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Audrey Hall did not consider herself easily frightened. As a young noblewoman and a person on the Spectator pathway, she could easily separate herself from the truly horrific parts of life and rise above the dirt and the blood.
That doesn't mean she wanted to live untouched and unstained by the world. Rather, it meant that she was confident that she could throw herself full-force into the muck of Backlund and return relatively unscathed.
She was wrong.
The temporary hospital was digusting. The ceiling was low, as it was situated in a basement to be safe from the bombs, and the tile floor was uneven and cracked in parts. Rats scurried around her feet, occasionally running over her 'practical' shoes. A large spider nest hung in one corner.
The people, however, were in far worse condition. On one side, women and girls. On the other, men and the elderly. And, in the very middle, stood Emlyn White.
Audrey had never seen Mr Moon so beat down before. His shoulders were hunched in tense focus, his hands were twitching with anxiety as he measured out doses on the fly and his gaze was flicking back and forth between the dirty beds and the distressed patients. He was clearly overwhelmed.
Breathe in… maintain Psychological Invisibility, stepping in here won’t help… breathe out.
Audrey released her focus on just Emlyn and let the chaos flood into her ears.
A man with a broken leg was yelling. "We wouldn't be in this fucking war if weren't for outsiders like you! I won't be sent to die in god-knows-where because you-"
A woman with heavy earrings and broad shoulders across the room yelled back. "Maybe, if a few more ‘big, strong men’ like you went out, we wouldn't all be stuck in a basement bleeding to death!"
An elderly man, with a Sivellaus accent, kicked his bed frame and bellowed out, "ENOUGH! Young man, you've been drinking enough sedative for 5 people! Young lady, the pharmacist asked you multiple times to dramatizing everyone's injuries! We are lucky. We are lucky, so rest."
Audrey took the chance to cast a Placate on the entire basement. Then, keeping herself unnoticeable, she subtly cued Mr Moon to walk into the stairwell.
I'm sorry for doing that, Mr Moon… it looked like you were about to snap and say something sarcastic like 'Thank you for your invaluable contribution to the conversation. We couldn't have done it without you,' and that would have sent everybody into a fury.
Audrey stepped into the stairwell and closed the door behind her, letting her Psychological Invisibility drop.
Her voice was calmer than she felt. "Mr Moon? Are you alright?"
Emlyn looked up from where he sat heavily on the stair. His voice was drained. "…How?"
Audrey didn't need to use any Mind Reading to understand the double meaning.
How am I here? That's easy. You're terrible at hiding your tracks, Mr Moon. How much longer will this go on? That's much harder. Until Mr Fool can reason with the other gods.
But she didn't say any of that. Instead, she sat next to him. "Because it was the just thing to do."
Emlyn's eyes shone with recognition, but he was too exhausted to be surprised. "Miss Ju- Miss Hall. We need more medicine. Even a S- someone like me can only make so much. I've asked for more help. My parents are sending supplies, but my fellow so-called nobles refuse to assist."
…He's even dropping the noble Sanguine phrase. His mental state is awful. Oh, Mr Moon...
Audrey put her hand on his shoulder. "I'll figure out the supply problem. Go help your patients."
…I have no idea how I'll solve the supply problem. But I must. If I don't, Mr Moon will break instead of healing stronger.
Emlyn stood, looking and sounding more like his dramatic self. "You truly live up to the symbolism of Justice. I, too, will live up to the symbolism of The Moon."
With that, they walked away from each other, back into the slaughterhouse city and the temporary ward.