2 | flatline [darkling]

twenty

AS SHE SOON AS SHE OPENED her eyes, she closed them again due to the blinding light coming from the window. The last thing she remembered was being on the battlefield, but as she looked around she realised she was now in the Vezda Suite. Her old room. She felt tired, as if she hadn't slept in years.

There was no point in her staying, making her push herself up in a sitting position. The door slowly opens up, making her look in the direction and her breath stops as her eyes connect with familiar dark ones. His eyes widen in shock, before he rushes to her side, worry evident in his eyes.

"Nyx, how are you feeling?" Aleksander asks as he takes her hand. "You shouldn't, be getting up."

"Aleks?" He hums in response as he softly lays her back down. "What's going on? What happened? What about the battle?"

"Nyx..." He trails off, giving her a weak smile. Worry settles in her heart as he takes his time to reply. "It's been three months since."

"What?" She gasps, her eyes widening in panic. Had she been unconscious for the whole time.

"You... you died. Your heart stopped for five hours. Not a single Healer could help you. It had gotten to the point we were ready to accept your death, when suddenly your heartbeat restarted." He says with a strained voice, he lowers his head as if afraid to face her. "You were dead. Saints, I help your lifeless body and you wouldn't-"

"I'm okay now. I'm alive." She tries to reassure him, making him look back to at her.

"Why would you come back? Why did you do that? Alina and I were going to be okay." He says with wide eyes, making her sigh.

"I couldn't leave you alone, Aleks. I was scared that you'd..." She trails off unable to finish the sentence.

"But you did. You died." He exclaims, making her look down in apologetically. "I thought I lost you forever. I rather you be mad at me forever rather than you dying."

"I'm sorry, I just wanted to protect you." She says softly and he sighs softly.

"And who was going to protect you?" He asks, making her look up at him. He lets out a deep sigh and shakes his head. "There is no point in dwelling over this. It's over now. You're okay now."

"Did anyone not make it?" She asks, making him lean back in the chair he had sat down in.

"A few of the younger, inexperienced Grisha didn't make it. But other than that it's just serious injuries." He answers, making her nod in acceptance.

"And how did you defeat them?" She asks, causing him to frown.

"Nyx... you killed them all." He says and she looks at him in bewilderment.

"Was there only three hundred men left?" She asks, causing him to shake his head in response. "How many were there left?"

"Approximately two thousands. We'd killed 200 as an army, 300 between Alina and I... you killed the rest." Aleksander clarifies, making her look at him in disbelief. "I guess that second amplifier was useful in doing one thing other than nearly killing you."

"I can't believe I killed that many." She breaths out.

"You've always been more powerful than most Heartrenders. In a way that was something that always scared me." He admits, making her soften and look at him with a weak smile.

"I could never kill you. No matter how mad I might be, I could not do it. Proof I depended on the Fjerdans to do it and even ended up stopping them." She points out and he chuckles softly.

"Was there really a point to all of this in the end?" He wonders, making her shrug as she looks at the ceiling. "Well, it's going to take a while for everything to get back to normal, but maybe you could become Second in Command again. We could start off where we left."

"I don't think Alina would appreciate us using the Fold instead of destroying it." She chuckles, making him smile.

"Since when did we care what others thought?" He asks as he leans forward, making her own smile to appear. It felt like old times, when the two would just come up with plans to achieve their goals. But her smile soon drops.

"I don't think we'll be able to do that, Aleks." She sighs, making him look at her questioningly. "I can't do the Small Science anymore."