"I just want to know what the crowned prince has been doing in Eklat for the past five years with a homeless cripple," the female guard was going on."Who said he was a cripple?"
"I'm a field doctor," she said. "Just from the initial scan, I can see all of his injuries- and I don't know what happened there-."
"He was thrown out of a train."
"He was.... Okay. But there's a break in his right leg that hasn't healed properly. That's his cane you've got there, right?"
"So what if it is?"
"Simon... Your Majesty-."
"Don't call me that. Simon is fine."
"Right, well, Simon... I'm just confused is all. How did you end up out here? What's been happening? Why... how....?"
"It's a story that's longer than the time we've got. Can you help him or not?"
The female guard stared at him for a moment, her eyes dark and sad. "He's in a pod now. He'll be out in a couple of hours, but it might be a couple of days before he's awake again."
"Can I stay with him?"
"Shouldn't you be getting back to your father? He's sick too. Aren't you worried about him?" Simon stopped breathing for a moment, staring at her. He looked away.
"I'm going to see Kerri."
"You love him, right?"
"Excuse me?" Simon whirled around on his heel. The guard didn't seem too concerned by his flare of anger. He looked at her name badge. "What makes you say that... Yulli?"
"I can see how much you care about him. I understand that." She looked over Simon's shoulder at a nurse who was passing by. Simon looked at her, then back at Yulli, and raised an eyebrow.
"Then you can understand why I left the capitol."
"There's a lot of rumors about you."
"Of course there are. People love to talk."
"How did he get thrown out of the train?"
"I dragged him along."
Simon walked away, not being able to focus anymore on what was happening. He could hear her yelling behind him, but he ignored her. The doctor, Yulli... seemed sweet, really, but she pried too much and never shut up. Simon found Kerri's room after wandering for a while. It wasn't Kerri's room it was a pod room, ten pods in a circle around the room. He saw Kerri, looking like his sleep was natural and the most peaceful he'd been for a while. Simon sat next to him and rested his head against the pod.
Simon didn't know how much time had passed, but eventually, a doctor walked into the room. He looked up and couldn't tell if he was relieved or not that it wasn't Dr. Yulli. He walked up to a pod three pods to Simon and Kerri's right. He pushed some buttons and the healing pod opened. It was tilted back enough that the patient didn't immediately fall out again, but the doctor managed to lift him up and out into a wheelchair. The doctor strapped him upright in the wheelchair and rolled him away. It was dangerous, Simon thought, but it was efficient, and if the army couldn't spare anyone else, it worked.
Yulli walked into the room towards Kerri's pod. She hesitated for only a moment when she saw Simon, then approached and opened Kerri's pod. She went to pull him forward, but Simon also reached for Kerri's arm. Yulli looked surprised but didn't say anything as they eased Kerri into another wheelchair.
YOU ARE READING
Kingdom Come
AventuraSimon, a runaway prince, has made his decision. He will return to the very home he ran away from and resume his duties as royalty. The king is sick. Possibly dying. The kingdom is in disarray and Simon knows that if he doesn't fix it, then nobody wi...