Luna's Reckoning

12

LUNA

I opened my eyes to sunlight streaming on my face. I squinted against the light and looked to my side, where Peter was sitting by my bed, sound asleep. I looked down at myself and saw that I was still restrained.

"Peter?" I called out, my throat hoarse and raw again.

Peter stirred and peered at me with tired eyes. "Hey," he said and stretched. "How are you feeling?"

"Hot. Really sweaty. But I feel . . .better." I honestly did. All the pain I'd felt was gone. In fact, I felt great. My vision was sharp and clear, I wasn't sore, I felt refreshed and energized. . .and I had to pee. "But I need to pee, though."

Peter watched me for several seconds and I started to squirm from my pounding bladder.

"Peter, I don't mean to rush you but. . ."

He hastily got up and started to unbuckle the restraints on me. "Oh, yes, sorry. I was just trying to make sure you were stable."

Once the restraints were free, Peter took my hand and helped me sit up. I exhaled in relief. Those restraints had been heavy and being tied down was annoying and trying.

Peter helped me to my feet. My knees buckled for a brief moment as a sudden wave of dizziness swept through me but I managed to regain my balance quickly.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his face pinched with concern.

"Yes," I said, beads of sweat forming on my forehead as my bladder pressed even harder. "But I really, really need to pee."

Peter's mouth twitched with amusement and he quickly escorted me to the bathroom. I barely waited for the door behind me to close before pulling my pants down and relieving myself. I sighed in relief. After doing my business, I washed my hands and came back outside, where Peter was waiting.

"Are you alright?" he asked, still looking weary.

"I am now," I said with relief. "I honestly do feel better."

"It looks like those flares have passed, but we're still going to have to keep an eye on you."

"Flares?"
"The moments where your body was trying to shift but you weren't ready, where you were in a lot of pain. It looks like it's passed and your body's adapting."

I felt a small frisson of excitement shoot through me. "Am I going to shapeshift?"

"Not at the moment. While you're not in pain right now and you're doing better, your body still hasn't fully adapted one hundred percent to these huge changes you've gone through. It takes about three weeks for your body to fully develop into this and for it to be safe for you to shift."

I turned slightly, expecting to see Trinity there - even Helen or Johnny, despite knowing what had happened to them but so used to them that a part of me always knew they'd be there - but she wasn't. I thought it was a bit odd. Usually by now she would make an appearance.

Peter took a deep breath. "I have a lot to tell you."

My excitement immediately fizzled and I wearily looked at him. I knew he was going to say that and I knew that whatever news he was going to give me, it was going to be bad.

"What happened?" I demanded. "What's Lilith done?"

"I'll tell you all of it when we sit down. You're going to need to, but we need to find a much better location. We need to leave and give everyone space."