Vow of a Healer #3
Havali wasn’t responding to her anymore.
He was covered in sweat, shaking as his temperature spiked.
The only sounds he made were pained groans.
Domini didn't have arteries close enough to their skin for her to be able to feel a pulse, but when she lowered her ear to his chest, his heart was racing.
Their six chambered heart had three distinct thuds to its beat, unlike the two humans had.
But she couldn't even distinguish that anymore, it was racing so fast it sounded like an unending trill.
When she moved her head lower and listened to his belly, she could hear the desperate gurgling of his intestines pushing something through.
The scent of blood, distinguished as human since domini blood had a much harsher metallic scent, around his claws and mouth gave her the next clue.
He had tried to drink from his enemies, and for whatever reason, it wasn't agreeing with him.
She didn't know why, but she knew her blood had specific effects, so it wouldn't be surprising if male blood could do something too.
Or maybe they were on some kind of drug or medicine that was affecting him badly.
The why also wasn't important. He was poisoned and she didn’t have anything she would normally need to treat him. Not even water.
Grimacing, she cast her eyes around, as though a solution might somehow appear through the pitch blackness of the underground.
Their pursuers…
Gritting her teeth, Scarlet debated the decision for a minute. Going back up might be dangerous, but Havali needed something.
“Wait here,” she ordered, touching his face gently, worried by the amount of sweat pouring off of him. What was happening to him? “You’re going to be okay. I’m going to make sure you’re okay. I promise.”
Getting to her feet, she turned and put her hand on the right wall – formerly her left – and traced her path right back to the stairs that led up to the broken entrance. She hadn’t been in the darkness for long, but already the moonlight seemed extraordinarily bright.
Grimacing, she kneeled in the shadows of the entrance and listened. Waiting for some sign that another of their chasers had found them.
Nothing.
Not even when she cautiously crept out, this time hiding in the shadow under the bridge.
Out in the dry streambed, she could see the two bodies splayed out on the ground in the ignoble position Havali had left them.
They had packs on their backs.
And guns in their hands.
“Okay,” she breathed, taking a step closer. She waited there, listening again. The forest remained alive with night sounds but was otherwise still.
“Havali needs help. Do it for Havali,” she ordered herself.
Then, before she could chicken out, she took off in a crouching run across the bed. She winced immediately, ready to be pelted with gunfire or tackled from the side.
Nothing happened and she got to the corpses unmolested.
Scarlet was too well trained to be unnerved by dead bodies at this point. She didn’t even bother to search their stuff, she just yanked the packs from their backs, grabbed one of their guns, the spare ammo he had strapped to his side, and threw it all over her back.
She ignored the blood that stuck to her hands, though she did note that one of them definitely had the marks on his neck of a domini bite.
Havali had drunk from him, and, for whatever reason, it poisoned him.
She checked that guy for medication or something that might have tainted his blood – which wasn’t unheard of among the domini.
Livestock animals that had their blood drained weren’t allowed to have certain things because, once it hit the bloodstream, it became toxic for anyone drinking them.
But she found nothing and, not willing to give up any more time to a pointless search – what would she even do if she found out what had hurt him anyway? – she gathered her purloined possessions and crouch-ran back to her bridge.
She was only a few feet from the shadows, from safety, when she heard a wordless call out amongst the trees. Followed by-
“There she is!”
Cursing, she gave up her crouch and sprinted.
Under the bridge, into the hole. She took off down the stairs, keeping her hand on the left wall again.
She was in such a rush to get away, to get some measure of safety, she very nearly tripped over Havali.
Only his groaned pains, loud in the darkness, brought her up short.
“Havali,” she called to her mate, sinking down to her knees and crawling forward blindly until her searching hands found him. “I’m here. It’s okay.”
He groaned, his entire body shaking.
Scarlet dropped her bounty by the wall and quickly began going through everything, using what senses remained to her.
There were things she couldn’t identify at all, but alongside them she found keys, a walkie talkie, a couple bottles of water, more ammo, papers, a flashlight, and a wallet.
She set aside the things she couldn’t use and took a small sip of water before offering some to Havali.
For all the good it did. He couldn’t swallow.
Echoing down through the tunnel, she heard men calling out. They were coming in. They probably had flashlights too. She didn’t dare turn hers on. The darkness was her ally now and she embraced it as she lifted the gun to her shoulder.
She didn’t know much about guns. She knew about the safety switch but didn’t know where it was. She had to trust that, since it was just recently fired, it would still be off. Aside from that, she knew pulling the trigger made it go bang.
And that was enough when she saw the first light emerge peeking around the corner. She noted that she was in a tunnel, but there was a small alcove nearby. The area wasn’t big, probably enough for two men to walk abreast if they got close.
And it was lined in human bones.
She was in the infamous Paris underground crypt. Burial sight of potentially millions. And obviously not a tunnel that was well known.
But she pushed that info to the back of her mind.
And when the first guy came around the corner, she didn’t think.
She pulled the trigger.
Havali
Time moved strangely. There were times that he was aware of his surroundings.
He felt and heard Scarlet talking to him.
She prompted him to drink water, and he tried his best to accommodate her, but his throat spasmed whenever he tried.
Like it was afraid he was about to be poisoned again and therefore refused to swallow.
Other times, everything was weird and echoing and hazy. He saw lights flashing and dancing in his vision, was alternately unbearably hot and bone chillingly cold, and there was a monster there, trying to drown him.
Thunder would also crack intermittently, deafening and blinding him in turn.
He had no idea how much time passed that way, but he was acutely aware when it finally stopped, and he opened his eyes to pitch blackness.
He groaned, trying push himself up. His entire body ached. He was weak.
“Sh, you’re okay.”
Scarlet, his sweet Scarlet, was petting his head. He turned, hoping to see her, but of course, he couldn’t.
She petted him until he stopped moving, then her hand was withdrawn. He heard the click of something metallic.
He smelled blood and death.
Gasping, he sat up. All the blood tried to rush from his head, but he clenched his teeth and kept himself upright as he heard Scarlet move.
“Havali.” Something metal clattered against the ground as she spoke to him slowly and softly. “You’re okay. It’s okay. Don’t move.”
Her hands, blindly sweeping out in the darkness, touched on his chest. She tried to push him back down, but he grabbed her wrists. She gasped.
“Havali… You’re awake?”
“I’m awake,” he assured her, voice rough.
“Oh! Here. Water.”
One of her hands left him, but it was back in a moment with a bottle that sloshed, half full, when she pressed it into his hand.
He eagerly brought it to his lips, chugging it down. His throat tried to spasm, to reject it, but forced the desperate gulps back. He felt dry. His eyes were scratchy, his tongue stick to the roof of his mouth, and his lips were chapped. He needed the water.
The spasming faded quickly, luckily, and the weight of the water hit his empty belly, making him groan as it rolled and protested.
“Easy.” Scarlet was there, lowering the bottle. “Not too much or you might throw it up.”
“Where are we? What happened?”
“I think the guy you drank from poisoned you somehow. We managed to get underground before you collapsed.”
“How long have we been here?”
“I don’t know. Days, maybe?” She let out a shuddering breath. “I’m sorry. There’s… I couldn’t do anything… I just…”
The sound of footsteps made her gasp. Something metal skidded against stone. He felt rather than saw her turn.
“Stop or I shoot!” She barked into the darkness.
They didn’t stop. Their steps just got quieter.
Light suddenly burst and Havali groaned, averting his eyes.
Someone screamed in pain.
Lightning cracked, impossibly loud, and, squinting, Havali saw a human man drop to the ground, landing amongst a pile of other bodies.
It was only for a second. The flashlight Scarlet held was turned off quickly. But not before he saw the gun she had in her hands. Or the wan look on her face.
“What’s happening?” He asked, heart thudding.
“They keep trying to come down here,” she answered, her voice so weak and tired – in direct contrast to the commanding tone of her warning.
“At first, they were using flashlights. But it was light a beacon and I never missed. And then they started wearing the night vision goggles, so I started using my flashlight to blind them. But they won’t stop coming and they… they…” Her voice broke on a sob.
Havali grabbed her and pulled her into his arms. Heart breaking for his precious healer who had been forced to take those lives.
“It’s okay,” he said, petting her hair. “I’m here now. I’m here. I’ll take care of the rest. Give me the gun, Scarlet.”
She was still crying and shaking as she weakly turned it over to him.
Havali held her as he kept up her vigil. When she fell asleep, he gently lowered her to the ground and took her place. Guarding the hall.
Two more males came down – one wearing night vision goggles. One without. That strategy didn’t work either as both were gunned down the moment his flashlight came on.
The next male was quieter than the others. So silent, Havali didn’t even hear him until he was already part of the way down their tunnel. He wore no night vision, he moved by gently touching the wall to guide his path. But he didn’t realize how close he had gotten. Havali killed him immediately.
The sight and smell of blood made his stomach turn. As if he needed a reminder to never drink from a human male again.
He didn’t call out warnings like Scarlet did. He wasn’t nearly so forgiving as his healer. He killed without mercy or hesitation.
Which made Atem’s call in Domtri in the darkness lucky on his part.
“Here!” He called back, turning on the flashlight. Beckoning him closer. Behind him, Scarlet groaned at the harsh light. She had woken some time ago. He didn’t know how long. Time was impossible to track here.
Atem turned the corner, grimacing at the light, his body blending into the stone and bone surrounding them.
Havali saw him and let out a grateful sigh. Scarlet got to her feet, standing strong and proud. Though he knew it was a shield. A mask. She was hurt from this, from being forced to kill so many.
Atem ran towards them, smiling and grateful that they were alive. Havali put his arm around Scarlet and brought her close, holding her as he whispered in her ear-
“I’m so proud of you. You did so well.”
She shuddered against him but didn’t argue. By the time they made it back to the surface, both of them squinting into the bright daylight, she was strong and impervious again. At least on the outside. But it would hold her together until she had a proper chance to heal.
Scarlet
Safety.
It felt good.
It wasn’t the ship or the fact that they were off Earth.
It was Havali’s arms around her, holding her on their bed, in their room, neither of them willing to move, as she cried for the lives she had taken.
She didn’t regret it. Not really. She also didn’t mourn for those men.
But it still hurt. It was a complicated feeling tearing her up inside.
She was a nurse. A healer. She was meant to protect people. Being forced to kill them or be overrun by their hatred was a terrible choice to make.
And that was why she cried. She mourned for herself. For the choice forced on her. For the existence of that hatred in the first place.
She cried until her eyes were sore and her body was weak. She slept a little and woke up crying just a little bit more.
Havali was there through it all. Unmoving. Unjudging. He held her, he kissed her head, he rubbed her back, until she was strong enough to face him again.
“You probably think I’m silly,” she said, smiling weakly at him. The domini didn’t have PTSD. Their brains simply weren’t wired that way. It must be nice. But it did mean that they didn’t really understand the very human reaction she had to things like this.
He just smiled at her. “No, vi Healer. I’m so incredibly proud of you. You fought so well. My mate is strong and brave. How could I be anything but pleased?”
She laughed weakly. “Blubbering is being strong and brave?”
“Fighting in the dark with no food, little water, outnumbered, and caring for your poisoned mate? Yes. I would say there is nothing but bravery in that. You’re incredible, vi adassi.”
She smiled, shaking her head, as she buried her face in his chest. “I’m okay.”
“You are,” he assured her, rubbing her back.
“Our baby is okay.”
“He is,” he growled low.
“I love you, Havali.”
“I know. You’ve proven it to me so many times over now.” He kissed the top of her head. “You have killed for me. I will live and die for you.”
She faced him, strengthened by the confession. “I did kill for you. And I would do it again. Kill.” She kissed his shoulder. “Live.” She kissed his neck. “And die.”
She covered his lips, sealing the vow.