malphas, like iota, was also adjusting to his new role. being a nurse was difficult and taxing on the boy, but he made do. for nayru and for iota. in his defense, he had volunteered out of sheer impulse, but strangely... he didn't regret it. he was here now. he was playing with the big boys and swimming in a sea of sharks. even so, this career was... taxing. already haunted by his encounters, he closed his eyes and saw viscera every time. wanting to free himself of the bloody thoughts, he drank to forgot, but it always came back.

he half-closed his eyes, about to do a shot of vodka and lounge about lazily in the hot summer sun when he heard mirror-shattering screams and he dropped the cup. wasted my alcohol, he thought, for a split second, before letting his eyes dart around for a source. that sounded like... iota. holy shit. unlike his encounter with stocking, where he had been drunk and lackadaisical about treating a broken leg, panic set in and sent his chest throbbing as he ran.

he saw her delicate form amidst the debris. a flower gasping under the rubble. "iota," he said in a panicked voice. "it's ok. it's malphas, i'm here. i'm sure... nayru will be here too..." the scene was horrible and malphas tried to block it out. but he couldn't. he started crying, unable to push the rubble off of her. he was just a cat. he treated what he could, putting a disinfectant on the bite marks on her body and carefully bandaging it this time. "it's alright. it's going to be ok. you're going to live." he said, voice shaking. "just stay with me. i care about you, damn it," he whined, unable to emotionally unattach himself from the situation as he worked.