A/N Nikola and John have words. The secrets of the scrolls continue.

SIX

Helen thought he looked rather sad and diminished lying in his sick bed. Nikola was always a figure of animated energy, and being ordered not to move ill-suited him. He still had bandages around his throat and looked forlornly out his window.

"Breakfast." Nikola looked up to see the two plasma packs Helen had brought with her. "Oh joy," he muttered, but hungrily ripped the seal off one and drank.

"Cheer up, you. I brought you something."

"Is it wine?"

Helen reached by the side of his bed and instead brought forth a small cage with a pigeon inside. Though he tried to hide it, she could see his eyes light up like a little boy's. Nikola had always had a strange fondness for those birds.

"My dear, you know me too well. It's as if we've never been apart." He sucked his plasma pack dry and opened the cage, gently coaxing the bird inside to his hands. "Speaking of, you taste great for two hundred."

Helen laughed. "One hundred and fifty-eight."

Nikola scoffed, his hands gently cupped around the cooing bird. "Women. Always lying about their age." He was too weak and tired to keep up much of a façade though. His grin was too unabashed as he got acquainted with his new friend.

"I'm so sorry this happened to you, Nikola. Can you think of any reason why it did?"

"First off, Helen – don't apologize. Secondly, I can think of a dozen reasons why it happened but the pertinent matter is … our new guests are quite a lot more than they seem. And far from harmless."

Helen gravely nodded her agreement, then looked pointedly at his second plasma pack. Reluctantly, he placed the pigeon carefully back into its cage, promising to fuss over it later, and ripped the seal of the second pack. He drank slowly.

"How did you get to me so quickly?"

Helen's gaze looked far away. "Ran into John."

"Druitt? Trust him not to stick around for a funeral." Nikola sucked up more plasma with slight distaste, then noticed the expression on Helen's face. He reached out for her hand thoughtfully and gave it a squeeze. "The Five don't break up that easily, darling."

She scoffed a little, without mirth. "More like the Three now." Nikola squeezed her hand tighter and she looked up, suddenly realizing how intense his gaze was.

"We were always the hardest to break."

"Doc? I think you better come see this?"

After the previous night's incident, Helen had Henry and the Big Guy place the Sybarites into locked chambers and from all accounts it seemed like they were peaceful once more. Seeing as she had other things occupying her, she decided their little "chat" could wait until the morning. She hadn't expected more excitement already.

The male Sybarite was incredibly distressed and for once the pair were communicating verbally, though in a language Helen did not understand. It seemed like he vacillated between screaming furiously at the female and then pleading with her. She seemed to be in no danger, but her remarks seemed much more cold and cutting.

Still… Helen wasn't going to take any chances. "Separate them immediately! Sedate the male."

The Big Guy wasted no time in entering the chamber with a tranquilizer gun and shooting the male Sybarite. A look of surprise registered on his face before he fell to the ground, knocked out cold. He gingerly took the female Sybarite's hand, as she seemed upset by what was happening, and led her out of the chamber to a chair. Helen gave the Big Guy a look that told him to stand by with the tranquilizer just in case, and then seated herself beside the female Sybarite.

"Are you all right?" The female nodded gravely. Helen gave her a look over and confirmed she was untouched. "What were you two arguing about?" The female Sybarite didn't understand and Helen tried again. "What were you two fighting about?"

A dark look passed over the female's eyes, and her head lowered slightly in shame. "Duty." Helen didn't understand, but realized it was a large admission on the Sybarite's part. She waited a moment and pressed gently again. "Are you two mates?"

The female Sybarite shook her head and struggled to find the right words. "Not mates but together. Partners…in duty."

"What is your duty?"

The female Sybarite considered her coldly, and then uttered a word in her own native tongue. Helen severely wished she had some king of babel fish that she could understand them, but unfortunately that particular creature purely was a work of fiction. "Do you know anything about what happened last night?"

"The Family was attacked."

"Do you know why?"

The female Sybarite looked at Helen searchingly now, as if warring with herself with how much to reveal. It had been an uphill struggle with the pair to get any kind of information about them, but their treatment at the Sanctuary must have afforded Helen some level of trust. "Different duties. Different callings. Sometimes without understanding the other."

Helen nodded, feeling grateful. While the Sybarite's words were cryptic, it was giving her more clues than she had in any previous conversation with them. Perhaps they were the same species of abnormal, but in different castes of their society. They worked together, but their working roles differed in a way. Was he a warrior caste then? Some type of fighter? What did that mean her place was?

"Thank you. Would you like to return to your room?" The female Sybarite nodded, and Helen motioned for the Big Guy to escort her back. Helen then looked towards the unconscious male Sybarite, her mouth twisting in a frown. Would he be as open with her as his female counterpart had?

"I guess vermin attract vermin."

Nikola looked up in surprise, and his eyes immediately darkened. John Druitt sat on the foot of his bed, watching amusedly as Nikola was feeding his pigeon. He shrugged and continued to encourage the bird to eat seed from his hand, ignoring Druitt. "I suppose you would know best."

"Brings back fond memories, doesn't it? Exchanging barbs on your sick bed?"

"Yes, and for once it's not your fault. Must be a novelty to hear those exact words."

John had come to check in on Nikola, unbeknownst to Helen, genuinely out of curiosity for the other man's condition. It was a complicated relationship however, burning with too many unforgiveable deeds on both ends for either party to truly like the other. "Fed, clothed and given amusements like a good little lap dog as always."

A warning growl rumbled in Nikola's throat. He ignored the painful burning sensation it caused, and his pigeon was spooked and fluttered to the other side of the room. Druitt held up his hands in a sign of peace as he noticed Nikola tensing. "Calm down, old friend. I suppose Helen wouldn't forgive me if I aggravated your condition."

"It would be the least of a plethora of misdeeds on your end. Tell me, when she looks at you does she still hear the screams of all the women you slaughtered echoing in her mind? A flash of fear when she thinks it might be her next?"

John trembled as he stood up from the bed. It took all of his self-control to keep his temper in check and he murmured quietly, "I would never hurt her…"

Nikola grinned back, but it was more akin to an animal baring its teeth. "Too late on that account, old friend. You were always the one who hurt her most." John's hand was around his throat in a flash, though still not daring to squeeze. Nikola's eyes had gone entirely black, his teeth lengthening. John tilted his head, a cruel smile on his lips. "Aren't you the least bit afraid I'll kill you?"

"I know I would return the favour given half the chance out of sheer boredom."

John clicked his tongue, shaking his head amusedly as if at a small child. "Jealousy, jealousy." He withdrew, his hand back down at his side.

Nikola's face faded back to normal, but still with a sneering grin. "No… old habits just die hard."

John turned, making his way out of the room. "Is that what she is then? An old habit?" Before Nikola could retort he had vanished in a flash of orange light. Forcing himself to control his quickened breathing, Nikola fumed and swore he'd cuff the werewolf into a wall for forgetting to put up the EM shields again.

The male Sybarite was finally beginning to wake. He found himself alone in the glass enclosure, and a low keening sound tore its way out of his throat as if he were mourning.

Helen was disturbed by the sound, but she was too angry to be moved by pity. "Care to tell me why you've been attacking people in the Sanctuary?"

The male Sybarite looked up and growled. "He is no person."

"What is the Family? What does it mean exactly? Does it only mean vampires?"

The Sybarite turned his back to her to face the wall. Helen could feel her voice tensing with anger. "Here in the Sanctuary we maintain a safe haven… one of peace. You broke that. I'm afraid if you can't properly explain your actions, you'll have to stay locked up. I can't risk anyone else."

"No one else is at risk…"

"Then why only Tesla? Would you attack any another vampire?"

The Sybarite slowly turned, a question on his face. "There are more of the Family?"

Helen was slightly taken aback, but did not want to reveal everything to the Sybarite. Instead she curtly said, "I don't know who you are, where you come from or anything of your past. Let alone some lifelong thirst for revenge you might have, but trust me – there is no justice in attacking people who haven't even proved their worth to you."

The Sybarite chuckled bitterly instead and laid his head against the wall. "This is true… she has chosen." She? The female Sybarite?

"What has she chosen?"

"The Family… she has chosen to be marked by the Family."

Helen's mind began racing. What the bloody hell did that mean? Marked by the Family? But the only one they called the Family in the Sanctuary was Nikola. She was marked by him in some way…?

Helen exited the room, quickly turning away so that the Sybarite couldn't see her beginning to tremble with anger. Whatever the hell Nikola was up to… she was going to give him the tongue-lashing of his life.