[center][b][u]SHAY[/u][/b][/center]

A wave of comfort washed over Shay as she held on to Sun for a moment in her deep embrace. She felt like she was grounded, focused back to reality where the fear was washing away, leaving nothing but the pain to experience. As she pulled back listening to him, his final words being transmitted through her mind, Shay shook her head. She could see how much effort it took him to communicate this way and she didn't feel it was fair. She shook her head, inhaling deeply. "No....no it's ok. It's....getting better." Her words were strained still but clearer than before. 

Isam's voice drew Shay's attention and she turned her head to look at him as he asked how she was feeling. He was so quiet in his chair she didn't notice him at first. He looked even more exhausted than before and she hopd he wasn't staying awake simply for her; hopefully he had been helping others giving him more important reasons to stay awake. She remembered how tired he look the first time they met. She gave him a weak smile and said "Better...glad to be back to...realty." she smirked, then quickly grimaced, clutching her stomach. "I'll be glad...when this is...finished." She took labored breaths between speaking. Although it took more effort to speak out loud it allowed her to stay focused on realty and her friends and less on the pain she was experiencing. 

Shay looked to Fen and gave him a small smile, trying to avoid the smile from turning in to a cringe. "I'm glad..you're ok" she looked at them all and glanced around to any of the others that might have been in the near vicinity "...all of you." She didn't want to ask but it didn't seem like they had lost anyone. Although poor Sun looked as if he had lost her twice. But that was him, a very caring soul.

Tobias then pulled back the divider that separated her and the other bed in the room, catching her attention. When he revealed himself, giving last instructions to the nurse, she looked over to him, her eyes catching a glimpse of the unconscious Russian and his bandaged back. She saw the bloody rags on the floor, the last of the mess left behind of what seemed to be some sort of impromptu surgery. This was perhaps what Fen was howling for. This man had been so severely injured and seemed to have been running out of time to be helped. 

Shay looked up to Tobias as he came to her side, taking her hand in his and checking her pulse. She knew she was in good hands. Shay smiled wider than before at his comment, glancing to Ravenia who was near. Perhaps she learned her strength and stubbornness from her. It was a quality that had given her immense strength and fortitude. As Tobias continued, moving her hair back, she inhaled deeply, held it for a moment, then slowly exhaled shakily. She nodded to him to show she understood what he said. The pain was becoming manageable. She couldn't wait to get her strength back though. She knew that the Russian was still around, the children they had recovered were still there, and she didn't feel right lying helpless in bed while new people roamed their city they fought so hard to keep peaceful and protected. If something were to happen she would be useless. This was the wrong thing to focus on; she was only frustrating herself. When Tobias mentioned her leg she looked down to see it heavily bandaged. She had forgotten about her leg, her focus rather being on her entire body, dealing with the pain and convulsions. As she looked at her leg it seemed like only a small inconvenience compared to the pain she was forced to endure from Tobias' antidote. 

As Tobias pulled away and made his last remark Shay glanced around the room. She didn't see Marcus. Her brow furrowed slightly. Had he not wanted to come see her? She knew he had to handle the gates but her eyes strayed hopefully to the entrance of the room, looking for Marcus. 

[center][b][u]KAIDEN[/u][/b][/center]

At Cypher's gathering, Kaiden stood near the front but on the outside of the group. He was slightly claustrophobic at times and the din of the crowd would overwhelm him if he remained in the center of it all. Kaiden wanted to be able to not only hear Cypher well enough but to see him as well. His mother stood by his side, her thick hands stuck in the pockets of her apron as she looked up towards Cypher. Akasha was roaming the skies. Once in awhile Kaiden could hear her shriek, a confirmation she was ok. It gave him peace of mind for her safety and allowed her to freely roam on her own. He encouraged this especially when Cypher had announcements or gatherings as his respect for their leader ensured there were no distractions amongst the group. 

Cypher announced the revelation of Paradise Land. He hadn't believed it existed yet since he had yet to see it for his own eyes. He knew it was a goal Cypher had been working towards for a while now. When he and his small group had arrived they were grateful for a community of protetion, a stronger home than they ahd ever had before. But they still kept moving. They didn't travel as frequently as his old group did but enough to where everyone remained somewhat exhausted and hopefully for a permant resting place. Obviously, the crowd was enthralled with this news. Kaiden smiled up towards Cypher, relieved and exciting as everyone else, just shwoing his emotion in a more reserved manner. He looked to his mother, giving her a wide grin. She returned with her warm small, her round face glowing with excitement. She placed her arm behind his back and pulled him in sideways for a hug, always a strong and warm embrace, no matter the angle. He layed his head down a moment, resting it upon her head as his 5"9 statue allowed him to, then quickly looked back up to continue listening to Cypher's speech.

Jacob Powers. He had heard of him. He was sort of a legend, a horror story told around their camp fires at night, especially to frighten the little ones. The descriptions were gruesome of his skin, his abilities with radiation frightening even the adults who conveyed the story. Kaiden had listened to several various, all of which led to a description of a soulless man with no compassion and a passion for mindless killing. Kaiden was of peace. He could not fathom how a person as Jacob was portrayed could exist and live in a land that was to be an example of peace and hope. Everyone knew Jacob was real. Kaiden wasn't quite sure how much of the details in their stories shared were of actual truth. 

Kaiden's eyes never left Cypher. He could listen to him speak all day. He had developed quite the crush on him since his first arrival, a mixture of idolizing him as a father figure, and secretly adoring him as his handsome heroic savior. He kept his feelings to himself but his smiles for Cypher were always different for him than for anyone else, always a bit warmer and held longer. Cypher hadn't led them wrong yet so he clapped along with the crowd in their excitement at the end of his speech. Kaiden's eyes turned from Cypher to wander across the people around him. Since he stood on the outside, though near the front, he saw down further at the end, on the outside as well, two younger people, not as engaged as everyone else seemed to be. Instead it looked to be that they were not thrilled at all with the news Cypher had given them. Kaiden kept clapping but watched them with a frown. Why would anyone doubt Cypher? While Kaiden was of peace, as with his animal friends for survival, sometimes you must attack and kill for your survival when you've run out of other options. Paired with what seems to be horrific stories of the damage done by a man called Jacob Powers that seemed to be a leader within Paradise Land, Kaiden didn't oppose Cypher's speech of their plans. Kaiden eyed Eliza and Geoffrey, resting back on Eliza thoughtfully, his brow only slightly furrowed with concern. If she were to meet his eyes he would raise an eyebrow to her, as if silently questioning her aloof response to the end of Cypher's great speech.