(BL) Hunting The Field Guide

Rhys had always hated going to sleep.

It felt like a waste of time.

Ever since he'd awoken with his powers in the middle of a gate eruption, sleeping had never been his friend. Before it had been an escape, a time away from the harsh words from his parents and their fists, but now? Now it was absolute hell.

Especially when his sleep was plagued with realities that could happen to those he cared about, alternate realities that he worked desperately to prevent.

It was something he would never bring up, never tell anyone. The fact that he couldn't see his friends' futures when he was awake, could never see anything positive, but when he was asleep? He was haunted by futures that would hurt, destroy or leave his friends shattered in pieces.

He wasn't quite sure if they were real, or just elaborate dreams that his body put him through just to torment him with. One of the reasons he wasn't sure was because he had never seen the future that they were in now. The one where Gunther left to join the E.A.G. to get to their core in the city, or where he learned of how Gunther loved others.

There had been no futures where Gunther stood over Casper's bruised and battered body. Not until after he'd found out that truth.

While he had hoped that being with Kellen would fix this issue, he had prayed and hoped that being with the man who meant everything would help his racing mind, it only worked sometimes. If there was too much stress building up in him, sleeping with Kellen at his side wouldn't relieve him from these nightmares.

Honestly, Rhys hoped that they weren't true. Hoped that these were all just elaborate imaginations by his twisted, fucked up mind. It would make him feel better knowing that the worst he could imagine wasn't what was going to happen.

He'd imagined some pretty crazy things, especially before he was sharing a bed with Kellen.

Now, he was worried that he would never share a bed with Kellen ever again.

Rhys swallowed, his throat tight as he felt his body slowly wake up. He'd put himself to sleep while Kellen had left for the front lines. He could feel his stress levels jumping even imagining it, knew he needed to do it before he could turn back, chase after the man, break his promise.

He wondered why he was being awoken now, and who was doing it. There were very few people who would have the balls to do it, especially given the situation, and the orders he had given.

He had told them to give him a lethal injection if Kellen didn't come out of the gate. If the gate remained sealed forever, and the city was compromised. Rhys didn't want to wake up in a world without Kellen.

He had a feeling that Kellen knew what orders he'd given, but hadn't asked about them for his own sanity. Rhys appreciated that he hadn't. He didn't want to add another worry to the man's already heavy shoulders.

Rhys was going to have to have a serious conversation with his parents when Kellen wasn't around after all this.

Slowly, Rhys woke up, his body screaming in anger, annoyance, and fear. He didn't want to wake up and find out that the worst had come to pass. He also didn't want to wake up and find out that he'd missed Kellen coming out either. It was a complicated feeling, what he was experiencing.

So it was understandable that he was in a terrible mood when he opened his eyes in the medical bay, his whole body vibrating.

"C-Captain Thatcher?" It was a familiar voice, someone he knew. It took Rhys a few seconds to realise who it was, and when he did, it was like his mind gave him a clear.

It was Casper, a man he had known for a long time, his Lieutenant, the man who Gunther loved more than his own life. Rhys knew that far too well. Rhys let out an annoyed sigh, not at Casper, but at the whole fucking situation.

"I'm me." Rhys confirmed. Something that always needed to be confirmed when waking up after being put under. There was a small, small chance that someone who had been put under like this would change, not be themselves when they woke up. There was a reason for this clarification, especially since S Classes were the ones who used this type of sleep the most.

If Rhys woke up and he wasn't himself, there was some time where he could easily be put back under without much complaint on his part. That was what Casper was confirming.

"Oh thank goodness. I didn't want to wait too long, but…" Casper trailed off as Rhys sat up. He was in the back part of the medical bay. In some of the rooms that were across from the monitoring rooms that he had Kellen had used for their monitored guiding sessions. One side of the hallway was full of the rooms that he had used with Kellen, while the other side was full of these types of rooms.

Rooms meant to house misbehaving Espers. Guides would never need these kinds of rooms. Rhys had made sure he had everything he would need when he built his tower. He didn't want to have to do too much modification once he'd built his home. It was times like this he was glad he was a forward thinker.

The medical assistant who had been on standby gave Rhys a nod as he left the room, leaving Casper and Rhys alone. Rhys was topless, having been hooked up to a few monitoring machines, the bed a little more complicated, something that they often used for long term coma patients. Casper scanned him, taking in every inch of him. Rhys did the same to Casper.

Casper looked tired. Exhausted actually. Rhys felt his concern only grow as he swore the man swayed on his feet.

"Casper, come sit down. You're making me nervous." Rhys told him, gesturing for Casper to come over. Casper hesitated, but listened to Rhys. He knew that he had news for him. That would be the only reason that he would wake him up, but that could wait. Especially if Casper was in this state. He looked about as bad as when Kellen had benched him, only there was no one who could step up and help him right now.

Casper sat on the bed where Rhys had just been lying down, unconscious, the air heavy between them. He looked like he was mulling over something, unsure what to say, before he finally opened his mouth.

"They haven't found a trace of Theodore yet." Casper told him, and Rhys' heart ached for the other man. Despite what he had said, it was clear that Casper still cared for the other man. This was probably one of the worst things that they could have done, yet here they were. Separated when the two of them were unsure of what they would be, what they would become.

On the other hand, Rhys felt his own pain at those words. He hoped, prayed that the man who had helped him build this Guild by his side was okay. He wasn't sure he'd be able to handle everything that was going on without Gunther at his side, forever.

"No check ins?" Rhys confirmed, knowing that Casper had to be up to date on everything at this point, if he hadn't been already. Casper's lips twitched up for a second before they fell down again. He was gripping onto the edge of the bed, his hands unnaturally pale from the strength he was exerting.

"No. None. We also…found Brent." Casper told him, exhaling slowly. "He's a rich kid from across the ocean. His grandfather passed, and he's the sole heir. The family is holding him hostage. He doesn't look…he doesn't look well." Casper said quietly, but Rhys wasn't worried immediately.

At least he wasn't dead. Or still missing. That was one thing he would be happy to hand over to Kellen once he was out of the gate.

"He's alive though, right?" Rhys confirmed and Casper looked upset.

"I don't know for how much longer, Rhys. It's not looking good. Thankfully, Pamela has come back from the front lines to start pulling her strings. Even Kellen's Mom has come out of her depression hole and is helping out. So is…Kellen's Dad." Casper said, unsure. "I think…the other news helped." He said quietly, and Rhys held his breath.

The other news? What other news?

Casper turned his gaze towards Rhys, examining his expression, how expectant Rhys was, how he wasn't breathing. Then he sighed, closed his eyes for a second before he looked back at the door into the room.

"The gate opened. Someone touched the core."

Rhys felt his world shift at hearing those words. Felt how tight he gripped the edge of the bed, heard the plastic and metal shift, squeaking under his hands. That was the news he wanted to hear. It wasn't a pure sign that it was Kellen on the other side of it, but who the hell else would be able to pull off something like this?

That was his man.

"How long have I been out for?" Rhys asked the next important question. Rhys had no idea, especially since the room was so clinical. It was intentional, another thing put into place in case an Esper woke up poorly.

"It's been about 5 days, give or take a few hours. I don't know when he went in, but yeah." Casper said. Rhys frowned. Five days? To get to the core? Knowing Kellen, he'd try to go in as straight of a line as possible, so that meant…

"Fuck. It's huge, huh?" Rhys muttered, and Casper let out a shaky laugh.

"Yeah. It has to be. Kellen's too focused to do anything but the task at hand." Casper said, and both men turned to meet each other's gaze. A knowing look passed between them before Rhys let out a shaky exhale, then pushed off of the bed. He got to his feet, dusting himself off and turning to Casper.

Determination was in his eyes, in his body.

"I better go get ready to welcome my boyfriend back, hmm?" Rhys said, his voice intentionally light. Casper stared at him, a little weary.

"What are you planning to do?" Casper asked, unsure. Rhys chuckled.

"Well, he always liked me in my uniform. I can't disappoint him, now can I?"