#phoenixrisingfromtheashes

<I re-packed my go bag for what feels like the hundredth time and it was ready by the front door of my condo and now I was on top of the #shAdoWs, another known club where vampires frequent, hoping to find out more about Sin @DeathsRenegade and his wolf colleague Declan @RenegadeMactire to see if they were in league with #Cyrehn. Perhaps he picked some unique paranormals to hunt me down. I definitely wouldn’t put it past him … he was desperate to find me or rather my blood. 

I sighed and could feel the exhaustion that lay heavy on my shoulders. I was seriously tired of running and the anxious feelings of always having to be on alert 24/7. #Lassiter said he would continue to teach me but I was running out of time, especially if #Cyrehn was in #Caldwell. I need to stay on my game and keep feeding from vampires to increase my strength. I knew now the difference between feeding from a man vs. a male and it was liberating to feel the power of the Scribe Virgin’s engineering. 

The roof beneath my boots was vibrating from the deep bass of the music playing inside the club. I calculated my drop from the roof down the alley next to the street to make my way into the busy establishment writhing with humans and vampires mingling their sweat and pheromones much like #ZeroSum and #Mask. As I remember the male I picked up there, his face was quickly replaced by Sin’s @DeathsRenegade visage. 

Feelings that I was not used to experiencing mysteriously bubbled at the surface. That damn dream had me all mixed up. It felt so real … but these emotions and the past I witnessed felt  … like a memory, yet not. It was centuries ago … it seems like ancient times. I shook my head trying to clear my thoughts so I could focus on my agenda of finding out if I needed to leave #Caldwell.

Just as I was about to turn the corner onto the sidewalk of the club, a familiar blacked-out Range Rover pulled up to the door.>

Fucking hell. <I watched as two of #Cyrehn’s henchmen exited the vehicle and headed towards the bouncer. My time was up. As I dematerialized back to my condo, I felt an unfamiliar pang of pain knowing what or whom I would be leaving behind. I was so close to finding my father, learning more about my background … and getting to know if Sin @DeathsRenegade was supposed to mean something to me. 

It didn’t matter, I planned to leave tonight and hoped #Lassiter would be able to keep in touch and visit me wherever I decided to go and keep teaching me and helping me find my answers.>

The Tables Turned (Part Seven)

 We’re taking it to the bridge like James Brown mentioned, good thing that when we crossed it earlier?  it wasn’t burned!! If that had happened? we would have to deal with the karma; that’s what happens when the tables turned!! The bad omen? oh!! our intuition kicked in plus we visualized the sequence; it was written in the ashes. The author? they’re considered wicked, a game peeper /…

Sin: Her voice in my mind is a siren’s call. Even knowing I cannot enter my future, I find myself walking towards her, our eyes locked and my very soul reaching for her. Finally, knowing I dare not go further on the path I stop. Though I make no sound, my voice is clear and I know she hears me.

“How would you know of the choice I once made to avenge all I lost to a jealous god? What do you know of the love I lost and sought to balance the scales for?” 

There is a connection here. One I felt when I first saw her in that dark alley. And one strong enough that she is in a future that I would never have dreamed possible for myself.  I had seen her soul, seen the impossible in it and yet, it must be possible because souls do not lie. My eyes narrow, and again, I ask…

“How do you know of this? Who are you to walk the corridors of time and find me here? Who are you /to/ me?” @Seraphine_BDB

Seraphine: <My dreams have never led me to anywhere special. Mostly odd scenarios that I never remember when I wake up the next morning. Here … it felt strange and familiar all at the same time. I had no idea why I said those words to him, Sin. Maybe some sort of manifestation of my thoughts lately. I nonchalantly shrug.>

It’s just how I see you. You seem reserved and detached from the world … like you’re bored and just want to sleep. 

<Really odd. We only met for that one brief moment and somehow I was able to pick up his character … at least how I saw it. I started turning back, thinking I should probably wake up soon.>

Sin: *My eyes narrow at this assessment. However astute it may be, it is not one our meeting on a mortal plane would have given her the insight for. No, this only affirms a deeper connection than seems possible. It can only come from … our souls. And that is not possible. Soul connections only happen once and mine was made long, long before this vampire with her soul’s single lifetime was ever born. Regardless of how long her angelic blood stretches that single lifetime, her soul could /not/ have been in existence when I was mortal.*

Thirty-five thousand years is enough to cause even the hardiest of souls to develop, *pausing before continuing smoothly,* a level of ennui. Eventually, one has seen everything, done everything. There is nothing left to test it or bring it joy. I have one last challenge to fulfill and if the Fates had written my rest at the end of it, then I would not quibble with them. However, from the futures presented to me this night, that does not seem to be the case. The question seems to be will it darken endlessly, or will it find joy. You appear in the future that holds joy. Why do you suppose that is?

Seraphine: <Did he just say thirty-five thousand years. FML. He’s … ancient. Though one could not tell that his chiseled good looks have aged over 25, but his choice of words and demeanor does suggest someone older. I just can’t believe thirty-five thousand years older. How is that even possible? Vampires only live for so long … and angels … well I have no idea how long. That was one of the many reasons why I was looking for an angel. I hadn’t had a chance to ask #Lassiter too many questions yet. Considering his association with the #Brotherhood it made sense that his time was sparse. Rumors are the Scribe Virgin is also gone. Not sure what that means for the race or what’s going to happen. I shrug as I continue to walk away, trying to wake myself up from this odd dream.>

Be that as it may … when someone has nothing to live for … then tend to either find a way to sleep or make things more … interesting in dangerous ways. As to the Fates? You mean the ancient greek mythology about the three chicks who make your life good or crap and where one of them can even kill you? Surely that is a myth. We design our own destinies, don’t we with the decisions we make each day in and out?

<I wonder if there was such a thing as the Fates? Granted I was born in this millennia where technology and social media ruled and celebrities were worshiped instead of the Scribe Virgin. Was there ever a Scribe Virgin? Yes. My family always believed in her and asked for her guidance … though it often went unanswered. But wasn’t that the idea of “Gods” even with the humans. They believed in many different Gods and none ever answered directly. So were the Greek Gods any different? Did they exist as well?>

Me? Joy? Doubtful. My future doesn’t hold joy. Only unanswered questions and continuous running.

Sin: *A surprised laugh escapes me.* 

You don’t believe in the Fates? I assure you, they believe in YOU. *Striving to stop her from leaving me before I can understand how and why she is here, I put forth an argument.* 

The human myth of them is somewhat … garbled. As is so much of their understanding of things greater than themselves. I would not expect you to subscribe to such nonsense. The Fates do not ‘assign’ destinies. They merely put choices before us. We select one, which leads to more choices. The Creator subscribes to a ‘free will’ philosophy. Our destinies are determined by our choices. The two destinies I have been presented with here are the results of many millennia of my choices. And, *musing almost to myself* you appear to be part of one of them. The only one that holds great joy. For both of us. *Nodding towards the vision before us. The fact that her image is still there, standing beside my own and laughing while her soul has stepped from it to walk up the path towards me, tells me that perhaps she too has a choice to make. Perhaps the Fates want both of us to see what may be.* 

Tell me, battle angel, do you make a habit of walking between the worlds, seeking the corridors of future knowledge? For how else are you here with me? I cast the spell for myself alone, to seek guidance, and yet, here you are. Perhaps the Fates wish us both to see what may come to pass. Look there,*gesturing to future that shows us together,* does that show you a future with no joy? It does not show that to me. But I can show you one that does. *I hold my hand out to her.* Come with me and I will show you what lies down the right-hand path. Come and see the other destiny that is laid before me. Perhaps you may understand more about the choice that is laid before you.

Seraphine: <Damn, this dream is getting weirder and weirder. Looks like my conscious doesn’t want me to wake up yet, so I might as well enjoy it. I’ll forget most of it when I wake up anyway, like always.> 

I’m sure the Fates have better things to do than pay attention to me. Or clearly they like having me play mouse on this crap cat and mouse game I’m in. 

As for walking between the worlds, I have no idea what you’re talking about. You’re just a dream. As to the Hogwarts spell, I’m sure it's  just my self conscious telling myself to stop falling asleep with the Harry Potter movie marathon on the tv.

<Seriously, that was probably what happened. Then again, if vampires and lycan exist … makes only sense witches and warlocks do too, right? But I know, /I/ didn’t cast a spell. This is just a really strange dream due to all the recent changes in my life. Finally finding #Lassiter, finally feeding and coming to find out that I have a few small powers of my own. Looking at his offered hand, I remember its just a dream … might as well see where this goes.> Sure.

<I take his hand and walk to another blurry dreamlike scene on the right of us on this path we found ourselves walking on.>

Sin: *As she takes my hand a frisson of electricity courses through me. Even here, when we are simply soul to soul, there is that connection. The Fates have stepped back from the fork in the path, watching us from afar. Clotho catches my eye and nods approvingly. I can hear her in my mind.*

‘Show her. For if you follow the right-hand path there is no joy for anyone, not you, not her, not in any of the worlds on any of the planes. You will become a benign despot, not for glory or power, for there will be no power greater than yours when all is done regardless of the path, but because control will ease the pain of the losses you will incur from the choice that leads you down the right-hand path. Losses that need not happen. This female is part of the left-hand path. She needs to make a choice as well. A choice to trust you when she trusts no one. A choice to hope. A choice to allow herself love when for so long she has only allowed herself existence. For if you have that hope, that clarity of her soul when your turn comes, the choice that leads to joy will become clear.’

*As so often is the case, Clotho’s words are mystic, yet one thing rings clear. This female must see the consequences of a future without joy.*

Look there. See me on a dark throne of flame. Most of those I hold dear are absent and the ones present are in chains. Blood drips from my sword and even though there are many around me, they are little better than slaves, cowering before what I have become. Balance that against the other. There is no joy here. There are no friends, no family, no love. There is no /you/ here. There is only death and darkness. That is the result of choosing not to trust, not to hope. It is the result of choosing not to love. And it would seem, my future… the future of all the worlds... will hang as much on your choice as on my own.

Seraphine: <Sin seemed to be listening to something or someone … maybe someone I couldn’t see. Dearest Scribe, this dream is really getting weird. So weird, that I felt electricity run through my arm as I placed my hand in his. It was nothing I have ever felt before. It felt … right. I need to hurry and wake up before this dream creates ideas on finding ways to touch the male if I ever see him in reality again.

Then as I see Sin on the other side of the image … it /is/ a dream! NFW there were two of these sexy males. The image was of him in all his warrior glory, sword dripping in blood surrounded by the slaves he described at his feet. It was disconcerting but powerful in a sense. But my choice? I was no one. Why would my choice be a factor? I said as much to him as we continued to walk down this dreamlike path past this first image of him in a war zone.>

Sin: You are part of my left-hand path, but not the right. Our souls call to one another. Else, why would you be here? There is a choice you must make, a choice that influences the choice I make and in doing so influences the future of all the worlds. *Pausing as I consider how to explain it, then deciding upon a simple mortal metaphor that I have heard used before.* 

Have you never heard of the ‘butterfly effect’? The idea that the air stirred by the wings of a butterfly can in the end result in a hurricane thousands of miles away?  Our choices are like that. No one is an island. The actions we take, the attitudes we display, affect others we have never met. If I become this…*gesturing to the tableau before us* I will condemn to an existence of servitude and fear not only all those that I have ever had contact with, but all those who exist everywhere. I will become closed to the emotions that keep me in sync with mortals, lose what humanity of soul that I have left, and in doing so become as a cold, uncaring god who cares not where he steps. I can only surmise that it is /your/ soul that somehow prevents this. If you choose to shut yourself off from love, from family, this is the future for all of us. You are not part of this future. I do not know if it is because your life ends or because you shut me out. I only know that if you do there is no happiness for anyone.  But if you open yourself to the possibilities, if you allow this thing between us, whatever it is, to come to grow, then there is hope for the left-hand path. There is hope for all of us.

 I will come to you, and you must choose.

Seraphine: This is insane. I’m no one. I can barely survive my choices … let alone effect others. I’m trying to living day by day here and not really thinking too far into the future.

I have a mad vampire and his goons chasing me around the globe for my blood in order to make me his own blood slave so he can walk out into the sun and take over the human world like he has over our race. Dealing with the vampire version of the mafia … I can’t get involved in whatever monarchy, autocracy or dictatorship you got going on here. I don’t need more crap on my ever growing plate of WTF. 

And choose what? Between running for the rest of my life or becoming a mindless slave? What the hell are you talking about?

This is just a dream anyways. You’re not really here, fuck, I’m not really here.

<I /really/ need to wake up now. This dream is getting really weird. I start whispering to myself.> 

Wake up now, wake up now, wake the fuck up.

Sin: *I turn to face you, dropping your hand, my face growing hard and dark, my voice stern.* 

This is no dream. Whoever pursues you in the mortal world is of no importance. They are no match for me, their resources puny, their powers anemic compared to mine and I will deal with them. *In this moment I choose to reveal what I am to her, to show her all of me. And to accept the impossible that I have seen in her soul.* 

I am a reaper, Death’s First, the most powerful reaper to ever exist and these future paths indicate that regardless of the choice I make, I will become much, much more. You have only to show me your pursuer’s face and his death is written, for I protect what is mine.  I know not your name in this mortal life, but I have seen your soul and viewed the impossible. I was not always a reaper. Once I was mortal and I knew you. You were mine then and you will be mine again. 

*Raising my hand to your face, I cup your jaw and hold it firmly, not a lover’s caress, but a king’s command. Fixing my dark eyes on your blue ones, I command.* I have seen your soul. Now see mine. You are as much angel as you are vampire. You have the power within you and I call it forth. See my soul and remember.

Seraphine: <I could feel my face warming under this touch as my heart beat faster and faster. His focus was so directed at me that I did not understand when my eyes began to unfocus and started seeing different colors and seeing a fuzzy scene with him and another woman in some sort of negotiation. It felt like deja vu … I began to panic and shake my head of the unwanted vision, pulling away from his hold and I pinch my arm to try and wake myself up from this crazy dream.

The visions came quickly as the scene changed … all of sudden I found myself standing in front of Sin wearing a mask? Oh wait, it's a Princess Jasmin veil with delicate chains and jewels. Odd. I was standing behind some male, but I could still see him clearly over the guy’s shoulder and as we locked eyes, I felt something deep inside.

The next scene was with that male, which apparently was my father, or hers - this was getting confusing. He is handing her a dagger and shows her/me a map of the city and how to get past the guards and into Sin’s rooms. I had feelings of hate and annoyance about this male. Apparently I am supposed to kill him to collect the bounty on his head and for my father to take over his kingdom.

The scene changed again and I found myself outside our tents, without the dagger, and searching for Sin. My feelings were conflicting … obeying my overbearing father and saving a man that made me feel like a female with just one look. I knew I couldn’t kill him. I found him in his bed and felt an urgent need to wake him. But before I could tell him my warning, I felt his strong hold around my neck startling me.

Quickly I could hear myself telling him that the male, my father, had planned to infiltrate the city and take his head for a bounty. Inside I could feel the stress of warning him but I knew I hated my father and only another reason to defy his order but I also felt the need to save this male who I barely knew. But in the back of my mind I knew I had to hurry and run and find a new life away from my father and live my own life before I was punished for my transgression.

Then Sin asked me to stay and talk with him. Why? I assumed he would want to immediately take action against the incoming attack and be rid of me, if not try to kill me as well for being his daughter. I was even more apprehensive when he called for food and drink. The vision continued of us on a balcony having dinner as if the world was going into chaos in the next few hours. Strange and yet it felt familiar and good. I felt comfortable taking off my veil and turned to him to tell him thank you for sparing my life but before I could the night quickly progressed into him taking me to bed. 

The images warmed me from the inside and out and I could feel myself getting wet and my muscles loosen as the moments flashed before me. In the next moment we were being mated. How strange that I would mate a male I barely knew. Wait not me, this female whose visions I was experiencing. 

Instantly I sit up in my bed and start feeling around me and touching my familiar comforter as I try to catch my breath. I’m hyperventilating as if I just ran 5 miles. Sweat drips down my neck and forehead and I uncover myself from the comforter and sheets to cool myself.>

What the fuck was that about? 

<I asked myself absently. Maybe meeting this Sin has created some sort of warning to my self-consciousness. I quickly realize that something has changed and I need to escape again. I know I just found Lassiter and even though I still want answers … I also needed to run again. Sin must be related to #Cyrehn. Perhaps he’s part of #Cyrehn’s world and I had seen him in one of the visions. That would explain the deja vu I felt. That had to be it. I quickly get up and start packing my bags and making arrangements to leave #Caldwell.>

Sin: NOOOOOO!  *It comes out a despairing roar as she dissolves beneath my hands. I had looked in her eyes, seen her memories revive. She saw us. I know she saw us. And she rejected what she had seen. Hot tears burn behind my eyes as a pain I have only known once before spears through me and I drop to my knees and shout angrily to the Creator.*

WHY? Why did you bring her back to me, only to let her leave me again? Why did you show me what I could be, could have… what WE could have, only to tear it from me? *Slumping back on my heels, head dropping, and asking again in a quiet, broken voice.* Why?

*I feel their presence as the Fates appear and kneel with me.* 

“Sin.”

*Clothos voice is before me and I lift my head to look bleakly into her compassionate dark eyes.* Why? 

*She stands, raising me to my feet with her. Lachesis and Atropos, at either side, rise with me. Lachesis places a hand on my shoulder and says kindly.*

“Because you had to know what could be. There is a price for the future. Are you willing to pay it?”

*Anger replaces the pain radiating from my eyes.* I would pay /any/ price to have her with me again. Any. She is more than my soulmate. She is my twin flame, the literal other half of my soul. Without her I am only half a man, and I have been half a man for far too long. The oblivion of the long sleep would be a kindness. How could you ask me that? You have watched me for 35,000 years. The three of you,  of all beings, understand the choice I made to become Death’s First, the despair and vengeance that drove me to bargain with Death for the chance to avenge her. How ... *Shifting my gaze between them.* Could /any/ of you ask me that? 

*Atropos, eyes me shrewdly.* 

“Would you choose vulnerability over power? You, the consummate general who unified rabble tribes into a nation, the king who conquered his world by force and diplomacy, by sword and guile, the human who chose vengeance over rebirth, who bargained with Death himself and then rebelled against him, you who would overthrow him and take his place … would you humble yourself? Would you choose to live for her rather than kill for her? Would you give up the ultimate power, the chance to order the worlds to your liking,  for her? Because that will be your choice, Sin.”

*Before I can answer, Clothos raises her hand to silence her sisters and begins sternly.* 

“Enough. You cannot say more. He has more than one choice to make and he must be able to discern the path each will lead him down. Sin.” 

*She raises her impassive gaze towards me as she continues.*

“What you were shown are the ends of the spectrum. They are not the only outcomes, just the most probable ones. There is a great deal in between, depending on your next actions, but, I will be honest with you, none lead you to joy but the left hand path. The only sureties are you will survive this conflict, whether you wish to or not, and that you will be irrevocably changed by it. You could gain everything you have ever desired or you could lose all that you have come to value.”

*Her eyes soften as she continues.*

“Your Ishtar … your Eve was not prepared to see the memories you invoked. When she died, her soul was not ready for ascension and it refused rebirth. She stayed in Elysia, simultaneously afraid for you and angry with you, for thousands of years. It was a sad and lonely existence, regardless of how kind the Keepers of Elyssia were to her. She watched what you became and feared you. And when the massacre of the Ancients finally broke through the hard, callous shell you had allowed to grow around you, she both wept and rejoiced that the man she had known still lived. There, she thought, was hope for you and so she agreed to move her soul on. The Creator, with his daughter’s help, devised a plan and enlisted us. We put the choices before the angel that sired her and the vampire that bore her, but I will admit, the choices we gave them kept circling them back to the Creator’s desired outcome -- that they would meet, love, and make a child. That child was to be the vessel for your Eve’s soul. Her existence in her current incarnation has been filled with betrayal and fear, a legacy from the sense of betrayal she felt by your refusal to join her in death and rebirth, and from her fear that you had become someone she could not love again. She must overcome these issues. She must choose to trust. Choose to love. She has her own journey to make if she is to find you.”

But why? *My eyebrow raises skeptically* Why would the Creator do this? Did I not take myself out of His concern when I chose Death? What is there for Him to gain by this effort? Why would he work with the Scribe Virgin to create a new life for my wife? To give me a second chance with her?

“I cannot tell you that. But know it is rare that the Creator is so adamant about an outcome and that should tell you of its importance, not just to yourself, but to all the worlds. I can only tell you that you must make your own decisions, your own choices and have faith that she will make the right ones as well.” Clothos reaches to rest her hand on my jaw and smiles sadly.* “And now it is time for you to return. You have been gone too long and your people need you. Return home now Sin. And do not attempt to see the possible futures again. For the time being, the Aetheric Plane is closed to you. Now go.”

*She steps back from me and the paths begin to fade from my sight. The grey mist swirls around me as my soul finds the bit of it I had left behind anchored to Declan and the body I had left seated before the brazier inhales sharply as I return fully. My eyes open expecting to see him keeping guard only to see the tall, stalwart figure of a Goddess of War keeping watch over me.*

Freya. 

Written by @DeathsRenegade.

https://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1srkra8

I am immune to my senses, so deep in thought am I. The waves lapping at my feet, the sound of sea birds, the scent of salt and ozone in the air…all of it simply does not exist for me. Adrian’s news was indeed an indicator that the time to move was upon us but there is a growing sense of unease within me. Finally rising from the sand, I walk back to the lanai. It is time to look to the future. Or rather, the possible futures. Adrian has his precognitive ability but it strikes at its own whim, not upon request. I, however, have other methods. There are advantages to having walked the corridors of power for the last 35,000 years and one of them is that I have learned a great deal of magick. There are all sorts of sources for magicks. The angels have their ethereal version, mortals their earth magick, and Zav and Bryn have begun to mix the two for this battle we face, but I am a law unto myself. Death has its own brand of magick, one that is intimately tied to the Fates and the Creator. It is what lets reapers walk between the worlds and bend space and time to do our jobs. In my hands, it is even more. Study with the fae in Tir Nan Og has combined with the innate power I hold and the more general magick of the reaper to allow me to walk the paths of time. It is the only way to see what choices the Fates may put before me, and it is likely even those will be shrouded in mysticism. But I feel compelled to try. Calling to Declan, I bid him to watch over my body in the physical realm while I allow my spirit to walk other planes. Though a reaper’s body is simply the physical manifestation of his or her soul, the power I hold allows me to maintain that corporeal form while I separate a bit of my own soul from the whole to seek answers from the unknown. This is not the first time I have used his talents thus, even though I know he finds it unnerving to watch, to know the shell no longer houses the spirit. “It will be fine,” I sooth. “If aught goes wrong while I am occupied, contact Sean. He does not have the power to walk where I will go for this, but he will know what to do.” Declan’s frown tells me what he thinks of this plan. I have no doubt he would prefer we go directly to Brazil and move forward. Finally, he simply folds his arms and nods, then steps back into the doorway to stand guard. Maintaining an outward calm but heaving an internal sigh… it is wearing to deal with such unyielding concern from my people… I ignore his recalcitrance and go to the chest I keep at the end of the lanai. Kneeling before it I open it. The fragrant scents of various herbs and resins waft from it as I remove a soft circular rug and smooth it out. An ancient brass brazier follows, along with sage, rosemary, vervain and myrrh. The sage is to bring me wisdom, the rosemary to ground my spirit to this realm and the vervain to protect my spirit as I roam. The last, myrrh, is a resin that when burned will cleanse my mind and my home of any lingering darkness and help me to sink into a deep meditation. In that state I will sever that part of my soul that needs to travel the trails of time. All will find their way to the brazier when the time is right. Though it would be a simple thing for me to add them to the bowl with a thought, adding them by my own hand is, as is the careful storage of them physically rather than simply materializing them at need, a nod to the ancient magicks of the fae. A sign of respect for the power, if you will, and one should always respect power if one wishes it to be an ally. Sitting back cross-legged on the rug, I place the brazier before me, with the herbs laid out beside it. With a thought white candles ring the rug, declaring my purity of purpose in this endeavor. They flare to life simultaneously at my bidding as I lay the myrrh in the bowl before me.  Extending my hand over it, I murmur “lasair”. It bursts to life, a gold and orange flame dancing above the brazier before settling to a steady burn. One by one I add the others, the fire leaping at each addition and then settling again.  When the flame has receded to stability, the gentle crackling no longer emitting sparks, I settle my hands, palms up on my knees, close my eyes, and begin to speak softly. “Cad iad na todhchaíochtaí a scríobh na Morai? Cad iad na cosáin atá leagtha síos acu dom? Cad iad na roghanna a thabharfar dom? Glaoim ar na Fates chun ligean dom a fheiceáil. Is ar mo roghanna féin amháin atá an t-iarmhéid crochta, Is trí mo ghníomhartha amháin a bheidh an domhan saor. Taispeáin dom cad a chaithfidh mé a dhéanamh. Glaoim ar na Fates chun ligean dom a fheiceáil.” “What futures have the Morai written? What paths have they laid for me? What choices shall I be given? I call the Fates to let me see. Only on my choices the balance hangs, Only by my actions will the worlds be free. Show me what I must do. I call the Fates to let me see.” The sounds and scents of the outside world recede and I feel myself rise above the physical form I maintain. I see myself seated on the floor of the lanai, a body only. Declan is watching from the doorway, his frown gone now, his face impassive, his body rigid as a stone warrior guarding a tomb entrance. And then even that fades away and my essence coalesces on a plane far removed from the mortal one. A wide, raised stone walkway serves as my platform as I survey my surroundings. Around it an ocean of blue flames roil and flicker, a storm of turmoil seething beneath my feet. Sensing that I am not alone, I whirl around, prepared to do battle even here if I must, but relax at the three lovely female forms behind me. “Clotho, Lachesis, Atropos…” my hand to my chest as I bow my head to them, “I did not expect the Morai to attend to this personally. Why am I so honored?” It is the raven-haired Lachesis whose laugh trills across the plane. ‘Why would we not come, Sin? We have grown,’ she shoots a sly smile at her sisters, ‘fond of you.’ ‘Indeed,’ Atropos adds as she pushes her wavy auburn tresses from her face, ‘you never disappoint. Throughout the eons you have always chosen the door that we would have wished for you. For which I am appreciative. I would find no happiness in cutting the thread of your life. Your existence since becoming Death’s first has provided us with much more pleasure. ’ She smiles at me knowingly. ‘Enough sisters,’ the fair Clothos gently reprimands. ‘The time for those recollections has passed. It is the future he needs to see. It is the future he /must/ see if he is to understand.’ She turns her azure-blue eyes to me and takes both my hands in hers. ‘There lies before you only one possible door, but there are two paths behind it.   Both lead to darkness, but the darkness is not always the enemy of the light. It can be the balance and it is that balance upon which the destinies of not just the worlds lie, but of the Creator himself. We came because you must see the results of your decision clearly. We cannot tell you what you must choose or which path it will lead you down. ‘ She smiles lightly, ‘Your free will is still the determiner of all our futures. ‘ There is a sadness to her smile that I cannot fathom. Gently I reach out to caress her cheek. “Clothos, will you not tell me what is on your heart?” She simply shakes her head, her enigmatic smile unchanged. ‘I can only tell you whatever you choose, we shall never again be as we were. Whether we become allies or enemies is still to be determined. But we can only go forward. “Can fond memories count for nothing, then?” I murmur. She catches my hand and removes it from her cheek. I can see the immortal in her rising as her shoulders firm and her chin tilts. It was always a trait I had admired in her, that ability to put duty to power over emotional frailties. It was one we shared.   ‘The past has been written, Sin. Memories are a wisp in the wind, ephemeral and influenced by what we wish could have been, not necessarily what was. The future is still to be dealt with, an avenue for growth and stability. We cannot let what was dictate what will be.’ I laugh softly. “And there you have the source of all the disagreements I have ever had with the Morai. The past /has/been written and because of that the memories we hold are the foundation of the future. They are solid and form the basis for the choices we make, the way we grow.” The laughter dies from my face as my need to understand what that future might be reasserts itself. “Come, show me what I need to see.” ‘You must go forward from here alone. Your future is yours to determine. We will watch over you and maintain a mental link,’ she answers and then Atropos adds solemnly, ‘Regardless of which path you take, my golden scissors /will/ be used. The only question is upon whom. I have my preferences, but the choice will be yours.’ I look each of them in turn. Their expressions are impassive now, no teasing, no easy flirtation. They are once again the immortal Fates.   “We have come to the heart of it now, have we not? Who lives and who dies.” Once again dipping my head to them, I turn and walk forward until I come to a door in the pathway. As I open it I can see the path split into two. The roiling blue flames pitch and roll around them and I have to wonder at the significance of this. The flames have meaning and their prevalence around the walkways must symbolize something that will remain constant regardless of the path I choose. ‘You must walk through the door, Sin.’ It Is Lachesis voice echoing in my head. ‘You need not walk down far down either path to see what you must.  But you must look.’ Inhaling deeply, I steel myself. Both paths are shrouded in a darkness that the tumultuous fires illuminate only partially.  I choose the right hand path first, walking down it for a few yards until I can see what lies at the end. My jaw sets at the image. I see myself on a throne carved of black marble against a backdrop of fire, the orange flames casting shadows around me.  My face is dark and brooding as thousands kneel before me, my black leathers stained and my bloody sword lying across my legs. Freya, Danu and Kali are in chains before me. An armed guard with spears crossed bars the way to my throne and disembodied souls shimmer on the steps leading up to it. And nowhere do I see the ones whom I now call family. “NO. I do not want this!” It is a shout in my mind. For before me I see all that I have ever despised. Power without compassion. Strength without mercy. Narcissism and greed. I see a despot leaving bodies in his wake. I see the Horseman of Death as he has always wished to be. “I will NOT walk this path, Clothos. I will die by my own hand first!” ‘That is not an option, Sin. The door you went through is one of inconceivable power. It has no limits. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. It is a human truism that holds for the immortal as well. And it is a door you have already chosen to walk through. Nothing can stop it now, but without the influence of the ones whom you hold as family, that monstrous god is what you will become. And you /will/ lose them all if you choose this path. But it is not foregone that you will. Go back now. Walk the left hand path. It has… we’ll call it more creative options.’ My face is stony, my body rigid with tension as I backtrack my steps to the original fork in the walkway. This one, too, leads into a darkness dimly lit by the blue flames around it, but again, a few yards in I can see the scene at the end. The ebony throne is still there, but my leathers are clean and I am smiling, descending with my hands out to greet those I love. I can make out Sean’s face as he approaches me, and that of his female. I hear Bryn’s laughter somewhere and Zav is there at my left, his dark wings lifted behind him and a teasing smile on his face as he looks down at a small dark-haired female in the crowd, Declan and Celia on either side of her. And there /is/ a crowd. Smaller, mingling, people coming and going with purpose but not fear.  My future self looks up, as though I hear my name called and then I see her. It is my battle angel from the alley in Caldwell. She comes from behind the throne, clothed in leathers, her own silvery, shimmering wings visible now. She smiles at me as I turn to greet her with a kiss. She has a young male of perhaps four years holding her hand. I lift him up and settle him on my hip, kissing his cheek, then pointing to another child in the crowd. He wiggles down and runs to greet her and I laugh at Sean’s disconcerted look of concern.  There are no disembodied souls hovering, no guards with spears. My own sword, clean and shining with glints of fire shimmering along the sharp, curved edge, leans against the throne, an indicator that my future self is not done with it, but it is not bloodied. “Clothos…Lachesis…Atropos…” my mental voice cracks with emotion, “What is this you are showing me?” Again it is Lachesis voice that comes to me. ‘This is your other future Sin. You cannot escape the power, you cannot escape what you will become. You can only choose how it will be wielded. These are the results of a choice you will make. It will be one or the other. I cannot tell you what you must choose between but I can say that the first will be the result of a choice made out of ego. The second is the result of a choice made from love. You have always had a healthy ego. Do you have the ability to put love over ego?’ Before I can answer, SHE looks at me. My battle angel looks down the long walkway and meets my eyes. I swear she sees me. Not my future self, but me in this time and place. I hear her voice in my mind. ‘What will you choose? Will you choose vengeance as you once did or will you remember love and choose a different path?’ 

Declan:  I can sense it in him, the heaviness, the weight of what we are about to do. This little excursion to Caldwell wasn’t about closure, even if Sin thinks it was. No, coming here is about saying goodbye. Goodbye to the mortal world he’s protected, goodbye to the love he’s looked for over and over again all these years. Thanks to him, I never have to know that pain. Celia and I will always be together, and, no matter what he says about just needing servants, all three of us know Sin saw Celia and I as a mirror of he and his late wife. Though he’d lost her, he’d seen allowing our souls to remain together for eternity as an extension of what he hoped for -- that one day he’d be reunited with his twin flame.. And I can see it as clearly as if he’d drawn a picture that he’s given that up. Not a good thing for a man … well reaper … about to go into any battle, let alone one in which the odds are so stacked against us. He has nothing to live for. For a moment, I wish for Sean. He’s the one that’s always been able to help the reapers when they grew cold or despairing, using that gift of his to pull away from the pain. But Sean’s got his tasks and I’ve got mine and right now, Sin is mine.

“Boss, why don’t we get off this building and take a walk. There’s no sign of our kind of trouble anywhere and I think we could both use a drink.” Ok. Lame, I get it, but sometimes people talk over a glass of whiskey and if I can get him to talk, maybe I can talk him out of this mood. Make him see the reapers need him. Hell, /Celia and I/ need him. He’s become our alpha.

Sin: *Turning from the expanse of the city laid before us below, I tilt my head wryly at Declan.* I thought you were here in the official capacity of “bodyguard” since you and the others seem to believe I am incapable of defending myself.

Declan: Snorting impatiently, “We both know you could take any one of us or all of us together without even tapping into that power of yours. You were a warrior before you were a reaper and being a reaper only made you more dangerous. I’ve watched you fight, even sparred with you. You don’t need a bodyguard. I’m here more to be a failsafe in case the Horseman or Lucifer tries to hocus pocus you into some kind of trap. Even /you/ are vulnerable to that kind of crap if you’re not on your guard and no one is on their guard all the time. Besides, it’s been a long time since I’ve walked an east coast city street. I’m not knocking your place in Hawaii, but even paradise gets old once in a while. So about that drink …”

Sin: I am not fooled, Declan. *Arching an eyebrow at him.* You have something on your mind. So, yes, we shall talk about it over a drink. There is a Hilton Hotel not far from this abode that has a quiet bar with a fine selection of Irish whiskeys. Attend me and I shall take us there.

*As he takes his place at my back, left hand on my right shoulder, right hand not on his blade, but the .40 at his hip, I am reminded that Sean and Adrian have seen to it he has the proper ammunition to combat our foes. Though I am reluctant to abandon the old ways completely, I understand why they believed firearms would be effective for “bodyguarding” me. At a distance, they could prove effective in holding off the enemy and giving us time to demat and reform behind them, and perhaps, if Declan’s aim is true, even removing a few from the battle.*

Keep your weapon at the ready. According to Layla, this city has predators of its own. While we may not directly interfere in Annalise’s private battle with good vs evil, neither will we be prey to it.

*With that, I mist us to street-level a few blocks from the hotel, reforming us not in the mortal world, but the half-world to observe our surroundings and be sure that we are alone before becoming fully a part of the physical realm.*

Declan: My hand clenches on Sin’s shoulders as we hover in the half-world between life and death. “Sin …”

Sin: I see them. *Before us in the alley a young female scrambles to retrieve a dagger from the chest of an apparent attacker. There are a pair of bodies lying on the ground and another trio approaches.* What do your wolven senses tell you?

Declan: Inhaling deeply to scent the air around us, then wrinkling my nose … “Phew … the attackers smell like road-kill that’s laid in the Georgia sun for three days and then had a mountain of baby powder thrown over it. I’d say those are Layla’s “lessers”. The girl … vampire but not entirely. Not human, but …” My eyebrow raises … “angel? She smells like Zav but not as strongly. She must be a hybrid. Is that even possible? And what would an angel be doing here?.

Sin: *Shaking my head as he comes to stand beside me.*

I know not. Many angels still living are in the service of El Shadai, the white god. But as her scent is not wholly angel, and as El Shadai disapproved so strongly of the Grigori taking wives, I must believe that her bloodline is descendent of an angel who is not one of his tools.

*Briefly, I open my inner vision and allow myself to read her essence. As a partially mortal being she will have a soul as well as grace and I should be able to see it. It will tell me whether she is likely to be friend or foe. My eyes widen at what I see and I tilt my head, disbelief in my eyes.*

What are you … who are you …? *I wonder softly.*

*Though I only have time for a cursory examination, her soul is unlike any I have seen in my long existence as a reaper. A normal mortal soul will project an aura composed of a myriad combination of colors ranging from yellows and rich golds to reds, blues and greens down to the darkest of blacks and all in between. A soul ready for ascension will be of the purest white, a nimbus of it radiating around the mortal body. But hers is different. It glows, yes, but shimmers with silvery blues that are very like the pulsating aura Zav’s grace forms around him, and there are flashes of a very mortal red woven through it. And there is something else. Even though her soul is something new, her essence is very old, and … familiar. But though I would delve further, now is not the time.*

Regardless, Declan, she is outnumbered here and I find her enemies demeanor most arrogant and provoking. *Wrinkling my nose.* As well as odoriferous. I believe you are correct as to her assailants. The miscreants’ bouquet is so potent that even without your wolven nose, I can smell them. While I should not intervene in the Scribe Virgin’s affairs and have no affection for angels beyond our Zav, I am not about to allow any female to be harmed by such as these. If Annalise desires her life, she shall have to find another way to take it.

*As the men advance from the alleyway entrance, I gesture to it.*

Declan, get behind them and guard the alley. There is insufficient time for me to ward and glamour the entrance so it falls to you not to allow others access. You may do as you will with the lessors but re-direct any humans and vampires as necessary. Leave these three to us. *An admiring smile forms on my lips.* She seems to have done quite well on her own already. Between the two of us, there should be little difficulty in dispatching them. Oh, and Declan, have a care. I understand that lessers can be hard to kill. Go for dismemberment until we ascertain an effective method. A non-magical being who neither walk nor lift a weapon is of little danger and I sense they have no power of their own.

Declan: “Remember that then. Your touch may not work on them. Don’t let one get close enough to find out.” With a nod, I ghost through the half-world to reach the alley entrance. Unless needed, I’ll stay in this realm.

Sin: *I watch as Declan reaches his destination in milliseconds, then, fully forming in the mortal world, I materialize my scimitar and move to stand at the right of the female, offering her a hand up.*

Mind if I join you?

Seraphine: <Wondering again, how I was stupid enough not to bring any firearms this night. I truly had only been thinking about healing and therefore some young transitioned vampire male to feed from and test Lassiter’s hypothesis. An image suddenly appears to my right in a sort of mist unlike an instant dematerialization I was used to catches me by surprise and as I hear a deep melodic voice, I look up into the darkness to see a male. Who is he? Did #Cyrehn send him? He must be desperate to reach outside the species. Ignoring the offering hand gesture and I quickly got to my feet on my own.>

Whatever, but stay out of my way. <I responded as I charged towards the first incoming lesser, I dodged his right hook and stabbed him in the sternum where his heart once was with the retrieved dagger, briefly closing my eyes at the flash of light by leaping into the air to tackle down the next walking dead. As he leaned back from the flare, I took the opportunity to knock him down to the ground landing on his chest.

I struck him with my dagger hand to keep him off balance but he was able to get his hands around my neck. I tried to use my left arm underneath his and wound counterclockwise to loosen his grip as I took my dagger and stabbed him in the chest again. I closed my eyes briefly against the light and landed on the concrete.

I looked up for the remaining lesser and wondered what happened with the male.>

Sin: *For a moment I simply watch her. The fire in her eyes struck a chord deep within me, one that I was loath to silence. I had not felt it in so many years that I actually distrusted the feeling. But she was poetry in motion, moving as fluidly as a dancer with the strength and cunning of a warrior. Murmuring half to myself.* Quite the battle angel, are you not? *Noting the flash of light when her blade penetrated the being… I cannot call him human nor male for he is obviously not… I perceive the way in which they die. Still. A reaper must have some fun from time to time and the creatures pose little threat to me. As the female leaps to her next victim and a flare of light indicates its dispatch, a smile curls upon my lip and I turn to the third, holding my scimitar at the ready. The creature is more wary of me than had been his brethren who threw themselves at what they had supposed was a helpless female. Perhaps it was the size of the blade I brandished as opposed to her smaller, but a highly effective dagger, or perhaps it was the feral gleam in my eye, but he halted as I faced him.*

I know not what manner of being you are, but it matters not. Everything dies.

*His bravado fades as I move towards him. Near panic obvious on his face, he pulls one of those infernal guns from within his jacket and points it at me. I stop and sneer.*

Really? There’s little honor in such weapons.

*That I have no fear of the armament is apparent and that unnerves him. He growls at me, his pale visage trying for courage.*

“Fuck honor,” he spits out.

*As he opens fire on me I lower my weapon and allow him to unload his clip into my chest. Blood flows, and there is pain but for a reaper neither the wounds nor the pain is debilitating. When it becomes apparent he is out of ammunition and I am simply standing there waiting for him to finish, he looks at me in disbelief, his face growing even paler.*

“What /are/ you?”

Your end.

*It only takes a moment to adjust my sight to search for his soul. I wish to ascertain if Declan’s concern that my touch might be insufficient on this new enemy is accurate and I am surprised to find the being has none. Declan had been correct.*

But I see that one has been here before me. You, my friend, are literally a dead man walking.

*With a thought I exchange my reaper’s blade for a finely crafted dagger as I dematerialize into a fine mist, leaving him gaping as I reform behind him and slide one arm around his neck to immobilize him and thrust the blade home in his chest. A light flares and a resounding pop echoes through the alley. Releasing him to slide to the ground, I look back at the female.*

I had hoped for a better match, but *shrugging* what can one expect of the soulless?

Seraphine:  <As I turn, I see another flash of light and the male shrugging as if killing is NBFD which probably meant it was a regular occurrence. Which meant he was probably a trained assassin or another hired bounty hunter. /Not/ what I needed right now. It’s been a while since I last saw any of #Cyrehn’s goons and have changed my appearance. Regardless, my guard was up and my suspicions on high alert.>

Soulless or not, they’re a pain in the ass.

<I get up and wipe my blade down my pant leg, black like oil smearing across as I search for my other one. Finding it against the wall of the alley, I clean off the other and keep them by my side since I have no idea who the BMOC that just appeared out of nowhere. My face was slightly throbbing for the lucky shot from the lesser. I need to get out of here and back to my condo.>

Thanks for the assist. Laters.

<I turned to walk briskly away to try and dematerialize without an audience not knowing what the species the male and his tracking abilities. If #Cyrehn has upped his game … then it looks like it was time to move again. This really sucks since I just found #Lassiter and had some help with trying to find my father. Whatever. Nothing I haven’t felt before but I was growing tired of playing cat and mouse. I needed another training lesson with #Lassiter about using my abilities to hide and train better.>

Sin: Wait. Please. *Misting to place myself a few feet in front of the female.* I would know more about these creatures and your expertise at dispatching them tells me you would be a good teacher.

*Yes, Layla has already told us a good bit about these things, but I wish to spend more time in this female’s company, and perhaps this is the way. Unfortunately, this is the moment, Declan chooses to materialize behind me.*

Declan: I’d caught the sound of far away sirens with my wolf’s hearing and figured it was time for us to go, but as I take solid form beside Sin I catch the iron-tanged scent of blood in the air. Taking a look at him, I huff a sigh...

“Dammit, boss, do you know what kind of hell I’m gonna’ catch if I take you back like that? Sean’s gonna have my hide for letting you play. You can replace the clothes, yeah, but the scent of blood is gonna cling to you until we get those holes in you sealed up. It’s so strong you don’t even need my wolf to smell it. The others will know as soon as they get close to you.”

Seraphine: <He suddenly appears in front of me in another sort of mist. Teacher? What the fuck? But before I could even respond to the ridiculous request when clearly he had no issues with lessers when someone else dematerializes behind him.

Fuck me. Two against one and they were definitely not newly turned lessers and seeing as one took a whole clip of bullets without much of a flinch and just some slow bleeding that smelled definitely non-human. He was dressed in all leather, lean and wiry which would make him strike fast against an opponent. Long hair hanging loose along with scruff … a rebel for sure. Not a conformed soldier … but a warrior none the less.

The newcomer looked dangerous as well, I eyed him in his jeans and a tee-shirt. Casual. Then again, he also had bandoleros cross over his chest with steel under his leather motorcycle jacket. I could not put my finger on what he could be … vampire? But I snapped to attention when I heard their conversation. Did he just say wolf? Boss? What the hell was going on here.

I take a step back with my daggers low at my hips ready to strike if necessary. Fight or flight was strong. I was outnumbered by beings I was unfamiliar with and whose skills were unknown.

What the hell? <My defenses are on high alert, ready to dematerialize around the world to get away from them if I needed to.> Clearly you can dispatch the undead back to their master just fine … so who are you and what do you really want?

Sin: *With some irritation, I look at Declan.* A moment here, if you please. *Turning my attention to the female, her distrust is nearly palpable, and I find I do not care for it at all. Reapers are used to striking fear in the hearts of mortals, but this … no. I do not want this female to distrust or fear me. Soothingly, I hold my hands out, in front of me, palms up and clearly unarmed as I begin again.*

My name is Sin. And as you have no doubt already discerned, neither I nor my associate are vampire or human. As for the undead …*Barks a laugh.* I will say these beings are something new, but no, I am not unused to dealing with the dead. However, neither the dead nor the living have reason to fear me if their intentions are honorable. I will also own that a vampire of my acquaintance has given me a very basic description of these… lessers, I believe she called them? But she is a Chosen and her knowledge of them was limited. You, on the other hand, are clearly a warrior. I learned how to dispatch them by watching you, which was fortunate as my normal methods would not have been effective. Though it is unlikely I shall need to deal with them often, it is always wise to have knowledge of the evil among us. It proves helpful in dispatching it.

Declan: “Boss, the sirens are getting closer.” I hate like Hell to interrupt this. He’s actually taking an interest in this female and it’s the first time in days I’ve seen him act like he’s interested in life, but it is what it is. “If we stand in the physical world much longer we’re gonna’ give them a hell of a story to tell back at the station about the guy just standing there calmly bleeding from a half dozen bullet wounds. We need to disappear. And we need to stop the bleeding. Even you can’t bleed indefinitely without it making you weaker. Sean would come …

Sin: No! *My head whips towards him as he suggests contacting Sean. Calming my voice.* I have no need of his healing. These will resolve in a few hours. But, *turning back to her* it would indeed be wise if we could go elsewhere for a bit before I return home. I can take us somewhere we could speak further or perhaps you could suggest a place? *Smiling at her gently.* I would at least know your name.

Seraphine: <I continue to take a few steps back as they argued with one another. Seems they have a friendly relationship with one another since the newcomer seemed really concerned with the bleeding. I could also hear the sirens but without any evidence, the police would only find the smell of baby powder and black blood is easily mistaken as oil. Their conversation was beginning to get interesting speaking of physical worlds. Also, the “Boss” named Sin having access to a Chosen. Interesting tidbit.>

He’s right, you should check those wounds. You’re bleeding quite a bit. The only advice you need to know is to keep steel on you and aim for the sternum where their heart once resided until they pop from existence. Otherwise, they can keep coming back and really names aren’t necessary.

<I backed away from them and then leaped up the building roof to try to escape from their presence so I finally dematerialize home without them tracking me. I decided to demat to different locations around Caldwell before going home not knowing their tracking ability especially since one of them was a wolf? A freaking wolf. Shaking my head as I finally entered my condo from the balcony. I went straight to my bathroom and checked on my injuries.

Since I recently fed, the bruise on my cheek was already fading. A great benefit from normal feeding. I needed to see what I could pack quickly … just in case. I wasn’t sure if those guys were sent by #Cyhren but I needed to be on guard.>

Sin:  Damnation. *Quietly swearing as she dematerializes in front of me.* I do not even know her name. *Sighing as I turn to Declan.* I suppose it matters not. I glimpsed her soul and you have her scent. There is no place in any of the worlds we cannot find her and we have other business to attend to at present. But once it has been dispatched, *I leave the words ‘and if I survive’ unsaid. Somehow I find myself less willing than I had been to give portent to such an end.* I will find her again. *Smiling wryly at Declan.* Let us go back to Hawaii until these wounds heal.

Declan:  Nodding, “And before you start griping at me, Sean will meet us there. *Shrugging at his dark look.* He’s tapped into my brain until this is all over. I smelled your blood and got worried, so he asked. I ain’t gonna’ lie to him, Boss. Not even for you.” Smiling a little at him. “Sean’s who keeps us all on an even keel. Even you.” Eyeing the blood still flowing slowly and getting a little snarky to deflect is irritation, “You ok to demat or you want I should hold on to you?

Sin: I am quite able to get myself … and you, should you forget the way … home, thank you. *Perhaps I am somewhat testy, and I should have remembered Sean was to stay linked to both ghost shifters for the duration, but I really do not need his attention and I would like to have lingered a moment longer to find the female’s abode for future reference.* Follow me. And try to keep up.

<As I quickly exited the hotel, I could feel the strength grow inside of me. My previous lacerations and abrasions from the night before were disappearing as I examined my arms and my shoulder felt more like a healed bruise so it was healing fairly quickly. I no longer felt tired and instead felt more energy than I have felt in years since my transition when I last fed #Cyrehn. The streets were filled with people in front of the hotel, so I headed to the nearest dark alley so I could dematerialize home.

As I turned the corner, the smell of baby powder lingered through the air mixing with the mildly cold air of downtown Caldwell. Hmmm … I followed the smell further down the dark alley where the surrounding street lights were out. My vision focused on the darkness and as I pulled my daggers from their hidden location in my boots. Since I meant only to feed tonight, I didn’t bring any of my normal hardware.

The smell began to permeate the air as I got closer and heard voices. Two lessers and a human dealing in some sort of narcotic from the looks of it and as soon as the human quickly left with his stash and I cleared my throat.>

Tsk, tsk, naughty, naughty.

<They both turned and sneered as they realized I was a female. The postures immediately relaxed assuming my sex determined the outcome of this situation. My hands were on my hips slightly hiding the daggers behind my back as they approached me. As they spoke in low dangerous tones in slanderous comments such as “stupid bitch” … blah blah blah. As soon as the words left his mouth, I threw the dagger straight to his sternum before he could call me any other names. The other turned to his partner in disbelief and before I could switch my remaining dagger to my right, he charged at me. 

Knocking me to the ground, we struggled with my remaining dagger as I tried to shift my weight to disengage from him. His weight on top of me registered in panic as I tried to maneuver free. He was able to dislodge my remaining knife, then I felt a blast of pain on the side of my cheek from apparently a right hook. Pain radiates through my skull as my vision starts to blur, after which my knee delivered a powerful hit to his precious jewels.

He screamed in pain, as all males do … no matter the species, leaning my weight on my hands I rolled clear and pushed back up to stand. I bounce from leg to leg to shake it out as I eye the lesser getting back up as I searched for anything to use as a weapon around me. Finding nothing, I stalk forward and instead of punches and jabs which would be expected. I suddenly dropped back to the floor and kicked out my right foot straight into his side and as he tilts from the kick, I rotated my weight and alternated my other leg to swipe his legs listening to the satisfying thud as he hit the concrete ground. 

I remembered his comrade whom I quickly located and pushed him over to grab my dagger from his chest. I hear thundering footsteps. As I reached to pull the dagger from the bone, I looked up to see their backup had arrived … three other lessers.>