Ciara slowly tried blinking her eyes open, only to find her sight was covered in a muddy darkness. She felt both numb and ached all over at the same time. Every single limb far too heavy for her to even move.

Apart from that, she couldn't tell if she was in a soft bedding or if she was on the hard ground. Though she could see nothing, it felt as though the whole world spun all around her.

The only thing she really could do was hear, but even then, she couldn't decipher who was who or what was what. It was as though all sounds had to pass through a thick, solid gate to reach her.

"She will be stable from now on, but will have to rest for some time, however."

"What is your estimate?"

"I would say at least a full moon-cycle until she is back to normal again. Half that time should be spent only in bed."

"I see. That is pretty good."

"It is nothing short of a miracle. We are lucky she is still with us at all."

She was pretty sure she was the one they were talking about, but she couldn't find it in her to really care. Especially not as the darkness began creeping in on her again, taking over what precious little she had of her sight and lulling her into what would surely be a heavy sleep.

"Now, she should get some rest. I will explain further outside."

"From now on, only the five of us will be allowed into this room. Whatever the reason may be. Is that clear?"

That was the very last thing she heard before sleep swallowed her whole.

...

"Kaisog! No!" she woke with a jolt, sitting upright with tears cascading down her cheeks.

She looked around at her surroundings, not having any clue where she was or what was going on.

The door to the room was kicked open and in strode a man who looked at her with wide eyes.

"What happened?!"

The familiar sound of his voice and the whimpering of a dragon brought everything back to her.

It was a dream. She'd only dreamt of Kaisog dying again.

It had been so long since last time. She thought she'd gotten over it.

She felt tears well up in her eyes uncontrollably as she looked at Alex. Her whole body started to tremble.

"Sorry. I am so, so sorry!"

He looked at her for a moment, not understanding anything, but then hurried over to her.

"Hey, hey. No need to cry, Ciara. You have done nothing wrong." He tried to soothe her, gently placing one hand on her back and the other on her good shoulder, supporting her. "Come on, let us get you down again." He gently pushed her down and into the bedding again.

It was only when he offered his support that she realized just how heavy her body was and how much it ached. It was like it had been weighed down with lead for hours on end.

She exhaled in relief once she went back to lying down, the physical strain on her body now gone.

She felt gentle yet callused hands reach up and wipe away the wetness on her cheeks.

"So, what happened, Ciara?"

"I had a night-terror," she said. He was one of the people she was most comfortable telling everything to besides Kaisog.

He smiled lightly at her as he knelt beside her so he was at her level.

"Want to tell me about it?"

She nodded, only to find that movement immensely difficult and painful to do in her current state.

"I... it was of the day I had just gotten here." She averted her eyes to the ceiling. "I watched - or heard, I suppose - my best friend and closest brother be killed so that I could escape again." Just the thought of it brought water to her eyes even now.

"He was the one you named Kaisog after, right?" His warm eyes smiled comfortingly at her. She only now noticed the wrinkles around them, making them seem a hundred times kinder still.

"Yes." She blinked the tears out of her eyes the best she could. "I miss him terribly much." she whispered, her voice breaking halfway through.

Every time she'd had this dream, it felt like losing him all over again, and it never got any easier.

Alex nodded lightly, frowning a little.

"And that is completely all right. He was someone you really cared for," He squeezed her hand. "I would be far more worried if you were over all that already."

She giggled at that, only for it to end in a cough.

"Thank you, Alex." He'd really been a lifesaver ever since she'd gotten here. "So. Uhm, how long have I been out?" She got the feeling she'd been sleeping much longer than she thought.

"A few days," he told her. "Seven days and nights, to be precise." He smiled at the worried look on her face. "You have been going in and out of consciousness all this time."

"I see..."

Seven days. And that was with a dragon scale. She really would've been dead if it hadn't been for that.

She could still remember what that voice - the healer, she guessed - had said. That would mean she still had three times as long until she was properly on her feet, then.

Just then, someone stepped in through the door, which she recalled had been completely agape until now.

"Princess! You are awake!" Sergon rushed over to her bedside.

She smiled weakly up at him, knowing she couldn't be looking good right now.

"Hi Lord Sergon." She wished she could at least sit up in front of him. But alas, her limbs would allow for no such movements.

Sergon gave Alex a pat on the shoulder, and with that the guard exited the room and closed the door with a last smile for her.

Sergon then looked at her worriedly. "How are you feeling, princess?" He reached up to put the back of his hand to her forehead. It was cool, but nothing too noteworthy.

"I am doing fine, I suppose." She wasn't really sure how she actually felt. "My body is quite heavy and achy, and I am a little exhausted. Other than that, I am doing well, all things considered," she promised him, even if she still wasn't sure that was the truth.

He smiled lightly at her. "That is good to hear, given everything. How is your shoulder?"

She looked at it herself, seeing the bandages had turned a shade of pink. However, just like everything else, she couldn't move it whatsoever.

"It is not too bad, just a little achier than the rest."

"That is also really good," he said, smiling still. "The healer smeared it with something that should take the worst of the pain away, though it will likely wear off within the next few days."

She nodded. That meant she would probably be in some pain within the next few days. Well, that was to be expected with what she'd done, after all.

"Anyway, allow me to extend the utmost of gratitude from his majesty - unfortunately he has some things he needs to take care of, so he could not be here to do it himself."

She shook her head gently, though it really was more like rocking it from side to side.

"Do not worry about it, I am sure I have caused him some trouble as well."

Sergon stared at her face for a moment, then shook his head.

"Not at all, actually. It would have been far more trouble if either you or he had died there. It would have struck his heart, so you really helped us out there." he told her. "Besides, thanks to Kaisog, the assassin was easily caught and brought in for questioning," he said. "So really, you have done so much for us already."

She genuinely smiled at that. "That makes me happy to hear." She heard another whimper from outside. "He has been quite worried, has he not?"

Sergon chuckled. "Very," he told her. "We have been able to tell how you were doing simply through his behavior."

She laughed lightly at that, shaking her head. "Why am I not surprised?"

Sergon smiled as he watched her looking towards the door to the outside again.

"He is not the only one, you know." She returned her attention to him. "We have all been very worried about you - especially the king, although he does not like to admit it."

"Really?" She stifled the yawn that suddenly welled up in her. She could hardly believe that of him. On the other hand though, he'd been quite kind and attentive of her back then.

Sergon nodded. "Yes. He has asked for you every day since then." He clearly found that fact amusing himself.

She smiled at him, her eyelid growing heavy against her will.

"That is-" She yawned, unable to stifle it this time. "Nice."

He chuckled at her struggles. "I will let you get some rest, princess. We can talk tomorrow."

"Only if you call me Ciara."

He smiled down at her. "All right, Ciara. Then you can simply call me Sergon." He chuckled when she literally nodded off.