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Post by CJ on May 6, 2014 14:15:12 GMT -5
Beth wasn't a screamer. In fact, she rarely ever displayed pain, no matter how great it was. It got her into lot of trouble. People often didn't take her seriously when she claimed she was hurt or ill.
So she was lucky to have Kaede to know exactly what sort of situation she was in. She silently wondered if she was hallunciating, hearing Kaede actually interrupt and command Bader. It was then that she remembered what she had come there for. She kept staring at her with blank, expressionless eyes that seemed to blend in with the rest of her translucent, fishman textured face, altered by the energy she had taken in from Pet Shop. How much of the fight had the girl seen?
After Bader had removed the stingers from her arms, Beth assumed she would feel instantly better. She didn't. Unbeknownst to her, she was still in grave danger. But simply having Kaede by her side eased her fears. She didn't understand much about technology or medicine, so knowing there was someone who did who cared enough about her made her feel safe.
"Kaede," she managed to say. "Thank you."
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Post by Shark a' Pult on May 6, 2014 21:19:04 GMT -5
Kaede had managed to prevent Beth from succumbing to the venom, though the aftereffects were more severe than she was able to treat with simple medical kits dropped in from Colyne. With a heavy dose of sedatives she aimed to keep Beth out of it, and with Bader's help began the arduous task of moving her to receive proper treatment. Ermakor was a decently sized place, so finding a hospital was no great trouble.
Treatment there was another question, but Kaede saw to it that they understood the severity of Beth's condition.
---
It was unclear how much time had passed since the fight, and there might be blurred memories of the medical treatments she underwent, but Beth would awake to find herself in a cozy hospital bed. It seemed at least though that the worst had passed since she was in a women's ward, just one of many beds in a long hall. Since she was no long receiving serious treatment, there wasn't a need for her to have her own room.
It appeared to be late evening, as it was clear to tell the sun had set through the windows, but the soft glow of night lights of the city played over the hall. The lamps within the actual hall itself served to eclipse this, but they were not all on since some patients in the ward were sleeping. That aside, there were not that many people in the ward to begin with, and more than half the beds were empty. Doctors and nurses made their rounds, but overall there was no sense of emergency here. Just recovery.
All the while, Kaede sat nearby, assumedly asleep in a chair beside Beth's bed. It was somewhat hard to tell though, since her visible eye was closed, but she wasn't breathing. This was not uncommon for her though since she didn't breathe in the conventional manner anymore. Of note that Bader was nowhere to be found, just some letters on the bedside table, a glass and jug of water and flowers.
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Post by CJ on May 6, 2014 22:20:03 GMT -5
Beth's eyes shot open.
What was she doing asleep in a place like this? Her Devil Fruit powers kept her constantly awake. The only time she was ever unconscious was if she experienced some kind of trauma.
Then it came back to her. She went to fight Pet Shop for the fourth ranking in the Grand Path. She barely remembered the battle past her initial conversation with Pet Shop. How long did it actually last? The chimera's stingers were so painful, it was hard to tell. She noticed her skin was back to normal. For a moment, she regretted not storing away some of Pet Shop's energy, but was reminded of how awful she felt using it. It was too wild and unfocused. She would rather be done with it.
Shifting silently in the bed, she wasn't surprised to see Kaede. Normally she would look down on the girl for going through so much effort to help her, but she knew she would only do the same thing. This was different than in Seven Gates when Kaede let her body decay in what Beth assumed to be an unnecessary sacrifice just to get Connor into a new body faster. Even if Beth wasn't at risk for death, she would only expect Kaede to go to the lengths she did presently. For all she knew, all it cost was time and money.
Thinking back to the fight, she wanted to know if she won, but didn't wake or alert Kaede. She wanted to figure things out on her own first. She hated having to rely on the girl up until this point.
How much time had passed? Hours? Days? Weeks? In what little light the lamps provided, it was hard to tell just by looking around. She knew the flowers on the table weren't from Connor. He usually made her candy or chocolate for these kinds of situations. Reaching over from the bed as quietly as she could, she tried to read the letters in what little dim light she had for clues.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on May 7, 2014 1:20:33 GMT -5
"Careful now, don't over-exert yourself."
One of the nurses several beds over, a nice-looking young woman busy checking on another patient, rather suddenly craned her head to notice when Beth went for the letters. She left the other patient alone, and moved over to the foot of Beth's bed. She seemed painfully eager to see how Beth was holding up, and more, the letters.
"Some I think, might be from family, friends? Most are from me though, I've been waiting for you to wake up."
Very lightly she tapped her fingers on the railing at the foot of the bed, and though she had given no cause for alarm, she had an eerily cheerful expression with an almost painfully wide smile.
As for the letters, most of them seemed to be from a hugely disparate number of people Beth probably had never met before. At least a hundred were from total strangers, all expressing sincere feelings and hope that Beth would have a full and speedy recovery, and wishing her luck.
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Post by CJ on May 7, 2014 14:57:41 GMT -5
Beth cringed when the nurse stopped by. She didn't want to wake up Kaede. Fortunately, Kaede didn't seem to hear her. Already she didn't like relying on others so she wasn't comfortable with the nurse around. She immediately became distressed when she said the nurse had been sending her letters and waiting for her to wake up.
"What? Letters from you?" she asked in a snappy. "But you're right here. You don't need to write anything. Look, I think you have the wrong person. I don't know any of these people and I don't know you."
The letters felt foreign and strange. Who were these people? Was this a mistake?
Placing the letters aside, she tried to sit up and get out of the bed. She wanted to look out the windows for some kind of clue.
"How long have I been here? Where is this place?"
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Post by Shark a' Pult on May 7, 2014 16:45:34 GMT -5
"I've been watching you, I'd think by now I know who you are. You've got more fans than just me though, many more."
When set the letters aside, the nurse looked brokenhearted. She moved to the side of the bed in case anything happened though, when Beth moved to get up. With endless patience she stood in waiting, eventually her cheeriness returning.
"This is St. Grole General Hospital, you've been here a little over a day, nothing too bad. She-" at this the nurse brought a hand to the side of her mouth and with the other subtly gestured towards Kaede, keeping her voice down, "-brought you in yesterday afternoon, but you look like you've recovered. At least enough to leave, just be careful. Ermakor is a big place, easy to get lost."
Looking outside yielded nothing out of the ordinary, just a coastal city. Maybe some sort of event was happening in the distance since it was brighter in an area some miles off to the east, but it was probably just night market or something akin. Otherwise though, the place looked calm enough for any decently sized city. No giant monster attack or buster call to speak of.
"The doctors will let you go though, I'm sure of it, and I suppose you'll want to get back to you husband and son as soon as possible."
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Post by CJ on May 8, 2014 0:24:31 GMT -5
"Fans?" Beth asked. Then it hit her. She had seen this sort of behavior before in childhood peers and even Joe Smith's recent obsession with a band called Achtung Baby. Sometimes people admired celebrities, entertainers and notable figures to the point of obsession. Was she one of those people? She couldn't believe it. It made her feel uneasy, especially sense she was famous for being the equivalent of a killing machine. What was wrong with these people?
Hearing that she was out for more than a day made her feel even worse. Any moment spent away from Meek was another he was in danger. She made her way back to the bed and looked to see if her belongings were anywhere near by so she could get going. She peered back at the nurse when she said the doctors would likely let her go, so she could quickly get back to her husband and son.
Your husband and son.
They know about Connor, yeah. But Meek?
Beth's stomach felt like it was filled with rocks. This woman knew who Meek was or at least that she had a son. It wasn't hard for government officials to piece together who the child was, but now he was under the scope of normal civilians too. She had to get out of the spotlight and fast. As soon as she got back to Water 7, she and Connor would have to take the first and second ranking quickly. There was no way Meek would ever have a normal life, but if they got out of the Grand Path soon, maybe there was a chance he'd be safe.
Calming down a bit, she looked to Kaede who was still apparently asleep. Glancing back at the letters, she noticed similar handwriting on a great deal of them. It must have been from the nurse.
"Hey," she said, looking away from her. "I'm sorry about before. Waking up after a fight can be rough. I didn't mean to be rude."
Beth quickly found some cheap hospital stationary and a pen. She started to write a note which read.
Stay good, you amazing person, you. You're cool I suppose. - Beth
"If I had known you'd be treating me, I would have worked a little harder to get you something better. What's your name?"
She positioned the pen at the top of the note, hoping an autograph would be enough to cheer up the nurse. Of all the things she could be doing right now, this was the last thing she wanted to do, but she knew how bad it felt to be disappointed by someone she admired. At the very least, she could do this to raise the nurse's spirits.
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Post by Shark a' Pult on May 8, 2014 0:49:59 GMT -5
"Oh, Beth! Sorry, when I sleep now, only certain things can wake me up."
The moment the words 'wake' and 'up' were mentioned, at least in some form, Kaede jolted awake. Immediately she checked about her surroundings, apparently still not yet familiar with them, but when she noticed Beth up and awake she too attempted to move to stand. Struggling to reach for her crutch, she was aware of the smiling nurse and her interest in the two of them.
"It was quite a fight, yes. When you were brought in, for your body to be in a state like that, it's a miracle you survived really."
"Not so much a miracle... just something she did before I brought her here."
She wasn't sure what Beth and the nurse had been talking about, but she found it to be confusing and somewhat suspicious, and she narrowed her eye when she examined the nurse who merely smiled back.
"Oh, my name? It is..." as if Beth had just hit her in the face with a hammer, the nurse was completely taken aback, and struggled for a few moments to find an answer. Eventually she looked down, and rummaged through the pockets of her uniform, searching for some form of identification. When she found it, she brought it up to read so fast she nearly dropped it. "...ah! Meredith... Del-waa-nee? No, Delaney, yes! That's it."
Returning the identification to her pocket, the nurse blinked as if in disbelief for a second, but turned her attention towards Beth again with that ever-present smile. It seemed she was quite interested in whatever it was that Beth was writing. Kaede meanwhile, managed to reach her foot.
"So... how are you feeling? If you're ready, we can probably leave as soon as you want. I'd already booked a ship in waiting."
"She's ready."
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Post by CJ on May 9, 2014 12:27:24 GMT -5
"Ee-gah!" Beth squeaked when Kaede suddenly woke up. "Ah... I'll keep that in mind."
She still wasn't comfortable with cybernetic enhancements it seemed. All technology seemed foreign and strange to her. The field of medicine was odd to her as well. Her hospital gown felt odd and only reminded her that people had been touching and manipulating her. Yes, it was to save her life, but it still was an awful feeling.
What the nurse said about the fight didn't make her feel proud. The only time she ever relished in victory was when she defeated someone who actively tried to hurt her or someone else. Pet Shop was a participant in a cruel game of fate. The group would likely have had nothing to do with her or her family if it wasn't for the Grand Path.
Then Kaede mentioned she had done something before she "brought her here." What was that exactly? Was there something she had forgotten doing? She planned on asking her later.
Hearing Meredith's name, she quickly wrote it down above the note. It was misspelled and written as poorly as the message, but Beth geniunely tried her best to make the nurse's experience worthwhile. She paused for a moment, thinking it a bit odd that she would forget her own name, but she figured it was her nerves getting to her.
"Yeah," she said in unease after Meredith said she was OK to go. "I'd like to get back as soon as possible."
Just before getting her clothes and things together to get changed and go, she handed the autograph to the nurse. She sighed and tried not to look embarrassed over the whole thing.
"Here. And... thanks."
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Post by Shark a' Pult on May 10, 2014 15:30:22 GMT -5
"Ok, we'll just get you signed out and be on our way."
Having made it to her feet, Kaede planned to give Beth some privacy to get changed, the bedside curtains allowing that. With the help of her crutch, she made her way out of the ward and to a managerial desk to begin the process of getting Beth checked out.
The nurse meanwhile remained until Beth gave her the autograph, and seemed even more ecstatic than usual to get it.
"No, thank you! Almost never have I gotten a response from someone in the game that I wrote a letter to! The others will be so jealous!"
Following Kaede's cue, Meredith as well, afforded Beth some privacy and went to return to her rounds. Not before she leaned back though to mention one last thing she almost forgot.
"Oh, and I'm looking forward to fighting you after this. Best of luck!"
With that she merely moved onto the next patient, about two beds down from Beth's.
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Post by CJ on May 13, 2014 23:11:31 GMT -5
Beth shrugged at Meredith's comment. She wasn't surprised no one else responded. If the nuse wasn't right in front of her, she wouldn't have bothered to either. This wasn't a game. This was a competition. She didn't know the other contestants well, but she figured not all of them enjoyed life in the spotlight. Closing the curtains to change, she heard one final thing from Meredith.
"Fighting?" she mumbled.
She hoped by that the nurse didn't plan on entering the Grand Path herself. She didn't see the message as anything but misguided fantasy. Still, she didn't feel very comfortable knowing the nurse knew about Meek.
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