Zack crouched down, using his legs to help Justine up. They walked in behind the Duchess, who'd stopped in place, staring at the floor that was missing--again.
"How did....wait. The floor was locked." She looked over her shoulder at Justine.
"House still broken," Justine muttered.
"How did you send the floor back AGAIN??"
Justine shrugged. "I...super power? I dunno."
Emilly shook her head, leaping up to the next level through the foyer doors, which should have been a level step, and headed up the stone stairs to the second level. "You have interesting talents."
Justine struggled not to slur her words, but even she couldn't make out what she tried to reply.
"Something tells me that Justine has a few things to learn," Zack murmured.
Emilly pushed open the doors to the mad science lab, nodding.
"I c'n also fold fitted sheets," Justine said.
Emilly nodded. "Hey, that's good! I still struggle with that!"
Justine nodded. The room was swimming. "Superpower..." She slipped free of Zack's arm, staggering, rolling onto the nearest table.
Zack blinked. "Okay, let's see...where are those medical supplies...?"
Emilly took a step toward the cabinet and paused, swaying. "All...right," she said, her voice low. "Take things...slow..." She looked up at Justine, then at Zack, then waved a hand weakly at the cabinet by the table.
Justine shrugged out of the jacket, looking at her own burn. "Just a flesh wound," she giggled.
Emilly blinked slowly. "Yeah..."
Zack leaned in, looking at the burn for a moment, examining it professionally and seriously. He prepared some first aid materials next to him on a metal side table as he peered at the injury. He placed the underside of his wrist on Justine's forehead to check her body temperature.
"Hmm..."
Emilly braced herself against a low table. "Is she runnnnn..." She inhaled and tried again. "Running a fever?"
Zack bit his lower lip, nodding. "I am afraid she does, yes. That is normally not a good sign. Her injury is quite deep and might need stitches, but the internal organs are not at risk. Tough with the fever..." He sighed. "It is normally a sign of infection, and that is what I worry about..."
Justine smiled up at Zack, putting a hand on his coat. "I'm gonna sleep now, k?" She closed her eyes.
Emilly turned, taking a step forward, and fell down. She blinked at the tile inlay on the floor. "That's...not good..."
Zack rubbed the back of his head, watching Justine close her eyes. "Well...I can at least disinfect and stitch her wound. As for the fever, well...the best thing to do right now is let her rest, and make a complete scan of her body later. To see if there's anything that might be causing it."
"Sounds good," Emilly said from the floor.
Zack looked concerned, but just nodded, finding gloves and pulling them on. He took some rubbing alcohol, and opened a sterile stamp. He poured alcohol on the stamp, gently rubbing it around the wound to disinfect it. Justine didn't react. He frowned, throwing the soiled stamp into a nearby bin and reaching for a needle, threading it with a spool of surgical wire. He began doing small, neat stitches to the wound on Justine's side.
Emilly pried herself off the floor, hearing a chime, touching the comm unit. She listened, nodding, staggering over to a side table that held a smaller tank, a microscope, and some research journals.
"Mm...'onna need to leave soon," Emilly murmured. Then she looked up, taking in what Zack was doing. "You're...wire?!"
Zack nodded, patting his coat. "I always have some on me, just in case."
Justine half-opened her eyes, turning her head. She reached out. "Emilly...we killed the monsters..."
Emilly nodded, reaching out, seemingly surprised when she couldn't reach Justine's fingers. "We did!" she finally said, blinking largely.
"That was awesome," Justine whispered.
Zack made a neat surgical knot, and cut the wire, sighing in relief. "There we go. It should be fine now."
"That was awesome," Emilly repeated. She peered at the desk, struggling to focus. She looked back up. "Justine? Why is there an arm....here?"
"Considering the number of injuries I had to take care of on Haven, I would say that it's something I'm quite used to..." Zack murmured. He gathered up the supplies, looking around for another bed to put the Duchess on.
Justine frowned. "An...arm? Is it...human?"
Emilly peered at it. "It's....green." She looked up blearily. "Green isn't--normal for humans, right?"
Zack shook his head. "Not usually."
Emilly nodded, a slow, uneven motion. She inhaled. "But...thing. I have...a thing. In Wulfenbach."
They looked at her. She looked back.
"Dance party festival...thing," she added, somewhat unhelpfully.
"Okay," Justine said. "I'm good."
Emilly nodded. "I'll--I'll be in touch later, Zack..."
"Zack'll look after me...go party...dunno why there's a green arm...someone not cleaning up after themselves..."
Emilly stood with difficulty. Zack stepped forward, gently rubbing her shoulder. She smiled tremulously at him. She reached up, fingers moving in a complicated pattern Justine had seen before, folding local space to transit. It seemed to take longer than usual, and the Duchess less slipped through the fold as fell through it, disappearing.
In Wulfenbach, at the sacred grove, Emilly arrived after what felt like forever in null space, blinking largely, staggering at the top of the stairs. By the time she'd made it to the fire, she'd shifted three separate times, and while her side still ached, it wasn't burnt, and even better, that crawling blue energy was gone.
Back on Gearhaven, Zack spoke to the outline of the Duchess as she faded from view. "I'll make sure she'll be fine," Zack said. "I promise. Do you feel you can sit down, Justine?"
Justine nodded, reaching for a hand up. He watched as she sat on the table, testing her balance.
"Thanks, Zack. I think I need a...sleep...though." She waved a hand towards the doors to the lab. "My room," she added.
Zack helped Justine off the table. She looked down at the remains of her leather jacket, sighing.
"[Sh*t], I liked that jacket..."
Zack opened the doors to the parlor down the hall, then the glass doors into her room, helping her sit down on the bed. He reached into his jacket, pulling out a small bottle of water and a vial of white pills.
"These are just acetaminophen, they're to help lower your fever. Are you allergic to it?"
Justine shook her head. "No, that's fine. Thank you." She popped two into her palm, swallowing them with a sip of water from the small glass Zack poured for her.
"I will let you rest, but...one more thing before I go?"
Justine looked up at him. "Yes?"
"Take it easy on physical work, at least until the stitches are doing their work. A few days should be fine."
"Okay, Zack. Thank you."
He stepped close, caressing her hair, leaning down to place a soft kiss on her forehead as she laid out on the bed.
"Rest well, dear."
"Thank you, gege."
He smiled at her, and left the room. She let herself slip into sleep.
(Continued in part LXIII.)
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