Sooner

Book III part X is up.

I'm afraid real life has been just a bit too real lately and it's interfering with my writing. But... here it is.

Book III - Part X

Ciara's Prison
Sooner Spirit stepped back out into Ciara's sight. She set her fear and her grief aside and stood ready. She saw Conall’s gaze cut towards her. He caught her eyes and his head moved slightly, side to side. After that, he slumped forward again, so motionless he might have been dead. She set that aside as well, she had no time for worrying about what message another enemy might be trying to convey. She flung her cape back so she could move more freely, set her feet, and waited for the demon to make the next move.

Ciara paced forward a pair of steps and cocked her head. Her tail flicked lazily about her ankles and her wings “I hoped you were the middle sister. It would make more sense to save the eldest for last, do you not agree?”

“You’ll have to make do with me, Beast,” Cyd answered. She moved forward, watching Ciara’s every move.

“I'm sure once I suck the life from the last of you my disappointment will wane,” the demoness answered with a sly smile.

“What did you want, Ciara?” Cyd demanded.

“Did you know your youngest sister died begging?” Ciara asked casually. "It was a sweet sound."

“I saw what happened. What is you want?”

“I want you to die better than she did,” Ciara answered. She made one single gesture of her hand, and Cyd heard a rustling noise like scurrying rats.

“What-” she started, but then one of Ciara’s imps darted out into the light. Sooner remembered the first time she’d seen one of them, there on OU's South Oval, back when she was still a college student without magical powers and a tiny red demon could frighten her. “That doesn’t scare me any more, Ciara.” she sneered.

“Indeed? What would you say to a few more?”

Before she could open her mouth to respond, dozens of the small red bodies appeared and began leaping on her, climbing with claws and teeth. She twisted and turned, cursed and fought. She was much tougher, more capable than that girl who had first seen these creatures, but there were so many of them. For each one she finished off, two more jumped on. Eventually their weight began to drag her down, and she knew that if her feet went out from under her, if she lost the ability to move, she was finished.

Spurred on by the demon's laughter, she leapt into the air. She flew high and waves of her attackers fell free when she did. She darted straight at the stone above her, turning at the very last second and scraped another half dozen off on the rough surface of the ceiling. Twisting and rolling, she flew through the air, shedding a few of the imps who couldn't keep their grip with the force of her aerobatics.

One at a time, the imps were no threat to her at all, and each one she managed to get her hands on died quickly. But there were still so many of them, and they were able to fly as well. It was like trying to battle a swarm of hornets. They outnumbered her so greatly. Their teeth and claws, their tails and horns were starting to take their toll. They were hurting her faster than she could eliminate them, faster than even her magical healing could repair the damage.

Below her, Ciara was laughing and clapping. She seemed disturbed not at all by the loss of so many imps, in fact, she cheered even more loudly each time Cyd dropped another broken body. In frustration, she began flinging the broken imps at Ciara, but even that just made the ***** laugh.

Cyd cried out when one latched its claws onto her shoulders and began chewing its way into her neck. She reached up with both hands and struggled to pull it free, but it had a solid grip, and while she pulled on it, others were scratching and clawing and biting. It moved quickly past uncomfortable and into excruciating before she managed to rip it loose. She was much closer to the ground than she'd thought, and she was surprised when she heard Conall roar out suddenly, "UP! Stay up! Fool woman! You are too close!"

His warning came too late, however. Her path took her within arms reach of Ciara. The demon pulled both her hands high overhead and her fists slammed down right on the small of Cyd's back. She crumpled to the ground in a stunned heap, sliding and tumbling away. She'd known she was overpowered, but had not had any idea just how strong Ciara truly was. For a moment, her arms and legs simply refused to work at all. She glanced over her shoulder and saw the demon coming for her. Cyd tried to stand, but she was still too shaky. The demon struck and laid open Cyd's leg from hip to calf with her raking claws. The pain was stimulus enough to get her moving again. She pushed herself up and into flight, leaving a trail of bright red blood behind, and Ciara made one last wild swing at her, a bruising blow into the right side of Cyd's ribs as she sped away into the air with imps still clinging to her.

"Fly away, daughter ó Floinn," Ciara taunted. "When I'm ready to kill you, I will. We'll see if you can beg as sweetly as your sister did."

She hurt horribly from the blow, but with so many tiny bodies around her, it was easy enough to pull energy from them to heal herself. The demon below watched, always with a confident smile on her face, as Cyd fought free of the last of the imps. With each one eliminated, the battle became easier, but they were still hurting her. When she finished the last of them, she was exhausted. Her body ached, her costume was torn and bloodied, and her heart and soul were still grieving and worrying.

She landed hard on the stone floor where she'd started. She stumbled a bit, but settled her feet back under herself and straightened. "What next, Ciara?" she demand.

The demoness cocked her head one way and then the other. Her broad leathery wings began to flap, and Ciara lifted into the air, hovering a few feet off the ground. "Why, next? Next you die," Ciara answered.

"Just tell me why, Ciara? Why my family? Why did you start with us so long ago?"

"Prolonging this will not save your life, human child," the demon sneered.

Cyd shifted, trying to find a position that was less painful. "Perhaps not. But I'd like to understand."

The demon laughed, a deep and hearty roar, throwing her head back. "You can not imagine that I have any desire to make this easier for you! Centuries locked away here. CENTURIES! Just waiting for a woman ó Floinn to drop a third daughter. I was so close, so many times. Yet I always knew you would come. I always knew. I just never believed it would take this long. So long just staring at these stone walls, trapped, powerless. All because your many-times-great grandmothers resisted me. I can not have my revenge on them, but I will take it out on you! You will not die easy."

Cyd cocked her head. "I understand why you're mad at me. I just don't understand why you started it, though. Surely there were other sources of power. Why us? Why ours?"

"Human, you are a fool," she spat. "Why? Why? Because I wanted it. That is all that matters. The magic ó Floinn was a shining beacon. My own power was rising, in no small part due to my acquisition of a pair of powerful minions -" Ciara took a step back and grabbed Conall by one horn. She twisted his head back until his mouth twisted with pain and then released him with a contemptuous toss. "But I wanted more. Then I sensed the working of powerful magic. A woman, her red hair streaked with silver, working such intricate magic. I watched her pull the magic into herself and weave it like the knotted belt she wore. I killed her, to take the power from her, but it fled from me. I followed and found your clan. They had claimed that magic, and denied it to me." She tossed a glance back at Conall. "I will not be denied," she sneered. "So I decided I would take it..... And, believe me, daughter ó Floinn, I will take it. It will taste just as sweet ripped it from the bleeding flesh of you and your sisters as it would have have all those years ago. Perhaps... even more sweet." The ancient demon, powerful and reeking of evil, spread her arms wide, flared her wings high. "Enough, human. I have answered all the questions I intend to answer. You hope your friends will arrive in time to save you. They will not. You still hold out hope that you will win. You will not. You can not defeat me. You are going to die by my hands while your blood runs on the floor and your throat is raw from your screams. And your death will begin, now."

----

Sooner Spirit stood alone, ready for battle, ready to throw herself into a combat she knew she couldn’t win. The light was red and dim, the air redolent with the oily scent of pitch from the braziers and torches. Her body ached with exhaustion and bruises that would likely never have the time to form. Her red leather costume was stained with blood and marred with deep scuffs. Her cape, once a proud red and flashing white, hung dirty and tattered around her. Her hood had fallen back from her face, revealing her mussed braid of long, reddish-gold hair. She held her tall, slender frame straight and strong, though she felt the despair of defeat working its way through her soul. She already knew she couldn’t truly hurt the demon. The magic of the prophecy that had shaped her life and doomed her sisters prevented it, but she couldn’t just turn her back and flee either. Not after everything that had happened. The logical thing would be to attempt escape, but they were past logic. Caryn was missing, Cerise was dead, and their mother lay dying in a Paragon City hospital. Her life would be over at the whim of The Beast.

She crouched, ready to fling herself at Ciara, her only goal to do as much damage as she could before the demon finished her.

"SOONER!" hissed a familiar voice.

She was so suprised she took her eyes from Ciara and glanced down. There, behind and below, was Ahren. Her eyes widened in surprise. Ahren was one of very few people she trusted without without question so when he jumped up and grabbed the hem of her cape, she allowed him to tumble her back and down, out of sight.

Ciara's roar reverberated through the cavern, but Cyd didn't even hear it. She began to laugh. A handsome man with dark hair and eyes she assumed was Caryn's Ben crouched nearby but she barely noticed he was there. Ahren had come, at the last minute, and he'd brought victory with him. There was Caryn, a fierce smile on her face, and with them was Cerise. Pale, bruised, and subdued, but alive.

"Alright, 'sisters ó Floinn,'" Ahren coached. "Let's finish this *****. Oh, Cyd.... I think this belongs to you." Ahren reached into his pocked, grabbed Cyd's wrist in his other hand and firmly placed that all important carved ring with three red stones in her palm. "Try to hold onto it this time."

Have a great 4th, wear your red white and blue, and try not to blow off any digits!

Trix got her some nukes.

Happy Canada day to my Canadian friends!

I got my nukes on Ici.

Standing by!

Book III - Part IX is posted.

....I wasn't really happy with this section... but sometimes you just have to let go and move one.

Book III - Part IX

Crowne Memorial Hospital
Zemuron shoved his way into Colleen's room, his attention focused totally on the patient. He ignored the heroes around him as Rastafari Man and Witch-Frost followed Glacius out the window without hesitation, but reached out with one red-skinned hand when Cherished started to go with them.

"Stay here, Cher," he said with a rare note of command in his voice. "There may be more threats."

"But, Zem... she's already..." she protested. She glanced at the blood still dripping from the bed, then back to Zem. "Can you... heal that?"

The rest of the heroes had been focused on the threat, but Zem had been watching Colleen. The change from living human to dead body happened so fast. The attacker had ripped out Colleen's throat and Colleen had arched back, gasping for breath, her hands fluttering frantically at the horrific wound while her blood pumped out of her body. Then in just a few heartbeats, she had slumped motionless. The bright light in her eyes had gone dull and glazed, and now she lay there with blood pooling around her. So fast...

He turned to Cherished and smiled. "Of course I can. Just don't leave us alone in case there's more of them."

He stood to Colleen's right side with his left hand on the ruins of her neck hiding the shredded flesh. His right hand rested on her chest just over her heart. It had once seemed unnatural for a man trained in the sciences to heal this way, but now it was second nature to him. He channeled energy into her and felt the flesh under his left hand began to reform. Once his senses confirmed that the flesh was whole again, he focused his power on her heart. He felt the muscle fibers of her heart begin to tremble and tremor. They wanted to work again, but couldn't' coordinate their efforts into an effective beat. He pressed down over her heart, bringing his other hand over as well. He pushed down and let up just once so that air moved into her lungs. He waited until the heart was ready and then he shoved his power at it. He sent a jolt of energy to the patient's adrenal glands, and gently encouraged her whole body to work harder to heal itself. There was a moment of stillness, then the powerful muscle contracted in one unified effort, shuddered, and then resumed its beating. A few seconds later and Colleen drew in a deep gasping breath, and another.

"Is she-" Cherished started, but Colleen interrupted her. She sat bolt upright in her bloody hospital bed and screamed. Her hands rose to her throat and her fingers played over the smooth intact skin there. She screamed again, and then doubled in volume when she saw all the blood - her blood - in the room. She scrambled out of the bed and would have collapsed if Zem and Cherished hadn't been there to catch her.

"What.... what the HELL is going ON here!?" she demanded when she was finally able to speak.

"Someone - or something - tried to kill you, Mrs. Nation," Zem answered her.

They helped her to the nearby chair and helped her to sit. "You're covered in what I presume is my blood. I'm pretty sure that entitles you to call me Colleen. Both of you."

"Ok, Colleen," Zem agreed. "You rest here. We're going to see to it that you get a new room. Is there anything else you need?"

She drew a tremoring breath. "I'd like some water..... and I want the monsters to stop trying to kill me!" She took a deep trembling breath and looked up at Zem. "I want my daughters to come home."

Ciara's Prison
Trix scurried along the winding tunnels and carved hallways, trying to put as much distance between herself and Ciara's throne room as possible. It wasn't cowardice. She would have gladly been there to fight to help free Conall, but she couldn't help him. She was forbidden to use her magic for him. And if Ciara thought to issue the order, Trix could be compelled to fight against Conall. Since her presence could not help, and could only hurt, she ran. She hoped to get far enough away that even if Ciara did think to summon her, it would take so long for her to return that it wouldn't matter.

She paused in an arched doorway leading into yet another trophy room. The demoness certainly did enjoy keeping trophies, Trix had encountered several already. But something in this room caught her attention. She crept inside, and slipped behind an elaborate tapestry marred by a large bloodstain nearly black with age. She peered out from behind and ran her gaze over the baubles and shinies. This was where Ciara kept her true prizes, Trix realized. These trophies reeked of magic. She bravely left the safety of the tapestry and approached the displays. With a childlike glee she began trailing her claws and even the barbed tip of her tail over the magical treasures. So much power contained within these crystals and pendants, brooches, vases, phylacteries, figurines....

She lifted a statuette in her fingers, turning it in the light. It was of a delicate female imp, carved of some red stone. It was beautiful and reeked of power. Trix decided right then that if they ever managed to get free... that figurine would be hers.

King's Row
Outside the hospital, there was a brief moment of silence. The devil and the peacebringer were still tangled together where they'd landed. Na'rul and Glacius were both stunned by the impact of their fall, but they began to come back to themselves slowly. They rolled away from each other, Na'rul coughing and gasping for breath as she struggled to hands and knees, Glacius shaking his head and trying to push up on one knee. The demons crashed to earth around them, but they milled about, confused, while their mistress was still coming back to her senses. The few pedestrians who had stopped to stare fled in terror from the monsters falling from the sky, but then Rastafari Man and Witch-Frost arrived.

Witch wasted no time at all summoning a winter storm over the devil and her pets. The cold, biting wind, the stinging pelting frozen rain hurt Na'rul horribly, but it also roused her and her mind was finally able to work again. She managed to get to her feet and then lifted into the air. She glanced around for an escape. There was no need to remain here and fight these heroes now that her task was done, but the heroes did not seem inclined to let her just leave.

She glanced quickly about the busy modern city unlike anything she'd ever seen before. Buildings so tall she was certain that they must have been constructed by magic surrounded her. The entire city was grey and dreary, with the exception of the few trees, captured inside small pens of grass. Just a few feet from her a metal box of people roared and suddenly darted away from her. She didn't understand it, wasn't sure if she liked it, and didn't want to be there any longer. She took off like a shot straight up.

She made it nearly to the rooftop of one of the tall buildings before shards of ice formed around her feet and legs and dragged her back to earth. Her demons turned to fix six sets of angry glowing eyes on Witch-Frost. Na'rul struggled to free herself from biting cold holding her in place as her demons began to focus their attacks on Witch. Rastafari Man helped Glacius to his feet and then the pretty blue-skinned devil with her horrific demon pets faced off against the three heroes. Na'rul smiled and sent her demons on the attack.

Ciara's Prison
Cyd was filled with a sick mixture of dread, resignation, and relief when she realized she'd found Ciara. The carved stone tunnel rose up suddenly, and when she reached the top, she could see down into a large spacious room. She got her first sight of the enormous demoness who had done so much damage to Cyd's family for generations back into time. Cyd reacted in a flash, diving back out of sight. She didn't think she'd been seen.

She carefully looked again, moving slowly and keeping to the shadows. Yes, there she was. Ciara prowled around the spacious room, confident and strong. Cyd studied her enemy, watching the way she moved. She looked closer, watching the magic, and frowned at how much magic circled around the demon. Cyd sighed sadly. And after today, there would be more, the demoness would be even stronger. Cyd would fight her hardest, but she could already see she was outmatched.

Cyd watched the magic in the room intently, studied it. She could clearly recognize the magic freed from Cerise, and it twinged her heart to see it. It flowed in an agitated swirl high above the room. There was a narrow tendril of magic from Cyd herself that ran into one of a pair of darkly glowing spheres sitting atop a pedestal, and another tendril flowing from somewhere to the west into the second sphere. That meant Caryn was still out there somewhere... and the lack of a third was just another confirmation that their baby sister was dead. Almost all the rest of the magic in the room gathered on Ciara Banenighe.

Cyd cocked her head, considering. It was as if the lair itself was powering her. And there was another source, coming from within the room itself. It was another demon, chained to a stone pillar. Her brows rose in surprise, was that.... Conall Cian? Evidently Ahren's "Enemy of my Enemy" theory was correct, Conall certainly didn't appear to be aligned with Ciara. He slumped with his head down, appearing utterly defeated. And there was quite a lot of magic flowing from him into Ciara. Could killing Conall weaken Ciara? Did she have the heart to kill a helpless opponent, even one as vile as Conall?

She moved back out of sight, and considered her options. She could throw herself in there and likely die, or she could wait, try to find Caryn, work together.... maybe.... maybe they could find a way to use Cerise's magic themselves, and it would be like they were all three there. No.... she wouldn't just throw away her life uselessly. She was grieving for Cerise, worrying about her mother, but neither of them would be helped by Cydney throwing away her life. She began to creep away, hoping to find Caryn, and that's when Ciara spoke.

"I know you are there, daughter ó Floinn. Come out and let us meet."

Cyd peeked around the rocks to find Ciara staring right at her hiding spot. But Cyd's attention was caught by Conall. His head lifted ever so slightly and his eyes focused on Ciara. An expression of purest hatred crossed his face and its intensity distracted her for a moment from Ciara's words.

"Do not hide like a mouse," Ciara called. "You come from a proud line of fighters. Do not shame your family line by behaving like a coward. Come to me."

"I think not!" Cyd called back. "Come out to make it easier for you to kill me?"

"Oh, I will get to that in time, you may be assured. But I had no time to meet your sister before my pet here killed her, I would like to correct that oversight with you. Since your magic will live on in me for eternity."

Cyd allowed herself a moment to grieve for the life that she could have had, the good times with good friends and family, the opportunities she would miss. There would be more problems in Paragon City and she wouldn't be there to help... but there would be Ghosts there to stand in for her. She grieved for Caryn and Ahren still lost here somewhere, and likely to die soon after Cyd did. One last sigh... the maternal line ó Floinn was going to die out, the family standing between Ciara Banenighe and the world, and she grieved for the harm that would released into the world when Ciara was free. Then she put it behind her and stepped out to face Ciara.

Hey... Thanks for the comment. It was quite a surprise to see this pop back up on my subscribed threads list.

I think you'll see Six-Four growing with time as the stories progress. There's a section in the story I'm posting right now in Protector forums that was written under the "working title" of "The Redemption of Six-Four."

I even have my Jetstream costume ready to go.

So... ah... Saturdays are difficult for me. I can usually promise I'll be home by 3:30 - 4 CST, but I can't PROMISE any earlier than that.

Anything they can do on another server, we can do BETTER!!!

I'll be there.

I'll claim Jetstream.

I've seen it. Hence the numerous debates on whether Warren is a blaster or a tank... he has several tank animations, but has some ranged attacks as well....

Of COURSE I'd be in.

I'll be there with Trix!

Book III - Part VIII is posted.

Sorry for the delay, I'm afraid real life got a bit real last week.

Book III - Part VIII

Crowne Memorial Hospital
In his old life, before he was assigned to an experimental space station, before that station exploded, burned his skin red and granted him his powers, Zemuron had been a doctor in a hospital much like this. He leafed casually through a waiting room magazine, but something was bothering him, working in the back of his mind. Something was not right. He glanced at Witch-Frost, still busily working away in her notebook and smiled fondly at his old friend. Glacius still paced about the lobby, his agitation showing in the way the Kheldian energy leaked from his eyes, his hands, trailed in his foot steps. Zem was pretty sure if Glacius didn't get to punch something soon, he might just start chewing the wallpaper.

Zem stood and stretched. "I think I'll go check on Colleen, quick," he announced to the room, and began his long legged stroll down the hallway. Cherished leaned her back against the wall outside Colleen's room, but despite her casual attitude, she watched alertly

Zem paused in the doorway, "Good evening, Cherished," he said as he watched as the nurse study the chart. He cocked his head. Something definitely wasn't right. "How is she?" he asked the nurse.

The pretty red-head in the dark blue scrubs startled and glanced up, and the look in her eyes made his suspicions begin to crystallize. Beside him, Cherished became aware of his tension and she began turning to face the room as well.

At Zem's voice, Colleen stirred. Her eyes fluttered open and she smiled up at the nurse. "Oh, you're new," she said. "I haven't seen you before." Colleen glanced at the nurse's name tag and frowned. "Wait.... you're not Amy," she said and sat up, alarmed.

The nurse froze, and her eyes locked on Zem's. Cherished stepped forward and took a ready stance. The moment stretched, and then the "nurse" flung the chart at Zem. Cherished's hand burst into flame and she started to advance into the room, but the nurse sketched a glowing design in the air - drawing it with living fire - and suddenly a noisy eruption shook the floor behind them. Before Zem could do more than flinch from the flying chart, one of the demons in the hallway clobbered him, slamming him back into the door frame.

Na'rul, Ciara Banenighe, and Conall Cian - even little Excruciatrix - possessed a terrible beauty. Their forms were of ideal humans, fit, muscular, well proportioned bodies, and smooth faces with exceptionally attractive features. The addition of horns, fangs, claws, and tails, the tinting of their skins to colors that no human could ever be revealed their diabolic nature and made them more fearsome, but their essential perfection of face and body remained. Terrible and fearsome beauty. Na'rul's demons, however, possessed none of that beauty. They were just terrible and fearsome.

Cherished bellowed, "We've got TROUBLE!" She was correctly focused on the danger in the room rather the danger behind them, but she couldn't get free of their attackers to act.

Ciara's Prison
Ben knelt on Cerise's right side and sought to reach that calm place that Grandfather had taught him. Caryn positioned herself to Cerise's left, across from Ben, and took Cerise's cold and motionless fingers in both her hands. Ahren went to one knee nearby, his head bowed. Grandfather stood quietly at Ben's shoulder.

"You must hurry, youngster... time is not your friend." the spirit urged.

Ben reached down into the earth, seeking that energy. It was familiar to him now, and once he calmed, it came to him easily enough. He drew on it, more than he'd ever drawn before, and then poured it into the body of the dead girl before him. "Good, Benjamin, very good," Grandfather murmured, and Ben pushed even more energy at Cerise. He opened one eye and was filled with elation and hope when the horrible gashes on her belly began to narrow and close. Caryn reached out and smoothed the torn leather over the now unmarked skin of Cerise's belly, but the body lay quiet, no breath, no color, no warmth.

Caryn's eyes flicked from Cerise to Ben and he could see the hope and the question in them. He nodded at her unspoken, "Keep trying," and drew more energy into himself so he would have it to give to Cerise.

Nothing happened, nothing changed, and Ben was starting to feel the strain. He was more than just a conduit for the energy and it was becoming tiring to continue.

"What's wrong?" Caryn asked finally.

Grandfather's eyes shifted away. "But you must," the spirit said abruptly. "It doesn't matter what you want, that you are tired. You are needed."

Ben started to turn to answer Grandfather, to explain that he wasn't giving up, that he knew how important this was, but then his eyes widened and he looked at Caryn. "Grandfather is talking to Cerise.... I think."

Caryn blinked and looked up at the glowing spirit. "Tell her we love her! Tell her how much we need her back!"

Grandfather ignored the living in the room, "Youngster, pain IS part of life. As is joy, and sorrow, and love. But none of that matters. You have a task here, and it is not finished."

Ben held Caryn's gaze. "I don't think she wants to come back," he said sorrowfully.

Crowne Memorial Hospital
She had expected this to be so much easier. An already injured human resting in a place of healing.... she had not expected a challenge once she reached her target. Ciara had not warned her the human woman would be guarded by Heroes. Na'rul summoned more of her demon pets to slow down the two heroes. It was so important that she succeed, but for Na'rul, escaping with her life was especially important. So long.... she'd been locked away for so very long. Nothing to see but the same stone walls, nothing to hear but her own voice, nothing to feel but the stone at her back, no odor, no taste. And now she could move again, breath fresh air, feel things, see things, hear, smell, taste. She enjoyed each new sensation and she craved more. She was not ready to be locked away again, as she surely would be if she failed and she was certainly not ready to die. Though she was alone in the room with her target, she had no escape. Killing the already injured human would not be a challenge, but dying for one of Ciara's errands was not acceptable. And so she fought.

She lashed at the heroes with her magical whip, striking the woman called Cherished with the lash and earning a furious glare in return. She poured her energy into her demons, supporting them, powering them. Whenever a bit of human flesh crossed the threshold, she struck out with her magical lash again. But then the Heroes from the lobby arrived to help, Na'rul finally began to suspect she might not be able to win the fight. She hissed with frustration and moved closer to her target. Perhaps she could bargain with the woman's life for her escape - a bargain that would leave a loophole for her to complete her task, of course. Whatever else happened, she would succeed.

Cherished finally pushed her way into the room. "You get away from her!" the hero demanded. Her hands flared with fire and her eyes flashed angrily.

Na'rul quietly allowed her right hand to change back to its natural form. She slipped that hand under the blankets and laid the points of her claws on Colleen's throat. "You cannot hurt me, human. Your fire will harm the one you want to protect as well as me."

Colleen gasped as she felt the needle-like points close on her throat, but Cherished never took her eyes from Na'rul. "Just back away from her. No one needs to get hurt here."

Na'rul's gaze flicked back to the hallway where a light unlike anything she'd seen before flared. Her demons fought bravely, but the Heroes were just more powerful. The red skinned man did not appear to be especially proficient at hand-to-hand, but he was fighting back, and he appeared to be empowering his allies. A winter's storm was raging just outside the door, one powered by a impressive depth of power. There was a sickening green energy assulting her demons and weakening them. And there was a man, big, muscular and white-haired. He flared with white-hot power and he fought like a demon himself to get the red-skinned man free of the demons. Na'rul cocked her head at him. He was not like the other humans. Her curiosity was just another sensation she hadn't felt in far too long, and it was getting the better of her as well. She was very curious what manner of creature that one was.

The red skinned man scrambled free and began to lob dark energy back into the fight, but the white haired man, the one glowing like a star, shoved his way into the room. His eyes flared with a blazing hot energy so intense that for a moment it reminded her of Conall at his most furious. "I don't know who you are, *****, or what you have in mind, but you will take your hand from that woman or I will take it off for you," he growled.

So interested was she that she barely even heard his words. That power, it was so strange and beautiful. She wondered what was its source, and could she find a way to use it. She cocked her head again, "What are you?" she asked finally.

He moved from stillness to attack so quickly that Na'rul almost didn't have time to react. He didn't just leap at her, he lifted into the air and flung himself through the air at her. He covered the few feet between them in the span of a few heartbeats. He slammed into her, his bulk driving her back, his momentum knocking her off her feet, his power slamming them both into the curtain covered window behind them. They smashed through the window in a crystalline cascade of glass shards and a sudden flare of sunshine contrasting sharply with the dim light inside the hospital room.

They fell together, the surprise instantly transforming her back to her true form. Her wings wrapped up around them both, and her tail fluttered in the wind of their fall like bit of rope in a strong breeze. Whatever that white energy was, it surrounded them both and her skin vibrated with the power of it. Their bodies plummeted toward the earth stories below, but even in her surprise, she reacted instantly. Her hand shot up over his back and she began sketching designs in the air. Demons formed in the air above them, falling after them both.

She could see his face when he braced for the impact, so she took that moment to bring her right hand to her chest to show him the blood, blood she'd ripped from Colleen Nation. Her claws had shredded the woman's neck, and the force of his blow had helped. "I win," she laughed.

Then they slammed into the sidewalk of King's Row, their combined force shattering the sidewalk underneath them.

Today!

And... they vahe my $20 bucks

Here's my $20 bucks! OPEN UP!

Book III - Part VII is up, now that I have my internet back!

Book III - Part VII

Ciara's Prison
Trix was a tiny and dainty creature and Cerise Nation had been nearly twice her height. Slender the hero might have been, but she was still much larger than Trix. Nonetheless, Trix complied with Ciara's orders. Not her wishes, necessarily, but her orders. She dragged the body behind her out of the large stone room, not even glancing back at Conall. No, Better to let Ciara forget that a small, resentful imp was still loose in her lair.

When she was well out of sight, and hopefully out of mind as well, Trix released her grip on the dead human's wrists and tried to pour her own energy into her. She tried... she knew could make the heart beat again, the lungs to breathe again, than her magic could support the human and bring her back. But that compulsion stopped her again. She could not use her magic to aid Conall, and bringing this hero back to life would definitely aid him. She tried to convince herself that it had nothing to do with Conall, that she was trying to resurrect the hero for her own reasons... but nothing. She could not use her magic to bring Cerise Nation back to life.

She spat out an angry curse and indulged herself in a single frustrated foot stomp. Time was the enemy. The more time passed away, the less likely it would become that any magic could help the human. Finally, she stuffed the parts that were not supposed to be outside back inside and rearranged the leather bustier to cover the death wound as much as possible. Then she grabbed the human's wrists and began dragging the body again.

She did NOT seek out any of Ciara's imps to find out where the refuse should go - as the demoness had suggested - she just kept moving, ever further from Ciara.

Crowne Memorial Hospital
Witch-Frost sketched intently in her notebook while Glacius paced like a caged tiger, Rasta pretended to snooze, and Zemuron leafed through a magazine. "I think... maybe.... I've got it," she murmured. "Glacius, do you remember? Did this glyph curve deiseal or widdershins?"

Glacius glanced at the drawing, then back to Witch-Frost. "Witch, I don't have the faintest clue what you just said, but it looks ok to me, I guess." He looked up as the elevator door opened and a pretty nurse entered the floor pushing a cart, an attractive redhead with a curvy body not well hidden by her scrubs. He glanced at her name badge and noticed the special keycard that allowed admittance to this floor. "Were there this many, ah... wavy lines over here?" he asked when he turned his attention back to Witch's drawing.

Witch raised a brow at him. "Magic really isn't your thing, is it?"

"Just keep trying, Witch-Frost," he said. "Our friends are counting on us."

She sighed, considered telling him how hopeless this task was, then shook it off and went back to work. He might have been right. There probably were too many wavy lines....

None of them paid any more attention to Na'rul as she continued down the hall and into Colleen Nation's room.

Ciara's Prison
Trix knew she couldn't continue far dragging the body with her, so when she found a space between a pair of rocks she stuffed the body inside and hid it as much as possible by stacking nearby rocks. Then she took to flight and began looking for help. The girl's sisters should be here. She wouldn't stop until she found them, but the place was a labyrinth. She carefully marked the spot and began her quest for help.

To her pleased surprise, she rounded just one corner when she saw movement ahead. The woman was clearly one of the sisters, her short red hair the exact same color as the dead one. There were two men with her, and they were moving fast toward Ciara's throne room.

Trix was considerably smarter and more cunning than she allowed others to see. It took her just moments to calculate the best route to intercept the trio, and she immediately reversed her course to get ahead of them. She also knew that if they spotted a demon, even one as small as her, they were likely to try to kill her on sight. So, as she flew, she used the ability to change her shape she learned from Conall. She formed the image in her mind of a pixie she'd played with long ago and concentrated on her form.

Her red bat-like wings changed in mid-stroke to pretty pink, red, and purple sparkling butterfly wings. Her skin turned a deep forest green, her claws shrank back into her fingers, and her tail vanished. She left the rest of the details alone, tiny and dainty would work just fine for the role she would take on, and she would only need to play it for a few moments.

Her timing was perfect. She made it to the crossroads flying frantically just before the heroes. She raced ahead, casting terrified glances behind her. However, she was taken completely by surprise when she slammed into a human chest she hadn't seen. She tumbled down to crash onto the stone floor, but meek and frightened was a familiar role to her. She rolled herself up into a tight ball and cried out “Do not hurt me please!”

The man became visible, a tall, powerful human with dark hair and eyes. “Who are you? WHAT are you? What are you doing here?”

She put her hands up in a frightened warding gesture, “Trixie! I'm Trixie!” she cried. “I need help, please! Help for the girl!”

The man glanced to his right, where the other two were surely hiding, “What girl?”

“The human! The red-haired human girl! Ciara killed her.”

The man frowned. “Damn... I'd hoped Caryn was wrong about that.”

Before he could say more, the sister darted into sight. “You have Cerise?”

Trix cocked her head at the sister. “She looked like you. I have her body. Can you come and help her?”

The second man appeared, stalking closer. His eyes were dark and suspicious. This one was even bigger and broader than the dark haired one, but Trix lived in the company of Conall Cian. No human was big and powerful enough to truly impress her. “How did you come to have the body?" He demanded. "What are you doing here?”

She cowered from that one, refusing to even look his way. “She ordered an imp to take it for disposal. I took it away instead, and hoped I could find someone who could help her."

A glowing spirit appeared beside the dark haired man, and he looked at it. “I can do what?” he asked.

“Ben?” the sister asked.

“Oh! Grandfather says you can't hear him. He says I should look at the... look at her.” The one called Ben looked back at Trix. “Take us to her, Trixie?”

“Yes! Yes! Hurry! Too much time has passed already!” Trix took to her wings and hurried back to the girl's body. She started to remove the rocks, but the sister knocked her aside and tossed the rocks out of the way.

“Oh.... it's Cerise. And....Ahren, she's dead.” the sister turned away, her face ashen.

With the Heroes attention completely on the body of the dead girl, Trix faded carefully away. She would have liked to have joined with them and helped defeat Ciara, but the demoness could compel her to obey. Better to stay away entirely than risk being forced to fight against the ones who could free her - and Conall - from Ciara.

---

Ben put an arm around Caryn and turned her away from the sight of her sister's body stuffed into the rocks like a bit of trash. Ahren carefully reached in and pulled the body out, laying it carefully on the stone floor. The wound that had killed her was partially covered by her top, but enough was visible to explain her colorless complexion.

Grandfather crouched nearby. “Benjamin. It is up to you. Find the power, give it to her. You can bring her back.”

"What do I do?" Ben asked urgently.

"Find that power within the earth, and give to her."

"Ben? Can you...?" Caryn asked, and the look in her eyes...

"Grandfather says I can."

An expression of doubt passed over the spirit's face. “If it hasn't been too long.”

Ben looked back up at Grandfather. "What?! I just told her I could do it!"

Caryn frowned. "What's going on?"

Grandfather went on, "If the spirit has been gone too long from the body, nothing you can do can save her. But you MUST try."

Ben looked at Caryn's green eyes once again, and back at Grandfather. "If it can be done, I'll do it." he said with more confidence than he really felt.

"Please Ben... please." Caryn pleaded softly.

"Hold up!" Ahren said suddenly. "Where did that little fairy-thing go?"

"If I'm going to do this, I have to start now!" Ben said.

"I don't trust this, what was it doing down here?"

"Ahren she was clearly terrified," Caryn said, "And look... it's Cerise. What choice do we have?"

Ahren didn't answer, he just nodded grimly and kept casting about for Trixie.

"Go, Ben, go!" Caryn urged. "Bring my sister back, please!"

Crowne Memorial Hospital
Na'rul maintained a bored, mildly distracted expression on her face as she walked past the humans in the lobby and down the hall. As expected, in her role of nurse, the humans ignored her. Another waited, a woman wearing a skin baring red, yellow, and orange costume. The costume and the power Na'rul could sense from her made her one of this world's Heroes, but Na'rul's disguise might as well have made her invisible. The Hero glanced at her, flicked a glance at her name badge, nodded, and continued looking around.

As she had observed others in her role doing, Na'rul picked up the metal backed chart from the foot of the bed and proceeded to glance over it. While still appearing to read, she carefully assessed the situation. Her target was a human woman with numerous bruises and bandages visible. She'd obviously been badly injured recently and that was why she was in this healing place. She was dozing quietly, and Na'rul dismissed the target as a threat to her success.

The hero at the door, however.... Even though that one was more intent on watching the hallway, she did turn back into the room periodically. She was obviously standing guard, but she assumed the security measures that guarded access to this floor meant that the "nurse" inside the room was not a threat. That didn't mean she wouldn't react when blood started flowing, and Na'rul had no intention of failing. She would take her time and get it right.

She stared down at the chart as if studying it intently while she considered how best to succeed in her task and still escape with her life.

Now I wish Rastaroo a happy birthday.

Happy birthday!