Chapter 11

Taylor turned away from John and Riley training and walked into Malcolm's lab. It had been almost a month since the first try at a cure knocked her out. Malcom looked up from his microscope. "How May I help you Taylor? Shouldn't you be out with everyone else watching Riley?" He asked slightly confused, pushing his glasses up.

Taylor handed him a piece of paper. "Riley's last physical check. I did it this morning and the past two weeks has me concerned."

Malcolm raised a dirty blonde eyebrow. "I haven't seen anything particularly alarming in her vital statistics. It all seems to be right where it should." He shrugged.

"Have you noticed her weight? The past two weeks it's in a nose dive and I'm concerned for her welfare. She's losing ten to twelve pounds per week. If this trend continues, she could be facing the signs of malnutrition in the coming weeks. Her bones are already becoming very well defined and I believe her metabolism is still spiking." Taylor remarked. "She weighed 186 before the cure, 175 when she came out of it. She was at 164 before your first attempt of a cure and now she's just 139 which is honestly alarming. I will give to the fact teenagers weight does shift but twenty-five pounds in a month? That's not healthy. We need to fix this before she suffers much more. She's already complaining of fatigue and her legacies are screaming in protest. Please tell me you have adjusted your hypothesis." She pressed, blue eyes full of concern for the girl down in the gym. She understood what it was like to feel helpless, she felt that way when she was with the Foundation and still feels about EG honestly.

Malcolm ran a hand through his hair and sighed. "I am scared too for the girl. I'm scared for Nine as well and what this is doing to him. I've seen the change too. But I don't know how to fix it." He slammed his clenched fist into the table. "I am cursed to watch a girl I love like my own child waste away because nothing I do helps her. Everything I do makes it worse." He bitterly snapped, glaring up at Taylor with hard hazel eyes.

She had never seen him like this in her entire time knowing Malcolm. The spark of curiosity that was always in eyes was gone. Replaced by a harsh glint in his weary hazel eyes. He threw his scrawny arms up in the air in surrender.

"I can study all the samples and blood tests I want. I can research every anomaly there is to be found in HGs but it is getting me nowhere and she is running out of time. Think of how you feel and multiply that. That is how I feel and it comes nowhere near what Nine feels right now." He harshly spoke to her. An edge in his voice she had never heard before. "So Yes Taylor I am trying in vain. I just ignore the symptoms so I try to focus on how to fix her." He sighed, burying his worn face in his shaking hands. "Because for the first time in my twenty some years of studying legacies I got nothing. The loralite dust almost killed her and so did the ATP shot. Adding glucose might put her into diabetic coma. And I hate not being able to do anything!" He exclaimed in frustration.

Taylor stood there in shock of how defeated he was. "Malcolm-" She started softly but was cut off by Lexa rushing in.

"It's bad. Taylor they need you down there now. Riley just collapsed. John can't get any response and his healing isn't working. Nine can't find a pulse." She worriedly spoke.

Malcolm slammed his face into the table and groaned in frustration but Taylor didn't care, she was already rushing for the stairwell.

It was tense down on the gym floor. "Damnit Riley fight!" Nine demanded, frantically performing CPR on her chest.

"What on earth were you two doing?" Taylor asked worriedly, kneeling next to Riley and placing her hands on Riley's head.

"She said she was fine. She tried going nuclear and then went down like a sack of potatoes." John held up his hands. "She said she could do it." He added hastily. "Who am I to tell her not to push the limits?"

Nine glared at John. "Because she shouldn't be doing that. Her body isn't in a state to be even using energy manipulation. Too much at once." Nine demanded.

Lexa scrambled over with a black case. Taylor took it immediately and opened it, placing Riley's head on the floor. "Nine take her shirt off now." Taylor instructed, pulling out two pads hooked to the machine by wires.

"But your the healer." He argued as he ripped her shirt open. "Healing works when her heart is beating. It's dead in the water so compress when I say and get your hands out of my way when I say." She instructed sternly, attaching the pads to her bare skin. "Clear!" She shouted hitting a button and Riley's body jerked. "Compress." She commanded.

The machine spoke and Nine pulled his hands away.

"Clear!" Riley's body jerked again but the machine beeped. Taylor put her fingers on Riley's neck. "Thank the elders." She gasped, shoulders sagging. "It's faint but she's back with us." She spoke before being wrapped in a bone crushing hug. "Nine. Don't break me." She gasped but grinned like an idiot.

Lexa was leaning on Malcolm looking relieved. "She's gonna be fine?" She asked softly.

"Her heart is beating and she's breathing so I can't guarantee fine but she's alive. That's what matters." Taylor replied slowly.

Nine released her and scooped up Riley. "No more training." He ordered sharply.

John put an arm around Nine even if the man was taller and more muscular than him and they walked towards the door. Suddenly John and Nine disappeared from view.

"I'm gonna go open the door for them." Lexa quickly replied before rushing off to help the invisible men.

Malcolm sighed and looked helplessly at Taylor. "I can't live with myself if she dies from this." He admitted softly, burying his weary face in his hands.

"I won't let you. This is gonna work out. She's gonna pull through stronger than ever. Remember? Nothing knocks Riley down for long. She always gets up in the end." She reassured, putting a hand on his shoulder. "Now come on I need your help to get some things for Riley out of the infirmary." She suggested, heading for the door.

For the first time in the past month Kat and Issy were both equal in something. Both being absolutely baffled by the fact that Lexa opened the door and walked in and then John and Nine came out of nowhere. But what concerned Kat the most was the fact that Riley was completely limp in Nines arms. She went to open her mouth but Lexa shook her head and helped Nine down the hall into Riley's bedroom.

John collapsed onto a stool and buried his head in hands. Looking so defeated for the supposed hero of the world. He was John Smith. He defeated Setrakus Ra and ended the Mogadorian war. Everyone knew who he was and he was this great and powerful dude. But right now he looked like he was collapsing beneath the weight of the world. As if the Mogs had conquered earth or something. But neither female spoke but just stood there in confused silence at the scene.

Malcolm and Taylor came eventually and carried equipment to Riley's room without a word. Debra had come out of the bathroom and watched in horror before joining the girls in the kitchen.

"What happened?" She slowly spoke.

"Riley is dying. Her heart stopped in the gym." John slowly answered, not looking up from his hands that were shaking. "Loric elders is she gonna live?" Kat demanded, hands on the island.

"What she said. I thought Malcolm had this under control." John sighed and his shoulders slouched. "Malcolm can't control everything and is trying hard to fix it but Riley can't take many more failed attempts. Her body isn't strong enough. She's losing strength everyday now." He spoke quietly. As if his voice would break into a thousand pieces if he spoke louder.

Malcolm and Taylor came back and sat down around the island followed by Lexa. "We need to talk but he won't leave Riley." She sighed.

John got up and cracked his knuckles before sighing. "I got Stanley." He replied, walking down the hall.

Kat knew she should be amused by the fact that John kept nudging a piece of buttered toast across the island to Nine but the seriousness of the whole night drained the humor from such a moment.

Malcolm sighed as he looked at the vitals report Taylor gave him. "Regardless of right or wrong I have one more shot at her. But I can't be certain my next attempt will work or make this even worse. She can't take much more. Her body is already so fragile." He argued with Taylor.

"So your just gonna give up and watch her die slowly?" The blonde snapped at him.

"I'm not saying that." Malcolm demanded.

Kat massaged her temples. They'd been bickering for the better part of an hour now with no signs of stopping. Debra kept organizing her already organized colored pencils and John was trying to feed Nine who wasn't having it. Issy was busy flipping through a magazine and Lexa was muttering away to her laptop in some foreign language. If she had to wager a bet, Lexa was muttering Loric probably.

"Alright! By Lorien you argue more than Casey and Ceci!" She snapped impatiently. "Shall I propose a solution before you all make my head explode?" She asked impatiently.

Malcolm looked intrigued and turned to face her. "What?" He asked curiously.

"Oh yes, let's listen to miss can't hold a legacy for five hours." Issy drawled, completely uninterested. Nine glared at Issy before looking at Kat.

"You don't have the formula worked out but Riley can't play guinea pig much longer because her body can't take much more. I understand this right?" She asked sternly.

Taylor and Malcolm nodded at the conclusion. Nine looked intrigued now at Kat. His blue eyes sparkling with a newfound curiosity.

She smiled and sat up a little taller. "What if you had a healthy candidate? That you could test all your formulas on until you get it right and then you can give her the correct formula? You can then focus on keeping her alive until you find the cure." She explained and then looked at all of them.

"But we don't have another test subject. She's the only one." Malcolm argues, furrowing his dirty blonde eyebrows. Reminded her so much of her father's face when he was baffled.

She took a deep breath to steady herself for the next part. "I don't mean to sound callous by any means but Riley is not so special. She's half Loric with a human parent. There are others with one Loric parent and a human parent out there." She suggested to them.

Nine seemed to smirk slightly as if understanding her as did Lexa. Taylor looked horrified but Malcolm scowled.

"No. No way. Not happening. Your mother would kill me." He quickly argued.

"I'm sorry grandfather but you don't have many options left. Issy can take Riley's life full time and take me as your test subject." She pressed. "That way Riley and all of you have to focus on is keeping her alive." Kat argued.

"But you'd lose your legacies." Malcolm pointed out. "That's not happening. You might never get them back."

Kat glared at her grandfather. "My parents have both lost their legacies to some cure wannabe when they were young adults and you said they'd never get their legacies back. They did and are still kicking butt to this day. I believe that you will fix this. I've learned several things while with the resistance. Sometimes you have to put yourself on the line to protect the masses. If I sacrifice myself and you find this cure amazing. But I can't selfishly hold onto my own legacies while watching Riley die because of hers." She demanded, slamming her hands into the counter. "You will give me the cure and then use me as your guinea pig after it takes effect and you will find the cure. We're Goodes. We don't surrender. Am I clear?" She barked at him.

Malcolm looked like she'd punched him in the gut. Taylor put a hand on Malcolm's shoulder. "Malcolm, I know it is an awful idea but can I go hug your amazingly brave granddaughter?" She asked softly.

"We never tell Six about this least we die." Nine bluntly commented.

His voice was like a hammer to the tension and suddenly Kat found laughter bubbling out of her mouth. Issy was laughing right alongside her and pretty soon Lexa, John, and Taylor were joining in on the laughter. Malcolm looked appalled at all of them as they all laughed before managing a small smile after a nudge from Taylor.

Katarina twiddled her thumbs nervously in her seat. Her heart was desperately trying to explode out of her chest. Her grandfather listing off the symptoms of the cure was not helping by any means. And the scrambler Nine was messing with was beeping obnoxiously loud as he pushed the buttons on it. Was she the only one who thought it was beeping loud? Or that the keys on Lexas laptop were clicking loudly? She gripped the armrests tightly, muscles pulled taunt. You choose this. But why does it scare me so much? She thought to herself.

Taylor sighed and knelt in front of Kat. "Your gonna make it. This is an incredibly brave thing your doing. Just breathe. It's just a regular vaccination. Think about that or something happy. What makes you happy?" Taylor softly asked.

"Beating up EG." Kat spoke barely above a whisper, pale face looking down in her lap.

"Just breathe. If your tense this might hurt a little." Taylor advised getting up and walking to the side of Kat's chair. Small soft hands brushed the dirty blonde waves away from Katarinas neck. It felt so revealing to Kat for some reason. Like she was suddenly naked and exposed.

Taylor placed a gentle hand on Kat's neck and she felt the prick of a needle enter her neck. "Just breathe." She advised again as she pushed the plunger.

Kat didn't know if Taylor was saying it to reassure her or saying it for her own benefit. Maybe they were both nervous. Taylor pulled the injector out and tapped a piece of cotton over the injection site. "Alright it's in. Lexa do you have my sensors?" She asked curiously.

Nine was suddenly at Kat's side attaching a scrambler to her wrist.

"Why?" Kat asked looking up at him.

"Because I don't want to know your stage two. I barely wanted to know Riley's." Nine bluntly remarked.

Lexa silently handed a box to Taylor. "And because of Riley we know how to minimize the suffering so think of it that way. You'll save Riley suffering by taking the place of guinea pig. Riley showed us how the cure attacks and how we can make this as comfortable as a transition as possible." Taylor suggested, opening the box.

"Atleast Kat isn't telepathic." Malcolm remarked dryly.

Lexa shuddered. "If Lorien could scream in pain." She muttered.

Taylor sighed. "That won't happen this time." She silently placed the sensors on Kat.

"I don't recommend any strenuous activity because in a few hours the toilet is about to become your best friend." Taylor replied casually. "The one thing I can't give you is drugs for that as Malcolm thinks that would screw with it. Because Riley didn't get any drugs. And I can't give you steroids as steroids suppress the immune system and we don't want that." Taylor explained. "I will do my best to check in on your as much as possible. If you need it I can put an iv in later for fluids and Tylenol for the fever." She suggested gently. "We'll see how hard this hits."

Kat shrugged stretching. "So when can I get the scrambler off? And when is Riley gonna join the land of the living again?" She asked curiously, already playing with the scrambler on her wrist.

"When the cure has run its course. So approximately a week. And we don't know. When her body gets there." Malcolm remarked.

"Fantastic. Enjoy having two invalids again." Kat smirked at Taylor.

Taylor laughed. "Watch it Goode. You won't have the strength to fight me. I could do all sorts of things to you." She teased.

"Bring it Cook. I ain't afraid." Kat remarked before she felt a prick in the side of her neck as Lexa placed a sensor.

"And now we wait." Taylor sighed. "For the storm."

Riley groaned as she opened her eyes. Her body felt like lead and wasn't listening to her commands to move. So she was basically stuck staring at the peeling ceiling. A small chuckle came from the floor as the air mattress let out a groan. Kat's face came into view.

"Good afternoon invalid. Can you move?" She asked.

Riley shook her head. Well at least those muscles worked.

"That's expected apparently. You've been out cold for thirty days. Taylor says you slipped into a coma. You've been immobile for so long your muscles have atrophied due to the speedy metabolism which has at least plateaued." Kat explained. "Please say something back now." She remarked.

Riley wheezed a laugh. Kat helped her take a drink of water

"I have never." Riley rasped. "Seen you so worried." She finished before coughing.

Kat chuckled as she helped her sit up. "Oh really? Is that the thanks I get for helping save your bacon?" She teased. "Why maybe I'll just keep it to myself then." She pretended to be offended.

Riley wheezed a laugh. "What?" She asked, blue eyes lit up with mirth.

Kat smirked but the door opened before she could speak. Lexa opened the door.

"I hear voices." She hopefully spoke and pulled Riley into a giant hug. "You are never allowed to scare us like that ever again. Do you hear me?" She spoke sharply. "Malcolm has been beside himself thinking he's killed you." She replied quickly.

Riley weakly spoke. "Oxygen. Lexa." She gasped.

Lexa immediately released her and Riley flopped back onto the mattress. "Also not in full control." She weakly frowned, struggling to right herself. That's when she noticed the equipment. "What is all this?" Riley looked baffled. Although she recognized the heart monitor and iv but the rest was foreign.

"Well you were on oxygen until this morning when Taylor wanted to test taking you off of it." Lexa shrugged. "You should recognize the heart monitor and such."

Riley yawned. "Alright now what's this about saving my life Kat?" She asked sleepily.

Kat chuckled. "Go back to sleep Ri, we can talk about it later."

Lexa smiled. "I'll come wake you for dinner." She suggested.

Riley tried to fight it but she dozed back off.

Kat toyed with a strand of her hair as she waited, leg bouncing anxiously.

Lexa chuckled as she was typing away on her laptop. "EG has grown content with their cure protocol. They aren't as aggressive with finding the resistance as activity has died down. Incase you were wondering." She told Kat casually.

"Good. All the more fun to knock them flat on their arses when we come back with a vengeance." Kat smirked, looking up from toying with her hair. "Because when we get through this we are gonna raid the academy and are not taking no for an answer. I seriously can't wait. That'll show them." Kat proudly spoke.

Malcolm came in carrying the satchel that contained his cure project. "Let's work on restoring legacies first. Then we can go back to giving EG hell. Sound good?" He remarked, delicately placing it on the island and flopping it open.

"So what's the side effects with this one? Seizures? Stroke? Coma?" Kat asked, peeking at the contents curiously.

Malcolm's weary hazel eyes met her inquisitive hazel eyes with a glare. "Must you constantly be so casual about this? This is serious."

Kat feigned offense at her grandfather's irritation. "I'm trying to make light of the situation. Forgive me."

Malcolm pulled out another vial of loralite dust.

Taylor rushed in with Nine. "Sorry Dr Linda was in the infirmary and well this would've been hard to explain." She replied, handing him the tube of clear liquid.

Kat raised an eyebrow. "What's the theory this time? That some kind of drug?" She asked curiously.

Malcolm took it and the loralite dust and mixed them together in a third vial. "On the contrary it is not a drug. It's simply saline. We are gonna see if the answer has been so simple it was overlooked." He explained, loading a syringe with his latest cocktail.

Lexa chuckled. "What's next? Pure Loralite?" She teased.

Malcolm gave her an annoyed look. "You can't just inject dust to the human body and I don't know the melting point of loralite. Also that might be too much of a shock." He argued, finishing up. "Kat?" He asked looking at her.

She brushed her hair aside and revealed the side of her neck to her grandfather. "Fifth is the lucky one right?" She asked before feeling the prick.

"Here's hoping. Maybe Lorien just wants to fix it on its own." Malcolm shrugged. "Honestly it's a shot in the dark but it's all we have right now." He sighed as he pulled it out.

Taylor delicately touched the tiny hole and healed it up.

Kat suddenly hissed and doubled over. A sharp stabbing pain was attacking her skull. The searing pain made her tumble off the stool as she hit the linoleum hard. Curling up in response to the crippling pain.

Taylor had dropped to her knees besides Kat trying to help her. But all she could focus on was the searing pain, as if her brain was gonna explode straight off her shoulders.

It stopped as suddenly as it came and oxygen entered her lungs as if for the first time ever. A warm fuzzy feeling loosened all her muscles as it slowly spread down to her toes. A cool tingling feeling took place in her skull and suddenly she saw Taylor gasp and back away. Slowly Kat righted herself and looked at Taylor. "What?"

Taylor just stared in disbelief. "Holy crap. Malcolm what did you do?" She asked cautiously.

Kat looked at her baffled as she leaned against the cupboards. "What is there something in my teeth? Is my nose bleeding? I give myself a goose egg from the fall?" She asked not liking the look on Taylor's face.

Nine looked over the counter at them and grinned. "Lorien apparently is taking this personally. I've never seen that before." He chuckled.

Kat got to her feet and turned to look at all of them. "Remember me? Can someone tell me what your all staring at?" She huffed, turning in a full circle to look at all of them. Only when her hair fell in her view did she noticed and she did something very unlike herself. She screamed and banged her lower back against the edge of the counter in her jump. "What in the name of Lorien?" She demanded, grasping wildly at her hair. Her once dirty blonde waves had been replaced with cobalt blue waves.

"It's not your whole head at least." Taylor meekly suggested.

"Just the underside." Nine chuckled. "I think it looks good. Definitely a statement." He remarked, leaning against the counter.

Kat walked to the bathroom as calmly as possible and just stared at her reflection. Taylor was right. Then underside of her hair was a shimmering cobalt blue all around the back of her head to her ears. "Malcolm Samson Goode! What in the name of legacies is this!" She demanded, marching back out.

He was searching his notes madly but looked up at her with a sheepish look. "I don't know. Lorien tends to have a mind of its own." He replied meekly. "But you still look beautiful." He added, pushing his glasses up.

"Okay before you murder Bill Nye for looking like a meth head try a legacy." Taylor suggested.

"Thanks Cook." Malcolm winced.

"How about badass?" Nine suggested with a smirk.

Kat rolled her eyes and closed her eyes. Reaching out for her favorite toy to hide the blue. It took a minute but then she felt it. The itchy prickling feeling and she opened her eyes. "Did it work?" She asked curiously.

A cry in delight went up and she smirked at her grandfather who had made such a weird but delighted noise.

"I told you that you'd do it." She remarked before cringing and releasing. "Just gotta shake the rust off." She reassured.

"Well yeah. That was a big legacy for a trial run. Your body has to relearn how to handle legacies." Malcolm explained. "Think of it as going through development again."

Kat chuckled. "Alright legacies and blue hair. Why do I feel like Riley and the resistance are both gonna be cracking up at this?" She smirked.

"Just think. It can be the new symbol of the rebellion. Proof you can't be silenced." Lexa suggested with a grin.

"And there is always bleach." Issy commented from the couch where she'd been reaching another gossip magazine.

Kat snorted. "Oh heck I'll wear this like a badge of courage. I ain't bleaching it." She replied proudly.

Malcolm snorted. "Now that is concerning. Kat not wanting to dye her hair."

Kat smirked before sneezing and then sneezing again immediately after. Descending into a fit of sneezes.

Taylor scrambled for her tablet that was setting off an alarm. "Her body temperature just spiked, 100 degrees and climbing."

Nine put an arm around Kat as she braced herself against the counter sneezing uncontrollably.

"Oh crap." Malcolm muttered, searching through his notes. "Is she rejecting it? The body identified it as an infection maybe?" He muttered nervously.

Kat started sneezing blood before it turned to black goo running from her nose.

Nine raised an eyebrow. "I think it is but not your cure." He replied, eyeing the black ooze that hit the counter.

Kat took a deep breath and it was over. Panting hard as she braced against the counter. Staring at the mingling small puddle of blood and black ooze. "What the heck was that?" She huffed, muscles tense.

"Body temp is going back down." Taylor sighed in relief. "Her body did have an infection." She grinned.

"One I thought I'd never see again." Nine muttered, glaring at the puddle on the counter.

"I thought all that crap was destroyed?" He snapped, looking at Lexa.

"Don't give me the stink eye. Humans are gonna do what humans do." Lexa sharply spoke. "They always find a way to get what they want. They would've figured out a way to get the stuff no matter what."

Nine sighed. "Alright quit lecturing. But this raises the question of how the heck did they get it?" He pointed out.

"It's a mogadorian creation. So they must've had help." Kat looked at them. "They have a whole concentration camp full of them don't they? Who's to say they didn't use that to their advantage?" She suggested. "I'm sure they found someone in that camp that knows how it's made."

Taylor clapped her hands. "We can attack EG all we want later for injecting kids with Mogadorian ooze later. Should I go wake Riley?" She smiled. "I would say wait because she's fragile but we need to bring her body back to its senses before it passes the point of no return."

Malcolm sighed. "I want to study the effects on Kat before we give it to Riley. To make sure she can take it."

Taylor sighed and rested her head in her hands. "It didn't kill Kat. Isn't that enough?"

Malcolm looked offended. "I don't want to be responsible for killing that child. She has nine months on Kat." He sharply remarked.

"And one of these days she's gonna go into cardiac arrest and not come out of it. Or seize and that's it. Her body is done Malcolm. She's barely alive as we speak and weighs one hundred and twenty pounds. If she wakes up again how long until she's gotta be on life support? Because her body is done Malcolm. We need to take this Hail Mary before it's too late." Taylor argued back. "And we can't bring her back. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. Getting weaker everyday." She sighed, resting her elbows on the counter. "I don't know how much longer she's gonna be breathing at this rate. So what do you say Goode? I say we hope Lorien loves her and do it. Because there is only so much I can do to keep her alive at this point." She wearily looked at him before her tablets alarm went off. She grabbed it and opened it. "Crap." She muttered, dropping it on the counter. She snatched the half empty vial from Malcolm and the used syringe.

"That's not sterile!" Malcolm protested as she ran for Riley's room.

Taylor load the syringe as she telekinetically opened the door. The heart monitor in her room going berserk as her heart rate tanked. "Easy girl. Help is finally here." She reassured, tilting Riley's head gently and exposing the korated artery. Gently inserting the needle and pushing down on the plunger. "Side effects include sneezing, blue hair, and Loric scarring but I presume you'd like to live." She nervously joked as she stepped back and looked at the read out on the monitors.

The heart monitor detected nothing for a minute. "Come on Ri." Taylor frowned, getting ready to do compressions when her whole body shuddered and the heart monitor started beeping again. Rising with each beat as Riley's chest started expanding and decompressing rapidly. Her eyelids flickering rapidly. Malcolm and Nine stood in the doorway.

Malcolm holding Taylor's tablet. "She went down but she's coming back." He smiled, holding it out. "Everything is coming back." Taylor took the tablet and looked at all the levels. "Atta girl Riley. I knew you still had a little fight left."

Riley's eyes shot open as her body temperature took a dangerous spike and her torso started heaving. Nine beat them to her side and helped her get on her side. She started dry heaving but slowly black goo dribbled out of her mouth.

He rubbed her back as she heaved. "It's gonna be okay. Get it all out." He reassured. Smiling when he saw that the underside of her black mane had turned the same shimmering cobalt blue.

When she was done Malcolm came back with a wet washcloth and a glass of water. "Gave us quite the scare Ri." He smiled as Nine took the wash cloth and wiped her mouth off.

"And once your back up and running were kicking EGs ass. Mogadorian ooze is illegal and crossing major lines." Nine bitterly spoke, helping her sit up.

Taylor held the glass to her lips. "I know you want me to say the hardest part is over but you still got an uphill battle of recovery before your okay." She chuckled.

Riley managed a small chuckle as Nine wrapped her in a tight hug. "You are never allowed to scare me like that again." He scolded as he squeezed her tight.

"Dad. Ribs" she gasped from within his tight embrace.

He immediately released looking horrified. "Sorry. My bad." He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.

Kat was the next to hug her. "Next time. Don't play martyr. It was an incredibly stupidly brave move." She chuckled.

Riley weakly laughed. "Thanks Kat."

Kat smirked as she pulled away. "And we are now cure buddies." She grinned. "Matching hair and all." She teased, toying with Riley's hair.

Riley smirked. "Who's a marty now?" She softly chuckled, smirking at Kat.

"I couldn't let you have all the fun. Also you better be nice to me. I just helped save your life." She teased. "And will do your hair until you can do it if your nice to me." She poked Riley in the shoulder. "Because if not ya got lexa and she's got the sharp objects." She remarked with a smug grin.

"How do I know you won't have sharp objects?" Riley softly teased, weakly poking Kat.

"Okay let me put it this way. She's likely to chop your hair off until your better whereas I will only chop off a little if I deem it necessary." She smirked, putting an arm around Riley.

Lexa snorted. "Excuse me?" She laughed, leaning against the doorway.

"Admit it. You'd take the logical route." Kat smirked.

"Alright we can all bother Riley later. For now she needs to be examined and allowed to rest." Taylor chuckled. "So out. Y'all may come in when they call the rebels." She remarked.

"Casey is gonna freak." Riley chuckled, trying to reach for Kat's blue hair.

Kat smirked and got up. "You can play with it later. When we watch movies." She teased. She turned around in the doorway. "And of course he'll freak." She smirked. "Because we're now even more drop dead gorgeous." She remarked with a smirk before following the others down the hall.

Riley was softly chuckling as Taylor started examining her.

Riley grinned as focused on holding the crystal that seemed to pulse even brighter to her now. Or maybe that was still her high from being cured. Kat was on the bed next to her grinning madly like a kid in a candy store. Nine was leaning against the wall as Taylor perched on the desk. Lexa leaning against the desk next to her. Malcolm was leaning against the dresser watching the crystal expectantly.

"Come in rebels." She called. Worried for a minute. They always replied quickly but it'd been several minutes. "Someone answer me soon before I send Calvary." Riley pressed, trying to keep the worry out of her voice.

"This is Cêpan speaking. Who am I talking too?" A sigh of relief echoed through the room as Emma's voice came out of the crystal.

"Thank the elders. It's Nine speaking, Cêpan. What gives?" Riley asked curiously.

"Really bad time to be talking. Please tell me you bring good news of the cure or I'm gonna have to go back to helping." Emma worriedly spoke.

Nine paled. "What's happening Cêpan?" He asked.

"What isn't? Seizures, strokes, fevers, projectile vomiting, you name it was have it. All in the cured population solely." She sighed.

Malcolm looked like he was calculating in his head. "Is Pittacus with you?" He asked suddenly.

"Yeah he's with the others though." Emma remarked.

"Tell him to get me as much loralite dust as possible. We just found the cure." He quickly explained.

"Taylor and I will get all the saline and hypodermic needles and be ready to pass off." He replied before he and Taylor rushes out.

"Just focus on keeping people alive. Go get Pittacus and send him this way with loralite pronto." She replied simply.

"Good luck. Cêpan out." Emma remarked as Riley dropped the crystal.

"I woke up to the world falling apart didn't I?" She asked sarcastically.

Nine shook his head. "The world is always falling apart. But this is fixable. Don't worry. It'll all work out." He reassured, walking over to put a hand on her.

"What if people die before they get the cure?" Riley frowned.

Kat hugged Riley. "Then we fight in their name. We do not surrender and we do not give up. Because then they will have died in vain." She argued. "Which means you are gonna get back into fighting shape and we are gonna give em hell. And once we are all ready, including you, we will take this Academy from them. See how they like their home being raided." She grinned as she backed away.

"Your already plotting aren't you?" Riley smirked, leaning back against her pillows.

"Well I do have lots of time to study the Academy up close and personal." She grinned. "can't just laze around all day. Unlike others." She teased, nudging Riley.

Riley feigned offense. "Well excuse me. I've been trying to stay alive." She remarked.

"Well now you gotta get off your laurels and back to work." She smirked.

"Maybe if you behave Taylor will remove that feeding tube." She teasingly suggested. Riley looked down at the feeding tube in alarm and surprise. It was gonna be a long road to recovery wasn't it? Even by Loric standards she had a feeling. But the prize at the end was so rewarding.