Through the Haze - Part Fifteen

The road to recovery is long and hard, but if we dare take it and rough it out, it may leave us better off than before. --Renda Tachanol, Book of Endings.
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Isaac groaned as he slowly came to, a sharp pain between his eyes as he blinked them open, focusing on the white ceiling above him. A face was in his way of the view of the ceiling, however, and the face looked rather relieved. Isaac was confused, unsure of where he was or why he was in such pain. He closed his eyes against the pain, trying to force it back and out of his mind, out of his body, but had little luck.

He was still too new at this gifted thing, he realized. He didn't yet know anything about it, about what he could do, and that was probably what was hurting him.

And Ember. He opened his eyes wide, remembering his ill friend. He tried to sit up, but it forced pain to shoot through his side and course throughout his body in white hot flashes of agony. He gasped and someone eased him back down.

"You mustn't do that, Isaac," Roo said, looking rather concerned. "You've had a rough night."

"W-Where..." he swallowed, trying to get his voice to work better. "Where's Ember? How...is he?"

Roo frowned. "He's no better. Still the same. The fall and the fire didn't change anything."

Isaac sighed in relief. That was good. Ember wasn't any worse off. If only Gabriel would hurry, then maybe Ember would have a chance. He tried to shift, but only wound up gasping in pain as it flashed in front of his eyes, making his mind hazed and his vision blurred.

"Don't move," Roo insisted, steadying him with his hand. "You aren't in very good a condition to do that just yet, though you are getting better. It just takes time."

Isaac clenched his eyes tightly closed and swallowed thickly, trying to ease his constricted throat. "What happened?" he asked, not sure of what took place after he passed out.

Roo seemed to get what he meant. "We saw the smoke and the flames from the barn. We got there was quick as we could, but by the time we reached the top of the hill, you were sent out of the window. We thought--we thought you were dead for a minute, but then you moved. We hurried to you, but you weren't in good shape.

"Your legs were burnt badly, but luckily they didn't get infected. There was a piece of glass in your left side. You landed on your right side when you fell, and the force of the blast and the fall broke a few of your ribs and did a lot of damage to your colorbone and shoulder. We fixed it best we could, but it's still uncertain. I have to admit, you had me incredibly worried about you. Don't ever do that again, okay?

"If you move too much, you could injure yourself further or tear your stitches out. Just take it easy, okay?"

Isaac sighed heavily, eyes still closed. He felt oddly tired. "Okay. Good thing I wasn't planning on dancing anytime soon."

Roo took it for the joke that it was and gave a small chuckle. Isaac cracked a small smile. "Just take it easy, Isaac, and get some rest, and you should heal up nicely. In the meantime, Ember's in good hands. His fever seems to have gone down some," he added thoughtfully.

Isaac opened his eyes. "What? Really?" he asked hopefully.

Roo nodded slowly. "Yeah. It hasn't gone down much, but it's a start. He's breathing a little better. Whatever you did to help him, it must have worked."

Isaac frowned. "I didn't do anything..."

"That you know of," Roo finished. "The gift is mysterious in many ways. Maybe you helped him without realizing it. Who cares, anyway? He's getting better, his fever's gone down, if only just. It's a start. A good start. Hope for the best."

"Yeah," he murmured. "Hope."

"Hope is a good thing," Roo said. "At least there's hope this time, right? That's good."

"Yeah," Isaac agreed. "It is at that. A good thing. I just wish we didn't have to hope, that we knew he would get better. I'm tired of him being on his deathbed."

"Yeah," mumbled Roo. "I know what you mean."

Isaac guessed that Roo actually did know what he meant, for Roo had known Ember for almost as long as he had. He knew from experience that a friendship like that wasn't easily broken. He was sure that Roo was probably suffering just as much as he was, what with Ember being so ill and all.

It was wonderful that Ember was getting better. It was a good thing that there was hope, but he wanted it to be certain. He wanted to be certain that Ember would live, that everything would be okay. Hope was good, but certainty was even better.

Where was Gabriel, anyway? Surely he was on his way. How far away could he be? It'd been a while now, and he hadn't seen him in that house anymore, either. He wondered what was going on with the other gifted, if everything was okay. Was Gabriel okay? Was he worse off than before?

It all made Isaac worry. He still couldn't figure out why the gift had suddenly turned against Gabriel. Why hadn't it protected him? What was going on? Would the chill soon come to claim him as well? So many questions, so few answers. He hated unanswerable questions. They made him worried and bothered and annoyed.

"Before you ask," said Roo. "The house is destroyed. It's rubble now. We managed to get the flames out enough to go in and get some valuables that you and Ember might want, but that was it. We barely got out. That reminds me." he grabbed something and handed it to Isaac.

It was his journal. It was slightly scorched, but still in one piece. Isaac's eyes brightened. "Thanks, Roo."

Roo nodded. "No problem, kiddo. Now, as I said, take it easy. Get some rest, and I'll come check on you later. Don't try to move at all, but if you absolutely have to, move as little as possible, and please...take it easy. You had me worried to death with that stunt you pulled at the house. Don't ever do that again. Okay?"

Isaac sighed, feeling a smile creep across his face. "I won't, I promise."

"Good," said Roo. "Like I said, take it easy--I can't stress that enough--and I'll come back later.
Okay?"

"Okay," he said, closing his eyes.

The last thing he heard before he went out was Roo closing the door behind him as he exited the room.
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Gabriel floated in a non-place, surrounded by an unblinking bright light. There was no one else there, and he wondered if he had, indeed, died. Was this Heaven? No, he reminded himself. He'd killed before. He would go to Hell. So where was he? What was going on?

The silence was deafening, and it made him feel very uneasy. A chill crept over him, and there was a sharp pain in his side. He groaned, for he wasn't dead. The dead didn't feel pain. He didn't want to go back to that pain. That was all there was; there was no reason to go back. He just wanted to stay here, in this non-place, free of the pain, of the hurt, of the torture.

But something was pulling him back. A voice. A far, far away voice that sounded vaguely familiar, yet so strange at the same time. It confused him, but his head hurt too much to think about it. He didn't want to go back. He didn't want to go back to being sick, to feeling the pain, to feeling so drained and detatched.

"Gabe..." the voice was calling to him.

'No,' he thought to himself. 'I don't want to go back. There's nothing there to go back to, except pain. There's no reason to go back.'

"Gabriel...."

'Please, don't make me. Don't make me go back to the pain, to being so dreadfully ill. Please.'

"Gabriel...please...." the voice sounded desperate, and slightly shaky.

He frowned from where he floated in that non-place. That voice...it was so familiar, but he just couldn't place it. He sighed and closed his eyes, content to stay there, floating in the non-place. It was better than going back to the pain.

"Please, Gabe...don't do this..."

His frown deepened. 'Do what?' he thought. 'Stay free of the pain?'

"Please...Gabriel, don't do this...don't do this to me, please, Gabe..."

'Don't do WHAT?' he wondered. 'And why do you sound so familiar? Who are you?'

"Gabriel...please, don't....come back, Gabe..."

'I don't want to go back,' he thought to himself. 'It hurts. I don't want to go back to that. And who are you to make me? Who are you to ask that of me?'

"Breathe...please...I'm begging you, Gabe, don't do this...don't you dare do this, please, just breathe...."

The voice was starting to connect with a name. And a face. Gabriel frowned again, trying to match the name up with the voice. Loukoi. That was the name. Lou. It was Lou who was talking to him. Something twisted in his gut. He had to go back. For Lou. He couldn't leave him there alone.

He couldn't do that to his friend, even if it hurt him to go back. He had to go back, he just had to. For Lou, if not for himself. And for Isaac, who was waiting for him to help his friend. He had a job to do; he had to go back. He couldn't die. Not here, not yet. Not right now.

"Please, Gabriel, breathe...come back, Gabe...please don't do this....."

Lou sounded so strange, and his voice was so shaky. 'How long have I been out?' he wondered as he forced himself to leave the comfort of that non-place with the warm bright light. Slowly, he came to his senses and pain took over his body, along with his illness. Pain and sickness stuck in his mind like a cloudy haze, preventing him from so much as giving the slightest flicker of an eyelid to let Lou know he was okay. That he was alive and back.

But his chest rose and fell again. He was breathing. He was alive.

Lou let out a giant breath of relief. "Thank you..." Gabriel wasn't sure who he was thanking, himself or God, and at the moment he didn't care. Lou gripped his shoulder tightly. His grip was shaky. "Gabe? Are you with me now?"

Gabriel braced himself for more pain, and slowly forced his eyes open. They wouldn't focus at first, clouded over, but soon they did focus, if only slightly. Lou's terrified face swam into view, and it made Gabriel sick to his stomach to know that he was the reason for that look on Lou's face. He hated making Lou so worried about him.

"Thank God," Lou breathed, closing his eyes for a long moment, before he slowly opened them again. "How're you feeling, Gabe? No, wait," he said as Gabriel tried to speak. "Don't speak. Save your strength." Lou grabbed the damp cloth and began running it across Gabriel's forehead with a trembling hand.

Gabriel tried to say something, but Lou shushed him quickly.

"Don't," he said. "Please, Gabe, don't talk. Just take it easy and work on getting better. Don't talk. Save your strength."

Gabriel shook his head, but it sent white hot pain shooting throughout his body. His eyes clouded over as he gazed at the ceiling, gasping aloud with the pain. Lou gripped his shoulder even harder, steadying him.

"Please don't move," he said, his voice a mere whisper as he looked away. "Don't move. Don't talk. Just save your strength. Please, Gabe..."

"Wh-What's...wrong?" he asked, choking out the words.

Lou flinched. "I thought you were dead....you scared me, Gabe....you really did..."

"I'm...sorry...."

"Don't apologize, I know it wasn't your fault. But God..." he closed his eyes as he trailed off.

"P-Please...don't--don't worry so....much..."

"I can't help it, Gabriel. You're my friend, I was supposed to be looking out for you. I fell asleep, and I'm sorry..."

"Don't...blame yourself....there--there was nothing...you could....have done..."

Lou sighed heavily. "Don't I know it," he mumbled, glaring at the ground.

"P-Please...don't....blame yourself....it--it wasn't...your fault..."

Lou sighed again. "It doesn't matter. I was supposed to be looking out for you. I fell asleep. I'm sorry for that, I really am. I know you're sick. Please, don't talk anymore. Your voice..." he took in a deep breath. "It just doesn't sound good. You sound terrible. Please. Just rest. Save your strenght. Please, Gabe."

Gabriel frowned, but couldn't think of anything to say for an argument. "Okay....I'm sorry...." he whispered as his eyes slipped closed.

The last thing he heard before he blacked out was Lou asking, "What? What for?"

But he couldn't give an answer. Unconsciousness had come knocking, and he had been dumb enough to open the door and let it claim him again.