Page 163 of The Bonding Games: Part 2

“HELP HER!” Tate roars with our disaster of an entrance, and every staff member whips our way in utter shock before bursting into action in what’s fortunately less than a second.

“Place her down here for me,” a brown-haired nurse instructs hastily, leading us over to one of the many beds lined up along the left wall of the room. A couple more nurses and a doctor make their way over too, one wheeling a trolly along with her. “What on earth happened?!”

“You don’t usually ask for details,” Scotty gets out tensely as he forces himself to move back to give the staff room to work, though he’s shaking with restraint just like the rest of us.

“Apologies, but this is not the usual situation! There has been a lot of speculation about your scar, Miss Zefron—”

“No Zefron!” Ezla barks out through the pain as she lies stiffly on her back, hands crushing the bedsheets in them. “I am only Ezla, but you call me Empress.”

“Of course,” the nurse rushes out before continuing in a calmer tone as if just finally comprehending the gravity of Ezla being her patient, “It is my understanding that Avri was holding your skin together, as you would likely not have had a scar otherwise, and—”

“Is there a point to this?” Cooper grits out, clearly trying to be polite and respectful but rightfully losing his motherfucking mind right now as the doctor moves to the top of Ezla’s bed and places two fingers at either of her temples while another jabs a needle into her arm and injects an Avri-containing serum into her and oh my god I think I’m going to pass out. Too much is happening, and I’m absolutely petrified even though Ezla’s said she’s not dying.

“Yes, of course, and that is that I am not so sure this is the usual case where the energy can get to the open wound and simply fix it. We will do our very best, but the properties in this Avri are designed be commanded only to heal fully, as we would never want a job to be only partially complete, and I am assuming that scar had been on her person for a few years at least, which, as you all likely know, is far too long after the incident to be healed by Avri—”

“You’re telling me you might not be able to heal my motherfucking girl?! My everything?!”

“Tate, calm down,” Scotty hisses, only just managing to grab him before he can tackle the nearest nurse. “If you don’t, they’ll just sedate you, and that’s not helping—”

Be calm, my beast. I will be okay, Ezla sends down the bond, and he stills at once where he’d just escaped Scotty’s hold, too strong and large to be contained by anything. Anything but a simple command from our Bonded. I would never leave you. I thought I made that clear. None of you will ever escape me. We are one.

Chest heaving, he stares at her with wild eyes.

Her face is coated in bright red blood, her right eye a gory mess, and yet I can tell she stares right back. I will always be with you. If they cannot fix me this way, there is always the old-fashioned way, even if I will be without an eye.

And just at that moment, my heart drops right down to my stomach, then out of my body as the doctor shakes her head and turns to look at the nurses with an urgent expression. “We will need to do this the older way! I’m unable to command the Avri we have here! The wound’s been open too long, and not even the energy I direct at her eye is able to obey my orders!”

Alby makes a terrified sound from beside me, and I quickly clutch onto him to support us both as one of the nurses—

“Use our Avri!”

Cooper’s voice booms through the room as he waves a frantic arm towards Ezla. “It doesn’t have the limiting properties! Just take it! What do you need?”

The brunette shakes her head. “That won’t work. It’s still been too long. We can only return it to exactly what it was before or stitch—”

“Then do it! Fucking take it!” Through the bond, Cooper sends quickly while digging his fingers into his chest as if he’s planning to attempt to rip the energy right from his suit, voice full of determination, He’s already taken too much from you, Vengeance. He’s not taking your damn eye.

“Our microchips can’t control your Avri. We don’t have any—”

“I can do it.”

My neck does a one-eighty with impossible speed.

An Exot man strides over to us, evidently having just come in. He looks familiar, but through all the chaos, it takes a moment for the light bulb to ping on in my mind. When he nears and I take in his dark beard, it immediately comes to me: he’s the father we spoke to in the Avri labs yesterday, the one who wants a better world for his children.

“Enzo,” the doctor greets him, mild shock colouring her tone. “What are you doing in here? Are you sure—”

“Good question,” Tate growls, and with his panic, he sounds even more dangerous and untamed than usual. “Did you fucking follow us?”

“I did,” Enzo says without apology. “I caught sight of Ezla—the empress—and I couldn’t in good conscience not check in to make sure everything would be okay. I might not know how you got that scar, but everyone knows it was never normal.”

“So you—”

“You can help her?” Scotty quickly interjects. “If you can help her, do it. Please.” His voice is tense, but it breaks on his plea.

Enzo’s chin dips as he stops before us. “I can help her. It will take time, but I can do it. I work in many departments in the Avri labs.” Eyes speedily analysing the scene and the Avri on all our suits, he says, “The fact you’re bonded could speed things up if you want to use your Avri. I can’t say for certain, but your bodies are already used to each other’s Avri in a way through the bond. The energy on your suits will be the best option as it has the most minimal commands given to it at the moment and so will be easiest to alter. However—and I think you may have understandably failed to think of this possibility in all the chaos—I would suggest using Ezla’s own—”

“No,” she seethes, and the nurse now holding a specialised cloth over her eye jumps as she whacks her hand away to hold it herself. “I would like my Bonds’. I will not have more red Avri stuck in my face for eternity, even if I do love the colour. It is too similar to—” It is too similar to his, she finishes through the bond, and my chest spasms in pain.