~ Chapter Thirty-Four - Part 2 ~

Nathan did his checkup on Katalina and agreed with Axel. “She has a few cuts that need to be tended to,” he frowned as he continued his examination. He went over her arm and quickly pulled away when Katalina flinched and let out a moan of pain. Even though she was unconscious, she still reacted to the pain. “Yeah, her arm is broken,” he looked at a nurse coming around the corner. “I need you to get a room set up for an x-ray. I need to know how bad this break is before we can fix it.”
The nurse nodded and quickly got a room set up for Katalina. Nathan made quick work of getting the x-rays done and reviewing the results. “I was hoping this wasn’t the case,” he muttered.
Damien frowned as he took in the look on Nathan’s face. “What is it?” He demanded.
Nathan shook his head as he looked at the nurse. “Get the OR ready immediately,” he looked back at Damien. “Her arm is completely shattered. I don’t know how it happened, but if we don’t put it back together before her superior healing kicks in, her arm could heal the wrong way.”
Damien roughly yanked at his hair as a nurse came to Nathan’s side, and they wheeled Katalina into the OR.
Damien slowly slid to the ground with his back against a wall as he put his head in his hands. He had to remind himself that it was just Katalina’s arm constantly. She only had a shattered arm. When Nathan had finished with the surgery, she would be fine. But, unfortunately, all he could think about was what had happened right after Katalina had given birth to their twins, how her heart had stopped for two minutes. It had been the longest two minutes of his entire life.
It took two hours for Nathan to complete the surgery. “She’s going to be just fine,” he said as Damien scrambled to his feet. “We got her arm fixed just in time.”
“Will she be able to fight?” Damien asked as he leaned against the wall, his legs too weak to fully support his weight as the relief coursed through him.
Nathan shrugged. “Well, that all depends on how quickly she heals.”
“Fantastic,” Damien muttered as he rubbed the back of his neck and started walking toward the room Katalina was inside. “Thanks, Nathan,” he said before closing the door.
Damien sat down in a chair by Katalina’s bed and took her good hand in his. He pressed a kiss to the back of her hand and was shocked when he looked up and saw that she was awake. “Hi, dove,” he quietly said.
Katalina smiled brightly with tears of relief in her eyes. “Hi, beloved,” she whispered. She groaned as she went to lift her arm to his face. She frowned as she looked at the cast. “What the hell?” She mumbled.
Damien sighed. “Nathan and Axel both said that you broke your arm. Nathan confirmed that it was shattered when he took some x-rays. We don’t know how you managed to shatter it,” he said quietly.
Katalina’s frown deepened as she recalled the battle they had just been inside. “Shit,” she muttered as she threw her head back against the pillows. “It shattered when the cyclops went down. But, unfortunately, I didn’t have enough energy to teleport away, so I fell from quite a height.”
Damien caressed her face lovingly. “What were you doing up there, little dove?” He asked softly.
Katalina looked at him with loving eyes. “Artemis and I had just killed the final giant. I was on my knees, trying to catch my breath when I looked around to see how the battle was going. Artemis was helping me to my feet when I saw you get hit by that cyclops and his club,” she shook her head. “I was almost out of energy. I was so exhausted from fighting the giants and keeping the safe house barriers strong, but when I saw you unconscious with the cyclops about to hit you with his club, I didn’t even think. I used the last bit of my energy and teleported onto the cyclops’ shoulders. I stabbed the damn thing in the head but didn’t have the energy to teleport off of him. So, I did my best to control my landing, but I must’ve landed wrong,” she clicked her tongue. “I only notice the pain for a second. After that, the only thing I could even think about was you. When I got you turned onto your back, You had such a nasty wound on your side. I didn’t think you would survive if we waited for a doctor, so I used the last bit of energy I had to heal you.”
Damien shook his head as he stood up and kissed her forehead. “Oh, my dove,” he whispered, a voice full of the emotions he was feeling for his beloved dove.
Katalina sighed in contentment as she leaned into him. “So, is the fight still happening?” She asked as Damien sat down on the edge of the bed.
Damien shook his head. “Atlas and his army have retreated for now,” he chuckled. “Probably because you and Artemis killed all of his giants.”
Katalina clicked her tongue as she lifted her hand. She grimaced as she looked at the cast on her arm. “How am I going to fight while wearing this damn thing?” She demanded as she glared at the cast.
Damien chuckled and kissed her temple. “Nathan said it all depends on how quickly you can heal, but I don’t know. With the exhaustion from all of the magic you’re using and have already used, I’m not sure your arm will be able to heal fully in time. Nathan said that it was completely shattered.”
Katalina sighed heavily. “Looks like the bow is out then,” she said as she tried to get comfortable.
Damien ran a hand through his hair. “Look, little dove, don’t get mad, but I don’t think you should go back out there,” he said in a grave tone.
Katalina frowned as she looked at him with her head slightly tilted. “You want me to hide?” She demanded in agitation. “Just because of my arm?”
Damien shook his head. “That’s not it at all,” he caressed her face as he looked into her eyes. “I just want you to be safe,” he whispered.
Katalina sighed as she gently grabbed onto his wrists. “I know, my beloved, but I cannot sit back and do nothing while so many others put their lives on the line. I need to fight.”
Damien groaned, but he knew Katalina was right. “Alright, just promise me that you’ll be safe.”
Katalina smiled. “I promise that I will be safe,” she shrugged. “Well, as safe as I can be in a damn war.”