The First Evil Ch. 09

I dropped down to my knees, throwing my arms over my head to try and protect my face from the glass that never touched me. A wall of olive toned flesh stood between me and the razor sharp projectiles. Nice had used his body to take the brunt of the impact. His teeth were gritted against the pain I knew he must be feeling. The thin cotton covering his back wasn't nearly the protection that my leather coat would have been.

"The bullets will work but your steel knives would do better if you know how to use them," Nices voice had gone gravelly with the pain but I could see him pushing it aside and getting ready for the confrontation waiting at the top of the stairs. I had to move almost three feet of thick pewter coils of hair aside to even be able to see what was happening.

A strange Wolf in animal form landed directly behind Nice, only to have his face driven that much further into hardwood by the weight of Naughty riding his back with his hands on the back of its head. He dug both hands in under the fur of that thickly muscled jaw, his arms strained as he twisted back and to the side. The Wolf beneath him snarled and struggled but it was only moments before the hollow snap of his neck breaking echoed through the hall.

The sound of metal and glass striking hardwood had barely faded and the intruder Wolf, who was easily two hundred pounds, was already dead. The twins had acted before I even knew there was a threat, to remove it and protect me. It made me somewhat reevaluate my ability to combat the power that had completely subjugated them for some indeterminate amount of time that, I was beginning to have a sneaking suspicion, was going to make my so-called longevity seem like a joke. It hadn't quite managed to slip my mind that the first language they'd spoken had been a rough form of Latin.

The soft sound of a ravens wings interrupted the temporary silence of moments before. All three of us turned at the sound, almost as if it were louder and more important than it should be. The first clue I had that magic might be involved. Yeah, I should probably have clued in sooner but there were a lot of thoughts going through my head right now, not the least of which was noting that despite the commotion the person blocking my door hadn't moved to intervene. Three guesses what his job was and the first two don't count. We'd just need to pick from doors number two through five for our escape. The many entrances and exit routes had been one of the reasons I had loved this house so much. I am not paranoid, it's not paranoia if it proves necessary.

The giant black bird stared menacingly down on us, waiting at the top of the stairs as the ominous sound of the packs approach filtered in through the gaping hole in the side of my house that I was trying really hard not to think about. A howl split the night and a rusty caw answered. Ok, so maybe not so much waiting at the top of the stairs as actively drawing the enemy to my doorstep. I turned to look up at Nice, not even knowing what I needed but thinking that somehow we could strategize a plan. What I got was stark unrelenting terror. The kind that incapacitates you in the face of its cause, which in this case appeared to be an eighteen inch raven perched on a jagged shard of purple glass still clinging to the window frame.

For the first time I intentionally opened the link between all of us. I had sort of made note of how it had felt when Naughtys emotions had engulfed me and then were so quickly cut off. I got a brief confusing doubled glimpse of a cat-eyed woman in a sheer black himation standing over us before horror and agony overwhelmed every sense but hearing as her cruel laugh echoed in our ears. I could feel all the bones and muscles along the sides of our bodies shatter to dust then get ground against each other in an unnatural fusion. I screamed and fought the memory.

Between Naughty pushing and me pulling I was out in fractions of a millisecond. Nice was still frozen even internally. It took me a few moments to come back into myself, to feel my own flesh and realize that it wasn't my body that had been so tortured. Then I thought about what I'd just seen. A toga are you fucking kidding me. The information revealed by that briefest glimpse into what had happened to them caused chills to start at my center and work their way out to my extremities. I wanted to freeze in the face of the knowledge that the evil being I had fought, who was now in my house, was at least two thousand years old. And so were the twins. Well that'll show me to feel overwhelmed before I have all the information.

My now shaking hands reached up to cradle Nices face as another series of howls and excited yips filled the air seeming to snap him out of his stupor. Somewhat.

"Hey," his eyes looked at me but were still seeing through the horror of his memories, "Hey..." I hesitated in no way willing to call him Nice out loud. He blinked and came back to me, his eyes filling with the sweet personality that had prompted the pseudonym in the first place, a small smile flashing briefly.

"I like that you think of me as the nice one," he ducked his chin slightly and lowered his eyelashes over his golden gaze. I tried not to let mortification actually kill me. At least the heat of my embarrassed blush chased some of the chills away. I studiously avoided looking anywhere in Naughtys general direction.

"So what do we do? Run? Fight? What? I'll follow your lead. If you think we can take them we'll fight," I won't lie, every instinct I had was to run, but I didn't know how she'd found us this time and I couldn't afford for her to follow us to my other places. I was in their heads as they considered the possibilities, many more than I would have thought of.

"Do you think you could incapacitate her? She's how they can find us with no scent trail to follow. We can fight off the first leads but if the whole pack gets here they'll just surround the house and attack in turns till they die or we do," Naughtys voice was deeper than normal. I didn't know if he'd been hurt in the fight or if he was repressing laughter at my pseudonym for him and his brother.

You will need to attack her psychically. Before, you followed our link to her, now you will need to find whatever marker she put on you in your last battle. I startled at that, I hadn't noticed anything but it's not like I'm an expert in metaphysics. I trusted that the Bronze Age warriors might have better strategies than me, who'd spent the majority of her life avoiding conflict and confrontation.

Nice placed his warm calloused hand at the top of my sternum, his long fingers curled over my collar bone and around my neck. It felt a little like the beginnings of a choke hold but it was the only place on my chest not covered in breasts and I appreciated his courtesy for what is was.

You must first calm your breathing and slow your heart. Take deep even breaths. He whispered the words directly into my mind and the rich timber of his voice vibrating inside me felt far too intimate, I closed my eyes to avoid his, there was too much faith in me in them. It was too much pressure, having these men rely on me to save us. What chance did I have of triumphing over an enemy they hadn't even been able to escape for thousands of years? It was too much. I tried to focus on myself and solving the immediate problem, slowing my racing pulse. I don't need to destroy her, just evade her and evasion is definitely in my skill set.

Now imagine there is a force field of bright light all around you, as if the air an inch above your skin is made of light so bright you can see it through your closed eyelids. The timber of his voice had soothed away most of my anxiety without the force of his eyes to feed it. Through my closed eyes I could indeed see a bright light that seemed to be coming from my direction. I was tempted to peek but instinct warned me against it.

Now imagine that light flowing through our bond to cover us. The air over all of us is made of bright pure light. I concentrated on the pulse I could feel through the hand still wrapped around my throat. It was the same rhythm beating inside my own chest and I would bet inside his brothers. I followed that sound and used the beat to pulse power through us all. He paused before "speaking" again and I would swear that his voice had taken on a note of surprise. Imagine that the light is hot though you can't burn yourself or us with this light.

I felt more than heard it when more wolves arrived. A vicious growl rent the air right next to my ear and then the floor creaked with the pressure of Naughty leaping to meet the threat and protect us. Fear and anger started to speed my pulse but then Nice began again and I focused on his deep melodic voice.

We can't burn you or each other with this light because it is one light flowing through all of us. The light is so hot it could melt bullets fired at you, it is hotter than a lightning strike. When he mentioned lightning I could feel the light change from something bright but insubstantial into something thick and viscous, crackling and sparking like charged plasma. Good, yes the air an inch above all our skin is made of white hot lightning. Anyone who touches us would feel the pain of a lightning strike coursing through their body.

He paused and I felt the lightning reach out to a wolf that had been going for his throat and hurl him into a wall with an accompanying thunder like crash. The sound seemed muffled as though the plasma itself absorbed some of the sound. I guess whatever we were doing was working because I didn't hear the scratch of claws seeking purchase on hardwood to come back for a second try.

"Amazing," I don't think he meant to say that out loud, especially not with that breathy awed tone. I felt the minutest flexing of his fingers on my face and knew he was fighting not to caress my face. If anyone asked me why later I wouldn't have any idea but I suddenly found my hand on his pressing his palm to my face, my fingers sliding along his. Somehow that slight caress felt incredibly intimate. He let out a shuddering breath and the musk of his arousal filled the air between us. I let my hands fall away to land folded in my lap.

Ummm well, yes, so the air an inch above all of us is made of lightning, but it won't hurt us. I heard Naughty grunt as the sound of flesh pounding flesh filled the space followed by another of those muffled thunder claps that still managed to rattle the floor and make the encroaching wolves whimper in pain. I guess he was using the lighting to even the odds somewhat. Now imagine that someone is touching you not with hands, but with power. Their power is as dark as you are light, it might appear as a shadow or a drop of ink.

The flashes of lightning and the roar of the thunder were now almost continuous. I tried to stay focused on the idea of finding a shadow attached to myself but invading scents pried at my eyelids. These Wolves stank, like unwashed bodies, old cigarettes and even too much expensive perfume. These scents just did not belong in my house with my scent and the scent of rose potpourri and oil paint and even the amber incense smell of the twins which already felt as if it belonged mingled with mine. There were even smells of wet dog and burnt feathers. Burnt feathers? Why would the raven be burning? That incongruous smell helped pull me back on task and away from thought of the destruction of my sanctuary.

I followed the scent to where it drifted in a thin line of curling smoke from a dark spot at the small of my back, trying to mimic the legitimate shadows caused by the curves of my spine.

There. That spot is where the witch is trying to breach your defenses. Don't imagine the lightning just burning away that spot, imagine the lightning following the trail of darkness back to its source.

I followed it to the raven who let out a continuous shriek of pain. Now follow the source of the darkness invading the bird back to its originator.

I was once again floating above the entire city. How many out of body experiences can one person survive in one day? I probably shouldn't ask considering Murphy's Law and all that. Lightning arched from me back to my house where I knew my body remained, guarded by the twins. I felt the ghost sensation of lips against the palm of my hand and "Good luck," whispered into my ear.

I warmed me that he trusted me enough to just let me go and confront an enemy that only moments before had frozen him in fear.

I floated out of my house and the air was cold and the bright new sun caused a red glow behind my closed lids. It felt like with all the shit happening right now it should be a dark stormy night but it wasn't. It's a bright crisp autumn day, perfect for laying in Rittenhouse Square Park with a warm thermos of soup and a thick sweater. I pictured that as I traveled for longer than I'd been expecting.

The twins and I cuddled together on a thick fleecy blanket. Nice would tentatively try and hold my hand. Naughty would blatantly throw his arm over my stomach being overtly flirtatious but also reaching for his brother. I would link my fingers through Nices and move our hand up to touch Naughtys. Their heat would insulate me from the chill in the air and the smell of homemade beef and barley soup would entice us to sit up and eat. It was such a nice image I almost didn't sense myself slowing.

I opened my eyes to see myself moving quickly toward a beautiful mansion on what appeared to be Park Avenue. I flew through the walls and opulent insides down through the floor till I was in a dank subbasement. Ahhh. Here was the setting that fit the situation. A woman with her back toward me sat cross-legged in a circle of symbols that looked like they'd been drawn in blood. Shelves lined the walls but I didn't take my eyes off of the witch to examine their contents.

Dark hair pooled on the ground behind her. Hair that seemed to be getting darker as I watched, shifting from the deep chocolate I'd seen in the twins memories to raven wing black. The olive skin I could see from my perspective seemed to be paling out as well. As the stick-straight now jet black hair began to curl itself into decadent waves nausea began to roil in my stomach. She began to stand her body shrinking in on itself adding curves and subtracting height. I knew what I would see before she turned my smiling face to me. The pitch black of her iris seeming to fill with blood as I watched the last disparity between us disappear.

"How convenient you've made this, I'll have to thank those naughty boys when next I see them," she smiled wider wielding my dimples like weapons. Her voice sounded like exactly like mine, if I were working as a phone sex operator and it infuriated and sickened me. I didn't know why she'd felt the need for this doppelganger moment but none of the reasons I could think of were very good for me or the twins. She stepped carefully out of the circle and walked over to shelves that contained a whole lot of what-the-fuck floating in jars. Yeah all she needed were some tesla coils and a mutant assistant to complete the picture.

"And when do you think that'll be cause I hadn't factored a side trip into the itinerary," I tried to sound like I wasn't almost frozen in fear. I allowed my body to sink so that I was standing on the ground instead of hovering near the ceiling.

I was almost totally outclassed in every way. I ramped up the lightning flowing around me till I looked like a living Jacob's Ladder but I didn't think it would be effective enough to stop her entirely. I was running scenarios in my head though none so far had ended with me the victor.

Her dusky laugh in a tone my voice had never used filled the small close space before she turned back, "Very soon now I'm going to put your soul in a jar then I'm going use your body like a costume to fuck the twins. Then to just fuck them over," she turned to me running one of her hands over her breasts and down till she was cupping herself between her legs, her other hand stayed behind her back. "I haven't had this much fun in a millennia. I should have thought of allowing the twins to think themselves free before this, now their spirits will shatter and I won't have any more struggles or squeamishness."

Red hazed over my vision in a way I'd only ever read about. The way she was touching herself in my body and the words coming out of my mouth were pushing so many of my buttons I couldn't even sort out what I was most angry about. I wanted my lightning to char her to a cinder so bad I could taste it and next thing I knew lightning flowed from me to her through her tag on me so that it looked like a bolt of lightning thicker than my arm exploded out of her body in every direction. I felt her marker incinerate under the onslaught and briefly realized I'd accomplished my goal just that quickly. Rage as thick as blood flooded my system making me arrogant and I knew I wouldn't be taking this opportunity to just fly out the way I came in.

Her duel toned scream filled me with satisfaction until the hand she'd hidden flung some sort of black powder at me. The look of intense satisfaction on her face froze my blood and stopped my irrational anger. It reminded me of every reason I'd been scared before I got pissed. Oops.

Everything slowed down. Whatever that powder was the cloud of it seemed to be growing as it made its way toward me. I got only the briefest nanosecond of a memory that this was the same substance that had allowed her to incapacitate the twins. I tried to imagine a barrier to protect myself but the cloud passed through it and I knew there would be nothing I could do.

I felt utter despair that I had failed everyone, the twins my friends, the mysterious entity that had tried so hard to save me from myself and teach me in desperate moments. I tried to sever the connection I had to my body, hoping that without a soul it would just die and the twins would be able to escape now that their tie to her was broken. But I was too new at all of this and fear was using up too much of my mind to be able to give anything the necessary focus. The cloud was almost on me and I felt scalding bitter tears course down my face as I braced for the pain I knew was coming.

Only it didn't. The cloud seemed to hit something and incinerate on contact. The flashes of fire silhouetted the shape of a giant very broad shouldered man. I stumbled back and fell to the ground. He was so close I should have been touching him already if he had any substance to touch. He was barely a waver in the air, not even as visible as heat waves off of the street. If the powder hadn't still been lighting off of his surface I wouldn't have perceived him on any level.

He waved his hand and the rest of the lingering cloud burst into flames. He stepped onto the outer most ring of the symbols and suddenly he was more there, a fully three dimensional see-through object. He turned and where eyes should be there was only uninterrupted white light. One of his eyes closed and my mouth actually dropped when I realized he'd winked at me.

He was becoming somewhat easier to see as if he were absorbing reality from the room itself. His shape was fully visible now though he was still mostly clear. He was huge, almost seven feet tall and broad enough to look proportional. He was examining the middle circle of symbols with his back to me and I could see what vaguely appeared to be hair in a thick braid dragging on the floor. He turned and seeing me still dumbstruck on the floor walked back over to me and reached down to lift me to my feet.

I started to warn him about the lightning still moving over my skin but as our skin made contact the earth shifted.

It was him.

I would know his touch anywhere. I smiled as tears filled my eyes. That complete feeling overwhelmed me as my other half held my hands. I could see how he was becoming more substantial as we touched so that the scarred thumb smoothing over my knuckles looked real but his face was still a mystery. This was the feeling that I'd mourned when I awoke alone on that gurney and tried to forget. The mixed up father-brother-lover-husband thing I was feeling from him right now overwhelmed and confused me. I felt a tickle around my ankle and looked down to see his braid curling around my ankle. My eyes shot back to his and he smiled at me.