"... Well, are you gonna let me in?"
I couldn't even jump since I was held down by these puffy things...
Gretsa pushed the first ward's door in whilst Park on the other side, was gently drifted away as the cloudy rings around his body bounced off the cold, rustic door. He bounced once more from a wall behind him and floated over to where Anu stood, as if He had willed them over to him.
"That looked fun! I wish I had a human who could bounce like that,"
"..."
"Sorry, business first-!"
The bag strapped around Gretsa's waist pulsed, a deep blue energy traversed throughout its grey skin, etching out a rather strange pattern. It would maintain its rhythm for a while before the wearer decided otherwise and decided to deal with it first, she unfastened the tiny sack from her and undid the rope that was sealing its maw shut. Out of the bag, rushed forth a litany of students, battered and broken in various degrees.
"What's this?"
"My ticket out of here," she said lacking remorse, "could you remove those things from him, I need him to help me move these bodies,"
"..."
She effortlessly hoisted one up and onto a bed, the victim's broken limbs dangling loosely on the bed's sides. Ella cheerfully picked up another, dropping them on another empty bed, falling with a sickening crunch. Gretsa scooted past them, alongside Ella as they placed the various strewn bodies to vacant beds till full capacity.
"... I don't know why you're still standing there,"
Is this because of what we did?
"And he was so sure that there would be more,"
Huh?
"... He? Who's he?"
"That Imp, now could you please help us with these ones? And please don't ask any more questions now, I'll answer everything once we're done here,"
"Yeah! Help us, pretty please?"
Anu and Park gave each other a look before he begrudgingly cancelled the puffy little protectors wrapped around Park.
"..."
"Got something to say?"
For now, we lift.
Park shook his head, carefully helping up onto his arms, an ailing victim, who could only respond back in a weak groan. The first one to actually have such a reaction as the others were not responsive. He silently joined Gretsa and Ella as they moved the surplus bodies into the second room nearby. Anu shortly after followed suit in a sigh after he heard a dull thud in the hallway, escorted by a creak as the main doors leading into the hospital went shut.
"..."
"I can't even go back to give him a piece of my mind, I'll be effortlessly brought back here, and he won't even break a sweat,"
Gionne fell on his bed, the soft field of white sinking into the wooden mesh beneath. He took out the token of apology that they had received shortly before their unwarranted expulsion from the trickster's presence. He briefly looked over towards Park's bed before going back to scanning his gift.
"I hope at least Anu keeps him safe,"
"Don't worry, those feather-looking disasters will do their work just fine,"
"... anyway, since we were told to develop a culture in reading, I'll see if I'll be able to get a thing or two here and also maybe, probably, absolutely not see if the librarian may just have what we need lying around, but that's a very impossible if "
"I think I'll also come with, since I also got a book and some weird drawing,"
Gionne got up, curious about what Ripha was talking about, he asked for Ripha's piece trying to see what gift he had received,
"I don't think I recognize anything here, but what other place to go find answers other than the library,"
He returned the paper back to Ripha,
"Might be something related to your kind, or the 'new' you, we'll find out soon, let's go."
"... Ah, this ended sooner than I had actually expected it to, especially thanks to the hardest worker around,"
The second ward's doors went open, in walking Anu, carrying the final batch of patients, in three. His tail securely wound around the third. He walked over to the remaining vacant beds settling them down gently.
"And he's also the cleanest too!"
"Show-off..."
His tiny little helpers were back, tiny orbs of light that would break through their fabrics once they had finished a trip to the second ward. They would suck up the "Thank You's" that the afflicted offered to them as appreciation for the hard work that they did, tiny bits of matted, bloody flesh. He would then, as ritual, step out with the golden ball full of the ruby matter and afterwards come back, in essence leaving them spotlessly clean. An act that he decided to do out of nowhere but nonetheless greatly appreciated by all present,
Hmph!
"... debatable,"
"Huh?"
"... nothing, just talking to myself,"
"..."
"ANYWAY, now we can get to the good part, my freedom is nigh,"
Right, that, what is she talking about?
Anu was about to snap his fingers when Ella decided,
"You cleaned us, and took care of our clothes...,"
[The ----- Print has detected a similar energy signature]
to step up,
"... at least for this, allow me to...,"
and Park could swear a hint of candy-like aroma filled the air,
"... offer my thanks for putting up with it all."
he momentarily shut his eyes, as something brushed across him but already, he had caught glimpse of his surroundings change and when he came to, everything was gone.
In that instance that he had to deal with the slight ocular discomfort, he had missed most of it. Beds, Rags of curtains and that undeniable iron stench was all gone. In its place was a field of flowers, full, fresh grass in between and a soothing breeze gentle on the skin. Not to mention, the sun and the vastness of blue above him. This wasn't a mere transformation and the calming effect that it had on a boy who didn't even, not during his birth or whenever, get to see such a sight was no joke.
"Those bloodsuckers make you live in such a dark place, clouds, gloom and the worst part of it is, you're all okay living in it,"
Ella kissed her teeth,
"And you can't even tell why... But who cares right! Let's get this show on the road!"
[The First Law of The ----- Print has returned your mental state to normalcy]
"..."
"... with the power that I sense from thee, I assure the symbol that of kin I've found, with the power that the symbol draws from me, a new connection be wound, Nareva Hama."
Gretsa winced a bit as a change occurred,
"Damn! Still stings like a bitch!"
The cloudy restraints held Park down readying him for whatever was to happen next. He didn't utter a word, accepting whatever fate had in store for him. Slightly weird for Anu but all the better for Gretsa who grasped Park's hand without hesitation.
"Just be patient for me and it will all be done in no...,"
"...TIME!"
Erupting forth from her arm sleeves, as if advancing towards a sworn enemy, the darkest lines to ever exist rushed forth and immediately made contact but Park was lucky enough that his one and only helper unbeknownst to him, had already finished its modification and was ready to take the charging bull by its horns.
[The First Law of The ----- Print is in full effect and is synchronizing with the Seal of The Perverse Caregiver.]
Whoa, he's strong!
"KHEHEHE! YOU MIGHT NOT BE AS SCRAWNY AS I THOUGHT YOU'D BE! or you're dead already..."
Park squeezed her hand in response.
Is he really not feeling anything...?
Funny bastard.
"ALRIGHT THEN THAT'S THE FIRST CIRCLE, SIX MORE YOU BASTARD! DON'T DISAPPOINT ME...!"
"... impossible."
Six circles later,
"I feel like I should give you something, and still I don't know if anything I give would even come close to what you've received. Not even a night with...! Oops, talked too much!"
Ella retrieved her conjured world, bringing all of them back to the desolate and dreary place they once were.
"?"
"Hah! That was the best feeling I've ever had."
"I see you're back from your short trip...,"
The doors leading into the second ward opened,
"... took the liberty of tidying up the place."
All of them recognized the mysterious presence before them, in their own way but Anu is the one who spoke up,
"... it's you,"
"Of course it's me, it actually should be me, and surprise! I am really curious as to what you were doing to the extent that you had someone pull up a world for you."
"I am all ears."