Under My Skin

Under My Skin - Part 20

Will was less than enthused as the ripping sensation increased in his middle. "Ohhhhh... that is not what I want to hear right now!"

"Me neither!" snapped Louis, his voice slowly slipping into a whimper. "I don't want to be here. I don't want to be here. I don't want to be here..."

Crap, his claustrophobia is kicking in.

Then he remembered the terrifying car ride back to base and got an idea. Will pitched his voice low and made it as calm as possible, trying to keep from wavering as his insides continued to burn. "Louis, do you have a good grip on that virus?"

"Y-yeah."

"Good, brace yourself." He lifted his torso off the bed and twisted, slamming his left side down onto the bed, the metal joints creaking. With a yelp over the SkySprecht, Louis dislodged from the intestinal sphincter and hit the other side of Will's stomach. The sickening burn inside regressed to a persistent ache.

Will curled into a ball, pressing his right side with his hands. He could feel Louis inside him more minutely than before, and in a less painful, proper place.

Well, as proper as someone's stomach can be for a person to be in.

"I'm out," said Louis weakly. "With the virus."

"Good," sighed Will. Suddenly, the BT-10 went silent and the blue scanning lights faded off. "The hell?"

"What?"

"The BT just turned off."

"That's a good thing, Fanboy."

"I don't think so."

***

"Grant!" snapped Rachel over the intercom to the main Tech room. The only thing still running in the BT-10 control room was the lighting. She didn't know if the recording had been saved or not. "Did you just cut our power?"

"I had to," replied Grant in a secretive hiss. The background noise of the Tech room was nearly non-existent. Something was wrong. "Cetz, were we expecting a surprise inspection from Headquarters?"

"Later this week," said Cetz. "Why?"

"Martin Zachs, Head of Watch Security, is here now with two of his assistants. He was the one who asked to have all unnecessary power cut off because he wants us on full lockdown in fifteen minutes."

Cetz grimaced like a slug died in his mouth. "I understand, keep him there and keep me posted." He shut off the intercom and lowered his head to rest on the table with a thud. "Shit."

"We seem to be saying that a lot lately," said Rachel.

"Probably because it's all hitting the damn fan. I better call Massaru and warn him to get back in bed. You go ahead and get Will."

***

"Will, c'mon out," said Rachel over the com. "You're done for now and we've got some explaining to do."

"How about you come in," muttered Will as he tried to sit up on the bed. It was too hot, his sweat making his clothes stick to him. And Louis was quiet.

"Louis?"

"I'm fine, just a little shaken, not stirred."

"I thought I was the Bond fan."

"Right now, I don't give a damn."

Will succeeded in pressing the button to elevate the top of the bed when Rachel opened the chamber and came in. She pressed her hand to his forehead, a frown on her face.

"You don't look so good."

"I don't feel so good. That hurt like nothing else."

"What about Louis? We've taken the SkySprechts off broadcast frequency, so you're the only one that can hear him now."

"He said he was fine."

Rachel pressed her had to his torso, right under his ribs. "How's that feel?"

"A little sore," said Will.

"And a little cramped. You mind backing off," snapped Louis.

Rachel moved her hand to his left. "How about here?"

"Fine."

"Still cramped."

Then she moved to his right. "And he—"

Will hissed, curling his legs up as if to protect his middle. The burning had come back in nearly full force; not enough to make his scream like before, but bad enough.

Louis seemed distressed as well. "Whoa, giant spike in heart rate here!"

"Okay," said Rachel gently as she took her hand away from Will and tried to soothe him. "No more of that. I'm guessing Louis caused some sort of intestinal tear or bruising to the pyloric sphincter. I wish we got a better look on the BT before it was shut off."

"The shutdown wasn't intentional?" asked Will as he tried to breathe the pain away.

"No, Cetz will explain everything in full when he gets back, but the short of it is we're going to be under lockdown soon." Rachel helped him to his feet, putting his left arm over her shoulders while he kept the other pressed to his side. "Meanwhile, you need bed rest for the next day, no liquids, no food. I'll get an assistant to give you a shot of painkiller, and then we'll all have a talk with Cetz."

Will nodded numbly let himself be led to Med Tech and left with an assistant nurse that helped him into a gown and onto a bed. Through a burning haze he could feel the gentle pressure of Louis stroking his insides. The blonde was unusually quiet. There was no mention of Louis getting out anytime soon, and at the moment Louis wasn't complaining.

The nurse placed a heated pad over his side. With the stroking inside and the pain being warmed away, Will managed to doze off before the needle went into his arm.