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The Thinker Challenge	By : marksandspence Category: S through Z > Sherlock (BBC) > Sherlock (BBC) Views: 2251 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: This story is based solely on the television show Sherlock that airs on BBC1, written by Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss. I borrow their universe to play in and do not claim any ownership or intend to make any money off of this fun hobby of m

Chapter List
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Chapter 10: Dragon Island
John walks into the flat to find Sherlock sitting with a cup of tea, freshly prepared by Mrs. Hudson.
“We need to go over the Bulgar case before we meet with Lena Smith this afternoon,” John explains.
“Fine, lets get to it,” Sherlock responds with an unfamiliar energy.
John, glances over to his old chair, finding Sio laying casually across it, legs draped over the arm, a book in hand.
“Oh, hello Sio. Didn’t know you’d be here. Should I come back later?” He asks Sherlock.
Sio does not respond. John notices that the book in her hand is upside down. Sherlock follows his gaze and takes a step over to her, flips the book and puts it back into her hand. He then snaps his fingers abruptly in her face, causing her to blink.
“Don’t mind her. She won’t interfere,” Sherlock assures him.
John lays out the file and they begin to discuss it. He can’t help but notice that about every 15 seconds, Sherlock snaps his fingers.
“Why are you doing that?”
“Doing what?”
“Snapping your fingers. Did you think I wouldn’t notice?”
“I never know what catches your eye, John. You so rarely notice anything important.”
“So?”
“So what?”
“Why are you snapping?”
“To make her blink.”
“Oh, right. That makes perfect sense,” John responds with sarcasm. “Why do you need to make her blink?”
“Do we really have to get into this?”
“It’s very distracting.”
“She is running a simulation and if I don’t make her blink, her eyes will dry out.”
“Your girlfriend is so weird.”
“She’s not my girlfriend.”
“Why can’t she blink?”
“She’s diverting all her energy to the simulation. Please try to keep up.”
“Why don’t you just close her eyes?”
“Because she thought you’d deal better with her presence if you thought she was reading quietly. Even she can’t read with her eyes closed.”
“Well, the jig is up and I am about as weirded out as I can be, so just close her eyes.”
“Fine.”
He reaches over and gently smooths her eyelids shut with his hand.
The two of them work for a bit, going over the papers and discussing the case. After about 30 minutes, they are reminded of Sio’s presence by the sound of the book dropping to the floor.
Looking over at her, John stands up quickly.
“Her lips are blue. Is she breathing?” He walks briskly over to her. “She isn’t breathing!!”
“Damn, she warned me this could happen. I'm supposed to hit her.”
“Really?”
Sherlock gently slaps her cheek a few times, to no effect.
“I would not call that hitting.”
“Then you do it.”
“I’m not going to hit your girlfriend!”
Sherlock slaps her hard across the face. Then again. After a second, she gasps. Her eyes open slowly, then shut again, then open as if in slow motion. She takes another labored breath.
“What should we do? Call an ambulance?” John asks in alarm.
“No. She hates hospitals. Just wait; she’ll be alright,” Sherlock responds unconvincingly. “Give her a minute.”
Her eyes open and close creepily again. She struggles to get up – John helps her to her feet while Sherlock studies her face. Something still isn’t right. He frowns and slinks off quickly to the bedroom, looking for something.
While he is gone, Sio turns her head toward the kitchen. She tries to takes a slow, labored step toward the table. There is a cup and an empty water jug, as well as a plate of cheese.
“Can I get you some water?” John asks, hoping for a verbal response.
John thinks he sees a nod, so heads to the kitchen to refill the jug. He returns with the jug at the same moment that Sherlock comes out of the bedroom awkwardly carrying a bag of hair clips. They emerge to find Sio standing with a pair of scissors in her hand. She is mumbling something to herself over and over again, still moving as if she is in a trance. In a split second, she draws a deep breath in, lifts the scissors up into the air and says in a belabored whisper,
“You shall not pass.”
And with that, she plunges the scissors into her own thigh. Horrified, the men rush over.
Seeing her hand still gripping the handle, John cautions, “Don’t pull it out.”
She looks over at him and yanks the weapon out of her leg, and plunges it again before falling to the ground. Blood spurts everywhere, but now she is breathing more regularly and her movements seem less labored.
“Don’t just stand there, get a towel and call a bloody ambulance,” John orders.
Sherlock does this and tosses John the towel, which he wraps around her leg.
Sio starts talking in a quiet, trembling voice, “If I avoided the femoral artery, then the blood is coming from the minor tributaries with a diameter of less than 1mm and blood pressure staying roughly constant at xxxx, then to stop the flow, you need to apply xxx. If the femoral artery is cut, then…if I’m standing at an angle of….”
As she is speaking, Sherlock steps forward and slaps her again.
“Stop it – it’s trying to take control again. No calculations. John knows what to do.”
She nods, but her lips continue to move.
“You need to lay down until the ambulance gets here. We need to stop you from going in to shock.”
“No, I think I need to go into shock. I have to go into shock….maybe.”
“No, shock is most definitely a bad thing. I take it back. Your girlfriend isn’t weird, she’s insane.”
“Tell him,” Sio pleads, looking at Sherlock.
“You tell him. John, you want to know what this is all about, don’t you?” Sherlock leads.
John, getting it, “Yes, tell me all about it. What were you saying when…?”
She’s shaking now, breathing heavily. She nods, understanding the need for distraction.
“It will sound rather silly. But I suppose a bit of embarrassment won’t hurt. I was seven when it started. I could sense its power. The part of my mind that made me so clever was trying to take over the rest. I could feel the tendrils of it, sneaking in, pulling me away. I told my grandmother – she was the only one who understood.”
She pauses a minute, obviously in pain, clenching her whole body, tears forming at the edges of her eyes.
“She told me to fight – to imagine the enemy within and to banish it. Perhaps the only way I was typical at that age was in my fascination with adventure stories, dragons in particular. So internally, I pictured myself a hero – modeled on whatever I was reading at the moment. Tolkein, Le Guin, it changed from day to day. I constructed a mental island and that is where I banished it. Months, it took to hack away, separate and send it across. I had to leave a bridge, because I didn’t want to lose the capacity entirely. I just wanted control. So I moved it to the island and took control of the energy it needed to run. Still, back then I needed a form, a face to fight against. So it was an island, inhabited by a dragon and I was there to guard the bridge. And the dragon slept when I pulled the energy away, but when I let it run hot – when I needed something from it, the dragon would awake and start to fly around the island, threatening the bridge. Today it was coming – I gave it too much. So I was seven again.”
“Wow,” John says with a <she’s crazy> look.
Seeing John’s expression, Sio responds defensively, “What? Sherlock’s got a mind palace. I’ve got a mind island. With a dragon.”
“I still don't think I understand the stabbing part,” John responds, perplexed.
The shivering is slowing and she now appears sleepy. They can hear the ambulance outside.
“I needed to draw energy away. Wounds need the attention of the other side of the bridge. Power, energy is automatically diverted away. Even the dragon can’t interfere. The stronger the need, the more power it loses. I had given up too much control. Rushed the simulation. Now I need to balance. No anesthesia. Promise? Have to stay conscious….”
“Tell me more about your grandmother…” John offers, trying to keep her awake.
- 10
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- 12
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The Thinker Challenge