Darker Angels

Miss Murder: So happy to have inspired you even a little to write on your story. I think it’s a requirement to be lazy on spring break.

Tazzy: Hehehe. More fun in store for Dietrich and Isaak later on.

DarkCrusnikMagician: Only a little more angst to go. But this chapter might add more anxiety. ~insert evil laughter here~

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Jeirn paused half way down the hall, listening intently. What he had initially heard was picking up volume, a high keening cry that raised the fine hairs on the back of his neck.



“Damnu!” he swore and headed for the last place he had seen Blaze. He met her just as she was coming out of the library. “Edana, I hear . . .”



“I know. I do too,” she said. “How much time do we have?”



“Not much by the sound of it. We’ll have to swing this here.”



“Not a problem. Get everyone who’s helping together and explain as fast as you can. I’ll get Abel.”



//Gun has him, Goddess. Circe and Hugue are here with me. Where do you want us?// Skye asked.



//The clearing is probably best.//



//We’ll meet you there.//



//Taka, where are you?//



//Still in London. Why? What’s wrong?//



//Bean-nighe.//



//Faigh muin! On our way.//





Takara grabbed hold of Tres’ collar and phased them immediately to the grounds in Cymru.



“What’s wrong? What’s that noise?” Tres asked as they were both sprinting toward the back of the estate and the huge wild garden.



“Download information on banshee,” she gasped.



++Download Complete: In Irish folklore, the Bean Sidhe (woman of the hills) is a spirit or fairy who presaged a death by wailing. She is popularly known as the Banshee. She visits a household and by wailing she warns them that a member of their family is about to die. When multiple Banshees wail together, it will herald the death of someone very great or holy. The Scottish version of the Banshee is the Bean Nighe.





“Abel? He isn’t a member of your family though.”



“Yes. But our bean-nighe doesn’t seem to be terribly picky about blood ties and Mom adopted him, Seth, Lilith and Cain as members of the family ages ago.”



As they rounded a corner of the garden into the deeper cover of trees they could see flitting shapes of green and grey just at the edge of vision. Too damn close and too many of them to successfully ward off completely, Takara thought. Damn, damn, damn!



“Princess, why are we running instead of just phasing?” Tres asked from behind her.



“Too many erratic power surges. There isn’t any guarantee we’d make it in one piece,” she said, skidding to a halt just inside the small clearing. Gun, Hunter, Circe, Hugue and Skye were already there. Gun was arranging Abel carefully across the remains of a huge old oak tree that had been felled by lightning. Abel’s breathing was growing more shallow by the moment and Gun shot Skye a mildly terrified look over his shoulder.



“How many, Skye?” Takara asked.



“At least half a dozen that I can get a solid fix on. I must have inadvertently missed something.”



“Happens to all of us, Mama,” Circe said, giving her shoulders a quick squeeze. “We can’t exactly do what you had planned because we honestly don’t have that kind of time.”



“No. We don’t. I’ll defer to you since you’ve always been better at this kind of thing.”



“I’m honored you think so. Hunt, Gun, I need you both at full tilt but not full battle mode.”



“No problem, Sis,” Hunter said as his ruby colored wings seemed to burst from his back and sides as did Gun’s emerald ones. “Do we need Uri?”



“Couldn’t hurt. We’ll need all the power we can get on short notice,” Circe said.



“We need to make this fast,” Blaze said, coming into the clearing with Star, Jeirn, Leon, Esther, Ion, Seth, Catherina, Alessandro and Astaroshe in tow.



Everyone was temporarily blinded by rich golden light descending from the sky. The women of the Vatican and Empire both could only stare at what had to be one of the most beautiful men they had ever seen and considering the men they were used to associating with that was saying quite a lot. Long red hair marked him as one of Hunter and Gun’s family but the almost gold eyes were closer to Circe’s when they changed.



“What is it, little sister?” he asked, settling the massive gold and silver wings behind him.



Circe explained the situation quickly to her brother. He nodded briefly and then hugged her, grabbing Hunter then Gun immediately afterward.



“Do you always have to be such a damn show off, Uri?” Hunter complained.



“Isn’t that the pot calling the kettle black?” Uri said, turning to look at Abel. “So this is the one who’s damaged?”



“More ways than you could imagine.”



“Getting closer, kids. This is not a drill,” Star said, sounding annoyed. The high pitched keening seemed to be getting closer. Along with it was the sound of what seemed to be an iron gate swinging open.



“On it, Tante,” Circe said with a small smile. “Try to put everyone near one of us so they can follow easier. Mama, Tante, if you can keep a sonic barrier going to ward them off and buy us some time it would be appreciated.”



Takara turned to Tres. “You might not want to be involved in this. With the electrical surges it might not be the best thing for your circuitry,” she said, looking at him worriedly.



“I am not going anywhere, Princess,” Tres said firmly. “What about the rest of the Vatican members? It might not be such a good idea to have his Holiness involved in this just in case someone chose to use it against him later or Cardinal Sforza either, for that matter.”



“Gods *damn* it,” Star swore. “We don’t have time to play pick and choose. Everybody’s helping. I’ll modify every memory in the world if I have to just put your asses in there.”



Immediately there was what seemed to be a heat haze surrounding the small clearing effectively sealing everyone but Star and Skye within it.