THE CONFLICT #2

CHAPTER 4

NOVENA

I’m dragged out of unconsciousness by uncomfortable bouncing. My stomach rolls in response to the unsettling movement, forcing my heavy eyes to open unwillingly. I squint through half closed eyes as the daylight filters through to my corneas. I attempt to shield my eyes with a raised hand, however the headache that assaults me is nauseating, forcing me to squeeze my eyes closed again in anguish. But my stomach doesn’t allow me the comfort of retreating back to sleep and the blissfulness that it offers. The moment my eyes shut, my head spins and I immediately snap them back open. I straighten in the small dull coloured cot, in the back of an army vehicle with more trailing behind it. Another twin cot sits across from me in the bumpy contraption of metal. Fine, silky red hair slips over the side, tangling as it sways from the movement. Shifting my tired gaze, I see the backs of men sitting up front – no not men, males. They drive the large vehicle on, unaware of my awareness. They are moving slow enough that I don’t hesitate to unlock the back of the machine with trembling, fumbling fingers. The vehicles behind ours slow to a stop as I stumble from the back ungracefully, leaving a sleeping Emmaline behind - tucked beneath covers in a cot of her own. The slamming of car doors sounds around me as I fall to my knees in the sandy dirt that is as dry as a desert. My body aches as I empty my stomach content, tears springing to my eyes. The warmth of foreign hands are on my back, rubbing soothingly over my shoulder blades as I draw ragged breaths through my open mouth. I don’t have to wonder who would be brave enough to risk putting their hands on me here in the mists of Zelus’s people. No other person would dare anger their prince and future king by offering me such a comfort. His breath tingles my skin at the back of my neck as he leans close to me, invading my personal space. I close my eyes against the strange yet oddly familiar sensation that his nearness brings.

A deep, steady voice follows, “You will feel better soon.” He whispers near my ear. "I'll take care of you." He promises and I'm beginning to think he's insane. I don't need him to help me, he is the reason I'm unwell.

I tremble with exhaustion, but the anger is still a present entity within me. “Don’t touch me!” I manage to get out between my teeth as they chatter of their own accord. "Stop! I don't want you to touch me."

But my protests are futile.

I feel cold.

So very cold.

A kind of coldness that makes you forget what warmth used to feel like.

I’m offered water, refreshing reliving water to wash out my mouth and drink to calm my paining stomach – sensitive even to the touch and evidently swollen. I do not refuse even though it's Zelus who offers the lifesaving liquid. I can hardly plan an escape when I can barely walk. His smell wraps around me like a warm blanket, pushing away the chill I feel right down to my bones. His hand doesn’t stop it's comforting motions across my back even after my biting words, and as seconds pass, I feel the heaviness of unconsciousness pulling me back under. I fight it, but as the strength in my body gives out and large arms swing me up and cradle me against a chest carved from stone.

A child.

I feel like I am nothing more than a child being carried around.

I don't get a chance to snap at him for such a violation because my lips have turned numb. In fact, my whole face takes on a similar feeling. My eyes grow too heavy to keep open… I sink back into the void of nothing. That void where I am nothing and no one. That void where nothing exists, and time is no more.