Updated: Monday 4/09/2023
Chapter 3: D'Artagnan
D'Artagnan's world had been nothing but pain for so long. He didn't know how long exactly. He just remembered a mission that involved a message. And after dropping the message off he doesn't remember another thing. He couldn't even remember who he was delivering the message too. He didn't know how it happened.
But he knew he had been kidnapped. But how was a mystery too him. He properly had something to do with a head injury or two but he never had time to think on that as they had told him they wanted information on the Musketeers, the King, Captain Treville, Athos, Porthos and Aramis. They had actually mentioned their names. And D'Artagnan knew in that moment he wasn't going to betray his brothers. No matter what became of him. He knew he had to be strong for them.
"You mos as well kill me know. I am not going to give you a thing", D'Artagnan spat at them, "I won't betray my brothers. No matter what becomes of me"
They had seemed to take that as a personal challenge. But as the torture progressed D'Artagnan let his mind wander to his brothers and how they would be coping. As he was sure after a time that the Captain would have no choose but to say he was dead. If they hadn't found him by now, they probably couldn't.
And he couldn't find any fault in his Brothers. No, they would be likely tearing themselves up over this. Blaming themselves. When there was no fault to be had on anyone but his kidnappers and torturers.
Their treatment of him got worse and worse. He barely was with it half the time. But he knew he didn't give them the information they wanted.
He couldn't remember how he escaped. That was all blank to him and so was the passage of time. That concept of day and night and time had left him. As his kidnappers didn't make it a habit of telling him things or anything to do with the passage of time and how long they had, had him for.
He vaguely recognized when he was safe and that was it for a time.
His dreams and nightmares had him calling for his Brothers. Wanting his Brothers to know he was alive. Wanting his Brothers to come and rescue him from this hell. He so wanted Athos and Porthos protection and Aramis to tend to his wounds. He would even let them fuss over him if they had found him! And this coming from him was big, he didn't like being fussed over and he hated to admit to injury. But what his body had been through was too big to hide from them.
So, he dreamed of their overprotectiveness and of Aramis tending to him with Athos and Porthos at his beck and call. But he doubted that was what was happening right know. As far as he knew his brothers believed he was dead.
So, who was helping him?
Who was whispering words of comfort in his ears? Who was sitting with him? Whose presence did he sense?
(Line Break)
"D'Artagnan", he whispers his name to Helena who had asked for it.
"Nice to meet you D'Artagnan. But we wish it was under better circumstances", Helena tells him with a soft smile.
"Mo…re water?" D'Artagnan rasps.
"Of course and then we need to go over your injuries", Phillipe tells him as his wife helps D'Artagnan to drink a bit more.
D'Artagnan nods weakly in agreement.
"What is the damage?" D'Artagnan slurries out.
"First can you feel my hand touching your arms", Phillipe tells him gently touching D'Artagnan's fingers.
"Yes…Pain in…right", D'Artagnan tells him weakly.
"It would be. That arm, wrist and three fingers are broken and it had a dislocated shoulder", Phillipe tells him, "Those seem to be healing well actually and seem to be healing as fast as I expected"
"Chest?" D'Artagnan asks.
"5 broken ribs. That is why your chest hurts so much. You were lucky a rib or two didn't puncture a lung. And we just figured out you have a bit of water in your lungs. Like you have been drowned. We will have to look out for pneumonia", Phillipe tells him.
"Soun…ds about right", D'Artagnan coughs.
"You have a broken nose and cheek bone", Phillipe tells him.
"An…ything else?" he asks.
Phillipe pursed his lips and moved to touch D'Artagnan's right hip.
"Do you feel that?" Phillipe asks, "Do you feel where my hand is?"
D'Artagnan frowns and looks at him confused, "Feel what?"
"What about now?" Phillipe asks going lower and lower with the same answer, "Do you feel pain from the right hip down?"
D'Artagnan gives a weak shake of his head. He knew that was bad. As he knew his captors at done damage too it.
And only on the right side. Phillipe and Helena share a look.
"What is that look?" D'Artagnan asks them, slurring his words.
"Nothing. Would you like something for the pain?" Phillipe asks him, "It will help with your recovery if you can rest without pain"
"Ok…but can…I send…I message to Paris?" D'Artagnan asks them.
"Why do you need to do that right now?" Helena asks gently as Phillipe mixes up a pain draught.
"I…I…I'm a Kings…Musketeer", D'Artagnan stutters out flinching in pain.
The couple's eyes widen at that.
"Shouldn't someone be with you?" Phillipe asks helping him drink the pain draught.
"They…They…"
"They want?" Helena asks gently, but she and Phillipe could see D'Artagnan was losing the battle for consciousness.
"…believe I'm dead", D'Artagnan whispers as he loses his battle to stay awake.
Phillipe and Helena look at each other. They know knew this was getting more complicated by the second and they hadn't even told the poor boy about his leg yet.
A leg he might not be able to use again…
(Line Break)
D'Artagnan had gone in and out of consciousness. He still didn't have any sense of time passing. Only when he was awake, he was in pain.
But when he woke up today, he was a little bit more aware and saw the woman who was with him sitting in a chair next to him, talking to her husband.
He goes to speak but coughs instead.
Helena quickly helps him sit up a bit more and drink some water.
"There you go. All better?" she asks him kindly.
"I…don't know if better is the word", D'Artagnan rasps out wincing.
"Mmmm", Helena hums.
"How long have I been here?" D'Artagnan asks weakly.
"17 days", Phillipe tells him honestly.
D'Artagnan's eyes widen at that.
"I need to get home", D'Artagnan whispers weakly trying to get up.
But he found out he couldn't move his right leg and now that he thought about it, he couldn't feel it. And shouldn't it be agonizingly painful?
Helena and Phillipe were gently pushing him back down. D'Artagnan really couldn't fight them. But also, he was starting to panic about not feeling his leg.
"My leg…", D'Artagnan states weakly.
Phillipe sighs knowing that his patient had just realized that something was wrong with his leg.
"Your foot it cut up. Your right foot and leg are broken and your right knee was dislocated…", Phillipe tells him.
"Why can't I…?" D'Artagnan asks confused.
"It seems a sharp object like a poker heated up was stabbed into your hip and then taken out. Which damaged muscles, tendons, nerves and tissue. There is also a knife wound to the same hit. It seems that those injured muscles and so on have been badly damaged. So damaged in fact that you can't feel your whole right leg", Phillipe explains to him trying to be gentle.
D'Artagnan was horrified by that knowledge. He vaguely remembered his kidnappers stabbing him with something hot. But he had been so out of it too really pay attention.
"Will…I feel it again?" D'Artagnan asks.
"I can't say at this stage. We will just have to wait and see", Phillipe tells him, "Just think positive. Anything can happen. Sometimes injuries of certain kinds are unpredictable. So, there is always hope"
D'Artagnan nods weakly but he was thinking about if he could live if that leg remained useless. What would he do? How would he get back to Paris? Would he ever be able to ride a horse again? Or even help out at the Garrison?
"Can I send a message?" D'Artagnan asks with a cough.
"I'll get some broth for you and once you drink that you can send your message", Helena tells him.
"Thank you"
(Line Break)
After D'Artagnan had send the message to Paris. To ask for his brothers. He unfortunately fell ill with a second infection. He had gotten pneumonia and once again was battling to survive.
His carers didn't know how much more his body could take. But it had to be strong to still be putting up a fight.
Maybe they thought it had something to do with the young man's brothers. D'Artagnan told them that they were close and believed him dead. And that he wanted to go back to Paris and show them he was alive. As he told them that his brothers were more than likely blaming themselves right now and he wanted to relieve them of that burden soon.
But at the rate it didn't appear the boy would survive much longer.
But he did…
D'Artagnan had managed to fight off the pneumonia but it had left him weakened. And Helena had to spend all her time nursing him back to health. D'Artagnan couldn't thank her or her husband enough for what they had done for him.
He vowed he would find some way to pay them back so how.
Many would have seen him as a lost course. But these two had taken a chance on him and he would forever be grateful to them. They were giving him a chance to get back to his brothers.
When he started to eat again it had to be in small qualities. As eating too much after so many months of little made him sick. But he needed to get his strength back up if he had any hope of returning to Paris.
But the way his injuries were it would a miracle if he was able to travel to Paris, much less re-join the Musketeers.
A small part of him was happy that his Brothers weren't here to see him like this. He didn't want to think what his Brothers would do to themselves if they believed his state was because of them.
Which of course it wasn't!
But D'Artagnan knew trying to tell them that was going to be like talking to a brick wall. But he was sure he was going to have to try. If his brothers came for him. But he sent that message and no reply or his brothers had turned up and charged into his room. Which D'Artagnan didn't know what to think at this moment. As he had enough on his plate.
Then when he fell asleep one night, he was awoken by terrible pain shooting down his leg that made him cry out as spasms plagued him.
Lucky Helena was there and quickly sent for her husband as she tried to get D'Artagnan to tell her what was wrong. But she didn't really need him to tell her. As to her surprise she saw his right leg, the one that up until then was immobile and had no feeling in it was jerking weakly in its splint.
Helena put a cool wet cloth on the young man's head. Trying to calm him as they awaited her husband.
"What is happening?" D'Artagnan gasps as tears fall from the pain.
"We will see what Phillipe has to say. But I do believe this pain is a good thing", Helena tells him.
"I don't see how", he whimpers.
Phillipe arrived within half-an-hour to see his patient whimpering, crying in agony. He noticed immediately the small jerks of the right leg. Which until now hadn't moved at all.
"When did this start?" Phillipe ask urgently.
"About 45 minutes ago. He was sleeping and he awoke with a cry", Helena replies.
"D'Artagnan, I need you to be honest and tell me how bad the pain is", Phillipe asks him gently.
"Bad", he gasps, whimpering, "I want my Brothers"
"I am sorry Lad. But I am going to have touch your leg to see where you are actually feeling something", Phillipe tells him, "I'll be as careful as I can"
He starts from the top and slowly works his way down and they found D'Artagnan could feel down to his knee so far.
"What does this mean?" D'Artagnan asks him.
"It means that you could possibly get the movement in your leg back. It sees the nerves and so on are starting to knit back together. But this is going to be a VERY painful process. The pain will come and go. The spasms will vary in intensity. Sometimes you might not feel pain, but then it will come on quickly. This is not going to be a fast fix, Lad. This is going to take months of rest and slowly rebuilding the muscles and strength in your leg. I still don't know if you will be as you were before. But as long as you're still willing, I'll give it my all to see you better. Are you ready to put in the hard work?" Phillipe asks him.
"I am. My Brothers can tell you I'm stubborn. And I will gladly prove them right by being able to walk again!"
(Line Break)
A couple of months had passed since Treville had made his ruling about the search for D'Artagnan and he had seen the Inseparables crack and start to break. He didn't know how one Lad could have changed his men so much.
But the whole Garrison seemed to be affected in some way or another. It seemed to boy had wormed his way into all their hearts. But know more so then the Inseparables. And now because of everything Treville was nearly at his wits end trying to handle the now volatile trio. As they were a powder keg just waiting to go off and Treville wasn't looking forward to it happening. He had to stop that from happening if it did it could mean he had to take his Three best Musketeers commission and he was sure that deep down the trio didn't want to lose their commission.
But he didn't know what to do. Even with each other it was a gamble that everyone would make it back unharmed or if at all.
But what else was he meant to do?
So, when I mission came through to send some Musketeers to investigate up North, he decided this would be the last chance for the Inseparables to prove they could still work together. If this didn't work, he might just have to split up the once unbeatable force.
And he didn't think anyone (not including the Red Guard and the Cardinal) wanted that…
~~Author's Note: What Do You Think? Please Review:)~~
