Skye and Ward: On A Mission (SkyeWard)

Chapter Fourteen

I woke up in a large metal cage. Well, I guess it was more of a cell.

I was laying on a metal bench, the cold leaking into my thin hoodie. I opened my eyes, confused. A lot had happened in the last few days and I wasn't entirely sure what was really going on. I slowly sat up, not really surprised to be in a prison. I looked down. My clothes had been changed into a thin blank purple hoodie, a white t-shirt underneath, skinny jeans, and purple converse. It was what a teenage girl wore to the mall.

I heard a moan come from next to me. I looked over to see a body laying in the next cell over. I couldn't tell who it was, the person was curled up in the far corner. Four other cells were bare. Mine had a toilet, tray of food, and multiple water bottles. At least in prison, they provided your basic necessities.

The moan next door was louder.

"Hey buddy, keep it down." I said. I laid back down, not trusting the food. Luckily I wasn't hungry. The moan grew louder and more continuous. I was getting a little annoyed. If I had to be kept as a prisoner, I wish I didn't have to listen to this guy. Then I realized, maybe he was tortured or mutilated or something worse...given some alone time.

I decided to check out the guy. "Hey, are you okay?" I asked.

The moaning was a little higher. I took that as a yes.

"I'm going to come closer, tell me what you need." I shouted. I stood, moving closer to the barred wall that separated us. I grabbed onto a bar, leaning into the next cell. Surprisingly, the spaces were about a square foot. I guess if the prisoners murdered each other, no problem, right?

"I'm Skye, you can trust me." I relied on the person to not give me up, even though they were in immense pain. Then again, the people who held me captive probably already knew who I was.

"Ssss...ssskyeeeee..." The person moaned. "Waaaaa..."

I though he was crying, or moaning a cry. "Waaaarrrr...waaarrrrr..."

"War? War? Is that how you got hurt?"

"Waarrrr..." He moaned again.

"Yes, war? What war?" I mean, there was kind of a war in the Middle East. And a war in Africa with Ebola. And Ukraine and Russia. What was he talking about?

"Waaarrrr...waaarrrrd..." Ward? Did he just say Ward? All of the memories in the desert came flooding back to me.

"Ward? Ward? Where's Ward?!" I shouted, clasping to the bars. The man rolled over, his face covered with dryer mud. His hair and clothes were matted with mud too. He had a light coat of stubble. But underneath all the dirt, I could tell it was him. It was Ward.

"Ward!" I gasped, reaching through the bars. The terrible looking figure which was my partner somehow sat up and dragged himself over to me. I slid down the bars, sitting on the floor. Ward leaned his side against the bars, holding his stomach. I looked him all over, glad to see him. But not glad to see his condition.

"Hey...skye..." He huskily whispered. His breathing was short and shallow. I wanted to touch him, but that looked like the last thing he needed.

"Ward...what happened?"

"Flash bomb...soldiers took us...I fought back..." He lifted his arm. A think black stain was set into his gray shirt. It was shiny, showing it was still wet. He was still bleeding. From a giant wound in his abdomen.

"Oh my god, Ward..." I covered my face. I was trembling right now. Ward went back to holding his side. "We need to close the wound..."

"Skye-"

"No, Ward. We need to cauterize the wound. So you stop bleeding." I started looking around for matches or a lighter. I felt a hand touch my arm. I looked back to see Ward trying to grab me, but not enough strength to do so.

"Skye...please...just sit here with me...please?" I almost broke apart at those words. With the dream, or nightmare, I had, all I wanted was to cuddle up next to him. Oh my god, what am I saying. He's my partner, for Christ's sakes. But he was hurt and I was an ailment.

"Of course...of course..." I crawled back by the bars. Since the spaces were so big, I reached my hand through to hold his. He linked with me. I gave his hand a squeeze; he gave me a minor one back. We just sat there for a long while in silence, but comforting each other the whole time.