A Hero in the Dark: 2nd Edition

Chapter 69: Taking Charge

"You did the right thing in bringing him to West Virginia," Mog instructor tells me. "Our best healing services are in this mountain. He will make a speedy recovery in no time here."

I'm unsure what to say to that, so for a while, I say nothing. I'm stuck in a fog, in disbelief at what he did. He saved me.

I've been watching him hover in the vat for hours, asleep and comatose, and the entire time he bobs in the black muck, I can't help but think this is all my fault—which of course, it is! I should've never asked him to lift the charm on me; if I didn't, maybe he wouldn't be in there. Maybe he wouldn't be so close to death right now. It's all that roams in my head: It could've been me.

"It should've been me," I mutter under my breath. "He shouldn't be in there."

"Why you say that?" the Mog asks.

"It's my fault he's in there," I spit, shaking my head in my hands. "Mine. If I had just quit whining about that stupid charm, he would've been protected. He'd be safe, and I... I'd be in there instead, or worse. But instead, I let this happen to him. I should've died."

"Beloved Leader rarely does anything by accident," he says after a while. "I am sure he had a reason. Perhaps you can ask him about it when he wakes up."

"Will he wake up?" I wonder, at last turning to meet him.

"Of course."

"But what if he doesn't? If he—"

"He won't," says a voice from the threshold. I recognize it as Dr. Zakos, the Mog overseeing Setrákus's care. "It is good to be concerned," he says on his approach, "but it is unnecessary."

I nod, knowing he must be right. After all, he is the doctor. He knows their medicinal practices in and out. "How much longer does he need to stay in there for?" I ask.

"To be fully healed," he answers, "another hour or so."

"Shouldn't we worry about the other countries then? And the fleet— If they—"

"That is not my concern at the moment," he states. "Our first priority is Beloved Leader."

"For you, yes," I utter. "But I mean, for me, and the rest of us. He said there was some calamity—a warship or something—in New York. Can't I check it out?"

"If you insist," Dr. Zakos says, though he says it in a careless way that makes it clear he doesn't direct me, in a way that shows he can't direct me, and then it's clear.

Beloved Leader is in healing. But that doesn't mean progress needs to stop. I'm his right hand after all, and Ella—God, I should probably find out where she is. I should be able to make my own calls, at least until Setrákus Ra is healthy again.

"Where's Ella?" I ask, deciding to take things one thing at a time.

"Last I saw," Mog instructor notes. "She was in the southern hallway."

"Southern hallway? Why?" Mog-structor just shrugs. I sigh. "I'll find her and see what she's up to." I suppose that means I'm a babysitter now; the idea irks me. "Dr. Zakos, do whatever you can for Beloved Leader. Make sure he's up to speed as soon as possible, and you," I add, pointing to my Mog-structor, smiling rather giddily, "Come with me. Once we deal with Ella, we're going to New York—and I'm flying there."