Chapter 8.

Arabella and Liv went for a walk after classes ended. The situation on the planet Syrinx was worsening by the minute. The Deathower was becoming more dangerous and causing injuries to an increasing number of inhabitants. Chaos and panic ruled the academy.

– What do you think, is there anything that could bring us back to normal? – Liv asked as they slowly walked through the safe area.

– There is a solution for everything, even for this situation.

– But there’s no way out of this. A lot of things are already destroyed.

– Not everything, which means there is hope. There must be a solution. Just because we don’t see it right now doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist. We have to think outside the box and explore.

With this conversation, they reached the area with the Deathower. They moved along a path that seemed inactive. Liv was closer to the plants, but this didn’t bother her at all. She was relaxed. Deeply immersed in their talk, she let go of caution. Her fragile and weak hand began to be wrapped by the petals of the Deathower. At first, she only felt a slight tickling and remained focused on their conversation. The petals began squeezing her hand until it caught her attention. She jumped in fear and looked at her hand. She saw five petals increasingly tightening their grip. Her hand turned blue, and she could no longer feel it.

She tried to break free somehow but unsuccessfully. Arabella tried to tear off the petals but failed. She grabbed Liv’s hand and tried to bite through the petals.

– Arabella, nooo! What are you doing! Get away! – she panicked.

– Stay calm and don’t move too much! – Arabella ordered, still trying to bite the petals.

The moment she moved away from her, to perform another tactic, the Deathower's teeth were next to her neck. Those tiny, seemingly harmless blades dug into Liv's neck. They tore off a fairly large area of skin. Part of the torn skin ended up in the Deathower, and her neck began to release a large amount of thick liquid, which was what her creature was made of. It was something like human blood. It was black and contained stardust in it. All the creatures in that segment of the cosmos were built from it. It kept them alive and allowed them to function normally.

The thick liquid created a terrifying sight. Arabella grabbed Liv's hand tightly and ran to the hospital. Liv exerted herself exhaustively. Her wound was still leaking copious amounts of fluid. It caused her unbearable pain, and the journey to the hospital was long and tiring. After they passed the halfway mark, her strength began to give out. Her vision began to blur and then darken. She was losing consciousness. Her frail body succumbed to the rough fall to the surface of the planet. Arabella was taken aback by the sight she saw. With a strength that was incomprehensible to her, she took Liv in her arms and ran to the hospital. The rest of the way they had left wasn't that long, but, for her, it was endless. Liv seemed too hard for her. With her last atoms of strength, she managed to reach her destination and immediately headed to the hospital counter.

– Please, urgent help is needed! – she said anxiously, almost in tears, holding weak Liv in her arms.
– What happened? – the nurse asked.
– She got bitten by a Deathower! Please, just hurry! –

After she said that, a group of doctors hurried over and took Liv to move her onto a stretcher. Then they headed to the operating room. Arabella watched helplessly as they left. Now she was completely alone in the cold, empty hospital corridor.

She went to the bathroom to wash off the liquid that had leaked from Liv’s neck and stained her clothes. While washing, she recalled the last moments spent with her. Those terrifying scenes put Liv’s life in question. Dark thoughts began to dance through her now heavy mind. The space around her felt tighter and tighter. She splashed a large amount of water on her face to clear her mind. Then she returned to that cold, somber place. She felt a deep loneliness pressing on her being. She was left only with time. And time seemed to have stopped the moment Liv entered the operating room.

The bad thoughts returned, swirling in her mind. It was killing her. The ticking of the clock echoed through the corridor, showing a few minutes past midnight. Two doctors then came out of the operating room and slowly approached Arabella.

– Doctor, is everything alright? – she asked urgently, as the dark thoughts cleared and hope began to fill her.
– I have to admit, everything is quite good now! – said the first doctor.
– She was poisoned, and it was very difficult to remove all the toxin that threw her into a kind of coma. As for the wound, we bandaged it, removed any toxins and remains of the Deathower. We stopped the leakage of the black liquid. She lost a huge amount of it, so the recovery will be long and demanding. Also, the wound will take a long time to heal, – the second doctor continued.
– Alright, thank you. Could I see her? –
– She’s currently in a coma; she won’t wake up soon. –
– Please! –
– Okay, if you insist. Let us know if there’s any change. –
– Thank you. I have one more question... What is the composition of the toxin, and could I see it? –
– You can’t see or analyze the toxin because it’s too risky. Now, if you’re done, we must go! Goodbye! –

The doctors’ departure sparked immense curiosity in Arabella. She wanted to examine the toxin. She hadn’t even known the Deathower plant possessed poison. That was completely new information, worth investigating.

As soon as she entered Liv’s room, she noticed a huge roll of bandages around her neck. Liv was connected to a machine that kept her body functioning normally while in a coma. Arabella sat beside her hospital bed. Her eyes were tightly shut. Exhaustion from all the pain she had endured showed on her face. Her light brown hair fell over the bandages wrapped around her neck. Above Liv’s bed hung a blue clock. She watched its hands and thought about the toxin in the Deathower plant. Did it affect all creatures the same way? How did it get into the plant? All these unanswered questions kept her awake. She formed various hypotheses and possible answers to all those questions.

All these thoughts distracted her from the blue clock, which now showed 6:00 in the morning. Liv hadn’t moved at all. Arabella soon had to leave for the academy. She checked Liv’s heartbeat on the monitor and made sure everything was stable. She walked to the window and observed the silent surroundings of the hospital. Monotony prevailed. She still wasn’t used to it. Returning to Liv’s side, she noticed that Liv had started opening her eyes. She saw there was still darkness in them. Arabella ran to the corridor to call the doctors. The empty corridor pushed her to head to the nearest clinic in that part of the hospital. There she found a doctor.

– Excuse me, but the patient in room 505 has awakened from the coma, – the doctor looked at her and then called more doctors.

The conversation ended quickly, then he said:
– Please wait in the corridor. You can enter after we finish checking the patient. –

With that, he rushed out of the clinic and headed to Liv’s room. Arabella followed him. She was too impatient and eager to see her again. After some time, a group of doctors came out of the room.

– The patient is fine, but recovery will take a long time, so she won’t be discharged soon – one doctor said.

Hearing that, she went back into Liv’s room. Upon entering, her friend noticed her and gave a faint smile. Her smile was weak but, despite that, sincere, warm, and full of love. It drove away all the coldness and sorrow from Arabella’s heart. She ran to her bedside, filled with joy.

– How are you feeling? – she asked.
– Not very well. I feel powerless. Exhausted—no strength at all, Liv said.
– Don’t worry. You just need rest and proper care. You’ll get back to your old self, just rest.
– I have a headache.
– That’s normal. You were in a coma.
– For how long?
– Probably 12 hours. You haven’t woken up since you lost consciousness.
– What do the doctors say?
– They said you’re stable, but the recovery will be long.

She glanced at the clock and saw it was time to head to the academy.
– So just relax as much as you can. I’m off to the academy now. I’ll come visit you. Take care. I’m with you.

Liv gave her a gentle smile and closed her eyes to rest.

After another chaotic day at school, Arabella hurriedly left the academy. She wanted to get home and rest, having survived the day without a single second of sleep. More than anything, she wanted to visit Liv as soon as possible. She pushed her way through the huge crowd. As she was leaving, she felt someone pull her arm. Turning around, she found herself face to face with Orion. The intensity of his gaze was like sharp blades reaching into her violet eyes.

– What do you want?! – Arabella asked, confronting his disdainful look.
– I want us to investigate the book we took from the library together.
– I don’t have time right now.
– You know, I’m not happy either that I have to deal with this problem with you. Actually, I hate this situation that forces me to communicate with you.
– You don’t have to talk to me.
– I do. For the people! To save this planet!
– And now suddenly you’re the leader you should have been all along?!
– I’ve always been that leader, unlike you.
– You can’t know that you’re new to this planet.
– Fine. I don’t have time for this now. Where’s the book?
– In my room. I have to go get it
They continued in silence.

She walked faster than him because she didn’t want to walk side by side. Arriving at the house, she quickly entered her room. The book lay on the desk, untouched since the library incident. Taken out of the illusion, she had left it because she hadn’t had the chance to study it in detail. She rushed back outside. Opening the door, she was surprised by Orion’s persistence. He was waiting right in front of the entrance, leaning against the doorframe, blocking her way.

– Where’s the book? – he asked.
– Maybe it’s in the backpack on my back? – she replied, giving him a sharp look.
– Alright. Just checking, – he said, and then they headed in an unknown direction.

– Where are we going?
– You’ll see!
– I don’t want to see, I want you to tell me! – Arabella said angrily, following him.
– What good will it do you if you know?
– I can decide whether I want to go or not.
– Either way, you’ll follow me because we’re investigating together, and I’m the leader, and you’re my assistant!
– I have the book!
– So what! Just so you know, I can manage too!
– Then why haven’t you already?!
– Don’t be annoying! Follow me! I want to finish this quickly. We both want the safety of the people.