Humanity at Stake (Completed)

Chapter 21

"Hidden companion
Phantom be still in my heart
Make me a promise that
Time won't erase us" -"Still Here" by Digital Daggers

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A groan left her mouth first thing she gained consciousness. Her eyes pealed open, the light streaming through the window forcing her eyes closed again.

"Hey there, Nova," came a soft voice beside her. She turned her head to the side, peaking her eyes open to take in her comrade.

"Hi, Tony," Nova managed to croak out, her eyes shutting again due to the sharp pain. "Where am I? What happened? What are you doing here?" she questioned, her hand coming up. She palmed her eye socket, rubbing her sore eyes.

"You've been out for a few days," tony murmured, her scythe tapping the ground rhythmically. Nova hummed in response, her tired arm swinging over her head. "You don't remember anything?" Tony asked in astonishment.

"No?" Nova breathed out, going to move her other hand to flex it. A pain shot through it, and she hissed, looking down to notice it was bandaged up. Her eyes went up to Tony's. She removed her good arm from her head, feeling the brush of scratchy gauze.

"I was attacked," she murmured. Tony nodded her head, standing up and looking out the window.

"We've been taking turns watching over you as you slept. The rest of the squadron is out and about in the town right now; let me go get them before we talk anymore, okay?" Nova gave her a thumbs up. With that signal of agreement, Tony withdrew from the room to go get their comrades. Tony continued down the halls of the hospital, sticking her weapon into its holster on her back as she went. Nurses and patients sent her side eyes as she passed, but she didn't mind them. She was used to the looks.

Back in Biro, the band of mercenaries she ran with were well known. Laws were nearly nonexistent. Slaves made up half of the population. Vampires had yet to become a problem over there, more than likely due to the nasty conditions.

She made her way into the inn, nearly straight across the street from the clinic. Her eyes scanned over the area before finding her group sitting around a table, each a drink of their own. She walked along the outside of the room, dodging around drunken patrons as she got to the table. The three boys looked up at her. The silence was odd, especially with Pax present.

"She's awake," Tony announced curtly. Leon's chair fell over as he stood up abruptly, rocketing towards the front door.

"Hey! Pay your drinks!" yelled the innkeeper from across the room, a deep scowl on his face. Tony watched as Pax and Christopher stood together. With a wave of his staff, Pax summoned a small pile of gold on top of their table before they walked out after Leon. Tony brought up the rear.

"Where'd you get that money from?" Christopher asked as the trip made their way out the door.

"Nowhere," Pax proclaimed, giving his quarterstaff a twirl for good measures. "It was an illusion." Across the street from them, Leon looked back at his friends' progress before deciding they were taking too long and went into the building without them.

Leon sprinted around the nurses, his crossbow bouncing against his spine as he went. He skidded to a stop in her room's doorway, his breath coming out in small pants as his eyes scanned over her. She was in a similar state as she had been the past few days. Her hand was wrapped and boarded, and her red hair was mused and matted up with the gauze that pressurized the wound on the back of her head. The only difference was this time she was sitting up a bit, and her green calico eyes were open and observing the room.

"Hey, baby doll," he uttered out in relief, drawing her attention to him. She watched as a smile made its way onto his face as he shuffled into the visitors chair, scooting closer to her. "How are you feeling? Are you okay now?" A chuckle slipped out from Nova's mouth as she situated herself a bit more into her bed.

"I feel like shit to be honest," she rasped out. "Where is everyone? Tony left to go get you guys."

"They're on their way," he answered, just as the rest of them piled into her room. They fanned out, Pax rushing to the other side of the bed.

"Oh, my little bean!" he cried. His hands gripping the side of the bed. "How do you feel!?"

"Probably not any better with you screaming," Leon bit out in a warning tone as he shot his friend a mean look. Pax sent him a sheepish smile before Christopher stepped in.

"What do you remember, Nova?" he questioned, an eyebrow raising expectantly as he crossed his arms. Nova twisted her mouth to the side as she contemplates his question.

"I was in an alleyway... for some reason. I was jumped. My hand... my head... that's all I remember. What happened?" Nova finished, her eyes earnestly seeking her companions' point of view. Leon was the one to respond.

"You came up to me and said you were going to check out some stalls. When I offered to go with, you brushed me off before disappearing into the crowd. I didn't pay much attention to it at first, I thought everything was fine.

"I got bored pretty easily when Christopher continued to haggle with the vegetable stand lady, so I left to go find you. Much to my surprise I couldn't find you anywhere. I had gone all the way across the market square when I heard a loud bang. Deciding to investigate, I headed down a nearby alley.

"When I got down there... you were pinned to the wall by a vampire. He was so close to..." Leon swallowed noticeably, looking down to the floor. "I shot an arrow just in time. He fled, and we didn't bother to chase after him. We were all worried about getting you help. You had fractures bones in your hand and your fingers. The doctor diagnosed you with a small head injury. You had been tossed into a wall based off the impressions left behind..." Leon drifted off, looking back up to her and his squad members.

"Do you remember what he looked like?" Christopher asked, his voice gruff. The bottom of his eyes hung with darker colors, clearly showing the lack of sleep he had received. As she looked around, she noticed the other two boys had dark circles. Her mouth twitched as she thought back on the details Leon had just told her. Attacked... by a vampire...

All she could do was draw a blank. She brought her eyes back to Christopher, shaking her head slowly.

"I can't remember anything," she whispered, frustration leaking into her voice as a thick ball blocked her throat. An indignant noise left Christopher's throat.

"Now all we're left with is the knowledge that there's a mole in the Resistance, and we don't know who it is," Christopher tched out, looking out the window with angered, narrowed eyes. His words caused Nova to stiffen. I was technically a mole...

Leon took notice of her movements, bringing a hand down to rest on her good arm.

"It's okay, it's not your fault you can't remember," he reassured with a smile, misinterpreting why she locked up. She sent him an uneasy smile.

Then a thought hit her. Her eyes widened, and she brought her good hand up to cover her mouth, shaking off Leon's grip in the process.

"I completely forgot!" she muffled out behind her hand, lowering it as she gained the attention of everyone in the room again. "Did we... Did we get a new member?" the question came out meeker than she meant for it to. Tony nodded her head, but it was Pax who replied.

"Yeah, we received word yesterday. His name is Ridge."