It was dark out, which normally wouldn't mean much except it was daytime. Any number of people were milling about outside. Predicting the end of the world - ha! Or simply trying to find a better hiding place. That's what most folks were doing. Some few were actually looking up at the darkened Lurudd and Oponn. That was a bad thing to do. Dr. Marshall Demoss was outside helping those folks and generally being available for medical emergencies. That's the last anyone heard from Marshall that day.
What better time for the freaks to be out? And maybe looking for trouble, thought Tieryan Call. Tieryan was a member of the Cult of the Demon and looking to improve his status. On his arm was a very unfreakish Krysztyll. They strolled through the darkness. Tieryan puffed on his pipe and generally headed for the hospital.
Was this a sign from the gods? The Demon? Tieryan asked himself. Some of the Fellowship predicted this uncommon occurrence, an event that came around once in a thousand years. A bit more rare than the Makabb had with Sabatt. Tieryan laughed silently. He didn't think it was either. He still enjoyed the double eclipse and told Krysztyll so.
Other people were out. Shin jumped onto a hunk of rubble and darted over some ungainly looking rocks. Bliss Lovejoy and members of her crew sat on the front stoop of the Firehouse. They took turns looking at the eclipse through a cobbled-together reflection device. The one known as Slick sat cross-legged on the room of a building that used to be part of the NRMH complex. After the Great War, the building was determined unstable and no one used it except street rats, phlupp and huumunn kind. Slick was there, not looking up, but staring at a certain window. The coronas of Lurudd and Oponn reflected in the dark shades he wore.
"Swing by the hospital?" Tieryan asked the sleek shadow on his arm. Krysztyll was all in black, as usual. A slow smile spread across her face. Tieryan did not bother explaining why he wanted to go to NRMH. He was unpredictable. Tieryan at the hospital was always fun.
"Yes," Krysztyll said softly.
Tieryan slowed down, feeling a presence waiting for them at the mouth of an alley. That presence was Aya, a new recruit of Tieryan's. He would allow her to speak first if Aya wished. He grinned at Krysztyll.
"I'll be good."
"You're always good, love."
"It's the company I keep." The pipe bobbed as he talked. Aya nodded to Tieryan and got a nod back. As Aya walked out of the alley, casually, Tieryan lowered his voice, speaking to Krysztyll. "New associate."
Krysztyll relaxed, stowing the blade back in her sleeve where it belonged. Lurkers made her nervous. Tieryan knew what went through Krysztyll's mind. He slung an arm around her shoulders and then glanced back at Aya. The only thing noticeable about Aya was her silvery blue hair.
"You out celebrating the end of the world?" Tieryan asked.
"Just out for now," Aya said, about as close to reassuring as she got. " Not on the job."
"Krys, this is..." His voice trailed off. What was her name now? He asked himself as he raised a brow.
"Aya," said Aya, simple and too the point. Krysztyll appraised Aya coolly.
"Aya," Tieryan said smoothly. As they approached the hospital steps, he let a few of his fingers tangle in Krys's hair. A pleasant shiver shook her body lightly as his fingers
brushed her. Krysztyll kept walking.
"Aya, I think I'd like you to meet my second, Cathan. When you get a chance, hmm?" Tieryan smiled a bit when Aya nodded.
Another of Aya's associates, the one known as Colin approached Tieryan just as the cult leader reached the NRMH steps. Krysztyll took her leave then, allowing Tieryan to give Aya and Colin his full attention. Tieryan, bereft of Krysztyll, was no longer in the mood to go in doors.
"There's one less to worry about," Colin said.
"Which leaves," he paused, "How many to worry about?" With a shrug to loosen the strap of a chafing shoulder holster, Tieryan took up a lean against the wall. A feral grin played about his lips.
"Enough," Colin answered, half grinning himself. "To keep busy."
"It is best for society if you are kept busy Colin." Tieryan was amused. "Come check out the new place. We're living in style now.
At this point, Shin joined Tieryan's group. Aya gave Shin a hint of smile. Shin received a frown from Colin.
"Merc convention?" Shin asked dryly.
"Yeah," Tieryan murmured. "Something like that."
Tieryan caught the frown Colin gave Shin, but didn't mind quiet. He just smoked his pipe. Looked back and forth between them with mild interest. Something going on here, damned if he knew what it was. Apparently it was some sort of a showdown between Colin and Shin, with Aya in the middle.
---
The moons slowly crossed the faces of Oponn and Lurudd. Slick, protected by a long and scored cloak stared intently at the window across from him. He never blinked and never moved except for the faint rise and fall of his chest. He still had to breath. The necessity made him want to curse, but to actually do so would break the spell. Just inside that window that Slick stared through sat a young woman. She stared at her hands that were folded, in her lap. A little shiver ran up her spine and she turned. There was no one there. Funny, she thought. It felt like there was.
The woman's name was Chi'anall and the part of Slick outside the spell wondered by he couldn't just visit Chi'anall, who stayed at the hospital till she cleared up her dependency on hard drugs. It was a mystery, even to Slick who had been part and parcel to too many secrets the last weeks. Since he'd been rousted out by the Legion from his comfortable existence as a drunk, his life felt as if it were no longer in his hands. Forces were moving him like a piece on a draught's board. He didn't like it.
And there was Chi'anall who paced now, though he could not see it. She thought she was possibly nuts. Questioned why the Union would keep her there if her sanity were not in question. Slick wasn't able to see her, but he knew exactly where Chi was and what she was doing.
"Chi'anall." Slicks voice held the faintest of breath. She was obsession. She stopped and shivered again.
"I want out of here," Chi'anall whispered to no one, so it seemed. Maybe she wanted out, maybe she didn't. She just wanted to talk to someone.
"You're not clean yet, Chi'anall. This you know." The first thread of pain laced itself in a delicate pattern over his vision. "You're not."
"I'm crazy." Her sterling eyes darted about the small room. How else to explain the voice that seemed to brush against her? It wasn't possible. She whispered to the shadows in her room. "Come here."
"I cannot. I'm not allowed yet." There was a heartbeat's pause. "Soon."
Slick gasped. The pain grew till it was like a knife continually stabbing into his skull.
Chi'anall's eyes grew wild. She turned and moved to the window. She pressed her palms against the glass as she gazed out.
"Head hurts," she said. But whose head? Hers? His?
His. His head hurt like it would split in two and leave right and left lobes splattered on the tar-smeared rooftop. He spoke through a red haze.
"Soon."
"Not soon enough," Chi'anall said. Her tone was petulant; the voice of the girl she had once been. She pressed her forehead against the cool glass and then winced as the contact was cut short by a flare of unbearable pain. Slick's head felt like the suns above, blocked and starved. New lines appeared at the corners of his eyes and upon his forehead.
When Chi'anall's eyes opened, the room felt empty once more. No! A small fist pounded on the glass. She seized a bedside chair and hurled it across the room.
"Yes," Slick breathed and spoke only to himself. He curled into a ball while the pain raged inside him. Eclipses were magical events. Slick used up his quotient of the event.
---
" Once every thousand years," Ariadne, the tallest member of Bliss Lovejoy's crew, chuckled. "Can't say I'm all that ipressed but it's something to tell my kids about. Or yours Bliss."
"I'll tell my kids that are too little to remember. You tell your own kids, Ari. Whenever you have some," Bliss said. Bliss passed the reflector on to Fiorahh who beamed, happy to be able to watch the reflection safely.
Most of Bliss' crew was there on and around the Firehouse front stoop, including a young fellow named Hal. Hal was partnered with Ariadne and hung back in the doorway scowling with his arms folded tightly over his chest while everyone else oo'd and awe'd.
"You don't look like you are having a good time," Ariadne said. Ariadne shifted her stance and lifted a hand to rub her shoulder. Her injured arm was still immobilized and the wound still hurt her on occasion. She glanced down at Hal.
Hal looked up, way up at Ari, but was careful not to view the phenomenon just beyond Ariadne's head.
"Ain't nothin' ta see," Hal said quietly.
"What's the matter, Hal?" She bent down until she was nose-to-nose with him. "You don't enjoy hanging with your�uhm...coworkers slash friends?"
Hal pushed his own pair of shades farther down his nose so he could get a close look at Ari's eyes. They were beautiful and a chance to see them this close was never a chance wasted. What else was in his yellow eyes, only Ari could probably tell. He was nervous. Nervous like right before a fight kind of nervous.
"I like it fine, Ari. Yanno dat."
"Then what are you so jazzed about? We're well guarded and most folks are hiding." It was Ariadne's way of saying things were fairly safe. Her nose crinkled as she formed a small smile. Bliss' sons were even running around on the street in front of the firehouse.
"Not ever'un. Dere's somes dat's out dere," Hal muttered. He stood rigid, unable to truly enjoy Ariadne's close proximity. And then, Ariadne lifted her hand and let her fingertips graze over his cheek.
"Ya worry too much, Hal. But I suppose one of us has to," she said. After all, look what happened to her when she went off with out him. She got shot. Hal closed his eyes. His cheek burned where she touched him.
"Dat's right. Dun forget it, amazon," he said.
Ariadne pulled away then. She told Hal she wouldn't forget, but the word amazon troubled her. To Ariadne, it meant she was undesirable and unappealing, even to the one man she was attracted too. Hal pushed out of his lean, eager to be doing something. He thought they might go out on patrol, but Ariadne pointed out she was still recovering from the gunshot wound to her shoulder. The wound was something Hal kept forgetting now that Ari could walk about.
"And why do you want to go on patrol anyway?" She asked him.
"Dis ain't right, Ari. Check it, the suns dun do dat. Nighttime in da day? What the 'f' is dat?" Hal's concern for the phenomenon rained down like sudden downpour.
"An eclipse, Hal. Bliss explained it. The suns should start to come out again any time now." Ariadne leaned down close again and whispered in Hal's ear. "We'll be all right, Hal. I got your back. No fears."
"I know what she said, Ari," Hal said and rubbed at the back of his neck. He exposed the 9mm he kept in a shoulder holster. His voice lowered. "An' I know dat. I got yers. It ... It just ain't right."
---
Shin and Colin sized each other up in the lobby of NRMH. Tieryan did not say a word. He watched Aya, looking for some kind of reaction from her. Aya iced up quickly, shrugging at Tieryan.
"Rivalry," was all she said. Tieryan 'ah'd' and folded his arms to watch, like the showdown was a good movie to view.
Then Colin suddenly backed down and took a step away. He waved off to Tieryan and nodded to Aya.
"More hunting to be done," Colin said. Tieryan wished him 'happy hunting' and Colin left them.
"Doesn't matter to him," Aya said cryptically of Colin.
"Yeah? What does?" Tieryan asked.
"Nearly everything," she answered.
Most times Tieryan didn't care about people. Sometimes he did. "For instance?"
"Only thing that matters to him is to be the best at what he does," Shin answered for Aya. "Combat. We have a standing rivalry over who's better at it."
"Yeah? And how about you?" Tieryan asked Shin, quietly. "That the only thing that matters to you?"
"No," Shin glanced at Aya with a mysterious smile. "I try to balance."
Tieryan asked and then found his pipe nearly out. Time to restock, he thought to himself. He took a wild guess and gestured at Aya. "Yes? She help with that?"
"Her choice," Shin said.
"Starting to run out of such," said Aya.
"I know," Shin said.
"Run out?" They lost Tieryan, who emptied the pipe onto the ground, then tucked it
away in a pocket. His gaze stayed on Aya.
"My former associates, they left me when I needed them," Aya said. "Never trusted them much."
"You have new associates now, Aya. Simple," Tieryan assured.
"True," Aya glanced at Shin. "Some of the old gangers I worked with. I wouldn't mind helping you take care of them."
Shin grumbled something about a militia while the feral smile returned to Tieryan's face.
"We might be able to fit 'em on our dance card, yeah," Tieryan said.
"Poor bastards," Shin said, laughing quietly.
"Their choice. Their mistake," Tieryan said and pushed off of the wall.
"Aye. They're making a lot of enemies," Shin said.
"We all are," Tieryan told Shin, and then he walked off. No goodbyes. Nothing. They could follow. It was all the same to Tieryan. Shin and Aya stayed where they were.
---
"Wanna go inside?" Ariadne asked Hal, like hiding from what was happening would help. It was the best she could suggest.
"Nah. Gotta watch da kids," Hal said, shrugging. The pair was nose-to-nose, thicker than thieves. Since Ariadne was shot it seemed as though Hal was glued to her hip. Ariadne straightened her form and leaned her good shoulder against the doorjamb.
"Okay, Hal," she said. She spoke softly. Her tone seemed to be a gauge on how she felt. She watched Hal. It was like he needed to do something. Going on patrol turned to watching the kids when Ari couldn't go with him. Standing still, yet doing something. That was Hal.
"D'anks, Ari."
Much as she hated to admit it, Ariadne was tired. She let her body slide down to sit on the small stoop and let out a soft sigh. She let her head rest against the building. Hal slid down into a crouch next to her and put a hand on her arm. He frowned.
"Ari? You tired? Why didn't you say so?"
"I didn't want to spoil the fun. I am tired and my arm is paining me some." His concern confused her.
"Aw geezus, Ari. C'mon." He put his hand at her elbow, helping her up. "Geezus, yer pale."
"I'm just tired, Hal. Don't worry none," she said. "I think I need to go lay down for a while."
"I'll go in with ya." Hall took another turn. He didn't want to go inside before.
Ariadne took her time getting to her room. Hal's arm was around her waist. He was a solid presence beside her. She'd over done the activity this day, but there was just so much to see and do. Each step seemed to make her that much more tired so she was glad by the time she reached the door to her room. She wasn't used to needing or taking help from some one but it seemed okay to do so with Hal.
"Going to come in an tuck me in?" She asked softly. She could just see the golden tint to his eyes when he looked way up at her.
"If ya wan' me ta. Sure," he said. Inside he was hoping very much she wanted him to. Inside, he hoped she wouldn't want him there.
"I'd like to be tucked in." Ariadne opened the door to her room.
---
"I was nuts again, so they might just come sedate us. Me."
The chair didn't break, and she cursed it. Chi'anall stumbled over, picked it up, and this time threw it at the door. An orderly heard the chair smash against Chi's door. He peeked inside to see what was up.
"Hey you in dere! Stop dat!" He shouted.
"Go to the Abyss," Chi'anall muttered at him. She grabbed for the unused IV stand. She lifted it up and glared at him.
"You stop dat now, li'l missie. K?" The orderly smiled at Chi and held up his stun gun.
What she said would be filtered out by Elliot later. She lowered the IV pole and looked at him, almost innocently. "Okay."
The orderly's brown eyes narrowed as if he knew the wily ways of patients in the psych ward. "Okay li'l missie. Almost lunch, see. "
"I don't want any," Chi'anall said. She planned to hurl the stand as soon as he put the stun weapon away. Or try to.
"Don't make a difference ta me, li'l missie." He grinned. He was missing teeth. Probably from IV stand wielding patients.
She hurled the stand at him with a growl. It thumped against the door. The orderly, who stood safely on the other side, did not flinch.
"SEE? See what happens when you leave me here?" She howled.
"Hey now, da doc's says you gotta stay put. Just a little while longer, see. Soon. Soon... Soon..."
"NO! Stop saying that! You keep saying that and you don't mean it! Damn you Slick!" Chi'anall threw herself around the room, grabbing, throwing, a mini whirlwind.
"I ain't been tellin' you dat. Jess calm down." The orderly watched her with fascination. The single brow over his eyes arched high when she pulled the covers off her bed with her fingernails.
"I'm waiting. Waiting Slick. I'm sick of waiting!" She didn't even seem to be aware of the orderly anymore.
The orderly left Chi'anall's door to alert the nurse on duty. He often forgot Elliot was around.
Chi'anall ended up in a heap on the floor amidst the bedclothes. Then, muttering darkly, crawled under her bed. Underneath Chi's bed was a teeny tiny phlupp. It had escaped from the phlupp cages - see. That's what really was in the stew. Phlupp. Raised at the hospital so the meat was pure. There was even a phlupp keeper.
Chi'anall's shriek sent the phlupp darting around in a circle, too scared to think or flee "Hold still, hold still. No reason to go running around," Chi'anall said, calming down and realizing just how cute the fuzzy phlupp was. She reached out for it, tentatively. "How'd you get there?"
The phlupp became dizzy and had to stop. It was out of breath and frozen in fear when Chi'anall reached out for it. Her heart pounded and she sympathized with the furry beast. She picked it up and held it close, shushing it to calm.
"Gonna all be okay, now. I promise," She said. The craziness faded.
It trembled in her hand and squeaked loudly.
"Hey! I sad it's be�" She lowered her voice. No sense getting mad at it. She hugged it close to her chest, more so for herself than for the critter that trembled all the more, and was very cute doing so. If she could have under that bed, she would have rocked the little critter. Instead she petted it. Rubbed her face against its fur and murmured nonsense things.
The phlupp had no had no idea and would never understand that it was being used! Used! All it wanted to do was run. Maybe if stayed really still. Still was good for Chi'anall.
"You hungry? Lunch is coming. You can have some." She spoke to it as if the phlupp could understand her. The phlupp knew hunger. It would eat. Its whiskers twitched a lot.
"The stew isn't bad, you'll like it. If they bring it."
---
The inky blackness that was the moons Imikk and Axann slowly moved across the faces of Oponn and Lurudd. The one known as Slick counted himself lucky the eclipse occurred. He would have baked in the suns' light. Alleviation of the debilitating pain was very slow in coming. It would be nightfall before he could actually see again. He remained unaware of Chi'anall's tantrum and subsequent discovery of a fuzzy friend. Everything hurt, but there was a subtle pleasure to this measure of pain.
