Prompt: #46 Supernatural
Summary: They could not be quite human, could they?
A/N: This is a stand alone.
Prodigiosus is Latin for "unnatural, miraculous, amazing".
Prodigiosus
It was hard to say how long the duration of their war had been. There were times it seemed as if there had never been a time they had not been fighting. For so many years before this, it had been a cold war of silent hostility. Then it had become a blazing inferno of hate and destruction. She cannot remember when it had actually been sparked. It seemed to happen overnight. One night she fell asleep in her bed, feeling a small tension but nothing more than she usually felt. The next morning, there had been utter chaos around the castle and she had been trapped. Within a matter of minutes, her world had irrevocably changed. She is not sure whether she thinks it got worse, but it had certainly not gotten better. There had been certain things that she is glad had changed with these dark times. Changes that have brought her close to Noctis and she knows she would never change anything because of that.
The line between friend and foe, lover and enemy had always been distorted between them. From the moment they had met, she knew that what they were starting was going to bring more conflict to an already volatile situation. Their feelings were not supposed to end up so attached to one from the other side. It had happened regardless of what any of them had wanted. They have never openly confessed their feelings for each other but it was easily felt between them. The feelings were there and clearly seen too, but there was never a definitive declaration of them. It made her feel so completely unreasonable to realize that she needed to hear him say it now. Right now, within this tense situation of pain and adrenaline. Just having the knowledge was now not enough for her anymore. Not when she was currently fighting for her very life. The unspoken feelings just seemed to accumulate more and more as they spent more time in each other's company. The more battles they fought and won together, the more she felt she needed him to finally say it. She needed that right now because she feels like she just may die this time.
They were not normal people. Their gifts transcended them to a higher level of being. This is not to boast or elevate them. It was truth. People just did not come into this world with the abilities that the both of them possessed. It can also be said that not everyone had been as close to death as they had been in order to receive such gifts either. So they were both very different sort of people. They were feared and they were hated. Hated no more than their own noblemen and it had pushed the two of them to join forces in order to face their mutual opposition. What had started as a rivalry between two kingdoms had quickly changed to an extermination of people like them. Of people that had gifts bestowed upon them that made them special. It was to them the blame of the dying Crystals had been laid. Instead of figuring out a solution, they were doing nothing but fighting and causing even more damage in the process. At this moment she and Noctis and whoever allied themselves to them were to be caught or killed, preferably killed.
Days of fighting had turned into weeks and now it has all a blur of battles that she wishes she had never lived to see. There had been so much bloodshed and tears that she does not remember a time when she had been happy. It is only when she looks at him that she can feel human. Was she still even human? They were not considered to be. Sometimes she felt half dead. Like a part of her had died that day that she had been spared from dying. A piece of herself had never really come back to life but had already died inside of her. It was only with him that she felt whole again. She knows he feels the same way because they seem to not be able to do without the other now. Sometimes in the night, she finds him lying beside her and her body wrapped into the curve of his. Those strong arms and dangerous hands that have killed so many to stay alive would cling to her as if she is the only thing that can keep him grounded in their unstable world. Much like she felt about him. She cherished such moments, because it was only within them, that she felt safe. Such brief times compared to the long endless ones that they were fighting. She wishes she could stop to relish them, but not now.
"Look out!" she hears before she is unceremoniously knocked flat onto her back with a solid body above her as a shield. Her cry of pain is muted by the ear deafening sound of an explosion and a tearing of metal, before they feel the impact of destruction. Debris lands all around them and she finds herself burying her face in his neck and clinging to him with her hands as she feels the heat. He holds her head gently to him and she can hear him grit his teeth against the particles that must be hitting his back.
"Are you all right?" he asks, grasping her face and lifting himself just enough to look into her eyes. Then his hand and eyes look towards her midriff and despite it all, she still feels ticklish.
"Fine. Thank you," she replies, placing a firm grip on the side of his face so he can focus. His powers were becoming glitchy now. There had been too many injuries sustained to keep up the regeneration with it. They had done something to him. They had done something to them both so that their powers were unstable. Something within this horrid place was not right. "Are you all right?" She runs her eyes and hands all along where they can reach.
"A few bruises," he says with a shrug and then his weight is gone from her before he offers her his hand. "We must hurry."
She does not even hesitate to take it and they are both on their feet and running a moment later.
"Where are we?" she asks, noting that this hallway looked exactly like the one they had just left behind.
"We need to go down one more floor," he replies over his shoulder. He runs with unswerving confidence to their destination. His sense of navigation had always gotten them through their trials and she is thankful. She had lost count of how many times his good sense had led them through the more dangerous perils they had been through together. None of their group questioned them. He soon finds a staircase that she had not even seen ahead and they are bounding down them two at a time. They can both hear the heavy sounds of pursuit all around them and angrily shouted orders.
"We do not have much time," he tells her just before he opens the door to the floor and leaps out into the new hallway, crystals flaring in the air. Sounds of gunfire echo in the slate metal hall, soon followed by the screams of the ones felled by Noctis' sword. She joins him in the hall soon after and helps him finish off the rest before they are running again. The pain in her side is becoming increasingly uncomfortable and she has to clutch it now in order to keep steady pace wit him.
"Not much farther," he reassures, as if reading her thoughts.
He takes her past a sharp turn and they both come to a skidded halt before a heavily locked door. She stands back, already knowing what he will do, before he blasts it open. There was no time to pick the security pad and try for the usual stealth in this situation. He goes in first and she follows a moment later. Papers are fluttering as they fall amidst the dust from the ruined door. She cannot help the cough that escapes her throat, only to gasp as the pain in her side intensifies. Her legs feel unsteady and she sways. Tears blur her vision a moment before she forcefully blinks them away. The sounds of drawers and cabinets rapidly and carelessly being opened fills the room when she finally gets her bearings.
"I found it," he says with relief.
He is in front of her and holding the syringe for her to see. As much as she had prepared herself, there is a certain amount of terror looking at the sheer size of the thing. She knew it would be thick and she usually did not mind needles too much, but she cannot help the anxiety at seeing the size of this. There is nothing to be done and they cannot hesitate. So she nods her ascent to him and lifts up her blouse. He steps closer but he hesitates as he holds the syringe to her exposed skin.
"I trust you," she says because she knows he needs to hear it. He looks into her eyes and she can see the remorse on his handsome face. Her heart softens even more towards him and she wishes that she could tell him how much she felt for him, finally.
"Forgive me," he whispers, just before he plunges the large needle directly into her wound. She cuts off the cry with a snap of her jaw but a muffled scream escapes anyway. The pain is excruciating as he pumps the liquid into her system and withdraws the syringe. He pulls her towards him quickly to crush her body into his embrace as the medicine takes effect and she fights from screeching in agony.
"It will pass," he tells her soothingly. She tries to focus on the warmth of his breathe in her ear to get her through. "You must bear it."
A strangled whimper escapes her mouth in response. She feels icy coldness creep through her veins and shivers start to wrack violently through her body. He presses her even more tightly against him in response. As if he wishes to absorb some of her pain for her.
"Bite my shoulder if you must."
She does not want to but he presses her face against it and the pain is just too much. Before she fully realizes it, she actually is biting down on the thick leather of his shoulder as the pain does not lessen. It is a few more endless moments and just when she feels like she cannot stand anymore, she begins to feel the pain subside. Her jaw slackens as she releases his shoulder and she feels him breath with her, but he does not loosen his hold on her body. He runs his leather covered gloves through her hair in a soothing manner and she whispers words to her that she cannot hear, but she can feel. Her side almost begins to tickle and itch as her flesh closes around the gaping hole of her wound and mends itself quickly. She does not feel as light headed now and she sighs in relief.
"Will it always hurt so much?" she mumbles, still slumped against his shoulder.
"Not as much as just now," he answers. Which means it will always be painful but she hopes not this painful again. She feels his lips against her forehead and she can sense that he is proud of her for enduring. "It took so long to get you the antidote so you felt the pain strongly."
Their enemies had developed a weapon with an essence of Crystal that would prevent any injury from healing. If left alone too long before treatment, the tainted Crystal essence leaked into your bloodstream and poisoned you. A horrible death soon followed. It must have advanced more than she had guessed if she had felt the coldness so deeply. She would have been angry if she was not so sad.
"We must go," she says, though she is reluctant to leave the shelter of his arms. They have been here too long and she knows he is delaying for her sake. "How much of the cure do we have?"
"We should be all right," he answers, patting one of the compartments at his pouch. "We must reclaim the others."
Yes, the second part of their mission here in this horrid place of unfeeling metal. Their three companions had been taken during the last battle. The one where she had been wounded so terribly.
"Are you ready?" he asks and she can hear that he is already back in battle mode. His mind is not with her as much as it had been just a few moments ago.
If there were only more moments of time for them. Perhaps if they had been normal, they could have loved each other freely and they would have no worries of needless bloodshed. But they were not normal. They are supernatural. She just hopes that one day, they would have some time to at least tell each other how much they loved each other. That would have to be enough. The hope of that moment, would have to be enough…for now.
This is the halfway mark of my challenge! 25 Prompts fulfilled, 25 more to go! Thank you to everyone for your outstanding support!