Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Kicking the swinging doors open to the ER, Casey’s savior carried her into the room only to be greeted by three men dressed in the same attire as him, each with a rifle’s nozzle aimed towards his face.  It took only a second for the men to lower their firearms upon recognition of their ally.  

The somewhat shorter man to his right took a step closer, his weapon still held firmly in a safeguarded position.  “Man, why didn’t you knock like you were supposed to?”

“If you haven’t noticed,” he began his sharp reply as he carried Casey’s still form to the nearest exam area, “My hands are a little full, MED.”

MED followed him, leaving the other two soldiers to keep watch over the entrance.  Soon, he jogged ahead of him, pulling back the light blue colored curtains revealing a hospital bed.  “Who is she MELEE?”

The man laid Casey on the bed’s flat padded surface and shrugged, beginning to check her pockets.  “I don’t know.  Wasn’t able to ask her name.”  Rolling her to her right side, he checked her back pockets before finding what he was looking for, grabbing her wallet from the left pocket. Gently, he moved her onto her back once more, before looking to the leather wallet in his hand.  “Here we go.”  Turning towards MED, he flipped open the wallet, revealing her ID in its designated slot.  “Says here, Casey Norris…”  

MED stood to Casey’s other side, examining her for any serious wounds when he saw the burns on her forearms.  He tsked, holding her right arm within his hands.  The entire length of her forearm had been badly burned, turning an intense glistening red, swelling the skin around it to nearly twice its size.  “Seems the 10s had really done a number on her.”  Lowering her hand, he opened the upper left pocket of his vest, pulling out gauze and a small, brown bottle.  His gaze fell to MELEE briefly before he began treating her burns.  “I’m sure you already gave her the antidote.”

MELEE nodded, his gaze transfixed to the ID.  “Yeah…” he answered distractedly before blinking rapidly, his train of thought switching as he looked back to MED. “Yeah, it was the first thing I did when she lost consciousness.”

MED had already opened the bottle, applying the ointment inside to Casey’s burns, the muscles in her arms twitching on contact.  “How long has it been since the exposure?”

“Not sure, but she seemed fine until she began to walk.”

“We need to watch over her carefully now.  This venom acts fast you know.”  He rounded the table and began to treat her left forearm.  “The fact that she seemed alright when you found her suggests that she had just been infected with the venom recently.  With any luck and with the injection of the antidote, she should be fine.” 

“So she should be fine, but we still need to watch her carefully?”  MELEE questioned lightly.

“W-well yeah.”  MED stumbled through his response, though his hands continued to work prudently on her burns.  “I-I meant that even though she should be in the clear she should still be watched due to the acceleration of the venom in the human body.  You should already know-”

MELEE chuckled.  “MED, easy.  I know.”

MED took in a deep breath, lowering her left arm back to the bed.  He looked to her bandaged arms admirably.  “There.  She should heal fast with my handy work helping her through.”  He smiled, looking back to his comrade whom seemed to lapse back into deep thought, his gaze back to the ID.  “Bro,” he began, stepping towards him, placing a hand to his shoulder, “what’s wrong?  You’re even more silent than usual.”

MELEE looked up from the ID in his hand to him feeling almost at a loss for words.  “It’s just,” he stood walking to Casey’s still form, “This girl.”

MED followed his gaze crossing his arms over his chest.  “Yeah, she’s cute isn’t she?”

MELEE looked to him thrown from his remark.  “That’s…that’s not what I meant.”  He breathed, looking Casey over.  “Casey Norris…after coming here to this God forsaken place I never thought I’d see anyone alive again.”

Recollection crossed MED’s features.  “That’s right.  I forgot this is your hometown…”  Giving his shoulder a few pats, he turned to leave.  “With any luck, maybe she knows of survivors.”

“Right.”  MELEE said cynically, watching his companion leave the room.  “Thanks.”

MED brought up a hand giving a small wave before leaving.  MELEE returned his gaze to Casey.  “I never thought I’d see you again.”  Pulling a chair next to the bed, he sat beside her, just as she began to move uneasily in her sleep.  “Casey?”  He edged closer to the end of his seat, closer to her stirring form.  “Casey can you hear me?”

Casey opened her eyes at the sound of her name, though squeezed her lids shut once more in an effort to shield them from the bright fluorescent lighting above her.  She felt so drained.  Her head throbbed with each passing second.  Sleep.  That is what she needed to rid herself of this throbbing pain.

“Hey, Casey!”  MELEE called trying to keep her attention. Soon his squad would have to make their move.  But not until she, their only survivor until now, was awake.  “Don’t you fall asleep on me.  We have to get out of here.”  He clutched her shoulders, shaking her roughly in an attempt to fully wake her.

Her eyes fluttered open for a brief moment, though all she could see was a blackened fog.  She could hear the man calling to her.  He seemed desperate to keep her awake.  Nevertheless, even if she wanted to, she just couldn’t gather the strength to move.  She was scared, though couldn’t recall the reason why.  Everything seemed a great blur to her.

“Casey…” She could scarcely hear MELEE’s voice calling to her one last time as her drowsiness finally took its toll upon her, slipping her back into another deep sleep.

MELEE brushed her sweated bangs to the side.  Seems the antidote still needs time.  He stood taking a clean cloth from his left pants’ pocket.  Gently, he patted her forehead with the white cloth.  “Don’t worry Casey, I will keep you safe.”