User blog:Carol of the bells/Days of Ruin --- Zen's exile, part 15

Days of Ruin --- Zen's exile, part 16
"Ah...hah...hah..." Zen huffed along, trying to keep up with her hyper-active unit as the jogged along the forest path.

"Come on, Zen!" Zeln cheered her on, running backwards so he could face her. "I know you've got more in ya! Where's your spirit, girl!?"

"Z-Zeln...." She gasped, "We've been...ah....running for...hah...three hours...hah..."

"Exactly!" Zeln declared, "And we agreed that we would not stop until we got out of the forest!"

"But..."

"No 'buts'!" The unit cut her off. "We must continue until we are finished!"

A pan suddenly swund from out of no where, knocking him square on the temple. "Ach!" He shrieked and fell over.

"Geez," Lancia grumbled, propping that pan on her shoulder. "Are you trying to kill Zen before she gets stronger, you idiot?!"

Zen took the opportunity to stop, hand on her knees, trying to catch her breath.

"Lan..." Zeln whined out his nickname for the fire-unit, "What did you do that for?"

"I thought I'd knock some sense into you, knuckle head..."

The young man feigned tears. "Ach, so mean. Zen!" He hurried to Zen, capturing her in a sweaty hug, "Protect me from my bullies!"

"...."

When the summoner didn't reply or protest, Zeln looked down at her in concern. "...hey, Zen...?"

Zen's eyes were closed, her cheeks flushed, and her breathing unsteady.

"H-hey, Lancia, something's wrong with Zen!"

Lancia hurried over, pressing her hand to Zen's forehead. "Oh, no... has a fever."

Zeln blinked. "Well...that's no problem, right? Just heal her, and--"

"Idiot!" Lancia fumed, hands on her hips, "I heal wounds, not fevers! This is because you overworked Zen!"

He sushed her quickly. "Not so loud! If Sergio finds out I did this...I'm so, so dead...."

"If I find out about what?" Sergio asks from behind them.

Zeln jumps, squeaking in surprise and almost dropping Zen. "Ah! N-nothing...."

He leaned over to see 'what' Zeln was hiding, only to see it was a 'who'. "What happened to Zen?" He gruned.

"W-well..."

"Zeln over-worked her, now she has a fever," Lancia explained.

"Gah! Lancia, don't---Ah, Sergio! No, no, no! Keep the Ice blade away from meee!" He hoisted Zen up as a shield.

Sergio scowled at him, lowering his ice sword. "You can't treat this, Lancia?"

"I can," She replied, "But we should set up camp. I have to go get some supplies for the medicine.

The water unit nodded. "Alright, then. Zeln, find us a clearing to set up camp in."

"Eh? Why me?"

"Because," Sergio growled, "You're the fastest. And besides, you brought this upon Zen."

"Alright, alright," Zeln held his hands up in surrender, accidently dropping Zen. "....oops..."



Zeln went ahead--after Sergio took custody of Zen--and found a clearing just an hour north, outside of the forest. There, Sergio and Mifune set up camp while Lancia went to the nearest village to gather medical supplies.

Mifune looked down at Zen, who was laying on a sleeping mat under a makeshift tent. "....Fool."

"What?" Sergio looked up at the man, eyes narrowed. "What did you say?"

The dark unit scoffed slightly. "I said that Zen is a fool."

"You never stop, do you?" Sergio scorned, "Even when she is sick, you continue to ridicule our summoner."

"I wish you would stop acting like you know me..." Mifune said lowly.

The water unit glared. "I know enough to know that you don't care about Zen!"

Outraged, Mifune jerked his katana from his blade, sending a wave of dark energy in Sergio's direction. The water unit ducked just in time. As he was about to counterattack, a pan suddenly colided with his head, sending him sprawling to the ground. Mifune recieved the same treatment, doubling over.

Lancis stood over them, scowl on her face. "Cut it out, both of you! Good grief, I leave for a few hours, and everything falls apart. Don't you know we're in the middle of monster territory?!"

Sergio grunted, standing up. "What about it?"

The young cook sighs in frustration. "'What about it', he says. Idiot. We're the only ones Zen summoned before she got sick. If you lot start taking each other out, who's gonna be around to protect an unconcious Zen?"

Silence fell between the two before Mifune turned and left, disappearing into the forest.

Lancia sighed once more before turning her attention to Zen, kneeling down by her sleeping form. "Now, let's see..." She dug through her stchel for various medicinal herbs and healing potions she had bought from town. She began to crush a few herbs in  a bowl, mixing in several unidentifiable liquids. "You know," She adressed Sergio while she worked, "Would it kill you not to pick a fight with tall, dark, and brooding?"

Sergio let out a huff, looking away. "I can't help it...he keeps insulting Zen...I don't understand. He's been Zen's unit far longer than I have....so why does he hold her in such low regard?"

Lancia shrugged. "Beats me. When I first met him, I thought he didn't care about Zen either, but..."

"But...?" Sergio urged her to continue.

She sighed. "It's hard to explain...it's like he cares for her in his own way, but at the same time, it's not exactly 'caring'...."

"....you make no sense at all."

"Hey, I tried."



Ach, Zen is sick! And Zeln, Mifune, Sergio, and Lancia are the only ones who can help her. Yeah. That's pretty much the situation right now, so...I guess I'll see you guys later.

Thanks for reading!