"Lan Zhan? Do you know? When you finally decide 'this is it; I'm done', your whole world starts to get really quiet. I could hear the blood pumping through my veins louder than the battle going on around me. I could hear each tear drop as it fell of...
Wei Ying snuggled into his husband's sweaty body. It was difficult to do while laying underneath him, but not impossible. "I can still walk, you know," he mentioned idly. "You're going to have to work harder once we escape this inferno."
Lan Zhan kissed the top of his lover's head. "I'll do my best. How long before your reinforcements arrive?"
"It should take them about an hour to get here, plus some time to assemble, and fight our assailants.... So... maybe another hour? Plenty of time to get another round in...."
Lan Zhan sat up and cleaned their bodies. "Plenty of time to dress and meditate and heal." He lit a fire talisman and began sorting out their clothing.
"I don't need to heal, Lan Zhan! I'm perfectly capable of doing at least four more rounds before it will start to really hurt!"
"You may be fine," the other reminded him. "But I... need to meditate."
"Does it hurt a lot still?" Wei Ying worried that he'd damaged his husband's body with his inexperience.
"A lot? No." he admitted. Upon seeing Wei Ying's concerned face, he soothed, "I will be fine in a bit. I just need to meditate for a while."
So Wei Ying allowed Lan Zhan to dress in peace and begin meditation. Once he was sure the other was deep in a trance, the Yiling Patriarch began preparations of his own....
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Pain! Li MeiLi screamed upon awakening. My arms! My back! My Gods! "A'Chen! Are you all right? A'Chen!" Li MeiLi looked over at the barely visible dark head lying so still on her left shoulder. Her clothing felt sticky and tacky against her skin. I can't move my fingers. I can't feel my hand! The young woman started hyperventilating; tears and snot streaming down her face. With great difficulty, she managed to regain enough control to light a few candles, and started screaming again upon seeing her free hand covered in drying blood. "A'Chen! Wake up," she begged. She struggled to get out from under his weight and felt something warm and wet trickle down her back. Pain! Dear gods this hurts! "Damn you, Lan Huan!" she cursed. "I can't reach the acupoints on my back! You need to wake up!" Sitting up, she cursed again as the hand that had been trapped under Lan Huan's body began to regain feelings. It felt like she was being stabbed by thousands of tiny needles. She reached out with a bloody hand to take his pulse and bit her lip to stop another scream as another scab broke under the strain and more blood started to drip down. His pulse was thready and weak, but he was alive.
Li MeiLi gathered her strength and pushed her husband's body over; that man had attacked from the back so his wounds must be there. But the robes were too bloody to see anything. She forced herself to stand and limp over to Shouyue lying on the floor. "I need you to work with me here," she told the sword. "I don't know how to use you properly, so don't get mad at me, OK? I just need to see his back, and you're what I've got." Like Lan XiChen had taught her, she wrapped spiritual energy around the sword and grabbed the hilt. Again, that noise filled her head. "Just help me cut his robes off; I need to see where he's hurt," she begged and watched, astonished, as Shuoyue leapt out of her hand to its master. With a few short flicks, the robes and shirt were slit from neck to knees and down along each arm. Then it resheathed itself. "I thought you didn't understand words," she muttered. She carefully peeled the now rags down and swore loudly each time she reopened a wound. She pressed and prodded looking for the acupoints which would help her to cut off the blood flowing from his wounds.
