Hey everyone! Here's Chapter 6! Hope you enjoy!
RPGPersona: Their fight to cure or even treat Sakutia is definitely a difficult one, to say the least, and one that contains little hope. They're quickly finding that the whole mission is incredibly challenging, and one that they likely weren't prepared for, although there's probably no way to truly prepare for such a mission. I feel bad writing about all the stuff happening to BB, but it's necessary for the story. I really love writing sad and dramatic stories, but sometimes something happier seems preferable haha. Hope you like how the story progresses! :)
Please keep reading and reviewing!
By the time that all of them had arrived back to the camp, the sun was already falling towards the horizon, painting the sky different shades and streaks of deep purples and bright oranges. They met out in the front of their camp where Cyborg had gathered wood and created a campfire. The teens sat in a circle around the fire listening to it crack and burn while they gathered their thoughts. Soon, Robin spoke up, breaking their silence.
"We need to discuss what everyone found out today so we can figure out where we go from here," he said, bringing everyone's attention from the fire to him. "Who would like to start?" After a brief moment of silence, Raven spoke up.
"I guess I will," she said. "I wasn't able to heal any of the patients. I could lessen the severity of some of the symptoms, possibly prolonging their lives for a few hours, but nothing more. I also talked with a few of the nurses to learn more about the disease and what it entails, and it's pretty horrible," she took a moment to pause and take a deep breath before continuing. "It basically involves the victims' body temperature rising rapidly to fatal temperatures. They become severely dehydrated and malnourished very quickly because their bodies refuse to keep anything down. After about a day or so, they start to bleed profusely because capillaries burst throughout their body. An interesting note about the disease is that all animals are immune; it's just humans who are susceptible to the disease."
"Man, that's intense…" Cyborg whispered, not believing what he just heard. It was hard to imagine that something so horrifying existed and was currently claiming the lives of innocent children, and all because an insane man wanted to cause destruction and chaos. It was sickening to think about for all of them.
"Cyborg," Robin spoke up, "What did you find out?"
Cyborg took a moment to gather his thoughts before responding.
"I took samples from the patients. I got blood and DNA samples, and I took samples from the injection and bite site. I'm going to look at the samples I collected and see if I can figure something out from them. I also reviewed medical records of the victims. There was no pattern that I could figure out. It doesn't seem like he's targeting any specific group of people or anything; he's just choosing at random," he explained.
"Hmm," Robin exhaled briefly, "that makes it considerably more difficult. If we can't discern a pattern, we can't control the rate of infection."
"We could possibly get them to stop allowing people into the jungle since that's where everyone is getting infected, but I imagine that that idea won't be taken too lightly by the villagers. They need to go into the jungle to survive," Cyborg added.
"Since only children and teens are being infected, we may be able to get away with sending out an advisory to restrict that age group from the jungle, but we definitely won't be able to do that with everyone," Robin explained, to which the other teens nodded in agreement. It would be easier if they were able to prevent more infections, but it seemed like that option was out of the question.
"Starfire and Beast Boy," Robin said, "What information did you get?"
Starfire and Beast Boy exchanged a silent glance with one another before Starfire spoke up.
"We were not able to collect much information, although we did learn new information about the Dr. Register," she began shyly. "Dr. Register was a doctor of genetics, and he had a specialization in animal genetics," she paused.
Raven could feel Beast Boy tensing up and growing more and more restless as the conversation continued. She was about to set her hand on his thigh to calm him down when he suddenly stood up.
"Uh, excuse me," he said quietly as he walked away from the campfire before transforming into a lightening bug and flying away. The team saw him fly into the jungle before they lost sight of him. Raven stood up to go follow him, but Cyborg laid a hand on her shoulder before she could leave.
"Maybe he just needs some space. We all know that this trip is hard on him. He just needs some time alone," he said, and Raven sat back down.
"Star, can you continue?" Robin asked, trying to get back down to business. He didn't like seeing his friend in so much pain, but he also couldn't ignore the problem at hand; they needed to work.
"Yes," Starfire said, slightly shaken up by what just happened, "Dr. Register worked with friend Beast Boy's parents. Their names were Mark and Marie Logan and they were also scientists who specialized in the genetics. They all worked very closely with one another. After Mark and Marie passed away, Dr. Register stole medical journalings and test serums from their lab and then disappeared. That was about 10 years ago. A few of the villagers have reported seeing him, but nothing has been proven. He has a history of working with the S.T.A.R. Labs."
"Do you know where the sightings took place?" Robin asked her, taking the information in.
"All of them took place in the jungle. I do not have specifics, but one person mentioned the waterfall," Starfire responded. "What information were you able to gather, Robin?"
"Not much," he said gravely, "Abioye couldn't provide any new information to me. He kept threatening us, specifically Beast Boy. I don't understand why he has so much hatred built up against him."
"The villagers have a lot of the hatred as well. They were very disrespectful towards friend Beast Boy today. They kept spewing their unkind words towards him, and a few acted out violently again. Friend Beast Boy handled it very well, though I could tell it upset him greatly," Starfire added.
"Ah man, I can't begin to imagine what he's going through right now. This gotta bring back a lot of painful memories for him," Cyborg mentioned, shaking his head as he looked toward the ground gravely.
"I'm going to go find him. I don't want him to be alone right now," Raven spoke up and flew away before anyone could interject.
After Beast Boy had flown far enough away from the campsite, he transformed back into his human form. He felt like he was going to explode. This whole experience was getting to be too much for him. He couldn't understand why there was so much hate and prejudice towards him, and why it was being placed on his friends as well.
He walked through the forest as the sound of insects buzzed around him. The once purple and orange sky had faded into a deep navy blue that was speckled with stars. It was almost too dark to see, but he was so familiar with the area that it didn't matter to him. He walked past all the trees that towered around him before coming to a clearing. It was a small cliff that overlooked a valley. It wasn't a high cliff, but it still created a really incredible view. He used to go to it as a child and just sit on the ledge and look at things; it was almost like his rock back at Titans Tower. Going to it now brought a sense of peace and calm that he hadn't felt ever since this mission came up.
The peace and calm didn't last long though before unwanted memories started flooding his mind.
He remembered being a young child and playing with his parents in the village and in the jungle.
He remembered them teaching him things about animals and plants that were new and exciting to him.
He remembered playing with his friends in the village, and how they were incredibly kind towards him.
He remembered being attacked by that damn monkey and the intense pain that ensued.
He remembered the fear in his friends' eyes as the villagers saw his new green skin and hair.
He remembered being out-casted and tormented by the people he used to consider his friends.
He remembered seeing the boat go over the side of the waterfall and hearing the crashing and screams.
He remembered all the intense pain that followed and all the guilt that he felt.
He remembered waking up in a pool of his own blood with two strangers looking down on him, saving him for their own malicious benefit.
All the memories were spinning around and around rapidly in his mind, merging into messy, altered memories and thoughts. He felt as if his body was being torn into a million different pieces, as if each thought was a knife through the chest. His head was spinning and he had to sit down and hold his head to try to keep himself steady.
His jaw was clenched so tightly he thought his teeth were bound to shatter, and he started to feel tears well up in his eyes, threatening to spill over. Right when he thought he was about to lose it, he felt a hand on his shoulder, startling him.
He turned around rapidly with his wet eyes wide and breathing hitched to find Raven staring down at him. He breathed a large breath out and returned his gaze to the earth before him. Raven took a seat next to him on the ledge. She was silent for a few moments before speaking up.
"I was going to ask if you were alright, but I think I already got my answer," she said, noting the tears in his eyes. She could feel his pain and fear. "Do you want to talk about it?"
Beast Boy just shook his head in answer, not trusting his voice to speak.
"Okay. We don't have to talk about it now, but know that I'm here to talk about it whenever you want, and so are the others. We know that this has to be hard on you, and we want to be here for you, but you have to let us in," Raven said, to which Beast Boy nodded. She rubbed his back and leaned her head on his shoulder.
They sat there for some time, enjoying each other's company as they looked out at the view. The only sounds to be heard was the rhythmic beating of their hearts and their breathing, as well as the chirping of insects in the distance. Soon, the moon was high overhead.
"Let's head back to the campsite, okay? We need to get rest," Raven said. Beast Boy nodded. They both stood up and held each other's hand as they started to walk back to the campsite together.