Armin's eyes widened and a jolt of shock went through him at the scream. Rex had also heard it. He turned his pistol and shot Paxton from behind, hitting him in the shoulder. At the same time, Armin shifted to human form and leapt at Paxton, slashing viciously at him, a snarl of rage on his face.

A handful of guards ran over and started trying to pull Dianne out of harm's way.

{Paxton, realizing that he was outnumbered, tried to run, but the portal had just closed.}

Paxton: "Yup. Pretty sure I'm dead here...."

{Armin's slash hit it's mark, prompting him to shift into a silverback gorilla and punch Armin. Pugna then leapt in the air and landed on Paxton, crushing him under a clawed foot. Meanwhile, Dianne was bleeding profusely from under her armor, going into shock from the trauma.}

Armin fell back hard from the punch, but immediately got up. However, he didn't attack Paxton again. He turned and looked around, scanning the crowd to see where the guards had taken Dianne. His expression held intense worry and fear.

The guards carried Dianne into the back of a car with the intention of taking her straight to Pythia. They started carefully removing her armour so they could examine the wound and try to stem the blood loss. The relay member who'd been observing the battle was reporting the situation to Frederick as she circled overhead.

{Dianne's wound was very deep, and she was losing a lot of blood. The pike had gone all the way through her. After making sure Paxton was very dead. Pugna runs to the car, his metal fingertips becoming white hot.}

Pugna: "Move, meatbags! She'll bleed to death if I don't cauterize it!"
{Not waiting for the guards to move, he shoves them out of the way with his cool hand, and plunges his superheated fingers into her wound. She screams again at this, then shudders and passes out.}

Most of the guards cringed and looked away at this.

Armin, looking over at all the cars, twitched when he heard Dianne scream again. Spotting Pugna standing beside the car from which the sound had emanated, he hurried over. He peered around Pugna, he saw her unconscious and panic crossed his face. 'You dam.n well better tell me she's alive--'

Pugna: "She'll be fine, now that /I/ stopped the bleeding."

{He sneered arrogantly.}
Pugna: "Now, let's take her to the healer lady."

{The battlefield around them showed the sheer carnage Pugna was capable of. The hunters sent about a hundred and fifty people. Eighty-five of them now lay dead, and a additional twenty surrendered. They tried to drive a car through the house, but Pugna had stopped it and forcibly flipped it on its side. Pugna was covered in dents, craters, and his head ornaments were bent, but was structurally sound.}

Armin looked like he wanted to lay into Pugna about something, but decided now wasn't the moment. 'Well, what the heII am I supposed to do about Ivy and Esme? Leave them here with no-one to guard them?'

{Dianne's last remaining centaur approaches Armin. This one was mostly bone now, and looked like it was barely holding together.}

Centaur: "We need to all regroup at Frederick's place. We shoud get Esme, Rex, and Ivy, and stay there, until Pugna can repair your house."

Pugna: "My mission is to ensure the survival of Dianne. Once she can defend herself again, I will repair the damage done here."

Armin looked at the centaur for a moment, then turned away. He knew Fred's house was nowhere near big enough for everyone, but he went to the basement and got Ivy and Esme, leading them to another car. Then he and Rex climbed into the back of a third car. Once everyone was secure, all three cars began to head off towards Fred's house. As they did so, a military truck showed up with some soldiers, who began piling the dead hunters into it to take them away.

{In her car, Dianne was still unconscious, her breathing weak and shallow. Barnabas was still with Esme, carrying out the last orders he was given. Pugna followed the convoy by running, keeping up with relative ease.}

As they drove, Armin noticed a stinging pain in his shoulder. He peeled his sleeve back, finding a hole, and blood. The bullet from the pistol shot was still embedded in the wound, so it wasn't healing.

Ignoring the wound, he closed his eyes and tiredly slumped against Rex's shoulder. He said nothing throughout, which clearly worried the younger man.

Meanwhile, Fred went to get Pythia. 'Pythia. I need you on standby. The hunters attacked Armin's house and Dianne is seriously injured; they're bringing her over now.'

{Making an appalled face, Pythia drops the book she was reading and scrambles to get ready.}

Pythia: "Get a table set up, or something they can lay her on!"

{Jerry, who was sitting up on the couch, looks about at the commotion.}

Jerry: "What? What's happening?"

'I'll tell them to bring her into my room, it has plenty of space,' said Frederick. 'You'd better go in there and make sure you're ready. I've been informed that she was run through with a pike.'

Meanwhile, outside, the trio of cars pulled up. Several guards began to carry Dianne inside in accordance with Fred's instructions. Armin stumbled out of his car, going to pick up Esme and carry her in, leaving Ivy and Rex to follow him.

{Pythia was ready when they brought her in, As soon as Dianne was laid down, Pythia got to work.}

Pythia: "....She's lost a lot of blood....You may need to take her for a blood transfusion as well...."

{She starts to clean the wound and mend the flesh. Jerry is sitting in the other room, looking rather worried. Barnabas follows Armin in, saying nothing. Pugna posts up outside, leaning against the wall.}

Rex, Ivy, and Esme went into the living room, sitting around on the floor or on chairs, not saying anything. Esme, completely unaware that her mother was injured, started investigating her new surroundings. Armin went into Fred's room and silently sunk into the desk chair, looking mentally exhausted, and unsure what to do with himself.

'If you think she needs one, I'll arrange for someone to take her to the hospital after this,' said Fred.

(Armin's in the same room with Dianne, right?)

(Yeah)

{Pythia finishes up. Where there was a gaping, serious wound, it was just Dianne's stomach again, like nothing had happened at all. After this, Dianne's breathing drastically improves.}

Pythia: "Yeah, arrange a car. I'll be going with her...."

{She then turns to Armin}

Pythia: "Armin, come here, let me take a look at you. Dianne's going to be just fine, ok? She's already shoing signs of improving."

Armin lifted his gaze to Pythia and blinked, seeming to take a moment to register her words. Then, he slowly pulled himself upright and wearily walked over to her, glancing at Dianne as he went.

Fred nodded. 'I'll get a car and driver ready. Won't be ten minutes.' He then hurried off, not paying much attention to all the people in his living room.

Pythia: "...Oh, you have a bullet in your shoulder. Hold still..."

{Using a small torrent of water, she removes the bullet and starts disinfecting the wound.}

Pythia: "...Look, she's ok. The attack failed, so you can stop looking so depressed. It won't take long before she's back on her feet."

Armin hissed quietly with pain as she cleaned out the wound, but stayed still.

'...I'm just tired. I'm not depressed, it was just... a shock... I'm always afraid of losing people, even though I know she's not easy to kill.'

Pythia: "I'll say....She's survived a lot in the time we've known her."

{She then begins to heal the wound. It was gone in seconds.}

Pythia: "I know it must have been scary, but she's going to be ok. Are you coming to the hospital with us, or are you going to stay and rest?"

'I'll go. If everyone else has to stay here, they need all the space they can get.'

Just then, a dragonshifter entered the room. It was Ryder. 'The boss says we need to get Dianne to the hospital... Shall I go ahead and take her now?'

{Pythia turns to Ryder.}

Pythia: "Yes, please. We're coming along as well. Armin, let's go."

Ryder went over to Dianne and scooped her up, grunting at the unexpected weight. He carried her out to where a car was waiting, and lay her on the back seat before getting into the driver's side. Armin waited to see where Pythia was sitting before he got in himself.

{Pythia got in the back seat, next to Dianne, sitting her up and buckling her in.}

Armin clambered into the front passenger seat, and the car smoothly headed off down the road.

//Are you OK?// Rex asked him telepathically, from back at the house.

//I just need some sleep... Once I've slept and gotten to talk to her again, I'll be fine.//

(Should we skip to morning?)

(Sure, I'll start.)

-----

{The next morning, Dianne was still asleep in the hospital bed. The doctors had performed the transfusion the night before. Dianne looked exhausted as she lay there, but seemed otherwise ok. Pythia was asleep in the chair by her bed.}

Armin was in another chair, right beside the bed. He was sleeping, but only out of sheer exhaustion; he didn't look very comfortable. One of his arms was hanging over the side of the chair, with his hand resting on the edge of Dianne's bed, as if he'd unknowingly reached towards her in his sleep.

{Dianne soon after woke with a start, gasping and looking about.}

Dianne: "Huh....What?! Where am I?....Armin? Esme?! Where's Esme?!"

Armin jerked awake, squinting against the light. Realising she was awake, he spoke in a soothing tone.

'Hey, relax, it's OK. Esme is at Fred's place with everyone else. She's fine. We're in... some hospital.' He rubbed his eyes. 'You needed a blood transfusion.'

{Dianne looked at Armin, still looking distressed. Pythia awoke as well.}

Pythia: "Hey, hey, it's ok. Armin's right, just relax. Rest."

Dianne: "What....what happened to me?"

Armin rubbed his jaw, considering. 'Well, after the storeroom... collapsed, and we both fell down, Paxton appeared. I don't even know where he came from. He stabbed you with your own pike, then Pugna attacked him, and the guards took you to see Pythia. That ghost pike of yours is a liability.'

{She closes her eyes and puts her head back against the pillow.}

Dianne: '.....Right......That sucks.....But that pike is one-of-a-kind.....it's a legendary artifact.....Pugna attacked Paxton? Is he dead?"

'I honestly don't know,' said Armin. 'I sort of remember Pugna trampling him, but he is a vampire, so he might have survived... we'll have to actually ask Pugna, or someone else who was around...'

{Luckily, Pugna was sitting right outside the room.}

Pugna: "Oh yeah. He's dead all right. I cut him up like a roll of salami, after I crushed him underfoot."

{Dianne makes a relieved face at that.}

Dianne: "Oh, thank the gods....I hope that means this is over...."

Armin really wasn't sure whether he felt more relieved or disappointed by that.

'I wanted us to kill him personally... But yeah, it's probably for the best... They might actually screw off and leave us alone now...'

Pugna: "Hey, at least you got the assist."

Pythia: "So, Dianne, how are you feeling?"

Dianne: ".....Exhausted......hungry......my head hurts....dizzy...."

'Well, I hope you'll feel well enough to leave later. You probably don't want to be stuck in a hospital too long.'

Dianne: "Yeah, I want to go home....."

{She then looks down at herself.}

Dianne: "....I think I can walk, so...can we go now?"

Pythia: "The doctor needs to give you your discharge papers first."

'Yeah, we'll leave once that's done. I don't think we can actually go /home/ though,' said Armin. 'I'm still waiting on Pugna to repair my dam.n house. We're stuck at Fred's place until he does it.'

Dianne: "Wait, what.....Oh, right.....the grenades...."

{Sighing, Dianne leans back again.}

Dianne: ".....I hope Fred has a spare bed.....I think I'll need a nap when I get out of here...."

'I doubt it. Seems like there's only two rooms, his and Pythia's. We'll have to find out when we get there.' Armin leaned back in his chair, gazing aimlessly around the room. He didn't like the hospital smell.

Dianne: "....I'll send Barnabas to get my cot......I hate this hospital smell.....It's too caustic....."

'Yeah, it's pretty bad. People might like hospitals more if they didn't make them smell like this...' Armin muttered. He closed his eyes, intending to just stay and wait until she could be discharged.

(Should I skip to discharge?)

(Yeah, go ahead.)

-----

{Mid-afternoon, Dianne was dozing in her hospital bed. The doctor walks in with the discharge papers.}

Doctor: "Everything checks out. Y'all are free to go."

Dianne: "......Mmmm....Good.....I want to go home now.....Someone give me some different clothes, this gown sucks...."

Doctor: "We'll give you some scrubs. Be safe out there."

Armin had been sitting there, looking at his phone. He glanced up when he heard all of this, then yawned and stretched, joints cracking. 'Oh, we're leaving? Great. I think that dragon guy is waiting with a car to take us back.'

{Once they were prepared, Dianne moved to the edge of her bed, stood up, wobbled for a second, then sat back down.}

Dianne: "Nnnnnope, too dizzy. Can someone help me walk?"

Pythia: "I got you."

{Pythia helps Dianne to her feet, walking with her towards the exit.}

Armin led the way back to the hospital entrance. Once they got outside, they could see a car waiting, with Ryder visible in the front seat. The radio music could be heard blaring within the car from several metres away.

{Once they get to the car, Pythia helps Dianne into the back and buckles her in.}

Pythia: "Ok, Armin, where do you want to sit?"

Armin climbed into the back next to Dianne. 'You can sit in the front this time, I don't like the smell of that guy,' he said.

'I'm flattered,' said Ryder dryly as he turned the radio down. He waited until Pythia got in before starting the engine and pulling off.

{While in the car, Dianne leans back, closing her eyes. She seems to still be rather tired. She takes Armin's hand in hers, squeezing it slightly.}

Armin wrapped his fingers around hers, holding her hand firmly. He closed his eyes as well, seeming to drift off a little.

After a short journey, they arrived outside Fred's house. 'Alright, you can go on in,' Ryder announced, glancing in the mirror at the back seat. 'Fred will give you somewhere to sleep. You both look kind of tired.'

Dianne: "Thanks, Ryder....Armin, help me inside?

Ryder got out and opened the car door for them. Armin put an arm around Dianne and helped her out, supporting her as they slowly walked up to the house. Ryder waited for Pythia to exit, then climbed back into the car and drove off.

In the front hallway, Fred was observing their approach.

'There's very little space left here. Since you could probably use somewhere comfortable to sleep, you can take my room. I don't mind. I had someone bring another bed over, so you don't need to use mine.'

Dianne: "Thank you very much, Fred. I am very tired..."

Jerry: "Hey, it's good to see you're doing better. Kinda gave us all a scare back there."

Dianne: "Yeah, well.....Pythia's healing is extremely effective. She sped up my recovery significantly..."

{She then starts walking for Fred's room, looking to lie down.}

(Posting new roooom)