Wriothesley stepped out of an unmarked police vehicle a few warehouses down. He dressed down, trying to copy the looks of the men he had arrested from their prior operation. He caught a glimpse of himself in the car mirror. It had been so long since he had seen himself this bearded, preferring to stay mostly clean shaven. It added a look of maturity and hopefully hid his identity a hair better.
His heart pounded in his chest. It was hard knowing he was walking into a set up. It was even harder knowing his back up wasn't even there yet except for one. Chevreuse was already set up on her sniper perch, arriving there several hours beforehand to scope the place. Clorinde was about 5 minutes out with the remainder of the back up team.
Deep breaths… focus on calming your mind. Stick to your training. Rely on your partners. Don't hesitate.
Wriothesley repeated this in his head over and over until he made it to the warehouse. He noticed a small flash of light on the pavement in front of him. Chevreuse was signaling to him with a mirror that she had his back. With a deep breath, he pulled the giant sliding door to the warehouse open enough to sneak in.
The warehouse wasn't bustling like it had been at the time of the pre mission stake out. In fact, the warehouse was practically empty. No large boxes. No heavy machinery. Barely any people.
"Ah you must be my buyer." A man with sandy blonde hair approached. This… didn't look like a main human trafficking distributor. If anything it looked like someone's weird uncle who liked accounting a little too much and enjoyed drawing erotic clown art. That was the first red flag for Wriothesley.
"Yeah… you Vacher?" Wriothesley asked. He dropped his voice, trying to remain in character as well as dominate the room as best as he could. If he could set an intimating atmosphere, he could likely get out of this uninjured.
"Yes, come now." The man ushered him deeper into the warehouse. Shit… he was leading Wriothesley away from Chevreuse's line of sight. "We keep the goods back here. Apologies for the mess. We recently upgraded to a larger area."
"All good… how many you got back here?" Wriothesley asked.
"Only 12 or so as of right now. The rest have been removed." The tone of the man seemed to sharpen. Red flag number two.
"More than plenty." Wriothesley commented. There had to be some truth to that number. It felt too honest… too precise. "Whatcha mean by removed?"
"You can drop the act pig." Another voice came from behind. Wriothesley heard a gun cock and cold metal press to the back of his neck.
"Damn what gave me away?" Wriothesley grinned at Vacher. He didn't bother looking behind him.
"You don't think the Doctor realizes your plan? We have codes for when we are captured." Vacher laughed. "You're the big dumb idiot who walked into a trap!"
"Was I now?" Wriothesley hummed. He needed to buy more time… Clorinde would be there within the next minute but a lot can happen in that time and unfortunately, it did.
Wriothesley didn't expect the sudden blow to the face. It felt harder than usual. He had been punched in the face so many times before that it had to be different. Blood trickled down his face, vision blurred slightly. Wriothesley looked at the man who assaulted him. That'll do it… he had slid on brass knuckles before he punched the captain.
"Don't get cocky with me brat." Vacher laughed. "I'm not the one. I've worked with the Doctor for so many years now. Honestly your head would get me a promotion."
"So that's why you're cleaning the warehouse out huh? Taking your girls back to Sumeru?" Wriothesley asked.
"You really think a man as brilliant as the Doctor would have only one lab? They're already gone." Vacher smirked.
"Boss! There was a delay and the girls were moved to the temporary warehouse while we-" The grunt running up to give a report was shot by the man behind Wriothesley.
"Dumb ass…" Vacher sighed. "He couldn't keep his mouth shut in front of my cop friend… guess you know…"
"I can get him next, boss." The man from behind said, reloading the gun. Wriothesley took the opportunity to swipe the man's feet from out under him, causing him to crash on the ground. The gun flew across the warehouse, skidding across the cement floor.
As bulky as he was, Wriothesley was still pretty agile. He moved seamlessly to wrap an arm around the fallen man's neck and choke him unconscious. It didn't sit right with Wriothesley that his boss just watched.
"So Vacher." Wriothesley started, dropping the unconscious man who was no longer a threat. "How many more thugs are coming to play with me? Wanna tire me out before I get a chance to tango with you?"
Vacher didn't answer his question, only closing the distance for another blow. Wriothesley deflected him, stepping to the side and forcing his arm down. He used the other man's momentum to force him onto the ground. Wriothesley stepped on the man's hand, causing him to yelp in pain.
"Let's try that again, Vacher." Wriothesley growled. "Where is this other warehouse? Where is the Doctor's secondary lab?"
"Wouldn't you like to know pig!" The man laughed. He groaned as Wriothesley put more weight onto his hand, likely beginning to crush it.
"I'm not one to fuck around with." Wriothesley groweld. "Where. Are. The. Girls?!"
"Fuck you!" He laughed through the pain. The side door to the warehouse opened, revealing Clorinde and her team arriving as reinforcements.
"Ayo come arrest this dude and put him in my interrogation ro-" Wriothesley was caught off Vacher punching Wriothesley's knee with a brass knuckle. The pain from his leg caused his vision to blur again and he stepped away from the man. He did his best not to drop from the pain.
The back up approached quickly, apprehending the man and taking him into custody. Clorinde rushed over to the injured man. His face was bloodied from the first punch, likely a broken nose. His knee would be alright, just sore for a few days.
"There's no one here… they're in a different warehouse." Wriothesley panted. "Call for crime scene, we have a dead one." He motioned to the body near the warehouse office.
"Duke, are you going to be alright?" Clorinde asked, hands hovering over her partner's injured face.
"Yeah we need to find these victims before they are handed over to the Doctor. The clock is ticking and I'm afraid if we wait too long we will run out of time." Wriothesley explained. "Let's go see if we can find even a clue where this warehouse is. We don't have the manpower to search every single possible storage space in Fontaine."
Clorinde nodded and quickly went upstairs into the warehouse office. Wriothesley took the door on his level, limping over to it. Looked like a second office space. Splitting up the information would throw off a lot of people.
Wriothesley worked quickly through the office, digging through all the files he could find. There was no computer in there, appearing to be more of a storage office. He found an unlabeled file that had photos of 12 people. He set it aside, likely the victims he was looking for.
Tucked behind the main filing cabinet was a different color folder. Inside were blueprints for a warehouse in a cave far in the mountains. This couldn't be where they took the victims, it was too far away. They wouldn't be able to move that far within the time frame, that would take days to reach.
Wriothesley looked up when Clorinde ran into the office space he was in. She held up a paper with coordinates on it and several pass codes. She explained it was found in the computer, the last file to be opened. Chevreuse joined the two, arriving from her sniper perch.
"First off Duke, why the hell did you let them lead you out of my sight?!" She sighed. Wriothesley apologized weakly. "Give me both coordinates, I'll see where they are on a map."
Clorinde read the coordinates she found then the ones Wriothesley found. She pinned them on a map on her phone before handing it to Wriothesley.
"It has to be the one Clorinde found. This second one…" He paused. "It has to be the Fontaine lab of the Doctor. That lab is way too far away, the other coordinates are practically half way."
He instructed the back up detectives to take both Vacher and the passed out gun man to a holding cell. They would deal with them later. Crime scene investigation came in to take over the scene, processing the hundreds of files and the few remaining boxes.
The team returned to the office shortly after. The air was filled with tension and a hurriedness. The SWAT team was joining them on this operation. Every detective and officer available was added to the roster. It was the first time the special forces team in charge of operation: DOCTOR were taking their speciality weapons.
Wriothesley had just changed back into his work uniform, sitting on a bench near the weapons room strapping on his boots. He heard hurried footsteps and looked up slightly. The tap of the heels was definitely someone outside of the department.
"Wrio!" Navia called. Her eyes widened when she saw his still bloodied face. He hadn't had a chance to clean up quite yet.
"Hey sweetness." He smiled softly.
"What's going on? It sounds like a drill sergeant calling out demands in the bullpen." Navia asked.
"About that…" Wriothesley sighed. He paused when he noticed his husband walking quickly towards them.
"Wriothesley!" He gasped as he noticed the state of his husband. "You got hurt! What is happening? I was getting ready to head out for the evening when I heard word your team returned."
"The victims were not there." Wriothesley said. "They were moved and the warehouse was basically abandoned. We have two of three in custody. One was shot by friendly fire and was DOA."
"Do you know where they are?" Navia asked.
"Yes we do. We are setting up a SWAT team now to invade their territory." Wriothesley stood up. "We'll be alright. There's a dozen people out there who will become victims of the Doctor if we dont step in. We are taking our new weapons… that's how serious this is."
"Hold on darling… let me at least clean your face a bit." Neuvillette said. Before the dark haired man could argue, his husband disappeared into a break room nearby. He returned quickly with a warm wet cloth.
"Thank you baby…" Wriothesley smiled softly. "Here let me do it… my nose is definitely broken and I don't want you to have to feel it."
"Let me do it. You know I'm not squeamish." Neuvillette huffed. He worked diligently to clean the blood as gently as possible. Clorinde had emerged from the weapon room, hugging her wife softly.
"As much as I love seeing you guys, we need to head out ASAP." Chevreuse said as she stepped out of the weapon room. "Duke, your weapon is on the table. Get strapped up and let's move out."
"Heard." Wriothesley sighed. He kissed Neuvillette softly then Navia. "I love you guys. We will be home as soon as we can tonight. I will call you as soon as we are done. I promise you that."
"You better." Navia murmured.
"Please be safe. All three of you. We await your safe arrival back and we will come pick you up tonight if you are too tired to drive." Neuvillette squeezed his husband's hand softly before turning Navia to head towards the door. The blonde looked back, waving to her partners and friends. She felt like she was sending them off to war.
Wriothesley stepped into the weapon room and strapped on his boxing gloves. They were small right now, simply black gloves with silver plating along the top and sides. But with a press of the main button on the knuckles, they would turn into his powerful weapon that was for emergency use only. He slid his service pistol into the holster and set out towards the armored truck waiting outside with his team.
The drive to the warehouse was shorter than expected. Wriothesley did his com check with all teams, getting the green light from everyone. He went over the plan with his team then passed with word onto the others. As they arrived at the location, they parked to barricade all exits from escapees.
"On my mark, breach the entry points. Our goal is to retrieve the victims safely. I want everyone alive to atone for their crimes." Wriothesley said. He heard several confirmation messages in his ear.
His back was pressed to the side entry, ready to break the door down. Chevreuse was alongside him. Clorinde was leading a small team to enter from the back. There were teams covering the other side door, main entry and fire escape.
Wriothesley nodded to Chevreuse. He gave the signal to enter the warehouse. All doors were kicked in seconds later. The warehouse was filled with people. Chaos broke out from that point on.
Chevreuse found a hidden spot between some boxes, squeezing her small frame in for coverage and taking her aim as a sniper. Wriothesley started calling out, making the police presence known by all. A group of men tried to charge Wriothesley but he quickly overpowered them, knocking them on their back with a flurry of fists.
"I need arresting officers to start cuffin people on the ground." Wriothesley said in the coms.
"Duke, the victims seem to be on the second level." Chevreuse said. "I can see them in my scope. Three people guarding them. Door has at least 6 bolts. They Are locked in tight."
"Dualist, head towards that position. I will be there shortly." Wriothesley said over the coms, getting an affirmative reply from Clorinde. Shots were heard near the back entrance, Clorinde firing several rubber bullets into the crowd. While not fatal, those rubber bullets made multiple grown men fall to their knees in pain.
Wriothesley made his way through the warehouse, attempting to get to the stairs as back up for Clorinde who was trying to get to the locked door. The human trafficking grunts realized what they were there for quickly. As the special forces took down more bad guys, the back up detectives became more occupied with their arrests. It was a major flaw Wriothesley didnt think about until it was too late.
Chevreuse was making call outs, trying to support her partners when they heard a blood curdling scream over the communication mics (coms). Wriothesley whipped his body around, knocking a man who was trying to sneak up on him unconscious. His heart dropped. He should have known better… it was his job to protect his team and he had failed. Him getting hurt was one thing, but one of his friends and partners was a whole different thing.
Chevreuse no longer had back up. The few detectives that were supposed to be there were dragging criminals to the jail truck. She had been left all alone. Wriothesley would never forgive himself for this.
One of the henchmen of the Doctor had found Chevreuse in her box hiding spot. She was caught off guard, focusing too hard in her scope. She did her best to deflect the man's knife but instead, it slid up her face across her eye. Wriothesley saw blood pouring out of the large cut before her hand flew up in pain.
"Fuckfuckfuck!" Wriothesley couldn't breathe. He didn't know what to do. "Retreat we need to regroup, deadshot needs medical-." His panic riddled rambling was cut off by Chevreuse herself.
"We are not retreating!" She growled. "We came too far and there's people who need us!" She ripped off the sleeve of her dress and used it as a makeshift eye patch, tying it tight to stop the bleeding.
Wriothesley's jaw tightened. He didn't know what to do. There wasn't exactly a guidebook on being a captain. He had no idea how he was supposed to handle this. He looked at Clorinde nearby, her eyes communicating that she trusted any choice he made.
"No retreat, we push forward." Wriothesley said, his voice calm even though his body was riddled with tension. "Special forces, I'm lifting all restrictions. Have a safe trip."
"Where evil lurks, shoot on sight." Clorinde responded.
"Justice will prevail!" Chevreuse called out.
Wriothesley pressed the buttons on his gloves. The boxing gloves expanded into large, bulky metal. It fit like a second skin around his arm, able to flex and move every tendon and muscle. Clorinde and Chevreuse released the secondary safety on their guns. A spike of electricity ran down Clorinde's body. The tip of Chevreuse's gun sparked like kindling of a fire.
"Dualist, head to Deadshot as back up. All officers move quickly or risk being frozen." Wriothesley called into the com set. He heard affirmatives in his ear. With a quick look around, he saw his people were clear from the area. The gears on his gloves were whirling. Frost began to coat the steel. He let a large group surround him before he heard a single shot from Chevreuse. She hit a water pipe nearby Wriothesley, causing the floor to cover with water. The villains didn't even realize the plan, stepping right into the puddle as they approached the captain.
Wriothesley slammed his hands on the ground, open palmed to the floor. The water froze quickly, the gears in his gloves grinding loudly. He winced slightly. While it was cold on the outside of the gloves, the inside of the cryo core was much too hot against Wriothesley's skin. The pain was nothing to him once he realized his plan was successful. The large group was frozen in place, practically from the knee down.
"Deadshot, am I clear to break the door down?" Wriothesley asked as he ran up the stairs. The Doctor's henchmen were too frozen in place to apprehend him. The few that weren't incapacitated were getting shocked by Clorinde's electro shots. She was swift on her feet, using the electro coursing her like roller skates.
"Clear Duke. They're backed into a corner. They will come out swinging though." Chevreuse reported. She quickly shot a fire round into an alarm nearby the office, causing a loud ringing to start. It seemed to have distracted the guards in the room enough for them to not expect Wriothesley.
The captain arrived at the daunting metal door. He took a step back before lunging forward, driving a closed fist into the metal near the handle. One punch didn't get it open. He set up for a second strike, landing it in the same place. He heard a bolt come loose from the door, the integrity wouldn't hold up long. With a third and final punch to the door, it slammed open. The victims inside gasped and hid as well as they could. The guards in the room quickly tried to take down Wriothesley.
The only one he didn't see was the one under the large desk. He barely registered Chevreuse's voice over the coms.
"DUKE THERE'S ANOTHER WATCH-" She tried to call out but it was too late. He took a metal bat with nails through it on his side. Wriothesley heard the bones break. He felt the blood dripping down his side. When the hidden foe tried to swing again, he grabbed it with his boxing gloves, stealing it away easy and picked the man up by his shirt collar. He showed no mercy, tossing him out of the room like it was nothing. The man skittered away once he had enough breath to run down the stairs. He was quickly captured by other police officers.
"Now you want to do this the easy way or the hard way?" Wriothesley asked, glaring at the two remaining guards. He did his best to stand straight up, showing no fear, no sign of weakness. Pain was nothing to him, he spent a majority of his life in it after all.
One guard came swinging at Wriothesley, not learning his lesson from witnessing his companion literally tossed. Wriothesley quickly caught the stupid man's fist and spun him around. He was pinned to the ground in seconds. While it was difficult to do in the bulky boxing gloves, he had the man handcuffed to a bar on the built in desk fairly quickly. He stood back up, glaring daggers at the final guard.
Wriothesley noticed the man's gun shaking in his hands. He thrusted his gloves downward, causing the gears to whirl and the air to become cold around them. He raised a brow, silently asking the guard if this is really how he wanted to go down. Turns out, the Doctor chose a coward as a guard. The gun was dropped and hands were raised quickly.
"I need officers to the upstairs office immediately for a two person arrest." Wriothesley called. His men were quick on his word, escorting the two final villains out. He pressed the button on his gloves again, them shrinking quickly back down to being flat. He groaned softly as they shrunk, revealing small lacerations and 2 burns on his arms from the cryo core. He would need to remember to wrap his arms next time.
Now that the room was clear and he was no longer weaponized, he turned his attention to the victims he was here to rescue. It seemed to be 11 girls, cowering in the corner. They wore nothing more than rags. They looked cold, dehydrated, hungry and possibly under the influence of some sort of sedation. Wait, why were there only 11?
He then lowered his gaze. The 12th victim was a young girl, clinging to the legs of another. Oh this just got worse. Navia would have to clear her schedule for a disclosure interview after this little one received proper medical care.
"I need medical ready, there was 12 victims up here… 11 adult and one juvenile." Wriothesley called out over the coms. He kneeled down a little, knowing his height was probably intimidating to everyone. He held his badge forward from his back pocket. "My name's captain Wriothesley, I'm with the special forces in the Fontaine police. I know you guys are scared but we are here to help you and get you home." His voice was soft, trying to comfort them.
Clorinde showed up shortly after he made the call over coms. Her eyes were wide at the state of the victims. Medical was on Clorinde's heels, beginning their protocol to help the victims. The room cleared shortly, the two special forces agents waiting until the final victim was loaded onto a stretcher by the paramedics. When they were finally alone, Wriothesley held his side and groaned.
"What's wrong, Wrio?" Clorinde asked, slightly panicked.
"Ran out of stamina trying to be strong." He laughed softly. "Nailed baseball bat to the side. At least 3 punctures and probably some cracked ribs. I just couldn't show weakness in front of those who needed me."
"You're a silly man." She sighed. "Come on, Chev is already half away to a hospital, I'm guessing. Let's get you loaded up too."
"You need to be checked too, you know." Wriothesley said. "I know you are running on fumes too. It was our first time lifting restrictions and these things have a lot more kick than I originally anticipated."
"I'll get checked too, I only need fluids and rest I'm sure." Clorinde rolled her eyes. She helped her partner to steady himself on his feet. The stairs were a bit challenging but once they reached the bottom, a marked unit officer offered to drive them to the hospital. Wriothesley agreed, grateful for the officer's kindness. Clorinde messaged Navia and Neuvillette, giving them updates on where they were about to be and if they could bring up Wriothesley's work laptop for reports. He was going to be waiting there for a while, waiting for updates on Chevreuse and all 12 people that were saved.
Neuvillette was practically frantic when they arrived at the emergency room. His partner had been hurt earlier that day and Clorinde said he sustained multiple injuries while on their last mission. He had no idea what state he was about to see his darling Wriothesley in. Clorinde had said she was alright but wasn't sure if she was just saying that not to worry him even more. They heard nothing on Chevreuse from them either. Was she alright?
Navia took his hand, squeezing it as they locked the car. She carried a small bag with supplies and her partner's laptop in her other hand. She made Neuvillette take a deep breath before they went inside. The officer who drove them was waiting for the pair at the entrance.
"Good evening." He smiled softly, giving a curt nod. "The Duke and the Dualist asked me to wait for you to arrive. I'll lead you to whomever you'd like to see first."
"What about Chevreuse, er… Deadshot?" Navia asked.
"She's still in surgery ma'am. The Duke will give you more details I'm sure." He explained.
"Let's go see Wriothesley first, Navi. Then we can find Clorinde." Neuvillette suggested. The officer agreed and led them into the emergency room. They felt like they were being led through a maze. Room after room they walked until the last door at the end of the corridor. The officer knocked sharply before waiting for a reply. A female asked them to wait a moment, followed by a sharp hiss of a man. A few moments later, the nurse opened the door and exited, allowing the group to enter.
Wriothesley sat shirtless on the hospital bed's edge. His face was bruised and slightly swollen from his broken nose. His side was discolored, splotches of purple, yellow and green spreading across his abdomen. He had three puncture wounds on his side with small little drops of blood above, below and on the sides of them.
"Hey baby, hey sweetness." Wriothesley smiled weakly. "I swear it looks worse than it is."
"Darling what happened out there?!" Neuvillette gasped. He approached his husband, hands hovering over his face. He didn't want his touch to hurt but didnt know a safe space. All he wanted was to hug him and smother him with affection.
"Well broken nose from me being bait earlier. Got brass knuckles to the face." Wriothesley gestured to his crooked nose. "They'll put it back into place after stitches I'm sure. As for my ribs, I took a baseball bat full of nails to the side. He was under a desk out of Chevreuse's line of sight. Don't worry, she just injected numbing stuff into my side. I don't even feel it. Waiting on x-rays to see how broken my ribs are."
"How's Clorinde?" Navia asked, worried about her wife.
"She's fine, came out better than the rest of us. She's resting in a recovery room." Wriothesley smiled. "She knows to find me when she's awake, don't worry Navi."
"What about Chevreuse?" Neuvillette asked. Wriothesley closed his eyes, taking a deep breath.
"It was my fault…" His words seemed choked. "I didn't realize she didn't have back up nearby. I got tunnel vision to go save the victims. I didn't see the guy attack her. She dodged but it cut up her face." He took a deep breath. "She's in surgery now, she will most likely lose her left eye."
"Oh sweetheart, that wasn't your fault." Neuvillette tried to comfort. He massaged small circles into his husband's shoulder as he sat beside him. "You guys had a dangerous mission… did everyone make it out okay?"
"Yeah, 12 victims total." Wriothesley looked at Navia. "One is a juvenile. My best guess is she's 7 or 8. The other females were really protective of her and I obviously don't look very welcoming so I'm unsure."
"I'll clear my schedule the day she's medically cleared to speak." Navia gave a soft smile. "How long do you think you will be off work?"
"Dont know… I'm definitely not throwing punches with broken ribs." He laughed softly, the pressure being manageable due to the numbing injections. "The good news is, there are only two more branches to take down after this. The rest are just small check points I can just send SWAT to while we recover. The bad news is…"
"They're in Sumeru aren't they?" Neuvillette asked.
"Yeah they are. Cyno and I have been keeping in touch with our findings. Once I'm able to be semi functional, I will probably set up a meeting with the chief and him on the best ways to collaborate our efforts."
"If there's a possibility of you guys battling in Sumeru, Neuvillette and I are gonna accelerate our firearm licenses to go with you." Navia huffed. "No discussion. Clorinde can train us. You can test us when you're back on duty."
"I think that's a good idea. My best guess is we have at least two months recovery. Depends on how broken my ribs are and how rough surgery is on Chev." Wriothesley smiled softly. "I know Clorinde will have a great time teaching you guys. She is the best sharp shooter in the nation after all."
There was a soft knock at the door, the nurse returning with a short man in a white coat. He introduced himself as the doctor in charge of Wriothesley's care and a majority of everyone involved in the case's doctor. He reported Clorinde was fine, she finished fluids and was resting nearby. The victims were being treated for dehydration and malnutrition, some had minor lacerations from being restrained but all would be fine in a few days physically.
"Now as for you…" The doctor sighed. "You do have three cracked ribs on your injured side. We'll tape them and provide some pain medication but the best medicine for them will be rest. I unfortunately have to put you on light duty for 4 to 6 weeks, captain."
"I expected as such." Wriothesley chuckled softly.
"Now, if you'd be alright stepping out of the room." He gestured to Neuvillette and Navia. "We are going to stitch those side wounds up and set your nose back into place. It won't take long."
"Shouldn't we be here to support him?" Navia almost whined.
"Angel, my side is literally numb, the worst of it will be my nose and if this-" Wriothesley gestured to his scar riddled torso. "If this says anything, I can take some cartilage being put back into place."
Neuvillette hesitated before leading Navia outside of the room. They heard a soft conversation between the three people remaining in the room. Soon they heard a voice explain what was about to happen, followed by a crunching sound and Wriothesley's cursing.
When the doctor was done, he and the nurse left the room and allowed the pair back in. Wriothesley's nose seemed to be put back into place but he held his head in his hand. Neuvillette stepped closer, dotting on him softly.
"I'm alright I promise." The dark haired man grumbled. "That was way more tender than I originally thought was all."
"Wrio, your arms…" Navia said sadly.
"It's from my weapon, they're just small cuts. Next time I know I need to wrap them." Wriothesley smiled. His arms had several small cuts from the gears and a small burn on each arm, just slightly twisting the tattoos he had.
It was late in the night when Wriothesley moved to Chevreuse's room. She had just been released from her surgery recovery and was fast asleep in a room. The captain sent his partners home with Clorinde, they all needed sleep. He sat writing his reports nearby Chevreuse's bedside.
She had indeed lost her eye. There was no way to save it and she would likely have a nasty scar along her cheek and forehead from the slash. It hurt Wriothesley to see his dear friend in this state. If only he had stayed behind… he should have been her back up. He shouldn't have left her close to the ground like that.
He was working on an email to the research institute when he heard the sheets on the bed crumple. Chevreuse had sat up, looking down at her hands. She seemed alert, this being the second time she woke up from being under anesthesia.
"Hey Chev, how are you feeling?" Wriothesley asked softly.
"Gonna take a lot of practice for me to shoot again." She laughed softly. "But I can do it."
"I'm not worried about that right now, I'm on light duty too. We have time to recover." Wriothesley took her hand gently. "Chevreuse, I'm so sorry… if i hadn't gotten tunnel vision none of this would have happened."
"Or it would have and you would have been the one to lose an eye." She said, "Wriothesley this wasn't your fault. I got tunnel vision too."
"But because of you we finished the mission." He smiled softly. "We saved 12 lives and arrested over 100 bad guys today. There were additional check points taken out by SWAT after we came to the hospital."
"It makes what we do with every price we pay." Chevreuse closed her eye and had a small smile. "Give me time captain, I'm still the best sniper in Fontaine."
"I had no doubts, not even once." Wriothesley laughed. "We will all recover together. We are gonna train Navia and Neuvillette in firearms so they can get their licensing. And our next stop is Sumeru."
"Wait, we took out all three chapters here?" Chevreuse asked.
"Yes we did… and some of the smaller connecting pieces. Rinde and I will work hard while you're recovering and get the final connections broken." Wriothesley reported. "Then we have the two final pieces."
"Then we will have the Doctor in our grasp." Chevreuse grinned. "Good, he needs to pay for taking my eye."
"And we will have Marina back safe and sound." Wriothesley kissed her hand softly. "Sleep Chev. I'm finishing my report here tonight. You're safe with me here and Charlotte will be here at sunup to see you."
"Thank you Wriothesley. You're an incredible captain, and friend." Chevreuse murmured before becoming comfortable in the stiff hospital bed.
Wriothesley knew his sister was close to being home. He pictured how she would fit into their family and every time it was flawless. He couldn't wait for his family to be complete.. To be whole again. It filled his heart with warmth, casting away the doubts he had about the future.