Chapter 21
Author: Ahhh I couldn't leave y'all hanging. I had to get this chapter out as soon as I could! The outpouring of support in the reviews was a huge motivator to get this out quickly :) THANK YOU. I want to give a special thank you/shout out to mynameistoolong, Mads, batmanbane, Casual Cosmophile, and orangeporqupine. You are rockstars and your words were motivation for me to keep writing!
Disclaimer: I do not own Batman or any of the characters within the franchise. I own the original characters of this story as well as the plot that are not directly tied to the movie.
Time to Neutron Bomb Explosion: 25 minutes
Once Myra entered the helicopter and adjusted herself to the controls, she put on the headset. She heard a voice over the radio.
"T-minus 25 minutes to detonation. Repeat, T-minus 25 minutes to detonation."
She heard the voice repeat itself several more times before she adjusted the radio channel on her headset. She let out a sigh. Good…I have 25 minutes. That's plenty of time to get in and out, if I'm fast. Not a lot of time to find Bane, though… She proceeded to aim the nose of her helicopter to the center of Gotham city at a steady but fast pace. She couldn't help but feel a mild sense of fear and anxiety.
Several facets contributed to this acute fear and anxiety. The first was attributed to her unchecked ability at flying the helicopter solo. She always had Steve as primary pilot when they made supply runs together; she never flew solo on this particular aircraft. While she was familiar enough from her previous pilot courses, she still had seconds-long delays in identifying the correct panel or button to push. The second facet was the horrifying knowledge that Bane would be livid if and when he found out about her escapade back into the city. Bane was not a creature accustomed to being disobeyed. She also wasn't sure if she was prepared for the type of disappointment he would direct her way, particularly since he went to so much trouble to ensure she was placed outside of the city limits. If there was a chance to save Bane, would he want me to try, even if it meant putting myself in danger?
Myra took one last sigh to compose herself, expelling all of these concerns from her mind to instead focus on the task at hand: flying safely into Gotham city to get to Bane.
Thankfully for Myra, Bane's men made no attempt at downing her aircraft as she approached the city. She flew in low, making her way to the city's center, assuming that was where Bane would be protecting the bomb. As she approached the center of the city, she saw bodies littered out front of Gotham City Hall near several large military vehicles. The bodies were a mixture of blue uniforms and garb worn by Bane's men. There were also upright figures milling between the bodies. It appeared that these individuals wore police uniforms. Myra's heart sank. She needed to get down there to make sure Bane wasn't one of those bodies out on the street. How was she going to do that with so many police officers around? They would undoubtedly try to stop her and direct her to safety, assuming her to be a displaced citizen of Gotham. Which, technically I am…?
Myra circled the copter and found a clearing several blocks down the street on top of a 5-story building big enough to land her aircraft. She adjusted her headset to the radio frequency broadcasting the message she heard earlier. She paused, waiting for the voice to project how much time was left before the bomb detonated. She only waited a handful of seconds before the voice came over the headset.
"T-minus 20 minutes," the voice repeated. Myra calculated how much time it took her to fly in - 5 minutes - versus how much time she would approximately need to get back - another 5 minutes? That gives me…10 minutes to get Bane back here. That's….
Myra didn't allow herself to think the word 'impossible'. Instead, she hopped out of the helicopter, making her way down the fire-escape of the building in record time. She then began jogging towards city hall to begin her search.
As she approached the building, her eyes began to scan for any sign of Bane. She noticed that the military vehicle convoy that she saw stationed out front of the building was missing. Did I just miss him? Is he in one of those vehicles? Where is he?
Myra continued on with her search for a handful of moments. It took all she had in her to ignore the carnage, blood, and her looming timeline. She hoped he wasn't one of the bodies littered on the street. She didn't have much time to scan the area, however. She was immediately stopped by a pair of hands.
Myra turned to find a disheveled police officer standing in front of her.
"Hey! It's not safe here! Go back to the shelters!", the police officer said, physically rotating her back the way she came.
Myra's mind raced. She dug her feet into the ground and resisted being herded back the way she came. For some reason, her mind focused on the hand-written list of attributes that she excelled at that Bane wrote. Quick thinker…
She had an idea.
"Help! They went that way! Several blocks down! They are attacking the civilian centers!" Myra spewed in a huff, not having to feign anxiousness and fear since she was already very much feeling those deep in her gut.
The police officer analyzed her briefly, his face quickly turning to shock. He then raised an arm to flag the other police officers in the surrounding area.
"Hey! We've got trouble! They are attacking the civilian centers! Let's assist!" he shouted. Myra watched as the police officers in the area ceased checking the bodies for signs of life to stand up and redirect their attention her way. They all then began jogging towards the direction that Myra pointed with her outstretched arm.
For the first time in what felt like hours, Myra expelled a sigh of relief. Her relief was short-lived, however, as her mind was re-consumed with the task at hand: finding Bane before time runs out. She immediately got to work. She inspected the bodies on the road for signs of life, hoping to find a clue to Bane's whereabouts.
After what felt like hours (although she knew it could only have been a handful of minutes), her eyes began to swell with exhaustion and frustrated tears. There was no sign of Bane. She needed to find Bane now if they had any chance of getting out alive. Her heart sank at the thought. Where is he? Where could he be?
Just as she was about to turn back towards the helicopter to end her search in the immediate area, she saw something familiar. Barsad's red scarf. Her heart lifted for a second but then immediately sank at the prospect of an injured or possibly dead Barsad. She ran towards it.
Myra ran up to the body. She bent down to turn the body over to confirm the identity. As she did, the man groaned in pain.
It was Barsad.
"Barsad? BARSAD!" Myra shouted first in relief and then in panic at finding him injured, easing him up into a sitting position. "What happened? You're shot! WHERE'S BANE?" Myra yelled, overcome with relief at having found someone who can help direct her to Bane's location. She knew she couldn't leave Barsad injured on the ground alone, however.
Barsad groaned slightly, bringing a hand to his chest in a sweeping motion before moving to cradle his head where he was knocked out. Myra looked down and saw the remnants of several bullets that made contact with his bullet proof vest. They looked like little flattened black orange peels. She also saw that the wound at his shoulder needed to be tended to. She immediately went to work to rip a strip of cloth from the hem of her shirt to tie around the wound at his shoulder. Barsad continued to groan, but it was obvious to Myra that he was beginning to gain clarity.
"Barsad…we need to find Bane. We don't have much time. Where is he?" Myra asked once again, impatience riddling her features.
Barsad groaned before opening his eyes, analyzing Myra for several long pauses before turning his head to look towards the steps of Gotham City Hall, lifting a hand up to point to the entrance. Relief washed over her. It took all of her control to not jump up and run towards the entrance.
"Can you stand? We need to find him and I need your help. I can't leave you here! The bomb is going to go off and there are police officers around who are bound to come back," Myra said.
Barsad gave out one huff before groaning, leaning forward to hoist his body forward to stand up.
"...you're not…supposed to be here…" wheezed out Barsad.
Myra ignored him, Instead she continued to help him to his feet, taking hold of his arm to help stabilize him. They then made their way slowly towards the entrance.
Halfway to the entrance, Barsad's pain overcame him and he stumbled and fell back to the ground. Sweat was dripping from his face from the exertion. Myra attempted with all her strength to keep him upright, but she was powerless to stop him from sinking back down to the ground. Frustration and urgency consumed her. She bent down, pointing a finger directly into his face.
"GET UP RIGHT NOW SOLDIER! BANE NEEDS YOU! WE DON'T HAVE TIME!," Myra screamed into his face, abandoning the gentle, sympathetic approach.
This, of course, shocked Barsad.
Barsad was not accustomed to Myra being overly assertive, loud, or aggressive. He let one of his strained eyes open to gaze up at her. Their eyes locked as the seriousness of the situation became obvious. He finally heaved himself back up and resumed the trek to the entrance of the court house.
They didn't experience any more hiccups on the way.
Myra and Barsad made their way through the doors, stepping on shattered glass, bullet fragments, and debris. Myra scanned the area, nearly missing the large shadowed mass on the floor at the far side of the atrium, initially mistaking it for additional debris. Her heart stopped when she turned back for better focus, recognizing the back brace and the clothing. She let go of Barsad's arm to run towards Bane.
She ran without care for the shattered glass and remnants on the floor, falling down to her knees. She rolled Bane onto his back to inspect him for any sign of life. She immediately saw that there was a large deformation squarely at the center of his military vest with black blast powder radiating outward. Black soot covered his body, smoking his appearance from the blast. Obviously he was struck with something very powerful, possibly fatal. She felt her heart sink. No normal person could survive a strike like that.
She reached out to check his pulse.
Tears started coating her eyes when she didn't feel any sign of life.
Her tears were premature, however, because just as she was about to remove her fingers, she felt a faint pulse. Her heart skipped a beat. She readjusted her fingers to make sure she was assessing correctly. She was right; he was still alive, but barely.
"He has a pulse, but it's…faint," Myra said to Barsad, who had found his way to her side.
Myra turned to look up to Barsad, concern etched across her face. Before Barsad could respond, Myra grabbed one of Bane's massive arms to try and hoist him up.
"We have to get him out of here…I have a helicopter parked on the roof a few blocks down the road," Myra breathed out as she struggled with Bane. "Help me lift him up."
Myra was not prepared for what happened to her next. She suddenly felt herself being turned around to face Barsad. The look on his face was extremely unpleasant. He had clearly snapped out of the physical and mental sluggish stupor that had consumed him up to that point from being knocked out.
"You aren't supposed to be here! You flew in here? Are you MAD? Bane wanted you to be safely out of the city! There's NO TIME. RUN!," Barsad screamed without further explanation, shoving her towards the entrance from whence they came. He was extremely displeased, to say the least.
Myra, of course, dug her feet into the floor. She whipped around to snap back at Barsad. Stubbornness coated her features.
"I'm not leaving." She said simply. She clenched her fists and stared Barsad down. He stared back.
Barsad matched her stubbornness. With the arm on the side of his good shoulder, he grabbed her. He then began marching both of them towards the entrance. He knew inwardly that Bane would have wanted him to make every attempt at getting Myra out of here before the explosion went off. She, of course, was making it difficult.
They made it only several feet before Myra started thrashing, tugging, and twisting out of Barsad's grip. Despite his exhaustion and wounds, he was still a formidable force. He was no force, however, against Myra in her current determined state. She broke free. She gave Barsad an angry glare before marching back to Bane's side.
"I'm not leaving him. You can either help me get him to the helicopter or fuck off," Myra seethed, her patience running thin.
Barsad analyzed her.
"I have no idea how long I was out...but we had 11 minutes left before the explosion. Even if we ran straight to the helicopter, it's unlikely we would survive. You aren't going to get there in time unless you leave. NOW," Barsad said with very little sugarcoat.
This caused Myra to stare back. Realization that she was likely on the verge of dying had a predictable effect on her heart; it caused it to skip a few beats. Any shred of hope at the possibility that they would get out safely vanished. Sweat erupted over her brow as goosebumps claimed the real estate on the rest of her skin. She felt like she very well may be having a heart attack. She waited several long moments in silence to assess her body's reaction. When nothing happened, she turned her attention back to Barsad.
"I'm where I want to be," she said with a sense of finality. A sense of calm, determination, and poise suddenly overcame her; she never felt more sure and confident about anything before in her life. She turned back towards Bane.
Have you ever willingly put yourself in danger, knowing that your life could get snuffed out in a milisecond from a detonated bomb that you wouldn't even have time to process? No? Well, neither had Myra. The cacophony of emotions one would experience in that situation would be surreal. Nervousness and anxiety over the possibility of it being her last moment on earth alive battled with the vortex of desire she had to reunite with Bane. Bane; the one individual who had instilled a sense of purpose and meaning into her life. She needed him. She couldn't move forward without him. As cliche as it sounded, she felt like he was the person she was meant to be with for the rest of her life. Even if that means any second now… Goosebumps galloped over her skin as she fought with all the courage she could muster to fight the urge to take Barsad's suggestion and sprint out of the building towards the safety of her helicopter.
Myra knelt down at Bane's side, brushing a hand against his cheek before checking his pulse again. He's still alive. She began stroking his face, hoping that he could feel her sense of touch in his unconscious state.
Myra heard a gun click behind her. She turned to see Barsad aiming a gun directly at her.
"Leave. NOW," Barsad seathed, his finger on the trigger.
This had the unsurprising effect of shocking Myra. Her mouth gaped open. Her mind flashed. She froze.
"Barsad…" Myra eased out, but was immediately cut off.
"If you don't leave now…," he said, pulling the trigger threateningly. Myra narrowed her eyes. Logic began overtaking her senses.
"What? You are going to shoot me? Wouldn't that defeat the purpose?" Myra scowled.
Barsad regarded her, the tip of his gun adjusting the angle at which it was pointed. Myra's heart faltered.
"Not you. Him," Barsaid said, his gun squarely aimed at Bane's head.
Myra and Barsad's eyes locked.
"...Barsad…," Myra pleaded, slowly moving her body between Bane and Barsad's line of sight.
"We both know this is what he would want. Get up and leave now or I will have no other choice," Barsad said, his aim unfaltering.
Myra slowly began to rise from her spot. She felt a sudden swell of indignant rage. Before she had time to reign in and control herself, she used the momentum she achieved from standing up to aim herself directly onto Barsad. She wasn't aiming for the gun; she was focused on the wound at his shoulder. Myra wasn't particularly strong, but she was strong enough to make a wounded man recoil.
She took her shot.
Her fist made contact with Barsad's bullet wound. Barsad immediately doubled over, dropping the gun. Myra bent down to snatch it up before he had time to compose himself. She stepped away from him, releasing the magazine and she did so. She chucked it across the room. She did the same for the gun, throwing it in the opposite direction as the magazine. She turned back to Barsad.
They both stared at each other in mild shock. After several tense moments, Barsad relented with the drop of his shoulders. He seemed to physically sag at the toll of being unsuccessful at being unable to motivate Myra back to the helicopter. Or was he relieved he didn't have to shoot Bane?
Myra took this as a sign that he was finally going to help her.
"We need to get him out of here. Those police officers could come back and seeing Bane might not be the best…" Myra said, bending down to take one of his arms. Barsad assisted her, albeit with great difficulty due to his own injuries. Without his help, however, Myra had no chance of getting Bane out of here herself; he was much too heavy.
They both lifted him up, each under one of his arms. Barsad did the majority of the heavy lifting, sweat breaking out over his brow from the exertion and pain he undoubtedly was feeling. To Myra's surprise, he didn't complain. They hurried out of the building as fast as they could.
It took Myra considerably longer to get to the entrance of the building with an injured Barsad and Bane in tow. Barsad and Myra exchanged meaningful glances as they made their way across the body-littered streets, finding comfort in the other's determination to save Bane even if it was highly futile and any second could be their last.
It wasn't until they made it to the bottom of the stairs to the building did Barsad finally need a rest. After easing Bane down, he fell to the ground, moving to rest his back against the wall. Sweat drenched his clothes. Myra moved to check the wound on his shoulder. After ensuring the bandage was secure, Myra's attention was redirected to Barsad.
"Barsad….thank you…." Myra said finally, for nothing in particular. For everything.
Barsad responded with a grunt, pensiveness coating his features. Silence settled between them before Myra finally spoke up again.
"...you said 11 minutes?" Myra huffed out, exhaustion overcoming her. Barsad couldn't help but detect the hint of hope in her voice. Unless I'm mistaken…this has been the longest 11 minutes of my life.
"...yes," Barsad huffed out again, returning her gaze.
Silence settled between them again as they both assessed the situation. Had something happened to the bomb?
"It's been longer than 11 minutes," Myra said, stating the somewhat obvious.
Barsad was silent for several seconds before responding, maintaining his focus on her.
"...yes," he said in what Myra detected was mild relief.
Silence again.
"...well that's good," was all Myra said. It was all she could say. In all honesty, the rollercoaster of emotions and fluctuations to her heart were starting to become too much. She felt numb. She wasn't ready to be truly hopeful until they made it to the helicopter and were outside city limits. Perhaps they miscalculated when the bomb would go off? That still means we should continue, with haste…
Myra turned to rest a hand on Bane's check before moving it to confirm his pulse. Still there…
"We need to keep going," Myra said to Barsad. Barsad looked like he could have done with another handful of minutes of rest, but instead nodded. He got up and assumed his position next to Bane, hoisting him up. Myra followed suit.
Getting Bane up the stairs became the real struggle, particularly since there were 5 flights of them. To Barsad's credit, he never faltered and never complained despite the pain he must be feeling. When they opened the door to the roof, relief overcame Myra. The helicopter was still there. They also hadn't blown up yet. They immediately began dragging Bane towards its entrance. One they made it to the helicopter, Myra took a step back to allow Barsad to haul Bane in.
For the second time that day, Myra was overcome with shock. Suddenly, a hand gripped her arm to swing her around. As she whipped around to face the culprit, she saw the distorted, wounded face of Tahlia. She was very clearly in pain. She also looked enraged. The next feeling Myra felt was the twisting of a knife just below her belly button. Shock and intense pain overtook her body as she looked down, the magnitude of Tahlia's actions consuming her senses, her hands reaching up to try and force Tahlia's hand off of the sharp object being stabbed into her core. Shock consumed her, silencing her scream.
Myra startled from the sounds of a gunshot behind her and the knife being pulled from her abdomen. She looked up to see bullet holes littered across Tahlia's chest. Tahlia immediately collapsed to the ground, the knife still clutched in her grip.
Myra followed suit. Her knees gave way from her own pain as she tried to force herself to fall onto her bottom, twisting around to face towards the helicopter. She saw Barsad holding the gun that was still aimed directly at an immobile Talia Al'Ghul. He lowered the gun to rush forward. He bent down to Myra, his hand hovering over the knife wound on her stomach. Myra reached out to him and grabbed his vest.
"She killed it….she killed it….." Myra stammered out before she started bawling, a wave of nausea consuming her.
Barsad was clearly confused by Myra's choice of words. He checked the location of the stab wound in her abdomen, thankful it wasn't over her liver or any other organ that would have been fatal.
"You're not dead…it looks like it didn't hit anything important…" Barsad eased out, trying to calm her down by resting his hand over hers to put pressure on the wound.
That did not seem to pacify Myra, who continued to stare down at her abdomen, bawling as if she were experiencing a great physical loss. Clearly he had not said the correct thing. Barsad's eyes drew together as understanding washed over his face. Obviously, Myra and Bane had kept a secret from him. Oh shit.
A second-wind took control of Barsad's body. He immediately hoisted her up by her arms, practically dragging her to the helicopter entrance and sliding her into the pilot's seat. He stood right next to her, putting his hand over her wound to continue to slow the bleeding.
"We need you right now, Myra. I know you're in a lot of pain, but we need to get you and Bane immediate help. Do you think we can do that?" Barsad asked, hovering over her and forcing her head to turn towards him with his hand so he could get a visual lock on her.
Myra stared at Barsad, feeling her teeth begin to chatter.
"Y-yes…y…yes. I need….I need you…I need you to co-pilot incase….I…I can't do it…" she said.
Barsad maintained his focus on her.
"You can do this. You'll be fine as long as I keep pressure on that wound. I promise." Barsad said in a calm, soothing voice.
I'm not fine. I'm not fine. She…she…..killed it.
Myra started bawling uncontrollably again. Barsad reached forward to force her shoulders back against the seat so that she didn't convulse forward into the steering wheel. Barsad let her cry it out for a solid thirty seconds before he used one of his hands to shake her shoulder aggressively.
"Buck up. Breath. Breaaaaaaath. We're alive because of you. We're alive because of you. We aren't out of the clear yet, though. Bane doesn't look so good. He probably doesn't have a lot of time left. We have to get him some help. Are you able to pilot?" Barsad asked as he continued to hover over her in the event she started convulsing again, knowing what strings to pull to get Myra to do as he asked. Bane.
Myra took several deep breaths, forcing herself to wrap up and set aside the physical and severe emotional pain she was experiencing in order to finish this last leg of the journey. She nodded several times, reaching forward to initiate the helicopter sequence. Barsad took that as an indicator that he should sit back down into the co-pilot's seat.
"Steve…..Steve will be able to….help," Myra sputtered out.
"Where's Steve?" Barsad asked, concern etched in his features.
"I…I…left him just….jus-...just outside the city limits…," Myra said.
"Let's go get him, then," Barsad, reverting back to his typical, quiet, almost bored tone of voice.
Myra, Barsad, and Bane managed to fly safely out of the city to the landing area that Myra had indicated. By that point, she felt the bottom of her clothes drenched in blood despite the pressure that Barsad had on the wound. Whether they made it to Steve, Myra wasn't certain; the last thing she recalled was making a rough landing before blacking out.
Myra slowly awoke.
Groggy, her eyes roamed around her surroundings. She spied a pedestal fan in the corner of a dated-looking room, wallpaper peeling off the walls. She saw an IV bag and drip hanging next to her head, connected to her left arm. She could see the foot of another bed set up in an adjacent room. She saw bare feet extended past the foot of the other bed, the occupant obviously too large for a regular-sized bed. Bane. Relief filled her chest. She leaned her head up to inspect her own bed; it was a twin-sized bed with no headboard, old (but clean-looking) sheets covering the mattress. She turned her head to inspect the pillow she was resting on. As she did so, she observed that she was in a fresh set of clothing.
Slow realization soon filled her memory. Her hand darted to her stomach. Her fingers made contact with a bandage. She looked down to inspect the wound, seeing her stomach wrapped with clean dressings and a large gauze pad.
Barsad must have been in the adjacent room with Bane, for he entered the room she was in immediately after he detected movement coming from her. Myra's eyes darted up to meet his. He returned a lazy yet hesitant smile.
"You're awake. Good. The doctor expects you'll make a full recovery." Barsad said in his usual almost bored tone.
Myra's eyebrows knitted together, concern still etched over her features. Her hand moved to hover over her abdomen gently.
"What about…what….. Did the doctor….?" Myra couldn't quite figure out a way to ask the question she desperately needed to know the answer to.
Barsad didn't say anything at first, instead regarding her as if determining what to say next. After several moments, however, he moved to her bedside to rest a hand on her shoulder.
"...Myra…" Barsad said quietly.
Myra's heart sank as she turned her whole focus to him. Barsad regarded her for several seconds before his gaze faltered.
"I'm…I'm so sorry, Myra…the doctor….the doctor informed me that you had a miscarriage due to blood loss and trauma…," Barsad said, clearly unaccustomed to bedside manners and also very clearly uncomfortable at delivering this kind of news to Myra.
Myra immediately turned away, bringing a hand up to cover her eyes. She could feel the reality of Barsad's words hitting her like a giant iceberg. She couldn't help but let out several deep sobs. Barsad watched uncomfortably from her bedside, crossing his arms over his chest, looking out of his element. Myra's sobs didn't last long because her mind immediately focused on something else. Bane. She brushed her face with the back of her hand before turning back towards Barsad.
"...and Bane?" Myra asked, her eyes darting to the other room where she could see the feet of the neighboring bed's inhabitant.
Barsad turned to look in the other room before turning back to focus on Myra.
"He's quite injured…broken ribs, collapsed lung, broken collarbone, bruised organs….but he'll live. All he has to do is wake up," Barsad explained.
Myra hadn't realized that she had been holding a large breath until she let out a giant sigh of relief. Her shoulders sagged at the news. She let the news wash over her like a warm comforting blanket. After several moments, she continued on with her questions.
"Where are we?" she asked.
"In a safe house…far away from Gotham. We'll stay here until Bane is safe to travel," Barsad continued.
Myra regarded him thoughtfully.
"Travel to where?" she mused.
Barsad returned her gaze, giving her a look as if she should already know.
"Home," he said as if stating the obvious. Myra scowled at him.
"Where's that?" she continued.
"Unfortunately, I can't tell you that. You can only be shown," Barsad said with an air of mild mystique. Myra raised an eyebrow. She didn't push for more information. Just then, a man that Myra had never seen walked in carrying an IV bag. He was wearing an extremely scruffy flannel shirt with blotchy jeans. …this better not be the doctor.
"This is the doctor," Barsad said, perhaps detecting Myra's skepticism.
"Hello," the doctor said. "You can call me Kal. I'm here to give you more fluids and a dose of medicine to help with the pain and to help you sleep," he said unceremoniously before replacing her IV bag and dispensing several liquids into the drip. Myra regarded him for several moments, before being overcome with exhaustion. She barely had time to rest her head on the pillow before she passed out.
Author: Ahhhh another cliffhanger kind of! What do you all think? This chapter was HARD TO WRITE, MY GOD. T_T -dies- The journey isn't over yet! Please PPPPLEEAASE don't forget to review! Reviews are the magic candy juice I use to write because it lets me know people are still reading this story and are interested in knowing what happens!