Co-written with AO3 User TremblingHarmonies! We sincerely hope you'll give our a story a chance. The first chapter is heavily OC-based, but the main cast quickly comes back into the spotlight afterwards. As stated, this is a human AU, but they have their Guardian-related powers.
Enjoy! Constructive feedback is appreciated! :)
PROLOGUE
A woman ran full pelt down the alley way. She sobbed as she ran, stumbling slightly but moving forward. The sound of the footsteps getting closer and closer forced her onward. She heard a laugh from behind her; he was enjoying this. This was like some sick game of tag to him. He called out to her suddenly, his thick Australian accent mocking,
"You're tiring sweetheart, why not stop and rest?" He didn't even sound the least out of breath. A string of inarticulate curses streamed from the woman's mouth. She looked back for just a moment, trying to catch sight of the huntsman, when suddenly she felt something snag her foot and she flew forward. The man stopped just feet away from the woman. She scrambled to put her back against the brick wall. A chuckle in his voice, the man called out,
"Now that we've got that bit out of the way, how about we make this next bit easy." He pulled a long, curved piece of intricately carved wood from over his shoulder. As he brandished the boomerang to throw, a second man dressed all in black seemed to melt out of the shadows.
"Evening Aster." He said with a casual, drawling voice. A look of irritation flashed across the first man, Aster's, face.
"Can't you see I'm busy, Pitch?" He shot back over his shoulder, never taking his eyes off her. The slender man, Pitch, leaned against the wall opposite of where they stood, and countered in the same drawling voice,
"Oh well, I suppose you are busy." He glanced at her for a moment, "Far too busy to hear the wonderful news I had come to share." Aster rolled his eyes. With a sigh, he turned toward Pitch.
"What news?" he asked, his voice deadly serious. A broad smirk spread across Pitch's face, and he paused before answering.
"I've found her." A moment passed. Aster's eyes widened. He rushed forward and grabbed Pitch by the shoulders and looked him hard in the face.
"Tell me where she is." He demanded in a deep growl. He scowled deeply at the snide grin on Pitch's face. The terrified woman, seizing her chance, had started to creep away, but the shadows from the wall suddenly became tangible, and wrapped around her in a suffocating cocoon. She struggled uselessly against the tightly woven bonds.
"My my, eager, aren't we? So eager you've seemed to have forgotten your manners." Pitch teased the taller man. The woman watched as Aster took a firmer hold of Pitch and shook him slightly, bringing his face to within an inch of the shadowy man's.
"Don't mess with me Pitch!" He snarled, his green eyes livid with fire. The grin on Pitch's face diminished. The men stared each other down. Finally, Pitch looked away, and sighed reluctantly.
"All right." With that, Pitch began to quietly convey to Aster his new bout of information. In the meantime, the woman continued to struggle and shout against her thick, vaporous restraints. Had she not been so far gone with fear, she would have questioned how shadows could become solid forms and move of their own accord. That, however, would turn out to be the least of her concerns once the men finished talking. With a wave of his hand, Pitch released her, and she felt the force of the shadows throw her across the alleyway, rolling across rocks and sharp bits of debris before she stopped near Aster's feet. Looking up wide-eyed, she started to beg for her life.
"P-Please. Please let me go!" She started to cry. She felt his large hand grab hold of a chunk of her hair, and when it pulled her upward, she stumbled to her feet. The man held up his boomerang. He gave her a patronizing smile and whispered words of mock comfort.
"Now now. It'll all be over soon enough." With one last wicked smile, he raised his boomerang and put the woman out of her misery.
CHAPTER ONE
Emily paused in the midst of her typing, looking away from her computer. A loud knock had startled her out of her concentration. She had been in the middle of doing a personal blogging post, venting about some minor issues she had with her parents recently. She tried to have a civilized conversation with them about her getting her own place by next year, but it didn't go quite as smooth as she had hoped. Despite her being twenty years old, they were ungodly paranoid. No matter how much she tried to talk them about it, convince them she was an able-minded adult and they couldn't protect her from the world forever, they were still insistent upon being so cautious with her. Especially her mother, she was the worse of the two. But whenever Emily questioned why, her mom would simply say there was nothing to talk about; Emily would always be her little girl, she would say, and a good mother always worried.
Despite these annoyances, Emily loved both of her parents dearly. Their life wasn't perfect, but it was home, and she was comfortable and happy.
She rose from her computer chair and ventured outside to the living room. She could hear a male voice talking to her mother. The man standing in the doorway flashed a detective badge. With a grave nod, her mother stepped back and let him enter. He looked at Emily as she entered the room, and her mother turned with a distressed look on her face. Emily started to worry.
"What's going on?" She asked, looking back between the two of them.
"Hi, I'm Detective Rowley. I was just telling your mother that there's been a series of murders happening around this area lately, and I had some questions to ask her. Hoping she can shed some light for us." Emily's mother fidgeted, playing with the necklace hanging around her neck.
"Is she a suspect?" Emily asked delicately, although she knew there was no way her mother could be involved in such a deed.
"No." Emily relaxed slightly. "The suspects we have in mind have been at this for years, and we've unfortunately not been able to arrest them. We came to ask you and your mother what you two could remember."
"Remember?" She grew concerned. "Mom, what is he talking about? What happened?" Her mother looked even more distressed, if that was possible.
"Emily, go back to your room and let me take care of this. There's no reason for you to get involved." She was avoiding the subject and trying to keep Emily out of the know, just as she always did. This was a huge revelation. If they had been attacked before, it would make sense why her mother would be so protective.
"Mom, I'm old enough now to know-" But her mother cut her off saying,
"Go back to your room Emily! I'll take care of this!" Her voice rose and her gaze hardened. Emily knew nothing would come out of arguing with her, and the detective was standing by waiting. With a frustrated huff, Emily headed back towards her room. When she was out of sight, she hid against the wall of the hallway.
"I'm sorry." She heard her mother's suddenly soft voice. "She doesn't remember what happened. And I want to keep it that way."
"I understand where you're coming from, Mrs. Berkley, but I am going to have to ask Emily questions too. Any shred of information, no matter how small, will be useful to us. We're getting desperate to catch these guys." His next words were spoken more gravely, "And maybe you've forgotten, but you and your family are in great danger until we catch them."
Danger? Emily's stomach clenched. What kind of danger were they in? They had done nothing to these people! Why would they come after her family? Her thoughts were cut short by her mother's hissing voice.
"It's been seventeen years though." Her mother protested. "Why would they come back now, after all this time?"
"There could be a number of reasons." Detective Rowley explained in a gruff whisper. "Unfinished business. They wanna make sure they don't get caught. It's possible they've been looking all this time and finally had a breakthrough."
She heard her mother suck in a deep gulp of air, and when she spoke a minute later, her voice sounded thick with tears. "Are they going to hurt my baby?" Emily felt her heart skip a beat.
"I don't believe their intent is to harm your daughter, Mrs. Berkley. You said she was found in their care, correct?" There was a moment of silence, but her mother must have nodded, since he continued. "If they had wanted to hurt her, I'm sure they would have while you were there. They've shown time and time again they don't care who they kill in pursuit of their victims. So why was she unhurt? Either way, you two are the one's that got away, and that's why they're looking for you."
Emily clutched the wall for support, hardly able to breath. Wait a minute, what?! She was found in the hands of these murderers that the cops were investigating now? And her mother had been there? Was she threatened by them, hurt by them? Her breath was coming in painful gasps. Why had she never been told her this?
"Why was she there though?" Emily's mother was half hysterical. Emily could just imagine her wringing her hands together as she spoke. "She was just a little girl, and they were doing such horrible things in front of her!" Emily decided she had heard enough and stepped back out into the plain sight, startling both adults. She was shocked, to learn that her mother had been a victim of a crime, and that she, Emily, had been there while it happened. And now her mother might not even be her mother?
"I want to know what's going on. Right now." Her voice was angry and forceful, and she could feel hot tears welling behind her eyes. She looked at her mom. "Tell me what happened. Everything. You…you found me with these killers?"
"Emily, what are you doing here? I told you to back to your room-"
"Stop hiding the truth from me, mom!" Emily shouted, sending her mother a step back out of astonishment. "If our lives really are in danger, I need to know everything. I'm not a little girl anymore. You can't keep me in the dark and expect everything to be okay." Tears were building at the corners of Emily's eyes, but she tried to remain strong.
A heavy tension hung in the air. Her mother was clearly struggling, wrenching her necklace tightly in her sweaty hands. The detective stood by quietly, undecided whether to step forth and say anything or let them figure this out themselves. While the silence continued and go more awkward, he decided to intervene.
"Mrs. Berkley," He started off, softly. "Your daughter's right. She needs to know so she can prepare herself, in case something happens. We need to know everything, no matter how-" he paused here, as if picking his words with care, "unpleasant it may be to you. Or these murders are going to keep happening, and they're going to get one step closer to you."
Emily's mother struggled with her tears. After sucking in some breaths, and trying to ready herself, she looked at Emily with the most conflicted expression. It was miserable with guilt, pain, and sorrow.
"I'm sorry I never told you sweetheart. I was just trying to protect you." Emily's mother broke down, and sobbed bitterly. "A-And I just wanted to forget that day had ever happened." She buried her face in her hands. Emily walked swiftly over and put her arms around her mother.
"Please tell me what happened." Emily asked, her face pressed to her mother's shoulder. Detective Rowley coughed slightly and stepped forward.
"I can fill you in on the details," he paused here and inclined his head toward Emily's mother. "If that's okay with you ma'am." She gave a weak nod. Detective Rowley mirrored her nod and began to explain in an even tone all that had happened on that fateful night.
Emily's mother and the man she had been having an affair with, had been walking home when they were ambushed by five people, the murderous gang for whom the detective was searching. They surrounded the couple, attempting to cut off any escape routes. Fortunately for her mother, they were smarter than the murderers had expected. The man managed to make a break for it. Three members of the gang gave chase.
Alone with only two of the men, her mother had spotted Emily standing slightly off to the left of the smaller of the two. There was shouting from somewhere close, and both men's attention was off her mother for a quick moment. She saw her chance and took it. Running forward, she picked up Emily and held her to her chest. Then she ran for her life. She could hear them running behind her, but she persisted. Once she was a couple of blocks away, Emily had started to whine and struggle but her mother did not stop until she had made it to the motorway, where she stopped a passing car, begging for help. The couple in the car took her to the local police station, where she gave a full account of everything she had been through.
A perfunctory search had been made for Emily's real parents, with no success. Given her mother's testimony, it seemed obvious she was connected to the killers, but there was no hard proof to back that up. She never once let Emily out of her sight, even when the young girl had begun to cry in earnest. She had returned home to her husband and convinced him to help her raise this child as their own.
When his explanation was finished, Emily stood staring in disbelief at her now calm mother. How could she have kept all of this from her for so long?
"So." Emily paused to gather her thoughts from her shattered mind, "So, these murderers. They are my family?" Seeing the grief stricken look on her mother's face, she corrected herself saying, "My biological family?"
Detective Rowley shook his head. "I'm sorry, but we don't really know. We can't even be sure that they really are your biological relatives, but it's a possibility we have to look into." He gave her a searching look, then asked, "Do you remember anything from that night? Anything at all?"
Emily closed her eyes and thought hard; she strained to remember. She had felt something shift in her mind when he had explained what happened, but she was grasping at straws. She could see vague images and shapes when she tried to remember that day, but nothing she could usefully describe. She released her held breathe.
"I'm sorry," She said weakly, "but I can't remember anything." Detective Rowley looked disappointed.
"Well, I guess- if you can think of anything, call me." He reached into an inner pocket and pulled out a business card. Emily took the card with a quiet "I will." With a nod to both woman, he walked swiftly out of the house, pulling the door closed behind him. The room was still for a moment. Then Emily fled the room, leaving her shell-shocked mother alone.
Emily pulled her bedroom door shut behind her and flung herself down on her bed. She finally let everything she had found out tonight wash over her, and she cried. Cried until she was spent.
When she was done feeling sorry for herself, she sat up. She wanted to do something proactive. If her parents were in danger because of her, she wanted to help find these killers before they hurt anyone else. What would happen if they found her? Detective Rowley had said that they didn't seem to want to hurt her, but what if that wasn't true? She could die. Her parents could die. There had to be a way she could help. She thought for a long time, watching the room grow dark as the sun descended. Finally, she had a plan, but the question was, would her mother let her go through with it?
She walked around the house looking for her mom, and found her in the kitchen washing dishes. Without a word, Emily stepped up next to her, grabbed a towel and began drying the clean dishes. She waited patiently until the last dish had been dried and put away, before approaching the subject.
"So, mom. I was thinking. I would like to help Detective Rowley. And I thought of a way to do that. But it would be kind of dangerous." She waited, but received no response. She gathered herself and finished, "I'm going to offer myself as bait."
Her mother stilled. She just stood there, not saying a word or looking in Emily's direction. Then tension was thick. It pushed Emily's already stretched nerves to the breaking point and she cried out, "Mom, say something!"
Finally, she turned her head to look at her daughter. Emily's heart plummeted at the way her mom looked. Her shoulders drooped, she looked sickly and her face was heavy with misery. Her eyes looked like glass, and her emotion was inscrutable. Right as Emily was about to urge her again to speak, her mother's numb voice disturbed the silence.
"You think I would allow you to do such a thing?" Despite her even tone, it was clearly undercoated with maternal distress. "To put yourself in the line of fire and let those... those monsters take you away?" She spoke more high-pitched, and tears began to collect behind her eyes again.
"Emily, your father and I have spent all these years doing everything we can to keep you safe from them! And now you want to go put yourself in harms way? Why? Why?!" She grabbed Emily's shoulders at this point and cried as she brokenly tried to extract answers from her frazzled daughter. Said daughter let her have her say, and allowed her a moment of loud sobbing before she gingerly embraced her mother and spoke to her in a gentle, but unrelenting tone.
"We're already in harms way, mom. They're going to come for us, regardless if I stay here hiding or get out there and try to do something about it." She pulled back to look into her mother's heartbroken eyes. It nearly ripped her in half. But she persevered. "I need to know the truth about my past. I need to know why I was with these murderers when they took you hostage. Regardless of who my biological family is, you and dad are my real family. And I'm not gonna stand idly by and let them hurt you!"
Her mom choked on a sob, her eyes were becoming red from crying. "Emily...this isn't your responsibility. I was the idiot who was out having an affair, it was my fault I got cornered. But if I wasn't there, who knows what would have happened to you. You were just a baby, and yet they had you there with them as if it was... no big deal for a child to witness such horrible things."
"And I could never tell you how grateful I am that you took me in." Emily interrupted softly. "I love you and I always will. But I have to do this, regardless if you approve or not. You and Dad have done everything you can. Now it's my turn." The two embraced each other then tightly, holding on as if they might never see each other again. Her mother continued to sob, and Emily felt tears return back to her own eyes. They cried without concern, standing there in the kitchen for what seemed like an eternity. Finally, they drew apart reluctantly, and Emily saw her mother to her bedroom before she returned to her own. She heard the front door unlock and open some time later, and breathed in relief as she heard her father's voice.
She had no idea if he was aware of what happened. And while part of her felt it was her duty to go out there and talk to him with her mother, she felt far too drained to make the effort. She decided to take some sleep aid and head to bed. Tomorrow was going to be a long, hard day, and she was going to need every bit of shut-eye she could get.
Somewhere else, under the dark sky glittering with stars, a calamity was taking place. It was a peaceful looking night in the more rural part of the state, and would have been tranquil had it not been for the bloodshed that had just occurred.
Bodies littered the ground in a messy fashion, yet it was almost as if it was strategically planned that way. A chaotic art display. Blood soaked the grass and the flesh of the its victims, eyes were frozen wide in horror and fear as their lives had been taken mercilessly and without warning.
The culprits of this horrendous crime stood close by, admiring their work. Blood spatters covered their clothing and faces, and their devilish smiles looked even more sickening shining under the moonlight, contrasted by the crimson red on their skin. They held their weapons idly, silver and red gleaming besides them.
"Those screams never get old." The taller of the two men said. His companion looked up at him, vibrant blue eyes radiating with joy and agreement.
"Another job well done, huh?" He tilted his head as he observed the scene, looking as gleeful as a little kid who just won a game. He felt an arm wrap around him in response, holding him close. The taller man buried his face in the other's hair, nose sharply breathing in the scent mixed with blood.
"We're getting closer." His accented voice purred, and the other chuckled in delight. He reached up to curl a slender hand around the muscular arm cuddling him, exhaling in relief.
"I can't wait... it's been so long since..." His voice faltered, as he became choked up by mixed emotions. The arm around him squeezed in reassurance.
"I know love." The gruff voice of his partner assured him. "But tomorrow that all changes. We'll get what's rightfully ours."
The shorter male snuggled into the embrace, staring at the horrible scene in front of him with a docile smile on his face. Yes, tomorrow everything would change. They would finally finish what they started and make things right.
Whoever said revenge was a dish best served cold, knew him all too well.
Early the next day, Emily nervously made her way to the police station. The lovely sunshine and blue sky did little to soothe her jitters, but she was determined. She heard no commotion from her parents room before she went to sleep, so it was unclear what her mother and father had discussed. They were still in bed when she left, so obviously there had to be some discussion for her father to call in sick to work.
She gulped in a big breath as she opened the door to the police station. After going through the routine metal detector test, she was escorted to Detective Rowley's office. He permitted entrance after the officer knocked, and opened the door to let her in. She thanked him before stepping further into the room, waiting for the detective to finish his paperwork before making another move. He looked up a minute later, stood, and moved forward to greet her.
"Thank you for coming Emily. I appreciate it." He shook her hand and gestured for her to sit. Her stomach was doing flip flops, but on the outside she looked well composed. He sat in his desk and offered her something to drink, which she politely declined.
"You mentioned on the phone you wanted to try and be of service. What'd you have in mind?" He asked her.
Emily took a deep breath, readying herself. She was beginning to feel light-headed from how fast her heart was racing. "I want to help in any way I can. But first, I need you to tell me everything about this case. And I mean everything." She greatly emphasized that last word, looking directly into his eyes. Hazel stared back steadily as he slowly nodded in understanding. He then began to explain.
"We've been after these guys since before you were born." He then pulled out a file and described the first case that seemed to be done by these very killers they were searching for. "We don't know how many there are, but it seems to be some kind of cult. Could be anywhere from a dozen to thirty members, our calculations tell us. Mostly male-dominated, but at least one woman is involved, we're sure of. Most of their victims were convicted offenders; pedophiles, rapists, attackers who preyed on children. But as the years went on they started expanding their target group, to petty thieves, people who committed minor offenses. And then eventually to people who weren't in trouble with the law, but were doing something "wrong" in their eyes. Negligent parenting, or in your mother's situation... adultery." He paused as he finished that sentence, trying to be easy about this new upcoming explanation.
Emily said nothing at the mention of her mother's past, and just urged Detective Rowley to continue. "So how come no one has been able to catch them? Any of them?"
Rowley's face hardened, his frustration clearly evident. "They're good. So good it makes me sick." His lips tightened until they were two thin lines before he could regain his composure. "They don't leave behind evidence. No fingerprints, no DNA, no paper trail. When we try to follow them on foot, the pathway... stops after a while. It's as if they just disappear and come back somewhere else. They're like magicians."
"But even magicians would have to leave some kind of trail. Some kind of evidence. Right?" Emily asked, perplexed.
Rowley was quiet a moment, wishing he had a better answer than what he was about to give. "I wish I could explain more. But we've got nothing. And that's why they keep getting away with murdering people."
Emily decided it was time to ask what she really wanted to know. "Tell me about the night my mother found me."
"Everything I told you yesterday is the extent of what we know. Your mother and the man she was involved with were ambushed by five of them, two of whom seem to be the 'leaders'. She didn't see you until they took her to, what we presume to be, their hunting grounds. The man got away, they were distracted for a moment, she took her chance, grabbed you and ran like hell. We don't know why you were there. It's possible you were just a passerby," He stopped for a moment as Emily's breath hitched. "Or they had alternative motives in mind. You weren't hurt though, so chances are slim they were planning to kill you." He looked off to the side for a moment, questions flickering in his eyes. "We have no documentation of your real identity, so you were considered a ward of the state. Your mother saved you and wanted to raise you, no one saw reason to stop her from taking you in."
"What I was doing there though?" Emily's voice became more beggar-like. Why couldn't anyone tell her why she was there?
The detective frowned frustratedly. "We don't know." Emily wanted to growl, she was getting very irritated by "I don't know."
"Your mom says when she saw you, you were just standing there. Not too far from one of the men. My theory is they brought you along to watch what they were doing."
"To make me become like them?"
"Possibly, yes." Rowley's shoulders tensed before he sighed, his face relaxing to show many years of stress from his job. "Now that I've told you everything, tell me what you've been thinking about."
Emily paused, composing herself to make herself look calm and confident, or as much as she could in this nightmare-ish situation. "I'm here to offer myself as bait."
Detective Rowley blinked before his features scrunched up disbelief. "Excuse me?"
"These people are going to come after my mother and I. If they get to her, they're going to kill her and my father. If we can get to them first, then maybe no one will get hurt. And you'll get to finally arrest them." Emily said, surprisingly smoothly.
"How do you propose offering yourself as bait to help, though?"
"They had me there for whatever reason. If I see them and talk to them, then maybe-"
"There's no talking or reasoning with these guys Emily." Rowley interrupted her. "They will kill whoever gets in their way, that's a fact. Reason doesn't apply to them."
"I realize this." She said, not bothering to hide her agitation. "But I'm not going to just sit by and let them hunt my parents down! I'll do whatever it takes. Just tell me!" Tears began form in the corners of her eyes but she restrained herself. She had to be strong.
Detective Rowley sat back in his chair, breathing in deeply through his nostrils as the new offered plan of action rolled around in his head. He contemplated for a few minutes, then looked at Emily and leaned forward on his desk, propped on his elbows.
"There might be a way you can help. But it'll be dangerous." He warned her.
"This whole situation is already dangerous. No point in stopping now." Emily shrugged, internally a bit shaken by the possibly reality that could follow from what he had to say. He nodded, and began to tell her what he had in mind.
