Trigleph – Rhea's Apartment

Months of pure bliss sped by. Ever since having a face to face conversation again, Alvin and Rhea have been stuck together like glue. They simply couldn't get enough of each other. On the days that he would work, he left last minute and the second he was done he was right back with her. She ended up moving in with him since his place was a little bigger. She had kept her own apartment still. After being convinced by Leia, so that she could possibly use them for her articles, Rhea developed a large quantity of her photos. In needing a place for them, she pretty much used the apartment as a studio. And it was the only excuse that she had to even leave her new home. She was enjoying playing housewife since it came so naturally to her after taking care of her mother her entire life. Life was seeming too perfect for them. So, of course, it was due time for something to go wrong.

"Damn it!" Alvin shouted, punching a wall.

"Come on Alvin, there has to be a clue somewhere," Jude attempted to console his friend.

He ran his fingers through his hair, ready to simply pull a chunk right off his head. He then spoke angrily, "go ahead and take a look in this mess because I certainly couldn't find a single damn thing."

As he began to search, he spoke calmly, "tell me exactly what happened."

"I already told you, I don't know!"

"Alvin! You're not going to help her until you calm down!" Jude scolded.

"... Won't change the fact that I still don't know. All I can say is that she's been acting weird recently and she wouldn't tell me anything. Damn it... I should have made her talk."

"We'll get her back."

With a sigh, Alvin slid down the wall and sat on the floor. He watched his friend search through the destroyed apartment. He knew there was no chance in the least but still hoped that he would find something. Subconsciously, he was holding onto a wristwatch that Rhea had given him. She called it a 'welcome home' gift even though she had moved in with him. He smiled a bit as he remembered that day, only to lose it soon after. His heart ached at the realization that he had zero idea of where she was. He desperately tried to figure out a way to find her, but he simply couldn't think of anything. When all hope seemed lost to him, a familiar ring tone made him jump to his feet. As he attempted to get his GHS out of his pocket, he ended up dropping it as he fumbled. He ended up using both of his hands to hold up the phone to his ear so that he wouldn't drop it again.

He expected himself to be shouting the instant the connection was made but his voice betrayed him. All he could muster was a whisper, "Rhea..?"

An even softer whisper came through, "hey..."

"Where are you?"

"I don't know... It's really dark."

"Can you move around?"

After a sharp wince she told him, "my head hurts too much to move..."

"Damn it... What happened to you?"

"I don't really know. One moment I was looking at some pictures, then the next I'm in a cave with a pounding headache."

"Cave?" he asked quickly, looking over at the watchful Jude.

"I don't know for sure. The ground is dirt, I'm surrounded by rocks. I can hear water nearby."

"Anything else? Did you see who it was that did this?"

"I can't remember."

"Well... Do what you can to take care of yourself until I find you."

"As long as you don't get reckless."

"Yeah yeah."

"Wait... I'm hearing someone," she spoke in a much softer voice.

"What? Who?" When she didn't answer, he instantly became worried once again. "Rhea?"

She wouldn't respond to him. However, he did pick up foreign voices. He was unable to really understand what they were saying. Despite that, he was able to get the gist of it. It seemed that they wanted her camera, but she refused to give the location of it. He felt his blood boil when he heard her grunt, no doubt she was hit. Jude had no idea what to do. All he could do at this point is watch his friend become angrier by the second. He was surprised that the GHS wasn't broken yet by how tightly it was being held. But, he can't say that he was surprised when he heard him curse Exodus under his breath. Alvin began to pace once more as his impatience grew. He stopped soon enough when he finally heard what he needed. Without a second thought, he left the apartment.

In knowing he was being followed he spoke only two words, "Tatalian Abyss!"

The two were out of the building in light speed. As they passed down the streets, passerbyers had to jump out of the way so they wouldn't get trampled. Jude did his best to apologize but Alvin couldn't give two shits. He didn't even care that he was running out of breath. He was running off of pure rage. They passed through Helioborg so quickly that they barely even paid it mind. Before they knew it, they found themselves at the entrance of the abyss. They took a moment to catch their breath as they glanced inside. Nothing seemed to be amiss. At the same time, the air felt different. They unsheathed their weapons and ventured inside. Cautiously, they made their way deep inside the abyss. They began to feel disconcerted when, after going down a couple different levels, they saw no sign of anyone. The only way to contain his boiling blood was by cutting down the monsters that dared get in his way. They weren't there quite yet, but they were nearing the end of the cavern. Before they began to lose hope, shouts echoed from down the tunnel leading to the depths. They slowed their pace a s they finally saw a difference. After seeing multiple Exodus agents, they hugged the wall so that they wouldn't be seen. However, when a certain female voice rang out, Alvin lost his mind. He broke away from Jude, against his protests, and approached the mob. There he finally saw her. Rhea was barely on her feet. Her left arm seemed to be broken and she was holding it with her left. Her clothes were torn and bloodied. Only her expression had any strength to it. Her glare and snarl kept the group at bay. That, and also that she was right at the edge of the cliff. If she were to take one step back, she would fall. For a bit he watched helplessly. He couldn't figure out a way to get to her without taking a chance of her plummeting to her death. That's when she noticed him. Her eyes widened, not expecting to see him. The Exodus members that were closest to her saw the opportunity and reached for her. Out of reflex, she jumped back. Her scream echoed through the cavern. His eyes widened and his mouth went dry. In feeling his heart in his throat, he ran to the group. He pushed right through them, not giving a simple damn if he hurt them. He dropped his weapons when he got to the edge. He then got down to his knees and looked down.

"Rhea?!" he exclaimed.

She looked up at him with a tired smile and softly spoke, "hey..."

She was just barely clinging onto the wall. Her right hand was just barely clinging onto a narrow ridge while her shoes caught another. Her left arm was limp to her side. He knew time was limited with how badly she was shaking. What was worse was that she was out of his reach. To get her he would need Jude's help. The help would need to wait. A couple Exodus members grabbed onto him and forcefully pulled him away. His companion would have helped if he wasn't busy fighting off the members at the back of the group. One of the members was about to stomp his skull in of the downed one, but his foot froze midair. He couldn't see his expression since his foot was in the way. However, a gun that was pointed right between his eyes made him hesitate. Taking advantage of that, Alvin jumped to his feet and pressed the barrel against his forehead. The thin helmet wouldn't prove helpful at all at such a range. He kept the others at bay with his sword.

Completely consumed by rage, he growled, "give me one reason why I shouldn't shoot you right now so that your comrades won't get covered in your brain matter..."

"You don't have what it takes," the member hissed back.

He pressed the barrel harder against the helmet while taking off the safety. Not feeling such anger in so long, he barely held him back from beheading them all in less than a minute. "Don't test me," he warned.

"Tch... She took a picture of something that wasn't supposed to be seen. We just wanted to get the damned camera. That damned bitch-"

His eyes widened at the wording. If it wasn't for Jude raising his arm last moment, he really would have shot him. The bullet instead ricocheted against the cave wall. He looked back at him furiously.

Jude spoke calmly so that he wouldn't be socked, "she's barely hanging on Alvin. Don't waste your energy on him."

He did calm down for a bit, but before anything else, he hit the member with the butt of the gun with great strength. It was only when he fell over from unconsciousness that he noticed that every other member was already down for the count. He quickly put down his weapons and went back over to the edge. He frowned deeply when he saw that her form was shaking horribly. Her nails were attempting to dig into the rocky ledge. Jude rested his hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

When looking over, Jude describe his plan, "lower me down to her. I should be able to reach her that way and then you can pull us both up."

"Are you sure?" he asked back, not wanting to risk his friend's safety.

"We don't have time."

"Damn it... Alright."

The younger nodded and took off his coat so that it wouldn't be in the way. After doing so, he knelt down at the edge and explained the plan to the panicked female. She did her best to nod while readjusting her grip. Once the two were completely ready, Alvin grabbed onto Jude's ankles with a very secure grasp. Cautiously, the smaller was lowered down the cliff side. Alvin didn't even dare look down. He simply followed his directions to a tee. He was too afraid that the second he'd look down he would freak out and not only lose Rhea but also Jude. His hands were already slick with sweat. He had to lower himself so much that he was lying on his front. He could just barely hear the two talk to each other about how he would get her, especially with her limp arm. The very moment the weight doubled, Alvin used every muscle he had to pull them back up. As soon as he got back to his knees he knew he had it. Gritting his teeth, he raised them both back onto the ground. For nearly a minute, the trio simply rested on their backs and concentrated on catching their breaths. Rhea, just really needing comfort, inched over to Alvin. When she was close enough, she rested her head on his chest. He held onto her and sat up. His heart began to pound once more when he saw how she was hurt. She had multiple cuts all over her. No wound was too deep but she still had to be in great pain. Before studying further, Jude made his way over to them. He studied her motionless arm.

"It's not broken, but it's dislocated. I'm going to have to set it," he explained.

"Can you do it now..?" she asked weakly.

"Are you sure?"

"I still have adrenaline going through me..."

"Okay." He looked up at Alvin and instructed him, "hold her still."

He frowned but nodded. He readjusted his grasp on her and turned her head so that her face was against his chest. At least this way she wouldn't see what was going on. She loosely wrapped her good arm around him.

Just before pain filled her, she whispered, "my GHS..."

"Huh? What was that? What about it?" Alvin asked.

"It's behind the pill-ah!"

Jude took advantage of her talking. While she was at her more distracted state, he set her shoulder. A sharp gasp cut off her sentence. The couple tightened their grasps on each other as searing pain shot through her. Tears sprung from her tightly shut eyes. To help ease some of the pain, Jude used his healing powers to seal up her injuries. By the time he finished, the female slipped into unconsciousness. Alvin moved his leg so that he could prop her against it while he took off his scarf. In being careful with her arm, he wrapped the yellow fabric around her limb to create a makeshift sling. Once he finished, he held onto her securely. His heart was finally at rest but the fear was still lingering. He simply can't figure out why he has to keep witnessing people falling off ledges. He wanted to just take her home but he he knew that he couldn't leave. He glanced over at Jude who was studying the group of downed agents. They both knew it was only a matter of time now until they wake up.

"There's no other way, is there?" Jude pondered.

"Not that I can see," Alvin responded.

"Do you know any of them?"

"Heh... Doesn't matter if I did or not. They knew exactly who they were toying with. In order to get her, they had to study her movements for awhile. They made sure to get her when she was most vulnerable. I don't give a shit what happens to them."

Sighing deeply, the younger nodded as he pulled out his GHS. It didn't take him long to get in contact with Chancellor Marcia. Alvin could only guess it was props of his profession to be able to get in contact with someone like her so easily. The conversation didn't last too long. Jude glanced back at him over his shoulder and gave him a silent nod. Alvin nodded back. No more words traded between them. Within only a few minutes, agents led by the chancellor appeared. The Exodus group was beginning to stir right as they appeared. Marcia approached Jude while her agents took away the Exodus ones. Alvin stood up with Rhea in his arms when the two looked over at him.

"This woman seems familiar," Marcia pondered as she approached.

"She told me how she met you at the Spirius gathering for the new president," Alvin explained.

"Ah yes, that's right. So what is the story here?" Alvin told her all he knew, which really wasn't much. When he finished she requested, "when she's up to it, have her give me a call so that we can get to the bottom of this."

"Of course."

"Until then."

With a nod, the chancellor left with her escort. Once she was out of sight, he looked back at Jude. A frown played on his lips seeing that he was looking down the bottomless pit. Cautiously, he approached him. When he got close enough to see his face, he couldn't help but notice that his skin was shades paler.

"My coat fell," Jude spoke softly.

As he tightened his grasp on Rhea, Alvin told him, "let's get out of here before anything else falls."

"Y-yeah...Right."

The duo left the abyss without exchanging a single word. They were both exhausted. They both simply wanted to reach their respective homes and stay there. Jude couldn't quite do that. As they passed through Helioborg, he had to part ways to finish up some documents. Alvin, on the other hand, couldn't give less than a damn about work. Even if Yurgen were to be hassling him, he wouldn't listen. Multiple times as he made his way back home, he looked down at the resting girl in his arms. He hated not knowing the story that led to today. He was more worried than anything though. Even though she was unconscious, her expression read pain. It really bothered him because he knew that Jude healed her wounds. He lifted her up enough so that he could rest his forehead on hers. He frowned when hers felt way warmer than his. Curses escaped him as he increased his pace.

Soon enough he returned home. As soon as he kicked the front door shut behind him, he locked every lock he hand on the door. He nearly hit her head on the wall to do so. He could tell his arms were at their limit with how badly they were shaking. In being very aware of his exhaustion, he quickly went into the bedroom and laid her down as gently as he could. He sighed deeply as he shook his arms to relieve them of the tension. He looked down at her after he finished. Her expression still read that she was in pain, but he really didn't know what to do about it while she's sleeping. What he can do though is clean her up. With all the dried blood and dirt, she was completely filthy. Being very careful, he removed her ripped clothing. He did leave her underwear on so that his mind would behave. He could feel himself getting sick from the amount of dried blood that was on her. Before he let it get to him too badly, he went into the bathroom. He picked up a bucket usually used for cleaning and filled it with warm, soapy water. While the bucket filled, he grabbed a couple different cloths. After turning off the tap, he brought the items next to the bed. In needing a place to sit down, he moved the chair over from the desk and put it down right next to the bucket. He picked up the cloth he already had in the bucket and wrung it out. Very gently, he began with her forehead. She groaned in response which made him freeze. When she showed no signs of waking up, he continued. Because he was being as careful as he could, the time raced by. He could feel himself nodding off by the time he got to her stomach. Just before reaching her knees, he was out cold.

He awoke in the middle of the night in a start. His heart instantly began to pound when he noticed Rhea was no longer in bed. He knew that it was the sound of glass breaking that awoke him. He jumped to his feet and nearly fell flat on his face from tripping over the bucket. Only reason it didn't spill was that the water was already soaked into the carpet. In hearing a noise from the doorway, he bolted to the front of the apartment. He couldn't see his hand in front of his face it was so dark. The windows usually give enough light to see the outlines. After a few seconds of feeling the wall, he found a light switch. The very moment he flipped it on, a cry came out of the kitchen. He strained his eyes to see that Rhea was kneeling on the floor, holding her head with her good arm. She had a robe on but it was open. In front of her was a broken glass. The worrying quickly turned into anger.

"What the hell Rhea?!" Alvin nearly shouted. "How many times do I have to tell you to ask me if you need help?! I'm getting sick of this!"

Not a word came from her in defense. All she did was hold her head tighter and begin to shake. He sighed deeply and ran his fingers through his hair as he tried to calm down. He just watched her, trying to figure out her train of thought. After a few seconds of observing her, she began to move. She reached over next to her and opened a cabinet. She blindly reached inside since she kept her head lowered. Her hair was covering her face so he couldn't see. She pulled out a large mixing bowl while knocking others onto the floor. The moment she had the bowl in front of her, she puked in it. He frowned and approached her, being careful of the broken glass. He sat next to her and moved her hair so that nothing would get in it. He felt guilty the moment he saw her face. Her cheeks were covered in tears. They were now falling into the bowl at a rapid rate. Her eyes were closed tightly. The moment she finished emptying her stomach, she curled back up. He moved the bowl to the other side of the room so that it wouldn't spill. He, then, stood up and left the kitchen. He came back right after with a broom and dustpan. In not wanting to see her get hurt again, he swept up all the glass. He left the room with the dustpan, not wanting to put the glass in a container it could rip up. By the time he was back in the kitchen, Rhea was on her feet. She was hunched over the sink, drinking water straight from the tap. He couldn't help but notice how badly her form was shaking. For a bit he just watched her, trying to figure out her train of thought. Thirst. That was the only thing obvious. Her mouth didn't move away from the running water for a good minute. When that time passed, her head moved so that the back of it was getting wet. He frowned and approached her frail form.

"Rhea?" he questioned softly.

"Please don't move me..." she weakly begged.

His frown deepened. In wanting to comfort her the best he saw how, he held onto her hand that was motionless on the counter top. He lifted it up high enough so that he could kiss the back of it. She weakly held onto his.

"Can you help me to the bathroom? My legs won't last much longer..." she asked.

"Sure thing."

He didn't know what else to do besides complete her whims. He grabbed a freshly cleaned towel and turned off the tap. He wrapped the towel around her hair so it wouldn't drip everywhere. She straightened up a bit, but she was still bent a bit. He offered to carry her but she refused not wanting to throw up again from the sudden movement. He wrapped his arm around her waist only to get a horrible feeling. He rested his hand on her forehead to check her temperature. Despite it being wet, her skin was burning to the touch. Feeling even more like a jerk for yelling at her, he escorted her to the restroom. He turned the light on in the small room. She groaned and pulled the towel down so that it was covering her eyes. He turned on a nightlight and turned the main light off. Breaking away from him, she walked deeper inside and sat on the floor next to the tub. She reached over to turn the water, but he held onto her hand to stop her.

"Alvin..?" she questioned weakly.

"I'm sorry, I just really want to check your temperature first."

"Hurry up..."

He nodded and stood back up. He opened the medicine cabinet and took out a thermometer. He knelt back next to her and called out to her. She glanced over at him. He smiled sadly and handed her the device. She took it from him and put it right in her mouth. As they waited, he proposed taking her to the hospital. He could feel the heat emitting from her. She silently refused. She slowly shook her head at every question relating to the hospital. Despite refusing his ideas, she really wanted his comfort. Very carefully she leaned over and rested her head on his chest. He closed his eyes and held onto her. While trying to figure out what to do, the thermometer beeped. He pulled it out of her mouth and strained his eyes to read the result. He felt his own stomach churn when he saw that she was over one-hundred degrees.

"Can you take off your watch..?" she asked.

He stared at he confused for a bit but did so. She grabbed onto it and fiddled with it a bit. After a little time, she gave it back to him. He studied it the best he could, but didn't see anything different about it. He looked back down at her even more confused. She handed over her hand once more. He dropped the watch in his pocket and opened his hand to her. She dropped a smaller onto it. He recognized what it was instantly. It was one of the memory cards to her camera.

"Whatever Exodus wants is on it..." she explained.

"What is it that you took a picture of?" he asked.

"I don't know... Maybe you can take it to Marcia and she can figure it out..."

"Best in her hands anyway."

"..."

"Rhea?"

"Please don't let it get damaged..."

"Wait... Is this the same card that has your parents' pictures on it?"

"Yeah..."

"I get it now."

"Hmm..."

He rested his chin on her head, just wanting to give her comfort. He could tell that she wanted to move over to the tub to put her head back underwater but he kept his grasp firm. She was already sick, he didn't want her to get sicker. She groaned to show her that she was uncomfortable, but he wouldn't give in. He pressed her head gently against his chest, knowing that the sound of his heartbeat has the capability of calming her down. His frown grew when he could feel her begin to sweat. She gave up fighting against him, not having the energy to do so. As he sat there, he couldn't help but think about what has progressed in one single day from her suddenly vanishing to her currently with an unknown sickness. He just couldn't figure out why all the females in his life keep falling off cliffs. Thinking about how close he was to losing her again made him feel uneasy. If Jude didn't go with him, he didn't want to even think about where'd he be at this moment. He owed him so much. He suddenly found himself thinking about his past journeys, before meeting Rhea. And that's when it hit him. He took out his GHS and quickly dialed a number. From what she could understand, he was talking to Jude's father. Apparently the father was refusing to help. Alvin, desperate for the help, begged him. He probably would have been on his hands and knees if they were in front of the doctor. She wanted to hold onto him, but all she could muster was barely grasping onto the front of his shirt. He secured his grasp on her and buried his face in her hair. After one more 'please', the doctor gave in. Very soon after, he put his device back in his pocket. Carefully, he helped her get to her feet and brought her back to the bedroom. He placed her down on the bed so carefully it was light he was carrying a fine glass statuette. With her back to the bathroom door, he turned the light on in it so that he could see in the bedroom. She glanced down at the soaked carpet, remembering what had happened eariler.

"I tried..." she whispered.

"Huh?" he asked back, approaching her.

"You wouldn't wake up... I tried calling you, shaking you... Tripping over the bucket didn't wake you..."

His eyes widened as guilt hit him like a ton of brinks. He knelt down and buried his face in her lap. When she rested her hand on it, he responded, "I'm sorry. I'm such a dumb ass."

"Mmm... Yes... But I love your dumb ass..."

He smiled and looked back up at her. He kissed her only to frown. "You are seriously burning up..." he spoke sadly.

"Mhmm..."

"So, I'm going to help you change into some clothing and we're out of here."

"At this hour..?"

"We're going to Rieze Maxia so it'll be okay."

"Okay..."

He grabbed some random clothes and helped her change into them carefully enough. She really disliked the fact that he put a coat on her, but it had a hood that would help block the light for her. As soon as they were ready, he knelt back down so that her back was to her. If he can't carry her in his arms, he'll have to do it this way. She wrapped her arms around his neck and let her body weight rest on his back. He grabbed onto her legs and slowly stood up, not wanting to make her dizzy. Once they were both steady, he was on his way.

Leronde – Mathis Clinic

Alvin let out a sigh in great relief as he walked up to the door of the clinic. However, when he tried to open it, he couldn't help but notice that it was locked. He knew that even though he got to the location at record speed, it was late here now. Despite that, he pounded on the door. He was too desperately impatient to wait until the morning. Rhea has been in and out of consciousness since leaving his home. She felt like he had a heater on his back. Despite her temperature, she had been shivering the past couple hours. She couldn't seem to get warm enough. Despite the shivers, she was completely drenched in sweat. Even after he banged on the door multiple times, he cursed under his breath. Not knowing what else to do, he very carefully laid her down on the bench on the porch. She curled up instantly into a fetal position to keep warm. He took off his damp jacket from her sweat and laid it on her. Afterwards, he sat down in front of her. He held onto her clenched hand and kissed it. He left his lips on it and rested his head on the bench. His exhaustion had caught up with him. He didn't want to know how badly he looked. His heavy eyelids closed down like iron gates. Just before falling asleep, he felt her hand loosen. Soon, their fingers were entangled.

Feeling like he really needed to at this point, for the first time ever he told her, "I love you."

She tightened her grasp just a bit and said, "love you..."