I TOLD you I wrote best at home! As soon as I got in the door the ideas came like a flood. I'm waiting for an update Oemi…Preferrably something long. I'm back in DC by the way.
Serafina's hovercraft spiraled down through the clouds toward the SONIX research facility. Serafina's grandfather had masterminded the project and had poured millions of dollars into the creation of one of the most advanced sound research facilities on the planet. As a nod to his daughter's Green cross affiliation, he had furnished the facility with a fully equipped ICU unit with the most advanced medical technology that money could buy. The facility could handle everything from horses to-coincidentally bats. Serafina's hovercraft landed on a helipad near the facility's entrance. Trees rose up around the vehicle as it neared the ground.
Serafina shut down the machine quickly and pulled the release button on the craft's canopy, which hissed upward. She turned to Aries, who was crouched over Shiva's body protectively. "Any changes?" Aries' face was blank as he said, "She's burning up…" Serafina's stomach lurched as she saw the expression of pain and fear flickering across the face of the young bat. She activated her bracelet's phone function and punched in a code. "VICKI, it's Serafina…I need a full medical kit immediately…" she pressed the speaker against her ear…"Yes, that's right. It's bats this time..." She terminated the connection.
Serafina curled her fingers around Shiva's body and was astonished at the amount of heat pouring off of the small form. Her immune system is fighting the infection… or at least is trying to. Serafina strode toward a side entrance and used her access card to enter. Sago and Aries zipped in behind the human who headed for a turbolift. The carriage descended rapidly for several seconds before coming to rest at the basement' level.
A voice filtered through the wall speakers. "These are the patients, then?" Serafina nodded, "My experiment went well…but certain consequences were unforeseen." She walked toward a rectangular bed surrounded by another sterilizer field, which bathed the dark room in it's warm green glow. Serafina carefully deposited Shiva's shivering form onto the white cloth and then retreated to a holographic control panel, manipulating the beams of light with deft movements. The AI suddenly piped up, "Ah, I see that you finally perfected the translator algorithim…I'll update my servers now…" Suddenly Serafina gasped in surprise.
"This isn't normal. VICKI, please verify correct readings and re scan." "What's not normal?" Serafina stared at the readouts and said, "Apparently Shiva's wound has no infection. Her body is refusing to heal the slash." "What about the fever and her…odd behavior?" Serafina sighed. "Perhaps it's neurological… inflammation of the brain…tumors… hell, I'm not sure. I'll start running the tests."
Suddenly Aries heard a cry fly upward from Shiva and almost on reflex he dashed to her side ignoring the strange itching sensation as he squeezed under the sterilizer field. She was speaking rapidly, her words tumbling out over one another: " Aries…help…me please..." Her eyes were locked with his and he felt his heart clench. "Damocles…" he roared, "I'll make you pay for this!" Suddenly she grasped his face and seared him with her gaze. "It's not Damocles…It's Goth… Controlling him." Aires felt as though he'd just gotten hit with a snowdrift. Cold fear shivered through his mind. Goth? But he was dead… Shiva's voice cut through his consciousness like a sonic knife. "Diatra as well…Lysandra controls her… they're just pawns…" Suddenly her voice grew to a roar which filled the room with it's power. "I need your help…come… my 'Ni'Glash'" Shiva's jaws flew open and battered Aries body with waves of sound. He went limp, his wing falling over her chest.
Serafina's hands flew over the controls. "They're both unconscious now." VICKI said, "Their Alpha patterns just synched…now their heart rates…even nuero-kinetics. I've never seen this before." Serafina said, "Did you record Shiva's speech?" "Yes." Serafina looked at Sago. "What does 'Ni'Glash' mean?" Sago thought for a moment. "It is a word found in the language of the Seers…the ones who long ago could use the echo chambers along with special herbs to influence the minds of others…it means My Protector."
"The bond between the two…I could see it in their eyes." Sago sighed and looked at the pair. "We must keep watch over them…as my mind tells me that something very big is coming…possibly to destroy us." Serafina sat down at a workstation and rubbed her eyes. "I've got to see if there is some sort of natural cause for this…psychosis she's going through. Please keep an eye on them."
Sago flew over to the pair and began to pray…
Serafina's Log: I've never seen a medical case like this in all of my years of training. A bat who suddenly has a reaction akin to septic shock, but is not 'sick'… I'm preparing the facilities MRI and CAT scanners now. What I saw back there…what I heard…I'm beginning to suspect that this infection is one that cannot be cured with bio-ethelyic lasers and surgical tools. This is an infection on an almost spiritual level… I'm looking at those two and I've gotten the feeling that the pair are now connected in a way that I can only begin to understand.