Bad to Worse

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Vaughn slowly opened his eyes and saw Miho still sleeping.

Vaughn stood up, stretching as he looked at the site.

Vaughn gathered some wood and started a fire, making a small flame enough to warm Vaughn and Miho.

Vaughn took some coffee and made two cups of coffee, watching it begin to heat up.

Miho raised from her deep slumber, yawning and stretching her arms, completely warm from the thick sleeping bag, thick bear hide, and fire.

"Morning." Vaughn said.

"Good morning, Mister Vaughn." Miho said.

Vaughn picked up the tin cups, holding one out to Miho.

"Thank you." She said, sipping on the black and hot liquid.

Vaughn sat down, staring at the flame as the dogs awoke slowly, one by one, each yawning before standing up and wagging their tails.

Miho smiled, petting the creatures as the fire warmed them.

"We ready to set out?" Vaughn asked.

"Yes." Miho said, nodding.

They quickly packed their things and climbed onto the sled, continuing their journey.

They were silent as they moved through the trees.

Vaughn began coughing as Miho turned to briefly look at him before looking ahead.

After several minutes, Vaughn fell into a coughing fit as Miho turned to look at him.

Vaughn pulled down his scarf, holding his arm up and coughing nonstop.

"Are you okay, Mister Vaughn?" Miho asked.

Vaughn couldn't respond as he coughed.

Suddenly, Vaughn let go and collapsed to the ground.

"Stop! Stop!" Miho said as she grabbed the anchor and dropped it, stopping the sled.

Miho jumped off the sled, running to Vaughn.

Vaughn rolled over, propping himself up with his hands and coughing into the snow.

Miho ran up to Vaughn, kneeling down and patting his back.

Vaughn wheezed as Miho looked at the snow.

Small specks of blood had formed onto the white snow, not much but worrying.

"Mister Vaughn, why is there blood?" Miho asked.

"I-I don't know." He said weakly.

"We need to go." She said.

Vaughn struggled to his feet as Miho helped him back to the sled.

Vaughn sat down on the sled as Miho stood up on it behind him.

"Gee is turn right, Haw is turn left." Vaughn said with a hoarse voice.

"Mush!" Miho yelled as the dogs quickly started running.

...

Yukari sat down, playing solitaire by herself, feeling bored.

She had fully recovered, now just bored.

She fixed Vaughn's gun and reorganized the house for the two hundredth time. She checked her backpack and equipment, organizing that and more. She even went out and tried to hunt again but failed. It wasn't like she was out of food. She was just bored.

Suddenly, she heard a sound outside and walked to the window.

Miho held onto the sled with Vaughn in the basket before the sled stopped.

Yukari quickly pulled her boots on and ran outside.

"Help me, something is wrong with Mister Vaughn." Miho said.

They helped lift him up and helped him inside the house and to his bed.

They pulled off his boots, coat, and coveralls as he coughed blood.

"What happened!?" Yukari asked.

"I don't know, we were on the sled, and he fell!" Miho said.

Yukari touched Vaughn's face as he gasped for air.

She pressed her ear against his chest and listened.

"I bet he got pneumonia somehow." Miho said.

"How?" Miho asked.

"I don't know, that or tuberculosis."

"Oh no." Miho said, looking at Vaughn.

Sweat beaded down his face as Miho grabbed a cloth and soaked it with cool water before pressing it against his forehead.

Vaughn had his eyes closed shut, breathing as if his lungs were filled with water.

"I don't know how he got that." Miho said.

"We need to find antibiotics or someone to help us."

"Who?" Miho asked.

"What about Atwood?" Yukari asked.

"Atwood? Sure, but we don't know where she is." Miho said.

"Jace told me that she was fifteen to twenty clicks east of the prison."

"Sure, that direction, but that doesn't help us much. It's also past the prison, you know, the very place we had to escape from a gang of crazy men who now want to kill us. We need to find medicine to help Mister Vaughn." Miho said.

Yukari sighed, looking at Vaighn, who was clutching his blanket with his eyes shut tight.

"We need to do something and fast." Yukari said.

Miho sat down next to Vaughn, feeling his forehead.

"He's burning." She said.

"We need to let him rest." Yukari said.

Yukari and Miho stared at Vaughn as he laid on the bed unconscious.






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