Chapter 16: Brave Little Bird
He dropped the dagger with a scream when an arrow pierced his right hand, surprising all of them.
Sara took a step back, kicking the fallen dagger away. She looked to the door where Nyssa was carefully advancing on them, her bow drawn and a dangerous look on her face "Next one goes in your eye"
The man tried to run, noticing he was clearly at a disadvantage now, but the blonde woman caught him by the throat and held him against the wall "I mean no harm to any of you" he choked out.
Sara growled and shoved him against the wall once again, harder this time, her eyes darkening "You were pretty convincing proving otherwise"
"Who are you?" Nyssa asked through gritted teeth.
"I am no one" he said, ripping the arrow out of his hand.
Two more were sent flying his way in rapid succession after he did that. The first one piercing his coat, dangerously close to his neck, and pinning him against the stone wall. The second one pierced his thigh "I do not appreciate having to repeat myself. Particularly not to someone who hurt my family. I should kill you where you stand, intruder. Who are you?"
The man glared at her before showing a half defiant smile, his white teeth stained with his own blood.
Sara let go of his throat and took a step back, the man's gesture stirring something inside her. She glanced at her fiancée, then back at the man, frowning.
He spit some blood and said with the same defiant look "I am the sacred son of the Ashkiri"
"The what now?" the blonde asked "Wait, where did I hear that before?"
Nyssa's eyes widened almost imperceptibly and she carefully lowered her bow before the man's curious gaze "Interesting" he said half smiling "Do you know who I am, then?"
"I believe I know who you are better than you do yourself at the moment…" she said raising one eyebrow "…Saracon"
"Holy shit" Sara whispered taking another step back, her hand covering her mouth.
He was visibly taken aback, his defiant half smile disappearing immediately "How do you know my name?"
"I know a whole lot more than your name" Nyssa said lowering her bow completely "Stop struggling" she instructed.
He didn't. Instead he moved his left hand up and tried, unsuccessfully, to remove the arrow from the wall to free himself.
"Stop. Struggling" she repeated more forcefully now.
"Seriously, dude, are you trying to piss her off? That won't work for anyone, you know?" Sara asked rolling her eyes. She walked to the man and looked into his eyes while taking a hold of the arrow pinning him against the wall "Don't do anything stupid. You don't wanna hurt us, we don't wanna hurt you, okay?"
His only response was a grunt and a short nod. She pulled the arrow out, twirling it in her hand before throwing it for Nyssa to catch. The brunette did and placed it back in her quiver with the others.
"Who are you? How do you know who I am?" Saracon asked.
"What the hell are you doing, Nyssa? Are you insane?! End him!" Talia shouted standing up with great effort and stepping protectively in front of her son.
"Nyssa?" the man asked shakily. He took a careful step forward, limping, with the arrow still sticking out of his thigh "Is it really you?"
She nodded and took a few steps closer to the man "Do not move"
"Nyssa, I will kill you myself if—"
"Jesus, Talia, sense the room!" Sara shouted frustrated.
"No, it can't be" he said angrily shaking his head "You are trying to mess with my head. You can't be my sister, she wouldn't be here after what that coward Merlyn did to her. She would never… Never!"
"Sister?" Talia asked, getting another glare from Sara "Don't give me that look, I have every right to know what is going on!"
The blonde looked questioningly at her fiancée, who nodded at her. Nodding back, she moved to help Talia stand up straighter and whispered "Chill, I'll catch you up later, okay? Trust Nyssa, she knows what she's doing"
The woman reluctantly accepted Sara's help and groaned in frustration "If he tries anything again, I will kill him, regardless of who he might be"
"Fair enough, mama bear"
"Do not call me that, I will kill you, too"
"Shut up!" Saracon yelled getting everyone's attention once more.
"Saracon—" Nyssa tried again.
"NO!" he yelled, closing his eyes and using the heel of his left hand to rub his temple. His sister took a careful step closer and stopped when the man held his hand up "Do not get any closer!" he shouted angrily and started mumbling incoherently.
"Nyssa?" Sara asked starting to get worried.
Both women exchanged another look and Nyssa made a point to direct her eyes down to the right side of blonde's waist, then back into her eyes. Sara took a deep breath and nodded shortly. Not wasting any more time, she helped Talia back against the wall and kneeled in front of Damian "No matter what, stay here, you mom needs you, okay?"
The boy pursed his lips and nodded, unsheathing his sword and squaring his shoulders.
Nyssa took another step forward and a loud, animalistic growl escaped Saracon's throat and echoed around them. The bats started screeching again, wings flapping frantically, then lunged at them from every corner.
"Nyssa!" the blonde shouted rushing to her side, swinging her bō and knocking some of the bats away.
The brunette reached into her fiancée's waist while she kept the bats away and managed to grab one of her improved sonic devices. She activated it, holding it up over her their heads while covering one of her ears with her free hand.
The bats closest to them hit the floor almost immediately; the other half flew out the door in their attempt to escape the deadly noise.
Saracon fell to his knees, his hands covering his ears and his eyes tightly shut.
"You're bleeding" Sara said, noticing a trail of blood trickling down Nyssa's right ear.
"Give me the dart, Sara!" she shouted, holding her hand out.
"No way, you're not getting close to him!" instead of letting Nyssa do it, the blonde rushed to the man's side, taking a dart out of the small pouch on the right side of her waist before sticking it into his neck. He yelled angrily, jumping to his feet and shoving an open hand into her chest at the same time an arrow pierced his forearm.
His unnaturally strong shove sent the woman flying back, hitting the back of her head on the stone wall, before both of them fell unconscious.
"Sara!" the brunette gasped rushing to the woman's side. She knelt down, wrapping one arm around the blonde's waist, her other hand cradling the back of her head, and laid her down on the floor, noticing her chest rise and fall with her breathing and sighing in relief.
Talia limped to their side, stripping down of her coat, and knelt on Sara's other side. She carefully removed her sister's hand and placed the piece of clothing on the back of the blonde's head "Nyssa" she said softly. Her sister was staring at her shaking hand, her glove covered in Sara's blood "Nyssa!" she tried again more forcefully.
She looked up into her older sister's eyes and dropped her hand to her side "Yes"
"Based on what we just witnessed, that man is no regular human being. We don't know how long he will stay unconscious and we should take care of him before he wakes up" she pointed out.
"I cannot kill him, Talia"
"As much as I am aching to do so, that is not what I am suggesting, sister" she sighed softly "We need to contain him somehow"
Her younger sister pursed her lips and nodded. She looked down at Sara, debating on what to do, until Talia said softly "I can take care of her for a few minutes, go"
She nodded once, then moved angrily to the unconscious man, grabbing the back of his coat and roughly dragging him out of the room.
"Is aunt Sara alright, mother?" Damian asked in a low voice.
"She will be" Talia said softly, noticing his fear "Come here, my son"
The boy immediately moved to the other side of his aunt's body, and held his hand out when his mother requested it. The woman grabbed his wrist gently and guided his hand to Sara's throat, pressing two of his fingers against her pulse point "What do you feel?"
"Her pulse" he answered frowning at the strange question.
"Strong, is it not?" the boy nodded "Make no mistake; who you witnessed today, Damian, regardless of what she might say when she regains consciousness, was Ta-er al-Asfer" she said smiling fondly "The woman who started my training when I was six years old. Soon you will find out she is not that easy to kill, nor is your khala" she saw her son frowning and asked "What is troubling you, my boy?"
Damian licked his lips and looked back at the blonde "She doesn't like when people call her that. Why?"
"Because she is as stubborn as she is brave" Talia chuckled "It only reminds her of some terrible things she had to do and endure, and she fails to realize all the happiness being Ta-er al-Asfer brought into her life when everything was nothing but darkness"
"Like khala?"
Talia reached out and ran her fingers through his messy hair "Yes, like khala. Not only did they find happiness together, but they also saved each other"
"But you didn't really like aunt Sara before"
"That was because she hurt my sister deeply. No matter how big our differences were at the time, Nyssa is and always will be one of the most important people in my life. She is my sister, my blood, and nobody messes with my flesh and blood" she explained smiling "There was a lot I did not know before, but I know better know. She loves your khala, more than anything. So much she ended in this situation protecting all of us. She is a brave little bird, don't you think?"
The sound of someone clearing their throat startled them "Dear God, Nyssa! Do not do that! How much did you hear?"
"Enough"
"Tell anyone and it shall be your death sentence"
"I can't make such promises" Nyssa smiled and knelt down when the boy moved to stand next to his mother. She sneaked one arm under the blonde's knees, and the other one under her torso. Damian moved to help her and put Sara's arm around the brunette's neck "Thank you" she said smiling at his thoughtfulness.
The boy nodded once and went to help her mother up, guiding her out behind his aunts "Take her to the infirmary, Nyssa" Talia instructed.
The younger woman nodded once and kept walking down the corridor, until she reached a set of big, heavy doors.
Damian quickly pushed the doors open for them "Thank you, Damian" his mother said proudly.
"Is there anything else I can do, mother?"
"Just go take a seat, my boy, you already did enough. I will let you know if I need your assistance" she limped to the far wall of the room while Nyssa placed the unconscious woman carefully in one of the hospital-like beds.
The older woman turned on a generator, and the lamps hanging from the ceiling blinked into life a few seconds later "At least that still works" she focused on Nyssa and instructed "Try to wake her up, sister, we need her to be able to sit by herself. Otherwise I will have to cut a considerable portion of her hair to stitch her head and we will all pay, should it come to that"
Damian giggled softly, making the other two women smile, and moved to be able to look at what they were about to do without staying in their way.
Nyssa moved to a cupboard and started rummaging through it. She pulled several items out, placing them on the metal table next to Sara's bed. She tossed her sister a box of latex gloves after replacing her leather ones with a latex pair herself, then used some gauze to put pressure on the inside of the blonde's arm, where the deep wound was still bleeding.
She uncapped a small container, placing her hand on the back of Sara's head again, and held it to her nose. They waited for a few seconds, holding their breaths in expectation, until they saw the woman stir and grimace "Ugh, I hate that smell" she mumbled.
Nyssa smiled, her eyes filled with tears, and moved the salts away from her fiancée's nose.
"Hi" Sara said softly, looking up at her, inciting a soft, watery chuckle from the brunette "No, don't cry"
The other woman shook her head and used her arm to wipe away the tears.
The blonde gasped at the sight and tried to sit by herself "You're covered in blood Nyssa!"
She chuckled again and helped her sit upright "Not mine, beloved, it is yours"
"Oh" she winced "Well, that sucks"
"Indeed"
"Sara…" Talia started limping toward them "…I will tend to the wound on your head while Nyssa works on your arm. Is that alright?"
"Do you know what you're doing?"
"Most definitely"
She shrugged "Knock yourself out"
The woman nodded curtly and put the gloves on. She leaned down to say something to her son before limping to the other side of the bed, sitting behind the blonde.
"Oh, by the way…" Sara held her right hand up "…if you cut my hair, I'll seriously hurt you"
Talia shook her head "If you wish to save your precious hair, then maybe next time avoid getting thrown head first into a wall"
The blonde groaned and rolled her eyes but didn't say anything else, silently admitting defeat.
Damian approached his mother with a bowl full of clear water and some more gauze, which she took carefully and placed next to the blonde's body. She dipped the gauze in the water and started cleaning the back of Sara's head, trying to get rid of some of the dry blood to be able to work on the wound.
"I feel high"
Nyssa looked up into her eyes and brushed some hair away from the blonde's face "You lost a significant amount of blood, beloved"
"Yeah…" she looked down at her feet, then back at the woman in front of her "...it's not as fun as getting high with you, though, hottie"
The brunette smiled and shook her head, going back to cleaning and disinfecting her arm and a small, minor cut on her forehead "Damian is here"
"Where?" she asked looking around.
"Here" the boy said giggling from her right.
"Oh! Hey, buddy!" she reached out and the boy took her hand, patting it softly as if she was crazy.
"My God, she really is high" Talia said while separating strands of bloody blonde hair.
"Believe me, sister, this is nothing"
"I have to admit: I am slightly curious"
"No, you are not" Nyssa said shaking her head. She discarded the small pile of bloody gauze and used a syringe on a small glass vial, emptying the contents.
"Whatcha doin'?"
"Your arm needs several stitches and I will not stitch you up without a numbing agent if I can help it, Sara"
"Okay" she said stretching the word as her fiancée applied the anesthesia. She tilted her head back slightly "Whatcha doin' back there? Ow!" she pouted when Talia smacked the side of her head.
"Do not move!" she commanded.
"Well then tell me whatcha doin'! 'Cause it feels a lot like you're braiding my hair while I'm bleeding to death here!"
"You are not bleeding to death, beloved. Do not joke about it or take it lightly, when you know from experience how it feels like when one is literally bleeding to death"
Sara huffed and looked at her arm as Nyssa started carefully stitching it "Sorry. But I swear it feels like she is braiding my hair"
"That is exactly what I am doing, Sara"
"I knew it!" she said triumphantly "Wait, why?"
Talia sighed tiredly "I am using your own hair to close the wound. If I manage to braid your hair tightly enough, and you do not touch it, it shall work as effectively as stitches would"
"Huh, interesting…" the blonde said thoughtfully "...that's actually pretty smart" she got smacked again, which made Nyssa have to stifle a laugh "Hey!"
"Do not question my intelligence"
"I didn't!"
"Acting surprised by the cleverness of my actions did" the woman explained "I know exactly what I'm doing, Sara. I have done this for Nyssa countless times during her teenage years"
"Cool" she glanced down at her fiancée "Where you high, too?"
"No, and neither are you right now, beloved"
"Sure feels like it" she waited in silence as Talia finished braiding her hair and examined her work "Hey, what happened to the bat whisperer?"
Nyssa looked at her in confusion, while Talia laughed and walked around the bed. She moved to the adjacent one and sat down "She meant Saracon" she explained to her still confused sister, carefully removing Damian's shirt from around her thigh before answering the blonde's question "Nyssa took care of him"
"Oh my God! Did you kill him?!"
"Of course not, Sara" Nyssa answered calmly "He is locked in a cell downstairs, for his own good"
"Oh. Okay. Sorry 'bout that"
The brunette glanced up with a half smile as she finished patching her stitched arm. Sara reached down and held the woman's chin in one hand, leaning slightly down to kiss her fully on the lips "Thank you"
"You are very welcome" she rolled her chair to the other bed and looked up at her sister, discarding her dirty latex gloves and replacing them with new ones "Can you undress or do you need help?"
"I can take care of my wounds myself, Nyssa" she protested trying to dismiss her.
"I know" her younger sister nodded "But it doesn't mean you have to. Please, Talia, allow me"
The woman sighed frustrated and rolled her eyes "Alright, but don't expect a thank you kiss from me"
"Gross!" Sara said, lying back down with Damian's help. The boy shivered closing his eyes, but didn't say anything, which made the blonde giggle conspiratorially with him.
Both sisters decided to ignore them for the moment, as Talia ripped off the torn left leg of her linen pants, exposing her blood stained leg "I need to check your ear after. It looks like a ruptured eardrum"
"That would be because it is. You can look at it later, but there is not much you or anyone can do. It needs time to heal" she answered, then leaned in closer, examining the wound carefully. She nodded to herself and turned to her nephew "Damian, could you get me a bowl of clean water, please?"
He jumped to his feet and nodded once before busying himself with the task "Ain't you a helpful tiny assassin" the blonde woman giggled looking at his back as he walked to the sink.
Talia looked at her raising one eyebrow, then at her sister again, who barely shook her head and smiled "No need to even try to figure out the way her brain works. It is, to this day, one of the greatest mysteries on earth"
"Heard that"
"I was not whispering, beloved"
"Well, whatever! I have ADHD, not like I can help it, you know?"
"You do not" Nyssa countered "You have the attention span of a gerbil on cocaine, but you do not have ADHD"
"And how would you know?"
The brunette turned her chair around and looked at her fiancée with one eyebrow raised "I live with you, Sara. I deal with your short attention span on a daily basis, but I can assure you: that is not ADHD" she turned back around, taking the bowl from Damian's hand "Plus, I asked your father and sister"
"Those fucking traitors"
"Language" this time the warning came from Talia, who tried not to smile when she noticed her son hiding his smirk.
"Sorry" she mumbled incoherently for a few seconds, then fell completely silent.
"Thank God" Talia whispered when they heard the constant, rhythmical breathing of a sleeping Sara "How on earth do you survive that every day with your sanity intact?"
Nyssa grinned, cleaning and patching the front wound, then motioned for her sister to lay on her stomach so she could work on the back of her leg "She surprises me every single day with something new. She is everything I am not, which makes her exactly what I need" she paused smiling, glancing at the sleeping, exhausted blonde "That blonde gerbil on cocaine is the very definition of perfect in my eyes, Talia"