His smile was that of triumph, and it was a sincere one. Though, this wasn't HIS triumph that he was smiling about. Instead, he was smiling at the dusk-skinned woman that had managed to finally accomplish something of a life-goal for her.

All the word, all the failures, it had all finally paid off, as the rune on the floor came to life with a soft glow... before it increased in intensity, and a final pulse showed them it worked... especially when a man of matching skin colour suddenly stepped out of the darkness.

"Finally! Success!" he exclaimed, as the woman looked at him.

"Indeed." she replied, a small smirk on his face.

"Thank you." she said. "You were a tremendous help in all this." she then told him. This caused him to smile with pride, as she merely started to slowly saunter closer towards him.

"...why...?" he said in a quiet, hoarse tone, as he pulled himself along the ground. His wounds were grievous, his hooded cloak was tattered and torn, and he barely had the strength left to drag his body across the ground.

'I loved her... I did everything for her...' he thought.

'I even volunteered to undergo the change... just so we could be together...' he thought further, as he briefly looked at his hand, staring at his own dusk-coloured skin. It was ever-so-slightly lighter than the woman's and the man's had been, but it was barely noticeable... to HIM, anyway.

He then paused, as he heard a howl in the distance, and looked at the crimson red trail he was leaving behind him.

"Oh, no..." he said quietly, as he tried to get to his feet, but found that he hadn't the strength to.

"No... please... not like this..." he pleaded, as he tried desperately to speed up his progress... only to find that it was impossible.

And he could hear the sounds of paws padding on the ground approaching now. It would only be a matter of time before they caught up with him... and he was too weak to properly defend himself.

Chris was silent as the woman spoke his name.

".....Ashley..." he said, his voice forced and rough.

"Ash...ley..." he repeated, though it was clear it took more effort for him to say it again.

He then started to raise his hand towards her, his fingers shaky and jerky, but he then just seemed to stop out of nowhere suddenly.

"Va...nessa..." was all he managed to say.

He then collapsed to the ground, his injuries and exhaustion finally getting the best of him. He was now unconscious... but he was still very much bleeding out.

The one that she spoke to looked at her, before looking at Chris.

"..." they were silent, before sighing.

"Doctor Calder is in his office, and has requested not to be disturbed." they told her.

"However, if you are a close friend of his, then feel free to go and get him. I'm sure he'll listen to you, and help this man." they then reasoned.

"In the meantime, we'll prep this man." they then added.

There was silence on the other side of the door, so she knocked again.

And again.

And yet again.

Shortly, the door swung open, revealing a VERY unimpressed-looking bespectacled green-haired doctor. However, he seemed to calm down almost instantly when he saw who it was.

"....Ashley?" he asked.

"Uh... what's up?" he asked her.

"I'm kinda busy at the moment..." he said, looking at the stack of papers on his desk.

"........" Rene was silent for a moment, before he stepped out of his office, closing the door behind him.]

"Well then." he said.

"Looks like we have no time to waste." he told her.

"Let's go." he said, as they both started to walk down the hallway.

"What's the situation with him?" he asked her.

"Eh?" Rene asked.

"Why would you say that?" he asked her as they went through the door.

"I'm a doctor, I've sworn my life to-" he started to say, before he saw who it was, and paused.

"......you're right." he said.

"My brain is screaming at me to leave him there." he told her. "Buuuut it's also reminding me of the Hippocratic Oath that I took." he muttered.

"But what the hell DID this to him?" he then wondered aloud.

"It looks like he was... well... mutilated."

Rene raised an eyebrow.

"And here I was thinking that Chris was one of the few people she actually gave a flipping fuck about." he commented, before shaking his head.

"All right then." he said.

"If Vanessa is, indeed, responsible for this, then I'll need your help." he told her.

"Odds are if she let him get away, she had the intention of letting him think he could find help, but put something in him to kill him in due time." he guessed.

"You'll need to help with that." he went on.

"I can deal with the physical injuries, and possibly some of the mana injuries, but it takes a drow to undo what another drow has done." he lamented.

"So, you ready to do this?" he asked her as he started to prep.

Rene was silent for another moment, and sighed.

"Then let's do this." he said.

It took quite a few hours of work, but Rene and Ashley managed to save Chris's life. They patched him back up, and he was taken away to a room so he could rest.

"There." he said.

"He should be out of the woods now." he commented.

"Gotta admit, your sister did a number on him." he went on, before pausing. "Wait..." he mumbled. "Your sister... Vanessa..." he said quietly, before looking at her.

"All right, I feel like a right sod now, I do." he said further.

"It just truly hit me now. VANESSA is YOUR SISTER?" he asked her.

"I shouldn't be as floored or surprised by this as I am." Rene said.

"But I am." he admitted.

"Maybe it's because you two are so different... like night and day." he commented. "Given your general personalities, you're like polar opposites." he said further.

"Right, but enough about unfortunate blood relations." he then said.

"I can't leave Chris alone in this hospital." he told her.

"He's too much of a risk and threat to others here, to be frank."

Rene nodded.

"Right." he said.

"Then go to his room." he told her, giving the number of the room Chris was in.

"I'll consider you the security." he said further.

"Right now, you're the only one I know that could reign him in." he continued.

"........oh, and one more thing." he then suddenly said.

"Anna does NOT hear of this." he stressed.