Nyx's Descendant

Chapter 22

It took a while for me to get my bearing of what was going on with my body. I felt my consciousness returning, but I couldn't move, or access motor function with my muscles, or limbs. I felt like a stranger within my own body. I couldn't open my eyes, and I had to keep focusing on breathing. It wasn't just a natural act, I had to keep reminding myself to take slow breaths, because otherwise it would send flaring, searing pulsations throughout my nerves. The pain was almost too much to handle. After what felt like hours, I managed to breathe without thinking about it. I could move my fingers, and they began to tingle as the nerves woke up.

Everything became alive again. Slowly, all my muscles, organs and mind became aware of normal functions. The pain was still immense. I could sense people around me. They were all fussing over me. I heard muffled voices. I couldn't tell who spoke. I barely heard the words. I managed to make out a few key words. "Sorry. He's gone. We can't. He has. Moved." Then I heard the faintest beep. Then another. No one seemed aware of it. Another beep. Followed by another not far behind. "RAZ!" a female shouted. "He's gone. God, you didn't care this much when we were together."

The entire room grew quiet. "Jyn, that's cold," another female commented. I almost recognized it. Beep. Two seconds passed. Beep. Two seconds again. Beep. "You know damn well he gave a damn about you," a male replied. Tyler? Could that be who now spoke. Beep. This time the beeping became louder and more consistent. Beep. "Come on guys. We have to do something. We can't just leave him here," the second female replied. Jesi. Definitely Jesi. Beep. "Jyn, you know that I loved you. You know that I always will," Raz told her.

Jyn scoffed. "This is pointless!" I heard Inos' voice snap. "Easy," Jesi said to him. "NO! How could this happen? He doesn't deserve this! We fucking failed," Inos screamed in frustration. Three consecutive beeps in a row. "Wait, something has changed," Raz said, voice cracking from crying. I didn't think any of them would actually cry over me. I hated that they were. Why? I may be important, but I didn't think I was more important than one of them. Beep. "You all hear that? Listen," Raz ordered. I heard Jyn about to argue. Beep. Inos and Tyler silenced her. Beep. Beep. Beep. I felt their eyes pierce into me.

Beep. I heard the machine next to me grow louder and constant. My breathing became strong. My heartbeat at a solid pace. Beep. "Am I hearing things, or is monitor making the beeping noises like he has a pulse?" Inos asked. "Doctor! Nurse!" Jesi bellowed out the door. "What is all this screaming?" A deep voice demanded. Beep. The room became quiet. Beep. "There's no way," I heard someone say. Beep. I felt pressure on my wrist. I wanted to scream at the touch. Every part of me was on fire. I don't even think I looked like me. I felt like I would look like one of those typical murderers from a horror movie.

"He does have a pulse. It's weak but growing. I don't know when he'll be conscious. I don't know what he'll remember," the man replied. "We don't care. As long as he's going to live," I heard Raz say, voice on the verge of breaking. "We will monitor him through the night. You should all leave. He's not going to be awake for a while," the doctor replied. I felt the room's atmosphere change. It shifted. Raz stepped forward. I felt him approach the bed. I can't begin to say how much I wanted him to touch me. Hold me, but at the same time. I knew it would just cause more pain.

"Is he in pain?" Raz asked. "We can't know. We will only know if or when he wakes up," they were told. "I'm going to stick around. I'm not going anywhere," I heard Raz tell the doctor. I sensed the tension in the room. The doctor didn't say anything, but I felt that he wanted to. "As long as you don't interfere with the nurses and staff," the doctor replied. "I won't, but if I feel that he's in danger, or threatened. I will say something. Or interfere then. Otherwise, we won't have a problem," Raz said simply. The hostility grew in the room.