Yes, I am evil. Fully acknowledged and accepted. All hate mail that I received for not updating in (wow a year?!) I fully deserve. Hopefully I will have the next chapter of Devastation up this week as well. I am sorry guys. This is a mediocre start back into the story, but I'm a little rusty.

Standard Disclaimers apply.

Lady Penelope Creighton-Ward sat reclined in the back seat of her bright pink Ford. "Jeff I'm nearing the hospital now. Do you want me to have Alan call you when we start back to the island?" Parker was pulling the car into the pull through at the hospitals front entrance.

"Only if he's feeling up to it; is Parker going to go and pickup Fermat now?" Jeff Tracy was calling from the cockpit of one of the thunderbirds.

Penelope caught Parker's eye in the review mirror and watched him nod. "Yes, he's going to get Alan and Fermat's school supplies as well. We may need to stop at a grocer's as well on our way out. Dr. Feng had mentioned a special diet for Alan."

Jeff nodded. "I'll see you later tonight then, Penelope. Thank you for helping out."

"Always a pleasure, Jeff, I'll see you tonight." Penny disconnected her vidlink and spoke to Parker. "Wharton's is only 20 minutes from here. I've already called ahead to the school's dormitory to let them know you will be arriving shortly. Fermat should already have their things packed and ready to go."

"Yes, M'lady. The lad and I will return within the hour." Parker tipped his forefinger to his head in response and slid the pink Ford into a receiving area of the hospital. He left the engine idling as he hopped out to smartly open the car door for Lady Penelope.

With a grace bred from years of protocol classes Penelope exited from the rear of her car. She straightened her suit jacket and nodded her farewell to her loyalist servant. "I'll see you then, Parker." Resolutely she turned to peer into the daunting building ahead of her. The hospital was a light beige color and with the main building being made entirely from cut stone. It was a very old building, having been first used as a hospital for the French forces during the revolutionary war, when it had been annexed from a lord holder that had fled to Britain when the war had first turned vicious. Additional edifices had been added over time to the over all structure. The architects had attempted to stay true to the overall form and had chosen building materials that complemented the main building.

She made her way into a tall, well lit foyer that opened into a wide receiving room. The moldings along the walls and the banister of the stairs were reminiscent of a much older time. A time when crafters and creators made their living by their own hands in small buildings lit by oil lanterns and candles and floors covered in hay to keep the fleas from the stains and wood. You could feel time in this room. Standing quiet and still for a moment, Penny processed the sensation. It was unusual for find a place like this in the America's. It was still too new of a country for even the oldest of buildings to have accumulated their own since of permanence and presence like the ones in her homeland had. Oddly, she felt much more comfortable as she turned towards a large credenza that had been erected against a side wall. Walking up to the front desk she blinked at the sight of the 7 inch tall mini-pen computers that were sitting in the center of the desks, surprised at the technology. The red light from the keyboard graphic on the white desktop reflected back up onto the receptions face, lending a cheery apple tint to her cheeks.

The mature woman gave her a pleasant smile as she stopped at the desk. "Good afternoon, dear. How can I assist you?"

Penelope felt herself responding warmly. "I'm here to see Alan Tracy. He was brought in earlier today from Wharton's Academy. Doctor Feng is his attending." The receptionist nodded and slid her fingers expertly over the table top, gently tapping her index fingertip periodically on the desktop.

"Is that Tracey with and 'e'?" She verified.

"No, just a 'y'" A nod and then: "I have him here. He's in room 4017. That's on the 4th floor. If you take the hall way to your left, there will be a bank of elevators on your right. At the top, go straight through the double doors and take the next immediate left. He should be a few doors down from there." She wiped her hand across the keyboard projection to clear her search and return to the main VDT screen. Penny thanked her and then made her way to the elevators.

A large, garishly painted purple '4' greeted her when she stepped off the elevator. She wrinkled her nose and muttered. "Ghastly!" Quickly she located room 4017 and stood outside it for a moment, gathering her thoughts. The door was open and a thin why curtain was pulled around the bed inside for privacy. She could hear the steady hiss of oxygen and the quiet atonal blurps from a set of monitoring machines. Penelope pushed the curtain back with a timid hand.