III - Heel-In
Hello folks! I want to thank all those who have read and followed my fic! A bit of a shorter chapter due to an incident at work this week. May or may not have totaled a government vehicle. Lots of paperwork is needed and interviews.
Anyways, here's chapter 3!
~~~(III)~~~
Calling Oxon a zombie would be quite fitting. The amazement of the knowledge given by Qrow was shocking at best and terrifying at worst. He grew up with stories of old Mantle, and came to know their old country was on the brink of conflict with other nations. The war alone was a shock, but news of this "Color Revolution" had caused a system crash in his mind.
First Mantle loses the war, then they were overthrown… There were others like us the whole time, only they didn't abandon their home and country. The monarchies are over? Are there truly no more kings? Why didn't Vale keep theirs?
That thought gave him some comfort. The lord of Mantle had not been known as a benevolent man, forcing creativity and color to be banned in the name of safety. But the King of Vale, from what he was told, it seemed like he could have united them all with everyone's full support. So why did he abdicate?
After landing at a hospital in Vale, Qrow had to escort that Amber girl to an emergency room. Following that, he was put in an examination room at the older man's request. He was brought out of his mental reboot when an old man in a white coat entered the room.
"Well young man, from preliminary observations we gathered, you are clearly suffering from a bad case of malnutrition." The doctor said, as if his condition wasn't fucking obvious.
"Yeah, I kind of expected as much, is there anything besides that? Or is this just a case of pointing out the obvious?" Oxon said losing patience after waiting 20 damn minutes for that. The healers at his home never beat around the bush unless it was better for the patient.
The man chuckled a little at the comment but was otherwise unfazed. "Well son, I guess you want me to cut to the chase?" When Oxon nodded in affirmation he continued. "Obviously your time alone in the wild has had adverse health effects, you are suffering from a lack of multiple vitamins as well as some minor parasites from poorly prepared food, it's lucky that you were able to avoid scurvy."
"Parasites? Is there anything you can give me for that?" Oxon asked, worried about the parasites. Creepy crawlies were bad enough when he could see them, but it was infinitely worse since they were unable to be seen and crawling around inside him.
"With modern medicine, I am sure you will make a quick recovery within the month, here I have something that will help." He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a plastic jar. "These pills will help to take care of the little nasties running around inside you. You'll need to take one after every meal, if you don't, they may develop a resistance to the drugs. Should be enough for thirty days." The doctor said, placing it in my hands.
"Other than that, the path to recovery is easy as long as you eat proper meals to put weight back on your bones." Standing up, the doctor moved towards the door, gesturing for Oxon to follow. "Now since your condition is not debilitating or in danger of getting worse any time soon, we will be discharging you today."
As they made their way through the building, Oxon noticed more differences from his old home. This hospital was years ahead of their own medical facility, with technology that was able to diagnose even the smallest issues. Windows allowed him to see buildings that had twice the levels than the town hall of Prism. The simple stone and wooden structures seemed like primitive hovels compared to the great architecture of Vale.
"Now since you have no insurance or medical history in vale, normally that would lead to a hefty price, but since you are a minor without family or income, you qualify for waived fees." The doctor said as we neared the lobby. "Now I know a little of your circumstances, and I want to do what I can to help."
He pulled out a paper card and handed it to him. "This is the name and address of a shelter here in Vale. They should be able to help you get back on your feet." The card was a simple thing, a colorful image of a house and a name: "Helping Hand, Shelter for Mankind"
"A shelter?"
"Yes, Mr Branwen told me you had escaped the destruction of your home, for which you have my condolences." The older man said with pity heavy in his voice. "They are the nearest one to here, and although they might not be the most funded, they have a good reputation with getting people employed and on their feet."
Great, more people knew his backstory, and more people looked down on him with their pity. Oxon didn't need nor want to be seen as pathetic, even though he begrudgingly accepted that many would. Accepting this offer stung his pride, but if he wanted to survive in this world, then he would need to humble himself.
"Thank you, Doctor, I Guess I will try them out." Before he could leave the building though, the doctor called out to him.
"Are you sure you want to leave now? Mr. Branwen expressed his desire to speak with you once he finished with the other patient he brought in." Thinking about the man gave him pause. While he was thankful to have run into Qrow when he did, something about the situation where they met seemed… off. Oxon couldn't put a finger on it, but he had a feeling that if he stayed, he might be dragged off somewhere, and he preferred to not deal with the stress of uncertainty.
"I am sure, I've survived this long, I'm sure I can do so long enough to get to this shelter." He then left the hospital and began walking out into the city.
~~~(III)~~~
Vale was massive, he spent the majority of the trek through the streets looking upwards at the buildings that reached far upwards, as well as the aircrafts flying too and fro. The view from the hospital windows failed to compare to actually standing amongst it all. People moved around and passed by him on the streets, but he didn't really acknowledge their existence. Not that people wanted to be near him, the sorry state of his clothes and body created a bit of room around him.
It took some time to find the shelter, unaccustomed to the layout of the metropolis he had to rely on strangers and maps affixed on the sidewalk. By the time he reached the shelter it was beginning to turn to night. The area he found himself in was nowhere near as grand as the main streets had been. Older buildings and the occasional signs of crime were apparent around him. Looking at the shelter he pulled out the card given to him by the doctor.
Helping Hand, Shelter for Mankind stood before him. The place looks like it had seen better days. The building still had paint coloring its walls, but the welcoming colors were marked with the occasional bit of graffiti.
"Well, I guess this is where I'm supposed to go. Not like there are other options. Other than Branwen…"
Not sure if he had to knock or not, he decided it was safer to knock just in case. "Come on in!" A voice rang out from inside. Walking into the selter showed him that the state of the outside spoke for the inside as well. The walls were in decent shape, but signs of un-repaired wear were visible. Chipped paint and dried spackle could be seen and the man at the counter seemed to be mildly bored.
"Uh, I was told this shelter would be able to help me." He said approaching the counter.
The man sat there looked tired, wrinkles on his face gave the impression that he used to smile a lot, but his face was now set in a neutral, yet bordering on frustrated, expression. His hair had begun to thin and what he still had had turned gray and was nearing white. His outfit was modest, with a simple yellow cardigan over a red dress shirt. He seemed to look in better condition than the building at least. "A doctor at The hospital gave me the address, he said you were good at helping people find work."
The man looked him up and down as if checking for something. "That's true enough, there are always those that need simple laborers here in the city. Though I will need to ask a few questions." The man gestured for me to stand at the counter as he pulled out a few forms.
"First things first," He said, preparing to write down the information in the relevant spots. "what is your name, age, DOB, are you from Vale or a settlement, any family remaining, and some form of ID?"
That was quite the list of questions right off the bat. Oxon had little choice but to answer honestly. "My name is Oxon Adhmad, I am 16 years old, and I was born on April 22nd." The next few questions hurt, his loss of home and family still affected him. "I, I come from the settlement Prism, I have no family left, and I do not have any ID on me."
The man hummed as he wrote down the info, glancing at the calendar on the nearby wall. "Not having any ID will make it tough for you to find employment in most businesses. Even those that hire you would be doing it under the table, so your wages would be poorer for it. Though in a few weeks you'll be 17, meaning you'll be a legal adult in Vale." The man's eyes conveyed a resigned emotion as he told Oxon his prospects.
"Now since you said a doctor gave you our place, I assume you don't have any contagious or debilitating diseases or drug addiction?" The combination of his looks and the fact a doctor was the one who sent me here must have raised some concerns.
"I don't have any disease that can be transmitted, the doc gave me some pills and advice to just eat to recover. I also don't have any addictions, we didn't have anything more than simple alcohols in our walls." Simple issues, and thankfully none that were hard to solve.
"Good enough for me, anyways, you can call me Jude Towhead. We can work on employment and such tomorrow, I can get you a quick meal and show you to the living quarters." he placed the filled out forms in a filing cabinet and began to guide oxon to where he'd be staying.
Oxon was led to what appeared to be a communal dining area with a good number of tables set along the floor. After crossing the room and entering the kitchen, Jude reached into a cabinet and removed a covered styrofoam cup. "Now, this aint the best meal, but our kitchen staff ain't here right now, so this is the best I can do."
The writing on the cup was colorful and curvy. "Pho to Go. What's Pho?" Oxon asked the tired man.
"It's instant food, just add hot water, lemme show ya how." The man guided him to a water cooler and told him to use the hot water option in order to cook the food. It was a very good meal, many of the herbs and spices were unknown to him, he easily could have eaten a half dozen more. After the delicious meal and using the broth to swallow one of his medical pills, he was led up some stairs to what he was told were living quarters.
"Now we ain't no hotel, we don't charge for you to stay here, but that also means there's no single occupancy rooms outside certain cases." The two passed by a few rooms until they came to a room at the end of the hall on the third story.
Opening the door led to a room with four beds and a window on the far wall. "There's no other occupant in this room at the moment, but that can change any time if someone else comes along." Oxon placed his gear by the bed nearest to the window. "I'll see you tomorrow kid, now weapons are allowed here, but if you do anything with them then it's off with the cops for you. So don't do any stupid shit."
The man left and closed the door behind him, finally leaving Oxon to reflect on the day he'd had.
"From a bush to a bed, at least I don't have to worry about grimm anymore." He said, removing his clothes and changing into his tattered sleepwear. Looking down at his gear, he realized it was a true miracle he'd found the huntsman when he did. His rifle was covered in rust, and his handguns were in no better shape. He resolved to get them repaired as soon as he could, getting a job would need to be his priority.
Getting into the bed, he knew that while he was safer inside the city, he still knew that he had a long way to go to being truly safe and stable. As he drifted off to sleep, he remembered the promise he made to his father. "I swear, I will not let you regret your sacrifices. No matter what."
~~~(III)~~~
Well folks, there's chapter 3 for ya! Oxon has had quite the day huh? It's the simple things that really make a meal good. While we know most instant ramen ain't great, someone like him would easily think it gourmet when compared to the no doubt spartan meals made in the mountains. If I had to go through life without spicy food, I think I'd lose it.
Once I rest up from the incident at work and take some time to recover, I'll get to work continuing the story for all of you beautiful folks who follow it. And as always! Please review with your thoughts and opinions!