Rock-a-bye, baby
In the treetop
When the wind blows
The cradle will rock
When the bough breaks
The cradle will fall
And down will come, baby
Cradle and all
Matthos remembered closing the door when he left. When he arrived, the backdoor was open. Taking no chances, he ran inside and placed Lumi on the couch. He closed the door and then prepared for total lockdown. He pressed the button on his smartwatch, a simple, inconspicuous button that had quite a control on the cabin.
Before long, metal panels slowly-lowered into the ground. The magnesium alloy-coated panels made a soft creak, and the scent of metal soon engulfed the room. The smell caused Lumi to groan in her stupor.
"It's alright. You're safe," Matthos whispered before pressing another button and chose a setting to do a total lockdown. He then carried Lumi upstairs to his grandfather's bedroom, which served as his hospice care until he met his end. The room had all the medical provisions necessary to even cover a semi-major operation.
Matthos laid her on the medical bed, where she was still in deep unconsciousness. With years of experience in making people bleed and bleeding himself, he had sufficient knowledge in treating wounds.
'When in doubt, Google it out.'
Matthos laughed at the inside joke as he washed his hands. He then sterilized his tools and started to clean the stab wounds. He was lucky that most of them were soft tissue wounds, which meant he did not need to rush her to the hospital. He took a glance and then marveled at the sight of Lumi's right eye wound. He went closer and gently pushed her eyelid open and saw that her eye was slowly repairing itself on its own.
Anyone would've been disgusted at the sight of it, but not Matthos. He was intrigued. It was the first time he ever saw a human-like being capable of quick recovery. But he surmised that Lumi's body was concentrating on her right eye, so he had to treat the rest of the stab wounds to ensure she won't bleed to death.
He cleaned the right eye wound, removing the small stones and dust accumulated on the eyelid's surface and the rest of her face. Matthos then proceeded to clean the other wounds that looked ghastly. Like meat marinated in vinegar, the skin flap was turning white due to the storm. There were bits of dirt and even some small leaves that he patiently removed from the wounds, cleaning as he went.
It was finally time for the sutures, which he hates the most. In school, he almost failed the course due to his poor suture stitching skills. He decided to complain later and started on the largest stab wound. Matthos noted that he'd have to add a brace on what looked to be a sprained ankle.
Hours later, Matthos meticulously ended the last bandage. The work wasn't over. He would've stitched wounds all over again rather than dress an unconscious lady, but he was already there.
Matthos went to his mother's room and raided her closet, choosing a nightshirt and some undergarments before going back to the room.
"You've already done this before, Matthos. You can do it again," he pep-talked and started to remove what was left of Lumi's clothes. The fabric was not modern by any means. He decided to put it aside and then dressed her carefully, avoiding the bandages. She did not show any signs of waking up in an hour.
He saved her head for last, observing her for any trauma. When he found her, there was no hair on her head. Now, her hair was about an inch-long, and he couldn't pinpoint the color.
Matthos came to the conclusion that strong scents triggered responses from Lumi. Not knowing if it was a good or bad thing, he decided to avoid using scented candles and oils for now. He covered her with a thick fleece blanket and left the room with the light on.
By the time he finished the operation, it was already the witching hour. He raised the security panels and heard the storm in full force. It was still strong outside, with the wind slapping the seemingly simple glass window. Matthos went inside his room and removed the damp clothes. He'd pay for it in the morning, he noted. To combat that, he took some Tylenol and cold medicine.
Stepping into his shower to start brainstorming, Matthos started the hot water. He hissed when the water got in contact with his left hand. He didn't notice the long scratch. He glanced down and saw scratches on his legs.
'There goes my perfect skin.'
He chuckled at the thought and proceeded to clean the cuts with soap. Then, he proceeded to brainstorm. After all, it was the witching hour, and his mind is amazingly awake after the adventure he took.
"Human-like being, attacked and tortured. She's been to the brink of death, but it looks intended. The setting does not look like it was planned; the attacker was caught and forced to flee. Whoever could it be, or what?"
Then he noted how Lumi got there, "Did she get here through normal travel?"
If so, then Matthos can simply cover-up and claim she's someone's relative. However, if she did not enter Physma legally, then he'd have to come up with an excuse.
A first glance at Lumi, and she'll look normal. In the second one, you'll notice that her ears are abnormally sharp at the end. When he left her, Lumi's hair was still growing out of her head, and it did not have a normal color.
He got out of the shower, feeling the exhaustion catching onto him. Matthos knew it was time for him to rest. He dressed in his pajamas quickly before going back to the room where Lumi peacefully lay. Setting up the sofabed where the former caregiver stayed for night monitoring, he laid down and covered himself up.
If someone asked how his evening went, the true answer would've made people lose their respect for him and cause dishonor to the family. But he was Matthos Trem. When he has questions, he will get the answers.
"My curiosity will be quenched. All I have to do is wait," he said to himself. Before he closed his eyes, he whispered, "Try to sleep a little longer, little one." Then Matthos went to dreamland himself.