Ascension - Book Eight - Man x Man

Chapter 126

I sit quietly in the exam room, cringing at the overhead lights buzzing in my ears. The computer flickers, people walk outside, going on with their lives while I hang by a thread in turmoil that others couldn't even imagine. Holding pressure on the spot where they'd taken blood, it was never a good sign when doctors whispered with each other with such concerned expressions. 

My face reflects back at me in the gold shimmer of the cuff, I spot the dark rings under my eyes, my olive skin pale and clammy from using. I was still nauseous, a possible side effect of what was happening to me. My eyes travel to the window, did it ever stop raining in this city? The steady drizzle continued on outside while I attempted to comprehend what we'd gone through. It was becoming more and more unsafe to travel as if we'd somehow regressed back in time. 

What would we have done without Tomas and Rowan there as protection? Even then, they had been rendered almost useless and we'd been forced to rely on Fenrir to pull us out of the clutches of a cat gone wild. I might have preferred this be the problem of an enhancer, rather than the admittance that whatever entity wanted to come to our plain was free to do so. 

A demon? 

We'd seen imps, but nothing on par with demonic energy besides the wraiths. Pressing my palm to my forehead, I pull my legs up onto the exam table with a heavy sigh, leaning back against the chill of the wall in hopes of soothing the twist and turns in my stomach. We were supposed to fix the planet, how did it feel as though we were only making things worse?

The door opens and two women file in, Rowan joins them with a soft smile, I reach for her and she quickly comes to take me in a soft hug. Her body felt warm, soft in my arms, while she was bandaged, she didn't seem to be harboring any major injuries. I note her arm is wrapped down to her wrist, but it seemed as though taping lycan's up was the preferred method. Doctors were still baffled by the increased healing, it was unsatisfying to just let them go. 

"Are you alright?" I ask her quickly, looking her over, as she examines me all the same. 

"Yes, sore and bruised, but healing quickly. They just had to put my shoulder back in, mostly. I'll be all limited use for a few weeks." She glances at her arm before turning her attention to the doctors who seemed as though they'd asked her to be here. I glance back and forth between them, quickly putting my hand on my stomach. 

"Don't you dare tell me something's wrong-"

The woman holds up her hands with a cautious expression, Rowan touches my shoulder, they were afraid of me. They were only humans. 

"Well. Sir. It would appear that you are a man who is... erm.. pregnant?" she questions, looking at my paperwork as she cautiously sits in the chair. I can smell the ammunition, the other woman was carrying a gun, a security officer in disguise as a nurse. Rowan came to protect me, of this, I could assure myself. She must have smelt it, too. 

So it was true. The cuff had worked, I'm happy and horrified all at the same time. "It's hard to explain." I manage, earning a concerned glance as she flips through the pages. 

"I don't pretend to understand the inner workings of magic users or lycans, so I can accept that this is probably true. But, your progesterone, which is the hormone that helps to hold the pregnancy, is dangerously low. You're male, you're not meant to carry a child... so this is all going to be a major shock to your body. Your hemoglobin is low, I'm worried you have some sort of internal bleeding. I'd like to hook you up and keep you for testing. Sir, frankly, I'm concerned. Where a baby is even hiding in your body is.. not possible. You don't have a uterus."

"Magic users have their ways. I'd like to remind you His Majesty is not a stranger to the divine and also would appreciate you not treating him in such a discriminatory fashion." Rowan interjects sharply, "I'm his lawyer. I suggest you use an appropriate tone as you would with any expecting person and not unnecessarily scare him with bias."