Emotionally Compromised

Hey there!

I wasn't planning a chapter tonight, but I wanted to do this chapter. 

Emotional damage is incoming.

Let's get back to it.

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"Kal'tsit, it was a joke!" 

Warfarin was confused; she was running tests in her lab one moment, and then she was dragged into Rhodes Islands' large conference hall the next. Looking around, Warfarin must have seen at least 95% of all operators and general staff here looking just as confused at being called for a meeting so suddenly. 

Kal'tsit was standing on the small stage. She looked terrible! She had never seen her old friend like this. She would have pitied Kal if the Lynx wasn't glaring at her for her comment when she was pulled into the large Hall, making everyone look at her. Amiya was also standing on the stage, looking as down and hopeless as ever since the Doctor left. 

Warfarin didn't get a response from the glaring Lynx, so she instead rolled her eyes and groaned. Then, finally, she walked to the front and sat with the higher-ranking members of Rhodes Island in the front rows. She was seated in-between Closure and Saria.

Murmurs from the large attendance were broken by Kal'tsit clearing her throat, stopping all talk in the room. 

"You have all been summoned to this abrupt meeting for a simple reason. The search for the Doctor that had previously failed has gained the new speculation that he may still be alive!" Kal'tsit spoke out into the large Hall, all eyes on her. 

Some eyes after the announcement turned to Blaze, expecting her to stand and start shouting insults about the Doctor, like before, only to be surprised when the Battle-loving feline stayed silent. Had anyone paid attention, Blaze, at the moment of the obscene announcement by Kal'tsit, had locked eye's with the pleading eyes of Amiya. 

The room remained silent for a brief time before murmurs once again erupted amongst the operators. There was plenty of mixed reaction to this revelation. While many didn't care about the Doctor, none ever wished for his death, but those that did bad mouth him before knew to keep silent. Kal'tsit was clearly in a bad mood, and they would rather not get punched by Amiya.

"That's good news, right?" Blue Poison said out loud.  

"I-I think so... H-He was always kind... *sob,*" Jessica muttered out loud. Only a few could hear but blushed when some looked at her.  

"I hope he is alive!" Noir Corne called out from higher up the rows of seats. 

"I thought Blaze hated him?" Midnight's smooth voice called out.

Blaze stood up and glared at Midnight. "I don't hate him. I just blamed him for Ace's death! and Scouts!" 

"Sooo... hate?" Midnight replied, knowing hundreds of eyes were on the two of them.

"NO" Blaze shouts.

"You did celebrate his passing, no?" Saria turned to look up at Blaze with a frown.

"LOOK! I get it! I was being a Bitch... After my friends died, I was in a bad place but had been having counselling, so yes! I hated him, but now I'm getting over it, and you're trying to make me feel bad? At least I'm trying to be better!" Blaze shouts, Silencing the room. Saria stares at her for a few moments before she nods and turns to the front again, and Midnight smirks as he sits down.

"If you're all done?" Kalt'sits voice cuts through the silence again. She was gaining everyone's attention. Kal'tsit looks around the room, glaring at everyone equally—a look of desperation and near obsession in Kal'tsit's eyes to the keen observer. Amiya was staring at Blaze with admiration. Maybe she should punch people more often.

Kal'tsit picks up a remote from a small table near her and turns on the large screen behind her, showing the still image of Farsight after he jumps out of the LGD headquarters. 

"It may be plausible that the Doctor is not dead but a part of the now-known Farsight Enclave. He vanished a few weeks before they appeared, making it highly unlikely to be a coincidence." Kal'tsit stopped talking and looked around at the baffled looks of most of the audience. She was about to continue, but a loud groan stopped her. 

A now unamused Warfarin stood from the front row and stared at Kal'tsit before speaking to her old friend in a pitying manner that none in the room missed. 

"Kal'tsit... I'm sure you've heard of the five stages of grief?" Warfarin calmly asked, staring at Kal'tsit intensely and making every operator look at Warfarin with widened eyes. Kal'tsit glare was getting darker. Warfarin knew Kal'tsit was emotionally compromised, as she had hoped Kal would have gotten over her grief by now. 

"Don't you dare imply what I think you are, Warfarin!" Kal'tsit said through grit teeth. 

Warfarin was unfazed and continued. "Grieving, Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Finally Acceptance."

None spoke as everyone held their breath. Kal'tsit stared at Warfarin with erratic-eyed fury and heartbreak but didn't speak.

"You Grieved, and then you Denied, followed by us experiencing your Anger, and now you are trying to Bargain," Warfarin told Kal'tsit. Everyone in the room looked between Kal'tsit and Warfarin with worry. Kal'tsit continued to stare as her body trembled in rage and denial. 

"What I said was a joke, Kal... it was in poor taste, I'm sure, but a joke regardless." Warfarin took a sad breath before continuing. "Doctors cannot diagnose themselves nor prescribe their own medication. But, as I am your Doctor, Kal and as your friend, I cannot watch you internally beat yourself to death. You're not coping." Warfarin steps onto the stage and approaches the frozen Kal'tsit, who stares at her with a rapidly changing expression. 

Everyone in the Hall can see the vulnerability of Kal'tsit for the first time, and it honestly scares many of them. Kal'tsit has always been seen as the unmovable force of Rhodes Island, and Nothing could bring her low. But now they all see this side of her, which has shaken many of them—a few stare at the broken Lynx with varying degrees of sadness. 

Without hesitation or resistance, Warfarin grabs Kal'tsit's hand and leads her off the stage and out of the room, leaving a shocked and saddened crowd. Amiya stares at the retreating form of Kal'tsit, her role model and mentor, with tears rolling down her cheeks. If Kal'tsit was bargaining, then she was still in denial.

Closure stood up from the front row, stepped onto the stage, and looked at the vast array of faces that followed her the moment she stood—grumbling to herself about speaking up in front of such a large crowd.

"Look, Doctor or no Doctor is not the question currently, but Kal'tsit was onto something. We need to locate the Farsight Enclave to know their motives or perhaps open negotiation, So teams will be sent into Lungmen to find this mysterious group and hopefully get them to talk."

The silence in the Hall was broken again with conversations and opinions. 

"Enough, Teams will be sent. I will announce the teams to search the city in a day or two. That's final. I will take a team and speak to Chief Wei and the LGD. Please return to your duties!" Amiya called out after Closure spoke to back her up, eyes red and puffy from the tears.

It wasn't long before the large crowd stood and started returning to their duties or downtime. Amiya noticed Closure leaving and called out to her, "Thank you, Closure!" Not receiving a response, unsure if she heard her. 

Closure walked away from the crowd and hid her pained expression and wet eyes well. Seeing Kal'tsit like that shook her to the core; how could she have been so dense? 

Amiya was soon left alone in the Hall and fell back into one of the chairs on stage, looking at the floor dejectedly. She looked at her left hand and noticed one of her rings was cracked. Clenching her fist in dismay and stress. She slumped in the chair and stared at the ceiling with one goal in mind.

'Farsight has the answers we seek. We must find them. Only then can Kal'tsit and myself be free of this pain.'

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Done!

I wanted something emotional to happen with some weight, not just a determined Kal'tsit rushing to the city and find Farsight. We all experience death; differently, and that's how I wanted Kal'tsit to experience it.

As you can see, Blaze isn't just forgiving the Doctor randomly. She understands it's not his fault entirely and slowly accepts that hating him won't make her feel better. We all grieve differently. So while I made Blaze a bitch, which upset a few of you. Just know that Blaze was a hurting kitten and just needed an outlet for her building emotions. 

I was going to add the negotiations of Farsight and Wei but knew it would be better if it had its own chapter. 

Thanks for everything and for voting! Means a lot. 

Zero-

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