Lights, Camera, Orc-tion!

25: Venom

The next morning, Kahdreg and Avicia found the ship had docked while they slept. It seemed the captain had some conscience and Kallinaera was contractually obligated to foot additional unforeseen costs. The port town they had landed in, however, was small. It was more like a fishing town that happened to have space - barely - in their marina for the yacht.

Regardless, they had to work with what they were given. After gathering necessary belongings - wallets, purses, cell phones, and keys - Kahdreg made arrangements for the rest of their gear to be sent to his home, before arranging for a cab and preemptively alerting the hospital of their arrival. "Ready to head out, Avicia?"

Avicia gave a nod, giving a soft affirmative hum, before her head lolled against Kahdreg's shoulder.

She was just tired, Kahdreg told themself as they scooped her up in their arms. As they carried her from the ship, to the pier, to the cab waiting outside the marina, they could barely focus on much else than the woman in their arms. They tried to take solace. Her breathing and body temperature all felt fine, they felt normal.

Within twenty minutes of leaving the marina, the two were walking through the sliding doors of the hospital. Well, Kahdreg was still carrying Avicia like a bride. Not for the first time, the orc glanced at Avicia's bandaged ankle, concerned about what lay beneath the wrap.

But it was fine. They wouldn't be concerned much longer. An experienced doctor would take over soon. They'd know exactly what to do, how to heal the ankle and whatever remaining bites Avicia had.

Everything was going to be fine.

Just fine.

"Kahdreg?" Avicia's tone caught at Kahdreg's stomach and, when they glanced down to her, it felt as if everything dropped out from under them. "I'm not feeling great."

Her lips were blue, too blue for a human. As she cracked open her eyes, squinting in the bright light of the lobby, Kahdreg realized how bloodshot her eyes were. The rim of her lower eyelids flamed an angry red. Her lips parted and, with frantic horror, Kahdreg thought they spotted blood staining her teeth, as if it had been pooling in her mouth. And was her temperature too warm? Kahdreg couldn't tell.

"I need a doctor over here, now!" The snarled words were out of their mouth before they could think them through. But they had the reaction they needed.

Automatically, the person at the information desk dialed a number. An alert played over the intercom, but Kahdreg couldn't make out the words. They could only hear the pounding of their pulse as they held onto Avicia. People dressed in scrubs rushed to the lobby, to the wide-eyed orc and the human in their arms.

One member of the staff - in Kahdreg's panic, they could only note the pronouns on the nametag, she/her - approached, hands already on Avicia's face and checking the woman with a critical eye, "What happened?"

"Last night, she fell off a yacht." Panic took hold of Kahdreg's chest, trying at once to hold Avicia close but not so close they crushed her. Especially as the presumable nurses began checking her over, pressing a thermometer to her temple and opening her eyes to shine a light into them. "There were sea serpents."

The first nurse tilted her head, a sharp look in her gaze. "Why wasn't she brought in right away?"

"We were out in open water and she was treated with potions and one of the crew members on the ship did what they could." Kahdreg's eyebrows furrowed as they tried to highlight the important parts. Dread still swelled in them. Had they not done enough? Had they missed something direly important? "She didn't seem... This just started."