The Empire's Descent (First Draft)

Chapter 42: Fallout

"Luca, stop it! Are you listening to yourself "? Lia wrangled the near-frantic Luca, who was hell-bent on "the solution".

"Why don't you understand what I'm trying to do here, Rosalia? Do you understand the power in the knowledge that I hold?" He looks at her as if she's crazy. Sweat pours from his skin in rivulets, his breathing is fast and his pupils are blown like a scared prey facing a predator.

"Okay. Okay. I understand, baby, I do. You have the solution to... all of life's problems-"

"Yes. Yes. Now you get it. So I have to get out of here. Yes? I have to work to usher in salvation. It's urgent. I am needed. Get out of the way!" He shoves and grapples with her, unaware of how uncoordinated his movements were and how weak his force was.

"I get it now, Luca, and I want to help you, but you're gonna feel some serious effects after taking the crystal tear. Can you understand that?" Lia spoke firmly, yet gently, trying to get Luca to see reason.

"Effects? Rosalia, don't you understand? I can make it better! Me! Me alone has the vision to ameliorate. Oh, I wish you'd let me go so I can share it with you, Rosalia. They need me!" Luca desperately tries to convince Lia of the future he saw.

"But that has to be for later, baby. Right now, you have to heal. Feel your skin," she guided.

Luca ran his hands on his skin.

"I'm sweating? But I'm not hot. I can never be hot," Luca looked at his clammy hands in confusion.

"See? You're feeling sick, so you're sweating even when you don't need to... how 'bout we let Emilio look you over," she continued coaxing Luca, whose confusion made him look small.

"Hey, bud... hey, buddy," Emilio cautiously calls while making his way over to him. If he and Enzo were shivering in the corner of the room when Luca was first manic, then no one need mention that.

"Hi, Emilio, you can look me over and get me out. I have the solution, Mimi, I know everything!" He grinned so widely, it warranted a psych-hold, but the name he called Emilio when he was a just a pìccolo, who couldn't pronounce his name, made his heart twinge. (Little one).

"I can't wait for you to tell me everything about it," he begins a physical check while maintaining the placating voice of a patient mother.

"Yes, I will need all of my family for this. It's big, Mimi," Luca stared at the light green wall and mumbled just audibly.

"I can't wait to help you. I'll be by your side every step of the wa-", he's cut off as Luca bats his hands away from him.

"Liar, you'll be leaving with Enzo at some point!" Luca yelled and fixed him with a hard stare. Luca's current weakness makes him look like the toddler-Luca, who used to throw a tantrum when he went on medical missions and had to leave him.

"Aww, buddy, no, not if I don't have to. You know that, right?" Emilio lowered his body to be eye-level with the seated Luca.

"I saw it, you and Enzo leave me. I heard that your ship was ready," Luca argued with a just-perceptible pout.

"Oh," Emilio fumbled, eyes revealing his panic.

"It's true, isn't it?" Luca zeroed in on Emilio's misstep.

"Yes. It is true. I need special medication that I can't get anywhere near here. We'll have to leave shortly," Enzo interjected to rescue Emilio from admitting to what hasn't been asked of him yet.

"You. You've lied this entire time. I don't want to trust you... but I know I can. That's weird for me," Luca's vigilant and taut-with-tension body deflated at the admission.