My body shook violently. I couldnt do anything to stop it. No matter how hard I tried, the muscles in my legs and arms alternated tightening and releasing. It was like being a prisoner in my mind.
Hes having a seizure. Kinsleys voice, commanding now, devoid of the emotion from monts before.
Put this in his mouth.
No. Thatll just fuck up his jaw Kinsley shouted. Help cushion his headWheres the god-damn healer?
Here, A new voice, feminine with a middle-eastern accent. Sothing grabbed my wrist. Might as well be a hummingbird. Heart-rate is through the roof. It shouldnt be that high.
My vision was pinprick tight. I caught a glimpse of Sara, one of many faces surveying the scene, clearly wanting to help but not sure how.
Saras eyes widened. She pushed her way up through the crowd and bent down. Hes running a feat that keeps him conscious, regardless of injury.
What? The healer squawked. Of all the stupidNever mind. Nothing surprises anymore. Can he be sedated?
Sara hesitated. I think so.
Definitive answers please.
A monts pause. Yes.
Then we better hope this works. Or our friend here may have serious complications.
There was an inexpressible warmth that soaked through the back of my skull, trailing down my neck and spine. Then, nothing.
/////
I woke slowly, feeling as if Id slept for a thousand years. When I reached up to rub my face, my hand stopped, obstructed. I blinked at it, spotting a clear, taped-down tube funneling liquid at the base of my wrist.
IV.
There it was, the bag of saline and whatever else, next to an oddly high-tech looking heart monitor. Along with panic, an nostalgic feeling swept over . Waking up in a hospital bed, with no clue where I was or what had happened in the interim. All too similar to how this started. Which put at sothing of an advantage. Id done this before.
I switched my title to to ward off the panic, reached across my body with my other hand and began to peel the tape off.
No you dont. Ellison put a hand protectively over the tape, then turned to the side. Heads up, hes at it again. Turn the tv off.
An uncharacteristic surge of anger ca over . Rembering how there was a high chance Ellison was a User, yet hed practically abandoned our region, I pulled my arm away. Dont touch .
Matthias. My mother admonished, her voice shocked.
Ellison blinked, looking from , to the others in the room. Excuse for caring.
I snorted.
Dont take it personally, Kinsley stepped between the hospital bed and Ellison, placing herself between us. Head injury, rember?
She was right. I took a deep breath and exhaled, letting the anger go.
Ellisons hand curled into a fist, then relaxed. An air of false placidity ca over him. Whatever. Ill get the doc.
How long was I out? And how are we paying for this? I looked around, confused, as my vision returned. The curtain on the far end was drawn, but from the lighting it looked to be midday, maybe late afternoon. And this was anything but a standard hospital room. It looked more like a spacious, luxurious bedroom that soone had converted to ho care. There were nature photos on the walls, a dark-wooded dusty night stand that had been pushed to the corner, and a placard with the words Every Day is a Blessing, that hung above the door. Below, there were deep grooves in the carpet, probably left behind by a bed-fra.
My mother had been sleeping on a recliner in the corner and was blearily rising to her feet. There were several mounds of blankets and pillows scattered around the room, one of which held Iris, still sleeping soundly.
Kinsley eyed suspiciously. If I explain, promise youll stay in bed?
If you dont explain, I definitely wont.
God youre unbearable. Kinsley climbed to the top of a stool that looked more at ho at soones bar. Fine. Its been around eighteen hours. Were still in Region 14. And youre not paying for anything of this, so relax. A few things have happened, so we should talk about now, so later.
Whose house is this? It looks expensive.
Apartnt, Kinsleys eyes slid to the side. Sort of. And its, uh
There was a screech of tal, unfathomably loud. I nearly leapt to my feet, only prevented by Mom and Kinsley holding down. I struggled, trying to get free, trying to get out of the way of whatever was making that noise. The door opened, revealing a dark-skinned woman in a doctors coat. She was brimming with barely contained irritation, heavy bags under her eyes.
And why, exactly, Mr. Matthias, are you trying to get out of bed again?
Feeling foolish, I stopped struggling. My mind tracked back to what had just happened. The noise that startled . Had that been nothing more than the door opening? It sounded so much more thunderous than that.
Hes more lucid, this ti. I think hes just acclimating.
Were all acclimating. The doctor took a seat on the stool at my side and flipped open a folder, flipping through it. Matthias, my na is Doctor Ansari. Hows your recall of the last day?
Not great. I couldnt rember anything.
No mory of moving you here from the hospital?
None. I confird.
Her eyebrow lowered. Any recollection of telling to go fuck myself? Or your extensive color comntary on my recent divorce? Ansari asked. She looked almost completely unfazed, but there was an edge to the words that told she wasnt over it.
That didnt sound like , until I realized Id fallen unconscious with still in effect. I cringed. Nothing.
Im not being spiteful. Ansari tapped a pen against paper. This is important. You were very on target with your insights. Made the sort of observations youd generally need to be lucid for.
At that reminder, I reached down towards my chest. There was no wound, only a long scar where the seraphic damage had torn through .
Unless theres sothing else at play, we might want to order an additional MRI.
Unsure of how much information to reveal, I settled for as little as possible. I have a thing.
Ansaris eyebrow quirked. A system thing?
Yes.
Users.
What? My mother asked.
Nothing. Ansari snapped her folder closed and bent forward, intensity in her dark eyes. Ive done everything I can for you. You were in bad shape. Enough that youd probably spend half a year in physical therapy in the old world. Even then, you wouldnt have been the sa.
It was that bad? I was almost afraid to ask. I took more than a few healing potions.
Ansari blew air through her mouth. You and everyone else. They can save a life, but they only carry a person so far. If the adventurers guild hadnt gilded your parachute, youd probably still spend months recovering. It took the absolute extent of my abilities to shorten that to a month minimum.
Thats not happening. I said imdiately. A month was far too long. Ansari and Kinsley shared a look.
Which is what she said youd say. Ansari sighed. Fine. I have an alternative, but its not proven, and it cos with conditions. No fighting, no running, no walking. You need bed rest whenever possible, and if you are up and about, itll be in a wheelchair.
Is that really necessary? My mother asked through glistening eyes.
Ansari turned on her, her expression angry. Yes. His body has been through hell. There was layer after layer of barely healed injuries that were resistant to my thods. And thats just from the event. There were a half-dozen fractures from old injuries that either went untreated, or were tended by an idiot.
Mom fell silent, jaw set tightly as she studied her feet.
You fixed those too? Kinsley asked, trying to defuse the sudden tension.
Of course I did. But my efforts will go to waste if he goes running off. Ansari opened a briefcase and withdrew two tall black elixirs. Full transparencyand to be honest, Im still not used to saying thisbut these are from a witch. Soone I know and trust. Normally, that wouldnt be enough, but Ive seen her work. Its solid. Ansari suddenly swiveled, giving a sidelong look. Go ahead. Get it out. Im sure youve already figured it out and have an obvious crack to make about my ex being a witch?
None whatsoever, I said, making a ntal note to try to make up for whatever Id said to the doctor to get under her skin so badly. Other than the fact that Im grateful for the coincidence.
She wrinkled her nose, as if she found even that offensive. The side effects of consuming a full flask are nothing to sneeze at. Severe night terrors and nausea. Drink as much of a single flask as you can manage, limiting yourself to one a day. Any more and the toxicity will kill you. Once youre through both of them, you should be looking at a full recovery. That could technically be two days from now, but Id highly advise spreading them out over a week. Not that youll listen.
Ansari went on for a while, emphasizing the importance of following her instructions, and brutally outlining the consequences of what would happen if I didnt listen. When she spent an overly long ti describing the latter, Mom excused herself, saying sothing about checking on Ellison, looking more than a little unsettled.
Finally, Ansari packed up her bag and left, leaving only and Kinsley in the room. I braced myself when she shut the door, only feeling marginally better when it shut at a normal volu.
Well. Lets get so light in here. Kinsley crossed the room, throwing open a window. It extended from the ceiling all the way to the floor. We were insanely high up, with an expansive view of the city beyond. I leaned forward, trying to get a better look at a series of objects, darting around the sky. My mouth dropped open.
Are those people?
Mhm. Everythings changing. Kinsley shifted from side to side. For the first ti, I noticed how tired she looked. Like she hadnt slept a minute since Id been out. Almost all the regions have benefited from the transposition in so way. ans of production, portals opening up, rare materials. And a few sections that got sothing highly specific but useful. Most of the flying folks are using a charm from Region 7, for example. No idea how many they have, if they make it or hold a specific number, but were in talks. Speaking of which, Adventurers Guild folks are going to co by to help go over what you want to do with the region.
Thats right. The proctor had ntioned that even the unfortified regions had to pick sothing.
What are our options? I asked.
No clue, Kinsley said. Youre the only one that can see it.
Thats right. The system had given ownership of the region to . Whatever the hell that ant.
I shook my head. Jesus. Im having a hard ti processing here. There were a half-dozen things I needed to do, including telling Kinsley that her father was alive. Even if it was a distraction, shed never forgive if I kept it to myself, and she found out later. Kinsley, I owe you an explanation. And theres sothing else you should know.
In a minute. Kinsley withdrew a handful of items from her inventory and handed them to , first returning my weapons, then my mask. I held it up, studying the jagged lines.
You kept my things safe?
Took them off your body while you were in the ambulance. Figured if it was important enough for you to sell it to , you probably wouldnt want so nosy person stumbling over it. She glanced over, suddenly uncertain. Was that okay?
I fought the urge to put it back on, slowly replacing it in my inventory. Seeing as how you most likely saved my ass, yes, Id say its okay.
Now, Kinsley clapped her hands together. I suppressed a jump. She opened the closet and withdrew a wheelchair. Iris stirred from the movent, then fell back to sleep, turning on her side. Before we get into the heavy stuff, lets have so fun. Its ti for a tour of the penthouse.
I smiled. Id been itching to get out of bed. It was like shed read my mind. You still havent told . Whos putting up?
Kinsley flashed a mischievous grin. Thats because no one is. Its yours.
Wait. What?
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