack on Sanctuary, many of the buildings were left in disrepair. Plus, it helped her to keep busy. She knew it wasn't good for her mental state to sit at Lilith's bedside every second of the day, and Zed had promised to send word when she woke.
That day came a week later from when they had arrived.
She had been in the HQ, repairing helping Brick repair the wall of what was once her old bedroom. Besides, Brick still hadn't one of his own, and had been opting to sleep in the War Room. He didn't feel right about taking Roland's old room.
There was the frantic pounding of feet coming up the stairs, and she whirled around to see Axton standing breathlessly in the doorway.
"She's awake."
It was all Maya needed to hear. Wordlessly, she dropped her tools and bolted past Axton, flying down the stairs and into the street.
She burst through the door of the clinic, to find Zed standing over Lilith, mumbling something to her.
"Lilith?!" Maya cried, and Zed promptly stepped off to the side to allow Maya to approach.
Lilith's bright orange eyes shone back at her, and it was everything Maya needed to feel whole again. Once more, she even had a weak smile gracing her features, but it was the most beautiful smile Maya had ever seen.
"Hey, killer," Lilith said weakly, and Maya was delighted to see the ordeal hadn't taken away from Lilith's sense of humor. She could see that the Lilith she knew and loved was still there.
"Hey baby," Maya said tearfully. "How are you feeling? Does it hurt anywhere?"
Lilith grimaced slightly at that, "Hurts everywhere, and I feel like death. I was just asking Zed if I could go back to the loft."
"That would be nice," Maya hummed, looking to Dr. Zed. "What do you say, Doc?"
Zed went to a fridge near the front, returning with a handful of bottles full of clear liquid.
"Make sure she drinks three of these a day, you can come down and grab more when you run out. Itll help keep her electrolytes up. Now, if she has any troubling symptoms, come and get me."
He handed her the bottles, and she smiled gratefully, "Thank you, Zed." She turned back to Lilith, "I'm gonna go find Axton to carry you up, I don't think I can manage with my ribs."
A look of sadness flashed across Lilith's face, and Maya was quick to comfort her.
"I'm fine Lilith, let's just worry about you," she leaned in closer, "I'll give you another wash when we get upstairs, like last time."
Lilith hummed her approval, eager to get upstairs with her lover.
Lilith sighed contently once Axton had left the pair alone, "fuck it feels so good to be back in our bed," she said hoarsely.
Maya went to the bathroom to fill the washbasin and fetch a clean rag. When she returned, Lilith was smiling coyly from the pillows.
"But I think I missed this, even more."
Maya sat next to her, pulling the cotton shirt gently over her head, revealing a too taught stomach and defined rib bones. She tried not to wince at the sight, but Lilith saw through her anyway.
"It's okay, my love," she said sweetly, as though reading Maya's mind. "I will be good as new in a couple weeks, you'll see."
Maya pursed her lips and said nothing as she dipped the cloth in the warm, soapy water. She took Lilith's hand, as she did before, and began to wash her gently, scrubbing away the days worth of filth and blood.
"I'm sorry…" Maya whispered, barely hearing herself.
"What for?" Lilith responded almost as quiet.
Maya dipped the cloth back in the basin, then resumed the task of washing up her arm. "For everything I said back at the control core. It was childish of me…we wouldn't have made it if you hadn't showed up."
Lilith's other hand came to rest on Maya's forearm, effectively stopping her from continuing. "Maya, you don't need to apologize for that…you were right. If the roles were reversed, I probably…I know, I would've done the same. I guess I just wasn't used to the idea that someone cared so much for me, and I shouldn't have put you through that worry."
Maya smiled, feeling tears prick at her eyes, "I guess we can agree on that."
"I'm proud of you," Lilith blurted out suddenly, "Back there, with Jack. You saved Pandora Maya, and I know Roland would be proud too. I cant thank you enough, for everything you and Axton did for us. We would have never made it without you."
Maya brought the cloth to Lilith's chest, marveling at how her eyes slipped closed in ecstasy when she ran the cloth over her breasts.
"Mmmm God, you know there is something else I missed-"
Maya laughed, leaning down to press a chaste kiss to Liliths mouth, "No strenuous activity, you. There will be plenty of time for love making."
"So you're saying?"
"I'm not going anywhere," Maya said with resolve. "I don't want to go anywhere if it's not with you. Axton and I are staying with the Crimson Raiders, with Sanctuary."
Lilith beamed, and she bit her lip and looked away almost shyly, a rarity in Lilith.
"What?" Maya said with pretend shock, "You didn't think I would up and leave after everything, did you?"
Lilith looked back to her, "I would never want you to feel like you're being pressured into anything."
Maya pressed her lips to her again, deeper this time, trying to show Lilith just how happy she was to be here with her.
"I love being with you. I love you, Lilith. And wherever you go, I go."
Lilith hummed contently, "So, what's next?"
"What do you mean?"
"I thought you wanted to take me somewhere nice," Lilith said with a smirk.
Maya's face went serious a moment, unsure of how to bring up this topic with Lilith. But when she looked down and saw Lilith's hand caressing her own, she knew she would understand.
"What…what would you think about going to Athena?"
Lilith's face twisted in confusion, "Athena? Why there?"
Maya sighed, focusing on their entwined hands, "As you know, I have a ton of unresolved…issues, from my time spent there. I also feel like I've grown so much in a short amount of time and… I don't know, I want the people there to see that I'm nothing to be feared anymore. Besides, it is really beautiful there."
Lilith puckered her lips, earning another kiss from Maya. "If Athenas is where you want to go, then that's where we go. We can start planning once I'm feeling better."
Maya's face broke into a disbelieving grin, "Really?"
"Of course, I'd love to see where you're from."
Maya appreciated that Lilith took an interest in where she came from, despite how much pain it caused her in the past.
She dried Lilith off and put an extra blanket over her, forcing her to drink one of her electrolyte drinks before she fell back asleep, stubborn as Lilith was.
She was surprised that Lilith was even as talkative as she was. She still looked very frail and weak, and Maya figured a week long coma would probably do that to you. She turned off the main light, returning to the bed to find Lilith fast asleep, so she snuggled up to the Siren and drank in the sight of her.
It would be a long road of recovery ahead, for all of them. The trauma of everything they had been through was still fresh in all of their minds, along with the citizens of Sanctuary themselves. There were homes to rebuild, funerals to prepare for, and there was still the matter of the Vault Key. Maya had taken it with them at Lilith's request before they fast travelled back to Sanctuary, Maya was unsure what she wanted with it but she assumed she wanted to either destroy it or, at the very least, keep it out of the wrong hands.
None of that mattered at this point. Vault hunting was in Maya's veins, as it flowed through all of theirs, and she knew this wouldn't be the last one that her and Lilith would go searching for. She looked forward to that, to them doing it together, along with Axton, Brick and Mordecai, her new family she never thought she would have. There would be dangers, there would be inevitable heartbreak, but Maya knew they would survive anything thrown at them.
It was funny, how not so long ago she was that frightened girl who broke her chains and left her prison, merely trying to survive, never actually living any kind of life. Until she found the Firehawk, who guided her through love she never felt and physical intimacy she never experienced. She would be forever bonded to her now, this much she knew. Her life has changed for the better, and she finally found her purpose.
But for now, she would take care of Lilith, aid her through her healing, and focus on enjoying their time together, after so much was stolen away.
Laying her head on Liliths chest, she felt a new peace envelope her, different, but in no way unwelcome.
AN: There will be a smutty epilogue next week!