Grandeur Defector

XXVI

"Wh-What?"

What is happening...?

It was in that moment he processed what had truly happened as he stood trembling.
T-That tiger soldier must've attacked me... and I spilled every organ in his body.
Without realizing.

His entire body felt strangely numb as Flippy gripped his shoulders tightly in concern. Even though the bear was in front of him, he felt so far away. The taste of blood made him feel nauseous, and as he sat flabbergasted drenched in someone else's life, his mind began to slip again as he fell to his knees.

Fight— Fight the paradise control... i-it's not real! None of that was real!

Just like before, his eyes rolled back and his mouth foamed again like a ravenous dog. He felt his head droop, but nothing in his body responded no matter how much he fought. Like a seizure he spasmed again, limp in his friend's shaking hands. Right before the world turned distantly hazy once more, he heard someone yell something about camp.

"Stay with us, come on!"

I'm trying-!

Even though reality was nothing more than a haze now, Truffles could tell he was picked up and squeezed against his friend's chest to stop moving. His arms were pinned backward, still drenched in blood.
What is happening?
"Happ...?"

He felt the rise and fall of Flippy's chest against his uniform. His bear friend's heart rate was through the roof, beating wildly with panic. For some reason, hearing the heartbeat of his ally was oddly comforting. Even if it was just for a moment, Truffles felt strangely calm.

"You're infected. Stay still."

Or rather, not calm.
Infected. Infected with an irreversible effect from the most feared plant in the nation.
I'm going to die, aren't I...?
This flower uses the brain of its host until the body dies. Once the spores are inside your cranium, you have a timer over your head.

A branch hit his side along with Flippy's but that didn't seem to stop him in the slightest. It stung as it hit his flank, but the small dose of pain sent his mind out of his control again.
He hissed in fury uncontrollably at his former enemy, trashing hard to escape Flippy's grip— but he remained in his arms, no matter how much he clawed in protest.
No. I won't let myself be taken that easily.

And then he slashed his arm with no hesitation. Instantly, blood welled out of the deep cut, and he struck himself again. He hissed again, but it wasn't directed towards anyone other than himself fighting the spore's demand for mind control.
Pain shot from his arm all the way up his spinal cord, confusing the spores at the sudden self-infliction. Reality became less hazy than it was moments before, although it was a struggle to see.

I can fight it. I will fight it as long as I can.
I won't let a flower kill my own friends.

Flippy lumbered faster through the thicket, Mouse and Sneaky behind them both. He looked torn emotionally, stuck between dropping Truffles and scolding him for self-harming, but too panicked from the dire situation to let go. He huffed as the trees finally disappeared behind them and the sounds of camp grew in the distance.
The bear stormed into camp, not even bothering to explain why Truffles was bleeding from both arms and covered in someone else's blood. The haze in Truffles' vision slowly began creeping back.
NO!
The lights around the two grew dimmer as Flippy entered the medic tent with his friend in his arms. Immediately, Dr. Burns and Cass stopped in the middle of their sentences, their peaceful conversation cut short by the sudden emergency.

Quickly, Flippy dropped Truffles onto the medic table and grabbed his hands; he held them down with determination and fear. Truffles' head jerked involuntarily as he huffed out of breath himself, his lungs screaming for more oxygen.
He had no idea why.