The Oblivion

the ashes

I FOLLOWED MISS Ash into the recovery room. It was just like the one I was in before I had a shower.

Brook was hunched over on the bed, all the paper-like sheets tangled and stuck up. Her golden hair was wild round the edges and she looked pale with worry. Brook was arguing with the nurse as soon as I stepped inside the recovery room.

"I need to see my brother." I winced. We lied to the hospital about his name being Jim and his position in the family as our father.

"Who?"

"The one with the wasp bites!" Brook snapped.

"You mean Jim?" The nurse looked confused. "You can't right now, he's in the operating room."

"What are you doing to him? You can't do this!" Brook yelled.

"We're helping him! Calm down, Mia, its al right." The nurse tried to calm her down.

Brook looked up and saw me, and I saw her eyes cloud with relief. She leapt off the bed and squeezed me, then whispered in my ear, "We need to break out of here and take Brian. Now."

I rolled my eyes at her drama.

"Why?" I said out loud, trying to find her emotion behind her eyes.

Brook shook her head in alarm and angled her head to the nurse staring at us behind. I faked a smile then asked questions about how Brook was feeling.

"Where's Ariana?" Brook asked.

"Ariana? Who's Ariana?" I said aloud, ferociously trying to give Brook the hint, winking like crazy when the nurse looked back to fumbling with medicines.

Brook, at last, got the hint.

"Oh right, I was thinking of my cousin. Where is your sister?"

"Brittany must be somewhere," I said, but I also began to worry about her. I needed to get Brook and I isolated so I can tell her everything I found out.

Brook somehow felt the same urge as me and asked the nurse for the bathroom. The nurse looked suspicious when I insisted on going with Brook but she said nothing.

When we got to the bathroom and finding out the coast was clear, Brook grabbed my hand and said, "Talk."

I exclaimed everything. About the Boss, about the NG suspicious arising and the details of what Cliffton looked like. I babbled a lot in the end, almost jumping in excitement. I couldn't wait to examine those techno items up close. Brook didn't look impressed, but I could see her twitching. I noticed that she was clean, so she must have also taken a shower, though her hair had dried in a messy way so it had effected it for the rest of the day. Every once in a while I noticed her nibbling her lip and I could tell she was wondering about Brian and was aching to see him. I thought about how I would react if Ariana was stung by many hornets or wasps and was taken to the hospital. Would I go overboard like Brook? Maybe.

Brook told me that all she went through was waking up in wonder and losing her mind. The nurses had taken her weapons which worried Brook, so she went for self defense attacks right away to get out of the place. She said that she remembered suddenly blacking out and waking up again with the doctor explaining that he put a sleeping syringe into her neck. Brook then asked me who actually knocked her out in the first place, and my face went red.

I didn't know what to say, but I reluctantly told her the truth that Ariana hid her head with the bow. Brooks face flushed, but didn't complain and lost interest immediately.

"Look, Cimber. I also found out that they were working with the NG, so thats why I tried to tell you that we need to bust out of here. If the Cliffton people find out that you are wanted to the NG then they may get you there before you can say your own name. We need to get Brian and Ariana and go."

I shook my head without noticing, and uttered just audibly, "No. Firstly, they don't know our real names. They don't even know that we're wanted or else they wouldn't be helping Brian. Yet they are our best shot at surviving. Did you hear when I told you about the whole city? Its crazy, Brook, it's simply crazy. It must have taken years to build it all and with the help of the NG. We're also getting a hotel here, and we can't ask for anything better, can we? All we need to do is check if Ariana and Brian are okay then we can let fate take charge. At least let us stay for a while here until we regain our strength. You just need to relax, Brook, okay?" I gabbled. When I finished, memories of that robotic bird with camera eyes trickled through my head.

Brook sighed, but she was clearly thinking it through.

"Okay, fine. But don't say I didn't warn you."

"Don't say that," I sighed. "It always brings bad luck."