Powerless
If waking up with one rune burned into her back was bad, waking up with three was anything but better. As Syndra's eyes fluttered open, she felt an annoyingly familiar throb of pain course through her back. With each pulse of her heart, Syndra felt as though someone took a hammer and struck her across the back. The one bright side? The rest of her body was undamaged. Only her back pulsed with pain.
Wincing in pain, the sovereign pulled herself into a sitting position before gingerly sliding her legs off the side of the bed and down onto the floor.
Floor.
Tiled, white floor.
Institute of War Hospital floor.
Syndra sighed with annoyance and glanced around her, observing her room. It was nothing spectacular. Plain, holding only the barest of needs for a simple hospital room. Finally, Syndra rose from the bed and took an step towards the door. Her legs almost buckled under her, but Syndra managed to steady herself by placing a hand supportively on the table beside the bed.
Drained.
Weak.
Syndra grimaced, disgusted by the poor condition she was in. With the three runes in her back, almost all of her powers were sealed away, draining her of her primary source of energy. After a few moments, Syndra recomposed herself and again pushed herself towards the door. Her sense of balance restored, she slowly made her way to the door, reaching for the doorknob and freedom. Alas, she was not allowed to even touch the door. The moment her hand entered the space a few inches away from the doorknob, a strong magical barrier materialized around the entire door. Syndra stopped and scowled, her temper spiking. Even with the three runes nullifying the entirety of her powers, the summoners had the nerve to seal the door with a magical barrier that would prevent her from leaving. A simple lock would have served the same function as she was in no condition to force her way out. None the less, they found it necessary to seal her within the confines of the room. Furious, Syndra balled her hands into fists and whirled on her heel, returning back to her bed.
"How dare they spite me..." Syndra thought venomously, gritting her teeth with pure rage.
Forgetting about her poor physical condition, Syndra roughly grabbed the side of her bed and shoved the bed until it struck the side wall of the room, directly underneath the one window that illuminated the room with the moon's pale white glow. Even further drained by the physical action, Syndra plopped herself back down on the bed before curling her legs underneath her and gazing out of the window and into the moonlit night. Swiveling her head, Syndra flicked her eyes across the various citizens of the institute, bustling about and enjoying the city's night life. Syndra scowled, subconsciously envious of the freedom they enjoyed while she alone remained locked within the confines of her prison.
After a few minutes, Syndra's mind began to drift. With nothing to entertain herself with, she grew rapidly bored of watching the brainless weaklings milling about outside her window. Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, a knock on the door interrupted her solitude.
"What." Syndra snapped annoyedly.
The door creaked open after Syndra had spoken. Apparently the person on the other side thought "what" was a form of giving one permission to enter. Expecting a doctor or nurse to enter the room, Syndra turned her head slightly so she could gaze at the doorway out of the corner of her eye. It was no nurse or doctor. Instead, it was Irelia.
"Hey..." Irelia called out in a mildly subdued voice.
"I said what. I didn't say you could enter." Syndra said haughtily.
"Oh..." Irelia replied, sounding slightly dejected. "Sorry..."
That surprised Syndra. She wasn't expecting the Ionian warrior to admit fault so readily. Turning around atop her bed, Syndra shifted her position until she was facing her visitor. Syndra said nothing; only staring balefully into the warrior's eyes.
Irelia shifted her weight from leg to leg, uncomfortable under the sovereign's piercing stare.
"I... Uhm..." Irelia started, but hesitated, unsure of how to begin. She glanced up at Syndra for some sort of recognition, but Syndra gave her nothing. Only her baleful stare.
Again, Irelia shifted her weight and tapped the toe of her boot on the floor awkwardly.
Syndra continued staring.
"You saved me." Irelia finally blurted out, unable to stand the weight of Syndra's staring. After a few moments, Irelia added "... right?"
Syndra frowned immediately and released her stare on Irelia.
"Save you?" Syndra asked, "HAH! Good one."
Baffled, Irelia's brow wrinkled and she took a small step back.
"It wasn't you then?" Irelia asked, "Then who-"
Irelia broke off abruptly, folding her arms and bringing one hand up to her chin in deep thought.
"No. It was definitely you." Irelia spoke up decisively. "I've felt that push before in the rift matches where I fought against you. It WAS you!"
Before Syndra could speak up again, Irelia followed up her conclusions with further evidence.
"That's why you were unconscious at the cliffs. You ripped the rune out of your back to regain your powers and stop me from... from..." Irelia let her voice trail off, unwilling to face the fact that she almost died a mere twenty four hours ago.
"Whatever." Syndra finally replied with a wave of her hand, unwilling to admit that she had helped the Ionian.
Irelia, however took the one word as admittance of guilt; confirming her suspicions that Syndra had indeed saved her life.
"Why?" Irelia asked softly, curious as to why the mage went to such extremes in order to preserve her life.
"What you do mean WHY?! I just told you I didn't save you." Syndra snarled.
"Don't lie to me. I know it was you. Why?" Irelia asked firmly, demanding an answer from the mage.
Frustrated with Irelia's persistence, Syndra grit her teeth and smashed a fist into the bed she was sitting on.
"I did what I felt like doing!" Syndra finally spat with extreme annoyance. "You Ionians never know when to just shut up!" Syndra added, quite clearly aggravated by Irelia's perseverance.
What Irelia did next, however, completely caught Syndra by surprise.
Rather than gloating over her victorious argument, Irelia instead knelt down on one knee and folded one arm to her chest, bowing her head to the sovereign in traditional Ionian salute.
"Thank you." Irelia said, her voice subdued and humble.
"You-... I-... but-... WHAT!?" Syndra finally sputtered in complete and utter surprise at the sudden change in attitude from Irelia. The shock caused Syndra's face to flush red with embarrassment.
"Thank you. For saving my life." Irelia repeated, still fixating her eyes on the floor. "I am indebted to you." Irelia continued before finally rising to her feet once more and meeting the sovereign's gaze.
Finally, Syndra recovered from her shock slightly and spoke up again.
"I have no use of debt from a weakling such as yourself." Syndra shot at Irelia, clearly unwilling to accept such a humble gesture from the Ionian. "Perhaps if you weren't so stupid and helpless you wouldn't have needed saving in the first place!" Syndra added quickly, trying to disguise her discomfort by firing rude remarks at Irelia.
Irelia, however, took no offense to the rude comments, forcing herself to remain calm and thankful to the mage that saved her life.
Upon failing to provoke Irelia, Syndra frowned slightly and shifted herself so that she was no longer facing the warrior; instead returning her gaze to the window and the world outside. The action brought Syndra's exposed back into clear view of Irelia's gaze. The warrior couldn't help but feel her heart skip a beat as she realized the one rune in Syndra's back had been replaced with three. Closer inspection revealed that part of her back was wrapped rather hastily with bandages. Bandages that were stained purple by Syndra's blood.
"Overkill..." Irelia muttered to herself.
"What?" Syndra snapped, catching wind of Irelia's words.
"Oh... uhm... nothing..." Irelia stuttered, surprised that the sovereign heard her and chose to speak as opposed to just ignoring her. With that, Syndra turned her heard and glanced at Irelia through the corner of her eye, meeting Irelia's gaze before flicking her eyes in the direction of the door.
It was a clear gesture that told Irelia it was time to leave.
With a disappointed sigh, Irelia turned and started moving towards the door. However, she paused once she reached the it.
"I'll get you something to eat. You're hungry right?" Irelia offered hopefully. Syndra was unconscious for at least twenty four hours, so Irelia already knew the answer to her question.
Regardless, Syndra didn't answer.
"Be back in a few..." Irelia finally muttered before swiveling about her heel and striding out the door.
When Irelia returned exactly one hour after she had left, Syndra had not moved a centimeter from her position. She did, however, glance behind her briefly when Irelia knocked and entered the room, carrying a bag of delicious smelling takeout food.
Uncomfortable with the scent of what was probably stir fry or some type of barbecue, Syndra shifted atop her bed. Beside her, on the table next to the bed sat a plate of hospital food; mashed potatoes and a bowl of soup. It was untouched; and when Irelia moved up to the table to move the dishes aside, they were cold. Irelia couldn't help but subconsciously frown. Syndra was refusing to eat, like some spoiled child that was throwing a tantrum after not getting what she wanted.
"Not hungry?" Irelia questioned lightly, trying to start a conversation once more.
Syndra didn't answer. Nor did she turn around to meet Irelia's gaze. She did, however, scowl at the window for no particular reason.
"I'll just leave this here then..." Irelia sighed, somewhat annoyed with Syndra's refusal to acknowledge her presence.
"I don't want it." Syndra finally whispered.
"What?" Irelia asked immediately, unsure if the mage had even spoken.
"I said I don't want it." Syndra repeated, slightly louder.
Irelia placed a hand on her hip and eyed the back of Syndra's head skeptically.
"Why not?" Irelia asked, sounding almost offended. There was no way that she was going to let Syndra refuse her gift after she had gone so far out of her way to get the mage food.
"I don't feel like eating your poison." Syndra stated flatly, sounding bored.
"For the love of god, I have never poisoned food and I would never use such an underhanded tactic." Irelia replied, rolling her eyes with exasperation.
"I'm not hungry." Syndra answered in the same flat voice.
The mage immediately regretted lying however, as her stomach grumbled audibly, demanding that Syndra satisfy her body's need for nourishment.
Syndra froze instantly, hoping that Irelia didn't notice.
No such luck.
Behind the mage, Irelia couldn't help but smile. Although Syndra walked the line between that of a monster and that of a woman, there was no denying the fact that even she couldn't ignore her basic needs as human. Unable to withhold her own growing mirth, the smile on Irelia's face grew larger and larger until she finally broke down and let out a muffled giggle; stifling her own laughter by clamping a hand over her mouth.
Syndra's whipped her head around and glared at Irelia. Even in the pale light of the moon, Irelia could see that Syndra's face was flushed, red with humiliation yet again.
"Sorry..." Irelia gasped, struggling to contain her laughter.
Syndra's face twisted with a mix of anger and humiliation, giving her the look of some sort of wounded animal.
"Sorry..." Irelia repeated, this time her speech was more coherent. "It's just... really... uhm... cute..."
If Syndra's face could flush anymore, it would have. For the second time in a mere few hours, the mage found herself yet again completely thrown off and caught off guard by Irelia.
"C-C-CUTE!?" Syndra howled furiously.
"HOW DARE YOU INSULT ME! PERHAPS YOU WILL STILL THINK I AM CUTE WHEN YOU LAY DEAD AT MY FEET!" Syndra roared.
Unable to bear Irelia's presence before her, Syndra whirled around and refocused her gaze out the window; doing her best to quell her discomfort.
Irelia hesitated. Unsure of how to proceed after the sovereign's outburst, Irelia awkwardly stood in the middle of the room, trying to find the best course of action.
"I'll just... uhh... want me to heat this up for you then?" Irelia asked, referring to the food she had just brought.
Syndra ignored the warrior, choosing instead to hug her legs to her chest and continue staring out the window.
Awkwardly, Irelia stared at the mage's back, waiting for some sort of response from the mage. When none was given, Irelia sighed again in disappointment. However, a small blur of movement on the sovereign's back quickly drew Irelia's eye. Refocusing her gaze on the Syndra's bandage wrapped back, Irelia watched as a small trickle of blood leaked out of the bandages and raced down her back until it came to an abrupt end on the white bed sheets; leaving a dark purple stain on the sheets.
Irelia's brow furrowed quizzically.
"She's still bleeding?" Irelia wondered.
Moving forward, Irelia quickly closed the distance between her and Syndra until she was right beside the bed and within arm's reach. Syndra visibly tensed up as she felt the warrior close in upon her, but she had no means of resistance. She could only endure.
Finally, Irelia took a breath and reached out, gently laying a hand on Syndra's shoulder. Instantly, Syndra jerked away, trying to escape the physical contact. But Irelia's hand followed her.
"Relax..." Irelia muttered, trying to get a closer look at the bandages.
Syndra froze, realizing that nothing she did would allow her to escape the warrior's touch.
Slowly moving her hand down Syndra's back, Irelia's fingers briefly stopped at the three fresh runes engrained in Syndra's flesh. Irelia unconsciously swallowed and bit her lip as she got a close look at the runes.
"Does it hurt?" Irelia inquired mutely.
"Nothing can hurt me." Syndra answered through gritted teeth; clearly displeased with the fact that Irelia was examining her.
Irelia could tell by the tone in Syndra's voice that she was lying. The runes were undoubtedly a great source of pain. With a subdued sigh, Irelia lifted her fingers off of the runes and moved her hand down to the bandages. The moment she did so, the bandages gave off a disgusting squelch.
"Ugh!" Irelia gasped, surprised and horrified by the sound.
Instantly, she removed her hand from the bandages and looked down at her palm. It was covered in blood.
"God!" Irelia exclaimed. She glanced back up at Syndra, then back to her hand, then back to Syndra again.
"Did you get treated?" Irelia demanded almost forcefully.
Syndra ignored her.
Irelia stared in astonishment, taking Syndra's silence as a no.
"Why weren't you treated?" Irelia demanded again.
"I don't need help." Syndra spat sullenly. "And I don't need yours either!" she quickly added.
Irelia, however, ignored the sovereign's remarks and untied the knot holding the bandages across Syndra's back.
"Stop it. I don't-" Syndra's voice broke off mid speech as she suddenly gasped; her eyes widening in shock as pain scorched through her entire back like a wildfire eating up a dry forest.
"So much for that..." Irelia thought to herself as she continued untying the bandages despite Syndra's protests. With Syndra continuing to resist her efforts, Irelia finally spoke up.
"I'm treating you whether you want me to or not. You might as well just stop fighting back." Irelia stated flatly as she deftly whipped the soaking wet bandages off of the mage's body. Finally, Syndra acknowledged the truth to Irelia's statements and allowed the warrior to continue without resisting.
Irelia worked deftly and swiftly. Though she was no nurse or doctor with medical training, Irelia was more than just proficient at first aid. Years of battle gave her plenty of opportunities to hone her abilities with fast medical treatment. After undoing the bandages, Irelia strolled over to the one sink in the room and pulled a towel out of a nearby cupboard. She then dampened the towel lightly and returned to Syndra's side, gently wiping off the smeared stains of blood on the mage's back. When she felt like she had done a suitable job, Irelia tossed the towel back into the sink and strolled over to a different cupboard where she pulled out a jar of disinfectant gel.
Syndra glanced at the jar and immediately shot Irelia a look that clearly stated "Not a chance in hell".
"It'll speed things up. Trust me. You wanna get out of here faster? This is your ticket." Irelia stated, wiggling the jar around in the air.
Syndra grimaced and grit her teeth with ever growing rage.
"Fine." She finally spat and turned back to the window.
Once again, Irelia moved to Syndra's side and brushed aside the mage's long pearly white hair. Finally, she unscrewed the lid to the jar and sank her fingers into the gooey gel before digging out a small chunk of disinfectant. Without an ounce of hesitation, Irelia plopped the mass of gel onto Syndra's back and gently smeared the substance across her back, taking care to evenly spread the disinfectant while not applying too much pressure as to cause Syndra pain. At long last, Irelia set aside the jar and pulled out a fresh roll of bandages, swiftly unraveling the roll and deftly wrapping the fresh white bandages about Syndra's midriff and back.
"There. Done." Irelia stated with a certain amount of satisfaction. "Better?"
As expected, Syndra didn't reply. However, Irelia could tell just from the mage's body language that she was visibly more comfortable than before. Smiling to herself, Irelia finally rose to her feet and quietly moved to the door, pausing only to take one last glance at Syndra.
"See you tomorrow." Irelia whispered in a voice that she was sure Syndra couldn't hear.
With that, Irelia strode out into the hallway and shut the door behind her with a gentle -click-.
The moment Irelia's hand released the door, however, a firm yet gentle hand reached out and pulled her to the side. Startled, Irelia stumbled slightly before regaining her balance and whirling on the person who had grabbed her. It was Soraka.
Wide eyed with amazement, Soraka stared at Irelia in wordless disbelief for several seconds until Irelia finally spoke up.
"Uhm... Hey Soraka?" Irelia questioned, furrowing her eyebrow in half hearted confusion with the star child's abrupt disturbance.
"That was amazing!" Soraka finally managed to blurt out. "YOU are amazing!" The star child continued, her eyes shining with admiration.
"Sorry, what?" Irelia asked dumbly, completely befuddled by Soraka's compliments.
"You managed to bend her will somehow!" Soraka exclaimed; her admiration not diminished by the slightest amount.
"Oh..." Irelia spoke up, finally understanding that Soraka was referring to her treatment of Syndra.
"I didn't really bend her will y'know... I just helped someone that needed it..." Irelia stated in a matter-of-factly manner. "Thanks though... I guess..." Irelia quickly added, smiling at the starchild.
Soraka, however, didn't return her smile. Instead, her expression changed from amazement to subdued seriousness. Recognizing the look, Irelia cleared her throat uncomfortably before speaking up again.
"I'll catch you later Soraka." Irelia stated as she turned to leave.
"She's afraid of you."
Midway down the hall, Irelia stopped and glanced back at the healer.
"What?" Irelia asked, unsure if she heard Soraka correctly.
"I said she's afraid of you." Soraka repeated, meeting Irelia's gaze with a very serious expression. "Be careful, Irelia... Syndra has very few fears."
Irelia turned around and gave Soraka a skeptical gaze.
"She has little things to fear because she destroys anything that she fears." Soraka continued in explanation. Finally the healer sighed and smiled again at Irelia.
"Be careful... okay?" Soraka called out, doing her best to sound cheerful again.
Irelia smiled back wryly before replying.
"Don't worry about me." Irelia answered confidently.
With that, Irelia turned on her heel and continued making her way out of the hospital. It wasn't until she was out on the street that Irelia finished her statement.
"I hope..."
Author's Notes:
Hello everyone. I know it's a little bit weird for me to be uploading another chapter so quickly, but this week is lining up to be one in which I will definitely not have enough time to write another chapter. That being said, I went ahead and finished up this one in expectation for the next chapter being slightly delayed. As always, thank you all for reading and another thank you for your continued support for this story. Little bit more hospital to go then things will really start to take off.
Hope to see you all in the next chapter!