[IC] This Means War

[liah]

"Alright," I said with a huff "lead the way Plan Man." I nudged him on the arm before following Sam out the door and down the hall.
"We should get another bag once we get to the Infirmary." I paused. "We're probably going to need a lot of stuff. We don't know how long we're gonna be out there or if any of us will get seriously hurt."

[natcat]

I nodded as we passed the white front desk, with the ignorant young man sitting behind it, his glasses pressed all the way up his nose as he read over his papers.
"Good idea, there are bound to be bags at the infirmary." I said as I held the door open for her and followed her out. "Although, it'll probably be more difficult to get inside, I would assume it'd be quite heavily guarded." I added once I checked no one was around to hear or see us.

[liah]

"Crap." I mumbled. "I forgot about the guards." I walked out as he held the door for me and we continued on down the dirty road. I could see a few guards up ahead, congregating and talking about who knows what.
"Look." I nodded towards the group of guards. "We should go another way so we don't get stopped... Or worse, jailed." I said quietly.

[natcat]

I looked ahead to see the guards she nodded towards. "Lead the way." I said and followed her away to safety. I kept my eyes on the guards the whole time, making sure they didn't see us as we crept to our right, moving behind a nearby building.
"How far do you reckon we are from the infirmary?" I whispered to Daisy, following close behind her.

[liah]

"Just a few more minutes. Less than five. I think we're really close." I said quietly as I glanced at Sam. We needed to hurry if we didn't want to get caught. Getting caught would only start something too big either of us could handle. "If it's guarded we're goin' to have to find another way in." I whispered as we continued behind a few more buildings until we were close to the infirmary. Once it was in sight, I stopped.

[natcat]

I raised a hand to my chest, the ache coming from my ribs making me uncomfortable and sore, but I couldn't do anything about it as I followed Daisy inside the infirmary. There was no time to stop, we were under time pressure, and the pressure of being caught, and then we were gone. Out of here and on the run, which was only going to make the pain worse. "In and out. Agreed." I muttered as the white hallway opened up to us, it's emptiness obvious as our footsteps echoed off of the closed doors we passed. "You take the left, I'll take the right. I think most of these are empty wards but we should check them anyway. Who know's where she is."

[liah]

I nodded, agreeing with him. "Alright. Just be careful, okay? And even if we can't find Glenda, still grab whatever you can. Pain medicine, gauze, bandages, anything we might need. Especially for you since you're not fully recovered yet." I could tell he wasn't feeling too good. I wasn't either but we had to get our things. "Meet back here in ten minutes?" I asked.

[natcat]

"Sure. See you then." I said with a nod, before I grabbed the handle of the door closest to me and pushed it open. Inside was a dark small room, with only two beds, both of which were empty, the sheets tucked in smartly, as if waiting for a new occupant to fill it. Reaching out, I flicked the light switch, flooding the small space with a bright light. Like the corridor I'd just stepped out of, everything was white, the bed, the side tables and even the water jug that seemed to be just as empty as the room. There was only one cupboard opposite the doorway, and when I opened it, all I found was a stack of neatly folded stark white blankets. "This room looks like it's never been touched." I muttered to myself as I closed the cupboard door. There weren't any drawers to check, so I looked around the room one last time with a shake of my head, before turning of the light and leaving the room.

[liah]

I took to the opposite side, turning left down a short hallway and opening the first door I saw. Inside, there was already a light on. I stood in the doorway, lingering for a bit before I actually stepped inside. There were no beds, no people, and no machines. Just a few tables and two big glass cabinets with a few things inside. "Better be something good in there." I whispered to myself, walking to the glass cabinets and opening the doors. There wasn't too much inside. It looked like whatever used to be in there was cleaned out and taken somewhere else. All I could find were three small containers filled with aspirin. Next to that was a roll of gauze, cotton balls, and rubbing alcohol. It wasn't much, but it could come in handy. I stuffed everything into my bag and zipped it up, tossing it over my back and exiting the room.

[natcat]

I made my way down the corridor, past the hallway Daisy had disappeared down, and into another room. This door was already open, another white room with the same layout and clean sheets as the previous space. "This is pointless." I whispered as I backed out of the empty room. I knew where Glenda's office was. She'd taken me there only last night, I was sure I could remember. It would be easier to go straight to her and then make my way back to Daisy, who would hopefully have found enough medical supplies for us all. After a few minutes, I stopped outside Glenda's door. Her name engraved on it's metallic slide against the stark white of the door. I raised my hand to knock, then hesitated. Taking a breath, then with a quick prayer this wasn't a trap, I reached down to grip the door handle, pushing it open with a creak.

[liah]

The amount of supplies I grabbed wasn't enough. We still needed more and I needed to find an inhaler around this place. I took a deep breath and leaned against the hallway wall. I needed to think. I wasn't sure where to look and even though I'd only checked one room, I was feeling overwhelmed. I wasn't sure what rooms to look in or if they even left any medical supplies behind. Why would they leave things to a camp they were about to ransack? After standing there for a few minutes, I straightened up and adjusted the bag on my back. I walked just a few feet over and peeked into the room next door, scanning the place before actually walking in. There were four or five empty beds and two small computers pushed into the corners of the room. It smelled like a hospital which made me wrinkle my nose. I wasn't very fond of that hospital/chemical smell. I shrugged it off and began to look around. There wasn't much in the room that caught my eye until I spotted a small, white cabinet with a red cross on the front of it. "Jackpot." I smiled, knowing I'd found exactly what we needed.

[natcat]

Glenda's office looked exactly the same, the messy papers were still strewn over her desk. Nothing had been cleared away like the other rooms, in fact, my x-ray still hung in it's position on the light box beside her desk. And then I suddenly noticed, that unlike every other room in this building, the desk was not white but wooden, and the chair was not white but black with faded green fabric covering the seat. This room was so out of the ordinary in this place, it was almost like I'd stepped into a dream. "Glenda?" I called out hesitantly, feeling uneasy. A noise from behind a large grey cabinet beside her desk, startled me. "I told you, I'm not clearing my things until you tell me what's going on." A stroppy voice rang through the room, Glenda's irritation clear as she stepped backwards, her bushy hair popping into view. "Glenda," I breathed in relief, and then started rambling my apology, "look, I just wanted to say sorry for what I said last night, it was uncalled for. I-" "Samuel Pace? What in the world? How are you here?" She asked turning to me, her eyes alarmed as they looked over my shoulder, checking I was alone. "There's no time to explain, but I need your help."

[liah]

I jogged over to the cabinet and sat on my knees, twisting the two silver handles and pulling the doors open. Inside the cabinet was full of everything we needed. Bandages, numbing medicine, needles, gauze, anything you could think of. "Thank God." I smiled, grabbing two inhalers that sat in a small bowl full of all sorts of things. I stuffed one in my pocket and took the cap off the other, taking a deep breath and spraying it. "That's better." I exhaled. I replaced the cap and stuffed that inhaler in my pocket as well. I carefully looked over all the supplies we might need before neatly placing them in my bag, careful not to break or accidentally open anything. I only grabbed the essentials, knowing a heavy bag could slow us down. Once I was done I zipped up, closed the cabinets and made sure it looked like I never touched anything. The place was perfect and looked exactly like it did when I found it. The only difference would be the inside of the cabinet, seeing as I took a few things. But I doubted anyone would notice. Next on the agenda for me was to find Sam. Hopefully he'd found Glenda and more supplies. Once that was done, we could meet up with everyone and hit the road... That is if everything continued to go according to plan.

[natcat]

Glenda looked at me once I'd finished explaining everything, a sad smile on her face, before she turned away and went over to a cupboard in the corner of the room. "Here, you'll need these. I've had these for years, just in case." She pulled out two black rucksacks and passed them to me. "Everything inside is fresh, I keep them updated. You should have everything you need in those." I pulled one over my tender shoulder before opening the flap of the other. Inside, it was packed to the brim of medical supplies, everything we could ever find ourselves needing was in this bag. I looked up at her in awe, unsure of what to say. "Both of them? Are you sure?" She nodded and sat down at her desk. "That should keep you going for as long as you'll need. And keep in mind, it has very good bruise cream in there, for your ribs. And Daisy's. Speaking of which, I didn't find anything on your x-ray. You'll be fine in a couple of weeks, just let yourself heal, which will be difficult under the circumstances, but when you get the chance, yes?" I smiled. "Certainly." "And don't forget about all those stitches, you'll need to take them out in a few days. Keep them clean so nothing gets infected. And be safe. Okay? Be safe." I looked at Glenda for a long moment, so grateful for what she had done. "Come with us, Glenda. You can come with us and get out of here too." She shook her head with a chuckle. "No, no. I couldn't. Despite what you may think, I am needed here. There will be sick and broken soldiers when they come back. I will be much more useful if I can send half alive soldiers home, rather than dead ones."

[liah]

Exiting the room, I roamed down the hallway Sam and I last saw one another. "Sam?" I said quietly. "I found some stuff." I peeked into the first room I saw, but there was no sign of him. Hopefully no one was in this building because if they heard me, I was dead meat. "Sam?" I called a little louder. Still no answer. I huffed, continuing further down the hall in search of him. Hopefully he was in Glenda's office. I knew he went to find her, but it was a slim chance she was even still here. "No, no. I couldn't." I heard a woman's voice echo down the hall. The rest of what she was saying was inaudible. I paused, biting my lip, nervous if I should go on or not. The pressure of getting caught was starting to weigh on me. But I decided to go anyway. After all, it could be Glenda and Sam. I followed the voice down the hall until I reached a white door that was wide open. I carefully looked inside the room, making sure that no one could see me. Inside was Glenda sitting at her desk and Sam facing her. He had to large black rucksacks in his hands. So I assumed she gave him some supplies. "I'm so glad I found you." I smiled as I walked through the door, relief lingering in my voice.

[natcat]

"Daisy." Glenda said with a soft smile and stood up as she walked into the room. Looking over my shoulder, I smiled briefly at Daisy, glad she was okay, before turning back to Glenda, her words still ringing in my ears. "You two best be off then. Remember what I said, Sam. Both of you be safe." Glenda said looking between us. "You should be okay to get out of here safely, but once you're outside... be careful." I stared at Glenda for a while before stepping forwards and wrapping my free arm around her. "I don't know how we would've survived without you, so thanks." I murmured to her and she patted me on the back before I pulled away. "Let's go." I said to her, noticing that the bag over her shoulder was fuller than before, meaning she'd found more stuff. Good. We were going to need it.