“Makiel!” she called out into the entrance to the cave. Ferra was disappointed at the lack of echo. There was supposed to at least be some reverb right? It was dark so she honestly wasn’t sure if it was even a big cave, but she was expecting that it was at least deep enough for an echo. With no torch in hand she walked into the Cliffside. She followed the wall with one hand and her other stretched in front of her. It was only a few steps in and she gasped briefly. Cloth? Why is there cloth here? She thought as she pushed it aside. It was a thick burlap or duck fabric. She moved it aside and continued steadily forward. More cloth? It hung from a wood frame that she felt against the rough passage wall. Then there was another, and then several more after a hard angled turn. She lost track of exactly how many layers she walked through. Then she started seeing light around the edges and under the cloth. Whoever built all this seemed determined to hide what they were doing.
“You said you knew where she was.” It wasn’t a question, it was a statement. “Tell us. We’re getting her, no matter what. It’s going to be messy and violent.” His eyes dropped to her lightsaber, lingering on it and everything he knew it stood for. “If you’re going to have a problem with that, then stay here.”
"They have a saying about healers, Makiel," Zashii replied with freakish calm. "Those who know how to put you together... also know how to take you apart."
There was a small beat of silence as she let him digest her meaning.
"I intend to dissect these people. Now. My visions tell my Ryza is in Shadowtown. A dangerous, unsavory area. But I see you are prepared; and Cyraas can hold his own," she added.
Zashii didn't mention herself. It wasn't worth mentioning. If they did not know by now that a Jedi could handle herself, they would learn in very short order. As would those who dared hold her friend hostage. Take her away from Zashii. Hurt her.
She would stop the pain, and inflict it ten thousand fold back on those who deserved no mercy.
Rescuing Ryza [with Ryza, Mak, Cyraas, and Zashii.] Also known as Why You Do Not Want To Fuck With The Healers.
The Jedi she's tracking is elusive and knows the city better than she does, even better than Cyraas, whose own endeavors have met with roadblocks. Of course, her lack of success there doesn't mean she's not busy.
Nar Shadda is hell for a healer. So many hurting, and even if she worked night and day [which sometimes she does] she can't make more than a drop in the bucket's worth of difference here. It's frustrating.
That doesn't stop her from heading down to the slums every day, offering her services to the people there when she and Cyraas are not 'on the job'.
After all.... this is her home.
Granted she hasn't been back in years, not since her childhood. But still, it's home. It was in her name, the last name she chose for herself because she didn't have one when they asked at the Temple so they could enter her in thier records.
Narlu'un: of the Nar Shadda, of the Smuggler's Moon.
Newer to her, and perhaps more telling, though, as her first name, whose meaning was revealed to her by her half sister sister not two weeks ago.
Zashii: little Zash.
As in, Darth Zash, of the Sith Empire, Lafayne's master and a very powerful, cunning Force user in her own right. The resemblance between mother and daughter was... uncanny in many ways. On top of the revelation of her birth was the revelation of her family, something foresworn to Jedi as much as emotion and attachment.
The whole thing had her in knots- MORE knots, really, on top of the giant mess labeled 'Cyraas' in her mind, on top of her slowly encroaching death.
Zashii can feel herself beginning to slip a little, faint spiderweb cracks forming under the strain of recent and not so recent events.
And now, this.
She was used to dreams by now, almost used to the nightmares that came from her connection the Plaugemaster. But this, this was different.
This was a vision, real time events, happening somewhere on Nar Shadda... A vision of someone she knew.
Her best friend, Ryza Adaria, former smuggler turned GAR pilot, captured and tortured by Imperials. The last- the last...
...The last had seen her broken, finally, crying in a corner, begging for the pain to stop.
Zashii tried to find her through normal channels. She asked, she searched, she followed leads to dead ends, but came up with nothing. She asked the GAR and the Jedi, but got the same replies, of not enough manpower and the importance of neutrality.
And it was driving her mad. Ryza needed her, needed her help, and Zashii was kriffing useless and yet another night of visions passed.
The night Ryza broke, something also cracked in Zashii; something fragile and small but vitally important.
No more.
No. Fucking. More.
I am a Jedi and a healer and I am not going to DIE knowing I failed to save my best friend. To hell with the Hutts and thier supposed neutrality. To hell with the orders to stay out of Imperial business. To hell with the Jedi- who are THEY to say what I can and cannot do? They do not know me.
They underestimate my power.
I WILL protect them. My friends, Cyraas,- all of them. I will protect them and deliver justice to those who would hurt them.
I will.
And if I have to cut through all of Nar Shadda to do it...
Be that as it may.
She reached for her comm unit, there on her bedside table in the darkness of what passed for night. No sleep, not anymore.
Septicemia is bacteria in the blood (bacteremia) that often occurs with severe infections.
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
Septicemia is a serious, life-threatening infection that gets worse very quickly. It can arise from infections throughout the body, including infections in the lungs, abdomen, and urinary tract. It may come before or at the same time as infections of the:
Bone (osteomyelitis)
Central nervous system (meningitis)
Heart (endocarditis)
Other tissues
Symptoms
Septicemia can begin with:
Chills
High fever
Rapid breathing
Rapid heart rate
The person looks very ill.
The symptoms quickly progress to:
Confusion or other changes in mental status
Red spots on the skin (petechiae and ecchymosis)
Shock
There may be decreased or no urine output.
Signs and tests
A physical examination may show:
Low blood pressure
Low body temperature or fever
Signs of related disease (such as meningitis, epiglottitis, pneumonia, or cellulitis)
Tests that can confirm infection include:
Blood culture
Blood gases
CBC
Clotting studies
PT
PTT
Fibrinogen levels
CSF culture
Culture of skin sore
Platelet count
Urine culture
Treatment
Septicemia is a serious condition that requires a hospital stay. You may be admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU).
You may be given:
Antibiotics to treat the infection
Fluids and medicines by IV to maintain the blood pressure
Oxygen
Plasma or other blood products to correct any clotting problems
Expectations (prognosis)
The outlook depends on the bacteria involved and how quickly the patient is hospitalized and treatment begins. The death rate is high -- more than 50% for some infections.
Complications
Septicemia can quickly lead to:
Adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS)
Septic shock
Death
Septicemia due to meningococci can lead to shock or adrenal collapse (Waterhouse-Friderichsen syndrome).
Calling your health care provider
Septicemia is not common but it is very serious. Diagnosing it early may prevent septicemia from worsening to shock.
Seek immediate care if:
A person has a fever, shaking chills, and looks very ill
Any person who has been ill has changes in mental status
There are signs of bleeding into the skin
Call your health care provider if your child's vaccinations are not up-to-date.
