Note: This chapter brings 'Day 5' to a close and, with it, the last chapter I can likely post before Christmas; so I thought it should be a very important chapter for this evening. Wishing you all a very merry Christmas. Xx

00000

DAY 5 – DRIVE

Chapter 8 – Sleep's End

The sun had slowly lowered through the sky, so gradual that Oneakka hadn't been aware of it until he registered the glowing shift of moonlight across the training field.

His cheek still pressed to the grass, he blinked at the sideways view of the now pale moon-cast blades. The tiny flowers among the grass had all closed up, tucking their petals together to sleep, but their delicate scent still lingered in the air around him.

Lying, arms still outstretched as if hugging the Ugun ground beneath him, the grass remained warm and comfortable under his front. But then he'd been lying here all day.

The sounds of the village had faded too, he realised.

Holding his breath, he sought out the ring of Father's hammer and the distant chatter of people moving along the paths near the field.

All was quiet now though. No one else was around anymore.

His family were gone.

Except...

There was something new in the air, just audible enough to reach his ear turned up towards the darkened Ugun sky.

Music?

He focused on the unexpected sound, listening to the rising and lowering instrumental melody drifting in the moonlight around him.

Slowly it grew gradually louder.

And more recognisable.

Litan music?

Why would there be Litan music here?

He frowned against the now noticeably cooling grass.

The moonlight shifted across his view, the long patches of brighter light sliding away across the field, leaving darker night behind.

Something was changing; he wasn't sure what, but he felt it.

A sense of growing concern niggled at him and trained instinct kicked in. He held his breath again, holding completely still, as he sought out any tiny sound that might tell of an impending attack.

The music was all he could hear though, except...a voice briefly danced in the air.

A Whisperer.

He let out his held breath in relief.

She was here.

Somewhere.

He couldn't remember who she was exactly, but knowing she was there meant-

The air abruptly stirred and a dark shadow passed quickly over him.

He froze, hearing the soft crumple of something hitting the grass close by.

He strained his hearing again, picking up tiny shifting sounds now that told him something was moving towards him.

Whatever it was, it was just out of his sideways view of the field, so he slowly started to lift his cheek from the grass and carefully turned his head to look round as subtly as possible.

Several small pointed black claws came into view, stood on the grass mere inches from his face. He held still and tracked his gaze up two thin dark bird legs to the puffed up feathered breast of a raven stood staring intently at him.

The bird turned its head, examining him with one jet black eye and then the other.

And then it let out the loudest squawk he'd ever heard and its beak jutted suddenly towards his face.

He woke in an abrupt instant.

The field was gone, the soft sensations of the damp dewy night lost, and instead all was dark and heavy.

Some memories started to slowly resurface of who he was, though his thoughts had a thick and sullen weight to them, but he knew he had felt like this before.

Medication.

Which meant he was hurt.

He worked to pull open his eyelids, now vividly aware of the Litan music. It was coming from somewhere off to his left, the volume low and gentle as he struggled to open his eyes.

A ceiling slowly appeared above him, one he seemed to remember seeing before. Had he woken up before now?

He blinked slowly up at the subdued lighting across the pale ceiling...it was evening. Had he been asleep all day?

Hadn't there been something really important he'd been doing? Something about...

Halling!

Yes, Halling. He'd been worried about Halling...but he could also remember Halling smiling down at him, telling him that the threat had passed.

He wasn't sure what the threat had been. Was he supposed to be going back into battle?

Blinking slowly, he managed to move his lips and his tongue felt dry and thick. He licked at his lips and worked against the urge to close his heavy eyes again.

"Why aren't you working?!" A familiar voice stated abruptly from the left.

The raven in its human form.

He moved his eyes towards her voice, his head fortunately following them, seeking her out.

She came into slightly blurry view, sat beside his bed, though she was looking down and away from him.

The raven.

One of his whisperers.

Seeal. Her name was easy to find now and he blinked again, bringing her features into slightly sharper focus.

And just beyond her, there was a small window in a nearby wall, typical of the Healing Bays; so he was in the Facility.

He was home.

0000

The coding wasn't working. She'd tried various ways to get the tiny test program to work, but it refused to cooperate.

The long hours spent at Oneakka's bedside this week had given her plenty of time to get back up-to-date with her project work, but she'd made little progress on the latest test program. Her only consolation was that no one else in the project had been able to get the thing to work either, so her ongoing failures weren't as embarrassing as they felt. It was still really annoying, especially because she had no idea why it wasn't working. This was supposed to be her area of expertise!

Maybe she was too tired. Despite Oneakka's refusal to wake up, it had still been tiring being here so many hours a day. Medical staff, Healers, and regular short visits by other Elite or Facility staff to see Oneakka broke up the long shifts, but otherwise she sat at his silent side and tried not to worry that his brain had turned to soup and that he might never wake up again.

She'd decided that the Earth music had been too distracting and so she'd put on some soothing Litan music for the evening, hoping it would improve her understanding of why this stupid coding wasn't working.

Unfortunately, the change in music hadn't helped at all.

The computer pad she had balanced on her lap bleeped gently.

"Well that didn't work," she told the silent and unmoving Oneakka. She was getting a little too used to running a one-sided conversation with him. "It's because I'm tired," she decided with a frustrated sigh. "Next time I need to say yes when Massa offers to bring me another tea." She jabbed at the pad's screen, re-keying in the commands yet again. "There's no logical reason why this isn't working."

She sent the sequence running again and looked up from the screen. Being late evening, the lights were low throughout the Healing Bay, but she'd kept a smaller brighter light on to her right, shining down over her two computer pads as she worked.

"It's probably the lighting," she told Oneakka. "It's making me sleepy." She picked up the second pad and scrolled through the latest project reports looking for a clue as to what was going wrong.

"It's probably sitting next to you all fast asleep and drugged up that's not helping," she told him as she frowned at the lines of technical text. "It's soporific."

The first pad bleeped a quiet call for her attention. The compiling had failed yet again.

"Why aren't you working?!" She demanded from it.

It made no sense to her.

She scrolled through the coding yet again, but-

Something moved and she glanced round.

To find Oneakka looking back at her.

It took her a split second to comprehend that he really was looking at her, his gaze a little foggy, but his blue eyes were open and his head was turned towards her.

"You're awake!" She exclaimed far too loudly as she shot up from her seat, the first pad clattering loudly to the floor, but she ignored it as she leant over his bedside. "You're okay," she assured him quickly, resting a hand on his upper arm. "You're in the Training Facility's Healing Bay."

His eyes had tracked her movement despite looking a little unfocused, which had to be a good thing, and he nodded back at her, which meant he could understand her at least.

Though that didn't discount memory loss or other brain damage.

She frowned worriedly at him. "Do you know who I am?" She asked.

He made a slight noise, as if trying to clear his voice and he moved his lips as if working out how to talk again. That couldn't be good, could it?

Then he managed to clear his voice a little and whisper something, his throat clearly dry. She leaned closer to him.

"Trouble," he whispered.

Did he mean he was uncomfortable? That trouble had happened to him, because that was damn obvious considering –

Wait? Did he mean her? "I'm trouble?" She checked.

He nodded again and there was a faint shift of a smile across his tired pale face as he worked a long sleepy blink.

She straightened up to her full height, pulling her hand from his arm and crossed her arms as she glared down at him. "Well clearly your bad sense of humour survived intact," she told him. "Here I've been sitting by your bedside night and day, and that's what I get, is it?" She demanded.

Though, the truth was, he couldn't have said anything more reassuring for her – not only did he clearly recognise her, but he remembered their banter.

"You...asked," he whispered in his croaking voice.

At which point she remembered that she was supposed to call in the Healers when he woke up, so she reached over to the call button by his monitors and triggered it.

"Halling?" Oneakka asked brokenly.

"He's fine," she reassured him before quickly reaching down to the floor for her fallen pad. "I'll let him know you're awake," she jabbed at the screen to call up the text links she'd prepared days ago ready for this very moment. As she triggered the messages to Halling and Massa, she heard hurrying footsteps coming down the corridor towards the open door.

A group of Healing Bay staff rushed into the room, all eyes locking on Oneakka, unsure if they'd been called in for an emergency.

"He just woke up," Seeal informed them quickly. "He seems okay."

"Call in Meiyo," the evening duty Healer ordered his people as he reached the other side of Oneakka's bed. "Good evening, Honoured Elite," the Healer smiled politely as Oneakka slowly rolled his head to the right to look up at the Healer. "Do you know where you are?"

"Facility," Oneakka croaked.

"I already told him that," Seeal put in.

"Can we get some water please," the Healer asked a staff member beside him and within seconds a cup with a long straw was held to Oneakka's lips.

As Oneakka took in some much needed water, Seeal dropped her attention to her pad to see both Halling and Massa had received her text links already; Massa had replied that he would be there as soon as Aki allowed and Halling was on his way.

She looked up from the pad as Oneakka's assigned personal Healer, Meiyo, entered the busy room. The older woman headed straight to Oneakka's side and Seeal saw Oneakka smile up at her. He recognised her too. Good.

"Honoured Elite Oneakka," Meiyo smiled brightly down at him like he was a family member rather than a patient. "Welcome back to us. Do you know my name?" She asked.

"Meiyo," Oneakka replied, his voice already slightly better thanks to the water.

"Good," Meiyo smiled as she pulled a thin metal tube from her pocket and clicked a button on its side, lighting up one end. "Can you tell me what you do as a career?" She asked as she shone the small light into one of Oneakka's eyes.

"Elite warrior," Oneakka replied as she shone the light into his other eye.

There was a faint lisp to his words, like he was sleepy. It was probably the medication. Meiyo was a very experienced Healer so Seeal was pretty sure she'd have noticed the slurring.

"Good. How many fingers am I holding up?" Meiyo asked as she held up three of her fingers for him.

Oneakka took a moment to blink at her fingers, as if he was having to refocus his eyes. Hopefully that wasn't a bad thing.

"Three," he reported correctly though.

"Good," Meiyo smiled. "Can you show me your tongue," she asked next and proceeded to shine her light into Oneakka's mouth. "Dry throat?" She asked and Oneakka nodded slightly. "Understandable." She told him as she reached down to Oneakka's closest hand. "Can you hold my hand? Good. Squeeze it for me. Not too much, I know how strong you big Elite can be," she joked with a soft smile. "Very good."

Meiyo pulled her hand from Oneakka's and started to move down the other side of his bed. "You know the drill here, Honoured Elite. Can you feel this?" She asked as she pressed the end of her light against the outside of Oneakka's leg. Seeal quickly looked back up to Oneakka's face.

He nodded.

Seeal let out a faint breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding.

"And how about here?" Meiyo asked as she pressed against the outside of his lower leg hidden under the blankets.

He nodded again. Good.

Meiyo rounded the end of the bed and gripped both his covered feet. "And can you move both of your feet for me?"

Seeal fixed her eyes on Meiyo's hands and there was a definite shift of the blankets as Oneakka moved his feet.

"Very good," Meiyo smiled as she started up this side of the bed. "And the same for this side?" She asked as she pressed the end of the metal light against the outside of his leg and he nodded again. Seeal shifted back from his bedside, giving Meiyo room as the Healer moved up to Oneakka's shoulder. "And take my hand again," Meiyo asked of him and Seeal saw his hand lift easily from the bed and grip the Healer's hand.

This was all really good. He could move everything, was responding to questions, and seemed to know everyone so far.

Halling abruptly burst through the doorway behind Meiyo's staff, looking a little out of breath. Everyone instantly made room for him and he hurried towards the far side of Oneakka's bed.

"My friend," Halling reached down and laid both his hands on Oneakka's head and bent down and touched his forehead to Oneakka's.

Seeal glanced away, the urge to cry rushing through her.

"He is doing very well," Meiyo reported to Halling as Halling lifted his forehead from Oneakka's. Seeal shifted a little down the room, so that she could see Oneakka's face as Meiyo slid her light back into her pocket and settled her hand on Oneakka's shoulder.

"Honoured Elite," Meiyo said down to Oneakka, drawing his attention back to her. "Do you remember what happened to you?"

Oneakka's eyes shifted over to Halling. "The Hive," he said softly. "I fell."

"We believe that you were impaled by a piece of a Hive, Honoured Elite," Meiyo explained calmly to him as if that kind of thing happened all the time. Actually, maybe it did for Elite.

"We were able to close your wound," Meiyo continued, "but you did lose a great deal of blood. We used up all your blood stock, so we will be needing to build that up again soon," she seemed to joke and Oneakka actually smiled up at her, as if nearly dying of blood loss was something funny between them.

"You are on your severe injury medication plan," Meiyo continued to him. "We have reduced your initial stage high sedation drugs and are onto stage two."

"How long?" Oneakka asked brokenly, blinking slowly.

"Have you been here?" Meiyo asked and Oneakka nodded. "Five days," she informed him and Seeal saw him frown. "You are still very weak and will need to remain in the Healing Bay for several weeks at least," the Healer emphasised. "I would like to put you under the scanner again tomorrow morning to check on your wound site and we will talk through your care plan then."

Oneakka nodded his agreement.

"Good," the Healer smiled as she patted his shoulder. "Then I will leave you with your caretakers, but if you need any additional pain medication tonight, just call in the duty Healer."

"We will," Halling was the one to answer.

"I shall see you in the morning," Meiyo nodded and started to move away. "He is doing very well," the Healer repeated to Seeal as she passed by. Seeal smiled back, though a little unsure why she needed the individual reassurance, but it was good news.

Seeal watched as Meiyo led all of the Bay staff back out of the room, leaving her and Halling alone with Oneakka.

Seeal wasn't sure if she should go too, maybe give Halling time alone with Oneakka?

Halling pulled a chair up to the far side of Oneakka and sat down, his elbows on the edge of the bed and Oneakka's hand held in his. It seemed a kind of intimate moment and Halling looked clearly moved...maybe she shouldn't be here...

"Do you remember sending Seeal to help me?" Halling asked Oneakka.

Well, this involved her, so she could stay for this bit.

"Ancient enemy," Oneakka answered him, the lisp still there. Meiyo hadn't said anything about the slow speech, so presumably he was okay and it was just the medication he was on.

"Yes," Halling nodded with a clearly relieved smile. "They are called the Skerti."

"You...got it?" Oneakka asked brokenly.

"Yes, Seeal arrived just in time to save me," Halling reported, the tall male's dark eyes lifting to her.

Oneakka rolled his head against his pillow, his blue eyes coming into view and fixing on her again with that slightly foggy focus.

"Well, Halling beheading it was what really did her in," she explained.

Oneakka blinked slowly, seeming like he was fighting to stay awake now, but he smiled up at her. "Thank you, Raven," he whispered.

She felt kind of weird at the very sincere open gratitude. "You're welcome," she replied.

"How did you know, Oneakka?" Halling asked and Oneakka rolled his head back towards Halling. "How did you know what the Queen really was?"

It was the question they had been speculating about for days. The top theory had been that Oneakka had found something, either in a chamber in the Hive or perhaps on a Wraith interface.

"A Wraith," Oneakka answered weakly.

Seeal blinked at that surprise explanation, and saw Halling pause as well.

"A Wraith told you?" Halling asked him.

Oneakka nodded faintly, his eyes moving away from Halling like he was remembering. "One of them didn't attack...like the others...hid. Told me they had been...tricked, led there by a false queen."

Seeal moved back towards the side of Oneakka's bed, drawn in by the story.

"Said she was...returned ancient evil," Oneakka finished, looking back at Halling.

"You realised it was Sitayi' prophecy," Halling nodded.

Oneakka nodded. "I tried to get to you. The corridor...floor collapsed. Fell. Managed to climb up, try to warn you." Touches of the panicked fear she remembered all too vividly from the Hive echoed in his voice.

"You did warn me; you sent Seeal to save me," Halling's hand worked around Oneakka's, and Seeal could see tears forming in Halling's eyes.

A month ago she would never have believed Elite would cry, or, if they did, then she'd have felt very uncomfortable around a crying one. Now, it felt almost natural to see Halling showing such emotion after all they'd been through.

"She found me," Oneakka replied and his blue eyes shifted back towards her.

The moment she had been waiting for was finally here.

She leaned a little closer to him, holding his gaze. "I told you not to go onto that Hive, but you didn't listen to me."

He smiled sleepily up at her.

It wasn't quite the response she'd expected, but she'd made her point. In fact, she'd make sure to remind him of it again once he was off these strong meds.

Oneakka's smile slipped as his eyelashes swept down and back up in a very long sleepy blink. She suspected he wasn't going to be able to stay awake much longer.

"Says the woman who ran onto the same Hive," Halling added from Oneakka's far side.

Seeal gave Halling a glare. "Don't go taking his side," she told him, but Halling was smiling at her and she couldn't stop herself smiling back at him.

"We're all okay," Oneakka muttered softly and Seeal looked back to see that his eyes had closed properly this time.

"Sleep, my brother," Halling told him. "We will stay by your side."

Oneakka let out a deep sigh that might have been a word, but it was lost in sleep.

Seeal watched his eyelids flutter slightly and then still.

He really was okay.

He clearly hadn't suffered any brain damage, she'd gotten to tell him she had been right all along, and his Healer appeared happy with his progress.

It felt like a weight lifted off her in that moment as she watched him sleep, but as it lifted there was a wave of tiredness rushing in behind it. She'd been more worried than she'd realised. Worried that, had he lost his memories, she'd have lost the version of him that she'd known, the man who had helped her find her path away from the dark mistakes of the past, and who had laughed so loudly at her freaking out about falling into a river of fish.

She pulled her eyes away from his peaceful face and glanced over to Halling, to find that he was already looking her way.

"He's okay," Halling said quietly with a soft reassuring smile, Oneakka's relaxed hand still held in his.

She smiled and nodded as she settled back down on her formerly abandoned chair, the Litan music still playing softly in the background.

She'd stay little bit longer to keep Halling company.

00000
TBC