The X Pathogen

Chapter Thirteen

Day break came at last. Early morning sunlight hit Ash's face with a burning brilliance. They blinked rapidly, rubbing their tired eyes.
    Agent Kyo was already awake, or more accurately, he was still awake. Ash was fairly certain the man hadn't slept at all. They'd only managed a couple of hours of restless sleep themself.
Small avian creatures swooped down from the canopy of trees above. Their bright blue feathers stood in sharp contrast to the white and orange foliage around the makeshift camp. Ash sat quietly watching one of them happily devour a breakfast of berries. The creature let out a melody of pleasant chirps and twitters, singing cheerfully as it hopped about. Ash couldn't help but smile at the small creature's innocent joy.
    A whistle, exactly like the creature's own, quietly began to sing. Ash looked around in confusion, then locked eyes with Saji. Her dark purple lips were pursed, the air rushing through them produced a high-pitched melody, perfectly mimicking the creatures.
    Ash stared in awed silence, afraid to make the slightest noise. Saji blushed, her pale lavender skin turned a dark shade of magenta.
    "My mother loved saji sparrows," she smiled faintly, "She always said they were the most beautiful creatures in the galaxy"
    Ash nodded, still amazed by Saji's spontaneous concert. Saji's expression suddenly turned sour, ruining the peaceful moment. Ash turned around to find Nadil standing like a statue, staring at Saji. His eyes were glazed over, his hands clenched into tight fists.
    Ash stood up warily, "Nadil...?"
    If Nadil heard them, he didn't show it. His eyes welled up with tears and his breathing became ragged. His normally stone-like face twisted with emotion.
    Kyo eyed them closely, confusion and concern lined his face.
    "Nadil? Are you okay...?" Ash asked hesitatingly.
    He was trembling like a leaf, it seemed the slightest breeze could have easily toppled him. His voice cracked, "Cere..."
    "What?" Ash slowly moved towards him, "what's Cere?"
    Nadil suddenly fell to his knees, shaking. "No... I- she's okay, please- I didn't mean for- Cere..." his hands groped at his head, desperately trying to shield his face.
    Kyo suddenly appeared by Nadil's side. He gripped the boy's shoulder, "Ronette, talk to me, what's going on?"
    Nadil's breath was shaky, but he finally managed to mutter, "Nothing. I- I'm fine." He took a deep breath then shrugged Kyo's hand off his shoulder and stood up.
    "Humph," the governor exaggeratedly cleared his throat, "well then, shall we be going?"
    Nadil still looked unsteady, but he nodded firmly and shoved past Kyo. Ash made eye contact with Kyo nervously. The agent shook his head without a word.
    The mood was tense to say the least. Nadil angrily stormed ahead, staying within eyesight but still a good distance away from the group. Ash and Saji walked side by side, exchanging worried glances from time to time. Seeing Nadil like that had shaken both of them, and had felt uncomfortably familiar to Ash. They'd had their share of panic attacks when they first arrived at a GSA facility. Most of them involved reliving the worst moments of their life. Based on what Nadil had said and done, Ash was fairly sure Nadil was experiencing something similar. Which meant whatever he was seeing in that moment was probably his worst nightmare, though what exactly that was Ash could only guess.
    Kyo fell back to walk beside Ash. "what exactly happened before Ronette, uh-" he said quietly, "froze up?"
    Ash shrugged, "we were looking at the birds, Saji whistled a little, that's about it."
    Saji nodded, her eyes full of concern. Nadil shot them a furious glare and walked faster.
    The governor huffed, "Slow down! I can't be expected to keep up with you!"
    Nadil didn't slow his stride.
    Kyo sighed, "Okay, we'll let this go for now. I'll talk to him later."
    Nadil finally stopped at the top of the hill, staring at the building they'd been trudging towards.
    The governor eagerly rushed forward, only to be caught square in the stomach by Kyo's outstretched arm, "hold up," the agent muttered, "we don't know who or what's in there." He glanced at Nadil, "unless someone isn't telling us everything."
    Nadil stared Kyo down, his only response was stubborn silence.
    Agent Kyo shook his head begrudgingly, "Fine. Let's go, carefully."