Achilles

The way our blood flows

I wrapped my arms around Techno and cradled his limp form close to me, turning on my heels and going as quick as I could towards the village.

It took ten minutes to complete the usual twenty minute journey, I saw the village just on the darkening horizon and made one last dash for it, keeping a firm, protective grip around the child in my arms. The healer's office is the first building on the southern side of the village, so it didn't take me long to get there.

Ten firm raps on the oak-wood door and I was allowed in. "Puffy, I don't know what's wrong with him, he just passed out." The pearl-haired girl stared at the pink-haired boy in my arms. "Put him on the medical table, let me take a look." I carefully set him down, stepping back as she examined his sleeping form. She checked for his pulse, breathing patterns and a few other things. Her face dropped.

Turning to face me, she let out a shaky exhale. "He's sick." Her voice trembled. "His heart is very weak, not stable enough to pump his blood properly."

I stared at her, worry gnawing away further into me. "Is there a cure?" I asked, desperate. Her eyes met mine, I could tell she was nervous and worried. "Unfortunately, no. His days are numbered, Phil. It'll get to him in a month or so, he won't make it."
Everything seemed to stop. No. Nononono. No. She doesn't mean that he's going to die, he can't die. He's too young.

"You- you're serious? No. He can't die yet, there has to be some way you can help him!"
"There's no cure for this, I'm sorry, Phil. The only thing we can do is give him an end worthy of him."

I looked down at my boy, laying still and unconscious on the medical table, naïve to the coming of his death. He'd meet his mother soon. My eyes silently glossed over with tears, I swallowed them back, however. How was I going to tell Tommy and Wilbur? They obviously deserved to know what was happening.

"Even if he did stay alive, he'd be in unearthly pain. That would be far more terrible than death."

It would.

I rubbed the tears from my eyes, looking back at her. "So what am I meant to do?"
"He shouldn't really move a lot, that would hurt him. You need to make sure he rests well, if the pain gets too much, give him a health potion, it should numb it. Most of all, be there for him. The next few months are going to be difficult on all of you." My breath shook. I nodded, walking over to her. "Thank you." She pulled me into a comforting embrace. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you. He doesn't deserve death, but sickness shows no mercy."
I nodded, accepting her embrace before pulling away.

I carefully gathered Techno in my arms, holding him close. He felt so cold. His head buried into my chest, his expression glimpsing a slight pain.

When I walked back outside, the sky was darker, dusk had passed. I started walking down the road again. The day had gone from light-hearted joy to complete misery. How was I going to tell them all?

Meanwhile
Wilbur's PoV

Papa's voice had been so stern, so full of worry. "Tommy, come on, we need to get home before sunset." I tugged slightly on his arm, he was fixated in his spot, watching down the path, the area where Papa had disappeared with Techno laying limp in his arms. "Wilby, what happened to Techno?"
"I don't know, but daddy's gonna find out, okay. We need to go home Tommy."
"Okay." I squeezed his hand gently and he looked away from the southern horizon, turning to face the way we were going.

The walk home was made in a heavy, eerie silence. Tommy kept glancing back nervously, he looked anxious and tired, his face red with the wind, his eyes looking as if they might shed a million tears. "Tommy, do you want me to carry you?"
He hummed and mumbled something quiet, before nodding his head. I lifted his small form in my arms, holding him securely. He leaned his head against my shoulder. By the time we'd gotten home, he was sound asleep.

I unlocked the door, closing it firmly behind me and went into Tommy's room, placing him down on his bed and quietly tucking him in. I watched him sleep for a while, stroking his hair lovingly, wondering what had happened to Techno and whether or not he'd be okay. I prayed he would.

Tommy looked so peaceful whilst he slept, his eyes weren't fully closed so you could see shadows of blue peek out the bottom of his eyelids. His head always leaned to the side, his golden locks catching the thin streaks of moonlight that broke through his curtains. I sighed. Getting up, I quietly walked over to the door, cracking it open and slipping out, closing it behind me.

Papa got home not long after, I opened the door for him, and when he got inside, I locked it. I waited for him whilst he put Techno to bed. He slid down the stairs, meeting my worried gaze. I noticed how puffy his eyes were, he looked like he'd been crying.

"Wilbur, we need to talk." We sat down in the living room, sitting in the darkness, as if it might soothe our thoughts. "What's wrong, Papa?"
"It's Techno. He-" He seemed to pause for a moment or so. "He's sick. Gravely sick."
My breathing hitched.
"He has a heart problem, his heart's too weak to pump his blood properly, he won't survive. He's only got a month left."
"He's but a child. He can't die." My voice cracked. The thought of Techno laying there, lifeless, unseeing, still a child. It terrified me.

Loud, anxious breaths filled the room. "Is there no cure to save him?" I asked, on the verge of tears.
"N-no." Papa stuttered.
"There has to be some way! We can't let him die! He's only eleven!"
"I know, Wil, I know. But the terrible reality is that there is no cure, that all we can do is comfort him through it."
Tears streamed down my face, burning red hot in the dark.
"Wilbur, you need to go to bed, you're tired, I'm sorry. I'm so very sorry."
"No. It's not your fault, I just don't want to lose another."
"Nor do I."

I got up, walking up the dimly lit stairs, along the corridor, into my room, our room.

The way Techno lay in his bed made the tears flow over my cheeks. Though he looked so peaceful, his facial expression held drops of agony, only the sharpest eyes could see. He lay too limp to be asleep, too disconnected to feel as though he was alive. His face, usually bright and smiling, was pale, shadowed with darkness, some of it a peachy-pink from a rising fever. He looked so peaceful, yet so...so dead-

I climbed into my bed, on the opposite side of the room, too hot to use my covers. I just lay there, cheeks still tear stained, staring up at the ceiling, often glancing at him. My heart was already a million shreds, I couldn't process this.

When my eyes finally dropped close, when I was finally asleep, images flashed in my mind. Images of mama's funeral, of her and papa, looking so young and joyous under the sun. And then images from today, of Techno and Tommy laughing, of Techno limp in papa's arms, of papa's worried expression. But then came one I never wanted to imagine, more clear and vivid than the rest. Techno lay there, unseeing, lifeless, still a child, forever eleven. Dead. I saw Techno dead.

My eyes flew open to the sun creeping over the horizon, light peeking through the curtains, my face was drenched in sweat. My blurry vision wondered aimlessly around the room, landing on the other side, landing on Techno. Techno.

I crept out of bed, noiselessly walking over to were he lay. His limp form was peaceful, I felt his pulse, shakily, finding a heart beat. Not as steady as I'd hope, but something. He was alive. And I wanted him to be like that for as long as possible.

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Thanks for reading! Comment if you want me to write the full story, it's currently in my drafts and i have some ideas for it.

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Stay safe, swag and swell, ladies, guys,  gays, and gentle-theys.

~~~Nicolas