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I awoke to unfamiliar surroundings. There was no color in sight, nothing but dull white. I couldn't see anything or anyone. It was like nothing was around for miles and miles. I sat there in silence unsure of what my next moves would be but I didn't feel normal. My head felt stuffy and congested and my heart rate was beating abnormally fast. What is going on?

"We have a very special guest joining us this evening..." started a booming voice.

Startled, I jumped up from where I was sitting and looked around.

"Hello?? Who's there??" I shouted hoping to get some answers about this bizarre environment.

"My Son..." the voice continued, echoing off into nothingness_._

"Prince Zanith..."

I waited a few moments for more words to follow but it seemed to be the end. "Who is this? Are you still there?" I inquired, starting to feel very weak again. After another moment of silence, I decided to sit down. What happened to me? Before I could think anymore another voice entered the seemingly endless room.

"Zanith... Zanith... If you can hear me... Please be ok," another familiar voice spoke, but I was so distraught I couldn't tell where it was coming from.

"I'm fine!" I shouted back, half knowing she probably wouldn't hear me, "Hello?!... Answer me!"

Confused I gave up and sat down again. I broke down into tears. What is happening to me? I have to be insane...Maybe I'm in a coma or something back home and I dreamt this whole scenario? I'm so confused. Suddenly I heard something... no someone... that made me feel comfort, I couldn't tell whom it was but I felt safe...

"Jeremy..." the voice began, very soft and sweet, almost inaudible, "please be ok... I can't imagine what you're going through right now..."

"Yeah welcome to my life..." I whispered, knowing shouting would not be helpful.

"...Just wake up... You have friends who miss you," the voice said beginning to fade away.

"No! Don't go!" I shouted as loud as I could. I waited several seconds but I knew the voice was gone. Now what? I sat there for a while trying to think of my next moves when it hit me, "Just wake up." Of course... As I thought I must be in a coma of some sort, although I'm not quite sure how to wake up. Pinching obviously wouldn't work in a comatose state so I need to do something stronger. A jolt of some sort, but what was I going to do? There was nothing around...

Fuck this, I thought to myself. I mustered all my strength and stood up. Without any hesitation, I began jogging. To where? I have no idea but it was better than just sitting in the middle of nowhere. After a few moments I got very tired. My heart was racing even faster than before and fatigue hit me like a ton of bricks, so I slowed down. NO! I need to get out of here. With what seemed like my last burst of energy, I made a run for it. I started feeling very weird. Everything seemed to be going in slow motion, which made me fight to run even harder. Then all of the sudden a flash of light over came me and I fell to the floor. I closed my eyes in fear of getting blinded and when I started opening them I began to see figures and objects... I must be waking up! I thought as I tried to focus my eyes so I could make out my surroundings.

As I came to, I looked to my left to see the king sitting by my side and Ranfult sitting in a chair in the corner. The king was clearly resting, as was Ranfult. An involuntary groan came out of my mouth waking the king.

He caressed my hand and began, "Zanith... I'm so glad you're awake. Let me go get a doctor to examine you." He swiftly got up and rushed out of the room, nudging Ranfult as he went past him.

"Uhh... What?" Ranfult said groggily. When he looked over toward the direction he was nudged no one was there. He was about to fall back asleep when he looked in my direction.

"Zanith!" He shouted, getting up from the chair and rushing over to my bedside, "When did you wake up?? How are you feeling??"

"Hey Ranfult," I said, so weak it was basically a whisper, "I woke up a few minutes ago..." I trailed off examining my surroundings, "Where am I? What happened?"

"You slipped into a coma... You hit your head pretty hard when the King explained what happened to you as a child."

And suddenly it all came back to me: the trip to the kingdom with Ranfult, Kantum, and Yasika, the speech, and the king's story.

"You've been out for a few days. Everyone was starting to get very worried. You had several guests come and visit you, even citizens you didn't know."

"Wait," I interrupted, "did Kantum and Yasika come visit me?"

"As soon as they heard," Ranfult said holding my hand.

Those must have been the voices I heard while I was in the coma. Yasika was the very sweet one and Kantum was the one who knew my real name. I have to talk to Kantum right away... He will be able to help me...

"Is Zanith still awake?" The king said rushing back in the room.

"Yes sir," Ranfult answered and moved away from my bedside.

"Zanith, you're going to be put under a few exams to make sure everything is functioning correctly. This is Doctor Juni and she will be conducting the exams."

Dr. Juni went past the king and began examining my vitals. After a few minutes of examining my arms, pulse, and eyes she saw the worried look on my face. She looked into my eyes and, as if she could read my thoughts, turned to the king and Ranfult and said, "I'm sorry but these exams need to be conducted in private."

"I am not leaving him, Juni," King Lenim said rather angerly.

"I'm sorry King Lenim but this is the policy of the clinic," the doctor argued in a very caring tone.

"... ... Fine... BUT alert me as soon as you are done," King Lenim demanded.

"You will be the first to know," she said smiling. The King and Ranfult walked out of the room starting to discuss royal politics, which I'm sure is vital to the kingdom's safety. I'm glad the doctor told them to leave; sitting by my bedside should be the least of their worries, as I know I am probably fine.

Dr. Juni was a female lion. She was very thin but had enough fur to make her look bigger than she was. She wore a pair of glasses and had on a clinic uniform. She seemed very knowledgeable, as she mumbled various medical terms as she was checking my vitals. She sort of seemed anti-social as she tended to keep to herself. Although that's an unfair assessment considering I have not even interacted with her yet.

"So..." Dr. Juni said interrupting my train of thought, "You're vitals look stable. You're blood pressure is elevated, heart rate returning to normal..." She then asked me to follow her paw with my eyes as she moved it from side to side. "And your eye coordination is perfect, which means you are perfectly healthy from my standpoint," Dr. Juni said with a big smile on her face. "I'll be back in a few moments to take a few more tests... out of precaution of course!"

"Thank you very much Dr. Juni, I appreciate it."

"It is my job, Zanith!" She said giggling.

"No I mean for asking the King and Ranfult to step out of the room."

"Oh... that... I could see you were very uncomfortable. It is the least I could do. Another part of my job is making sure my patients are as comfortable as they can be," she winked, "I'll be back shortly."

What a wonderful doctor; so bubbly and fun, obviously not as anti-social as I first thought. She clearly cares about her patients... Maybe she knows who has visited me during my stay here. I wonder if I could confide in her. She showed me that I am important if she was willing to disobey the king... well she was just following clinic rules... hmmm... maybe... maybe not. She may have lied. But why would she have? That makes no sense. Clearly the coma has affected my thinking abilities. I should just relax...

Just then a female panther walked in dressed as a clinic employee. "Good afternoon Zanith. My name is Nurse Mayle I'm here to bring you some fresh clothes and medicine," she said smiling.

"Great thank you very much Nurse Mayle."

"No problem," she said handing me a small cup with an assortment of colored pills. I stared at the pills for a moment before taking them. I was always weary of taking pills, even back home. I just like to know what I'm taking before I take it. Not that asking what it was would help in the world. I would have no idea about any of the ingredients here.

"Thanks..." I said trying to be polite about ingesting the mystery pills.

"Oh those are just some standard drugs, nothing to worry about. Do you have any questions about them? Dr. Juni will be in momentarily to explain them to you if you would like," Nurse Mayle offered.

"Actually I do have a question... but its not about the drugs, its about hospital policy."

"Oh of course, ask away."

"You see I'm new to the area and I was wondering... when is it a valid time to come to the clinic to get checked out?"

"... hmmm... I'm not quite sure I understand what you mean."

"Well if I have a headache or a sore throat do I come straight to the clinic for testing or is there another facility I go to."

"OH! I understand now. The clinic is always open for patients. Whether it be a check up or an emergency," Nurse Mayle smiled.

"That's good to hear," I smiled, "What about privacy protocol?"

"Well that is completely up to the patient. If they wish to have tests or check ups in private they can, or if they wish for loved ones to be in the room with them that is ok too. The clinic is not swayed one way or the other."

"Thank you so much, I will make sure to come here more often," I said lying through my teeth. Good to know Dr. Juni was looking out for my best interest and privacy isn't the clinic's policy. I think this means I can trust her.

"It is my pleasure. Dr. Juni will be right in," she said smiling as she bid me farewell and left the room.

What am I going to say to her? I need her help, Ranfult and King Lenim do not want to hear anything I have to say. Maybe she will help me get in touch with Kantum. I have a feeling the King and Ranfult have other plans for me... but I have plans of my own.