Jeremy Chapi
The discussion with the assembled physicians was long and exhausting.
One after another, they took turns asking questions, raising important and often complex concerns.
My daughter and I answered each one as precisely as we could.
Meanwhile, Natali brought me fresh bandages for the wound on my arm.
She offered to help me change them, but I declined.
As grateful as I was for her concern, my injury had reached a point where I preferred to tend to it myself.
The conditions governing the use of the treatment were then formally presented to the medical community.
A patient would only be eligible if:
they suffered from a severe or life-altering illness;their condition placed their life at risk beyond the natural process of aging;they lived with a significant disability.
Most importantly...
Every patient would have to be fully informed of every risk involved before giving their consent.
We also reserved the right to refuse treatment to anyone we deemed ineligible.
Our primary objective was simple:
To help those who needed it most...
...those facing the most urgent circumstances.
Even so, none of this could begin for another five months.
We needed that time to prepare properly.
Overall, the physicians accepted the proposed conditions.
However, they would still have to give their official approval and agree to maintain strict confidentiality regarding everything they had witnessed that day.
My thoughts drifted back to the conversation I'd had with Vivian and Natali aboard the plane.
Although I was convinced I had made the right decisions...
Only the future would tell whether I truly had.
The meeting concluded with words of thanks addressed to the physicians.
We bowed respectfully before leaving the stage.
As we walked away, my daughter gently took my hand with her mechanical fingers.
She didn't say a word.
She didn't have to.
The gesture alone brought me more comfort than any speech ever could.
The moment the stage door closed behind us, hidden from every curious eye, I leaned against the wall and slowly slid down until I was sitting on the floor of the faculty's long white corridor.
The hallway was dimly lit.
The familiar scent of disinfectant lingered in the air.
Even so...
Feeling the cold floor against my back was strangely comforting.
For the first time that day...
I could finally breathe.
"Father..."
"Don't you think it's time to do something about your arm?"
Iris asked quietly, her voice filled with concern as she gently rested her mechanical arm against mine.
"Not yet."
"It's not time."
"I can feel it getting closer."
"After that..."
"...I'll finally be able to rest."
My arm hurt more than I cared to admit.
Every time I looked at it exposed...
Blackened by necrosis...
Slowly decaying before my eyes...
It turned my stomach.
The disease consumed an enormous amount of my body's energy as it struggled to fight it.
The sleepless nights caused by the constant pain only deepened my exhaustion.
And yet...
It still wasn't enough.
There were still three weeks left...
Before I would finally be pushed to my absolute limit.
After a brief silence, I looked up at Iris.
"I'll be fine."
"You know this isn't the first time."
She frowned.
"Always pushing yourself further..."
"You're impossible, Father."
She turned away and started walking down the corridor.
Her reaction made me rise much faster than I should have to catch up with her.
"Are you angry with me?"
I asked gently.
"No."
"But I wish you'd take care of yourself too."
She extended her mechanical hand toward me.
I took it carefully.
"I love you, my daughter."
"I promise."
"After the Ceremony..."
"I'll finally take care of myself."
"And I'll get some rest."
She let out a quiet sigh.
"All right."
"So..."
"What's your plan now?"
"My plan?"
I blinked, genuinely confused.
"For your schedule," she replied, adopting the serious tone she usually used whenever she organized my life.
"Let's see..."
"You need to talk to Daniel and Séraphina about the Celestial Rings."
"President Atlas wants to meet with you."
"I'm fairly certain Daniel and Elowen will want to thank you."
"And don't forget..."
"The French ambassador will be here in a week to discuss our principality."
She listed everything without taking a single breath.
"Oh..."
"Right..."
"I suppose you're correct."
The sheer number of things waiting for me suddenly felt overwhelming.
Lost in thought, I walked beside her through the corridor toward the rear courtyard where the buses that had brought us were still parked.
Several security officers remained on duty, but simply nodded as we passed.
What I needed more than anything else was fresh air.
Somewhere quiet.
A place where I could sit down and finally gather my thoughts.
We eventually reached a wooden bench beneath a pergola woven with leafy vines and branches, supported by pillars carved to resemble tree trunks.
Iris settled onto the bench across from me.
The place was perfect.
After everything that had happened, it offered exactly what I needed: a chance to breathe, to think, and to sit quietly with my daughter.
We were surrounded by lush greenery. Countless plants, each carefully labeled, gave the area the atmosphere of a botanical garden.
"I still don't understand why they rejected our project so fiercely," my daughter said thoughtfully, settling into her virtual world—a vast meadow covered in vibrant green grass.
"Greed."
"Control."
"Fear."
"I'd say it's a mixture of all three."
"Just like the day they tried to seize everything in the hangar instead of talking to us."
I let out a weary sigh as I looked up at the sky, where scattered clouds allowed a few rays of sunlight to filter through.
"Perhaps..."
"But if that hadn't happened, we would never have met Séraphina, Elowen, President Atlas..."
"...or any of the people who are now part of our lives."
She moved a little closer to me.
I nodded slowly.
"You're right, my daughter."
"But as beautiful as this place is..."
"...I have to admit I miss the landscapes of France."
"And there are people waiting for us back home."
"I miss them too," she replied softly, a trace of sadness in her eyes.
For a while, neither of us spoke.
Each of us drifted into our own thoughts.
"So this is where you two were."
"I've been looking everywhere for you."
Natali emerged from behind one of the tree-like wooden supports holding up the pergola.
She was carrying my jacket.
As she handed it to me, she added,
"Even though this area has been secured..."
"...I'd appreciate it if you let me know before disappearing like this again."
She stopped beside the bench.
"Thank you," I said as I took the jacket.
"But I needed some fresh air."
She rested a hand on my shoulder.
A shiver ran through me.
Instinctively, I shifted away ever so slightly, trying once again to read the expression in her eyes.
As always...
I found nothing.
Ever since the day we first met, I had never been able to truly relax around her.
There was something about Natali that constantly kept me on my guard.
\
"What's wrong?"
she asked in her usual straightforward manner, studying me intently.
I looked away.
"It's nothing."
"I'm sorry."
"Do you know how the Pavel family is doing?" I asked, hoping to dispel the lingering unease as I draped my jacket over my right arm.
"They're currently staying in one of the medical faculty's patient rooms."
"Would you like to see them?"
"Yes."
"I'd appreciate that."
I wanted to make sure everything had gone well and explain to her parents, in greater detail, what would happen next, even though they had already been briefed.
Together, we made our way back through the faculty's white corridors, so similar to those of a hospital, lined with hand-sanitizer dispensers at regular intervals.
We entered an elevator to reach the floor where Elowen's room was located.
"The President asked whether you'd be available for dinner tomorrow evening."
"He'd like the two of you to have a chance to talk."
I couldn't help but smile.
"Funny you should mention that."
"My daughter and I were just talking about it."
"I'd be delighted."
"I've been hoping to speak with him as well."
"I'll let the President know."
She paused for a moment before adding,
"And what about Séraphina and Daniel?"
That confirmed my suspicion.
She had, in fact, been listening to our conversation earlier.
"Were you listening to us?"
I asked bluntly as the elevator doors slid open.
"If you don't want to be overheard..."
"...you should be more careful about where you talk,"
she replied in her usual matter-of-fact tone.
"Come on."
"It's this way."
She said it as though it were the most obvious thing in the world.
I glanced at my daughter.
She simply shrugged before we continued down the corridor.
A quiet reminder settled in the back of my mind.
Natali wasn't just here to assist me.
She was here to keep an eye on me.
When we reached Elowen's room, the door stood slightly ajar.
No sound came from inside.
Natali and my daughter remained behind me as I knocked gently.
Solène opened the door.
The moment she saw me, a warm, gentle smile appeared on her face.
She quietly explained that both Elowen and Pavel were asleep.
I stepped silently into the dimly lit room while Natali and Iris stayed behind with her.
Walking down the short hallway, I found Elowen lying in bed, half propped against a pillow.
Pavel had fallen asleep in a chair beside her, leaning against the left side of her bed.
Not wanting to disturb them, I quietly turned to leave.
"You're really going to leave..."
"...without even saying goodbye?"
The timid voice stopped me in my tracks.
It sounded nothing like the confident voice I had grown accustomed to hearing when she sat in her wheelchair.
I turned around.
Elowen's eyes were only half open, and the lingering haze on her face betrayed the exhaustion she still hadn't overcome.
I quietly walked over to her and sat down in the chair beside the right side of her bed, where her mother had been sitting before we arrived.
She slowly reached out with her trembling right hand.
Pavel, still asleep, was holding her left.
I gently took her hand in both of mine.
"How are you feeling?"
"Does it still hurt?"
She gave me a tired smile.
"It would be a shorter list..."
"...if I told you where it doesn't hurt."
A faint laugh escaped me.
"It'll take time for your body to adjust."
"You'll need rehabilitation..."
"And—"
She interrupted me softly.
"Your hands are so warm."
Her fingers tightened slightly around mine.
The gesture was weak...
...but real.
At the same time, I noticed her left hand gently tighten around her father's, even as he slept.
After a brief silence, she whispered,
"Jérémy..."
"Yes, Elowen?"
A single tear slowly rolled down her cheek.
"Thank you..."
"For everything."
I lowered my head until it rested gently against the hand I still held.
I couldn't find the words.
Yes, I had healed her.
But she had been the one willing to place her faith in me...
...and in everything we had built together.
Gratitude welled up inside me, too deep for words.
Unable to speak, I buried my face against the edge of the mattress.
She gently rested her hand on my head and slowly ran her fingers through my hair.
"I understand now..."
"...why she loves doing this."
She continued to stroke my hair with the same gentle rhythm.
I knew she was talking about Séléné.
Without realizing it, I buried my face a little deeper into the mattress.
"She misses you,"
Elowen whispered, a trace of sadness in her voice.
"I know."
"I miss her too."
"But..."
"For now, I can't go see her."
I kept my voice low, careful not to wake Pavel, even though my heart tightened with every word.
"Would you like me to give her a message?"
I lifted my head and met her gaze.
"Just tell her..."
"...that I'll be home soon."
A quiet smile spread across both our faces.
I left the room as silently as I had entered.
Before stepping through the doorway, I gave her one last wave.
She slowly closed her eyes, whispering a soft farewell in return.
Silently, I made myself a promise.
We would see each other again.
Soon.