The safe house in South Town was filled with shouts and worried murmurs. Someone was sobbing; men were shouting for people to clear out of the way, the strangely calm voices of the doctors stressing that people needed to give them space.
Keira was standing shakily in the corridor leading to the small O.R. room just up ahead, clinging to the little boy. He was watching as people rushed past them wearily, his head turning back and forth with each person who brushed past them. Keria was still wearing her filthy Wasteland clothes, sand spurting from her jacket with each movement. Her hair was in disarray and her goggles hung loosely around her neck; her voice was still strained and she couldn't speak loud enough to ask what was going on. She watched as Hector appeared, carrying a wounded Underground member as he went. He elbowed his way through the swinging door of the O.R., saying something to the doctors. The doors swung again and he was gone from sight.
Keria heard the sobbing coming closer and turned to see Tess walking up the hallway, carrying a small animal in her arms. Keira's eyes widened and she recognized it instantly as a Muse. The little boy reached happily for Tess, but she went on sobbing.
"Tess," Keria said, "Don't cry…"
"Where is he?" she sniffled, desperately trying to hold back her tears, "Do you know?"
"They took him back there...But Ashelin won't let any-"
Tess gathered the Muse back up in her arms, sniffing again. The animal curled up close to her as if trying to bring some sort of comfort. Tess grabbed a fistful of her hair and pulled on it slightly, murmuring,
"He's all I have…he's all I have…"
The little boy realized that Tess was upset and his lip began to tremble. He buried his face in Keira's shoulder and she smoothed down his hair soothingly. Tess forced away her tears and marched up to the door of the O.R., the Muse in tow. Keria didn't stop her and realized she probably wouldn't be able to. She hugged the child closer and sighed wearily, feeling tears of her own stinging behind her eyes.
Torn was supposed to come back from things like this. If there was one thing Keira knew about him, it was that it took a lot to put him out of it. She understood now that she'd imagined Torn as someone who was almost invulnerable- an almost childish assumption- but it seemed correct to her. The fact that he was in there and possibly fighting for his life was unsettling.
Footsteps caused her to look up, and she was surprised to see Syd standing in the hallway, her arms folded across her chest. The fluorescent lights above cast a strange glow, and Keira could see the scars across her face more clearly. They were thin and had faded, though they looked fairly intricate, as though the tattoos had been a special design prior to being removed.
"You alright?" she asked Keira.
The mechanic nodded, adjusting to the boy in her arms, who had now laid his head on her shoulder, chewing on his fingers. Syd smiled at the boy and gently tousled his hair. He returned her grin, but fell back into a weary silence soon after.
"How is he?" Keira found herself asking.
"…He's lost a lot of blood," Syd admitted, "I'm not going to lie to you- it doesn't look great. But that doesn't mean he won't pull out of it. I've donated some blood, so I hope that should help…Tess brought the Muse creature to help the doctors."
Keria nodded again, sniffing. "You've known him awhile, huh?'
"Yes. Ever since Basic- I taught him how to use that blade of his. He's pretty damn good with it, I have to say…not to mention his skill with a rifle." Syd sighed, leaning against the wall beside Keira. She ran a hand through her hair. "I'm almost sorry he's no longer a Guard- I think he could have stopped this all from getting out of hand."
"Why did he leave?" Keira asked.
Syd sighed once again. "You'll have to ask him about that."
Keira pursed her lips and bounced the child in her arms, who had started to fuss a little, rubbing his eyes with a fist. Syd clapped a comforting hand on Keira's shoulder and squeezed it slightly.
The door to the O.R. suddenly burst open, causing both of them to jump in surprise. Ashelin and Hector stood before them, the former holding a small canister in her palms. Keria and Syd were automatically alert. Keria was surprised to see Hector, this burly guy who looked like he could be a Wastelander, upset at what was going on. His eyes were oddly bright. Ashelin was looking just as worried; her hair mussed and there were dark smudges under her eyes from mascara that had run from her tears. Keria didn't even know she wore make up…
"How are they?" Syd asked, referring to the other wounded agents.
Hector shook his head. "We lost two of 'em in the attack...and one more here. The others aren't doing so well, but the doctors have hope for them."
"What about Torn?" Keira demanded, her voice louder than she'd wanted.
Ashelin bit her lip. "He's doing…alright. He accepted the donated blood, but…" she sighed, closing her eyes briefly, "He's not out of it yet- there's one more thing we need to do. Right now, Torn's in the same boat as the rest of the agents."
Keria mouthed a swear, gripping the little boy tighter in her arms. She buried her face in his soft hair to hide the tears. He put his hand against her cheek and tapped it gently. Ashelin walked up to them, holding the canister out in her palm.
"This is a very special kind of green eco, Keira- thank God that Muse is here, otherwise I might not have thought about it…" she said, "Libby stole it from the KG barracks a few months ago, using an old recruit number to get inside. Only, her number was marked, and they nearly caught her and Tess outside the Palace. They were hunting for the Underground for weeks. And do you know why it's so important?"
The mechanic shook her head. "No."
"They use it on soldiers to heal their wounds rapidly, only these are for the KG officers," Ashelin held up the canister and Keira frowned. "They used this on my father when he was severely wounded – it was the only thing that saved his life."
Keira was more than a little frustrated. "Ashelin what does this have to do with-"
"This eco works miracles, Keria, but there's a catch: Only a Channeler can activate it." Ashelin laughed humorlessly. "And we happen to have the son of the greatest Channeler on the planet."
Keria looked down at the boy, who seemed to sense they were talking about him. His wide blue eyes bounced from each member of the group, finally resting on Ashelin. He looked thoroughly confused.
"Will it work?" Keria asked.
"It should." Ashelin said with a slight smile, "He saved your life, didn't he?"
Keria gently kissed the child on his temple, deep in thought. Sure, he'd saved her life, but what if that was just a lucky shot? What if he could only channel in emergencies, being that he was only a toddler; perhaps it was only instinctive. But Keria gazed back up at her companions, at Syd's grave expression, Hector's worried eyes…and Ashelin's rumpled, secretly terrified appearance. If she strained her ears, she could just hear Tess' soft cries coming from inside the O.R.
"…Where should I take him?" Keira wanted to know.
Ashelin smiled briefly before motioning for her to follow. Hector and Syd waited outside. The room was surprisingly dark, lit by only a few lights. Circling around them in strange booth-like gaps were small beds, several occupied by Underground agents. Keria could even see a few teenagers in the far corner of the room. Ashelin led her over to Torn, who was lying off to the right on a similar bed, a bright light shining above him. Tess was at his side, her hands pressed tightly together. The Muse had curled up in her lap, licking her fingers reassuringly. Tears showed brightly on her cheeks as she turned her head up to watch them approach.
Keira gasped upon seeing the Underground leader lying unconscious, putting a hand over her mouth. She backpedaled slightly into Ashelin, who gripped her shoulder to steady her.
"Oh my God…This is all my fault!! I shouldn't have gone out there- what an idiot I am!!" she cried.
Ashelin shook her head, gripping Keira's shoulder tighter. Tess bit her lip and managed to hold back more tears. Keira felt the little boy hug her tightly and she held back a sob, her eyes fixed on Torn's motionless form. He looked so different lying there; IV lines ran into his arms and fresh gauze had been tapped over the wounds he'd received. His clothes were still caked with sand. Tess gently laid her hand on his arm and let out a quaking sigh.
"It's not your fault, Keira," Ashelin said.
"But it is! If I hadn't of gone there in the first place, he'd still be awake. And he'd be telling me how much of an idiot I am for going out there!!"
She fell into uncontrollable sobs. Ashelin brought her into a comforting hug. A worried look had crossed the child's face as he watched them embrace. Tess looked as if she wanted to say something. The Muse slid from her grasp as she stood, falling back into her chair.
"Keira…it's not your fault, understand that," Tess said softly, "Please, understand that. But right now, Torn needs your help…okay? Will you help?"
Keira pulled away from Ashelin to look at Tess, who was staring at her, hands clasped together almost pleadingly. Her blue eyes were wide and shined with more tears. It was quite clear Torn meant a lot to her, even if Keria couldn't understand how herself.
"Okay…" she said, "L-Let's get started…what do I have to do?"
Ashelin walked up to the table, checking Torn's vitals quickly, happy to note nothing had changed. A doctor came by after she signaled for him to hurry over. Keira stood beside Torn, looking down at him somewhat hesitantly. The little boy seemed to be happier at the sight of him, and he squiggled to be let go. Keria set him down carefully on the table as Ashelin said,
"You need to find a way to get him to activate this eco. Once that's done, the doctor here will be able to use it accordingly."
Keria nodded, watching the boy as he crouched beside Torn, tilting his head slightly. He turned back to her and tugged on her jacket sleeve, seemingly confused.
"…He's sleeping, honey," Keria told him. She leaned forward slightly, looking into the child's deep blue eyes; she realized they looked oddly familiar somehow. "You want him to wake up, don't you?"
He nodded, smiling. Tess and Ashelin watched as Keira interacted with him. She glanced at Torn briefly before turning back to the boy.
"Okay…but you need to give him something first."
Ashelin handed her the canister and Keria held it up in front of the boy. She opened the cap, and a dull green glow illuminated her face. The boy seemed intrigued by it, to say the least, edging closer to her to get a better look. Keria smiled at him.
"See the pretty crystal in here? Can you touch it for me? Like this-" she nudged it gently with her index finger and it glowed brighter before fading away.
"Can you do that for me, sweetie? And then Torn will wake up, and he'll be very happy to see you."
The boy seemed pleased with this knowledge. Cautiously, he stepped back up to Keria and peeked into the canister. He looked back up at her for approval, and she nodded, smiling at him again. Ashelin and Tess watched anxiously in anticipation. Sticking his tongue out slightly, the child reached into the canister and poked the crystal with a chubby little finger.
There was a bright flash of green light, causing everyone in the room to jump; even the patients turned to see what had happened. Ashelin's lips spread into a smile.
"It worked!"
The toddler was gazing at them confusedly, as if he didn't understand what he'd done. Keira cried out excitedly, grabbing him in a grateful hug. She passed the canister to Ashelin, who gave it to the doctor to prepare.
"You did it, baby!" Keira told him happily, "You did it!"
She turned to watch as the doctor closed the canister of now-liquid eco. He took out a syringe and began to fill it with the fluid, shaking his head in disbelief.
"I've never seen a child this gifted before. We should be keeping extreme careful of him…and it looks like he did the trick," he said, holding up the needle.
Keria watched as he disinfected a spot on Torn's arm, then stuck the needle in and administered the shot of eco. Ashelin had crossed her arms and fell into solemn silence; Tess pressed her hands together and held them in front of her face, muttering something. Keria blew out a breath and the little boy watched on with wide eyes.
The doctor straightened up and put away the syringe, checking the soldier's vitals once again. Keria started chewing on her nails again, and forced herself to stop. The doctor suddenly jumped, shocked.
"What is it?" all three women said in unison.
"His heart rate just shot up," the physician said, half-laughing, "In fact, everything did. I've never seen anything react so fast…He should be coming out of it any-"
A sudden, gravely voice cut across him.
"…Tess? Ash..elin?"
Tess shrieked joyful sobs, throwing her arms around Torn and burying her face in his shoulder. Groggily, he looked over at her, squinting in the lights above him. He recognized the blonde hair and a small smile crossed his face.
"Torn!! You're back," Tess shouted, her voice muffled by his shirt, "I thought you'd be gone for certain!"
She managed to unlatch her arms from his shoulders and beamed at him. Ashelin walked up into his view, and he reached out to grasp her hand. She looked ready to cry, but smiled.
"Hey, Ash," Torn croaked.
"Hey yourself," she replied, "You look terrible."
Torn managed a throaty laugh, shaking his head. "Your beside manners are awful."
He gripped her hand tighter, pulling her closer to him. She leaned down to plant a kiss on his cheek.
"Someone wants to see you."
Keria had been holding back the little boy as much as she could, but this time he wriggled out of her grasp back on to the table, toddling his way up to meet Torn. The soldier laughed as the kid flopped down to give him a hug, tousling his hair.
"Aw…he loves you," Tess cooed.
Torn smirked. "It figures…."
"You should thank him, Torn," came a familiar voice, "He saved your life."
The ex-Krimzon Guard turned to look at who was speaking, and his eyes widened. Gently, he pushed the boy away and heaved himself to an upright position. Several monitors beeped, but he ignored them, only wincing briefly at the pain.
"Keria?!" he gasped.
She grinned at him and waved. "Hi…"
Torn blinked, both in effort to clear the haze in his eyes and make sure he wasn't dreaming.
"Kid…I thought you…I…you're alive?"
Keria giggled. "Of course I am. You're not the only one who owes their life to that boy, either."
She walked up to him and brought him into a tight embrace, which he returned, one hand on the back of her head. He smiled, laughing lightly.
"Thank God…"
Keria hugged him tighter, beaming. It was good to have her friend back.
"I missed you, Torn," she said.
He shook his head. "Missed you too, Keira…"
