“Dorian! I am so sorry, I wasn’t thinking of the sun, I –“ Storm was cut off by a raised hand and a smirk.
“The sun does not have the same effect here, Emerald.” Dorian looked over his shoulder to the other vampires and Storm realized they all were looking at the rising sun with pleasant, welcoming grins. “This realm is filled with magic, it is pleasant.” Dorian inclined his head to see the sun as well. “This is the first sunrise I have seen in centuries. If for nothing else, I am glad I came with you for this.”
“Thank you, Dorian.” Storm didn’t know what else to say. She knew how he felt about Angeline and the complex relationship with his brother yet here he stood just enjoying the sunrise on the verge of an epic battle.
Dorian looked to her, his icy gaze as piercing as ever. “Good-bye, Storm Sullivan.” And with that, Dorian bared his fangs and ran for fray that was just breaking out.
Lucian
Solomon and his lackeys slunk out of the room leaving Lucian, Sophia, and the beast alone with the babes. The beast did not relinquish the flame though. He was about to tell her to tone down the inferno but the ground beneath them began to quake. Sophia’s hand snaked out and grabbed his arm, her nails digging into the skin enough to shock him.
“Sophia we need your help.” Dan sprinted into the room with Shane on his heels and panic etched on both of their faces. The beast dropped her flames long enough to admit the Angels to their circle. Shane bore the body of PacMan but Lucian could not tell if the dog still lived. The Phoenix slithered over to Shane as he set PacMan on the floor. The dog had clearly been attacked but his chest seemed to rise and fall lightly, his tongue falling onto the rug and dripping a pool of blood-tinged slobber. Sophia squeezed Lucian’s arm again and rose, handing the babe to Dan and falling to the floor beside the injured dog.
“What happened?” Sophia laid her hand on PacMan as the beast curled beside him, its tongue lapping at the cuts on his muzzle.
“Demons.” Shane ran his fingers through his hair, “They are everywhere. As soon as the others left the natural barriers fell and they sprang over the walls. I found PacMan in the bushes out front trying to drag himself inside.”
“Alright, we’ll do what we can.” Sophia and the beast settled into their odd communing thing that always left Lucian unsettle.
“Why can’t you two heal him?” Lucian looked skeptically at Dan as he settled on the couch nearby.
“We tried.” Dan’s response was short. “It didn’t work.”
“What do you mean it didn’t work? What happened to the dog?” Lucian frowned as he watched Sophia and the beast work on PacMan with Shane pacing the floor beside them. The flames waned a bit as they worked and Lucian wondered how long the beast could last and if it couldn’t, what it would mean for Sophia. He pushed that thought away. Sophia would stop it before anything went that far.
“We don’t know.” Dan glared at him over the bundled babes. “At this point, just be grateful the demons have not breached the walls of the manor yet.”
Lucian ignored the second part. If they came in then he could fight. But then, what about Sophia. “If anything happens to her, I will tear your wings off and beat you with them.” Lucian glared right back at the Angel.
“If they don’t save PacMan we will have bigger problems here than our personal issues.” Dan turned toward the floor where PacMan stirred for a moment and then fell limp again.
“Why? What is so important about this dog? I mean, I know Storm is partial to him and I admit he’s a great dog, but –“ Lucian didn’t get to finish his thought.
“PacMan has a role to play, he is the key to Nuada’s body.” Dan spoke so softly that Lucian didn’t think he’d heard right at first. It couldn’t be.
“Please tell me that you didn’t just say that near dead dog is the key to Nuada’s body.” Lucian wanted to strangle whatever powers that be who decided to be so idiotic but the house shook again, creaking and moaning as the walls lurched and then fell still.
“That’s what I said, Immortal. Clearly somebody else has found out about PacMan.” Shane interjected. “We don’t know who or how so don’t ask.”
“But what about the protection spells?” Lucian’s mind was reeling now, frustration and concern welling up as his wife continued to work on PacMan and the house shook again causing some of the books to fall from their shelves. “And what the hell is causing the house to shake?”
“Some of it is the fighting between the demons and the Seraphs but some of it is the enemy trying to tear down the walls between realms so he can enter Willow Wood.” Dan shifted the baby in his arms. “And the spells are failing because most of the people who set them are calling all of their power to them for the battle.”
Sophia stood up, “He’ll be alright.” She looked exhausted, even more than she had. Lucian took her hand and pulled her to the couch beside him wrapping his free arm about her small frame. The beast limped slowly to the couch and Sophia helped it up beside her. Lucian kissed her lightly on the forehead. She inclined her face to him, the porcelain skin as lovely as the first day he’d met her. “We’re in deep shit, aren’t we?” The sardonic smile on her face somehow made her even more lovely in spite of their current circumstances.
“Nah, Storm will come through.” Lucian squeezed her gently.
“And if she doesn’t? Do we stay here as the walls fall down around us?” A frown creased Sophia’s face, making her exhaustion all the more evident.
“Yes, we stay here. The walls of the study will stand long after everything else breaks down.” Shane sat on the floor beside PacMan, stroking his fur rhythmically. “We laid some of these protections and can hold it for quite some time, I assure you.”
“That’s why you couldn’t heal PacMan,” Sophia’s head whipped around toward Shane.
He nodded without looking up from the battered mutt. “Everything will be over by dawn, one way or another.”
“How do you know?” Lucian was growing more and more uneasy and this was the second time dawn was mentioned in too short a time. Dan and Shane exchanging a significant look did not help. “Spill it, Angels.”
“The Mystic has seen two outcomes, both occur at dawn.” Shane grudgingly answered in spite of Dan’s glare. “What, Dan? Why keep it from them now?”
“Nothing is certain. You know that.” Dan muttered under his breath and looked away from all of them.
“The Mystic has never been wrong, he is of course concerned about the dual visions, but PacMan will be leaving us at dawn one way or another.” Shane grimaced as another quake rocked the house and a stack of books fell off the desk with a loud crash. This quake lasted longer than the previous ones and Sophia snuggled closer to him.
“So, dawn, huh? We’ve got a few hours to spare and no place to be. How about we drop the flames and hit the wet bar?” Lucian recoiled as Sophia rose to slap him on the arm.
“Lucian!” Her tired eyes burned with shock and a bit of amusement.
“What? What else do we have to do? Come on, Soph, we have no influence on anything so if we get drunk now it won’t matter whether we win or lose.” Lucian slipped away from her, carefully cradling the babe as he leapt off the couch to avoid another assault. He swore Shane chuckled.
“Lucian Nightstalker! How dare you even suggest it! We are guarding the babies and I want them to be whole and unharmed when Storm comes back.” Sophia’s eyes blazed. Clearly she had not taken it the way he intended.
“Oh, Soph, don’t be so angry.” Lucian tossed his unruly hair, a move he knew had an impact on her. “I wasn’t completely serious. I just wanted to lighten the mood some. Look at us. We’re sitting in a circle of white flame with a half dead dog, two Angels, and two babies. All of our friends are fighting the big badness in another realm and we can’t help them. I just thought a few drinks and some laughs would ease the next few hours.”
Before she could respond, another quake struck and a loud crash sounded from somewhere outside followed by
a thundering snarl and a cacophony of screams.
Storm
They watched, waiting for the Unseen to show himself, or well, whatever he was going to do. It was terrible. Half a dozen times Storm tried to sprint into the battle but Ryder pulled her back to his side. She should be out there. How could she ask them to fight for her while she stood on the sidelines?
“It must be this way, my love.” Ryder wrapped her in his arms and tried to shield her from the battle. But Storm still heard it all. The shrieks and screams and dismemberments reverberated through her mind. Was this the enemy’s plan? Was he trying to drive her mad before actually showing himself?
“I expected him to be taller.” Ryder whispered in her ear as he wrapped and arm about her waist and spun her out to see the enemy standing on the other side of the battlefield.
Storm stifled a chuckle. “Yeah, me too.” She grinned enthusiastically, “Fight our way through?”
“Absolutely.” Ryder’s eyes flashed with excitement as he reached down to withdraw a blade from under his pant leg. Storm raised an eyebrow at him but he just shrugged mischievously. They took off at a dead sprint, Storm throwing golden bolts at their enemies and Ryder slicing them through. Storm didn’t know how many they’d incapacitated but in the end it didn’t matter. The real battle was ahead and as they skidded to a stop some ten yards from the enemy, blood-spattered and exhilarated, Storm realized she was ready.
“Hello, Storm Sullivan.” The enemy sauntered up, his elegant, tailored black suit a stark contrast to the battlefield on which they stood. His hair was slicked back and he looked younger. Storm wondered where he’d stolen the body from.
“Hey, Un.” Storm nodded at him informally.
He glowered at her, his jaw tensed and she could tell he was grinding his teeth. “I can see your manners have not improved.”
“Guess not.” Storm shrugged. “Nice body, who’d you steal it from?”
“Does it matter, Storm Sullivan?” He withdrew what appeared to be a cigarette case from his pocket.
“I suppose not, just making conversation.” Storm dramatically gestured to the battlefield. “You created this discord amongst the supernatural community. Is it everything you hoped it would be?”
“It is amusing.”
“Couldn’t just be happy with what you had, could you? Always wanting more. It’s your biggest flaw, Un. Really, it is.” Storm pushed a few stray hairs out of her face as casually as she could.
“You know nothing of it.” He spat at her, fury burning in his eyes for an instant before he reined it in and lit a cigarette instead, the elegant silver lighter glimmering in the sunlight.
Storm had to get closer to him. She had to touch him. How? How could she do it without releasing her hold on Ryder or making the enemy suspicious? Stall. The way would present itself much like everything else had. “It’s hard to tell who is yours and who is mine, huh?”
“Does it matter?” He offered a bored look and took another hit from his cigarette.
“It does to me.” Storm softened her expression as she looked out over the field. “Some of them are friends of mine.”
The enemy choked on his response, “Friends?”
Storm half turned away from him pretending to watch the battle so she could move backward casually with Ryder in tow. When they were less than ten feet away from the enemy, he still had not noticed or cared that she was so close to him. Storm glanced over and realized it was because he was too entranced with the battle, eyes blazing with excitement. She was almost able to reach him. “Listen, Un, I don’t expect you to understand but I do care for some of them and I don’t want them to die.”
“If you surrender to me now, I will allow your pitiful friends to live.” The Unseen shifted, his expression changing to one of smug satisfaction.
“Now why would I do that?” Storm was so close, just a few feet away. She could reach him now.
“Because, you cannot beat me. I know everything I need to cross realms and reclaim my body. I just need, well, you and that ring on your finger.” The Unseen watched her, not caring she was so close.
She gave him what he wanted and cast a shocked expression his way.
“What? You did not think I knew? Foolish girl.” The pleasure of his perceived victory reached his eyes.
Feigning defeat, Storm hung her head and shuffled a few steps closer, “Save Ryder, the vampires Dorian and Gregoire, and –“ Storm reached out and clasped his arm. She drove her nails into the fabric of the coat and willed her fingernails to extend into his flesh. The look of surprise on his face was priceless as Storm, Ryder, and the embodiment of the Unseen swirled and stretched into the portal activated by her book, hidden in the waistband of her jeans.
Lucian
The screams did not let up for what seemed like hours. The beast caused the flames to flare higher and form a massive white globe around them but it did little to dampen the sounds outside. The walls shook steadily and the four of them could do nothing but comfort the babes and exchange worried looks. Finally, when he didn’t think he could take anymore, Lucian broke the silence, “What the hell is that?”
“Do you really want to know, Immortal?” Shane plucked at a stray thread in the carpet.
“I asked so yeah, I would say I want to know, Angel.” Lucian glared at him. “I kinda want to know if it is strong enough to get in here.”
“I can’t be sure but I am guessing it is a demon lord and all his minions waging war on the other Seraphs.” Shane shrugged, “I don’t know if any of them are strong enough to get in here. I guess it depends on how many protections are holding besides ours and how well Solomon and the others fight.”
“Can we make it until dawn?” Sophia chimed in. She looked so tired. He was starting to worry she would not make it until morning but she refused to sleep. His lovely, brave Sophia. When this was over he was going to take her someplace lovely, a real honeymoon.
Shane didn’t get to answer, the house shook and the glass windows at the back shattered inward in a massive explosion. They all dove to cover the babes and PacMan, forming a dome over the vulnerable trio but it was unnecessary because the shards disintegrated in the bright white flames from the Phoenix who now paced the floor before them.
“It’s coming for PacMan, she says.” Sophia whispered at them without raising her head.
“Not happening.” Lucian growled his response.
The sound of flapping wings filled the study and Lucian looked toward the source. Solomon stood in the middle of the shattered window frames, his back to them with wings flapping menacingly. His voice resonated in the sudden stillness following the blast. “Leave this place, demon. You cannot cross this threshold.”
A guttural sound thundered all around but Solomon did not budge. Instead, he raised both hands, each bearing a flaming blade. Lucian still could not see the Angel’s opponent but the air suddenly reeked of sulfur and he knew how bad the situation really was. He wondered how many Angels had fallen outside. But Solomon did not back down. He pressed forward against his foe wielding the blades with as much proficiency as Lucian had ever seen. Dan and Shane were tense and he realized they were watching as well, their faces full of frustration. The ensuing fight was better than any Lucian had seen, the whirling silver blades of Solomon streaking through the night sky against the golden sabers of the demon. Once Lucian thought he caught a glimpse of scaly black flesh but he could not be sure as the foes flew unbelievably fast, in and out of his line of sight. Then, in one slow motion, a gold saber whistled through the air and embedded itself in Solomon’s neck, failing to slice clean through and sticking there. Before the demon could dislodge the blade, brilliant silver light illuminated the window frames, blinding them all for several minutes.
When the light faded, a figure stood over two bodies, delicate sapphire wings flapping softly, a horned black head in one hand and a slim, shimmering blade in the other. The figure cast the head aside and turned. Lucian inhaled sharply.
“Thought you all could use a little help.”
Storm
When the twisting sensation evaporated they were standing right where they needed to be. Storm leapt to her feet pulling Ryder up with her. Somehow she’d managed to hurl her enemy into a wall giving her an advantage.
The enemy stood slowly, obviously disoriented, and faced her. “What have you done?” The voice came out several octaves higher than it had in the meadow.
“I’ve decided to change the game, Un.” Storm laced her fingers in Ryder’s and advanced on the Unseen. With her free hand, she pulled her book from behind her back. “Recognize this?”
A flicker of fear flashed in the Unseen’s eyes. “You have nothing.”
“Ah, but that’s where you are mistaken. It took me a bit but I figured it out.” Storm paused, some ten feet away from her enemy and looked around. “It’s a lovely room, isn’t it? Grandmother has been working on it for centuries. I think you will recognize some of the style.”
The Unseen snapped his fingers but nothing happened. He tried again but still nothing. A flush crossed his cheeks. “What is this?”
“Oh, see, now that’s the brilliant part. Grandmother worked very hard on this room to be my safe haven someday. The rugs, the furniture, the hearth were all works of labor and love. Only I can decide who uses magic here. You do not.” Storm grinned maliciously and continued, “That wall of pictures tells our story, well, my story I suppose. All of my family is represented here.” Storm frowned, “except for you, Un. Or can I call you Uncle Nuada? It all gets a little fuzzy for me. But, I suppose it won’t matter much longer anyway.”
The Storm Sullivan Saga: The Emerald Seer Series Box Set Page 70