After All

Chapter 14: Flee

When Zane eventually awoke, it felt like he had been asleep for hours, even though he was out for only several minutes. His entire body ached, but he still did his best to examine his surroundings. He was lying on a cot in a large grey room, underneath a barred window. Zane glanced over to his left and saw Omar sleeping on the cot beside him. He wanted to call out to his friend, however, he was unable to once he heard faint footsteps approaching. Zane quickly lay back down, hoping the Skathi entering the room would leave soon. Much to Zane's dismay, the footsteps got closer to him and only stopped as the Skathi began removing his helmet. He didn't have much time to respond as his helmet was removed, and he came face to face with a Skathi nurse. He quickly sat up, hoping to get in a better position should she report him to her superiors. Instead, the nurse's eyes widened, and she dropped the helmet out of shock. Zane froze as their eyes met, and the nurse covered her mouth with her hands. Something about her seemed familiar to Zane, but he couldn't figure it out until she spoke.

"Zane?" Artemisia softly asked.

"Artemis? Is... Is it really you?" Zane wondered, confused and amazed that she was there. Wordlessly, Artemisia lowered her hands and placed one of them on Zane's cheek. He shivered at her cold touch, however, once she transformed back into her Elanan form his suspicions were confirmed.

"What are you doing here?" Artemisia asked, examining Zane for injuries with her eyes.

"Omar and I were sneaking over to take out the catapults. But we got hit by something, and we were knocked out." Zane explained, gesturing to his friend.

"Yeah. It was Quillian's idea. They were saving the catapults for when they besieged the Elanan stronghold. But he wanted to start using them now. They don't always work as intended." Artemisia confirmed, retracting her hand and walking away.

"Quillian? Who's that?" Zane asked, watching Artemisia organize medical supplies in an attempt to make herself busy.

"My older brother. He is the new heir to my father's throne. He's the one calling the shots now." Artemisia explained.

"Heir? Is that why you're out here?" Zane wondered, trying to make sense of Skathi practices.

"No. I renounced my title. Then I joined the field hospital to make better use of my powers." Artemisia added, turning to face Zane.

"You... you did that?" Zane asked, amazed that Artemisia would give up a huge part of her identity. Artemisia nodded in response. Before she could speak, Artemisia heard footsteps approaching in the distance. She quickly rushed over to Zane and slammed a pillow in his face.

"Someone's coming!" Artemisia quietly exclaimed. Zane flopped back onto the cot, surprised by Artemisia's strength and force. She quickly changed back into her Skathi form as Adonis entered the room.

"Artemisia! I'm glad you're here! Listen, you need to leave, it's not safe!" Adonis urged, rushing to Artemisia's side.

"Nowhere is safe on the front lines," Artemisia responded, trying to remind Adonis of the situation they were in.

"I'm not talking about the lines, I'm talking about Quillian!" Adonis exclaimed.

"What about him?" Artemisia nonchalantly asked.

"He is coming here to kill you!" Adonis shouted, trying to convey the urgency of the situation to Artemisia.

"Kill me? Why would he do that? He has everything he's ever wanted." Artemisia pointed out.

"As long as you're alive, you can challenge his claim to the throne. He's already gone after Orpheus-" Adonis added, unwittingly revealing that Quillian had killed Orpheus already.