Veritas

Chapter 52

Aislinn had been so tired.

It was as if physically, she was on a cloud, floating above the world. It felt funny, and wasn't something she liked, so she receded within herself to play with her new friends.

She was sitting in a warm pool of water, a hot boa of flame draped comfortably around her shoulders. With a gentle and calm smile on her face, she watched as a bunch of blooming flowers were weaving themselves into a crown for her. Little bolts of lightning danced over her skin, kissing her body ever-so-softly to give her a tickling sensation while never leaving a mark. She felt happy, comforted, as if in the presence of life-long friends or family.

Just as the breeze began to comb through her hair, a blinding light harshly pulled her from her happy place. Suddenly, she was standing in her hospital room, watching the King's steward discuss her condition with the doctor. They appeared to be mind-linking; but, she could hear it. Knowing what she did now, she assumed it was because the King was also listening to this conversation.

"I'm sorry; but, we can't make it too obvious" the doctor explained.

"Well it needs to happen soon" the steward said with a huff.

"I understand; but, he's surprisingly resilient for his age. He should be at death's door without a wolf; but...He just seems to be on the cusp of a coma instead. It's very experimental at this point" the doctor said with a frown, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

"Just do it and say it was an accident or something!" The steward yelled, stomping his foot like a child who wasn't getting his way.

"I'm not risking my medical license, my job, nor my reputation by acting so carelessly! If this doesn't play out how we expect...I just need to be cautious. We do it my way, or we do it no way" the doctor growled, getting fed up with the way the steward was trying to boss him around.

"Fine...She won't be happy" the steward huffed, practically pouting.

"Not my problem, frankly" the doctor replied, motioning for the steward to leave. "Now get out, before the family shows up and wonders why we're here."

Aislinn watched as the steward left the room, followed by the doctor. A few moments passed where nothing happened, so Aislinn turned to inspect herself. Despite being in her male form, she could tell she'd been losing a bit of weight, likely from not eating. Additionally, her skin was pale and her lips looked dry. With a frown, she wondered what these two had been putting her through...It sounded as though they were trying to kill her!

Suddenly, her door burst open and the steward ran in with a crazed look in his eye. She could see behind him as her door shut that the Captain was running towards her room, too. Before he had a chance to enter, the steward plunged a needle into her chest and injected some form of liquid. Without removing the needle, he turned on his heel and ran back out. Instead of stopping him, though, the captain ran by him and into her room.

She didn't get a chance to see what happened next, though, because there was an agonizing pain that bloomed in her chest before stretching out through her body from there. She squeezed her eyes shut, even though everything had already gone dark, and was grabbing her chest where the pain was most intense.

What had he injected into her?

Was she going to die?

In response, she heard the loud, long beep of the machine she was hooked up to; the irritating sound piercing through her unconsciousness to make her realize that she was flat-lining.

Her heart had stopped.