Finally feeling relieved of his embarrassment, Chanon gazed at the thin girl, now asleep again. Everything would be all right. He thought. She would have a better future; she just needed to recover.
However, her fever returned quickly. This time, her temperature rose so much that the girl ended up deliriously uttering intelligible words. At some point in the early morning, Chanon called Chanaia. By the time his sister arrived, Ilia was tossing and turning in bed, drenched in sweat.
It had been a hell of a night, and Chanon took out his frustration on his sister: "You should have covered her with something, Chanaia!" He barely managed not to shout in exasperation while scolding her for her lack of caution.
"She was unconscious and burning up. Her clothes were soaked with sweat, and I had to give her a bath with cool water. Come on, Chanon, she has the body of a child! For God's sake!" Chanaia blurted out, unwilling to acknowledge her lack of tact.
"However, she's not a child!" Chanon said, running a hand over his face and controlling his tone at the same time.
Exasperated, Chanaia grabbed a thin nightgown and handed it to him.
"You're acting strange. Here, put it on her. I'll hold her body while you dress her. Then we'll give her the medication." Saying this, Chanaia seized Ilia, who was thrashing about like a madwoman in a straitjacket.
Without responding, Chanon rushed to the task, taking care not to touch any inappropriate part of the withered body. After about two minutes, the siblings were giving Ilia the medication. It was then that the girl began to scream unconsciously:
"No! No, leave him! Take me..." Ilia began to scream. As she exclaimed, her lower jaw trembled constantly. Chanon and Chanaia looked at each other in surprise, but Ilia didn't stop there: "I'll go with you, but leave him alone... Please leave him alone. No! Don't cut him again... I'll go willingly... I won't run away... I swear!" The plea ended when Ilia began to scream as if she had gone mad.
"Oh, Ilia! It's okay, you're safe now, you're safe..." Chanaia couldn't stand it any longer and cradled her in her arms, holding her tightly to prevent her from being harmed by the convulsions.
Nearby, Chanon was running his hands through his hair, tousling his short, straight locks. The sick woman was evidently reminiscing about something. A heart-rending scream from Ilia made both siblings jump.
"No! Diago, leave him... Leave him! I'll hate you if you kill him... Don't cut him! Diago, stop it!"
"Oh my God! Calm down, Ilia, he'll be fine, he's safe. Calm down." Chanaia directed a desperate look at her brother. Then Chanon slapped his forehead.
"I have an idea," Chanon said: "I'll make her relax..." He murmured.
"You've never done anything like this before..."
"Just wait a bit. I'll try." He assured. Then Chanon focused. He had the serious, eerie look he wore when he was focused on his task. His black eyes seemed to flash. Chanaia looked at him, perplexed, but her jaw dropped when Ilia's arms, which had clung to her almost painfully, loosened and soon fell limply at her sides. Little by little, the convulsions subsided, and the girl sank into a peaceful sleep. The siblings gently tucked Ilia into bed.
"You're incredible, Chanon..." Chanaia said with honest admiration.
For his part, Chanon didn't seem to be paying attention to his sister. He looked focused, as if remembering something.
"Who the hell is Diago?" He wondered, looking at Ilia and then at his sister.
"Damn right... Whoever it is, this person did something that affected Ilia badly. Whoever it was... I'll try to find out something tomorrow. No, let's give it some time. The whole thing seemed horrible. I got goosebumps, I swear."
However, as Chanaia finished speaking, a deafening sound echoed, accompanied by a tremendous shudder throughout the ship. The two of them stared at each other in alarm for a second just before running out of the compartment. In the corridor, Chanaia bumped into Amir, who was dressed only in short white pants.
"We're under attack!" Cela shouted not far from there, and so, as if struck by lightning, the three companions shot out onto the deck.