Seth and the Prometheus Guild

Sleep

Seth awoke to pain. Echoing pain, assulting his battered body in waves. It pounded through him in a relentless rhythm, hot and piercing needles stabbing through his side with every breath.

Chaos reigned, in his head and outside of it. Too many smells assaulted his senses, making his stomach churn with sick, but he had no energy to even try and throw up. Different human voices were tumbling over each other all around him but he couldn't make sense of them. He wasn't even strong enough to open his eyes.

His head throbbed again, causing another ripple of sickness to wash through him.

His mouth tasted like blood, but it wasn't his. It was the Guard's. The taste calmed him a little, serving as reassurance.

But Seth could still hear him.

He was shouting and panting. Close by.

Close enough to reach. Feeling slowly started to crawl back into his limbs, making the tips of his fingers tingle and itch unpleasantly. Patience.

He just had to get a little closer ...

But darkness was already lurking in the depths of his mind, surging forward and wrapping around him before his hand could so much as twitch.

~~~

"Sir, with all due respect, this is the height of irresponsibility! If Gregory hadn't tied Blake's leg off, he would have lost more than just a limb. And saying 'just' in this context already makes me feel queasy."

"It was a situation out of our control."

"But we have control now! If you won't imprison him, then at least let me seal his glands or pull his teeth!"

"What use would he be without those?"

"Sir! It could just as well have been one of our students instead of a trained agent! We have a responsibility towards them ..."

"Let's table this argument for a private moment. This is neither the right place nor time. I'm sure Francesca will be back any minute."

Seth tried to blink his eyes open, but it felt like someone had attached weights to them. He used all his feeble energy to focus on the simple task, but the next moment his mind was scattering again, his thoughts vanishing like fog in sunlight.

Seth startled awake when something cool touched his forehead.

"I said not to get so close!"

"Elaine, is this really necessary? Look at how pale he is. And you said he has two cracked ribs - and a concussion! Shouldn't he be getting medi-"

"You're asking me if this is really necessary? I just cut a pound of rotten flesh off a grown man's leg before having to saw it off anyway! And you're asking me if it's necessary?"

"Elaine, I was just ..."

"Out of the way!"

"What are you doing? Is this helping him with the pain?"

"No, it's to keep him under. And now, get out of my infirmary!"

Saw it off? As Seth slipped away this time it was with a smile.

~~~

A smell teased his senses, snatching his mind from the deep well with its dark, numbing depths before slowly reeling it to the bright surface.

His head felt like it had been stuffed with cotton, but still the scent preserved, at the forefront of his mind.

"Should we really be here? The teachers ..."

"Shh, Merlin! Not so loud!"

"Why did you even want to come?"

"You saw how Mr. Donovan was beating him. And he hasn't been to class for three days. I just want to make sure everything is okay."

"I don't think biting a teacher was that okay, though ..."

"Shh!"

"Alright, alright ..."

The smell got stronger, wrapping around Seth, soothing the pounding ache in his head. This time his eyes opened with more ease, but everything around him was fuzzy and out of focus. All he saw was blurry whiteness, a stark contrast to the calming blackness he's already gotten used to. His swollen eyelids lowered again.

Something rustled. "Seth?"

The smell got stronger still and something soft brushed the back of his hand. "Are you awake?"

His body moved without direction. His fingers clasped around something warm and giving, pulling it closer to his face with unexpected strength. He inhaled deeply, the smell of home quieting the tumult in his body.

"Shit, shit, Kaya, pull your hand away, quick!"

"It's okay, I think he just wants to ... sniff it."

His system was still fighting the chemicals coursing through his blood, courtesy off Gregory's darts and Elaine's medicine. But when Seth dozed off it was to a deep sleep and not unconsciousness.