Chapter 6
Disclaimer: Do I even need to say it? Chapter one!
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"Sheba! Wake up!"
Sheba opened her eyes at the sound of her name. The sun was rising. There was still some dew on the blanket on Felix and on the plants in the area, making the ground cold. She looked up at the figure above her, Alex. He had his hand on the sleeping Felix's wound…
"Oh no!" Sheba gasped. " I didn't let go and fall asleep, did I? Please say no…" Sheba knew what would happen if she had let go for the entire night.
Alex shook his head. "You did move away, but your forearm covered the wound. While I slept, I was sensing that his energy was decreasing faster than I had anticipated, knowing your deep desire to keep him alive, so I woke up not but a few minutes ago and found you here."
"So he's okay?" She asked hopefully…
"Far from it. Look at his lips, they're blue." Sheba looked at Felix's face, he indeed had blue lips, but what scared her the most was Felix's breathing. He was breathing at a rapid pace, like he had just run for a hundred miles. Then something that scared her even further happened. Felix had ANOTHER coughing attack, but this time, it was much more feeble. Felix struggled to get the blood out of his mouth.
Sheba remembered the last events before she slept. "Alex, are you going to warp us now?"
"The others are asleep, I have left a note. When they awaken, they will follow the path to Contigo. I think it will be about noon before we'll see them again…" Alex said.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Sheba asked.
"I need a little bit of Psynergy from you, so I can go farther. Take my hand…"
Sheba did as she was told. Alex told her to focus her energy into her hands so he could retrieve it. Sheba could feel her strength leave her. Alex looked up.
"Keep a hold of me…" he said. He closed his eyes. "Lets go!"
Sheba held Alex tightly as she felt the world around them fade away. Then she felt very powerful winds blowing at her body. The icy blast lasted for many seconds then everything stopped and she warmed up a bit. They were just outside of Contigo, Alex had gotten them there.
"Now," Alex said lifting the limp form of Felix, "let's get to the Sanctum!" He turned to the town and tried to run. Sheba stood up, shivering. She hurried to catch up with him so that she could monitor her love.
Alex ran up to the Sanctum, its door was shut. Sheba hadn't caught up with him yet. Alex kicked the door to get the Healers attention. "OPEN UP!" Alex shouted. After a few seconds of waiting, with no response, he kicked the door again.
A voice came from inside, "I'm coming, hold your horses!"
The door opened, the elderly Healer had to jump out of the way to avoid Alex who dashed in very quickly. Alex set Felix on the table on the other end of the room. The shirtless Felix shivered in the cold early morning. The sucking of his stab was more often occurring and sounding worse with every breath.
The Healer rushed over to the body of Felix. "What happened?" he asked in a creaky voice.
"He was stabbed in the lung," Alex said, "last night he was fighting with a group that attempted to kill his friend." Alex put his bare hand on the wound again.
"He's been like this since last night!? How has he been holding up?"
Felix answered first with a feeble cough and a spurt of blood. Alex finished, "Not good, I am a Healer myself and nothing I did would heal him. He was poisoned with something that prevented my healing…"
At that moment, Sheba burst through the door, "Is he healed yet!?" she asked panting.
"I will do what I can. Purge the poison and then heal him." The Healer said hardly noticing Sheba's entrance. The Healer began go glow reddish for a second, then Felix glowed blue. He was still asleep after all the things that happened in that short amount of time. The Healer grunted, he was putting a lot of effort into healing Felix. Soon Felix stopped glowing and so did the Healer.
The healer was sweating, "I did all I could for the poison, but I'm not sure if it's all out…"
"So is he healed or not!" Sheba demanded of him.
"Just try to seal his wound and tell us how to give him more blood," Alex said. "I will pay you handsomely, just do it!"
The Healer turned back to Felix. He raised his arms and blue waves of energy emitted from his body. Felix's body was surrounded in the energy and lifted off the table a few inches. The Healer started muttering some words that Sheba and Alex could not hear, Felix was making too much noise by breathing. Felix's face twisted as though he was in pain. He gasped and opened his eyes. The blue energy focused on the wound and in Felix's mouth. For the next few seconds Sheba was horrified. Felix was struggling as though he was being suffocated. Sheba was about to protest when the focused energy disappeared and Felix was breathing again. He slowly rested on the table. The Healer fell to one knee, gasping for air.
"Are you alright?" Alex asked.
"I…I…I've failed…" the Healer managed to say before collapsing to the floor. Alex picked the Healer up and set him down behind the table. "There's nothing else I can do. Some strange force that I felt the last time I went to the lighthouse is preventing my healing… If he survives, it will be a miracle."
Sheba ran over to where Felix lay, he was breathing as quickly as ever. It was just then that he awoke.
"S…She-*COUGH COUGH*-Sheba…" he sputtered.
Tears formed in Sheba's eyes as she paced a hand on Felix's breast in order to plug up the wound again. "Felix…I am so sorry," she said. "We have done everything we can… I'm sorry…"
"Y…You f…forgot…last…night?" he whispered.
"What?" She asked, tears slowly dripping down her face.
"Sheba," Alex said, "we should go to the inn."
"Why?"
"Because this man needs to rest, and you seem to need to as well…"
"Alright…"
*cough…cough cough*
Alex gently grasped Felix and lifted him up. Felix's head drooped back and his mouth opened. Sheba walked with Alex to the inn. Their movements were a lot less now that they were certain that nothing could be done by any means they knew of… The sun had fully risen and the town was awakening. Sheba wanted to get to the inn before they attracted too much attention with a pale and dieing man in Alex's arms. Sheba opened the door and walked in with the others right behind her. The innkeeper looked up at them as they entered. He took one glance at Felix and hurried them over to a spare cot.
"What is wrong with him?" asked the innkeeper.
"The Sanctum Healer could do nothing for him…" Alex said, "All we need is this cot to allow him to recover slowly…" Alex hung his head. It was the first time he told a lie, instead of just rewording the truth, that he could remember. It wasn't to let Felix recover… it was to give him a good place to die…
"Well you're in luck. A few minutes ago everyone left to put the wings on the ship of legends. Stay as long as you need to…"
"Thank you." Alex said. The innkeeper turned and left, possibly to avoid seeing the sorrow in Sheba's eyes.
Sheba was still holding her hand over Felix's wound but she knew not why. Though she would not accept it, she knew that he was most likely going to die. Felix had his eyes closed as if he was sleeping but Sheba knew he wasn't. He was in pain, and it was becoming a reality to him that nothing could be done. Alex looked over at the motionless Sheba sitting next to the trembling Felix.
Alex admitted to himself that Felix was very lucky having someone who cared for him as much as Sheba did. Having only received that love as an infant, he remembered none of it. He looked out the window. Alex guessed by the position of the sun that Mia and the others had only minutes before read his note and were on their way to Contigo. He sighed and looked back at Felix. Sheba had been kneeling by the edge of the cot, now she had rested her head on the edge and fell asleep.
Alex walked over to Sheba and stroked her hair as she slept. She still had her had firmly pressed on the stab. All Alex felt at that point was love. For Sheba, for Felix, for them both. He wanted to see Sheba grow up happy. He felt odd actually wanting to help her in the way he was thinking, but he couldn't see any other way. He brushed the hair covering her eyes. As she lay there, Alex moved and kissed her on her forehead. Sheba moaned and smiled.
She must be dreaming of Felix... Alex thought. He smiled at Sheba, noticing that she was truly beautiful for her age. Closing on fifteen, in just over a year she'd be old enough by Angaran law. She will make a man really happy... if she doesn't die from the sorrow of loosing him... He thought.
She will not, Alex...
Alex jumped up. "Who said that?"
It's me Alex, your good friend Felix...
"Felix!?"
Yes. Now I must tell you some things...
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Sheba stirred. She was uncomfortable in the position she was in. Her head was bent to one side, she was slouching and she had her arms extended. She opened her eyes and saw a familiar site, Alex above her with his hand on Felix. But something was…strange… His hand seemed to be closer to Felix's head than before…
"A…Alex?" she asked trying to relieve the stiffness of her neck. "I did it again didn't I?"
His head was bent over…there was water on Felix's body! Sheba shot up like lighting and looked at where Alex's hand was…on Felix's neck…
"S…Sheba…" Alex said looking at her with red and swollen eyes. "Come here, he was my friend too…"
Was… he used the past tense. Sheba bent her head over and gave Felix a final kiss on his lips, they were cold, he really was... She had tears stream from her eyes for a final time as she wrapped her arms around Alex's neck. They cried on each other's shoulders. Alex kissed Sheba on her cheek. It had unusual passion behind it, she was feeling something from Alex… Was this what Felix meant?
At that moment the seven people they left behind burst into the inn. They saw Alex and Sheba on their knees weeping, they realized the truth as well…
Felix, the great warrior, a friend, a brother, a lover, was dead…
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Do I dare continue with a sequel? Convince me to write, or to leave it alone. Review Now. I wish to know if you want to see the couple go on or not…
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