Chapter 10
The boys kept the same schedule over the next several weeks. They would begin with Orion’s fysimae lessons in the morning, then take a lunch break. After their lunch break, they would resume their daily studies with their teachers until dinner with Empress Anita. After dinner, Orion and Rick would train Orion’s way until they went to bed. Oftentimes, they would take a few hours off to enjoy the city. Once a week, however, Rick would disappear to see his girlfriend, as Joshua claimed. Orion learned some things quickly, but others took longer. He got the hang of making three dimensional pictures out of light right away, but struggled with shape shifting. He enjoyed playing pranks on the servants by changing the weight of different things. By disguising fire with colors and shapes, Orion got used to the flames being in the same room with him. He still was afraid of regular fire, though.
Every evening, the boys would meet their mother for dinner. Orion and Joshua would discuss the day’s lessons and practice, and brag about how he was getting better. Rick joined in, but Empress Anita usually kept quiet. She seemed to be growing sadder with every passing day.
“What’s wrong, Mother?” Rick asked one evening, noticing that she hadn’t touched her dinner. Joshua and Orion stopped talking and looked at her, waiting for an answer.
“It’s nothing,” she said airily, as if it was normal for her to not eat.
“It’s not nothing, Anita,” Orion stated. He hadn’t quite got used to calling her ‘mother,’ yet. “You’ve been so quiet lately, and you haven’t eaten a bite.”
“Well, it’s just that-,” She tried to make up some excuse, but none came to her. “I’m worried about Frederic, that’s all,” she sighed.
“Why?” Orion demanded. He had forgotten that his father was still locked up in the dungeon.
“He’s not well,” she looked at Orion. “He’s sick, and he’s not eating. He’s so thin, his ribs are showing. If he stays there too much longer, he-” she paused and looked down.
“He what?” Orion was getting angry. He couldn’t believe that she still cared for his father after all he had done. Empress Anita looked at him, tears welling up in her eyes.
“He’s going to die, Orion,” she said, half crying, half angry. “Yes, I’ve been visiting him, Orion. You never said I couldn’t.” Orion was taken aback, his anger vanishing completely. He hated his father, but did he want him to die?
Surely not! Orion thought, After all, he’s still my father. Orion looked down.
“Excuse me.” Empress Anita got up and left the room, leaving the boys there. She made her way down to the dungeons, and into his cell. King Frederic didn’t look up this time as she descended the stairs and crossed the dirt floor to him.
“Frederic?” She lifted his head as he opened his eyes. He smiled weakly at her, resting his head in her hands. He doesn’t even have the strength to hold his head up, she thought, horrified. She looked him over. His clothes were filthy and torn. His skin was pale and clammy, and his eyes were droopy. His hair hung limp and matted with caked up dirt over his shoulders. He had a full beard and mustache that hung five inches below his chin, and stuck out in all directions. His breath was short and wheezy. He was glad she was there, though. Her visits were the only thing he had to look forward to.
She’s so pretty. She’s beautiful, he thought as he looked at her, but she looks so sad. Why is she sad?
“Oh, Frederic,” she said as if reading his mind, “I’m so sorry. I wish I could let you out. I wish I could make you well again. I wish we could be together. I wish-” she looked down, tears streaming down her face.
“Annie,” King Frederic whispered. He smiled as she met his eyes. “Don’t worry about me.” His voice was barely audible, “I’m paying for all the horrible things I’ve done. I’m not going it make it out of here, but I’m glad you’re with me now.”
Don’t talk like that, Frederic,” Anita said, panicking. “You’re not going to die here. Not like this,” She sobbed. “I’ll- I can’t- I love you, Frederic!” She fell, crying, onto his shoulders, and wept into his neck. “I won’t let you die, Frederic, I won’t!” She kissed his neck and felt his pulse. It was very weak, making her sob harder and squeeze him tighter. She would have been content to stay there with him forever, but a guard opened the door and called her away with an emergency elsewhere.
“Don’t you dare leave me, Frederic. Don’t you dare,” she said as she left the cell.
“I’m sorry, Annie,” he whispered as she left. He heard the door slam shut. “I love you, too.”
Not too long after she had left, King Frederic heard the door open. Is she back again? He wondered, trying his best to lift his head. The person standing on the awning looked a lot like Empress Anita.
“Annie?” he asked weakly.
“No,” came a very familiar voice. It was the last person he had expected to see.
“Orion?” King Frederic whispered, “Is that really you?”
“Anita was right,” Orion said as he descended the steps, “you are a mess. What do you think, Doctor?” Orion turned towards another man who had followed him in.
“Vell,” the doctor said with a strong accent, “Hees look very ill. I check hees pulse.” The doctor placed a finger to the side of King Frederic’s neck, and also pressed a stethoscope against his wrist. “Hees pulse ees very weak. I check hees heart.” He put the stethoscope to King Frederic’s chest. “Hees heart ees strained. Eet ees trying to shut down. Hees is very theen. Hees ribs ees poking out. I check hees ears, eyes, and throat.” After a few minutes, the doctor put his equipment back into the bag he had brought, and shook his head.
“Well?” Orion was getting impatient, “How is he?”
“Hees is very ill, Majesty.” The doctor shook his head again. “Hees vill not live. Hees vill die soon.” The doctor got up to leave, but Orion stood in his way.
“If he dies, then so will you.” Orion grabbed his jacket and pulled him close. “Get it?”
“Yees, majesty,” the doctor said fearfully, “I geet it, I do. I geev heem medicine, yees?” The doctor knelt back down in front of King Frederic and searched his bag. He pulled out a needle and a bottle of clear liquid. He proceeded to fill the needle halfway with the strange liquid.
“What’s that?” Orion asked.
“Eet is medicine, Majesty. Eet vill strengtheen hees heart for a short time.” He stuck the needle into King Frederic’s neck and drained it. He then pulled out another bottle of a bright orange substance that wasn’t quite liquid, but wasn’t solid, either. He poured the orange medicine into a cup, filling it to the brim. “Thees vill make heem feel better. Drink,” he said to King Frederic, holding the cup to his lips. Frederic was vaguely aware that they were there, and that he was being given something to drink. The strange liquid was cold and flavorless, but soothing to his dry, scratchy throat. The doctor wrapped the empty cup and the syringe in plastic before placing both back into his bag. “Hees needs to be in thee hospeetal weeng. Thee dungeen ees feelthy. You have guards breeng heem up, yees Majesty?”
“Alright.” Orion took the stairs two at a time, and banged on the door. Guards immediately opened the door from the outside. “Get him up to the hospital wing, pronto!” he yelled at the guards, pointing behind him at his father. They rushed in, unlocked the shackles, and carried him to the hospital wing, with Orion and the doctor not far behind.
He can’t die. He can’t! Orion thought miserably. He’s been so horrible to me, but I can’t stand to see him like this. They had reached the hospital wing. The guards placed King Frederic on an empty bed and left to return to their posts. Orion sat in a corner and watched as the doctor and several nurses hooked his father up with wires and tubes, stuck needles in him and cleaned him up.
“Vee vill have to shave heem, Majesty,” the doctor commented.
“Then do it!” Orion shouted, losing his patience again. He looked on as
they first took scissors to cut away all of King Frederic’s long, curly locks, and then used an electric razor to make him completely bald. They cut his clothes off and scrubbed off all the filth that had clung to him. They wrapped bandages around his wrists, and hooked up IV, feeding, and breathing tubes. After what seemed like hours, they pulled a blanket up to his chest and left the room.
“I don’t understand, Doctor,” Orion got up and approached his father, “can’t you just heal him?”
“I ees sorry, Majesty,” the doctor stood beside Orion, gazing at King Frederic, “I cannot heal heem.”
“Why not?” Orion demanded, turning to the doctor.
“Please, Majesty,” the doctor took a step backwards, “Eet is not posseeble to heal an unconscious man.” He looked down at his patient, “I must wait unteel hees is awake and has enough energy, or I vill be doing more harm than good.” Orion gave him a quizzical look. “Eef hees has not enough energy, thee strain of healing may keel heem.”
“Kill him? Healing?” Orion was flabbergasted. “I had no idea that healing was so dangerous.”
“Eet ees only dangeerous vith large wounds and serious diseases. Theer ees no dangeer een healing a scratch. I have done eveerything I can to save heem. I steel do not theenk hees vill make eet.” The doctor left Orion alone.
He will make it, Orion thought, he has to! Tears welled up in his eyes and trickled down his face. He stayed there by his father’s side the entire night, and didn’t budge until the doctor came back the next day and convinced him to meet his brothers for their daily studies.