9 --- 2

Nate didn't know what was worse, the fact that he had been unconscious for three days straight or that Helen won't stop fussing over him since he woke up over forty minutes ago.

"Helen, I said I am fine, you need to stop this." He was trying to shake his head as she shined an extremely bright light into his eyes.

"You used every last bit of will energy in your body when you fought Victor, you didn't even have enough to heal your self to stay alive."

Nate focused his will into his eyes and shined it right back at her. "I think I am well recharged now, thank you."

Helen extinguished the bright light emanating from her hand. "Fine, I guess that's good enough."

Nate stood up from his bed. "Is everybody else okay?" He asked quietly, afraid of the answer.

"Yes, they are all fine. They have all been waiting around for your recovery."

"Wait, they are still here?"

"Yes, of course. They are waiting for you to decide our next step."

"Decide? What are you talking about?"

Helen looked at him like he had grown horns. "You do realize you are now the baron of New York."

Nate laughed at her words but stopped when he noticed the seriousness on her face. "What? How? Why?"

"What were you trying to achieve when you killed Victor?"

"I wanted to free the kids he kidnapped and myself, Victor was never going to let me go. I wanted freedom to find out who I really was."

"So you had no desire whatsoever to take over form him?"

Nate shook his head. "None."

She thought for a while, she didn't look like she believed him. "This changes nothing, we are in this situation now. You need to deal with this."

"Why should I? I don't want this. Why can't you just take over yourself?"

It was Helen can turn to laugh. "Me? I am a healer, no one is going to take me seriously. You are the warrior that defeated Victor, the title is there for the taking."

Nate looked at her face seriously. "When you heard I was rebelling against Victor, did you just really just think I wanted to take over from him?"

Helen avoided his gaze. "Why don't you take a shower and have some food, I want to show you something."

He watched her stroll out of his room before doing as she asked, he took a long shower that his body really needed and changed into fresh clothes.

His door was suddenly flung open and Anna darted in. He barely had enough time to react before she wrapped him in a tight hug.

Nate was surprised by both the action and emotion of Anna. "I thought I lost you." She whispered in his ear.

He hugged her back. "It's okay, I am fine."

Anna pulled back and cast a wary eye on him. "You sure? You stopped breathing and your heart kept stopping. Helen said you might never wake."

He smiled at her. "I am awake, fully breathing and my heart is beating strong."

Now that he was free from her vicious hugging, he noticed a change in her appearance. Her previously shoulder length hair had been trimmed up to her jawline.

"Like what you have done with the hair."

She shrugged. "Let's just say I am going through a big change."

"What kind of change?"

The door opened before she answer and Helen poked her head in. "You ready?"

"Ready for what?" Anna asked.

"Helen wants to show me something, coming?"

"Sure."

Helen seemed troubled at the idea of Anna coming with them but said nothing. Maybe she was just realising they never really knew each other and the first thing thing they did when they met was fight Victor.

Keys jangled in Helen's hands as they walked down a familiar route. It was the same route he had tailed Victor to, maybe now he would see who or what Victor was hiding.

Helen opened the door with one of the large keys in her hand and they filed in together.

Nate wasn't sure what he was expecting to see but it was definitely not this, they were in some kind of living quarters.

A woman who was in humming a familiar tune in the distance stopped. "I was worried you had forgotten me, Victor." Light footsteps indicated she was walking towards them. "I was beginning to think you--" She stopped when she discovered they were not at all what she was expecting.

"Guys, meet Sabine." Helen said.

The young woman named Sabine was a short brown haired woman with really pale skin and what looked like paint all over her, she seemed to recognize Helen. "What is happening, Helen. Who are they."

"It's okay, they are friends and we are getting you out."

"Getting me out? What happened to Victor?"

"He is dead."

Nate didn't fail to notice the shock and surprise in her eyes followed by a gleam of satisfaction.

Nate cleared his throat. "Helen, do you mind explaining what is going on here? Why is this woman locked up?"

"Because he is using me."

"Was." Helen corrected.

"I am responsible for tracking all the willers in the city for him."

Realization hit him like a truck. "You are the reason Victor kept finding us?"

A little guilt crossed over her face. "Yes." She answered, averting her eyes from his gaze.

"So you can sense all the willers in the city." Anna spoke for the first time since they met Sabine."

"No, only when they use their powers."

"How long have you been here?"

"Almost three years now?"

Nate's and Anna's jaw dropped. Three years? What have you been doing down here."

She shrugged. "Normal stuff I guess, watch TV and read books but what I do mostly is paint." She twirled her paint covered fingers around. "Follow me." They followed her into another room. "This is my gallery."

The entire wall was covered in different paintings.

"Wow." Anna said in admiration. This is amazing." She stopped in front of a large painting depicting a woman clad in armour holding a sword and a glowing disk. "Who is this? She looks badass."

"Xena." Sabine answered simply.

"Xena." That's a cool name.

"I am so excited to show people this, it has been a long time since anyone appreciated my paintings."

"Well." Nate tried to draw everyone's attention. "This is all amazing but apart from releasing Sabine, I don't see why you dragged me down here, Helen."

"I am trying to tell you what Victor is capable of. Do you think any other willer who takes over would be different? These three days that Victor has been dead, King has been preparing to take over. Do you think he won't continue from where Victor stopped? Can you imagine what this city would look like if King is in charge?"

"Wait, back up." Sabine spoke up. "Victor has been dead for three days and you waited until now to release me?"

Helen looked sheepish. "To be honest, I kinda forgot that you were still here."

Sabine stared daggers at her before she turned to Nate. "She is right, I didn't know Victor was dead but I have been senseing a lot of will energy being used around the city. Say what you will about Victor but that guy knew how to keep people under control."

"How do you tell Victor anything from down here?" Nate asked.

"I have a buzzer in my room that alerts his phone if there is a situation."

"Like when Victor ordered me to be killed." Anna put in.

"I didn't know he was going to do that, I just report strange will usage around the city."

"Why did you do to piss him off enough to lock you up?"

"Same thing you did. I tried to kill him except my attempt failed spectacularly."

Everybody was silent for a while before Nate spoke up. "Can't Genk take over? He has been working under Victor longer than I have and he seems to have a change of --"

"About that." Helen cut in. "Genk left immediately after you killed Victor, no one has seen him since and I don't think he is coming back."

Sabine gasped suddenly. "What happened?" Nate asked in alarm.

"Someone just portaled upstairs."

"There is a porter upstairs?"

"No." She shook her head with her eyes closed. "It doesn't feel like portaling, I think it is a zune."

"What's that?" Anna asked in confusion.

Nate looked at Helen. "Only council officials use zunes."

She nodded in affirmation. "They probably sent an emissary to get the lay of the land."

"Fuck!!"

"This is it Nate. Are you in or out?"