Alpha Ch. 08

"Cut the bullshit. We need to get to the Archives." Anton didn't allow anyone else to speak. He knew they all had questions for his brother but they didn't have time to waste.

"The Archives? Interesting. What business do you have with my Archives?" Baal pushed his dreaded hair away from his face and his strange eyes gleamed excitedly.

"We need information." Ealasaid proffered and Baal smiled fondly.

"And you'll find it sweet girl. All of my favourite stories are in the Archives."

"We ned to go now. You can fuck about all you want once you get us there but we're in a bit of a hurry." Anton was getting agitated and Baal held his hands up.

"Very well I will take you." Baal began to speak in the same language that Anton had used. Ealasaid watched in awe as a large stone door appeared in the middle of the kitchen, the same thing had happened in Purgatory and she knew that the door would take her to another world.

"So," Baal looked back at the group in excitement. "Who's coming?"

"The rest of you don't have to come. I don't want you to get swept up in anything else because of me. I've caused you all enough trouble." Guilt dripped from Ealasaid's words.

"Shut up you stupid little girl, of course I'm coming." Anton stepped to her and chucked her under her chin. Standing beside her he watched the rest of the Council.

"You think I'm letting you go without me then you're crazy." Jaylon joined them.

"You're my Alpha. I'll follow you anywhere." Elena came next.

"Nix watch the kids; I've got work to do." Corban kissed his Mate before stepping forward.

Lucius was quiet. Ealasaid watched him carefully, she could see the thoughts running through his head and nervousness crept into her chest.

"I'm not losing anyone else. We're going to find him and then I'm bringing us back home. I don't care what it takes." Lucius joined the others.

Nix's blue eyes passed over the assembled group, there were tears there. She took a deep, shuddering breath and stood tall looking at her family.

"If you guys don't fucking come back I'll come and drag you out of Hell myself." She said forcefully.

"What makes you think we'd go to Hell?" Corban asked.

"Well we ain't fucking getting into Heaven." Jaylon smirked.

Nix nodded with a choked laugh. Her hands came to her mouth and she forced back the tears. "Just be careful."

Ealasaid blew her a kiss and turned back to Baal. She didn't say anything; she didn't have to. He opened the door and waved his arm towards it.

"Time to go."

Ealasaid went first. They filed through the door and found themselves in a stone corridor. The air was cold and still. It was lit by candles along the walls that bathed the stones in a flickering light and made their shadows dance beside them.

Baal stepped to the front of the group and began to walk down the corridor. Ealasaid fell into step alongside him. Instantly the heat from his body stopped the chill running through her and she relaxed.

The corridor stretched on ahead of them, the only sounds were their feet on the stone floor. they were completely silent as they walked, each of them realised the importance of where they were going and it weighed heavily on them.

Finally, they came upon another huge stone door and Baal stopped in front of it. Raising his hand, he pressed it against the door and a thunderous sound came from the other side. It sounded like a lock sliding out of place and they waited as the door swung open.

The Archives were gigantic. The ceiling stretched high above their heads and the room was lit by sunlight that streamed through the huge circular window in the ceiling. The walls were lined with books, each story filled with bookcases that reached nearly twenty feet high and winding staircases ran around the walls allowing access to the higher floors. The shelves continued away from them, out of sight, they seemed to stretch on for miles. The floor was covered in an intricate mosaic depicting two groups of people converging on a luscious green field.

"The Holy War." Baal offered when he saw what Ealasaid was looking at. "A reminder of a past we never want to relive."

"What was it like?" Ealasaid couldn't help but ask. Her curiosity about Baal was growing every time she was close to him. She wanted to know everything she could.

"The world had to be rebuilt, everything was destroyed leaving nothing like when the world was new. It was almost beautiful." Baal moved away before she could say anything else and looked back at the group.

"The information gathered here is at your disposal. All I ask is that you take nothing outside of these walls without my permission. I have grown very fond of these writings in my time. I would hate to loose any." Baal waited until they had all nodded before speaking again.

"Time passes differently in the Archives. What feels like an hour to you can be a day to the outside world. I will be here to ensure you do not loose yourselves in this place. I will help in any way I can."

"Thank you. We'll need all the help we can get." Ealasaid spoke sincerely.

"There is no order to the Archives. I didn't think that far ahead, I never thought anyone would ever see it but there is plenty of information here about the Order. I have documented them since the beginning. Dive in, there's no time to waste."

Instantly the group scattered. Within minutes each of them sat at a large table in the middle of the room, pouring over heavy volumes of information. Ealasaid looked around and felt a surge of pride at the intense expressions. They all put their lives on hold to help their fellow Pack member. Ealasaid smiled and turned her attention back to the book in front of her.

Even without Drago with them, Ealasaid knew she had found her family.

*

Five days passed. Baal was right, time moved differently in the Archives. To them it felt as though no longer than a few hours had gone by since they had started. The pile of books continued to grow around them and noises of frustration began to echo through the room.

"Fuck." Corban slumped back in his seat and rubbed his hands over his face violently. "We're running out of time. We're never going to find anything in this place."

"This is our best chance. This place contains the most knowledge ever collected. If it's not here, we won't find it." Anton sounded tired but there was still a steely determination in his words.

"Where did you find all of these books anyway?" Elena asked Baal who shrugged a broad shoulder.

"I wrote many of them. It was something to pass the time."

"Then can't you tell us where to find out about Daddy? If you wrote them, you must remember something." Corban still sounded frustrated.

"I have been collecting and documenting information since the very dawn of time. Long before the Holy War, millions of years before life was created, back when God created the heavens and seas and the skies. We are older than you can imagine and younger than you have ever been. You must forgive me if I don't remember everything I have ever written about." Baal turned and walked away through the shelves.

Ealasaid glanced at Anton who nodded minutely before she followed him between the shelves. She caught up with him and began to walk alongside him amongst the books.

"So how did it happen?" She asked and Baal's eyes flickered down to her in amusement.

"How did what happen?"

"The creation of the world. Who had it right?"

Baal laughed and stopped. Reaching out he gently touched her cheek and drank her in. "Such a curious little lamb. So desperate to understand the world."

"You were there for the beginning of the world. That's something that people since the beginning of time have argued about. Why wouldn't I want to know?" Ealasaid stood her ground refusing to be intimidated by him.

Baal smirked and tucked her hair behind her ear. "It was an explosion, a deafening explosion that I can still hear. It rocked even Heaven, we all felt it. It was the first fear we had ever experienced."

"You were afraid?"

"Terrified. It sounded like our world was ended as he created something new. We thought he had grown tired of us and was starting over."

"So he made you?"

"He made the all the Angels, and after Lucifer took his Lilith he created the Demons. People have it right when they say God created everything but he experimented. It was a joy to watch the dinosaurs and the evolution of man kind. Truly his best work." Baal smiled as he reminisced.

"How old are you?" Ealasaid asked in awe making Baal laugh again.

"If I told you, you wouldn't believe me." he turned and pulled a book from the shelf.

Taking one last look at her he chucked her under the chin before walking back to where the others were congregated. Dropping the book into the middle of them he spoke quickly.

"This is the last book containing any information about the Order. If it's not in there we'll probably never find out who or where Daddy is."

Lucius instantly grabbed the book and began to scan the pages. It wasn't long before his eyes went wide and he clutched the book so tightly that his knuckles went white. Waving his hand, he waited until they all focussed on him and spoke excitedly.

"I've found him. He's the son of Edsel Carlisle, the founder of the Order. He had one son named Elyas. According to this Elyas was killed by a prisoner in the Order but came back. No one knew what he was but everything is here. He could control people, he liked to collect things and posses them. It says after the transformation he had orange eyes and two horns like the Devil." Lucius looked up from the book with a determined light in his eyes. "It's got to be him right?"

"It would make sense. I mean even the Senior Agents didn't dare stop him from doing what he did. If his father created the Order, then no one would question what he was doing." Elena leant closer as the pieces began to fit together.

"We have to be sure. We're running out of time, if this isn't right we won't ever find him." Anton chimed in but Lucius interrupted him.

"It says here that Elyas was born in England in 1646. A church called St Paul's Chapel in Yorkshire. It's still there, one of the oldest churches in England."

"So you think that's where he's gone?" Ealasaid looked over Lucius' shoulder at the page in the book. A simple family tree was inked there and she looked at the portrait of the young boy.

"He said before he was Daddy he was somebody's son. This was the place he grew up; he was a child here. This has to be it." Elena looked about as she spoke waiting for the opinion of her fellow Pack mates.

"It's the only thing we've found this whole time. I don't think he could mean anything else." Jaylon sounded tired and cricked his neck.

"Then that's where we're going." Ealasaid said decidedly.

"Not tonight you're not." Baal spoke and the group rounded on him.

He laughed softly at their reactions and held his hands up defensively. "You've been in here for five days. When you leave it will hit you, you will be exhausted, starving and probably a little messed up from the things you read about here. You won't be able to help anyone in the state you'll be in. Trust me, even I'm affected when leaving the Archives."

"He's right. We should all get some sleep and go tomorrow. We need to be at our strongest if we're going to take him down." Anton reluctantly agreed with his brother.

"We can't leave Oana there another night. Who knows what Daddy's doing to her?" Lucius sounded frantic and Ealasaid shushed him gently.

"We're more of a danger to her than a help at the moment. If we go in there tired and crazy he'll kill her and all of us in a second. If you want her back, then we have to be smart about this."

Ealasaid could see the war behind Lucius' eyes before he finally nodded curtly.

"Fine, but we go tomorrow."

"At first light." Jaylon stretched and pulled Elena to his side. Baal lead them back to the huge doors and placed his hand against the stone.

Again the sound of a lock turning filled their ears before the doors opened and they looked out into the softly lit corridor. Five more doors lined one wall and Baal motioned them to them one by one.

"I would like to join you tomorrow. This will be something to write about." Baal's eyes focussed on Anton as he spoke. His tone was playful but Ealasaid could see the trepidation there. He wanted to help his brother, try and salvage a tiny piece of the relationship they had once shared.

"The King of Hell fighting on our side. Why wouldn't we take that?" Jaylon spoke excitedly but Ealasaid and Baal kept their attention on Anton.

Anton finally nodded brusquely and Baal breathed a sigh of relief. One by one they entered the doors that lead them back to their homes.

Finally, only Ealasaid and Baal were left. He motioned to the last door with a smirk and she skipped through it. The second she stepped foot into the apartment a hunger hit her hard enough that she stumbled. She clutched her stomach as her knees collapsed seconds later as the tiredness gripped her but before she hit the ground a strong arm wrapped around her waist. Baal pulled her back against his chest, lifted her with one arm and walked purposefully through to the kitchen.

He deposited her on the floor and she fell to her knees as she yanked the fridge open. Grabbing the first thing she could reach, some left over roast chicken, she tore the meat from the bone and leant back against the cold shelves.

"I told you all that you'd be hungry." Baal's smirk was still firmly plastered on his face as he left the kitchen and headed to the bar.

Ealasaid tore another hunk of chicken from the carcass and closed her eyes on a soft moan. "I'm always hungry."

Baal laughed and Ealasaid could hear him bustling about behind the bar. He returned moments later with two glasses, a bucket of ice and a bottle of scotch. Placing his finds on floor he folded his large body to sit with his back leaning against the huge island of the open kitchen. Rolling up the sleeves of his expensive dress shirt he undid the second button at his neck, opening it wider to her gaze, before scooping ice into the glasses and topping them up with a healthy measure of scotch.

Ealasaid reached out and grabbed one of the glasses and drank deeply. Her hunger was beginning to subside and the tiredness started to creep up her body. Looking back into his red eyes she asked her next question.

"Does it affect you anymore?"

Baal shook his head. "Not anymore baby. I don't eat or sleep like you do so a few days without them doesn't matter to me."

"Do you spend a lot of time in the Archives?" Ealasaid asked around another mouthful of chicken.

"When I can. I like to look over my memories of my time here."

"It's a really beautiful place. I would like to explore it if you would let me?" She asked, her voice was husky, soft from tiredness and Baal clenched his fists as lust slammed into his gut.

Gritting his teeth, he nodded. "Anytime. Next time hopefully we'll be in less of a rush and I can give you the full tour."

"I'd like that." Ealasaid's voice was still sleepy and her head lolled back against the shelves in the fridge.

"You ready to go to bed?" Baal asked but she shook her head violently.

"I don't want to go to sleep yet. It's hard to sleep when Drago isn't in bed with me." Ealasaid didn't open her eyes as she spoke but Baal heard the tenderness in her voice as she spoke about her Mate.

"When did you know?" Baal asked and Ealasaid turned her head lazily to face him.

"Know what?"

"That he was your Mate?" Baal was fidgeting as he spoke. It was the first time Ealasaid had seen him look uncomfortable.

"I think I must have known from the first time I saw him. It was like I had been waiting for him to walk into the diner my whole life. I'd never felt anything like it before." Ealasaid suddenly noticed the look on Baal's face. Reaching over she took his hand into hers.

Her hand was tiny in his and she laced their fingers together. Her thumb stroked his palm and he pulled her to rest against his side.

"I always hoped that when we met you would choose me. I waited for so long and now it's too late." Baal's voice was unreadable. Ealasaid wanted to turn her head and look up into his eyes but knew she would see a sadness there that she wouldn't want to confront. Instead she kept her eyes on their entwined hands.

"I'm sorry. You've spent your whole life helping others, what about you?"

"What about me?" Baal's free hand rested loosely around the back of her neck and stroked the soft skin there.

"Who is going to help you?"

"I don't need any help baby. I know what my life entails, I accepted it long ago. I just want to know that you and Ipos are happy."

"But that's not fair. You deserve someone to make you happy too." Ealasaid finally looked into his eyes and help her heart stutter at the heat there.

"I will be. I will live forever, get to see how the world progresses and how it all ends. I have seen things people can only imagine and I get to pass that knowledge on. I get to watch you be happy, watch you grow and become the amazing creature I always knew you would be. As long as I have you and Ipos in my life I have everything I could want."

"Promise you won't leave me." Ealasaid rested her head on his shoulder. Her eyes slid closed and she simply enjoyed the warmth of his body against her.

"Never."

Baal waited until her breathing grew soft and even before untangling himself from her.

Standing, he bent down and lifted her into his arms. Her small body curled against his chest and her cheek rested over his heart. Moving through the apartment he settled himself on the sofa with her in his lap and cradled her head gently. She was sleeping peacefully and he took the time to press a kiss to her forehead.

She slept soundly, the time in the Archives had drained her but even in sleep she held onto him tightly. The strange familiarity of him helped her forget about her worry for Drago and as she dreamt she remembered every time she had felt his presence growing up.

Ealasaid woke suddenly. She was cold, Baal was no longer sat beside her and she shivered without the warmth of his body. Rubbing her eyes, she looked around for where he could have one. There was a shadowy figure stood in front of the huge glass wall of the living room and she leapt to her feet in defence.

"Who are you?" She didn't recognise the person stood in her home. They were tall, she could already tell that they would tower over her and their shoulders were twice the width of her body.

Slowly the figure stepped forward and Ealasaid gasped.

"Drago?"

Drago looked down at her through his long lashes and pushed his blonde hair away from his face. The movement drew her attention to the black horns on his forehead but this time she wasn't shocked. She was angry.

"Where the fuck did you go?" Her voice was trembling and she balled her hands into fists.

"Eala." Drago took a step towards her but she shook her head violently.

"You left me, you fucking left me in Hell."

"I had to." Drago ignored her warning and stepped closer again.

"You didn't remember me and then you left me. Where have you been?"

"I had to keep you safe."

"How was leaving me in that place keeping me safe?" She asked incredulously.

"I hurt you Little One. I couldn't live with myself knowing that I hurt you. I didn't want to do it again." Drago fought to keep himself calm. The new creature inside him still scratched at the surface to be let out but Drago didn't know what the Entari would do to his Mate.

"You think disappearing on me doesn't hurt? Because it fucking does." Ealasaid shook her head slowly. "And I'm not going to let you hurt me anymore."

She turned away from him and began to walk towards the front door. She made it to the stairs when a huge hand grabbed her and pulled her back towards Drago.