Hours passed by. Bored, Felix stared at the white walls. The door opened, and Carter entered the room. Carter's left hand clenched the wheelchair joystick controller. His left leg had been amputated, and he had a stump up to his knee.
Felix rose from sitting on the bed and pointed at Carter.
He yelled, "This is your fault! You tricked me, and now I'm stuck in this horrible country!"
Carter pursed his lips. 'I kept my promise to you. I helped you because you helped me.' He paused, studying Felix's face. "Tell me something—why did you spare my life? How am I different from the other Technations you've killed?"
"I didn't kill anyone during the war. I would never kill anyone—it goes against my values.
"Really?" Carter's right hand scratched his short, faded blonde beard. "Then why did you become a soldier if you don't want to fight for your country?"
"I had no choice but to join the army. Otherwise, I would've been sent to prison."
"Interesting. In Technate, there's no mandatory conscription." Carter's voice hardened. "I joined the army because your country started this war by dropping an atomic bomb on Grey Island. Five thousand people died on that island."
"That never happened!"
Carter shook his head slowly. "You need to watch the news, Felix." He turned his wheelchair toward the door. "Want to come see your fellow soldiers?"
Felix smiled. "Yes! I want to see them!"
They left the room and made their way down the hallway. Carter glanced back at Felix trailing beside him. "I'm getting fitted with a prosthetic robotic leg next week, then orthopedic therapy to learn how to walk with it."
"How much will that cost you?"
Felix thought of the beggar outside his mother's grocery store, hobbling on a wooden pegleg.
"Nothing," Carter replied. "The leg I'm getting is state-of-the-art, and the government covers the cost. I'll be able to run again."
Felix's mouth dropped open. He wished there was a way to bring the beggar to Technate and get him a prosthetic robot leg instead of that wooden peg leg.
They entered the patient lobby. Felix smiled brightly when he saw Nova and Kip sitting on the couch watching television. They returned his smile as they rose from the couch.
"Felix! It's so good to see you!" Nova said, giving Felix a tight hug. Felix could feel a rush of blood going to his cheeks and to his penis.
Kip stepped forward. "Felix, a minister named Pat visited us. He's invited us to live in the refugee housing."
Felix clenched his fists. "We aren't refugees! We need to think of a way of going back to Intermarium."
"We can't go back, Felix." Nova shook her head. "And we need a place to live—we can't stay in this hospital forever."
Felix restlessly scanned the room. "Where's Fox?"
Nova bit her lip. Her face turned grave, and she tucked her hands inside her pink dress. "He... he died in the hospital."
"What?" Felix put his hands on top of his head. He couldn't believe it—he'd done everything he could to try and save him.
Nova's eyes filled with tears as she looked down at her slippers. "The doctors couldn't save him. We cried when we found out." Her voice broke. "It was such a shock. Kip and I... we're his family. We miss him so much. It's a tragedy to lose our brother."
Felix's despair was like a meteor crashing into his world. He was going to miss Fox's jokes; life would not be the same without him.