76. Broken Pieces
excerpt from Blackbird Rising (by Snea)
"What about me?! Where am I during all this?!" Terra asked, tears flashing in her eyes, voice breaking, temper flaring.
Zinthos watched her. And then, in the most graceful, primal movement they'd seen her make, she pulled herself up to perch on the island counter. And it was suddenly realized that as young as she was, vulnerable as she seemed: she was a threat. If she'd had a tail, it would've been slowly flicking side-to-side across the frosted steel.
A red flag was raising itself and the others shifted behind their teammate. Zinthos regarded Terra with eyes full of haughtiness, as if she could care less what the older girl wanted to know. But there was a malevolence there that hid in the shadows of her eyes and caught the attention of Starfire, make a chill run up the redhead's spine.
"You're my sister." Terra flinched, going rigid with shock as she looked at the girl. The Titans watched in shock, a sense of uneasiness building in their stomachs as they glanced at each other. Something was going on here. In all the times the fourteen year-old had mentioned the future, she'd never mentioned Terra. And now the proverbial bomb was ticking as the red flag was torn to shreds in the wind.
"What?"
"You're my sister," Zinthos repeated, eyes going from haughty to defiant as her voice became hard and a British-like accent crept into it. "You're my sister. You're my daughter. You're remains below the earth." Her jaw tightened and her neck tensed, collar bones becoming prominent as she held back some kind of anger. "You're a haunting memory. One that changed my world. That's what you are Terra. That's where you are!" And in a swift movement, the bomb went off.
And the Titans had no choice but to follow the path of a taut, trembling arm, down to the wrist, across the rigid finger that pointed out the window.
Out the window and towards the low mountain ridge that marked their horizon.
And in a voice, low and threatening, Zinthos continued. "That, Tara Markov, is where you are. In box, underneath a stone tablet, eight feet below the surface; out of sight but never out of mind. Rejoice in it," they looked back at her sharply to find her glaring, eyes glowing with power and body flooded with a cold rage as she spat, "Because now you know where you are in my world, where you've been since before my birth, and yet you still affect my every decision."
It was a predator's stance she fell into when she brutally pushed herself from the counter to step up to Terra, their faces inches away, horrified cobalt gaping at violent emerald-heliotrope. "Congratulations, Tara," she said, voice low and slick with hostility, "you got the attention you always wanted."
And then she left, leaving them to reel in the aftershock of the scene that had just played out before them. Left, as Terra sank to the floor and leaned over, crying hard, chest-heaving sobs, her hands over her face and tears streaming from between the fingers, hair fanned out on the surrounding floor like a crumpled curtain. The perfect likeness of a Nephilim, an angel fallen from grace...
...and the spirit to match. Notes
A/N: hello, faithful readers! I know I haven't gone and put any new chapters up for Blackbird Rising, but I felt the need to put this up for you guys. My computer is currently on lockdown as it has been for the better part of a month, delaying me finishing up and posting the next chapter to BR. So I've posting this instead. It's a pivotal point and I decided to submit it as one of my 100 Theme Challenge. So, I hope you enjoyed this! Check out Blackbird Rising for more info on what's going on. Bai!