Bitten part 3

As the week progressed, Ross began to feel worse and worse.

It started with just an aching in his shoulders, back, and legs that wouldn't go away, no matter what he tried.

Then came the mind numbing headaches. Every time it got too bright, the pain behind his eyes would let him know.

The next thing to go was his appetite. He found himself eating less and less. The thought of any food made him so nauseous that he would actually gag.

After this, he started to become very lethargic and grumpy. He was suddenly put into a state of constant exhaustion, but no matter how hard he tried, he was unable to fall asleep at night until the sun was on the rise.

Trott and Smiffy began to notice at that point. They realized he wasn't eating and they took notice of his absence.

The day it all went wrong, they decided to go make sure he was okay.

It was already well into the afternoon, and Smiffy noticed that Ross wasn't awake yet. He brought this to Trott's attention, and the two of them decided to go check on him.

They entered the building and took the lift up to Ross' tower room.

Inside, it was dark and stuffy. All the windows had been covered. The heat was the result of several empty yet burning furnaces that were lit around the tower.

“What the fuck...?” muttered Smiffy, looking around.

He led the way up the ladder and into Ross' room.

Their human friend was curled up in his bed, struggling for breath and whimpering.

Worried by this, Smiffy opened the windows and let in the light so they could see what was going on.

Trott shook Ross by the shoulders, and he woke up. His eyes were clouded with pain and delirium.

“Shit...” muttered Trott, feeling his fever.

“I don't feel good...” mumbled Ross.

“Clearly,” said Smiffy. “You look like shit!”

“Did one of you poison me?” grumbled Ross deliriously.

“How would we do that?” exclaimed Smiffy. “You don't eat anymore.”

Ross just groaned.

Meanwhile, Trott was busy unwrapping the bandages around Ross' shoulder and back. He suspected the wound was getting infected, but when he saw that it was nearly completely healed with no sign of infection, he drew a blank.

“Uh...” muttered Trott, “I think we should take him to an actual doctor...”

“I thought you are a doctor!” exclaimed Smiffy, starting to look worried.

“Yeah, but I don't know how to make medicine for whatever's wrong with him!” Trott exclaimed back. “I don't want to accidentally poison him.”

“Still right here...” groaned Ross. Suddenly, he cried out and convulsed, curling in on himself. Trott and Smiffy both let out a yelp of shock.

“I'm fine...” Ross gasped out, even though he was seizing up.

“No, you're not!” exclaimed Trott. He and Smiffy pulled Ross out of the bed and supported him. “Not let's go find a real doctor.”

XXX

Smiffy was practically carrying Ross as they walked slowly through the forest. Trott had flown ahead to scout for a village, seeing as the last village they had visited had... mysteriously disappeared.

A moment later, Trott came flying back and landed, grabbing Ross' other arm and supporting him.

“I found a pretty large village up ahead,” he said, a bit out of breath. “A village that size is sure to have a doctor.”

The walk to the village took another twenty minutes, and Ross was barely conscious, only awake enough to stay upright.

When they entered the village, most of the villagers stared at them and scurried away from them. Probably because they had never seen a group that consisted of a walrus, a sick human, and a creature that looked strikingly similar to a Creeper.

Trott managed to catch someone's arm and ask them where the doctor was, and the villager frantically directed them to an average sized but oddly shaped building near the edge of the clearing.

They went up to the door, and Trott knocked loudly. The door opened, and there stood a young man, no older than twenty. He had unruly blond hair, bright green eyes, freckles, and a long scar running over his left eye and down the side of his face, all the way to his chin. He was wearing a white doctor's coat and had goggles hanging around his neck.

“Are you the healer for this village?” asked Trott a bit frantically.

The boy nodded, his expression inquisitive.

“Our friend needs help,” said Trott.

“I'll say,” said the blond boy with a strange accent, looking at Smiffy.

“Not me you twat!” exclaimed Smiffy angrily. “Him!” He gestured to Ross, who was slumped against him.

“Oh, right,” said the boy. He stood to the side and opened the door all the way. “Bring him in and lay him on the bed.”

They dragged Ross inside and gratefully laid him down, sore and tired from carrying him the whole way.

As the boy started to examine Ross, Trott and Smiffy stood to the side, examining the blond healer.

“Aren't you a bit young to be a healer?” asked Smiffy.

“Aren't you a bit talkative for a Creeper?” asked the boy.

“I'm not a Creeper, you bastard!”

“And I know what I'm doing,” said the boy, who was examining the wounds on Ross' shoulder and back.

“What's your name?” Trott quickly asked, changing the subject.

“... Basil,” said the boy with a bit of hesitation.

“What's with the pause?” asked Smiffy.

“You guys are complete strangers, so I was debating if it would be wise to tell you my name,” said Basil.

Suddenly, Ross grimaced and let out a small whimper of pain. Basil immediately focused his attention back on him and started to dab at his forehead with a wet rag.

“I've seen several infections like this before,” said Basil.

“Well then what is it?” asked Smiffy impatiently.

“I can't be quite sure yet,” said Basil, taking out a large needle. “I'm going to have to draw some blood to test before I make any diagnosis.”

“But you just said-”

“I said I've seen infections like this before, but what he has may be different. Maybe he has the flu, maybe he has food poisoning, but if it's something worse, I can assure you you'll want to know sooner rather than later.”

“How long will this blood test take?” asked Trott.

“A few hours, maybe less,” said Basil, drawing blood as he did so. “You two feel free to wander off. I'll keep an eye on your friend and make sure he's looked after.”

“Yeah, and how do we know you're telling the truth?” asked Smiffy, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

“Because I'm a healer, and if I wasn't good at my job, I'd have been fired by now,” said Basil, his expression smug.

He and Smiffy glared at each other for a full minute before Trott stepped between them.

“Okay, thank you, we'll be right outside,” said Trott, quickly pushing Smiffy out the door.

Once they were outside, Trott sat down on the stairs with a huff. “Smith, what is the matter with you? Do you have to fight someone every time we go somewhere?”

“Trott, he called me a Creeper,” said Smiffy blankly, his eyes narrowed.

“Everyone calls you a Creeper!” exclaimed Trott. “Even I thought you were a Creeper! Sometimes I'm still not sure that you aren't!”

“He didn't even flinch at the fact that you're a talking walrus,” pointed out Smiffy.

Trott opened his mouth to provide a snarky comeback, but then he realized his green friend was right.

“That is strange...” muttered Trott.

“Yeah, and he didn't tell us his name right away. Isn't that a bit weird?”

“Hm...” muttered Trott. “I don't think we should go too far...”

Smiffy nodded. “Okay, well how about I go see if I can get some food, and you stay here.”

“Okay, but don't kill anything or anyone to get it,” said Trott, going back inside.

Smiffy rolled his eyes and started to wander around the village. He quickly found a market that was selling food. However, after wandering around for a bit, he realized he didn't have anything to pay for the food, and he thought it would be best to wait and steal their shit after Ross was better.

After a while, he realized that more people were staring than usual. This time, when he stared back, they didn't look away.

After another minute, he realized that two particularly beefy villagers were moving quickly towards him. He didn't like the look of them, so he did what anybody would do in his situation. He ran like hell.

They ran after him.

He ran all the way back to the healer's house and burst through the door. Trott jumped a meter in the air, but Basil didn't flinch. Ross was still unconscious.

“Smith! You scared the shit out of me!” exclaimed Trott.

“Yeah, we've got a bit of a problem,” said Smiffy, pointing over his shoulder out the door.

“What did you do?” deadpanned Trott.

“Nothing!” exclaimed Smiffy. “They just started chasing me!”

Suddenly, the door burst open.

“Freeze!” exclaimed one of the guys, storming inside. “You're under arrest.”

The other guy grabbed Smiffy and cuffed his hands behind his back.

“Hey mate, what did I do!” exclaimed Smiffy. “I've only been here an hour!”

“It's not just you,” said the guy holding Smiffy. More guys suddenly came inside. “All of you.”

One of the guys grabbed Trott and the other guy grabbed Ross and hoisted him to his feet. Ross yelped a bit, both from the pain and the shock of the sudden movement.

“You three are under arrest for destroying a nearby village with a low-yield nuclear device,” said the guy who seemed to be in charge.

Trott glared at Smiffy, who looked guilty.

“Yeah, I forgot about that...” he muttered.

“We're gonna have to keep you three in jail until the authorities get here and tell us what to do with you,” said the main guard.

“Uh, excuse me,” said Basil, suddenly joining the conversation. “This man is my patient, and I'm afraid I can't allow you to take him.”

“Sorry doc, but each of these three have a fifty emerald price on their heads, so unless you want to pay it for them, we'll be taking them,” said the guard.

Basil looked like he was about to speak again, but he held back.

The guards dragged them out the door, leaving Basil standing in the empty room.