The Canyon Tribe is isolated from the rest of the world. For good reasons to them.
They have their way of life and that way is hardly disrupted when it's not interfeared with. However the isolation also has a down side. The rats immune systems aren't exposed to all the normal diseases raging around Mars. What's common for a child to catch, isn't common for them to be exposed to.
The runner coughed as she came back from the far reaches of the city. She'd been gone two months with a bag full of messages and an irritating cough that just wouldn't go away. Parking her bike she dropped off the bag at the trench, coughing again she headed down to her cave. "Sleep heals all." She muttered crawling into bed. "Sweeper needs sleep." she yawned unaware of the spots on her tounge.
Three days later and others in the tribe started to cough. The healers didn't pay too much attention, coughs and sniffles were common now and then. That is until three days later when Sweeper entered the cave.
"Got a cough too?" B.B smiled at the young female runner.
"Yes.... I think I might have caught something while topside." She yawned. Bright blue spots on her tounge, her watery eyes holding a green hue, her nose running. "I got this funny rash on my tummy too, its bumpy and itchy." Pulling up her top for the albino healer to see. blueish bumps on red irritated skin, the fur flaking off. "You seen this before?" Sweeper asked, coughing again. Spitting up greenish flem.
The cave guard nodded. "HEALER!" he shouted down the hall.
The two body guards snapped to attention as the Outside Healer bowed and knelt before the leader.
The aged leader, creep thin, with long black nails, long shaggy fur and bone thin. He stared sightlessly at the foggy figure before him. "Speak" he rasped.
"Sir," she said quickly, but clearly. "I'm afriad a terrible malady has struck the Canyon. A disease long thought dead has been caught from the Outside by one of the Runners. This sickness only gives a person five weeks to live, six if they're lucky.
"There is a process to this sickness. For the first two weeks, it's only a cough, runny nose and scratched throat. No different than a cold. Then they develope spots on their tongue and a rash on their stomach. And in the last week there is loss of energy and then a coma... that there is no waking from. This disease carried by the air, so there is no way to contain it here. Only to slow it down. Anyone even sporting a cough needs to be seculed from the rest of Tribe, and the healthier ones can care for those in the later stages. Please, I ask for permission to find medicine for this. There is a cure and as an Outsider, I'll have more luck finding it. After intructing the other Healer's on how to handle this... Please let me go. I am the only one who can keep Tribe from being wiped out."
The leader blinked, his eyes closing and opening with an audiable click. "Thiss.. is a dangerr.. to our way of life. Yess... take... otherss.. no more than five." He croaked his raspy voice strained.
"Be quick..child... livess are at stake." he waved his paw dismissing her. The bones in his wrist creaking with the movement.
The two body guards glanced at eachother nervously. Then their leader. As soon as the albino healer left them. Their leader sniffled.
"So you understand?" BB asked Talon.
"Yes, yes," the older Healer stated. "I'll make sure they're all taken care of."
"But Talon, you can't get sick too. You need to-"
"You need to remember I was the one who trained you. I heal, not cower when there's work to be done. Now gather some people and go."
BB sighed and nodded. She couldn't risk bringing anyone from Tribe. Any of them could already be infected, and one of them getting sick on the way would not help matters. Nega would be an assistnace to be sure and...
"Stone," she whispered worriedly. He was out on a job! She couldn't let him come home to get sick and die! She had to find him, save him! She was sure that Sleet was out with him as well. Nega had asked her husband to accompnay Stone on his latest job. She was still worried about Stone's safety from the Plutarkains ever since the mouse trainee had run away. She was sure Nega would have gone herself, if not being involved in her own work at the time.
Well, it was one less person to track down.
--
"I'm telling you," Nega hissed quietly to Wrench. "We have to leave now. There's no time to explain."
She swallowed, hoping BB wouldn't be too mad at her. She'd been told the situation, and she wanted Wrench to come with. She figured if she got him to the parking lot where BB was waiting, she wouldn't feel they had time to argue about it. There was no way in HELL she was letting her former trainee go out like a plague infested animal.
"I don't get it, just running off suddenly?" Wrench grabbed his gear already packed and his favorite sniper rifle. "Hey! Wait up!" He hurried after her tot he front of his cave. "Nega you're walking fast, where are we going?"
More tribal guards and Death Dealers stood at the rim and top side of the canyon. "No one is to visit the nursary, no one is to collect messages other than those currently in the feild." They relayed the message like answering machines. Monotone voices droning to those trying to leave the canyon.
"Just follow me," she answered quickly. "There's something... bad happening in Tribe. And I refuse to let you be caught up in it. I'll explain more fully, when there's time."
BB's reaction was no less thanwhat Nega had feared.
"Are you insane Nega, we can't-"
"He's not sick," she replied quickly. "Don't you get it. It's a Monday. He's been goen all weekend seeing Chime. There's no way he could be infecrted. And he's coming along, so that doesn't change. I'm not giving in on this point, and you know how stubborn I can be."
The albino sighed. She was getting too old for this kind of thing. Relly, being thirty was just no fun. She felt so much older.
"Fine, being him along. First thing first, we need to find Sleet and Stone. HE said he would be back by tomorrow, so chances are he's already in Vein Valley. We meet up with them and see what we can do about finding a cure."
"Vein Valley's too small," Nega murmured. There won't be anyone there who can help us.
"Brimstone then?" Wrench suggested, though he didn't reall get what was going on.
"Sounds good," BB agreed. "We can't take the bikes. There's three of us for one. That's no good. We'll need to take a vehicle anyway, so we can care the vaccines back."
"I know there are a few that were getting new chairs instaled," Nega replied. "The backs are empty. We can grab one of them."
"Okay, let's go then," BB said with a nod.
"One extra day Sleet! Just one!" Stone complained. "Kicking back and enjoying that one extra day." He grumped.
"Quit complaining, I want to go back to Nega. I miss my wife." Sleet snapped back at Stone.
"So much for you being the nervous trainee. She put a sharp tounge on you." Stone chuckled.
"Admit it old man, you want to get home and see BB just as much as I want to see Nega, for exactly the same reasons." Sleet teased.
Stone shook his head, gray eyes rolling. "I admit nothing you low ranking brat." He chuckled.
The two had been getting along the past job. Each getting annoyed with eachother and glad to have some company on the journy. It was just two boys out on the town killing targets and making money.
"Hey isn't that Jenner's Van?" Sleet pointed out.
"What do ya know? It is." Stone smirked. "Must have a trainee in there or he's bringing Jade on a job with him." Spotting two heads in the front seat.
"He certainly is sociable with her." Sleet chuckled.
"Socialpaths stick together." Stone chuckled slowing his bike down, waving to the van.
"There they are!" Nega cired out to BB, who was driving, Wrench in the back with the bags. "Stop here."
She hopped out of the van when it stopped, running out and waving down her partner and husband.
"HEY! Guys, stop!" she cried out, waving her arms over her head.
She noticed them staring at her when they stopped and looked at them confused.
"What... do I have something on my face?"
"What are you doing with that Inbred hillbilly reject?!" Sleet yelped wide eyes.
"I thought you were better than traveling with the likes of... that." Stone snarled, curling his lip at Nega.
"Honestly, what emergancy could make you possibly ride shot gun with that feind?" Sleet continued. "It's great seeing you and all love... your face is beautiful... do you have fleas yet?"
"What the hell do you mean FLEAS!" Nega yelled at them. "You take that back! Honestly, I thought you two were better than that. And Stone, I thought you two were close. How petty can you be to say such things?!"
"Uh... guys?" BB said from where she saw sitting on the dirver's side windowsill, looking over the roof at all of them. Her voice was icy enough to make Nega shudder. "Can we get back to insulting the inbred, flea infested hu later on? I have work to do, so shut up and get the bikes in the back. Unless you want to go back to Tribe and die from the killer virus I have to find a cure for. Hurry up, I'm a busy woman."
Nega looked at them and sighed. She had a feeling they hadn't known that was BB in there.
Stone froze.
Sleet's eyes widened. "Either that's not Jenner.. or he got a very intresting sex change." Sleet slouched down on his bike.
"Hey.. Honey..." Stone stuttered. "You .. you're ahhh in Jenner's van." He flushed. The cold Stone Assassin was flustered! "Thought Nega had hitched a ride with the sadist... not the pretty babe." ears back he swallowed hard.
"And your not an inbred hu... if that van wasn't fumigated.. we'll all be flea infested.." Stone grinned trying to joke. Boy he sounded as nervous as he stuttered.
Sleet grinned sheepishly at Nega. "Love you."
BB glared.
"I still don't see you getting in," she commented before sliding back in. "ONE! TWO!"
Nega, looking panicked, grabbed the door and jumped in the van. After some rocking and interesting shouts and cries, she rolled down the window and popped her head out, hair slightly ruffled.
"You... may want to get in now," she said evenly. "Stone, you can sit up here with her. I'm going to the back with Sleet."
"Three can fit up here just fine!"
Nega sighed, looking just a tad hopeless.
Stone and Sleet looked at eachother nervously. "Yes Dear." They chorased.
Wheeling the bikes into the back.
"Wheelie right?" Stone asked the younger rat.
"Wrench." He corrected scooting aside getting the bikes tied down.
"Wrench." Stone nodded. "Nice to meet you again kid, Nega talks about you a lot." Moving to the front of the van.
"You look beautiful B.B." Stone commented kissing her cheek.
Sleet shut the back doors sitting ont he floor next to Wrench. "They pissed?"
"I would be too, I heard you guys. I didn't know this was Jenner's van. Is he going to be pissed when we get back."
"I doubt he'll even knotice." Sleet smirked. "So why are you out here and what was that comment about killer Virus?"
"I'm sure they'll explain, Nega just hijacked me from my cave." Wrench shrugged.
BB smiled slightly in leaned into the kiss. Staying mad at him had always been impossible.
"I'm okay," she replied anx kissed him back. "Just be sure who you're talking about next time. Though I suppose you bad mouthing me when you think I'm someone else is better than you showering tons of compliments. I might have gotten jealous."
Nega rolled her eyes and looked out the window. She still really wanted to be in the back, but for completely different reasons than what she'd had ten minutes ago.
"I honestly never thought I'd see you in Jenner's van Beebs." Stone admitted. "I'll check next time I see Nega jump out of a van before bad mouthing the driver." he smirked. "Where do you want me to start complimenting?" His fingers dancing up her arm to her shoulder then her small ear he outlined with one claw.
"I just want to bang my wife.." Sleet muttered from the back.
Wrench's eyes widened. "She's up there and I don't want to be involved."
BB shuddered and whimpered softly.
"Stone," she breathed. "Don't..."
"Hey!" Nega snapped and reached across Stone and grabbed the wheel. She wrenched it to the side to keep them from hitting a four foot boulder. "Knock it off you two. You want us to crash? In fact, Stone, move. I'm seperating you two!"
Stone grabbed the dash as the van swerved. "NEGA!" He growled as she shoved her rear in his face moving across the seats. Pushing over He glared at the smaller rat. "I'm going to BITE that next time its in my face." He grumped taking the passenger seat.
Sleet raised a brow. "Hey!" He yelped. "No Biting *MY* Wifes merchandise. It's MY spot to bite."
Wrench wrinkled his nose. "Why would you want to bite a rump? Not very plesent thigs come out of that end.. that side of that end... in fact other than the start of sex, it's pretty gross afterwards down there period."
"Don't you start with me Mister," Nega snarled at him as she poked him in the nose.
"Uh, all playing around asside, we have some bad news," BB said quickly before Stone and Nega starting fighting like a pair of two-year-old. "A bad disease hit Tribe. It's been on Mars for a while, but I guess Tribe never caught it before because of it's seclution. Nega and I have a natural immunity to it, so I decided we had to leave to find a vaccine for it. There is one, but finding a medicine for a sickness that's been thought dead for years isn't going to be easy. It is fatal, and there is a time limit. We only have a few weeks to get this done."
Stone's eyes crossed as Nega poked him in the nose.
"WHAT!?" Sleet yelped pushing the window open widered. "A sickness? Inside our home?"
Wrench poked his head through the window. "Are you sure we're not sick too? I mean I was in the canyon for ten minutes."
Sleet shoved Wrench away from the Window. "Is it spreadable? Will it hurt the nusary?" he badgered them.
Stone shook his head. "How did it get in, and this vaccine, where do we start looking?" He asked B.B.
"One at a time," Nega told the two in the back.
"It spreads by the air, and no one has been the Nursary. They're safe... and that's about the only good news I have," BB informed them. "I informed Leader on the situation before I left, and they're doing everything they can to contain it, though it's only going to slow it down. A runner caught it while Topside, and sprerad it around."
She sighed.
"Finding it will be hard, but not impossible. We can find someone a doctor or something to help us. Just because the sickness hasn't affected anyone for a few decads doesn't mean it'll be gone from the records. We find someone who can make it, and get him to make enough for everyone. We take all the supplies we can carry back to Tribe, and Nega and I will be able to start treating everyone as soon as we get back. As for where we'll find it, we'll start in the closest city with a hospital, Brimstone."
Sleet nodded relived with the news of the nusary.
Wrench tilted his head. "A runner? We have so many, they come and go all over the place." he commented.
Stone shifted. "Brimstone doesn't have a hospital, it has a clinic. Corrupted clinic." Stone sighed. "The hospital was bombed and never rebuilt."
"But Brimstone is old." Sleet put in. "Maybe the clinic has it?"
"maybe." Stone sounded doubtful. "We need to go farther. with only a few weeks, this illness hasn't been seen around here." Turning to B.B. "Any idea where this runner was?"
"She said her name was Sweeper," BB replied.
"YOu know, I think Stone has a point. A clinic isn't likely to have records on how to make medicine. And it being torn apart by war. Even if there was someone who would be willing to help us, they wouldn't be able to," Nega said and loooked to her partner. "Is there anywhere else we can head to? We can't afford to waste time on remote possibilities."
"Remote..." Stone hummed staring off as Brimstone closed in. "We are remote, where would a more concentrated population that hasn't been ravaged by war still be on Mars? With a hopital and a possible stock of old vaccines? Or knowledge of them."
"Wow... you're smart and a hero." Wrench grinned amazed at Stone.
"OH!" Nega said suddenly. "Cycle City. I was there once a few years ago. Good area, and only about a day from Tribe. It has a bit of a dark underbelly because of the Mob, but they intentionally keep the city clean and nice mostly for appearances. They don't like to be bothered. I hear there has been a lot of bribing to the Plutarkians to leave the city alone. I think it's our best bet."
Stone nodded. "Havn't had a job in that area for a while. Little bit longer than a day I last recalled. Ah well." he shrugged ignoring Wrench completly.
"We're just about to Brimstone, are we stopping anyways?" Sleet asked curiously.
Wrench grabbed at the window as the van bounced roughly over pot holes. "Yeah.. and find a rest stop? All these bumps are making my bladder jiggle around inside."
"If he wets himself, can I sit up front?" Sleet pleaded.
"We stop at Brimstone and take a quick break," BB snapped. "Then we'll arange the seating to where it satifies everyone."
Nega eyed BB both wearily and surprised. The woman's knuckles were tight on the wheel, and her face was both tense and worried.
'She's scared,' she thought to herself. 'She has all of Tribe's fate riding on her shoulder. Even I've never dealt with that. Gods, I hope she'll be okay.'
Stone couldn't see much of B.B. Nega maybe small, but with her squished between him and B.B, he could see the albino's set face. Gazing intently at the road. Leaning back he flicked Sleet's nose.
"Hey!" he yelped looking at the older rat, the younger one beside him snickering.
"Pay attention." Stone smirked.
"To what?" Sleet snipped rubbing his nose.
Stone grinned.
Sleet glared. "That's not funny." he groaned. "I knew I just KNEW you shouldn't have had that chilli." He held his nose and slinked from the window.
Wrench started to howl, untill a strange noise sounded from the back. "Oh..... MARS!" he started to gag.
"Back at you Stone." Sleet laughed.
Stone smirked waiting to see if the two girls would fight to roll down the window, just as they entered the crumbling city of Brimstone.
Nega started to cough before glaring at Stone and elbowing him between the ribs.
"You think you can act like an adult to two bloody minutes," she hissed at him as BB rolled her eyes and pulled into the nearest gas station and slipped out without a words. "BB?"
She sighed and looked to Stone.
"You gonna handle this or should I?" she asked as she heard Wrench scrambling out from the back.
Stone chuckled. "Oh.. sorry." He smirked trying his best 'I'm tough and didn't do it' innocent look. It was failing miserably.
Sleet howling as he got out of the back too, laughing at the poor lower ranking assassin gaging.
Stone sighed. "I guess I better. She's pissed at me and.. well.. I think maybe a bit stressed." patting her leg, he hopped out of the van. "Sorry Nega." he grinned again chuckling. He shut the door on her.
Rounding the van he watched the two boys wrestled around. "Beebs?" He asked walking up to her."Hey..Lover."
BB's eyes widened in horror. She immediately ran her finger's over the stomach, almost recoiling back from the soft fur that fell off easily.
"No," she whispered. "HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN SICK?"
Sweeper jumped back a little in shock.
"Uh... about a two or three weeks," she responded almost nervoulsly. She didn't need to be a Healer to know from the albino's reaction what she was about to hear wasn't good news. "Why?"
The albino shook her head.
"Three weeks?" she muttered. "This is horrible." She swallowed and looked to the runner. "You have somethign call Tystigma. It's a disease that hit Mars over seventy years ago. It was horrible, infecting many through the air. The actually sickness ran for about duration of maybe five to six weeks... and it's terribly fatal. You're still in the middle stage... but..."
Swepper's eyes widened.
"You're kidding, right? I'm gonna die?!" she cried out, startling many in the Healer's Cave.
"NO!" BB stated quickly. "No, this disease was from a long time ago. It's impossible to catch these days because everyone left alive developed a natural immunity to it."
"HOW DOES THAT HELP ME?!"
"There's a medicine for it," she explained soothingly, but quickly. There were many others in for 'sniffles' who were starting to look just as worried. "There's been a medicine for a long time. All we need to do is get someone to go get some. You'll be fine."
She tried not to sound worried. The truth was, the medicine had not been needed for decades. There wouldn't be any in production right now. The only shot was to find some one who knew how to make it, and beg him or her to make enough vaccine to cure a few hundred people.
She didn't even want to mention that according to the time schedule, the runner was due to start loosing energy soon, before slipping into a comma for the last week of the sickness. Even the medicine chances to cure them at that point was slim to none.
"The best thing to do is rest..." She trailed off, wondering just where they could keep her. There was nowhere they could lock her off to keep her from infecting those that were still well. And she couldn't stay in the Healer's Cave. She would just get the other healers sick, and that was the last thing she needed.
"I have to talk to Leader..." she whispered to herself then turned to the runner. "Go to your room and rest as much as you can. Others will be assinged to attend to you, but you can't leave that area for anything. We need this as contained as possible."
She gave a quick look to Talon, and recieved a fast nod before running off as fast as she could to see Leader.
"I need to speak to him," she said quickly to the guard, her breathe a little labored. "Please, it's an emergency!"
All my life I've looked for something better. Maybe when I lose hope I'll settle for you.