Chapter 29: "I need to go down."

Lemmy helped as best he could to guide the others to a spare chair in the office of his garage. It wasn't much of an office, just a partitioned off area less cluttered with parts and more so with papers. He didn't normally have visitors, save for Ashas assistant Cerise when she brought him fresh clothes. He picked up the numerous folders filled with his new designs that were sitting on a rolling metal stool and put them on his desk.

He'd been struck with a bit of genius lately, or at least a bit more than normal. While he was sure he had made a breakthrough, he hadn't tested it yet. He hadn't had time, what with all of Ashas assignments. He hadn't had the space because he'd probably need to be at least five square miles from the closest living thing. For now it would have to wait until he'd gotten all of this straightened out.

"The fuck did you do this time?! You had better not have hurt her kid or that orange shit won't be able to save you from me!" Aldon bellowed, letting Parker slide off of his shoulder before immediately turning on Harvel. He grabbed him by the collar, bringing them nearly eye to eye.

"Aldon. Aldon! Calm down. I think she's going to be fine. She's just dazed." Yiddek explained, putting a finger over the old man's shoulder. Harvel held his breath. Aldons face was only an inch or so from his own. At this distance he'd probably be able to taste the inside of the pilot's lungs.

"She'd fuckin better be! I'll cut him into pieces 'n toss 'em into space if she's not. That's my little girl you sewer rat." Aldon growled, struggling against Yiddeks iron-like grasp.

"Aldon, you don't need to do that. I'm alright, I think." Parker said, rubbing her temples. Her head ached as if it had been beaten in with a hammer. She had a slightly distant look in her eyes as she looked past her uncle at Harvel.

"You sure? I like him, but I'll gut him if you say the word." Aldon stated, not bothering to turn around. He hadn't broken eye contact with Harvel for the last minute and a half. Harvel felt as if the air itself was getting heavy.

"I don't need you to gut him. I need you to stop shouting so my head will stop pounding." Parker answered, pulling herself up into a sitting position against Lemmys desk. Harvel hadn't hurt her, or hadn't tried to at least. Part of what she'd seen was the last hour of Harvels life from his eyes. They hadn't been very enjoyable, or intentional for that matter.

Harvel tried not to take Aldons threats too personally. He'd known him for a little longer than five hours. He'd also called Parker his little girl. That was something his dad would have said about Dibbuk. Something any real father would have.

"I'm sorry, Aldon. I didn't mean to hurt her. I-I didn't mean for any of this to happen." Harvel said, a wave of guilt washing over him. He felt his chest tighten. Aldons expression softened a bit as he let Harvel go.

"Look, kid." He said, reaching up to put a hand on the side of Harvels head. He pulled his hand away and held up the oozing green substance in front of Harvels face. A strip of skin hung limply off of Aldons pinky.

"This. Whatever the fuck this is, is not normal. I don't know if it's killing you, and no offense, but I don't care either way. I've seen a lot of people die of infections. I don't want my niece to be one of 'em." He finished, letting the weight of his hand rest on Harvels chest.

There was a moment of somber silence as Harvel nodded in understanding. Yiddek let go of Aldons shoulder and turned to tend to Parker. She was past him before he had even noticed she wasn't sitting down.

"How are you still conscious? Are you starting to get used to it? All of the information, I mean.I felt it for a bit. Felt like a thousand years all wrapped up in a single moment." Parker asked, grabbing Harvels head and turning it from side to side. Harvel kept his eyes lined up with hers.

"I don't know, but I wouldn't touch my face if I were-" He started to say just as Parker pulled her hand away, trailing a few strands of his flesh. Harvel clicked his teeth a few times, listening to the much louder sound they now made. Parker smiled guiltily.

"Well, we kind of match now at least. I'll warn you, you'll have to tilt your head when you eat soup from now on. I had to before your brother patched me up. You've been taking good care of your molars." Parker said, with a rather detached tone of voice. She was gingerly inspecting the side of his face.

"I think some of me may have rubbed off on you. Try to think human thoughts." Harvel commented, pulling his face away from her curious hands. He tried to do it when none of her fingers were hooked around the new hole in his cheek.

"I think you may be right. I can feel so much more of the air around me. Can you taste your shoes?" She asked, swishing her fingers around in the space between them. Harvel focused on what was happening in front of him instead of the near infinite number of things that weren't.

"Yes, if I want to, but I don't and believe me you don't either. Hopefully this wears off. Try to breathe." Harvel said, gently placing his hands around her palms and leading her back over to the stool. Parker chuckled.

"Heh, you taste like iron." Parker commented as she flopped down onto the seat.

"Yeah, well, you taste like lilacs... and rust." Harvel said back, embarrassment causing a bit of green ooze to flow from the hole in his cheek. He couldn't tell if it was the smell of her, or the various oils and solvents in the shop, but he was starting to feel a bit light headed. And short of breath.

"You two bonding over being gross is nice and all, but we're cutting off the contract here. Plus, someone owes us a bit of money for a burned out AV." Aldon commented, looking both annoyed and impatient. He gave Lemmy a bit of side eye as he opened his phone and began putting together different sums.

"I'm sorry to hear that. I hope the original amount will be enough." Yiddek said, a tinge of hopeful optimism in his voice. The old pilot sucked on his teeth as he chewed on the thought.

"Well... Maybe an extra few creds for cab fare wouldn't be-" He started, before a swift kick from Parker cut him off. After he'd taken a moment to gingerly grasp the side of his leg he straightened back up and continued.

"I think we'll be fine now that I think about it. Cabs are cheap this time of night." He finished, hiding a guilty smile from his niece. Parker relaxed a bit before preparing to say what she was about to.

"They are, and it'll be cheaper alone. Now that the contract is closed I have the rest of the night off, right?" She asked, pulling out her phone and checking the time.

"Uh, yeah I guess. What are you getting at?" Aldon asked, seeming both tired and confused. He shook his head and went back to calculating. Parker looked at Harvel.

"We need to go down, right? To get to your sister." She asked him, knowing the answer already. Harvels face lit up. He'd almost resigned himself to doing it alone if he had to. He wheezed a bit from the excitement.

"Parker, she's supposed to be down there. It's their job." Yiddek explained, pinching the bridge of his snout in frustration.

"Doctor Valez, I know you think he's losing brain function, and I think you might be right." She tried to avoid Harvels look of incredulity. "But, just listen for a moment. I've seen what he means, in his thoughts, or memories. She's in danger. Not just work. Whatever this thing is that is infecting him is trying to get to her as well." She pleaded, trying to sound as sincere as she could about the circumstances.

"You sure? You saw this, all of it? When you two touched?" Yiddek asked, grave understanding beginning to take hold. Parker nodded slowly. Yiddek sat cross legged on the concrete, leaving him only a few feet taller than the rest of the group.

"Dicky. We need to go down. I need to go down. Something is calling me there. Maybe Bukky is just bait. Maybe this thing just wants me to get to it so it can turn on me, but it doesn't matter. It's willing to kill her to make it happen. We gotta go and we gotta get down there fast." Harvel said, sitting down back to back with his brother. His vision was beginning to get blurry, all 360 degrees of it.