Chapter Three: Central City

Everything was pretty much the same. That was the weirdest part about the whole thing DG had to admit. Whilst her parents had scolded her severely for terrifying them and making them have to go without their head of security to find her... They'd also just been incredibly glad to have her back. Az had just laughed it off. She had known Cain would find DG and she knew he would bring her home. Glitch and Raw, who were searching the area around FenAqua were on their way back too. Things were returning to normal- normal for the O.Z anyway... DG hadn't gotten away completely. There had been fuss, raised voices, disorder and relief... But on the whole, DG thought, she was being treated like a toddler. A naughty child who having been collected and scolded could now be allowed to carry on playing. Fantastic.

In her room, pulling tangles out of her hair the wave of resentment surged around her. It wasn't fair!

'It's not fair!' she voiced bitterly and threw her hairbrush at the wall.

It clattered, undamaged- brush and wall, to the floor. Now she was acting like a toddler. Sitting down on the bed she looked around her room. It was standard palace issue, huge bed, huge mirror, beautiful fabrics. She'd chosen most of it herself. It was her room. She thought about her room on the farm. Long and thin full of clutter and pictures of places she wanted to take off to and see. Would she ever feel at home anywhere? This side felt right to her but still. Lavender and Ahamo weren't her parents... well... Yes, they're her parents but they didn't feel like parents to her. But surely the robotics who raised her weren't really parents either? Az was her sister. She knew that, deep in her core she knew that, Azkadellia was her sister.

Glitch, Raw and Wyatt were her friends. That felt just as true. Proper friends... And The O.Z was her home.

'The O.Z is your home.' She said it firmly- forcing herself to remember it with every fibre of her being. Then, standing up, she went out to find Az and see what she could do to help with sorting out the Turning Bug or whatever it was called.

Azkadellia was in the teaching room. Tutor was there too. He had his back to DG in a far corner, apparently reading through a huge stack of books.

'Hey there baby sister.' Az said and smiled to see her.

'Hi, Az. I came to see what I could do to help, about the Turning Sickness thing.' DG forced everything else to the back of her mind. She would focus on the issue in hand.

'Malady.'

'That's the one.' DG looked at what her sister was doing. In doing so she couldn't help noticing... well- her sister. Azkadellia was wearing a simple blue dress, her hair pulled back low at her neck in a matching ribbon. She was pink rather than white now and her face was less sharp than it had been when the witch lived in her. She really was totally different.

'We... Ambrose and I. Have been looking at different ways of using magic to kill off the spread... but we're not getting that far.' Az said point out some scrawling notes.

'Ambrose, huh?' DG nudged her sister with her hip. Az blushed but ignored her.

'Yes. He's really quite knowledgeable about medicine... Tutor has found some really promising spells though... about cooling the blood fever. Maybe it'll cure the whole thing too...'

'Isn't there an actual... you know medical way of treating it?' DG asked pulling wet inked pages towards her in interest. Mindless of the pale purple dress she was wearing.

'What do you mean?' Az asked forcing a piece of blotting paper between the dress and the ink.

'I mean how willow bark treats an ache- on the other side it's called aspirin.'

'That would only work if the disease was standard developing and non-magical in formation.' Said an intelligent voice from the doorway.

'Glitch!' DG turned hugged the advisor. He looked exhausted and troubled, seeing him made new guilt swelled in her chest. 'I'm sorry I...' she began.

'No, you're back now. Don't worry.' Glitch smiled firmly and nodded as if dismissing the subject completely.

'What did you mean- standard non-magical...' DG frowned and thought. 'The Turning Malady is magical?'

'Of course. Hasn't anyone told you?' Az interrupted as she frowned. 'I created it.'

'You mean the witch created it.' Glitch corrected her hurriedly. He put a hand on her shoulder. 'You did nothing.' His look didn't dismiss this subject it completely erased it- it wasn't there. Az had done nothing- at all. Azkadellia nodded smiling at him.

'Anyway- I... She...' she continued more confidently. 'Created it to torture people. The fever- the nightmares, you know. It stopped them sleeping made them easier to manipulate.'

'I thought she had the vapours for that?' DG asked.

'Some people resist the vapours... The Turning Malady was more... personal in a way. It causes you to relieve your worst nightmares, deepest fears, over and over again. But then it seemed to get away from her: I don't think she planned the spread of the rash or for it to start killing people. But it did and she didn't mind.' Az trailed off slowly.

'So now,' picked up Tutor from his corner, entering into the conversation suddenly. 'We don't know how to stop it. Or how it's spread, where it comes from... nothing.'

'I don't remember it... not clearly. It's all hazy.' Az ventured looking younger than she was. 'Maybe we could use the viewers to pull it...'

'No!' Said Glitch sternly. 'You've been through enough. Having to relieve it might kill you. We're not risking it.'

Azkadellia seemed to shrink. 'We have to do something soon! We're running out of time.'

DG picked up on something unsaid. Something important no one had told her.

'What's happened?'

'Two of the first of the victims, two street girls. They died this morning. If we don't fix it soon more are going to die...' Az paused but then went on: 'Including the Captain.'

'Captain- what Captain?'

'He didn't tell you, did he?' Everyone stared at DG. 'We figured that's how he talked you into coming back...'

'Tell me then!' She demanded glaring at everyone in turn.

'DG, it's Jeb. Jeb Cain's sick with it too.'

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A/N- Reviews again are always gratefully appreciated! Let me know if you think I'm going in the right direction!