When Nasir understood that Gisburne was not lying to them, he felt that his heart had to stop there and then. At that moment, he had to accept that Robin was indeed dead and that nothing would be changed by the refusal of the rest of them to believe a single word the knight said. The Saracen, however, was convinced that he had read the Norman's body language accurately.
He was also so certain of this since he had already dealt with the knight before he had joined Robin in the woods. Therefore, it was perhaps no wonder that he also spotted something in Gisburne that the other one sought to hide and that did not match the gloating that he publicly displayed. Nasir found it odd, but he was too affected by the death of his leader and friend at that very moment, so he forgot to get to the bottom of it. It was not his habit to ignore something like this, but losing someone like Robin was not without its effects even on a man like Nasir, who in his life had seen many people die - men, women and children - most of whom he himself had brought from life to death.
Gisburne was still busy taunting - and hurting - the prisoners with the death of Herne's son, but the Saracen was not in a position to pay attention to him right now. He really did not care what the other one was doing, whether he was planning to kill him, for instance, or whether he was taunting him, for that did not affect Nasir. If it was his fate to follow his friend to his death, then he would not oppose that. And if it was not his fate, then he wanted to say farewell to Robin - at least in his mind - in an appropriate manner. From one warrior to another. From one chosen to another.
Nasir had understood better than the rest of the outlaws what it meant to be chosen. He had once belonged to a circle of such people who had been called to a higher purpose. He, too, had known how it felt not only to be aware of his destiny, but also to accept it. Robin had done that. At one time, Nasir had stood in the same place, too. Still, his friend had been ahead of him in that Herne's son - though still so young - had grasped that those who followed him were not themselves to blame for not always being able to understand his point of view. This realization had not dawned on Nasir in his former life. This he had only learned while here. From Robin's example and his friendship.
He was fortunate not to have rejected Robin's gift, although at the beginning he had believed that the passing on of experience and knowledge would only go in one direction. Namely, from him to the young Saxon. But in this respect Nasir had been mistaken. Robin had been able to teach him quite a bit as well. But all that was past now. Just like that. From one moment to the next.
But Nasir was not the kind of person to linger long in the past. After all, his way of life had taught him to dwell in the present. Robin's death had not made him forget his maxim. 'Draw your conclusions from what has happened, use them to alter your situation, and don't think about what could have been, much less what should have been.'
According to this philosophy, the former fida'i recalled the beautiful moments he had experienced with Robin, promised himself not to forget what the other man had taught him, and then set out to reconsider his situation in order to be aware of his options. In order not to miss anything in this regard, he had to return from his inner world and pay once again attention to the other people in his proximity. Both to the rest of Robin's friends - to his friends - and to the adversary who seemed to have the upper hand at this very moment. But Nasir knew from experience how rapidly such matters could change.
This did not mean that the Saracen was convinced that there was a way out, but he would keep his eyes - and ears - open from now on so that nothing would escape him. Should it then turn out that fate had in store for him, too, the end of his worldly existence, then this was something he would have to accept. But he would not therefore drown in self-pity or in despair or even in suicidal berserker rage, as it seemed to be welling up in Will at that very moment.
It just meant keeping an eye on what was possible and acting accordingly, without hesitation. No matter in which direction the path led that was shown to him.
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Being again in Sherwood, Nasir allowed himself to go back to the past and reflect on Robin. His friends had been given some hope after they had been freed by a "hooded" man and the Saracen had not had the heart to point out to them that this person was not Robin, even if the sheriff and the soldiers seemed to think so as well.
This was probably the very reason why they were not pursued - possibly reinforced by the fact that Gisburne had apparently been wounded by this stranger - and could finally lose themselves in Sherwood. There they met Marion and Much. But it was not until Robin's consort showed them Albion that everyone actually realized that their leader had died. The pain of his death and the shock that Herne had allowed his son to die left even Will Scarlet speechless, and so they expressed their grief in the same manner they had done to each of their other friends. The same manner in which they paid their respects to those who had given their lives for the cause.
So, they gathered at the lake as twilight linked day with night and let their flaming arrows soar over the water. Just as these bright flames lit up the dark surface of the water for a brief moment, so too Robin had for a time represented a light in their gloomy lives. But as soon as that light died, neither of them knew how to go on.
One of the possibilities was shown to them by another arrow piercing the evening sky - and Nasir was immediately reminded of how he, too, had stood at that very spot - but they were not granted that outlook for long. The man in green and brown, his hood pulled far down his face, vanished into the woods as if he were but a wisp of mist, leaving them alone in their pain and despair.
At that moment, Nasir could not help but wonder if Robin had known what was coming. Had he accepted this part of his fate as well - even if perhaps not without complaining - just as he had accepted all the other aspects that Herne had burdened him with. Or had he been like Nasir himself and suddenly doubted whether the cause for which he had been picked could really be worth being the chosen one and giving his life for it? But perhaps Robin had actually been more fortunate than the fida'i and had not had to suffer being betrayed. This was a notion that made Nasir experience envy for a brief moment.
But then he once again turned to the here and now. For him, only one question was important at this point: How long would their fellowship last? In his opinion, not very long, for nothing could survive without his heart.