赤裸裸的滑稽故事

Her consciousness stirred. She was lying somewhere soft and warm. The sound of air being pushed into the room and the faint buzz of an overhead light played in her ears. She took a breath, wincing from the pain it drew from her body.

Ashleigh opened her eyes. She was in a small room she didn’t recognize. The ceiling was white, the walls a sort of salmon beige color. She lifted her head just enough to look around. One small window with sheer rust-colored curtains let the sunlight into the room.

A counter and sink with a cabinet above was on one side of the window. On the counter, Ashleigh could see basic medical supplies like bandages, gauze, and cotton balls. On the other side of the window was a tall, simple dresser. It was dark wood, with two doors that opened out. Just past the dresser was the door she assumed led out of the room.

Other than the bed that Ashleigh was lying on, the only other furniture she saw was an end table with only a lamp and a chair not far from the bed.

An IV pole beside the bed was also connected to her arm.

Ashleigh took a deep breath and laid her head back. She still felt drained, and her body ached and burned.

She pulled her arm out from under the blanket. Even that action sent painful jolts through her body. Then, moving the blanket down, she saw that she wore a sports bra and that her midsection was covered entirely in bandaging. She lowered the blanket to her hips before pulling it back to cover herself.

Ashleigh closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

What happened? How had she gotten here? Where was she?

The last thing she remembered was the green liquid spraying toward her. She remembered screaming and then seeing black. The pain must have overwhelmed her. But then what happened?

There was a flash of another memory, of more screams, but there was something else, water?

The door to the room opened, and Ashleigh turned her head. He had his back to her as he closed the door, but she immediately recognized his blue hair.

“Myka,” she whispered. “Where are we? What happened?”

He turned around, wearing a short-sleeved shirt, and his arms were covered in bandages. Surprised by the sight, Ashleigh tried to sit up, only to cry out in pain as she was immediately reminded that her body was severely injured.

“Don’t try to move,” he said, quickly reaching her and gently pushing her shoulders back to the bed before sitting in the chair. “We are with Bustling Bush. It’s the closest pack to Moonguard.”

“What happened to you?” she asked after a deep breath.

Myka looked down at his arms.

“Once I got the kids a safe distance, I returned for you,” he began. “I saw the creature was dead and found you lying on the ground surrounded by small sinkholes of that green liquid.”

His voice was tired. Ashleigh wondered how long it had been and if he had even had a chance to sleep.

“I assumed that the creature must have sprayed you with that green stuff before it died… it has some kind of acidic quality. It burned you, and you passed out,” he said. “I didn’t realize about the acid… so I picked you up, and….”

He sighed and raised his arms with a tired smile.

“No good deed, right?” he said.

Ashleigh swallowed. She was grateful that he had come back for her. If he hadn’t, she would likely have died there. But she also knew that none of this would have happened if it weren’t for the choice that she had made to begin with.

“Anyway,” he continued. “I picked you up. The burning was pretty immediate. I didn’t know what to do, but it seemed like a good idea to get any extra off us. So, I carried you into the lake.”

“Into the lake?” Ashleigh asked, feeling a vague memory of the event.

“Yea, I don’t know if you remember,” he said. “You woke up screaming, which isn’t surprising because when the water touched my arms, it was ten times worse than just the green liquid itself.”

“I remember water and screaming... but nothing else.”

“I’m not surprised,” he said. “You passed out almost immediately after waking.”

Ashleigh furrowed her brow. She had experienced pain many times in general, but passing out, twice, because of it, was surprising.

“I’m losing my touch,” she smiled. “Letting a little pain take me down.”

Myka looked up at her. It was the first time she noticed his eyes in their conversation. They were bloodshot and swollen. He clenched his jaw.

“Ashleigh, you almost died,” he said. His voice shook, a layer of anger and concern.

Ashleigh swallowed. Obviously, the situation was not ideal. She was still in pain, but how could she have almost died?

“Your stomach, it’s bad,” he continued. “You may not realize it, but you’re on a heavy dose of painkillers.”

Ashleigh furrowed her brows.

“No,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t be. My mind is clear, and yea, it hurts, but it’s not that bad.”

“You’re wearing a medical pin,” he said. Pointing to her shoulder.

She reached up, touching the strap of her bra she felt a small button. It was similar to the armor pin she always wore. Now that he had said it, she could see just a hint of an iridescent shine on her arm.

Caleb had told her about it months ago, something new they were developing in one of the labs. It was meant to work in emergencies, like how they had used their pins to help stabilize someone with basic wounds.

But the medical pin would be able to cover the body in a thin, almost imperceptible skin. Providing a sterile environment, giving antibiotics, numbing agents, or pain medications directly to the wound, and avoiding the side effects on the brain.

But as far as she knew, the medical pin hadn’t been finished yet. It certainly wouldn’t have been released to the minor packs even if it had.

“How?” she asked. “How do I have this?”

“The team that came from Summer brought it.”

Ashleigh furrowed her brows.

“Team from Summer?” she asked. “What team? Why is there a team from Summer here?”

Myka looked away, clenching his jaw. Then, after a moment, he looked back at her.

“Axel requested that they come,” he said.

“What?”

Myka sat back, reached into his pocket, and pulled out a piece of paper.

“When he found out about this,” Myka said, holding the paper to her.

Ashleigh grabbed the paper, bringing it into her sight line. A chill ran down her spine, and her chest tightened as she saw the scout’s original report.