Really, Gath was in the way. But no one dared attempt to move the colossal Rethan from Relkir’s side. Doing so would be to risk harming themselves. In fact, Gath had been involuntarily sedated in a bid to stop them from going Defensive Stance at the sight of their poor, beloved but injured poten-partner, and even though Gath was currently sedated, they were still clearly on edge. Gath had unintentionally snarled at a few nurses, but they did apologize, and Gath only seemed to calm down when they were allowed to spend some time alone with Relkir. Once it was just Gath and Relkir on their own, Gath sat down next to Relkir and held their hand tightly, refusing to move at all.
Thankfully, Relkir was incredibly lucky. Had they not been pushed out of the way by their sibling Retvik, the bullet that had pierced Relkir’s side would have gone through Relkir’s spine, permanently crippling them. Yes, Relkir did have to have some of their digestive tract sewn back up, but the alternative would have been far, far worse.
Even more luckily, it seemed that Relkir was slowly waking up. Gath gasped with joy as Relkir’s pretty sapphire eyes flickered open. It took a moment for Relkir to work out where they are, but as they spotted Gath, Relkir immediately smiled.
“Hello.”
“Hello, dear.”
Relkir tried to sit up, but realized they were strapped to the bed. Standard procedure in Rethan hospitals. A lot of Rethavok moved around a lot while unconscious, especially under anaesthetic.
“What happened?” Relkir blinked, but remained smiling. They were sedated as well. Well, really, they were recovering from anaesthetic, but they were just as sleepy as Gath was.
“Someone tried to assassinate the High General. You got caught in the crossfire.”
“Oh.”
Relkir sighed. Gath sighed too, then tightened their grip on Relkir’s hand.
“Is Rethais okay? Is Retvik alright?” Relkir eventually asked. “They… tried to push me out of the way.”
Gath nodded. “Retvik is, weirdly, absolutely and utterly fine. Somehow. Unconscious, but already mostly healed. I… I saw first hand what that bullet did to you both, and, in all honesty, Retvik should be dead. But Retvik saved your life. You would be dead too had Retvik not, uh…” Gath hesitated for a moment, trying to recall what the medics had told them. “I… I am not sure. Something about how the bullet’s trajectory was lowered because it passed through Retvik first, and because they moved you, the bullet passed through your side rather than hitting your spine.”
“I… I remember… four shots though.”
“Apparently one hit High General Rethais in the arm, the other two missed. They are fine though, their plating blocked most of it. They are very angry though. I was very angry too. Still am.”
Relkir smiled some more. “You look happy now.”
“Because you are awake, my beloved!” Gath beamed. “Also, I am sedated myself.”
“Why?”
“Well, uh, I… I am very, very prone to going Defensive Stance. And I am amazed I did not go Defensive Stance the second I saw you lying there, bleeding. General Lysar wisely dragged me away, but they let me ride in the helicopter with you to he hospital.”
“Aw…” Relkir’s smile faded somewhat. “I missed a helicopter ride. I like those.”
“Maybe we could get a helicopter ride together at some point?” Gath suggested. “I do prefer planes though. Helicopters are loud and the noise bothers me. Still, the medics say you will need a week or so to recover.”
“Huh. Is that all?” The anaesthetics were clearly affecting Relkir’s ability to speak. Their words were all slurred, and Relkir was not as sharp with their sentences as they normally were. “Thank… uh… thank the Ksithans, I guess? Or the Spasts? Whoever makes our far superior medical technology? Maybe I should thank the Oath Keeper too.”
“Hah…” Gath hesitated slightly. “I, uh, forgot that you… occasionally worship the Deathbringer.”
“I am too delirious to properly comment but… uh… well… if it was not for the Oath Keeper accidentally giving Retvik their healing powers…” Relkir trailed off. “Actually, I think Retvik would have given their life to protect me, Oath Keeper’s friendship or otherwise. This is the second time Retvik has saved me from certain death.”
Gath simply nodded. Neither of them really wanted to argue or discuss anything complicated right now. “When I retire, I want to promote Retvik to General of the 1000th Legion. I think they deserve it.”
“You are thinking of retiring?” Relkir tried to sit up in shock, having forgotten they were strapped down. This hurt more than Relkir expected, and they let out a sharp hiss of pain. Gath quickly and gently stroked Relkir’s cheek in a bid to distract them.
“It… it is complicated. I will retire sooner rather than later. Not yet though. There are definitely things I wish to discuss with you, but now is not the time for that…” Gath suddenly stopped. There was something at the window. A large, black fluffy kitty. Granted, they were not that high up, and a fluffy kitty getting onto the window ledge was perfectly possible via the sub-level below, but fluffy kitties didn’t naturally live in Rethan territories.
Worse, Gath recognized the fluffy kitty. It was the same one they had seen and picked up on their trip to Portalia. The fluffy kitty that had interrupted a Legion Induction Ceremony.
“Oh!” Relkir exclaimed as they wriggled their hand free and waved at the fluffy kitty. “Hello, Oath Keeper!”
To Gath’s surprise, the fluffy kitty… seemed to wave back? But as Gath got up and approached the window, it turned around and leaped off, down onto the sub-level, before disappearing behind an air vent.
“Am I, like, high or something?” Gath asked. “You… you saw that, yes, Relkir?”
Relkir nodded and went back to smiling. “Yes! I saw the fluffy kitty! Kyr Arkay came to check in on us, clearly!”
“You are… I was going to say that you and I are both hallucinating, since we are both somewhat sedated, but we are not on the same drugs right now…” Gath sighed. “And… I guess you are right about the Deathbringer.”
Relkir nodded some more, then yawned. “Yes, yes. I am right about most things. That is why I am the High Advisor. Am I… am I still the High Advisor?”
“Of course you are, silly.”
“Ah, good. Because I am small and weak and would struggle to get a job elsewhere.”
Gath sat back down, then patted Relkir on the head. “You are absolutely fine and wonderful as you are. And it is a miracle that you are still here.”
“Heh. I love you, Gath. I want you by my side forever.”
Gath frowned, then sighed some more. Those words bothered Gath, because they knew that they definitely were not going to last forever. Or even for that long. Still, Relkir didn’t need the extra stress right now, so Gath pushed those thoughts to one side and smiled back at their beloved partner.
“I love you too, Relkir. For as long as we live, I love you.”