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“Elara...”
“Draven,” I whispered, kissing him again. “Take it easy.”
He pushed himself up gingerly, wincing. Glancing around, he relaxed back onto his pillows as his breathing steadied.
“So this is the afterlife?” he joked. “What happened? I thought I died.”
“Me, too,” I said, overjoyed to see him awake. “I’ll explain everything, but first let me get you some trishem.”
“That’d be nice,” he chuckled.
I excitedly prepared the warm drink before returning to him.
“Tell me everything,” he said weakly.
“Your men brought you here after you collapsed. They said you should’ve died. It’s a miracle you’re alive.”
“It’ll take more than plasma to stop me,” he boasted before grimacing in pain. “Fuck!”
“Slow movements! You’re still recovering.”
He sipped the trishem carefully. “How long was I out?”
“Like twelve hours, I think. I never left your side.”
“Thank you,” he murmured. “What about my wounds?”
“The others found a nanite regeneration sleeve. They used it on me, too.” I showed my silicone patches.
“Ah, just like the battlefield days,” he mused. “They stitched you up nicely.”
I sat on the bed’s edge, taking his hand. “I was so scared you wouldn’t make it.”
He cocked his head. “Well, I think I know what saved me. It wasn’t any nanite sleeve.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, confused.
“I couldn’t leave such a pretty girl alone out there,” he said, voice strengthening.
“Draven, I’m glad even near death, you’re still a charmer,” I laughed.
He propped himself up slowly, turning to set his mug aside.
“Can I get you anything?” I asked.
“Just stay here with me,” he sighed. “You don’t know how good it is to see your beautiful face.”
“Draven, about the flower...”
“Shit, I forgot! What did you do with it?” he asked quickly.
“Don’t worry,” I assured him. “Sakkar’s destroying it far away as we speak. We considered keeping it secure here, but agreed it had to be vanquished for good.”
“Good,” he muttered, relieved. “That thing can’t survive. There may be villains out there worse than Jocelyn.”
Draven went silent for a moment as I stroked his cheeks.
“Listen, Elara,” he finally said. “Now that I’m awake, we need to talk.”
