The Monarch | ✓

Chapter XII

"Malia?" a voice called to her.

A thick, white fog enveloped her. She tried to reach the voice, to respond to it, but it wasn't any use. She was too far away.

"Malia?" she heard it call again.

It was so familiar she wanted to cry. She wanted to let them know that she was right here. She tried to look around, but a white light blinded her.

Her brain turned foggy again, and the voice appeared more and more distant until it disappeared altogether.

She woke again to voices in the distance but couldn't comprehend any of the words or who the voices may belong to.

When she awoke the third time, her vision came back. The bright white lights merged into shapes and colours. A wall came into focus and she groaned. She couldn't hold the weight of her head, her body was slumped against the wall to hold her steady.

"Malia?" the familiar voice called from before.

The voice was still at a distance, but this time, they sounded worried.

"Elias?" she croaked. Her throat burned.

When she turned her head, her eyes widened.

A sizeable man came into focus and he yanked her upward by her left arm. She felt nauseated. Her body folded and her shoulders slouched. She couldn't regain control of her body.

The man pushed her into the cell with the keys clanging against the lock. Malia clutched the sides of her head. She ran into another person as she tried to gain balance, but the arms held her up this time instead of dropping her to the floor.

He grabbed a hold of her waist before she fell over backward.

She looked up at Elias, his eyes tire, and hair longer than the last time she had seen him. He simultaneously looked more boyish and more wise.

"It's okay," Elias said, "I've got you."

He helped her sit on the icy floor of the cell and rested her back against the stone wall. It her body shivered as she made contact her head started to numb with the cold.

She tried to lean her head back, but she couldn't control her movements. Her limbs softened and her body was too heavy to lift or readjust.

She tried to open her eyes again. She peered out to the distance but the man who had locked her inside was no longer outside the cell. They were alone.

She dropped her hand to her side and wondered where her sword was. She had brought it along to protect her, but it could do little when the sword-weilder hadn't a chance to strike. Then she turned her head to look at Elias, but it was hard to focus on his face. His face kept coming into her vision and fading away.

Her body shivered.

He slipped the blanket around her shoulders, but it did little to provide warmth. The holes gave way to the breeze and the scratchy material made her arms itch.

Elias must have realized that she was uncomfortable because his arms wrapped around her shoulders. He brought her close against his side. He guided her head towards his shoulder, but with his height, it landed on the side of his arm.

She leaned against his arm and shut her eyes, trying to expel the pain of her throbbing head. It was of no use.

"Just rest," Elias said. "We'll have time to talk later."

Malia cringed as the memory of trying to find Elias came back to her.

She wondered how long he'd been trapped in this cell and she winced as the throbbing on her left side heightened. She must have recoiled because Elias held her tighter.