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Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Same! Also, that's everything I wanted to write from Jaocb and Atlas's POV ^^ If you want to switch us back to Cas and Iris, go ahead! Iris would probably wake up before Cas anyway, because he passed out cold the night before

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

When Dr. Emett arrived to check on Atlas, the decision was made immediately that the king needed to be moved to the hospital. An ambulance was called, and Jacob tagged along in the vehicle as the EMTs carted him off to intensive care. It was far from his job description to be the monarch’s bedside company, but after Caspian had been killed, the guard was especially protective of the only remaining member of the royal family. Until Atlas was in a stable condition again, he was going to stay by his side.

And that was exactly what he did. While the king laid on the hospital bed in a medically induced sleep, Jacob sat in a chair by the edge of the room, watching the steady rise and fall of the sickly man’s chest. A part of him was relieved that Atlas’s first reaction hadn’t been to execute every member of the team that had been sent to rescue his son, but this wasn’t much better. He worried that when their ruler woke, he wouldn’t be the same again. Right now, Aspiria needed a strong leader, and the man tasked with the job had just lost his only child. It was a terrible place for the country to be while a civil war was still raging on outside the capital.

With a sigh, he leaned back in his thinly cushioned seat and crossed his arms. The situation wouldn’t have been so detrimental if Atlas had had a second-in-command who could take over in his absence. Unfortunately, the king was too distrusting for that. The only person who was formally permitted to pick up any of the crown’s duties was Caspian, the prince who had just been killed by their enemies. Between his loss and Atlas’s waning health, there was no one left at the top of the chain of command to govern the nation. Jacob had a feeling that from today forward, Aspiria was going to be facing more civil unrest than it had in generations.

Just as he began to wonder what would happen when their current king finally died, a voice in his earpiece caught his attention. His face fell as the interrogator confirmed that the prince was dead and that they would be unable to recover his body. It wasn’t new news, but it was the nail in the coffin that meant there was no reason to continue searching for the missing royal. “Get everything out of him that you can,” he ordered solemnly. “His Majesty wants to have him executed ASAP, so this will be the last interrogation.”

Ending the connection, he pinched the bridge of his nose, overwhelmed with the situation. He’d never been a very emotional man, but even he felt a deep sadness that this was how the royal line was going to end. Caspian had been young and had the promise to become a great king after his father. Everyone knew he had a big heart and, apart from the king himself, everyone loved the way he genuinely cared about people and seemed to feel emotions more deeply than most people did. He hadn’t deserved to have his life snuffed out by a psychopath, completely alone in a place he didn’t know.

In the same way, Atlas hadn’t deserved to lose the only immediate family he had left. Their king had brought greatness to Aspiria through his endless hard work, and in return, he’d watched his wife die before his eyes, and he’d just found out that his son had been killed by a terrorist organization. With his health on a constant decline, the guard suspected it wouldn’t be much longer before he followed in his family’s footsteps and succumbed to his illness as well. It was a tragic end for the Maydestone family.

At the sound of rustling sheets, Jacob blinked dazedly and looked up to find that Atlas had woken from his slumber. The king moaned quietly, still in pain, and the guard rose to his feet. “Do you need me to call a nurse for you, Your Majesty?” he asked.

At first, Atlas didn’t reply. His eyes were roving over the room as he oriented himself to his new location. After a moment, he seemed to understand that he was back in the hospital again. “Yes, tell her to bring me morphine, would you?”

This time, it was Jacob’s turn not to reply. Wordlessly, he pushed the buzzer to summon a nurse to the room. There was no way to ask anyone for the king’s drug of choice until they got there, but he wouldn’t have honored the request anyway. Morphine was an outdated painkiller compared to the treatments Aspiria had developed in recent years. However, there was no arguing with the monarch, so it was best to let him think he had gotten his way.

“Has the devil who murdered my Caspian been killed yet?” Atlas spoke again, his voice raspy.

“Not yet, Your Highness, but his interrogation is almost over. Once it is, I can begin making arrangements for his execution.” Jacob leaned his back against the wall as he answered the question.

“Good,” the king coughed. “I want him to suffer as he made my son suffer. Tell the executioner to behead him slowly without sedation.”

Jacob grimaced. Beheading was another outdated subject to mention, and he wondered if the king was entirely mentally present. “Are you sure, Your Majesty? The executioners usually kill criminals via firing squad.”

“Very well,” Atlas exhaled as if changing methods was a bother to him. “He shall be killed by firing squad, but they will begin with his feet.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Jacob bowed his head. The beheading probably would have been less painful for Nox-Fleuret than a firing squad that would pump his whole body full of lead, but he knew better than to keep pestering the king. Besides, the rebel deserved it after what he had done to the prince. Tucking the note away in his mind to bring up with the soldiers later, he changed the subject, “My apologies if it’s too soon for you to think about this, but… I was wondering what you plan to do now that we have more information about the rebellion.”

“Oh, I’ve already decided,” Atlas replied, his gaze darkening. “We’ve been merciful to those defectors for too long. As of right now, I’m giving you full clearance to begin working with the commanders to put an end to their tantrum. Send soldiers to every district. If any commoner seems to be even remotely connected to the Scourge, they are to be killed on site. I want the bastards to understand that if they don’t surrender, I’ll make them bow down to me by force.”

“Yes, Your Majesty,” Jacob dipped his head again. “I’ll make the call.” Wasting no time to fulfill his new task, he stepped out of the room while a nurse entered to take care of the king. In the hallway, he took out his phone and lifted it to his ear, preparing himself to update the military that Prince Caspian was dead and that they were under new orders to shift their approach in the war from defensive to offensive.

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Happy early birthday! :D



No rush if you can't post much or at all tomorrow! I have a lot of other stuff I need to catch up on anyway ^^

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

In the span of a few minutes, Atlas’s entire world had crumbled around him. Distantly, he was aware that he had fallen and that his face was wet with tears, but he was too lightheaded to dwell on his physical state. He didn’t even care that one of his guards was kneeling beside him, witnessing his disgraceful display. He couldn’t believe that the rebels had killed his son. It had happened so abruptly that he hadn’t had any more time to prepare himself than he would have if Caspian had been hit by a car. All it had taken was five days, and the Scourge had succeeded in severing the royal line and ripping his only child away from him—the only trace of his beloved Sierra that he’d had left. He struggled to breathe through the sobs that wracked his body.

Sitting next to the monarch, Jacob looked on with a concerned expression. He’d never seen King Atlas express such strong emotions before, and he worried about the long-term effects that the loss of his son would have on him as both a man and a leader. Additionally, he could feel Atlas’s uneven breathing while his hand was resting on his back. Given his continuously fading health, he was anxious that the king wouldn’t be able to recover from this physically either.

Noting that he seemed unresponsive to anything around him, the guard muttered a swear under his breath and turned away from him to look at one of the servants who was standing uncertainly near the edge of the bedroom. “Call his doctor,” he ordered. Whether or not Atlas was just mourning, it was safer to call the physician to make sure the emotional trauma hadn’t negatively impacted his wellbeing. Aspiria couldn’t afford to lose its king right after the crown prince had been murdered.

While the boy hurried off to fulfill the request, Jacob stayed loyally by Atlas’s side. “Your Majesty, do you need assistance getting back into bed?” he asked tentatively.

The monarch didn’t respond. He didn’t even hear the question. At that moment, he was completely absorbed in the recesses of his mind. Even when Jacob risked his neck by picking him up like a large child and setting him down in his bed, he didn’t speak a word. Thoughts and memories of Caspian and Sierra had flooded his consciousness. His had been a political marriage, but he had still fallen in love with his wife after their wedding day. His affection for her had been the reason why he’d volunteered to be sterilized after only having one child. Past rulers would have taken up a mistress to produce more legitimate heirs to line up to take over the crown, but he couldn’t bear the thought of having any children that weren’t half Sierra. It was the same reason why he had never remarried after her untimely death.

Caspian had always been the spitting image of his mother. Although Atlas had been stern with him, he saw Sierra every time the prince snuck small, injured animals into the palace to care for in his bedroom or went out of his way to do favors for his friends. His late wife had been just as tenderhearted. It was one of the qualities he’d loved about her. Unfortunately, such behavior was better fitting of a queen than it was of a king who was expected to rule with an iron fist, so he’d felt the need to correct Caspian whenever he caught him doing his ‘good deeds.’ Nevertheless, he had always felt like Sierra had lived on through their son. Even his smile reminded him of her.

He coughed, finding it even more difficult to breathe. Besides the resemblance Caspian bore to his mother, he had been fond of him as an individual too. Sure, the prince had needed a lot of work to become the hardened ruler that he was, himself, but at least he had been trying. Now, he would never find out if his heir would have risen up as a promising king to take over the country after he passed.

Now, no one would take over at all.

Abruptly, a deep ache spread like fire through his chest as his illness flared, and he clutched his shirt in pain. Standing by his side, Jacob blanched. As he’d feared, the king wasn’t doing well. “Your Highness, are you alright?” he asked urgently, pressing two fingers beneath his monarch’s jawline. Atlas’s pulse was racing too quickly for him to keep track of every beat. “Fuck,” he hissed, retracting his hand. The king was in bad shape. He hoped the doctor would arrive quickly to handle whatever was going on inside the fading man’s body. At this rate, they might even need to move him back to the hospital for more intensive care.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Forced myself to postpone writing until I got some stuff done xD Gotta be a responsible adult sometimes

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

“I can only imagine. That sounds horrible,” Crow shuddered exaggeratedly, although a smile softened his features as Penelope kissed him on the cheek. Letting out his breath in a peaceful exhale, he rested his head against hers and looked down at the river. The moonlight reflected off the water’s surface, distorted in the ripples. It was a beautiful spot, and if he hadn’t been trying to run away from the knight two years ago, he probably would have been mesmerized the first time he’d seen it. At least we got to come back, he mused silently, resting his hand over hers in the grass. Every time they revisited a place they’d stopped by before, he enjoyed himself. It was interesting to think about how much had changed since they had first stayed in Wellspring. Back then, he’d still been absorbed with trying to get away from her, William and Abraxas.

“Well, he fell for the irritable knight who was here last time too,” he said, pulling back just enough to meet her gaze in the darkness. “She turned out to be pretty great, so I think it’s safe to say everything turned out for the best.” As he studied her face he fell quiet, taking in the details he could make out in the low light. He was still amazed that he’d somehow won the heart of a woman as breathtaking as her. Every time he stopped long enough to think about it, he wanted to shake his head in disbelief. The person he loved—his soon-to-be wife—was the most incredible woman he’d ever met, and for some reason, she loved him too.

Swept up in the moment, he reached up with one hand to caress her cheek, trailing his fingers from her jawline down the side of her neck. Her skin felt warm beneath his touch in contrast with the cold air, and it lured him closer until he pressed his lips against hers in a deep kiss. He sighed audibly, only breaking the kiss long enough to murmur “I love you so much” before he leaned into her more fervently, pushing her over on the ground. John had made them promise not to sleep together again, but that didn’t mean he had to keep his hands to himself completely.

Hovering over Penelope, the former thief kissed her until he had to come up for air. “Gods, whenever I’m with you, I forget to breathe,” he chuckled, panting softly as he trailed his hand down her side.

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

I might write my next post from Atlas's perspective. Not totally sure yet, but it would be interesting to write out what's going on inside his head right now

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

It'll be a shocker to everyone for sure.

I also enjoyed writing that post with Atlas. He's hard on Cas and isn't good at expressing praise, but he does genuinely love him

Amnesia [Suki & Summer]

Jacob didn’t waste his breath with a reply when Regis continued to try to get under his skin. Every bit of the rebel’s behavior signaled that he wasn’t reasonable enough to speak with anymore. He already knew that Nox-Fleuret was proud that he’d killed the heir to the crown and that he was going to have to tell Atlas that his son was dead. He also knew that Aproveset was the most powerful tool the military had to get unruly prisoners to cooperate. No matter what the madman said, the soldiers would have what they wanted soon enough. They would find out what the rebels had done with their prince’s body as well as uncover the secrets they needed to finish off what was left of the Scourge. He trusted the interrogators to do their jobs, so he left the prison to do his own.

On the drive back to the palace, he silently planned out what he was going to say to King Atlas when he saw him. Telling a parent that their child had been killed was one thing; telling a monarch that his only heir had been taken from him was quite another. He didn’t know how Atlas was going to react when he found out. There was every chance that he would have a plethora of his guards sentenced to death—present company not excluded—but it was equally possible that the news would break him. As much as he loathed to admit it, Aspiria was in a dangerous place now that the royal line was hanging by a thread. Regis had succeeded in hacking off the last branch of the tree. If anything happened to their current ruler during this time, he didn’t have any idea what would happen to the monarchy as a whole. The entire nation could very well descend into chaos.

With that unnerving thought in mind, he climbed out of his car and headed into the palace, stiff with apprehension as he made his way up to Atlas’s bedroom. When he reached it, he knocked on the door, “Your Majesty, it’s Curry.”

There was a fraction of a pause before a servant opened the door, and he stepped inside. As always, Atlas was reclining on his bed, propped up with a small mountain of pillows. He looked worse every day, and this morning was no exception. The stress seemed to be taking a toll on his physical health, because he looked even frailer than usual, with pale skin and hardly any meat left on his aging bones. Even his voice was slightly raspy as he spoke: “So, tell me the news. Did you find my Caspian last night?”

Jacob shifted his weight. The last time he’d spoken with the monarch had been after the surveillance team had traced Regis to a house in Tongsen. He’d told Atlas that they believed that was where the rebels were keeping the prince, and the king had gotten his hopes up that they would bring the missing royal back to the palace. He wished he could have brought that news with him, but unfortunately, things had taken a nosedive for the worse.

“We did not,” he reported.

“What do you mean you did not?” Atlas’s expression immediately hardened.

Jacob took a steeling breath. “We closed in on Nox-Fleuret’s hideout and found him inside the building as expected. He tried to put up a fight, but he was alone, so we apprehended him without any casualties. However…” He faltered for a second before he continued: “Prince Caspian wasn’t there. All we found was an empty cell in the basement. Nox-Fleuret claims that he already killed him before we arrived, and sadly, we have every reason to believe he’s telling us the truth.”

As he finished the report, Atlas stared at him without speaking. His face was unreadable, but the guard suspected he was processing the news, so he remained quiet until, finally, Atlas asked in a murmur: “My son is dead?”

Jacob felt a twinge of pity of the king. “Yes,” he confirmed equally as softly.

Another moment of silence followed, just long enough to trick him into relaxing before Atlas suddenly picked up the plate of breakfast on his bedside table and threw it to the floor in a fit of rage. Jacob jumped as the dish shattered against the hardwood and watched in dismay as the king began struggling against his bedsheets in an attempt to get up.

“I want him dead!” he screamed. “I’ll kill him myself! That bastard took my son away from me, so I’ll wring his neck with my own bare hands!”

“Your Majesty, please calm down,” Jacob held up his hands, unsure what to do as the king fumbled to stand up. He was worried that Atlas would have him sentenced to death if he tried to stop him, but the interrogators weren’t done with Regis yet. If Atlas had him killed now, they wouldn’t learn the information they needed to end the war. Hurriedly, he explained: “Nox-Fleuret is being questioned as we speak. I understand that you want to get vengeance for Prince Caspian, but we need him alive just a little while longer. He’s our only source to find out where His Highness’s body is as well as how to put an end to the rebellion. The information is too valuable to lose.”

Atlas, who had been clawing at the sheets that were still tangled around his foot, faltered at that. “His body?” he echoed in a whisper, staring down at the trapped limb as if he had suddenly been overcome by a trance. In the next moment, he dropped to his knees, and Jacob rushed to his side. Crouching down beside him, the guard placed a tentative hand on his back and watched in silent sorrow as the king of Aspiria broke down and wept on the floor beside his bed.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Yeah, then I can write without feeling like I'm putting off important things xD