You sat down in a chair with Shae and Delta standing by your sides, watching on at the live feed from Nova's cell. It was all a blur and a daze what had happened in the early hours of this morning, most of it was in complete darkness so you couldn't quite see what was happening. Nova howled in pain, she looked defeated and somewhat remorseful for what she had done, but in Shae's eyes she could not be forgiven. Shae had given the direct order for Nova to be locked up after what had happened, you disagreed, thinking that she was sane by now but Shae was taking no chances. Shae was adamant that she spend the next few days at the very least in rehabilitation, which meant that she would receive excessive doses of Neuroleptics to keep her psionic powers inhibited while in custody.
You thoroughly disagreed with this, wanting to think that this was just a one off instance but in truth it wasn't for the last few nights. Nova had been suffering from PTSD the last few years but never had she lashed out quite like she did in the last few days, much less last night when she almost killed you in your sleep. It was an issue you had promised to be there for her, be by her side and hold her hand through but now more than ever it was apparent that you couldn't be there for her, particularly when she escalated to a psychotic state where she would do harm not only to herself but others around her. You had the impression that perhaps because you meant something to her that even in a psychotic trance she would not harm you, you reassured her of this but the events of last night clearly made it apparent that this was not the case.
Nova had made it clear to you and the girls that it was her own issue, an issue that she would battle by herself and she displayed a particular disliking when you tried to bring it up with her. She had opted into fighting a silent war against it and as time dragged on it was becoming apparent that she was losing the battle with herself, things had greatly escalated in the last week even though she appeared normal and in her loving self by day she was different at night and in particular during her sleep. She would wake up traumatized and often times find herself sitting upright in bed, it was affecting her mentally and she began worrying that it had begun to affect her mental state of mind as well as cognitive ability to make decisions, she opted into taking time away from being the head of Psionics during the week, making Shae the acting head of the academy in her absence.
It was blurry and shaky, but from what you remembered it was in the early hours of the morning when Nova began beating down on you. The room was completely dark, pitch black which was unusual considering the large amount of windows the room had, but it mattered not. Nova was fully capable of seeing things and having depth perception in low light conditions, even without the use of special hardware.
Nova was sitting upright in the bed, watching down upon you while you were sleeping. She sat down on top of you, restricting your movements greatly; not that it would have mattered anyway since you didn't notice anything was amiss and you remained in a relative deep sleep. It was only when she moved her hand up against your neck and began choking you did you realize what she was doing. At first you thought it was an intruder, but you realized Nova wasn't by your bedside and her long streaks of hair which had become all too familiar to you fell down onto your face. A familiar scent further making things a lot clearer, not that it helped as she now began tightening down her grip onto your neck. Her finger nails like talons were now tearing into your neck as now she began screaming out at you. You managed to yelp out a very muffled "Nova! Stop!" but her assault didn't let up.
You began wondering why she would begin to try and choke you before anything else, there was plenty of other ways she could have done harm to you but she opted into a more physical option. She moved one of her hands away from your neck, but her left hand was still fastened tightly around your throat blocking your airway. Your hands fastened around her dominant hand that was secured around your neck but it was of no use as it was firmly locked around your throat. As you began to get light headed due to a lack of oxygen, Nova ramped up her psychotic assault by slashing away at your mid-section with enough intensity to immediately begin drawing blood and forming cuts in an animalistic way. Before you passed out she had begun ramming her arm into your opened up mid-section as she had made relative ease through your skin.
Shae could tell something was amiss and so could Delta, and Nova's screams emanating from your room down the hall only further made the matter more apparent. Her screams weren't of pain, but more wild and psychotic which made Shae even more alarmed as by now she could only sense the presence of you and Nova in the room, she had to act fast and on her feat right now if she had any chance.
Shae leapt out of her bed just as Delta did the same, she moved down the hallway at a blindingly fast speed and began to rear up. The bedroom doors you had installed on this floor were designed to be relatively fortified, they weren't neosteel carbide doors by any means but they could survive enough blunt trauma to at least give the occupants of the room a fighting chance in the event someone was trying to break into them. Shae reared up in the hallway before letting out a very powerful kick to the door which shattered the door in two lengthways, gaining entry into the room. It had only now become apparent to both Shae and Delta what was happening, and it wasn't a pretty sight.
By now your blood covered much of the bed and sheets as well as most of Nova's upper body as she piled into you. Delta screamed out "Mommy! What are you doing!" but Nova wasn't fazed by this, completely ignoring the chaos which had just erupted into the room. Shae had to act right now if she had any hope in saving you, she came at Nova with the intent of killing or incapacitating but held back at the very last second opting to incapacitate instead of kill just before she lifted her leg up to deliver a blow. In Shae's books incapacitate meant that she wouldn't go for the head, anything below it was fair game; an ideology she had passed onto her students at the ghost academy.
Shae rapidly ran up to the bedside, she lifted her leg and delivered a round house kick to Nova's rib cage which struck Nova with enough force and intensity to blow her all the way across to the side of the room, shattering numerous ribs and lodging her arm into the wall breaking it in the process but also incapacitating her as Nova's peeled back and slammed heavily into the wall causing her to instantly be knocked unconscious. Nova's hair ran red with blood that wasn't hers and the trail of various bodily fluids and both dark and bright red blood smeared across the floor all the way back to where you lay on the bed.
You lay unconscious in the bed, but were breathing rapidly causing even more blood to flow out of you, Shae needed to administer first raid right now if she had any hope in making sure you didn't die. Delta ran out of the room in order to get medical services to arrive on scene while Shae began fanatically screaming "Stay with me Will!" as she clasped her hands tightly over the top of you and began to administer psionic healing. Her lessons with Nova had allowed her to better treat people, but she was still very capable of administering care to which rivalled even Nova's capabilities despite being of much lower PI than her. Shae had the grizzly task of stuffing your intestines back into place which normally wouldn't be such a big deal to her but this time it was of someone she cared about, she found it hard to hold back tears at this point but knew she had to continue.
As you woke up in hospital with a bloodied Shae by your side and Delta curled up against you in bed your immediate thoughts was where Nova was. Nobody quite got a very good night's rest and as such even Shae was having a hard time keeping her head held high as she leaned back against the white walls of the intensive care unit. Delta had clearly cried herself to sleep as your pillow was moist with a hint of salt in the air, your eyes darted around the room as it somewhat expected Nova to be in another bed in the same room but she wasn't.
You tried to get up out of bed but it was no use, your entire mid-section burned when you tried to do so, causing you to shout in pain when you tried it which made Delta and Shae abruptly wake up and come to your side. Delta shouted out "Daddy!" as she began tearing up and clasped her arms around you. "Delta, sweetie where's Mommy?" you asked but her eyes welled up even further, Shae was right to the point "She tried to kill you Will" but you still wanted to know "Shae, where is Nova" you pressed the question and wanted an answer but Shae was still avoiding it. "She tried to kill you Will, and you're still worried about her?" You were forced into teeping her in order to find out as it was apparent she wasn't in a talking mood about the matter.
You tried to force yourself out of bed in order to find out yourself, "Easy tiger, let's not pull out all those stitches shall we" Shae got closer and helped you up out of bed. You couldn't walk on your own and was forced into doing a weird hopping motion in order to get around. Every step or hop for that matter was hell for you, as you had to physically move your mid-section in order to move yourself forward. Shae found it touching that even though she had tried to kill you, you still had enough care about her wellbeing in order to go look into her condition. "Because I love her Shae, and when you love people you tend to do things that may sound a little paradoxical sometimes" Shae formed a grin across her face "So you'd do that if it were me?" she asked with a genuine curiosity but it sounded sarcastic. "I've already done it for you before Shae, remember?" you were referring to her bout of Meningitis "And yes it counts" which made Shae roll her eyes.
Nova was being held in a cell and she had been administered high quantities of Neuroleptics to dull her senses both psionic and rational. The drugs had various side effects which didn't sit right with you, they made her extremely tired but also kept her restless which made her largely dazed and confused, slurring her words and remaining largely floor bound unable to walk around or move very much at all. In high enough doses it could potentially kill her, they were already doubling up on doses because of the risk she posed as a PI 10 in the event she fought back, more than twice the recommended dose used on regular captive or criminal Ghosts / Spectres was administered every hour. On the other hand it also numbed and dulled the senses which made the pain of several broken bones in her body bearable.
You sat upright out of the chair without the assistance of Shae, it outraged you to see her like this and you demanded to be brought to her cell immediately. "She's clearly fine now Shae, look at her" Nova lay dazed and confused with her back against the wall and planted squarely on the ground, it pained you to see her like this. Part of you wanted to believe that even if she was still psychotic there was still a part of her sanity in there, as if she was completely gone she would have surely killed you psionically rather than physically ripping into you, nor would she had willingly let herself be taken down by Shae so easily.
As you approached her cell you noted that she seemingly noticed your presence, her head tilted towards the direction of where you were approaching from and she let out a soft howl as she tried to make eye contact with you. Even under the influence of Neuroleptics she could still make out your psionic signature. Your eyes lit up when she noticed your presence, "Nova?" you cried out as you leaned in against the field which surrounded her. Shae let go of you at this point knowing that she should give you two a moment of intimacy between each other. You began to tear up as you began to repeat "It's okay Nova". She began to tear up and wail in her cell as she couldn't force herself any closer to you, her legs wouldn't budge and she just lacked energy all round preventing her from getting any closer.
"Shae get this door open" you said in a monotone voice maintaining eye contact with her, you knew she was in there at this point, but the drugs were taking its toll on her. "I'm going in with you, just in case Will" she pressed as she began to slowly drop the field that surrounded her. You fell to your knees and began to crawl towards her, Shae knew that she shouldn't help you up at this point as you began to crawl towards Nova as your legs were still not quite agreeing with you. As the field completely dropped security assigned to ensure that she remained in check raised their rifles solely at her head. Shae hissed and ordered them to lower their weapons which seemingly calmed Nova down.
As you crawled towards her and got closer, the damage she took from last night only began to reveal itself. "Why hasn't she been treated for her injuries?" you pressed the question loudly to which Shae replied "The meds, if they're working properly she shouldn't be feeling a thing, and I can reassure you that she is not feeling any pain Will". It made you bitter, knowing that they hadn't treated her while you got all the care in the world, it didn't matter to you that she wasn't experiencing any pain, it mattered that she not be in any pain at all.
Nova's green eyes were barely exposed as her eye lids were barely lifted just enough to gain a visual perspective of her surroundings, in reality she was trying very hard to keep her eyes open when they wanted to close. You reached out for her hand, it was still soaked in your blood which had dried up, she also hadn't had a change of clothes which meant that she was still in her night gown from last night which was soaked in blood and smelled foul. Your hand clasped hers gently, her fingers began to close in around yours as a tear began to fall down the side of her face which remained blank. Delta at this point wailed loudly and wanted to jump in but knew this wasn't the time and place, Shae physically held her back placing her body between Delta and the both of you.
"Nova?" you asked as you got in closer, it was apparent that by now she meant no harm. You wiped the tear from her face before tightly clenching your arms around her chest being careful to avoid broken bones and not moving her all too much to prevent further injury to either one of you. Even you at this point began to cry, Nova managed to barely make out "I'm sorry Will". You raised your head level with hers and pressed your forehead against hers where you then turned silent with tears running down both your faces.
"Shae, heal her and stop the drugs" Shae hesitated but knew you were adamant about this by both your tone and how sincere you sounded. Normally she would question things, wanting to know whether or not you actually meant what you said, but this time she was sure that you meant what you said, but before she did anything she wanted to check whether Nova had dominated you and made you said that. Shae got closer to see if Nova's psionic power had risen but it hadn't and there was no evidence to suggest that you were being controlled, she got in closer and came up from behind where she began to administer psionic healing, but she knew Nova would still need a cast on her arm as it was practically destroyed when it lodged into the wall. Nova also sustained a fairly large bruise on her forehead which she checked whether or not it was placing any pressure on her brain, she was thankful that this was negative.
Nova was vulnerable, both emotionally and physically. As Shae backed away from Nova after healing her leaving the two of you together. Nova dipped her head low and kept her eyes away from you trying to not make eye contact, she was not proud of herself after what she had done to you. She was very disappointed in herself and showed a great deal of remorse for what she had done to you albeit rather silently. You held her tightly in your arms as you nuzzled her neck as she had made it clear that she wasn't quite ready for closer interactions. She didn't quite feel as if you had fully forgiven her yet and subsequently she was a mental wreck as she was unsure of the situation.
You caressed your arm around her shoulder and placed the other around her legs and tried to lift her up forgetting how much pain you were in. Shae rapidly paced over with Delta in tow, Shae lifted the two of you up to an awaiting stretcher placing you both down on it side by side. You placed your head on top of Nova's as she whimpered and quivered with uncertainty as to what was happening. "Easy Nova, It's okay, sleep it off" Nova broke down into tears, she tried to choke back tears but soon enough she began wailing as she began to regain her psionic abilities.
You had forgiven her, even without a formal apology from her. Shae watched on and what you had told her earlier flashed back in her mind, she bit her lip down as she began getting emotional, which was very rare for her. Shae took off her parka and gently put it on Nova who was still only wearing her night gown, she raised the hood above her head as a sign that she too had forgiven her. The bond between you and Shae was very strong and it was symbolic to her that if you had forgiven her, so should she.
As the neuroleptics began to wear off it became more apparent that the cast should be made on Nova's arm while the effects were still active instead of putting her under local anaesthesia which she had a particular disliking for. She screamed out in pain as her arm was lifted up, it was fractured in several places which was amazing considering Shae didn't touch her arm. Shae had managed to heal up the larger fractures and muscle damage but the arm still needed to remain still for the next few days to weeks at the very least under doctors' orders. "Sorry Nova" Shae said sincerely placing her hands gently on Nova's arm.
As the days ahead went on and Nova spent most of her time recuperating, both you and girls played a larger time with her in relation to her past traumatic experiences. Nova still woke up in the middle of the night with cold sweats but they were becoming less frequent as time went on, improvements were being made and eventually she came back to her position at the academy albeit with much less hours than she normally spent. Shae also speculated that it was the countless hours spent at the academy which also contributed to her decline, as even she had now become mentally exhausted from taking the position these last few weeks.
Notes: It's here where I would like to say that I'm no particular expert in the field of PTSD or any serious mental issues (Other than it being briefly covered in a highschool Psychology course I did) so If it portrayed the condition in a negative light or overly exaggerated it more than it was then I'd like to say I'm sorry in advance.
This chapter I feel further reiterates the crucial role Shae has in the family (Delta took a back seat this chapter I know). Also would like to once again mention that Shae is absurdly strong, physically and she takes most of her physical appearance and behavioural characteristics of Korra from Legend of Korra, her casual attire (Ie. When she's not in a ghost suit) is also similar to Korra's.
It's implied that there was a substantial amount of time between the last chapter and this one, approximately a month or more (even I haven't fully decided how long it was, but nothing too absurd like a year or anything) but I don't strictly mention it, even though the recovery from Meningitis itself isn't too long with the right treatment, we can assume that by Shae having a full recovery it could potentially be between a week to a month.
Last but not least different way of starting a chapter, I kinda like it and I feel that it really suited to this chapter and how it played out. Only thing I found particularly tricky was how to link it when it came full circle in terms of timeline. Once again if you have a positive or negative comment in relation to this chapter or any of the previous ones feel free to leave a review or PM me c:
Oh and one last note, if your a good artist and have a really sweet Nova drawing and would like to have your image displayed as the cover image to my work then feel free to send me a link to it and I will probably use it as my cover to all my stories.