Chapter 7
He felt like he was on fire, at least half of him did. His head was still throbbing but it wasn't unbearable like before. The intense heat that was covering him, however, was very uncomfortable. He blinked his eyes open and reached his hand up to scrub them clean. When he tipped his head up to see what was burning him he started to worry. The only thing on him was Aeryn.
"Baby?" He shook her shoulder and she moaned at him. "Baby, wake up."
He sat straight up and fought the rush of dizziness from the change of altitude for his injured skull. Aeryn was burning up. He had to get her temperature down and fast.
"Richard! Kahlan!" He turned to look at the couple they were still sleeping soundly. He needed their help, he had no idea where the stream was that they went to the night before and that was the only thing he could think of that would decrease her temperature before the heat delirium took her from him. He struggled to his feet and walked slowly over to them.
He fell to his knees next to them, not trusting himself to be able to stay upright if he leaned over, and shook their shoulders while calling their names. Richard responded first and bolted up reaching for his weapon.
"It's just me, John, I need to get Aeryn to that creek. She'd dying!" Not waiting for Richard he somehow pulled himself to his feet again and walked as fast as he could over to her side. "Aeryn i need you to wake up."
She could hear him talking to her but the fire had taken over and she could feel the delirium attempting to overtake her.
"Remember your promise…" She huffed the words out as she tried to do as he asked and awaken from the state she was in. She felt four hands pulling on her, dragging her to her feet.
"I remember, Aeryn, I do. It won't come to that. You're going to be fine, baby."
Richard went to lift her into his arms.
"I'll do it, she's my responsibility…"
"You can barely stand. I'll carry her to the water, you can care for her there." Richard didn't waste time arguing he started to walk with her in his arms towards the cold water. She was a little lighter than Kahlan but the convulsing that had started to wrack her body was making the weight difference not matter for the ease of carrying. He tried to pin her to his chest as he made his way to the stream. He looked back to check that John was keeping up.
"Go Richard! I'll catch up, just get her in the water!" John yelled after him. Once they reached the trees it was easier to move. He was able to use the trunks to balance on and he tried to pick up a jog. That lasted a few strides before a root grabbed his toe and sent him tumbling to the forest floor. He moaned and picked himself off the ground. He could hear the water, he practically taste it.
His feet seemed to be obeying better then more he walked. The trip to the water seemed to be taking forever. The bubbling sound of the creek was getting louder and finally he broke free of the woods to find himself right on the bank. He saw Richard in the flow of water holding her in neck deep. He was relieved she was in there and hurried down the bank.
"How's she doing?" John pulled off his leather pants and boots before climbing into the water. He took hold of her body and Richard moved away and began splashing water onto her head.
"She cooled a lot when we got in, but she still feels too warm." Richard wasn't familiar with her species or what really constituted 'too warm' but he figured she would become more responsive when her core temperature was nearing where it was supposed to be.
"Hey baby, you're in the cold water. I'm going to dunk you for ten seconds, hold your breath on three okay?" He saw her nod and counted to three. He saw her suck in air and hold it then dunked her under. He held her there and counted to ten, loud enough so she could hear, then pulled her head back to the surface.
He gripped his shoulders with an arm and used the hand on the other to wipe away the excess water on her face. Her breathing seemed to calm a little and she opened her eyes.
"Better." She gasped out. The heat was starting to leave, but it was still at dangerous levels. "Again."
He counted to three and put her under the water. Counting to ten he pulled her free and removed the water so she could see again.
"I'm going to go back to camp and grab Kahlan and your first aid kit." Richard shouted over his shoulder as he was already racing back.
Kahlan was sitting up when he flew into camp.
"Aeryn's sick! She's in the stream with Crichton right now!" Richard told her all he could while gathering the first aid box. Kahlan grabbed a couple blankets, clothes and towels from their packs and then ran towards the water. Richard was close on her heels as they made their way towards the other couple.
They burst through the trees and almost tumbled down the bank as the ground practically fell out from under them. Kahlan unlaced her skirt and pulled her boots off before climbing into the water. Her body still felt warmer than it should be as well. She went to John's side and tried to pull Aeryn into her arms.
"I've got her!" He gripped her tighter to him.
"You're going to freeze to death. We don't need you sick again." Kahlan glared at him and reached for her again.
"I need to take care of her…"
"You can't do that if your dead." Kahlan held her hands out again. "You need to warm up then you can come back in. Okay?" She understood his need, but there were three of them to take turns. None of them had the tolerance or need for cold like Aeryn did. He looked at Aeryn again.
"Let her take me." She could see John's lips turning a shade of purple and knew that he wouldn't be well if he didn't warm up soon. He nodded at her then she was in Kahlan's slighter arms. She held tightly to her not wanting to chance getting swept away in the flow of the water.
"Richard hand me a cloth from the pile. John your special blanket is there too, use it." Kahlan was going to take charge of her recovery and make sure that no one else fell sick. "Aeryn, can you hear me?" She soaked the cloth in the stream and placed it against her forehead.
"Yes…" She was feeling better but she could tell that whatever was causing the heat delirium wasn't leaving her. The water was sending it into stasis but it was there.
"Do you have any ideas about how to help you?" Kahlan hoped that she would be able to offer suggestions.
"There should be an injection in our kit…" Aeryn drew in a few deep breaths trying to concentrate and remember what she needed. The heat delirium was affecting her memory. She needed to take control of it before it took control of her. "The one labeled Carmasium. It's the one I need."
She saw Richard and John riffling though the first aid kit reading every vial in there.
"While they look I'm going to dunk you again, okay?" At her nod Kahlan removed the cloth from her head and slung it on her shoulder. She counted to three and then left her under for ten seconds before resurfacing her.
"Where do we inject this, Aeryn?" Richard was back in the water with them. John was shaking from the cold still and he'd made him wait on the bank.
"Neck. In the vein if you can…" She tilted her head and exposed the large vein to him. Her eyes closed and she held her breath. She knew this would hurt but it was the only thing that could attack whatever was causing her overheating. Something in the mixture seemed to neutralize most causes of the disease.
Richard looked up at Kahlan and she tipped her chin at him, telling him to get on it.
"Alright." Richard smoothed the water off her long neck and set the needle next to her skin. The vein was bulging, he could practically see the blood racing through it, attacking her body with the heat it was carrying. He mentally counted to three and then plunged the needle into her neck. She scream surprised him but didn't distract him from pushing the plunger and giving her every last drop of the Carmasium.
The change was instant. As soon as he pulled the needle free of her her eyes opened and they were clearer and the pain was almost gone.
"Can we all stop getting sick now?" John asked from the side of the stream. "Kahlan you need to come out now, your lips are turning blue."
Richard looked at her and saw that John was right. He handed her the device he'd used to inject Aeryn and then took the other woman in his arms. They didn't want to remove her from the chilly water just yet. It was important that her temperature dropped completely first. John had explained how the heat delirium ravaged the bodies of Peacekeepers and how they didn't die but lived in a terrible coma like state. While they were on the bank sitting while Kahlan took care of her he told him of the promise he'd made to her years before about killing her before that happened.
He couldn't imagine having to ever end Kahlan's life. That sort of promise wasn't ever taken lightly. He knew that feeling of desperation and he didn't know if he would be able deal with the no hope ending that was in sight for John when he woke with her in that state.
When Kahlan climbed out he got a delicious view of her backside in the tiny black shorts. Her corset was wet on the bottom but that didn't seem to bother her. John wrapped her in one of the special blankets and sat her down next to him. He rubbed her shoulders to try to warm her more quickly. He thought that it was unfair that he was the only one with wet pants. However John's white briefs had left little to the imagination. He'd caught Kahlan's gaze as the man had climbed out of the water.
He was well endowed. Even with the chilled water it was visibly large. The man was clearly built to please a woman. Richard was glad that she seemed excited by the size since he was also not on the small side. Looking at the way John was touching her now was making him unreasonably jealous. He knew that there was no threat and yet he his belly dropped in irrational anger. He tamped it down and looked back to Aeryn.
"He's touching her isn't he?" She whispered to him.
"What?" Richard was surprised by the question. The honesty in it and her ability to know exactly what his face was saying.
"I know John. He won't do anything he's just very tactile." Aeryn smiled for the first time. She was feeling much better and seeing Richard worry over Kahlan being warmed by another man made her happy for Kahlan. She had a lot less work ahead of her than she knew. "Plus she loves you and he's in love with me."
"It's irrational, I know, but something inside me won't let it go. No matter who touches her I get a jealous feeling shooting to my stomach." Richard sighed and then looked down at her. He saw the the amused smile on her face and he tried the grin back. "Want to go under again?" She nodded and he did the dunking routine.
They let her soak for a few more minutes before dragging her to shore. Her arms and legs were still weak from the effects of the heat delirium. Richard carried her up the bank and Crichton and Kahlan gathered all their belongings and clothing and hauled it back to the campsite.
She felt so cold that Richard was worried about hypothermia, but she didn't seem concerned. She actually appeared to be comfortable for the first time in hours. He was shivering though and couldn't wait to dry off and sit by the fire for a bit.
Carefully he picked his steps through the trees not wanting to knock her head or feet on any of the branches on the path. When the campsite came into view again he saw what a mess they'd left in their rush to get her to the water. The place where he could lay her down was rumpled and dirt was spread on it. He waited until Kahlan broke through the bramble then asked her to straighten up Aeryn's bed.
She shook the bits of forest, dirt and pine needles off the blanket and then laid it down nicely. Before Richard could set her down she stopped him and put one of the shiny blankets over it.
"That way she won't have a damp sleeping spot later. This looks like any water will bead off it or dry very quickly." Kahlan spread it out and then tucked the edges around the bottom blanket. "Okay, it's ready." She backed away and let Richard place Aeryn gently on the bed. She straightened her legs as he lowered her down. Her back finally resting against the bedroll.
"Just keep her away from the fire for now. It's better to keep her core temp lower than normal until whatever was causing that is flushed from her system." John rambled into the clearing and made his way next to her. He stroked her hair from her face and pulled it from the pony tail. It had begun to knot and he knew she hated to brush through it when it was like that. He wrapped the towel that he held in his hands around the mass of black mane and helped wring it out. She needed to stay cool, not freeze. He'd brush it for her later when she was feeling better. Her leather pants needed to come off before they shrunk. She was starting to shiver a bit and he wanted her to be dry.
"Hey, baby, I'm going to take your pants off before we can't anymore."
"Always trying to get into my pants, even when I'm sick." She flashed a smile and continued to shake. His hands rubbed along her abs, slow, soothing circles.
He felt the goose bumps on her skin as he caressed her belly. She was so fit and hard and yet still womanly and soft. He knew that one day she'd hold a growing child in here not just the fetus in stasis like now. Their child. He lowered his head and kissed her stomach right beneath her belly button. His fingers reached for the button on the top of her pants and undid it.
Aeryn moaned at his mouth on her skin. The chill of her flesh made the heat of his lips feel like a delicious burn. He was very daring knowing they weren't alone but she didn't care, she loved his playfulness and wasn't ashamed of their relationship. His mouth trailed behind his hands as he unzipped the leather pants. She lifted her hips so he could tug them free. Feeling her underwear going with she used her own fingers to hold tight to it. She didn't want to expose herself to the other two.
She could see Kahlan out of the corner of her eye. She kept looking and then turning her head away, but like a moth to a flame she couldn't keep her eyes from them. She could see her mouth opened and her breasts heaved as she panted against her corset. The woman needed release, she needed it too. More than that even, she craved the connection. After John's head injury and her overheating scare they couldn't risk the activity, not just yet, but she still desired him desperately.
John watched as she held tight to her panties, the pants had tried to take them with but she'd been too swift and prevented it. She was wearing her favorite black variety and her skin was even paler than normal making it stand out even more. The white of her leg was slowly behind revealed as he worked the pants down her slender legs. Finally they were at a point with little resistance and he tugged them off fully.
"We could have sex." Aeryn smiled as she repeated the words that she'd used once before. His eyes were wide a Rygel's and it made her giggle. "Just not right now."
"You are a tease and a minx." John pulled the leather oil from their kits and doused her pants in it. Then spread them by the fire to help them dry. Then he crawled back over and laid on his side next to her. His fingers danced from her hip to the underside of her breast and back down.
"And you love me for it." She placed a palm on his cheek and pulled his face down to hers.
He completed closing the distance and kissed her. Her tongue was pressing against his lips and he opened for her. She was never one to wait on the kiss, she was all business from their first contact. Her mouth was chilled and it felt erotic against his heated tongue. The temperature difference was delighting his senses and he slid his body closer to hers. The fire warmed his back as her touch warmed his front. He was becoming a bit too excited. His manhood was hardening and he was still only in his Calvin's.
"You two need a room?" Richard was feeling the heat from their encounter and he was on the other side of camp.
John smiled against her lips and pulled back. He kissed her forehead and then rubbed his nose along the side of hers.
"You have one?" Crichton sat up and looked at Richard who was shaking his head in amusement. He could see how red he was even from the slight distance and knew that watching them had aroused him as well.
"If I did I'd have ushered you into it already. Or have used it myself…" He glanced at Kahlan who was still mesmerized by the other two.
"It would have gone to waste for us…" She didn't expect the emotion that followed that realization. He wouldn't be with her for months yet. How was she going to survive? Especially now with Aeryn and John's sensuality surrounding her all the time. The tears that fell surprised her and she looked up at Richard before wiping them away.
The Seeker reached for his Confessor but she threw her hands in the air and walked away.
"Kahlan…"
"Not now, Richard, not now." She scooped up her skirt and jacket and walked into the forest.
She felt like she was on fire. She hadn't realized how much watching the other couple kiss with such intent would cause her to burn for Richard to do that to her. She wanted his hands on her skin while they tongues dueled. The heat of his body pressing against hers, flesh to flesh. His hard sex begging her to let him enter. She wanted it all. She didn't know how much longer she could wait before she went insane with wanting.
She found a stump not far from camp, she didn't want to worry them, but she couldn't be around it. Not the physical affection, not when she couldn't have it as well. The stressful night followed by a hectic morning had strung her out emotionally.