Let Art Be Our Weapon: Frerard/Killjoys Epic

Phase II

          I lie in the back of Kemia spread across the seats and my head resting on Frank's lap as Mikey drives the best he can back to the base. I tried getting up back at the site but I was too dizzy and nauseous from the smoke. After coughing up a little bit of blood and what feels like a lung, there was no way I was driving without treatment. Frank got me in the car and Mikey took the front. There were a lot of injuries from the mission. While I was in the house, another van made it to the scene. They sent away the wounded for immediate medical treatment, among them, was Ray, Steve, Galaxy, Parker, and The Girl.
Mikey is worried I'm going to end up sick again but it's nothing that bad. We have medicine for smoke inhalation and burns. It's nothing a tank of oxygen and dosages can't fix. Of course, there may be some injections needed to go directly into my system. Let's just hope that it's not absolutely necessary and if it is, well, get done quick. I don't need to be on death bed again. Of course, the drive back to the base takes forever. I'm not the one driving so we're going slower. Also, the motion is worsening my nausea and the uncertainty for the others terrifies me. Ray's going to lose an eye. Steve won't be able to walk again. Luke may be deaf. The others are hurt. We lost some Killjoys. We lost Alec.
Someone must have called in the mass injuries because there is no concern about parking out cars in the garage. Mikey pulls up in front of the base. He turns around. "Frank, do you-" Mikey starts.
Frank waves his hand at him. "GO! Find Addison and Cole. I got your brother," he tells him. Mikey nods and runs out of the car and into the diner. Frank opens the door and lifts me out. He helps me to my feet and walks with me. One of Mason's assistants gets in Kemia and pulls her into the garage for us.
Two medics come over to us. "What do you guys need?" they ask urgently.
"I am fine myself. A scrape here and there but I can wait. He isn't doing too bad, but he is suffering from smoke inhalation and some burns," Frank tells him.
"Okay," the medic says. He looks at me. "You're going to be okay and able to breathe in a minute. We have plenty of oxygen and medicine to help you. You'll be good within half an hour. We've already started working on others with the same condition and they're doing fine. You will too," he says, his voice positive. There's enough tragedies going around, making everyone a little depressed. The medic makes a good effort to keep things on the bright side.
"Are there shots?" I struggle to ask. I keep coughing and the taste of blood doesn't make anything better. I can't help but sound like a little kid afraid of getting shots that I've had my fair share of needles to last a lifetime. I don't need any more than I absolutely have to.
The medics look at me confused. "He can't speak well but he isn't fond of needles. Don't use them on him unless he'll otherwise die," Frank says. Walking into the diner, I see my reflection on the glass window. My face has a slight tint of violet. Oxygen would be great right about now.
"Oh, well, we won't need to inject anything into him unless he needs steroids for an extreme asthma attack and I doubt that will be necessary. If he is coughing, it means his airway is clear. You can take pills, right?" The medic asks. I give a nod.

After 30 of taking the medicine and breathing in albuterol, I have fully recovered and have been dismissed from the hospital. My major burns have been treated and bandaged up so I don't need to worry about myself, but the others. I have a list of things I need to check before I can do anything else. First, Ray. I find him coming out of surgery. He's not awake but he'll make it. The right side of his face is torn up but it will heal. Although, he lost his right eye, needing to cover it with something. For now, there's a medical bandage over it. Steve is in surgery. He will be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life unable to walk. He also lost his best friend and will be taking his place. He's going to have to be the new Radio DJ as Dr. Death Defying.
Walking down the hall, Frank and I turn around the corner and we find Mikey crying. His trainer Dustin tries his best to comfort him. "I know, I'm so sorry, Mikey. You're going to be okay," he says, hugging him. Mikey shakes his head. "I know, I'm sad too but it's going to be okay."
"No, no, it won't be," he cries.
"You're not okay now but you will be soon." Mikey steps back and Dustin wipes his eyes. "Look at me, you're strong. You can be strong for him. He wouldn't want you to cry. I trained him too." His trainer spots Frank and me at the end. "Go to your team, okay? I'll go check on her."
Mikey nods and walks over to us, pressing his lips together. I put a hand on his shoulder and look at him sympathetically. Mikey takes a small glance at me, our eyes lock. I stare right through him and he breaks. I give him a tight hug. "He's dead," he whispers through his sobs. "He died before they even made it to the base. He lost too much fucking blood and he died on the way here." I run my finger through his hair and Frank puts a hand on his shoulder. "Cole is dead!" he screams. "He's gone and he's never coming back!"
"I'm so sorry, Mikey," I tell him. The little boy with sweeping black bangs and dark eyes is gone. The one that had kept him company while the others and I went away on a mission while he was too young to be an official Killjoy. The boy that had worked with Addison to make a small cake for Mikey's 15th birthday. He's gone. Mikey lost his best friend. "How is Addison doing?" I ask him.
Mikey pulls away and rubs his whole face, smudging the tears everywhere. "She's in surgery. She lost a lot of blood so they're working with what they have, trying to transplant some into her. They don't have a report to give yet about her condition." I give him a kiss on his forehead and hug him again. "I can't lose her too." He starts hiccuping from crying. "I-I think I need some water."
"Do you want me to come with you to the diner?" I ask.
"No, it's okay. I think I just need to be by myself for a little bit. But if you hear anything about Addie,"
"I will get you immediately," I tell him. He gives a half-hearted smile and heads upstairs. I look at Frank. "I can't believe Cole didn't make it," I sigh.
"Yeah, it feels wrong. I know he wasn't in our lives lately but still, he was our friend. He could have been Mikey's brother. It doesn't feel right that the poor kid died," Frank says. Melanie heads out of the hospital distressed. "Melanie? You okay?" Frank calls out.
She snaps her head up and walks in our direction looking really dazed. "I was looking for you guys," she whispers. Tears hover in her eyes but she's fighting to keep them there. "I don't know what's going on but I needed to find you two."
"What's wrong, Wanda?" Frank asks.
Melanie stands puzzled. There's a cut where she hit her head, the deeper part is taped up and the wound was cleaned and dried. "I don't know what's happening."
"What do you mean, Melanie?" I ask
"You called me Melanie but he called me Wanda," she trails off.
Frank looks at me concerned. "Well, it's your name and Killjoys name. What's really going on?"
"I-I can't remember," she says. She hit her head in the zones. She was sent to the hospital to get it bandaged but there are so many injuries I doubt her doctor had time to run a thorough mental check before dismissing her from the hospital. "You saved a boy with blue hair, I remember being scared and I feel like I should thank you for saving him."
"I couldn't leave him there," I tell her. "How is he recovering?"
"I don't know. I didn't find out." There's something terribly wrong. She loves Luke so much. She would have made sure he was stable before she left the hospital.
"Melanie, who are you?" I ask, putting a hand on her shoulder.
Her chin wrinkles up and her eyes bulge to keep herself from crying. "I don't know," she struggles to find the strength to say the words. She lets out a huge sigh. She pulls away and tries to hide her face. "I'm not a crybaby," she mumbles in her hands.
Frank gives her a hug. "Hey, no one said you were. And if anyone thinks to say so, well, I'll make them a crybaby." Melanie gives a little laugh. "It's going to be okay. It's not the end. Not yet it isn't."