Chapter 32: The Battle Within

Ian arrived almost seconds after the call was placed, prompting Billie to stare at him in surprise as he walked into the Candy Store in an almost determined fashion. Van was still cradling Sara in his arms as he approached them, and looked up at Ian with his miserable blue eyes, which were ready to shed tears at a moments notice.

“What’s wrong with her?” Van asked, his voice heavy with pain.

Ian knelt down beside them and gathered Sara in his arms. She was bitterly cold even though her forehead burned like fire. She was so limp in his arms that Ian thought he was holding a rag doll. As he brought her right hand up to his face, he noticed the Witchblade had gone dormant as well. ‘Oh, this is bad,’ he thought. ‘This is really bad.’ “Get me a blanket and cool, damp cloths,” Ian said aloud to no on in particular. Billie and Deaq were quickly on the case, leaving Van and Ian alone.

“What’s wrong?” Van was still on the verge of crying as he asked.

“The Witchblade has gone dormant. Pain is rising to unspeakable heights it cannot fathom,” Ian answered. Van looked at him, clearly confused. “What happened here today?”

“We got into a fight, all four of us, well, with the exception of Billie. I don’t really think she had any stake in the matter, but Deaq, Sara, and I almost waged an all out war against each other. Deaq found out that she had lied to him about dating you and decided to state her reasons. He got pissed about her lying to him and started to question why I loved her. She ran, I ran after her, then when we came back, Deaq and I got into it. That’s when Sara passed out,” Van explained as best he could. “Is she going to be okay?”

“I don’t know,” Ian sighed. “Her mind is battle field. She needs to work through this herself. The Witchblade can’t help her, and neither can we. All we can do is stay at her side until she wakes up. Even then her future is uncertain.”

“What do you mean?” Van replied, the lump continuing to rise in his throat. He tried to suppress it with all the strength he had, but it was hard. He felt exactly like he had felt when he watched Teddy die in his arms in front of the drug dealer that killed him. It had been just as hard to hold back his emotions at that time, if not harder.

“I won’t burden you with the details,” Ian answered, noticing the painful look in Van’s eyes.

“Good, because I really don’t wanna know,” he said, his hand gently stroking Sara’s forehead. Seconds later, Billie and Deaq arrived with the things Ian had asked for.

Ian wrapped the blanket around Sara’s shivering body and placed the cool cloth on top of her head. He looked up at the others and told them, “Do not call the authorities. This is out of their hands.”

“She’s obviously sick. I have to call an ambulance,” Billie retorted, pulling out her cell phone. In one quick motion, Ian grabbed it out of her hands and slipped it into his pocket.

“This is not something they need to be informed of,” he reiterated.

“Why?” she spat back.

“Because it’s complicated,” Ian answered sternly.

“Everything with you is complicated. Can’t you just give me one straight answer for once?” Billie nearly yelled. She was quickly going into “bitch” mode. This was the last thing she needed from Ian at the moment.

“If I told you, I’d put you all in danger,” he said in a low voice.

“What the hell are you talking about? How could I be in danger? Does Sara have some kind of infections disease that might kill us all? Because if she does, we’re already screwed,” she sarcastically retorted.

“Billie, for once, just shut up and stop asking questions,” Van butt in.

“Van, for once, why don’t you mind your own business?” she hissed.

Van shot a look over at Ian. They knew she would never stop asking, so one of them was going have to explain things to her and Deaq. “Tell them,” Ian told Van.

“Why should I tell them? You know more than I do. You tell them,” Van answered back. 

“Alright, fine, I’ll tell them,” Ian replied as he stood up from Sara’s side and left Van to tend to her. He motioned for Billie and Deaq to follow him into the office where he booted up Billie’s computer and logged onto the Internet. After typing in his search and clicking on the first page he found, Ian swiveled the screen in their direction.

“That the hell is the Witchblade?” Deaq asked when he looked at the screen to see the word printed up at the top with a strange looking glove and sword thing pictured beneath it.

“The Witchblade is a powerful weapon that only a chosen few have been allowed to wear. Sara is the current wielder,” Ian explained.

“You expect me to believe she lugs that thing around with her?” Billie retorted, giving him an angry look.

“Yes, she does, but it only changes its form when it feels threatened. You know that bracelet on her right wrist?”

“The one with the pretty red stone in the middle?” she asked. “Yeah.”

“That is the Witchblade in its dormant form.”

“Wait a second; slow down, could you repeat that?” Deaq replied, unable to digest so much information at once. “Better yet, explain to me how that bracelet becomes that thing on the screen.”

“It’s not a complicated process. If the Witchblade feels threatened, it will want to change its form to protect the wielder. The wielder in turn must find some way to control it. Sara has accomplished that task, but it has taken her months to perfect it. She’s a strong and capable wielder, but right now, her strength has continued to decrease with every problem she has encountered. I could feel it after Sara and Detective McCarty had their first fight, before she decided to come here. I felt it during their encounter days ago. And I felt it today, draining her mental capacity to the point where she was unable to support herself any longer,” Ian continued to explain as Billie gave him that questionable look.

“How did you manage to feel it?” she asked, almost sounding a little jealous.

“I felt it because she and I are wielder and guardian. We are one in the same, having spent several lifetimes together in the past even though it seems in this one we will be apart yet again,” he answered, looking away. Ian didn’t want to see the look on her face.

“So you’re telling me this connection you have with Sara is something that spans the ages?” Billie tried to make sense of what he was saying. “Is this the reason why you’re so in love with her even though she doesn’t love you?”

Ian shot her that ‘how did you know’ look. “Yes,” he said in a barely audible voice.

“I knew you were too good to be true. I knew you just had to be. This is why you wouldn’t sleep with me last night. It’s because you’ve been waiting for Sara,” Billie was on the verge of tears as she started to make her way out of the office. This was definitely shaping out to be the day from hell.

“Billie,” Ian said, trying to keep her from running. 

“No, I’ve had enough of you’re lying for one day. This conversation is over!” she yelled, quickly making her way out of the office and heading to the bathroom to shed a few tears before coming back.

“This day just keeps getting by the minute,” Deaq pointed out as he put a sympathetic hand on Ian’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, man. Don’t feel too bad. I got it earlier today for nearly breaking up Van and Sara.”

“Thanks, Deaq,” Ian mumbled as he logged off the Internet and turned off Billie’s computer to go back to Sara’s side and relieve Van of his duties for a little while so they could figure out what to do next.

“So, what’s wrong with Sara?” Deaq asked as he followed.

“She’s been mentally battered for weeks now, which is almost like being physically beaten, but worse because without a conscious and sound mind, the Witchblade cannot heal her. Sara must heal herself,” Ian replied.

“Never in a million years would I ever believe a story like that, but after all the shit that’s happened here in the last two weeks, I’m not as surprised as I should be,” Deaq said.

Van was still sitting on the floor, Sara nestled in his arms shivering. As Deaq and Ian approached, he finally decided to move her back to the couch where she would be more comfortable. That was until she started convulsing.

*~*~*

When Sara awoke, she found herself in a very dark and unforgiving place. There were hundreds of twisted and misshapen trees covering the landscape, all of which gave off a very sinister vibe. She looked down at her wrist to find that the Witchblade was gone. She was alone in this place with nothing but her hands and feet to defend herself with if she encountered danger.

Sara stood up and began to walk down the worn path through the trees. This place was definitely creeping her out. She didn’t know where she was going or how to get out. Yet she stayed on the path hoping that she’d find an exit from this crazy place.

All was quiet as Sara continued to walk through the woods. She cautiously scanned her surroundings looking for anything that could cause her problems. Deeper and deeper the path took her, twisting and winding around the trees until she finally hit a crossroads.

“Which way am I supposed to go?”  Sara asked herself as she stared at each road, both looking equally treacherous.

“Take the right path,” a voice whispered around her.

Sara jumped, looking around to see if she could find the source. “Who said that?” she yelled, not letting her fears get to the best of her. “Where are you?”

“Follow your instincts,” the voice whispered again, this time a little closer, like it was right beside her.

Sara nearly flew out of her bones when she heard the voice again. It was really beginning to scare the hell out of her, and she would fight it if she had to. But where the hell was it coming from? And why was it telling her to take the right path? Was it a metaphor or a literal instruction? Sara decided to stop asking questions and start getting answers. She took the voice’s advice and took the right path, but stopped just a few feet from her starting point.

“Take the right path. Follow your instincts,” Sara repeated. She walked back to the intersection and closed her eyes. Taking a deep breath to clear her mind, she opened them again, this time with a clear direction; left. ‘God, help me,’ Sara thought as she began her walk through the forest again.

As she made her way through the winding trees, Sara could feel something following her, a presence she hadn’t noticed before. She stopped, looking back to see if she could find it before it found her. But there was nothing to see. Darkness had enveloped everything that she had left behind at the crossroad. She shivered unconsciously and continued to walk. ‘Damn, this is creepy,’ she thought, but was interrupted once more when she heard footsteps behind her. She stopped, as did they. She walked, and they walked with her.

Sara broke out into a run. This thing was giving her one hell of a scary vibe, and she didn’t know how to defend herself against it if it came upon her when she was distracted. But even as she ran, it followed her down the path, keeping up with her and possibly going a little faster than she was. Finally, Sara did the craziest thing she could possibly do. She spun around, her eyes locking on those of the thing… person… following her.

She was a woman about Sara’s height, with deep blue eyes and a thick mane of dark brown hair streaked with bits of gold, and skin the color of copper. Her body was covered with animal pelts, and in her right hand she held a bow and arrow. On her back was a satchel carrying more bows and probably other things like food and water. Around her neck she wore a necklace made of tiger teeth and earthen beads, in its center a beautiful red stone that almost glowed in the darkness.

“Who are you?” Sara asked, finally getting over her initial shock.

The woman smiled warmly and replied, “I am Artemis. You must be Sara.”

“How do you know my name?”

“That’s not important,” Artemis said as she stepped in front of Sara and began walking down the path. “I was sent here to help you find your way.”

“Find my way? To what?” Sara questioned. She was a bit confused by what the other woman was trying to tell her.

“That is a question you must answer yourself. Think about where you are and how you got here. Think about what you’ve been through and the things you’ve experienced,” Artemis advised without turning to look at Sara.

“Huh?” Sara was definitely beyond confused now, but she followed the orders and thought about what had happened to her in the last few days. It was then that she realized all the little fights and arguments had severely affected her mind by allowing all the dark things around her penetrate through her defenses. This was her subconscious! “Holy shit! I’ve gone in sane, haven’t I?” Sara’s revelation finally struck her.

“No, but something like that will happen if you don’t make it through this alive and in one piece,” Artemis replied as she turned to Sara with another one of her warm smiles.

“Do you mean whatever happens to me here ultimately affects what happens to me in the real world?” Sara nearly squeaked.

“In a way. If you die here, your conscious mind dies with you, putting you in a coma which you will never wake from. If you live, you will return to your body rested and revitalized. You will have no trace of this in your memory,” Artemis explained as she took Sara’s arm and led her down the path beside her.

‘Jeez, I’m in the fucking Matrix,’ she thought. “So what can I expect?” Sara asked, but the answer didn’t come in the form she would have preferred. All too suddenly, a large and magnificent tiger leapt from the trees to the left and landed in front of them on the path. Sara nearly jumped back ten feet, but Artemis stood her ground. She pulled Sara back beside her and gave her a serrated knife. The tiger approached her, its teeth bared and a low growl coming from deep in its throat. Sara swallowed, unable to figure out what to do.

In the moments that she was distracted, the tiger leapt upon Sara, pinning her to the ground with its tremendous weight. She cried out as its claws dug into the skin of her left arm. Sara tried to use her right hand to impale the knife on the tiger’s chest, but it put its foot down on her hand, stopping her. She was on the verge of panic, her feet kicking at the beast until she finally struck its soft stop, the tiger’s belly. It roared in pain and backed away from Sara. She stood up and with her right hand stabbed the beast with the knife Artemis had given her. She hit the thing’s jugular, spilling blood all over the ground. It fell to its side, dead.

Sara panted her relief as she fell to her knees beside the fallen beast. She began to feel dizzy when she realized her arm was still bleeding. Artemis was at her side in seconds, pulling a soft piece of linen out of her satchel and wrapping Sara’s arm with it.

“Thank you,” she breathed, looking at the dark haired woman beside her. “So, who sent you here to help me?”

“That is a secret I cannot tell,” Artemis replied.

“Let me guess, the Witchblade?” Sara asked, almost sarcastically.

Artemis gave her a very confused look. “No…” she answered, dancing around the ‘what is it’ question.

Sara’s brows furrowed. ‘Uh oh,’ she thought. ‘Who the hell sent her then?’ She decided not to pursue the answer at the moment, knowing her fragile mind couldn’t possibly handle any more stress unless it came from something like the tiger. Artemis stood and extended her hand to Sara, who graciously took it for assistance. They began to walk again in silence, both contemplating what would have happened if the tiger had actually killed Sara.

*~*~*

“Oh, God! Sara!” Van nearly cried as he held her tight against his chest, hoping and praying that she’d stop thrashing. 

“Keep her still,” Ian called as he rushed to help, but Sara soon stopped, giving them all a few seconds to breathe a little easier.

Van gently pulled her away from his grasp and set her down on the floor. There was a large red spot on the left side of the blanket, and as he peeled it away, he discovered three gashes on her left shoulder. “What the…” his voice was shaking as he looked up at Ian with confused eyes. “What’s happening to her?” he nearly yelled, his pain obvious in his voice.

“This is the first of many things to expect,” Ian answered solemnly. “I don’t know exactly what’s going on. I just know she’s being tested.”

“Tested? You call this tested?” Van practically hollered as he pointed to the cuts on Sara’s bare shoulder. “She’s probably fuckin’ dying right now! Is there any way to wake her up?” Ian shook his head. “No! NO! I refuse to believe that! There has to be a way!”

“Only she can find the way,” Ian said.

Van’s eyes rapidly flew from Sara to Ian several times until they finally settled on Sara’s lifeless form on the floor. He let his head drop into his hands as a slow and steady stream of tears began to flow down his cheeks. It was hard trying to process everything in such a short amount of time, especially after such a horrible fight. All he wanted was to hold her in his arms and tell her he loved her.

Deaq approached cautiously after standing back from the scene long enough. “Is there anything I can do?” he finally spoke up, feeling a little awkward with all the tension and sadness floating in the air.

Ian looked up at him and replied, “Could you get me something to wrap Sara’s arm in?”

“Yeah, sure,” Deaq said as he turned and made his way towards the bathroom where the first aid kit was stored. It was his luck that he found that Billie was locked inside. He could hear her muffled sobs penetrating through the door. Gently, he knocked. “Billie, are you okay?”

“I’m fine!” she pouted, opening the door to reveal her mascara stained face. “What do you want?”

“I was gonna ask for the first aid kit, but seeing you’re doing the same thing Van is shamelessly doing beside Sara at the moment, I thought I’d talk to you first. Are you okay?” Deaq asked.

“Van is crying?” Billie replied, dancing around the answer.

“Don’t try changing the subject,” he said. “And you just pretty much incriminated yourself. What’s wrong, Billie?” Deaq placed his hands on her shoulders, making her look at him. 

Billie finally gave in, knowing this conversation was inevitable. “It’s about last night…” she finally answered.

“Does this have anything to do with Ian’s feelings towards both you and Sara?”

“It has everything to do with his feelings towards me and Sara! Why the hell did he go out with me last night if he’s so in love with her? Why doesn’t he just ask her out? Why did he have to lead me on as if he liked me and actually wanted to get to know me? Why did he ask me out again? And why the hell am I so upset about this?” Billie replied so fast, it was hard to figure out what she was saying.

“Calm down,” Deaq advised her. “Maybe he does like you and want to get to know you. Maybe he’s just a little confused about what to do. You know he’s socially inexperienced and you’re the first girl he’s ever been out with, right?”

“I know now, after Sara told me. But why didn’t Ian tell me? Why was it such a big secret?” she continued questioning.

“I don’t know his reasons. He’s a whole different breed, not your typical male stereotype. If you wanna know, just act civilized and ask. Don’t go all bitch on him. He’s really sensitive,” he answered.

“You’re right. He’s not your average Joe. You know, he was an absolute gentleman last night. And I thought his kind was extinct. Maybe I should talk to him and find out exactly what he thinks about me and Sara,” Billie replied, the smile quickly returning on her face.

“Good,” Deaq said as he released his hold on her shoulders. “Now, could you please give me the first aid kit? I think Sara’s going to bleed to death if we don’t wrap her arm up.”

“What happened to her?” she asked, feeling a little concerned about her coworker. ‘Wow, that’s a first.’

“She has three really big holes in her shoulder. I don’t how she got them, but Ian says she’s being tested or something. Yeah, it sounds weird, but after all the strange things that have happened around here lately, I’m willing to accept anything as an explanation at this point,” he replied as Billie handed him the box with all the medical supplies.

“I’ll be right there to help. Just give me a few minutes,” she called as he began to retreat. Billie needed to clean herself up before she let anyone else see her.

Deaq almost broke into a run when he realized it had been nearly five minutes since Ian made his request. When he approached Sara, Van was still coping with everything. With his elbows resting on his knees, he held his head up with much difficulty. ‘He really does love her,’ Deaq thought as he passed the kit to Ian and sat down on the cool cement floor between them.

Billie had slowly come up behind them and sat down beside Van. Her hand slipped over his shoulders and pulled him a little closer to her. As their eyes met, she realized that amid all the tears was the definite look of agony. The boy was in pain, something she understood from the first day they met. All the people he had lost seemed to culminate in Sara’s downfall.

“Come here,” Billie encouraged him to get closer to her as she scooted a little closer to him. Van wrapped his arms around her as if he was finally giving in for comfort. She held him, and for the first time understood just how devoted he was to Sara.

‘This is definitely a day to go down in Candy Store history,’ Billie thought as she ran her fingers through Van’s hair in hopes of calming him down even slightly.

Chapter 33: The Battle Continues

Home