The Devil's Salvation

[raigon]

Fayte smiled away at Jade's uncertainty. "Midnight has a unique condition. I've examine her blood, and I've noticed that she has two conflicting blood types, one of which is foreign blood. The foreign blood is dominating the other in a parasitic relationship. I'll call that foreign blood M-. And her own blood, which I'll call M+, while being reproduced as fast as her red bone marrows can under constant stimulation, is not quite keeping up with its reproduction to the rate in which the M- blood is destroying it."

"Come here for a moment," she said, gesturing her sweetly, "And have a look under this microscope."

She set the microscope to 1000x normal magnification and gestured for her to sit down and look at the blood sample that she had drawn from her friend.

"As you can see, there are two bloods, one stained in purple, the M-, and the original, in red. The purple stained Erythrocytes, or red blood cells, are attacking the M+ blood, which is in red. Without the bone marrow in vitro to replenish it, however, see what happens."

And she gestured at the purple stained blood cells consuming the red stained blood cells until the entire blood sample turned purple. The purple blood, consuming the red stained blood cells, commenced to reproduce itself at an alarming pace.

"If we put in the factors of the blood marrow, which I've taken a sample from your friend Midnight," she said, replacing the first blood sample with another, this time with the sample of the blood marrow, "this will delay it... as it will constantly attempt to replenish the consumed M+ blood. However..."

She gesture for Jade to have a look again, "The M- blood will eventually overcome it."

And true to her words, after about 7 minutes, the blood turned entirely purple.

"I give her, if lucky, 4 months and 16 days to live," Dr. Yatef smiled, "4 months and 16 days before her M- blood completely dominates her M+ blood and she suffers from terminal normocytic anemia and dies."

To demonstrate, she takes the purple blood sample and drops it to the ground, where it shatters and she smiled with sweet glee.

"And you might be wondering why M+ blood won't function. It is vampire blood," Dr. Yatef said, "For one thing, it feeds off and utilizes the host's machinery to replicate. For another... See that dark spot in the purple stained blood cells that represent the nucleus? Most red blood cells rid themselves of the nucleus and mitochondria in order to dedicate itself to carrying oxygen with their hemoglobins. With the nucleus still retained in M- blood, it has extremely limited ability to carry oxygen, much like those similar those of sickle cell anemia. Have you heard of that condition? No? This is why Vampires constantly require fresh blood from prey to live, because their own blood cannot provide them with enough oxygen to live and if they don't get blood that can, they will die."

She dropped the previous blood sample and lets it shatter on the floor, where her high heels further ground it to dust, so that the blood runs and sticks to the bottom of her heels, like souls she has crushed beneath. "And like Diabetes, there is no known cure."

And she smiled again, long enough to breathe in Jade's facial expression before she continued, "That being said, like Diabetes, it is very, very manageable. And if done right, she can live an almost normal life."

And so, she pointed to the syringes, gesturing to them. And she reached her hands over and picks them up "And I have the treatment here in my hands, your salvation that you have come to this world seeking."

And for a long time, she looks at Jade, taking in her expression again, almost like she was living off of it for her own sheer glee, before she finally said completely unabashed, "So...... what's in it for me?"

[Asila]

When Dr. Yatef gestured for Jade to come forward, she reluctantly did so. She did have a few concerns about becoming a prop in a violent demonstration like the paper towel was, so of course she was hesitant. It was only because this information was of the utmost importance concerning Midnight's malady that she chose to come forward promptly rather than simply remain where she was, with only a skeptical glare in answer.

As instructed, she sat down and pressed her eye to the microscope. What she saw was disturbing. Midnight's real blood was being annihilated by the purple enemy cells. With such a rapid rate of destruction, she began to doubt the timeliness of their arrival. It seemed likely that they had been too late.

It was only when the doctor put the second petri dish under the microscope that she realized some of her words had gone unprocessed. Jade did some rapid thinking to reclaim the knowledge that had nearly slipped through her mind unnoticed during her moment of despair. So, this sample had some of Midnight's bone marrow and was truer to the actual state of progression in her body. It eased Jade's mind to note that the purple blood cells were slower to take over this time, but seven minutes still wasn't a lot of time.

Jade pulled back. "4 months sounds optimistic." She said softly, feeling faint. This time, when Dr. Yatef destroyed something, she jumped. Then glared irritably at the doctor. Breaking that petri dish was completely unnecessary.

The rest of the information was interesting. Though Jade had already known that it was bad news when a body only contained vampire blood, she hadn't known the science behind it. Then a second petri dish was broken, and Jade was in a decidedly antagonistic mood when the doctor asked for payment.

She took her time to think about her answer. They had not discussed payment. Though both she and Midnight had never known a world in which medical care was free, they had not thought far enough ahead to prepare some form of payment for that care. It had seemed like a meaningless secondary step when they were struggling to find help in the first place. It would have been nice to have an estimate. Jade frowned briefly, then met Dr. Yatef's eyes.

She stood. "We don't have gold, but we have a skill set as unique as your own. If you can truly save Midnight, then we can trade one favor for another." Her gaze flickered briefly to Azirath, then back. "Midnight was capable of extraordinary things before that vampire's blood compromised her. If you can help us, we will help you." Jade hoped she hadn't said to much, but she had to do something to demonstrate Midnight's worth.

Nonetheless, she was really hoping that she wasn't in the process of signing their souls away.

[raigon]

Dr. Yatef smiled.

"Well, that sounds fair. I'm sure that you don't have enough gold. You certainly don't have any gold surgeons on you, let alone silver physicians.... that's the form of currency in our world," she smiled, "To... celebrate the doctors who rescued humanity from the Blank Decade. But oh, I don't want to bore you with the story of the tragic demise of the world in which during a span of 10 years where there are no history records or documents, hence the 'Blank' Decade, which concerned why 2/3 of humanity was destroyed, and all the Gods in this world are dead except for Death."

She smiled wickedly sweet.

"My, my, though, where are my manners? It is a doctor's duty to cure the patient first and accept payment after the patient is better. If the patient does not..." She reached for the syringes and did a couple practice pushes with her thumb on the head of the syringe, as if crushing the head of a living human in to emphasize her point, "You need not pay at all."

She smiled again, drinking in the girl's expression once again before continuing, "That being said, I have never let a patient died on my watch... at least those who paid. Oh... don't look at me like that! Even you should know that if you're good at something, you never do it for free."

She flashed another smile, too many smiles, too quick, but also very sweet and dangerously reassuring. "I'm sure you do it, too, no?"

She did not bother waiting for a response, instead, she reached into her desk for a small stack of paper. Looking at the expression on Jade's face, she smiled again reassuringly, "This is a consent form. Think of it as a permission slip. I will need consent from a family member, friend or guardian before providing any experimental treatment to a patient."

She stuck the papers to the clipboard and handed it over to Jade with a pen. It might have been the light, or perhaps it was the tense environment, but for perhaps just a brief few seconds or an instant, the form read "The Devil's Salvation Binding Contract". Then Dr. Yatef gave the clipboard a gentle shake and the words revealed itself for what it really read, "Dr. Yatef's Patient Salvation Binding Contract."

She gave them another brief smile, waiting.

[Asila]

There was nothing safe or comfortable about time spent alone with Dr. Yatef, yet Jade had thought she was beginning to get used to that. There was only so much strangeness a person could take before she started to tune it out. But even that growing immunity didn't save her from a chill when the doctor implied that she had searched them when they arrived. How else would she know with such exacting certainty that they had nothing on them? The way she spoke, Jade could almost assume she'd made a list of what few items they'd had. She immediately slipped her hands into her pockets, to make sure that the items she carried with her were there. Her beaten-up leather wallet, with her school I.D. and driver's license, which served only as a place to stash notes since she left home. A scorpion paperweight that some well-meaning relative had pressed into her four-year-old hand after her great-grandmother's funeral, no doubt thinking no one else would want it, but she'd kept that item for longer than any other. A pocket knife that was embossed with a tribal design, black on orange. She'd commissioned an older friend to buy it for her from one of those gaudy blade stores at the mall when she was fifteen. It was all there.

Relieved, Jade took her hands back out of her pockets. Those items had become her treasures now that she'd left everything she knew behind. Her anxiety had peaked when she thought they were in danger.

She went back to listening to Dr. Yatef, taking note of all the strange stuff the woman said. She'd have to follow up on it later. The apocalyptic death of 2/3's of the world's people was probably worth knowing about. As for the rest, she just tried very hard not to cringe when the doctor let her ruthless side blaze through the veneer.

Jade took the paperwork and pen, staring intensely at it when the lettering flickered. What kind of holographic nonsense was this?! She tilted the whole clipboard side to side, front to back, to see if the letter's shifted again but...nothing. She frowned.

On his bed Azirath shifted, lifting his head high to look at her. He didn't even have to try and contact her for Jade to know what he was thinking. She projected her unspoken assurance at him. I'm reading it, I'm reading it. Don't worry. He flicked his ears halfway back, looking generally uncomfortable. Well, it wasn't as though she felt any better about it. Jade sighed, then took the pen to follow the words line by line and read in silence. After twenty minutes of quick, but careful, reading, she made it to the end. Since nothing seemed particularly suspicious, she signed. But not before staring at that blank line, half-convinced she was about to make one of the most grievous errors of her life.

[raigon]

Dr. Yatef smiled once again as she took the clipboard back. As she took it back, perhaps again it was because of the light, or maybe because of how tense the situation was, but the words before the signature shimmered so that it almost read "I hereby give my soul permission to Dr. Yatef". However, when Dr Yatef gave it another shake, the words flashed itself to read "I hereby give my sole permission to Dr. Yatef..."

"Well, that binds us together to each other now! You know the thing about contracts?" Dr. Yatef smiled, ever so kindly such that it probably tasted like sugared honey, "They are have such... magical effects."

And before anyone could blink, Dr. Yatef was already by Midnight's side. She closed the distance in such an alarming pace, yet with such subtle movement that it looked as if she had vanished into and reappeared literally from thin air, much like the way she knew Midnight and Jade must've entered the world.

"The Silent Walk Technique," Dr. Yatef explained, a syringe, some pills, and a blood monitor clasped between her fingers, much like the way ninjas hold shurikens. "It's important for doctors to be able to move quickly so they can go from patient to patient without wasting time and save lives, which is ironic because the technique was once..."

She grabbed Midnight's finger and took a sanitized needle and gave it a sharp, swift stab. "... An Assassin technique so they can..." She drew Midnight's fingers until the blood, which she looked at it almost hungrily and lovingly, dripped towards the detector part of the monitor.

"...Kill quickly." She let an extra few drops of Midnight's blood spill onto her fingers and into the floor for emphasis, smiling in sweet glee at the blood on her fingers, before she cleaned Midnight's fingers with Ether and sanitized wipes that she used to apply pressure at the site she pricked so her bleeding stops.

"With many lives on the line, you have to act hard," she said, turning to smile at Jade's face so she could drink off her expression once again as she shoved pills into Midnight's mouth and forced it down her throat, pushing her jaw up almost as if attempting to choke her, but then released her clutch immediately so that Midnight initiated the swallow reflex upon stimulation.

And she stabbed one of the syringes into Midnight's arm, injecting the contents rapidly into Midnight's veins, "... and fast."

She drew the syringe out, applied pressure to Midnight's arms while sanitizing it with ether and alcohol and then tossed the syringe off so that it bounced hard into the disposable bin.

She removed her hands lightly from Midnight's arms, her fingers still dripping fresh with Midnight's blood, which she drew lovingly to her mouth sweetly and proceeded to lick the blood on her fingers clean.

"And now, we wait."

She gave them another smile and licked her lips one last time with a satisfied smack.

[Asila]

Dr. Yatef's final onslaught proved too much for both the teen and the unusual creature that was with her. Jade immediately turned the dial on her walkie talkie to channel two then pressed and held the talk button. On his end of the line, John would be able to hear Azirath's fierce snarling as background noise while Jade spoke. She spoke in a hushed tone. "John? Dr. Yatef is messed up. Please come back." The snarling on the other end rose in pitch, accompanied by the sound of a struggle. Jade yelled "No! Sto-"

Then the transmission ended.

In the clinic, Jade dropped the walkie talkie with a clatter and ran toward the source of chaos. Azirath had forced himself to his feet and charged. He rose on his back legs, anchored his fangs in her shoulder, and drove her to the tiled floor Now he stood with Dr. Yatef pinned beneath his massive paws, his fangs bared and dripping red. His pale green eyes flashed with feral rage. The doctor's aggressive body language toward her unresponsive, helpless patient had triggered him in the worst kind of way.

He heard Jade call to him. "No! Stop it!" But this time, he felt inclined to ignore her. He wanted this woman to know fear, just as he had when it had seemed that Yatef wanted Midnight dead instead of alive. Then the teenager was on him, first trying to pull him back by wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling from behind. When this failed, she moved in front of him and angled her own shoulder into his good right shoulder. Then she pushed against him, her sneaker's screeching against the smooth floor as she struggled to push the four hundred pound predator off of Dr. Yatef.

"Damn it, Azirath!" She yelled in frustration when it seemed even this wouldn't work. "Get. Off."

[raigon]

Run, pant, run...

John dropped whatever errand he had left and hurtled out of Jeremy Price's, hands on walkie talkie. He had heard Jade's plea, the snarl, a sound of what seems to be a fierce struggle and then the clatter of the walkie talkie.

Run... pant... pant... run

He upped his pace as he raced across the street, nearly being hit by a car. The driver honked at him and threw foul words at him, even with John's uniform clearly showing that he is a police officer. Normally, John would get him to stop to see his ID and issue a warning. Instead, this time, he let the provocation slide and went off again down the street.

He had roared into the walkie talkie saying that he will be there in a moment. But apparently his voice did not get through. When he heard the sound of the clatter and after shouting several times to no response, he dropped everything he was doing to rush to their aid.

Run... pant... pant... pant...

He squeezed his way into the alleyway, his heart beating so fast that doctors would probably question him for Ventricular tachycardic arrhythmia. He was sweating, heart thumping and racing, and his head was pounding with so many scenarios that had gone wrong. Was Dr. Yatef a hack after all? Was she actually dangerous? Is Jade or her friends' lives in danger? He certainly knew it wasn't the other way around and it was definitely not them attacking Dr. Yatef with the sound of their voice.

And then a thought hit him - an idea so chilling that it turned everything around him ice cold. She... Dr. Yatef... she couldn't be... one of them could she? He had heard so many rumors about the dangerous, cold, dark physicians that served death. While the Sons of Hippocrates opened up human cadavers to study the way to life, this organization opened living, still breathing humans to study fear, pain, and death. And they implored so many unspeakable ways to hear a human being scream. He remembered kicking down the door to one of their labs, finding 20 human beings hanging from the ceiling, their hands cuffed to metal, razor wrist bands on the ceiling, and most of them dead. Some had their entrails out, some had their organs removed, and some... some of them... He did not even want to think about it. He ordered all of them to be cut down, sewn up and identified so they can be returned to their family, when he heard of the 20 was alive and still breathing.

He had heard her... the whisper, the coarse, pained whisper that chilled him to the core for weeks on end and would haunt him now. "Please... sir... anyone... kill me... please... please"

Every single physician in this organization is to be taken down and killed immediately on sight - the organization known as "The Surgeons of Azrael."

She couldn't be... There were only 13 surgeons on the team, never more, and never less. They never accepted new members... Unless... one of them was killed? Or was she... one of them already just under a pretense of a different name?

He started to feel ice cold again. Come on... hurry! HURRY!

And he didn't bother for the password or any reply, he ran towards the clinic, broke through the front door with a vicious tackle and then kicked down the door to Dr. Yatef's clinic.

"FREEZE! HANDS IN THE AIR, RIGHT NOW!"



Fayte smiled in glee as the magnificent beast, the one called Azirath or the so-called Familiar. She giggled, even petting him on the head and not even trying to pry herself off. She had no intention of freeing herself from his clutches. In fact, it seemed as if she was rather enjoying herself, more than ever if possible.

She reached her hands to stroke behind his ears and pet him as if he were the world's cutest puppy. "Good boy," she giggled. "Good boy. You missed my heart, though. 5th intercostal space, mid-clavicular line. Right here."

And she opened her shirt to reveal her chest, and then dug her nails into her chest, drawing the shaped regions of the borders of her heart with her finger nails until the imprint of her heart was drawn in red, bloody borders. "Go on, I'd even love for you to do it."

Her chest dripped red as blood ran down.

"You know you want to," she whispered into his ears, almost seductively. "I'd love for you to do it just so I can enjoy watching your helplessness at what happens next. For if you do... well..."

She licked her fingers where her own blood flew down in river streams. "I'm afraid if you do kill me, I will not be able to help you. For you see... you have slow poison coursing through your veins that only I know the antidote to and only I can make. And I will feel very, very bad to see you die, oh so slowly and painfully. First you will feel dizziness, fatigue, and palpitations. Then you will start feeling unable to breathe, as every one of your red blood cells undergo apoptosis from my toxins and die. Next, you will start seeing visions of every last bit of your worst fears. And I know them. Every single one. I cannot begin to describe the next painful bliss you will experience, but I shall leave them for you to find one, shall I? After all, you have two whole weeks to enjoy the every last stage of the painful heavens I have set for you."

She gave him a twisted smile and giggled, enjoying what she knows was his helplessness and that tasty expression on his face. "Oh, and course, I didn't even tell you the best parts. Like... what I have done to your precious Jade. And, well... Are you certain that I gave Midnight the cure and not... further poison that puts her under my control?"

She flashed another sweet smile at him. What made her even happier was that merely moments later, her clinic door was kicked down with a vicious BANG, with her John rolling through the door, taking cover behind her desk, his ancient revolver pointed at her.

But he did not know what the situation was. He kept his eyes professionally trained and locked on the suspicious doctor, but with the winged cat on top of her, he couldn't get a clear shot. He wanted to call for backup, but he knows what will happen if he does. No one in the city, no one but him and possibly this deranged lunatic of a doctor.

"HANDS IN THE AIR!" He roared again, though he didn't know why, because Dr. Yatef was pinned to the ground and she was certainly not capable of putting her hands in the air.

"Jade, you are Jade, correct? What happened and what's going on? Explain the situation, and quickly! And Dr. Yatef, I demand to see your Physician's License and where it was issued as well as your diploma! You are held under contempt and are under my watch. Do not resist or I may not be responsible for any action on my part. You have been warned!"

Dr. Yatef smiled at Azirath and Jade. "Go on then, you two. You heard the Officer. Tell them every word and do not miss a single thing."

And she looked at them with such a dangerously sweet. The face was easy to read. Or else... it seemed to say.