[Medical Wing – Vanguard University]
The smell hit me first.
Sterile.
Like bleach and faint lavender, and something sharp beneath it—like metal and old blood.
I blinked against the bright lights overhead, lids heavy and slow. Everything ached, like my bones had been rearranged without my permission.
Then the voices filtered in.
"…he shouldn't have pushed that hard."
"You think telling him not to would've worked?"
Zane.
Ryah.
And then—
"You let him go through with this alone?"
Peter.
I turned my head, wincing as pain stabbed behind my eyes. "Wasn't alone," I croaked.
All three faces turned toward me.
Zane stood closest, hands in the pockets of his hoodie, exhaustion carved into every inch of him. Ryah was beside the monitor, dark circles under her eyes, hair slightly undone from hours of not sleeping. And Peter stood by the door, arms crossed, his expression a war between anger and relief.
"You're awake," Ryah whispered, already checking the machines beside me. "Vitals stabilizing. The antidote worked."
I nodded faintly. "That's good. Thought I saw God for a second."
Peter didn't smile. "You passed out in Ryah's lab and stopped breathing for ten seconds. That's not a joke."
Zane muttered, "Told you I'd step in if necessary."
Ryah added softly, "You should've told someone. Anyone. What if the reversal didn't work in time?"
I exhaled slowly. "It did. I'm alive."
"For now," Peter shot back. "What the hell were you thinking, Anos?"
"I was thinking," I said, voice hoarse, "that every time we wait around, more people die. That we needed something to fight the Nomu on their level. I didn't have time to babysit my pain."
He stepped forward, fists clenched. "You don't get to decide your life's disposable just because you've survived more than most. We need you."
"I am needed," I said, eyes locking with his. "That's why I did it."
Silence fell over the room like a heavy curtain.
Peter rubbed a hand down his face. "I get it. I do. But next time, you tell us. You don't carry this alone."
Zane added quietly, "Especially not in a room that looked like the ones they used to cage us."
I looked up at him, and he looked away first.
Ryah placed a hand on the bedrail. "You're not some lab rat anymore, Anos. You're a person. And people… people need time. Rest. Support."
I let the quiet settle for a second before whispering, "How long was I out?"
"Six hours," Ryah said. "We've been watching your levels nonstop."
Zane muttered, "Peter nearly broke a wall waiting."
Peter didn't deny it.
"Can I move?" I asked.
"You shouldn't." Ryah gave me a warning glare. "But that's not going to stop you, is it?"
"Nope."
She sighed. "At least let us monitor you for another hour before you try being Superman again."
I nodded, sinking back against the pillow.
For once… I didn't mind staying still.
Because in this moment—in this room, with these people—I wasn't a weapon.
I was Anos.
And maybe that was enough.