Scene from WIP

Knight gathered what was left of his men in one corner of the stables, far enough that the villagers wouldn't overhear them, but still close enough that he could see what was going on out in the main thoroughfare. The only one missing was the bitch who had turned on them and killed Swanson.

"At least we know who we're after now." Swanson's partner muttered darkly while looking out at the small crowd being pushed further into the stables. "Think that she-demon is in here?" the question hung in the air between all of them.

"It's likely." Garrett sounded unconcerned. "Not like she could've poofed with everyone around her like that."

"She's not important right now." Knight stopped the debate before anyone could give voice to one question that was blaring in his mind. 'How could the raider be the enemy they sought? He wasn't one of the damned.'
In fact the only enemy Knight knew of, and unless the bitch had lied to them all, was Desdemona. It wasn't possible that the man who had set fire to half the village and captured the rest was the First of his kind.

Knight's mind refused to look any deeper into the abyss that was quickly swallowing him whole. The doubt was too big to ignore now, but he had a responsibility to his men. They had a mission and they would by God do it.

"We'll need to go on the offensive once they reopen the doors." Knight declared as he shoved his doubts and fears away from this moment. "We might be able to use the villagers to distract the soldiers."

"Good luck with that." Desdemona materialised beside him. "This is not his first mass killing." she added when all eyes shifted to her.

Two of the men tried to grab her but she simply wasn't where they reached for. Garrett launched himself at her only to connect with a post that had been behind her.

Desdemona shook her head at them, "Are we done with the macho bullshit? Or would you like to be too injured to get the hell out of Dodge?"

"Fuck you." Garrett's curse was muffled slightly by the blood he was wiping away with a sleeve.

Desdemona laughed, "Not even on your best day, love."

Knight stepped between his men and Desdemona, "That's enough." he glared at his men and Desdemona equally. "We've got enough problems."

"Yeah," Kristoff agreed, "like how in the hell is he a bastard like you when you're the only asshole here."

Desdemona met Knight's eyes for a brief second and he saw the truth in the electric jade that stared back at him.

"Because he isn't dead yet." Desdemona answered honestly. "I told your commanders and anyone who bothered to talk to me that sending me back here was a bad fucking idea." Desdemona glared at Garrett who was turning purple as his temper rose. "Did anyone bother to listen to me? No! So now we get to do this whole fucking dance over again."

Knight wanted to disbelieve her. She was the enemy. She had killed more of his brothers and sisters in her lifetime than he had years of life ten times over. She was a monster.

And they had just sealed the fate of the entire planet by bringing her back with them.

"No." Kristoff denied. "That not how it was supposed to work."

Desdemona shifted to fully face him, "Really? And you know this how? It's not like what we've done would be understood or even transmittable if you survive the next few hours. Try telling that pretty little thing you were with that your from a different time and how that tech worked." she challenged. "It will be boiled down to a fairytale or worse get you burned at the stake for witchcraft." she added.

"We could always kill you." Swanson's partner offered half heartedly.

Desdemona glanced at Knight with her eyebrow raised. She knew why that wouldn't work as well as Knight did. She dared him to answer his man.

"We can't." Knight admitted. "They tried that before this mission was ever considered."

Someone gaffed, "Can't have tried too hard."

Desdemona laughed bitterly, "I don't know beheading and dismemberment was a fairly good try from my point of view."

"Shit." Garrett muttered in the silence that followed her statement.

Knight didn't want to feel pity for his enemy but even he had to admit that some of the methods his people had used to try to kill her had been inhumane. They had cremated her and left her chained on the floor of the ocean. She always came back from it. Was it any wonder that she was half mad?

"We stick to the mission and kill him." Knight decreed as his men reeled from the news.

Garrett finally got off the ground as he argued, "You saw what she did to Swanson. Ask her why would she do that. Ask her why she tried so hard to send us away from her." Garrett stalked across the small space until he was within inches of Desdemona. "Ask her Knight. Ask her why she's protecting the bastard."

"He doesn't need to ask me." Desdemona replied calmly. "He knows."

"I'm sure he does, sweet tits, but for the rest of us we'd like to hear one of you say it out loud." Garrett growled.

Desdemona shrugged at him, "I'm blood oathed to protect him." she answered simply.

A new round of fuck and shit ran through the men. They all knew that Desdemona hadn't been captured in any raid or mission. It was a well known fact among the Faithful that the enemy had simply walked into the main building at HQ and asked to see the General. It wasn't until she had made it through most of the security measures that someone realized that her body temp was too low. She had been waiting outside the General's office when security forces finally pulled their weapons on her.
Every other mission to capture or kill her had ended with a lot of dead troops and scorched ships floating into darkness. She would have no trouble keeping them away from their goal.

Knight stepped between Garrett and Desdemona. "You are also blood oathed to me." he challenged.

"True enough." she allowed. "But only to cause you no harm and to always be truthful with you. That doesn't not protect your men nor will it protect you if one of the soldiers here kills you." she pointed out. "You should have left when you had the chance." she added.