Archive of Our Own ^beta

Riebeck finally makes it back to their camp, thankful to see a spot to sit down. They shift a bit so they can grab Agate properly and set them down on the rock Riebeck had been sitting on earlier, gently leaning their head and back on the tree behind them. Once they were properly sat up, Riebeck let go and observed their wounds, trying to find what needed the most immediate attention. Agate had been able to walk okay, so they probably didn’t break anything there. Their torso had one visible puncture wound, so they decided they should fix that first and then try to find any other injuries. “Hatchling, can you hear me? How is your oxygen?” They asked, lifting them up a bit to check their tank. There wasn’t any visible leaking on the tank itself, so the hissing noise they head was probably from that suit puncture. They rushed and grabbed their own tank and repair kit. “Not the best.” Responded hatchling, who immediately coughed. “Alright, okay, um…” said Riebeck, kneeling down next to Hatchling and nervously trying to remember their training. What do you do with a suit puncture, Riebeck? You sew it up, and then try to refill your oxygen if possible. But this was bleeding, like really bad. How do you stop bleeding, Riebeck? You apply as much pressure as you can until the bleeding stops. That’s… that’s probably the first step in this situation. “I-I’m gonna put some pressure on this wound, okay?” Hatchling was clearly breathing kind of heavy, looking into the distance. “Keep me updated on your oxygen levels, okay? T-Try to not breathe as much.” Hatchling was still staring off, seemingly unable to hear Riebeck. “Hatchling? You got that?” Hatchling slowly nodded, slowing their breathing a bit. Riebeck looked back at the wound, trying to stay calm. They’d never dealt with something like this before. Oh, stars… They gently placed their gloved hands on top of the wound, applying pressure like they remembered Gossan showing them back in the day. How long do you apply pressure again? 5 minutes, right? Oh god, was it 10? 15? I don’t remember… Dammit, Riebeck, focus! Just keep applying the pressure until the bleeding stops, you’ve gotta just stay calm. They could feel the blood seeping into their gloves, making them squirm a bit. Out of all of the astronauts for them to crash near, it had to be Riebeck, the most nervous and squeamish one. Of course. Stay calm, stay calm, you’ve gotta save hatchling. “Er, how’s, um… how’s your oxygen?” They asked Hatchling. After a little bit, Riebeck heard Hatchling’s feeble voice speak, but their voice was considerably shakier, and they kept pausing to take a deep breath. “Uh… I think I’ve got about… 5 minutes left… Your hands are helping the leak, I think…” Every single breath Hatchling took reminded Riebeck of how little time they had. “Okay, um, that’s good… Listen Hatchling, stay calm, it’ll be alright. We’ll stop this bleeding and patch your suit and we’ll call for help, okay?” Riebeck was mostly saying that to themself, Hatchling seemed oddly calm, but it didn’t hurt right? They would have called for help already but they didn’t want to risk releasing the pressure yet, and when they first saw the crash, they rushed over and left their signalscope in their camp. Right now, stopping the bleeding was most important. They went quiet, focusing intently on applying the pressure. “Is your oxygen still okay?” They asked after a couple minutes. No response. “Hatchling?” They looked up at Hatchling again. “Got like 2 minutes…” Riebeck’s heart dropped. Shit, two minutes? That’s so little time, oh stars, I- “Riebeck.” They looked up at hatchling again, this time they were looking directly at Riebeck. “I’ll be okay. I trust you. Just stay calm.” Riebeck was a bit stunned, both at Hatchling’s ability to stay calm despite the situation and also at how this younger astronaut with a stab wound was the one doing the comforting. Riebeck felt just as helpless as they had when they were a hatchling, and now they’ve got to save one. They took a deep breath and removed their shaking hands from the wound. It hadn’t stopped bleeding yet, but they needed to sort out the suit puncture first. “Okay. Okay. I’ve got this. I-I got you.” They grabbed their repair kit and started patching the suit. Their hands were shaking so hard, they were worried about stabbing Hatchling on accident. They shut their eyes tight and took a deeper breath, trying to steady themself. They could feel their lungs struggling. Not now. Please don’t have an attack right now. Stay calm, Riebeck, stay calm, please just calm down… They felt Hatchling’s hand grab theirs and opened their eyes suddenly. “It’s okay, Riebeck. I’ve got time. You’ve got these trees here.” Right. Okay. They took another breath, and started to sew the patch shut again, Hatchling’s hand still holding theirs. They focused intensely, making sure they patched it as well as they could and making sure to not miss any spots. When they were nearly finished, they felt hatchling’s hand slipping a bit. “Hatchling? Are you okay? How’s your oxygen now?” They didn’t look up from their work, and they sped up a bit, getting nervous again. “Just… just keep sewing. I’ll be fine.” Their voice was so quiet, and their breathing was getting really shallow. Riebeck didn’t dare pause their work. They finished sewing it and tightened the thread, closing the suit back up. They snapped the excess thread to officially finish it and immediately ran to their extra oxygen and refilled hatchling’s tank. “O-okay, you should be good now. Hatchling, can you hear me?” They set the tank down and looked at hatchling directly. When hatchling didn’t respond they grabbed their shoulders gently and leaned in more. “Can you hear me?” they said more clearly. Panic started to rise in their chest as hatchling still wasn’t responding. They opened their mouth to ask again, but hatchling finally nodded their head weakly. Riebeck sighed and untensed, their arms and knees immediately starting to shake with relief. “Okay. Hatchling, I’m gonna try to take care of as many of your wounds as I can but we’re gonna ask for help first, okay? Just keep breathing.” they waited, watching hatchling intensely. They nodded again. “Okay. Um,” They looked around their camp for their signalscope, desperately trying to move fast but also be thorough. They found it lying by their little scout, so they grabbed it and set it to the emergency frequency. “U-Uhm, this is Riebeck reporting from Brittle Hollow. I, uh- there’s been an accident and, and our newest- Agate is, is here with me. Does anyone copy?” They nervously waited a little bit, needing someone to pick up soon. I need to know what to do. I’m so worried. They’ve undoubtedly got a couple broken bones, but I have no clue how to treat those!! And, even if I did, it’s not like I have the proper materials. After anxiously pacing around for about a minute, they heard someone coming through on the signalscope. “Riebeck? This is Chert, I copy. What happened? Are either of you hurt?” Riebeck suppressed a sigh, picking the signalscope up. “Uh, I’m still not entirely sure what happened, but uhm- I heard a crash a little outside, outside my camp, and, and they had gotten hurt in the impact. Th-They’re alive, Their suit was, um, damaged, but I-” They were interrupted by a third voice. “Esker here, I copy. How’s their ship?” then a fourth. “This is Hal, I copy. Agate crashed?” Riebeck was breathing way too fast, they couldn’t slow down properly. “I, uh- yeah, they crashed. I don’t- I don’t know what happened to their ship, but it’s definitely very, um, broken.” They nervously glanced back at Agate, who was still breathing. Good. “How is the hatchling? How badly wounded are they?” Chert asked. “They’re pretty bad, uh… They got- They got stabbed, by a bit of their ship, I think, when they crashed, I- I patched their suit up and, and I refilled their oxygen. I tried to stop the bleeding, but I don’t- I don’t think I did a very good job.” They were hyperventilating, and starting to feel lightheaded. Today has been way too stressful for them, even before Agate crashed. Something’s been up with Hollow’s lantern, it was becoming way more violent that it ever had been, and they haven’t been able to figure out what it is that’s making it like that. “I’m- I’m almost certain they’ve broken a couple bones but I don’t know where. They’re not looking great. I was able to fix their, their suit but still, there’s, um, there’s no way I can treat all these wounds with the material I have right now. I can’t carry them by myself, and my, uhm, my ship is very far away. We need to get them to Timber Hearth.” They said, their lungs tightening up with every word. “Riebeck, listen, I need you to breathe for me, okay? Deep breaths.” said Chert. “I’ll- I’ll try but, can someone send help?” They glanced back at the hatchling, whose breathing was slowing down. “I can fly over if you give me a couple minutes, I’ll need to make room in my ship for the both of you.” said Chert. “I can get healing supplies ready here on the Attlerock. Might be easier than trying to land back on Hearth.” said Esker. “Yes, good plan you two. I can make sure Riebeck knows how to treat Agate’s wounds.” said Hal. “Alright, I’m heading out then.” Riebeck heard shuffling sounds as Chert spoke, like they were gathering something. “Okay, um, thanks. Please hurry, if you- if you can.” Riebeck’s breathing was shallow again, completely ignoring Chert’s previous advice. “Alright, I copy. Heading out now.” Chert’s line went to static. “Same here. I’ll prepare everything. Heading out.” Esker’s line went to static. “Okay, Riebeck, I can tell you’re really stressed. I’m gonna need you to try to breathe a bit, okay? Like Chert said.” Hal’s voice was the only one left on the line with them. “Okay. Okay. I can do that…” Riebeck sat, leaning their head on the tree behind them for support as they tried their hardest to slow their breathing. Slowly they calmed down, bit by bit, and were able to control their anxiety a bit more. “Okay. I think… I think I feel better now.” They still felt very on edge, but could at least control it a bit more. “Okay. Good. Now, are there any visible wounds besides the puncture wound?” Riebeck scanned the kid's body from where they sat, looking for any more visible wounds. There was a bit of a red spot bleeding through their right arm and another on their left shin. Their pants were a bit torn in some areas as well. “Y-yeah, looks like they’ve got a spot on their arm and a couple ones on their legs.” “Okay, can you try to address one of the leg wounds first? You can get the one on their arm when you’re on the Attlerock.” That seemed reasonable enough. “S-sure.” Okay, okay, um… Riebeck rolled up hatchling’s pant leg to their knee, trying to observe the wound. It was a long, diagonal gash, though it seemed to be scabbing over already. Riebeck grabbed some gauze, cleaning solution and a cleaning rag from their first aid kit. They poured the cleaning solution onto the rag, and then lightly pressed the wound with the rag, gently going over the cut. They were extra careful not to tear the forming scab. There was some dried blood around the wound, but when they tried to clean that up, some fresh blood started leaking out a bit. They were more careful after that and applied the necessary pressure to stop the bleeding. Once the wound was sufficiently clean, they started to wrap it up in the gauze. Suddenly, the hatchling winced in pain. Riebeck’s gaze quickly shifted to them, startled. “A-are you okay?” They asked Hatchling, setting down the gauze on the ground and rising to meet hatchling’s face. Agate didn’t respond, just started gasping in pain. “Shh, shh, it’s- it’ll be alright, kiddo! Help is on the way, okay? Um, we’re gonna- we’re gonna get you somewhere safe, okay?” Riebeck was feeling like things were getting even more out of hand by the second, and they were suddenly reminded of how young Agate was. Usually, that made Riebeck feel older, but right now they felt just as helpless as Agate probably did. Their nickname was all Riebeck could think of as they were gasping and clutching their stomach, where the puncture wound was. Riebeck could hear them start to cry. “R-Riebeck, it- it hurts,” they said in between sobs. “I’m sorry, I know it hurts, I know,” What the hell do I do?! They were so calm before, I have no idea how to comfort someone this injured, let alone a kid- the younger astronaut started sobbing even more, and Riebeck went to hold their hand, but when they grabbed it, they gasped. Their hand was covered in blood, and blood was soaking through their suit around where the stab was. “Stars, it must have reopened…” They muttered to themself. “Everything alright, Riebeck? How’s their leg?” Hal came through on the signalscope. “Hal…? Where’s Hal?” Hatchling looked around and tried to sit up but gasped even louder and fell back. “Hal isn’t- Hal isn’t here right now. They’re just talking on the signalscope.” Hatchling started crying even more. “Riebeck, are you still there? Do you copy?” They picked up the signalscope and switched their microphone back on. “Uh, yeah, they just woke up, and- and I think the stab wound reopened.” Riebeck looked back at the hatchling who was clutching their stomach again. “Oh my stars, what’s happening over there? Are they alright?” Riebeck figured the microphone was picking up Hatchling’s crying. “Look, Hal, I have to help hatchling right now, I- Just tell Chert to hurry.” “W-wait, is Agate okay?” Hal repeated, voice wavering slightly. “Hal, I- I don’t have time. I need to focus on Hatchling right now.” They flipped their mic off and set the signalscope back down, turning to Hatchling again. They ignored Hal’s voice asking for clarification and instead gently touched hatchling’s hand. “Hatchling,” They lifted their head to look at Riebeck, and through their helmets, Riebeck could see Hatchling’s face. Their lower eyes were shut tight and their upper eyes were squinting with so much pain. Tears were streaming down their face, and worst of all, they looked so, so young. Riebeck felt themself tearing up a bit. They couldn’t handle seeing anyone so scared. They gulped and opened their mouth, “It’s- It’ll be okay, alright? I… I’ve got you. Chert’s on their way to pick us up, okay?” Hatchling gritted their teeth as they inhaled sharply, and then nodding. “I can’t fix this wound right now, because it’s under your suit, but I can try to stop the bleeding by applying pressure. I need you to-” They stopped when Hatchling feebly reached for their hand. “Please, don’t, it- it h-” they gasped again, “it hurts,” their hand squeezed Riebeck’s tighter than they would have expected. “I know, Hatchling, but I need to stop the bleeding, I- I have to.” their breathing was so irregular and Riebeck was starting to panic again. They were so calm before, and now they’re so upset. Agate was sobbing even more at this point, their whole body heaving, as they cradled themself with one arm and clung desperately to Riebeck with the other. Their grip was getting tighter and tighter and they were leaning further forward. Riebeck wanted to insist on stopping the bleeding, but they didn’t think Hatchling would let them at this point. They looked around, trying to figure out what to do. “H-here, would laying down be more comfortable?” They offered. Agate let out a pained noise, and nodded. “Uhm, okay, uhh…” Riebeck shifted to their side, awkwardly scooping them up, being as careful and gentle as they could. Agate was still crying profusely, and all Riebeck could do was try to calm them down through words. They laid hatchling down on the ground, cradling their upper body like a child. “Hey, hatchling, I’ve got you, it’s okay. You’re safe.” Agate’s grip on their hand hadn’t loosened, and their breathing was getting worse. “Hatchling, breathe with me, okay? Breathe with me. Can you do that?” they grunted and then nodded, making an “mhm” noise through gritted teeth. Riebeck slowed their breathing, and felt Hatchling struggling to follow in their arms. Riebeck counted out loudhow long they inhaled and how long they exhaled, and Hatchling started following along. “You’re doing so good, just keep breathing okay? Chert should be here any minute now, and then we can patch up that wound, okay? Just breathe with me.” Hatchling was still crying, and the breathing wasn't working. They were struggling to inhale, trying their hardest to breathe in but the way they were doing it they clearly couldn't get good air. “Hatchling, you have to slow down, you have to-” Agate suddenly started sitting up, grabbing onto Riebeck’s right arm with a vicious grip. They buried their head into Riebeck’s chest, gasping and heaving horribly, making sounds Riebeck didn't know could come from someone. The realization hit Riebeck all too suddenly. I don't think Hatchling is going to make it. Riebeck quietly gasped and they felt their heart drop as a single tear they’d been holding in this entire time escaped them and slid down their face. It was like a horrible sick feeling deep in their body, seeping deep into every fiber of their body, and into their bones. The sick feeling only increased as Riebeck stared at this adult, who was just barely old enough to be out here in space with them, fighting, fighting so desperately to live. They launched today, they can’t die, surely? They have so much to discover, they have so much left in the solar system to explore. Worst of all, they’re so young. What will Riebeck say when Chert makes it and they have to meet them in the eyes and admit that they couldn't save them. That the dead child they were holding in their arms was never going to survive that crash, that they’d have to go tell everyone at the village that they lost yet another astronaut. What would Hal do? Oh, poor Hal, they’re probably so worried right now. What will they say to Gossan? Riebeck looked at this hearthian they were cradling like a child, who even now was still fighting. They squeezed them tighter, hugging them and bringing their head down to whisper to them. “Hatchling, it’s gonna be alright. You’re safe, you’ll be alright.” they couldn’t stand to tell hatchling the truth, it would have been too much. With every word that slipped out of their mouth, they felt more and more disgusted with themself. How could you lie? How could you so easily give them false hope? But still they spoke, their words and empty and hollow attempt to comfort a dying soul. “Shh, shh, it’s alright, now. I’ve- I’ve got you. You’re s-so brave.” Their grip on Agate tightened as they could feel Agate’s hand slipping from their arm, and another tear feel down their face. Oh, this was horrible. It was like they could feel the life in Agate’s body fighting and fading. Like a light, flickering on and off. They could feel Agate’s feeble heartbeat against theirs, echoing through their entire body. They were sobbing, trying to not let it show to Agate. Desperately trying to keep a steady voice and to not shake. Every muscle in their body was tensed. Riebeck lifted them up from a cradle into a hug, supporting their back. They could feel the blood seeping from Agate’s suit onto their own. Agate’s erratic breathing was slowing down and their sobbing was getting quieter. “R-Rieb… Riebeck, I didn’t- I didn’t get to-” they were still shaking in Riebeck’s arms. “It’s- It’ll be okay hatchling, you did-” they choked on their own tears, “You did so well, you did so, so well, hatchling.” They couldn't help staring into Agate’s eyes, their face was a bit bloody, and their wide, amber eyes were fading in and out of focus. They looked lost, and in so much pain. They opened their mouth to speak, but they just ended up crying again, and Riebeck pulled them back in closer again. “It’s okay hatchling, it’s okay. It’s gonna b- gonna be okay. I’ve got you here, Riebeck’s got you.” They heard whooshing and looked up to see Chert's ship, and their heart dropped. They were too late, how would they tell them? What would they say? Oh god this was too much. They felt Agate’s breathing slowing, and their heartbeat was slowing too. “That’s alright hatchling, you’ll be fine soon, it’s okay, it's okay.” Chert dropped out of their ship and ran over. “Oh stars, oh stars, oh stars-” Chert kneeled down next to hatchling and reached out to grab them. Riebeck shook their head dejectedly, and Chert looked up. Their visor was too thick to see through, but Riebeck could feel the realization dawning over Chert as well. Hatchling’s sobbing was slowing down as well. “Ch… Chert?” They looked over their shoulder at Chert, who shifted closer. “...Yeah, it’s me. It’s okay, hatchling, you’re gonna be alright now.” they said, clearly holding it together better than Riebeck. They gently set Agate down on the ground inbetween them and Chert, leaving them face up. Chert reached to take Agate’s helmet off, setting it down next to them. “Here, look at the stars. Aren’t they pretty? Just look at the stars for a little while.” They said real quietly in a gentle voice that Riebeck had never heard from them before. Riebeck couldn't contain it anymore and they let themself cry, truly cry. They had been trying so hard to keep control of it so Agate wouldn't see, but they couldn't do it anymore and just sobbed. Chert kept talking to Agate, in that same voice, holding their head lightly with their right hand and laying their left hand over Agate’s heart, leaning down as they whispered. Riebeck couldn't help crying, staring at the young pilot. They looked peaceful, at least. No more sobbing and begging for help. Oh, stars that was almost worse. Riebeck didn't know how long they both sat there with Agate’s body, Chert still whispering comforting words to them. But Riebeck knew they were gone, and Riebeck knew Chert knew that too. Eventually, both of them had just gone silent, both staring at Agate’s face. Riebeck stared, their tears drying up as a wave of calm slowly washed over them. But it wasn't really calm like the peaceful feeling you get when you realize that everything is gonna be okay- more like the numbness that washes over you when you have no more tears left to cry. When your emotions are too much to cry and you eventually just… stop. And let your emotions go to your head rather than your heart. After a while, Riebeck whispered, not daring to raise their voice too much, as if Agate was sleeping and talking too loud would wake them up. “Chert… what do we even do?'' The silence in the room was thick, like a smog that permeated through one’s entire body. Riebeck was choking on it, as if there were no oxygen in the room. “We should… probably tell the others.” Chert responded after some time. “What about Hal? How do we tell them that-” Riebeck felt the tears returning. They gulped. Chert’s voice sounded, for once, unsure. “I… don’t know. But we have to.” Riebeck nodded, the movement bringing them out of that numbness. They stood up, feeling a bit dizzy again realizing they had largely forgotten to breathe for the past little while. They stumbled over to their signalscope, and walked back to Chert, every step taking a considerable amount of effort. They took a shaky breath, inhaling in, and then out and then knelt down and handed the signalscope to Chert. Riebeck could see a sad grimace through Chert’s helmet, before they eventually flicked on the microphone.