A Miracle for Love (Caesar Drisdall from The White Knights Chronicles)

Chapter 13

After the exhaustion of the day and getting settled at the inn, Caesar anxiously waited for a doctor to come and look at Katelyn. After he brought her into their room, he untied her mask from her face, but left her hair wrapped. He took a small bowl of water and rags and began to slowly cleanse away the filth of the day from her body, taking off her armor and extra layers. He untied her boots and placed them to the side and took off her socks. Then, feeling that she would be a little more comfortable in her sleep, he started to sit there, and for the first time in a long time prayed to a higher power that she would wake up and show him her beautiful eyes. "I know I haven't asked you for anything in a long time, but please, I beg of you, don't take away my one shot at happiness. I have fought tooth and nail to protect everyone around me, yet it always seems those closest to me are taken too soon. I didn't get to say goodbye to my father. Kara died in my arms as I held her. I can't lose Katelyn too." He held onto her hand as tears fell from his eyes. A few minutes later, a small knock on the door was heard. Caesar said, "Come in," knowing it was the doctor. A middle-aged woman walked in carrying a bag of medical supplies. "Hello, my lord. I heard you had an injured woman who seems to be comatose after healing, is that right?" "Yes ma'am. She hasn't woken up, and it's been hours. I really need to know why." She walked up and rubbed his shoulder reassuringly and said, "Let's take a look and see what I can find out." The woman approached Katelyn who was laid on the bed. She started to examine her, taking her temperature, checking her pulse, blood pressure, and respiration rate. "Her vitals appear stable, though her blood pressure is a little low. But that could be from blood loss," she noted. She then checked Katelyn's pupils with a light and said, "It seems that she may be comatose. Did she take a hit to the head?" "No, she fell sideways. She just collapsed." The woman made a sound under her breath and asked, "May I check her scalp just to be sure?" "You may," he said. The woman unwrapped the girl's hair and checked her scalp for abrasions and swelling but found nothing. "Okay, you said the slash was to her abdomen?" He nodded. The woman lifted Katelyn's shirt and pressed on different spots of her stomach. "There is no swelling, tenderness, firmness, or bruising. It seems that the wound may have left a small scar, but there is no damage. This case is really stumping me. I wonder, has she had any past traumatic experiences? Something that her mind may have a hard time processing. It could be the cause of her slumber." "So, you are saying that the need to process this information could have caused the comatose state." "Yes, my lord. If she does not wake within the next 24 hours, please send for me, okay? Just make sure that until she wakes, you turn her every few hours, so she doesn't get sores on her lovely skin, okay?" "Yes ma'am. Thank you for your help." "You're welcome, dear. Have a good evening." With that, the woman gathered her things and left the room. A knock was heard a few minutes later. Yulie peeked her head in and asked, "How is she?" "The coma may have been caused by a traumatic experience. I wonder if the knight caused this or what happened today." "Don't beat yourself up, Caesar. I'm sure you did everything you could. She will wake up. Just give her time. I'm going to get you some food. You've lost weight and it's starting to show." "Thanks Yulie. You always care for my wellbeing." "Well, someone has to," she said as she left the room. Caesar removed his shirt and sat next to Katelyn on the bed. He pulled her body against his, leaning her head against his chest. He then closed his eyes as his back laid against the headboard. He wished that he could see where her mind was, but it seemed that his dragonsight couldn't even tell him.

In her comatose state, Katelyn could not tell what parts were dreams and what parts were reality. It seemed that something inside the Black Knight's sword had awakened a memory bank from the Dogma Ages. Katelyn's mind hadn't been able to process all the information, so it put her into a slumber. But, through her slumber she still remembered the ever-present light in her life. In one dream, her and Caesar were happily married with two kids and had the perfect family life in Greede. In another, they were in the middle of their wedding with Eldore walking her down the aisle. They were in a place called Faria, which she guessed came from Kara's memories. In another, she was just finding out she was pregnant with Caesar's child. There were some dreams that were sad, with pictures of her, Caesar, and her family. There was even a dream where her and Caesar adopted Kara's little sister, Lena. Finally, the dreams stopped. She was in an empty void of darkness, standing on what seemed to be a stage of some sort. Then, a shadow-like creature appeared in front of her. "I am the Guardian of Dinivas, Deliverer of Dark and Dread, Ruler of the Ancient Shadows. To earn your right to hold my power, you must prove to me your worth." Katelyn then realized that she would have to fight this creature, similar to how they had fought the Dragon Matriarch with Caesar's father. But this time, she would have to fight alone. Her sword appeared on her hip, so she pulled it out and ran towards the Guardian who awaited her first attack. She ran up to it and swung her sword. Then, it started to attack back. She used the incantations she had been taught by Caesar to weaken its attacks and defenses, then made another swing for it. A magical bolt of darkness struck her, and a curse set in. She said an incantation to remove the curse and continued her attacks. It took what felt like hours of the back and forth, but was only minutes before the Guardian said, "You have proved your worth and have unlocked the deeper powers of the Black Knight. Use these powers wisely for the greater battle ahead. You will not see or hear from me again. I release you." The creature raised its hand towards the sky, its palm started to glow, then the Black Knight's Ark appeared in its hand. It held the Ark out for Katelyn to take, then raised one of its hands and snapped its fingers. Katelyn started to glow before leaving the dark void. Then, she opened her eyes.