Excalibur Rising

New found sight

Chapter 16

For two days straight Xandria laid motionless on her bed amidst the sea of aqua coloured bedding that only proceeded to make her look paler. Her hair was fanned out across the pillow whilst her cheek rested upon the pillow as slow even breaths puffed past her parted lips.

A hand reached forwards and swept a stray piece of her dark locks off of her face and tucked it behind her ear. The thick strong fingers then caressed down the side of her face before stroking her cheek. Colton looked on reverently as he busied his hands smoothing out the rumpled covers around her. Since she had fainted those two days ago he had sat by her bed side and kept an ever vigilant watch over her. His eyes which were bloodshot and puffy from lack of sleep barely left her face in case he missed any signs that she might be awakening.

The sound of the door creaking open drew Colton’s weary gaze from Xandria only to come face to face with the older version of the girl lying next to him. He tried to smile at the gentle one that was one her lips but it merely wavered, his face twitching uncomfortably with the effort before dropping back into a frown.

“Any change?” Xenia murmured though she knew already before Colton even shook his head that the answer was no, it have been every time she had checked so far but each time she turned the handle of the door she couldn’t help but pause and close her eyes, pray to whatever god there truly was and then step into the room hoping for her daughter’s strangely beautiful eyes to be staring back at her.

“No, nothing,” he mumbled staring despondently at her unconscious form, not knowing whether it was now time to give up hope. He clasped her cool clammy hand within both of his and pulled it up towards his face where he kissed the back of her hand before holding it against his cheek. His red stubble grazed against the back of her hand but it didn’t even cause a twitch from the body before him.

“Don’t give up, she’ll come back. My little girl is a fighter.” She nodded her head as if to affirm herself as she stepped closer to the bed and placed a kiss on her temple, her hand stroking her hair before stepping back. “Her dad would be so proud.” Xenia murmured, a smile lighting her face for a moment that was so brief that Colton thought for sure he had imagined it yet the glow that had shone from Xenia’s eyes was hard to miss.

She patted Colton on the head before retreating from the room leaving him once again to the silence. It was suffocating at times but he endured, his thumb rubbing circles on the back of her hand, almost as a way to count the passing time because there were no time keeping devices within the room, the two days seeming more like twenty in the unending silence.

A low grumbling issued throughout the room and in an instant Colton was on his feet. His eyes that had been struggling to stay open were wide and alert as they scanned the room looking for the source of the sound but all had gone silent once more. Shaking his head back and forth Colton returned to his seat, slumping forwards and resting his head on the edge of the bed while his eyes continued to scan the room.

After a few moment though he sighed and dropped his lids closed and took a few deep breaths, feebly trying to open his eyes before giving up and relaxing against the bed. Within a few moments his breathing evened out and he was fast asleep, his hand clutching onto Xandria so that when he snuggled closed to her, her acted like a teddy bear and he rubbed his cheek against her hand before sighing in contentment and drifting into a deep state of unconsciousness.

If he had stayed awake a bit longer he would have noted the strange flicker down the other end of the room before a violet light swept through and all went still once more. His hair ruffled with an unseen breeze like invisible fingers were running through his hair and if he had been lucid, he would have been sure to hear the voice whispering in his ear. As it was, his snores drowned out any other sound and a shiver that ran down his spine stopped the ruffling of his hair. His sleeping body paused, the room was in a state of flux, everything pausing as it watched and waited for him to stir, only deigning to move when his snores once more filled the room.