The Heroes are down. I repeat, the Heroes are down.
Summer 2021, Week 4
Sunday witching hour
Riverview Hospital Center, City Centre
Storyteller
The doors to the Emergency Room are thrown open as a gurney carrying the form of a large man is pushed through. Doctors and Nurses rush over, already put on notice while the ambulance was on its way over. Words and information are passed back and forth before a doctor finally states they'll be taking the patient to a private VIP suite used normally for people of great importance--and those in potential danger if left in the open ER--which could tend to all the needs of both ER and OR. At the same time, Luna is rolled into the ER in a bit less chaotic manner. She is quickly checked out by Doctors and Nurses for about 30 minutes before they report that all her signs are...stable? With slight alterations attributed to her Evo anatomy. They ask her to stay for a few hours, a request made easier since they also inform Sloane it will be a few hours before they have any update on Victory. A woman wearing a black hoodie and white track pants walked into the hospital VIP wing without stopping until she made it to the nurses station where two police and a nurse were on duty. Two more were stationed outside one of the room doors, with another police officer outside a room a bit further down that had its door open, Luna's room, where Sloane was sitting with the girl for a moment while they waited for news about Andre.Tiana Walker
"I'm here to see the golden boy." She said without preamble, pulling the hood back to let her hair fall.Storyteller
The two cops stood a bit straighter, and the nurse stared into the woman's eyes. "As are so many others, Miss. But he just got out of critical condition and is resting. Family onl--"Tiana Walker
"No shit. Do you think I'm some dumbass groupie that doesn't know how the world works? Check his emergency contact. Tiana Walker. I'm the only family left." She slapped three IDs on the desk. Her license, student ID, and social security card. It might be hard to fake one ID, but the fact she had three should be enough. That and their obvious resemblance.Storyteller
The nurse clicked on her computer keyboard for a few moments, frowned, and took the IDs. She handed them to the cops who looked them over more carefully, checking for any signs of a forgery. Tiana waited patiently the whole time, at least from her external appearance. After the police made a few calls over their radio and the nurse double checked more information, one of the officers lead Tiana to the room and stood with the two officers that watched every move she made.Tiana Walker
Look at you and your hero-level treatment. She couldn't keep the scowl from her face as she looked around the room. There was a seating area--an honest to fucking god, seating area--a table to eat at. It was more a hotel room than a hospital room. At least, until one looked at the hospital bed against one wall where a body laid with tubes going in and out of it. She walked closer, eyes now stuck on her brother she hadn't seen in...what? Years? How many years now? Of course that only applied to in person, which is why his appearance didn't-- She stopped as she made it to the side of his bed, and pulled back the sheets to look down his left arm. Running from his neck to the top of his hand was an array of raised and darken flesh in the form of a way out there scar. She stopped her hand halfway to her mouth, refusing to act surprised. Refusing to care more than was absolutely necessary. "Look at you. The golden boy finally struck down." She whispered, as she grabbed the nearest chair and dragged it closer to sit by his bed. The silence lingered for a minute, then five, then ten before she spoke again. "Part of me was hoping you really were dead. Terrible, I know. I saw the newscasts and heard the rumors. It was trending for a while you know? #VictoryDies #RememberVictory All the dumbass hashtags. Of course, I didn't retweet any of them. Not because I didn't believe it. Moreso because I can't stand the thought of supporting you or that ridiculous name you choose. Victory. Ha! What victory did you have tonight, hmm? Stuck in a hospital bed on deaths door like a little bitch." As she spoke the harsh words, she didn't notice as her hand betrayed her to slink under his and wrap around it. When she stopped and looked down, she tried to pull away but couldn't. Her body wouldn't let her. That familiar feeling of safety, warmth, sturdiness raced into her palm. So, she held it and continued on. "I thought you were dead. I hoped you were. At least then I could stop hating you. And I do. I hate you." "You were always everything, and I was nothing. Never good enough. Never Andre enough. That's what they expected from me. To be just like my perfect older brother. The second coming of the sun child. Strong, fast, brave." Her eyes traced the new scar again, taking in its moving shape and how it blemished an otherwise pristine image. "I am strong. I am fast. And I'm braver than you, Mom, or anyone would fucking know. Everything I have Andre, and I have a shit ton, I got by myself. I did by my fucking self. And I didn't need you and your gold tights wearing ass to help me with it. I don't, didn't and don't want, you. I want you to remember that. That I don't fucking need you." She yanked her hand away, done with listening to her old memories and stood up. Looking down at him again, the scowl softened into a frown. "I'm happy you're not dead."Storyteller
Tiana left the room to find a doctor or nurse to speak to about Andre’s condition. If left to her own devices, she’d depart after getting that information.Inferno
Isaac had gotten a ride from one of the ambulances taking one of the officers he had cauterized to the hospital. The wound in abdomen had opened again slightly and but the gashes across his body were stitched together. He didn't receive any help from the paramedics as they rushed the two officers in their care in, which was fine as Isaac could manage on his own. As he limped into the ER - which was already busy with medical stuff running about - Isaac took a seat next to a woman who seemed oddly familiar, or at least had a strong resemblance, to someone he knew. At first he kept his mouth shut but the striking resemblance and his hotheadedness couldn't keep him quiet. "You're And- Victory's sister, I'm guessing?"Tiana Walker
She had one leg crossed over the other while she waited on the nurse to call the attending physician. It’s not that she didn’t trust the nurse, God knows she knew firsthand they at least knew which hole to shove things into, no this was more a power play. Get the big bad doctor to walk his happy ass down here and tell—her eyes snapped over to a boy, no a young man, probably around her age or just shy. He looked beat up to all hell. She scanned his outfit, and something clicked from the news coverage she say earlier. “Pretty sure you can say his name since the dumbass went public with it weeks ago.” Was her immediate reply to his obvious stumble. “How’d you guess that? Was it our matching outfits? Shiny eyes? Or the fact we look like we popped out the same mama considering we’re almost—“ She stopped. Her normal self slipping out was a clear indicator it wasn’t good to be here. “Sorry. Long day as you undoubtedly know. I am. Tiana. You’re one of them, right? The kids who run around with my brother saving folks?”Inferno
’Why does she remind me of Mr. Akira’s granddaughter?’ The flame hero leaned back against the chair, feeling a little unsettled at the unnecessary sharpness of her words. “Yeah, if you want to put it like that, I am.” He had no idea of the relationship between the two and Isaac wasn’t too keen on prying. “Did you see him yet? Is he doing ok? He got zapped pretty hard by Bolt during the fight, but he was also the reason we got the chance to beat him.”Tiana Walker
“He’s not dead so there’s that.” Was the immediate reply that spilled out of her mouth. “I’m waiting on the Doctor to give me a better update. He’s out right now.” She turned to face the guy, was it Inferno?, “that’s what the nurse told me. Hard enough to stop his heart. Which has me wondering where the hell the rest of you were.”Inferno
”We were all right next to him, in fact. It’s kind of hard to block lightning for your information.” The last several hours of getting bombarded with questions, all the hate from people and the media, and the last whole weekend really was starting to get to Isaac. “I’m glad they defibrillated him though. He’s not just a teammate to me, he’s one of my only friends.”Tiana Walker
We could stab him. We could stab him and no one would be the wiser. The potential backlash from her out of commission brother for stabbing Inferno didn’t rise to the level of stopping her. Instead it was the prospect that she might get blood on her favorite hoodie. You get to live another day. “I’m sure you did your best. Knowing him, Andre probably put himself in harm’s way because your best—not you specifically you understand—wasn’t enough to get the job done on its own.” She was contemplating getting up to leave, the doctor be damned. She had spent long enough here and didn’t want to draw more attention to herself. But she couldn’t. There was an anger in her. She smoothed it down the best she could and leaned back against the wall. “You know, the next time a hurt family member accuses you of being involved in the hurting of said member of their family, maybe try some compassion instead of snark. You won’t always get so lucky and end up with someone like me who likes her hoodie more than she wants to bash your smug little face in. Just some friendly Walker-original advice, Inferno.” She saw a white coat moving their way and stood up to go meet them. Without turning around, she ended it with, “He’s sleeping now but you’re probably okay to go see him if you want.”Inferno
Isaac immediately felt the remorse at snapping back at the young lady, probably his age, and let the conversation go. He held his head down in silence and nodded. “I’m sorry. I’ll do my best to take care of him.” One of the nurses at this point was making his way over to him - or was it for the girl? - and Isaac finally passed out in the chair from exhaustion and from the level of injuries he had sustained. It wasn’t long before he was admitted into one of the rooms himself, though he would be out for a few hours and in the hospital for a few days ultimately.Aloysius ‘Aloy’ Fumi
Phone Call
To Inferno Unbreakable had flown to the top of a building in the city centre pulling down his hood he pulled out his phone and waited for inferno to pick up. “Hey. It’s Unbreakable. How’s everyone holdin’ up over there are Victory and Luna gonna make it?”Isaac Crysentine
Phone Call
Four rings passed before the call was sent to voicemail. “Hi, it’s Isaac, leave a voicemail after the beep. BEEP. Haha got ya. Jk leave it now.” BEEP Aloy’s message was then recorded and ready on Isaac’s phone for when he woke up.Sloane Whittier
Her back was stiff from sitting frozen in the same position as her eyes glazed over, watching Luna sleep. Her head was throbbing, but the shock was helping with the pain. Tomorrow would suck though. They'd talked for a bit, Sloane slipping back into the sort of random and distracting conversation she would use if she were babysitting. Years of habit from having her own babysitting "business" back in the day. It wasn't a slight to Luna, more that she just felt the need to comfort her. Luna was obviously shaken and Sloane felt responsible. She felt responsible for all of it. She knew the team wasn't ready. She knew Isaac wasn't ready. She knew they shouldn't have brought a child into that chaos. She knew they'd all be feeling the effects of this for a long while. She didn't need that degree in psych that she'd considered to know. She should've spoken up. She should've done more to keep the kids at home. Then she wouldn't be sitting next to a 10 year old in a hospital. FUCK. The trail of thinking finally snapped her out of it. Her fingers touched the scratchiness of the butterfly bandages over her new stitches. She didn't realize it, but blood had been pouring down her face when she hopped in the back of the ambulance with Luna. The doc had said she would heal, minimal scarring. The concussion was mild too. Check in with your usual doctor. Yada yada yada. 'I don't care about me. Tell me about them. Let me see them. Let him be okay. Fucking let him be okay.' She walked over to the young girl and lightly touched her hand. Whispering ever so quietly, "I'll be back, okay? I'm going to check on Andre again." As she opened the door, the officer posted outside turned his head. "I'll be back. I need to stretch my legs and check on a few things. Keep her safe, Tom." The man nodded as she walked down the hall, making her way to the nurse's desk where she'd ask yet again if there was an update. As she neared, she recognized the doctor that had been with Andre earlier and hurried over to him before realizing that he was walking over to a familiar looking yet very unfamiliar young woman. She slowed, but didn't stop walking over to them.Storyteller
"--the scarring on his heart has already diminished some from our most recent scans. I'm attributing it to whatever abilities he may have. As long as that holds and he rests for the next few days, I'm hopeful he will make a recovery. How much of a recovery I can't tell yet. Most people would suffer from diminished heart capabilities after a shock like that. Most--Ms. Walker, most people would have died immediately from a shock like that. So for now all I can say is he's alive and resting, and that I'm keeping an eye on him." The doctor finished talking to the woman in front of him, who simply nodded her head. Her body language didn't show any large amounts of sadness or fear. More like she was taking in new information and processing it.Tiana Walker
So he's not out of the woods yet. "Thank you, Doctor. I'll leave you to it. I just wanted enough of background so I wouldn't have to wait here all day." Just then she noticed the presence of the woman. She looked tired and beat up just like the boy, but less--what's the word?--of a pain in the ass?Storyteller
The Doctor noticed Sloane at the same time. "Oh, hello, ma'am. I was just giving Ms. Walker an update on Victory before heading to see Luna. I believe she should be able to be released in the morning, but I want to do a last round of tests just to be sure. I'll need to work with you on finding her a place to go. She shouldn't be left alone for a day or two in case there is something I missed."Sloane Whittier
"Of course, don't worry. Luna can go home with me. I've got a spare room at my house in Lakeview. She'll be comfortable there. If anything changes, I'll bring her back in right away. And, Ms. Walker, if you don't mind me having continued updates on Andre, I'll leave my contact information with the nurse's station? I would like to stay on top of his condition. I'll be back to visit every day, but of course I won't intrude on anyone." The strain and worry showed in her whole body, but she kept it together well enough. "He's my friend. I just... I'd like to be here."Storyteller
“Then I’ll see to it.” The Doctor said before excusing himself from Ms. Walker and taking off to check on Luna, leaving the two women by themselves outside Andre’s room.Tiana Walker
Another ‘friend’ I guess. Which meant another AERI member that was with him when he got hurt. “With as many friends as he has here, I’m not needed. I only stopped by to see if he was dead or not. Now that it seems more and more likely he’ll pull through, I’m not needed. You can do whatever you’d like. Besides you and his other friends we don’t have any other family that’d stop by.”Sloane Whittier
The woman's jaw literally dropped open before she could catch herself. Closing it quickly, she covered her mouth with her left hand as the other hand went to her hip. She looked down at the floor, unsure what her eyes would show until she could pull it together. '1... 2... 3...' When she got to 3, she lowered her hand, stood up straight, and looked into Tiana's eyes, willing herself to come off compassionate at best, neutral at worst. "Come again? Excuse me... I know you don't know me from Adam, but... you've seen Andre, right? You must be his sister and, well, I can't imagine any sort of family walking out on someone when they're in the sort of condition he's in right now. You don't have to like family to love them. He needs you just as much if not more than he needs any of us friends. He risked his life today for the people of this city, for me. Please, will you consider staying? I'm not sure if you're local, but you're welcome to crash with me if you need a place to stay."Tiana Walker
Meeting the other woman’s gaze, her resting bitch face broke slightly with an upward curl of the edge of her lip. “Sounds like you just need to expand your imagination. And you’re right. I don’t know you from Adam, Steve, Eve or the Queen. And you don’t know me. From what you’re saying you barely know him either.” If you did, you’d have known we haven’t seen each other in years. “I have seen him. He’s not dead. So now my annoying conscious can go back to sleep, and I can get on with my life. Any more than that isn’t in the cards.” She took the few steps to the nearby chair to grab her purse before moving a bit back towards Sloane. “Look, you seem nice. But this, my family, it’s not your place or issue to deal with, okay? You can tell the doctors and nurses you have my permission for whatever.”Sloane Whittier
She stared at her for just a moment longer, the line of lips tightening. "Fine then. At least give me your number so I can call you if anything changes." She unlocks her phone and holds it out to Tiana. "You may regret it if something happens and you're not here. Or maybe you won't. But as next of kin, I may need it regardless. It's the least you can do."Tiana Walker
“You’re one of those annoying goody goodies, aren’t you?” She said with a huff as she took the phone after basking in the silence for a good half a minute. When she was done she handed it back. “The only thing I regret is coming here for no reason. Golden boy wasn’t even dead. Waste of time.” With that her eyes moved to his door and grew colder as they stared at the entrance.Sloane Whittier
Taking the phone, she slid it into her pocket. She was struggling oh so very hard to not lay into the girl in front of her. They may not be besties, they may not even be super close yet, but Andre had earned himself a place in her heart. She considered him one of her people. You know, the people that you protect, the people that you'd answer the phone for in the middle of the night. It was in how he handled himself, how he treated those around him, he'd won her over. She knew that it was only a matter of time before he was like family. And you just don't let someone hurt your family like this... even if it was their blood. When she spoke, her tone was icy. "Well don't let this goody goody stop you. There's the door. I'm sure you're familiar with it. I don't get the feeling that you're a stranger to walking out. Or is it being walked out on that's made you so bitter? Want to make sure you hurt them before they can hurt you again? Is that it? Don't worry. I'll be sure not to waste your time unless the situation is dire. You can bet on that, sweetheart. I'll handle things here."Tiana Walker
Her eyes immediately broke away from the door and locked back onto Sloane. For a moment a soft glow emanated from her hands, like sunlight, before vanishing in a blink. The resting bitch face was broken by that slightly curled lip once again as her accent came out in full force. “Look at this, the pussy has claws. Me-ow. You’ll need to sharpen those if you’re going to scratch me. I like the fire though. The passive bitch look is so much cuter than the goodie two shoes.” Spinning on her heel, Tiana started to make her way to the elevator. “Do me a favor, hun, don’t tell him I was here. I don’t need his heroic ass hunting me down. Kay? Thanks. Bye.” She waggled her fingers as the elevator door opened.Sloane Whittier
"Mmmhmm. Bye, bitch." Fucking hell, that woman. She hadn't decided yet if she was going to heed her parting shot about her visit. She'd play it by ear based on how he was doing. A decision for another day at the very last. For now, she had two people to watch over. Make that three, depending on how Isaac came out of everything too. The list was growing. She watched until Tiana was gone and then turned to the nurse's desk. "Will you let me know if Luna wakes up, please? I'm going to be in Andre's room for a while." The woman nodded. "Thanks. I really appreciate it." She did pop her head back in the young girl's room one more time just to make sure she was okay. She trusted the staff, but sometimes you just need visual confirmation. She closed the door as quietly as she could and went to sit with Andre for a little while.
Type
Record, Historical
Medium
Digital Recording, Text
Authoring Date
July 11, 2021
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