(A/N) This is a companion piece to my other stories 'Hollow Moon' and 'Blood Moon'. Not so much a continuation at this point as something that was happening concurrently, just expanding the universe. We'll get to continuations eventually, but for now you certainly don't need to have read the first two stories to enjoy this one. I've tried to make each of these as much of a standalone piece as possible. So whether you're in this universe for the long haul or you've just come for this one little piece of it, I surely hope you enjoy.
Paper Moon
North wasn't sure at first what woke him from his sleep. Nothing seemed amiss in the bedroom he shared with York. There was no danger that he could detect. York was sleeping peacefully at his side, limbs flung in every conceivable direction, taking up more than half their bed. The only sound he could hear was his lover mumbling in his sleep – something particularly naughty from the sound of it. It was much too early for breakfast, so why was he awake?
That was when he realized the sense that had called him awake wasn't anything physical.
It was his angel sense.
As a nephilim, he didn't experience the sensation often. Being half angel and half human, he was on the same level as other spirit creatures. Angels, on the other hand, were on a level all their own. They were the guardians of the dead, the protectors of the gateways between life and death. An angel always knew when someone nearby was about to die. But North only seemed to know it about twenty-five percent of the time. The ability was more complex than he'd ever been able to explain to his comrades, but York had simply taken to calling it his angel sense.
Carefully disentangling himself from his lover so as not to wake him, North climbed out of bed, moving quietly toward the small balcony off their room. Opening the doors, he moved out into the cold pre-dawn air, hoping the sudden cold snap would help to clear his head.
As he'd feared, it did practically nothing. The sensation was really like nothing he could describe to anyone who wasn't an angel or a nephilim themselves. It was somewhat akin to the sound of blood rushing through your ears – only it was through your entire being, your very soul. It was like the press of inevitability closing in around you, and you had no way of knowing what that inevitable outcome was. An angel would know, but a nephilim could never tell who exactly was marked for death.
The fact that none of them had heard anything from Wash and Maine all week certainly didn't help to ease his worry any. What if this feeling was for one of them? Was Wash dying in Maine's arms even now? Or was it closer to home? Could there be a threat to York or South? Did he even know the person this feeling was for? Would he ever? Was there any sense in worrying over it when he had no possible way of knowing whose death he was sensing? North continued to ponder each fear right up until the moment he felt York's arms slip around his waist.
"Bed's cold without you, hon. What are you doing up so early?" the kitsune asked him, barely managing to rest his head on the nephilim's shoulder.
"Someone's going to die," North answered absently as he gazed out at the far horizon, where the sun hadn't quite lifted its head yet, but was certainly threatening to.
York sighed as he leaned his head against North's. "Way to start the day off heavy, lovebird. No idea who it might be?"
"No."
"Gonna tell Kimball? Or Carolina?"
"I don't know. Is there any sense in making them worry more? There's no way to know until it actually happens."
"True enough. If it's for…one of ours…it's probably safe to assume it's not Wash. Sigma won't kill Wash."
"Maine, then?"
"Like you said, nothing to be done about it right now. Not until we hear something. In the meantime, I think we can get in a little appetizer before breakfast," York said, turning his head slightly to kiss the nephilim's neck.
North chuckled quietly, though he still found himself shivering deliciously at the insistence of the fox spirit's kiss. "At a time like this? I swear, you've been nothing if not an absolute horndog since Maine and Wash's little mishap." The younger couple had created a stir earlier in the week when they'd neglected to raise a protective barrier before getting it on. As tended to happen when the pair got busy, Wash's magic had run out of control and, either fortunately or unfortunately, everyone else in the mansion had felt the effects of the influx of power. North himself had woken up harder and randier than he'd felt in a long time. He and York may well have kept going at it all day if Carolina hadn't interrupted.
"Mm, but you like it. You know you do," York teased as he mouthed North's shoulder. "If you tell me you don't still feel that power, I'll know you're lying."
North laughed quietly as he turned to nuzzle his lover. It was true, after all. The traces of the power Maine and Wash had raised were still clinging to the air, even four days after the fact, and he already knew he was going to give in to what York wanted. But that didn't mean he wasn't going to mercilessly return the younger spirit's teasing.
"You know me too well…Finn," he said quietly, pressing a kiss to the kitsune's temple as York started to pull him back into their bedroom.
"Damn right, I do," he returned, pulling North back until they collapsed on their bed. Then he easily straddled the nephilim, crouching low over him and pressing several kisses to his face. "Know how to get you out of your head…and into bed."
North groaned as his lover moved lower on his body, trailing kisses down his neck and onto his chest, taking a moment to pay special attention to his nipples. The older spirit gripped handfuls of their rumpled sheets in his hands as the kitsune swirled his tongue around the sensitive buds, drawing several sharp gasps from him. He felt York's lips shift into a grin against his skin before the younger spirit continued his trail downward, dropping kisses along his abs down to his hips.
The nephilim couldn't quite help the small whimpers that escaped his mouth when York began to nip at his hips, leaving a line of gentle love bites along the waistline of his sleep pants. He felt himself grow harder against his lover with every move.
"Fuck," York groaned heavily between nips. "I love when you make that sound. Mm…Rhys…"
"Hngh…then…better keep going," North encouraged, fingers briefly reaching up to trace along the kitsune's face. York offered him a devious grin before slipping his fingers beneath the hem of his sleep pants, beginning to slide them down, inch by torturous inch.
"You want it bad, don'tcha," York said once he'd gotten the sleep garment low enough to free the nephilim's fully erect cock.
"Gods…yeah…I do," he moaned, resisting the urge to thrust up against the fox spirit. York kept his hips carefully pinned against the bed as he leaned down to press a series of kisses to his inner thighs, mouth everywhere but where North actually needed it.
"Want me to blow you…North Dakota?" York asked, drawing the codename out as long as he possibly could before beginning to nose at the thatch of curly pubic hair just above the older spirit's swollen sex.
"Could go for that, yeah," North panted, fighting the desire to beg York for his mouth. He'd never hear the end of it.
"Wanna hear you moan, angel baby," York crooned, tongue tracing the air just above North's cock. "Gonna make you scream my name."
"Then do it," North hissed impatiently, though he could feel the eager grin stretched across his face.
"I'm gonna," York said, gaze flicking back up to meet North's as he finally moved his head between the nephilim's legs, pressing the lightest of kisses to the leaking head of his prick. North sighed in frustrated pleasure as his head collapsed back on the sheets.
York took his sweet time taking his cock in, first swirling his tongue all around the head, then lapping up and down the length of the shaft before taking him all the way down his throat in one sudden motion.
"Guh…ah…York," he whimpered, hips bucking involuntarily against the younger spirit. Reaching up his hands again, he tangled his fingers in the kitsune's brown hair, fighting to keep his grip gentle as waves of sensation moved through him, driving away all thought of the inevitability in his veins.
York groaned around him as he moved up and down the length of him. North didn't doubt he would've been speaking had his mouth not been full of cock just then. The nephilim shuddered when he felt the faintest hint of sharp canines against the tender flesh of his sex. Was York honestly going to shift right now? Right in the middle of going down on him?
Before North had a chance to ask one way or the other, York's grip on his hips suddenly tightened and he gave a possessive growl. With the feel of it traveling through his body and the intent of it settling in his brain, the half blood felt what little control he still had over himself fail.
"Ha…oh, gods. Finn!"
As York brought him to climax, he cried out, his control over his true form slipping. As he spilled his seed down the kitsune's throat, his wings burst into existence, flapping furiously against the bed. York barely managed to hold him down while the orgasm rode his body.
When the intense waves of pleasure had finally passed, leaving the half angel gasping softly on the sheets, he slowly looked down at York, who was offering him a shit-eating grin full of sharp teeth. He had only shifted part way, canines bared and ears slightly furry and pointed. His fingernails had only barely started to become claws, but the most obvious signs of the partial shift were the five fox tails that had sprouted from the base of the kitsune's spine. York purred as he watched North sit up, clearly pleased with himself.
"Hot damn, I haven't gotten you to uncase your wings for a few years now. Must've been good. Maybe I should use teeth more often?"
"You do and you'll have to be careful what you do with them. A little pain is fine, but I don't want you biting off my cock," North warned his lover, though he did offer him a fond smile as he carefully folded his golden wings against his back, not wanting to damage anything.
York chuckled as he reached forward to run a still human hand along the half angel's soft golden feathers. "As if you couldn't just grow it right back."
North shuddered pleasantly at the intimate contact. It was a privilege only York had earned. Aside from his mother and sister, he'd allowed no one but York to touch his wings. More often than not, they were kept contained in the alternate dimension of the Aether.
"Doesn't…doesn't mean I'd enjoy losing it to begin with."
"Ooh," York continued quietly as he watched North's reactions to his ministrations. "You like that, don't you. Why don't you let them out during sex more often? Damn sure I could do some pretty filthy things with those feathers," he said, now running both hands along the expanse of North's wings, a faint glow beginning to spark beneath his touch.
North moaned softly at the feeling. The sensation was exquisite, but…
"It's…more complicated than that," he whispered. "My wings aren't…they're not just wings."
"I know that. They're…well…I guess they're your soul," York said, his expression softening. "So what is it, Rhys? You just don't trust me?"
"It isn't that and you know it. It's just…I don't know," he said, looking away from his lover for a moment, gathering energy around himself in order to draw the wings back into the Aether. "Something feels…off today."
"Do you have to put them away right now? They are beautiful," York said, leaning in to press a kiss to a single shimmering feather. North gasped at the gentle touch, almost instantly becoming fully hard again. He couldn't quite help the laugh that escaped his mouth when York looked up at him with what could only be described as puppy eyes.
"All right. I suppose they can stay out a little longer. You know I can never refuse those eyes anything," he said, leaning in to press his nose against York's. The kitsune grinned before capturing his lips in a sweet kiss.
XxX
Unlike the kitsune and the nephilim, not everyone in the old Kimball mansion was pleased with the residual sex magic lingering in the air. South, for one, had been left painfully frustrated by it and she'd been in a sour mood all week, not having been able to lay into Maine and Wash before they'd headed off on their assignment. She was still considering punishing them both when they finally returned from the mission, but who could say when that would be? At the moment, she was seriously considering going into Armonia to work off some of this sexual frustration.
Whenever the cambion was in serious need of a good fuck, Felix was normally around to help her out. She and the hunter had something of a relationship of convenience. If there was absolutely no one else to hook up with, they would do for each other. But Felix and Locus were off on a hunt of their own, and even if Felix had been home, South had been feeling more the need for a woman lately anyway, and that sort of touch could only be got in the brothels of Armonia. She'd gotten Kimball into bed once when she and North had first joined up with the group seven years ago, but the older hunter had shown no interest since then, and South honestly didn't think Carolina had ever shown interest in fucking anyone, let alone her. The woman was pretty singularly focused on her training.
Unfortunately, going into Armonia also ran the risk of being identified as a cambion, one of the half human, half daemon creatures that the humans hated and feared. It wasn't that South feared being identified. No. She could take on any human that got it into his head to try and kill her. The trouble would be that she'd level half the city in her anger and it would compromise Kimball's little hunting gang – more specifically, her brother's place in that gang. South was a cold, hardened bitch, but she wasn't that cold. Besides, if she were honest with herself, the mansion was the first place that had really felt like home in a long time.
The young cambion was aware that many more children like her had been born during and after the Daemon Wars. Vaguely defined rights were beginning to appear for the cambion born, but at the present moment, she was stuck with the same mistrust and fear she'd known all her life. None of the human prostitutes would sleep with her if they knew what she was. Like her twin, it was often easier to keep her wings hidden than to risk exposure. But when she was at home, there was no reason to keep them tucked away. She wasn't nearly as shy about exposing her soul as her brother was. So here she was, sitting on her bed with her leathery red bat-like wings flapping rather desperately against the back wall of her room while she rubbed her fingers between her legs.
South was dressed in nothing but a black halter top, having stripped out of her skirt and panties when she'd come up to pleasure herself. Now she was sitting with her legs spread wide, dripping sex completely exposed as she worked her fingers furiously against her clit, thoughts of long dark hair, round hips, and voluptuous breasts drifting hazily through her mind.
"Mm…fuck…yeah," she groaned. She was so close now.
"South, have you seen- oh, gods!" Carolina snarled, immediately turning away when she saw what she'd walked in on. With a small moan of pleasure, South couldn't help noticing that the witch didn't leave – just stood facing away from her. The cambion didn't let up even a little bit.
"Like what you see, kitty kat?" South groaned, spreading her legs a little wider. "Always room for one more."
"You couldn't even shut the door?" Carolina snapped, still not looking at her, but South saw the way she almost looked back over her shoulder, almost in spite of herself.
"Maybe I like the idea of someone walking in on me, o fearless leader," the cambion suggested, giving several loud, exaggerated moans of pleasure. Not that it was all an act. Oh, no. She very much enjoyed the young witch pretending to not listen to her jack off. "Hngh…gods, that feels good."
"I hope so. Kimball's going to let you have it later."
"Mm, sexually, I hope," South teased. "You can't imagine how bad I want it."
"Oh, I'd say I've got a pretty good idea."
"Do you, Carolina? Aren't you still a virgin or some shit? We should fuck," the cambion snarled, and if Carolina responded, she didn't hear it, as that was the moment the building orgasm seized her, drawing an obscene cry from her lips as the waves of sensation moved through her body.
When the orgasm had finally played itself out, South slumped against the wall, wings still fluttering faintly as she drew breath after ragged breath. She could feel her own cum clinging deliciously to her thighs and she made no attempt to cover herself when Carolina finally turned back to face her. She just smirked smugly at the young witch.
"I really have no idea why I thought it would be safe to enter your room. No idea at all. You'd think I would know better after all these years, but apparently I just don't learn."
"Maybe not…or maybe you were just more turned on by your brother's little oops than you want to admit."
"Keep pushing, South. Find out what happens," Carolina warned before picking up the cambion's discarded clothing and tossing it at her. "I was going to ask if you'd seen North or York. I didn't see either of them come down for breakfast."
"They didn't. Aside from Doyle, I was the last one out of the kitchen. If I had to guess, I'd say they're still up in their room," she said, toying with the black panties Carolina had thrown at her.
"You'd better go and get them, then. Kimball's got another job lined up and she wants to speak to the four of us about it."
"What? Why do I have to get them?"
"Because I had to get them earlier this week, and now with you, I've already filled my quota of unintentional walk ins for the week. Now it's somebody else's turn," she said as she turned to head out of the room. "Have the boys down in Kimball's office in thirty minutes."
"Oh, fuck you, Carolina," she grumbled.
"You wish."
XxX
"You know, with how little we've seen of the two of you this week, I'm almost relieved you don't raise power when you get busy," Vanessa Kimball commented as York and North entered the room the older hunter had claimed as her office. Kimball was sitting behind her desk with Carolina and South sitting in front of it, waiting on their respective partner and brother.
"Well, you know how it is when things get heavy," York said, swinging his arms up behind his head as he sat down next to Carolina. "Have you heard anything from Wash and Maine?"
"Nothing yet. Wash won't answer his mirror," Carolina said, trying not to look as worried as they all knew she was. They had all been worried about Wash attempting to go after Sigma, none more so than Carolina, but the young witch had insisted on taking the assignment.
"However, if a witch or a hunter had been killed in Spiral City, I'm pretty sure we would've heard about it," Kimball pointed out as North took his seat next to South. "In the meantime, there's been another report. A disturbance of unknown origin."
"You don't mean…another Spirit?" Carolina pressed.
"It could be. A group of fishermen reported unexplained happenings on the deserted military base in the Western Isles. The installation was abandoned when the Atlantians withdrew from the wars, of course, but the fishermen reported hearing voices from the compound some nights…voices and lights, and reports of items going missing or being moved."
"So it's possible this might just be a simple haunting?" North suggested.
"It's possible. Certainly enough souls perished there for at least a few to go on clinging to this world. The only thing that troubles me is that witches have already cleaned up the installation. It's been certified as ghost free, and to have one suddenly become active again after five years, I just…we can't be sure."
"If you want…York and I can go have a look," Carolina offered quietly.
"No," North started before Kimball could say anything. "Carolina, you need to be here in case Wash contacts you. If it really does turn out to be Sigma they're after, he might need your help. You need to be ready. South and I can go. If it's just a matter of helping another ghost pass, that's an easy enough task for me."
"And if it really is another Spirit?" Carolina asked him.
"Hey, don't sell us too short there," South put in. "We can still contain a Spirit. Just might need to feed before we take off."
"And no, you can't do that either," North said. "You need to save your energy. We can feed from Doyle."
"On that subject, though, why isn't Doyle taking this one on?" South asked. "A witch would definitely have an easier time containing a Spirit."
"He would, but there's business to be taken care of in Armonia. He and Butch will be leaving tonight," Kimball explained.
"What sort of business?" Carolina asked, glancing sideways at her guardian.
"Hargrove is sending up a few more of his representatives to negotiate contracts. Hunter's permits and the like. He still likes to pretend he has us completely under his thumb."
"I wish you wouldn't deal with him," Carolina said quietly. "It's bad enough he's got the council in his pocket, but for him to actually attempt to privatize hunting-"
"Unfortunately, the issue has a lot of people's ears right now. Many creatures have been out of control since the wars ended and we can't pretend that all hunters have been fair in their dealings in that time. Locus and Felix would certainly attest to that."
"Still…would be better if we didn't have to deal with politician scum like Hargrove," York said as he leaned back in his chair.
"I don't like it either, you guys, but until we gather all of the Spirits, we're going to have to go on playing both sides. We need to be able to conduct our searches unhindered."
"I know. I just wish…we didn't have to keep drawing this out," Carolina said with a frustrated sigh as she ran a hand through her hair. "I wish Wash didn't have to face Sigma at all…that Epsilon had never sunk his claws into him in the first place. Wash…never should've had to deal with any of this."
"That's true, but the fact remains that he does," Kimball said quietly. "Believe me, I wish this hadn't happened to him just as much as you do, but what's done is done. All we can do now is fight to fix what your father did."
"Heh, sometimes I wonder if we won't all die trying to fix what he did," Carolina said bitterly as she got to her feet and strode out of the office, leaving the others to discuss the logistics of the job.
XxX
It was already late in the evening when the twins finally managed to meet up with Doyle. They'd intended to waylay him after he'd laid out dinner for all of them, but the old witch had been able to slip away before they could. When they caught up with him in the kitchen, though, it wasn't just Florida with him.
Doyle was sitting at the large kitchen table with Locus, patching up a particularly nasty looking bite on his upper right arm. The hunter was managing to keep his expression stoic, but there was still clearly pain behind it.
"That looks bad," North said as he watched Doyle thread a healing spell through the injury site. "What got you?"
"Ghoul," Locus grunted. "We took on a nest of them."
"It could've been much worse were it not for Felix's immediate treatment of the wound," Doyle told them without looking up from his work. "His first aid served until he could get Locus back to me."
"Seriously?" South asked. "Who knew the little shit could actually fix things instead of just destroying them. Where is he anyway?"
"Bed," Locus answered shortly. "He barely made it up the stairs."
"That's not nice, South," Florida scolded her from where he was sitting on top of the kitchen table. "Felix cares about Locus very much."
"Oh, boy. Here he goes with the birds and the bees again," South snarked. "I don't know what you're doing hunting, man. You need to be a matchmaker or some shit."
"Don't see why I can't do both. After all, you all pretty much match yourselves," the brownie said, grinning as he pulled his long brown hair out of the ponytail he had it in and began to braid it.
"I wish you wouldn't do that," Locus said firmly, giving a small hiss of pain as Doyle finished his work by wrapping a bandage securely around the healing injury. "Felix cares for nothing and no one. Me least of all."
"All right, Locus. If throwing himself into a ghoul nest to rescue you and stealing an automobile in order to get you back here for some proper medical care is Felix not caring, I'd really like to see what the man's like when he's actually caring. That would be quite the sight," Florida said, grin still firmly in place as he continued to braid his hair.
With the jagged x-shaped scars that marred the center of the hunter's face, it was sometimes difficult to interpret Locus' expressions. What wasn't difficult to see was the mild blush that painted his tan cheeks at the brownie's words. Out of the corner of his eye, North saw his sister smirk, open her mouth to tease the hunter, but before she could say anything, the nephilim quickly interrupted, drawing the proceedings back to business.
"Are we all taken care of here, Donald? If you've still got the energy, South and I really need to feed before we head out. It might be a Spirit we're going after."
"Ah, yes. Vanessa told me what's happening. I've more than enough power to spare at the moment," the older witch said, wiping his hands clean before removing his old yellow cloak. Then he unbuttoned his silk shirt and lowered the fabric away from the back of his right shoulder, exposing his hollow point. Like all witches, Donald Doyle had a single point on his body that didn't bleed. The hollow point was the place where a witch's physical form joined with the energies of the Aether, flowing into the physical plane as magic. That source of pure power was the sweetest form of nourishment for any spirit creature. Normally, only Doyle's familiar spirit, Florida, would feed from him, but North and South had also fed from him when the occasion called for it. Now was definitely such an occasion.
North motioned his sister forward, letting her have the first turn. The young cambion stepped up, an eager smirk on her face as she bent over the witch and pressed her lips to the bared place on his shoulder. North saw him shudder as South began to drink from him, causing him to gasp quietly.
For several minutes, South remained poised there, groaning in pleasure as she drank her fill of Doyle's magic. After a time, the older witch's fingers began to twitch, gripping furtively at his knees as a few small whimpers escaped his mouth.
"Enid, dear, I…I believe that's quite enough," Doyle struggled to get the words out without moaning. South didn't make it easy for him when she slipped her fingers from his shoulder down to his hips, drinking a little more insistently as she gripped at him.
"Don't be greedy, South," Florida said, his normal smile still in place, but with a slight hint of warning to the words.
"South," North started, reaching forward to lay a hand on her shoulder. His grip finally convinced his sister to let go, licking her lips as she stepped back from the witch.
"Getting a little hot and bothered there, old man?" South teased. "Y'know I'm free whenever you feel like you're done waiting on the boss."
"That's quite enough of that," Doyle huffed, glaring over his shoulder at the young spirit creature, but his gaze softened when it shifted to North. "Well, Rhys, best come and have your turn."
"Are you sure you can handle it?" the elder twin asked, taking a step forward in spite of himself.
"Of course I can. It'll be fine. I'll have a few days to recuperate. It's not as if I need magic to negotiate with Hargrove's ruffians," Doyle said as he turned back to face forward, offering his hollow point to the nephilim.
Unlike South, North was a bit more sympathetic to the person he was feeding from. Drinking from a witch's hollow point was a very intimate experience. With how deeply one was sharing in the witch's life force, there was no way it could not be. Many witches and their familiar spirits simply fell into sexual relationships out of convenience, as it was difficult not to become involved at that level.
Granted, it didn't always happen. York and Carolina certainly weren't involved that way, and Wash had never had a spirit partner. Doyle and Florida were also not in any sort of relationship except their professional one, and at just being good friends, but that was also owing to the fact they all knew Doyle was in love with someone else. North had heard the rumors that Florida had been involved with his last partner, but he didn't know how true those were, as Florida and Wyoming had been partners long before his and South's involvement with Kimball's little agency.
Whatever the case may have been, North didn't want to make this process any harder on Doyle than it already was, so he tried to be a little more gentle when he fed. He rested a hand lightly against Doyle's arm to brace himself and pressed his lips against the witch's hollow point, immediately feeling the warm flow of power as he began to drink.
As with his angel sense, the taste of magic wasn't really like anything he could describe to a human. The closest he could come was that it was exactly what you wanted in the moment you wanted it. It was the sweetest of wines while at the same time being the most savory cut of beef. It was a cool drink of water to a man dying of thirst in the desert and a bounteous feast where you ate until you could hold no more. Feeding from a direct source of magic was everything anyone could ever want, so it was hardly shocking some spirits got carried away. Therefore, when he heard the older witch give a tiny cry of pleasure, when he felt his own physical form begin to react to the steady flow of power, he pulled back before he could fall too deeply into the thrall of it and outright lose himself. He forced himself to release Doyle, taking several steps backs.
"Will that be enough?" Doyle asked him as he glanced over his shoulder. "I wouldn't want you to have less than you need."
"Don't worry. It'll be okay. Pretty sure South took more than enough anyway," North said, offering the older witch a reassuring smile. Doyle nodded before pulling his shirt back on and rebuttoning it, sweeping back several strands of his graying blond hair before beginning to pull his cloak back on.
"So where is this assignment?" Locus asked North as he stood from the table.
"The Western Isles. There've been reports from the abandoned installation there."
"And Kimball thinks it might be a Spirit?"
"Yes. So we'll be heading out here in the next few minutes. Can't delay too much. It's about a day's flight."
"I hope you don't mean to fly straight there with no rest," Doyle reprimanded as he went to gather his knapsack from its place on the counter. "Wouldn't want you to arrive there and have no strength to fight."
"Yes, Mom," South said, rolling her eyes.
"Well, missy, if you insist on behaving like a child, then of course you need someone to mother you. Ready to go, Butch?"
"Ready when you are, Donald," the brownie said as he hopped off the table, moving to stand beside the witch.
"Excellent. We'll be seeing you all in a few days. Locus, I'd take a leaf out of Felix's book if I were you. Get some sleep. Don't strain that arm too much or the spell won't have a chance to set properly," Doyle warned the hunter as they headed out of the kitchen.
"Going to listen to him?" North asked Locus once the two had gone.
"Probably not. I'll need to see about getting that automobile Felix stole returned," the hunter said as he also headed out of the kitchen.
"Don't push too hard," North repeated, even though he was pretty sure the man wasn't listening anymore.
"Guess we're next," South said before patting her twin on the shoulder and leading the way out of the kitchen. North had followed her halfway toward the back door when he heard York call out to him. Turning toward the kitsune's voice, North saw him heading toward them from the library.
"Heading out?" York asked when he caught up to them.
"That's the idea, yes."
"And you weren't even going to say goodbye? You're horrible," the fox spirit said, easily drawing North into his arms for a goodbye kiss.
South made some snide comment before continuing to head out, but North didn't really hear her. In that moment, his senses were consumed with the kitsune in his arms. He couldn't put his finger on the emotion behind it, but there was something almost…desperate in the way York kissed him – in the way he clung to him and pressed his lips so fiercely against his. When the kiss finally ended, York kept them pressed together, forehead resting against North's and fingers reaching up to curl in his blond hair.
"Just…just promise me you'll be careful," York said softly, thumbs tracing delicately along the sides of the half angel's face.
"I will, but what's this all of a sudden?" North asked, briefly cupping the fox spirit's chin in his hand.
"I don't know. I guess I'm just worried," York said, offering him a tired smile. "It seems like…things are just suddenly starting to happen. Maybe that angel sense is starting to rub off on me or something, but…I feel like something's going to happen…and I can't stop it," he struggled to explain. "That feeling you've been having all day…it could even be your own death you've been sensing."
"I don't know that it works like that…but I guess it's possible."
"Rhys, I'm serious. Be careful out there. Don't do anything stupid. I don't…I don't want to lose you," York said quietly, not quite looking at him by this point.
"Finn, don't worry. You'll see me again. I promise," North said, leaning in to press one last kiss to the kitsune's lips. He hoped he'd shown him properly that morning, but just in case he hadn't, he wanted York to feel his love through this embrace. He wanted him to feel all the things he'd felt since knowing him. The Kimball mansion was the first place he and South had been able to call home in a long time, but it was more than just being welcome among the small group of outcasts. For the nephilim, York was what made it home, and he was grateful to have that to come back to.
"I love you," York whispered against his lips. "So much."
"I love you, too," North returned, holding him as close as he possibly could, even if it was only for a moment. "I'll see you when we get back. Stay safe," he said, finally forcing himself to let go of his lover and follow his sister, York's last look of hope and worry burned indelibly into his heart.
Don't be afraid. I'll come back. I'll see you again. I promise I will.
XxX
Conchenn's first thought was that she couldn't breathe.
There was a horrible weight on her chest, dragging her down, preventing her from pulling water into her gills. In fact, it wasn't just her chest. Her whole body felt unbearably heavy – like she was being crushed against the floor.
Then she began to cough – heaving, painful, hacking things as she expelled water from her lungs and drew in air. Air? Why would she be breathing air?
"Are you all right?" a strange voice suddenly asked her.
Starting in fear, Conchenn's eyes snapped open as she looked in the direction of the voice, only for her to snap them closed just as quickly. Too bright! It was much too bright.
"Where…where am I?" she struggled to ask, voice hoarse from coughing. The sensation of drawing air into her lungs instead of water through her gills was still alien to her.
"You're on the Western Isles. You washed up in the surf just a few minutes ago."
"Isles…washed…I'm…on land?" she demanded, all of the strange sensory input finally gelling in her brain. The soft grainy surface she was half sunk in was sand, and the reason she felt so heavy was she was no longer in water, though she thought she could feel faint traces of it lapping along her tail.
"Yes. You're…a mermyd?" the voice asked quietly. To Conchenn, it sounded shy and wavering.
"I am," she answered slowly, gradually forcing her eyes open against what she now knew to be the glare of the sun. When she finally managed to open her eyes enough to look at the speaker, she found herself looking at a creature that wasn't fully solid. It wasn't quite vapor and it wasn't quite liquid. Some form of energy maybe? The substance seemed to glow faintly before her eyes and it cast off a bright aqua colored light, threaded through in several places with crimson. Whatever this creature was, it took the form of a human – a young man sitting in some sort of wheeled chair. His expression was worried and curious, and the form he projected didn't look physically strong, but there was still something about him that radiated power. Whatever this being was, it possessed powerful magic. "What are you?"
Crimson briefly colored the figure's aqua cheeks as he looked away from her. "I'm not…really sure. I think they call us Spirits, but I don't know what we actually are."
"We? Are there…more of you?" she asked, rolling over in the sand to properly look at the Spirit. She couldn't really manage any more movement than that, still reeling from exhaustion.
"Not here. Not on the Isles. I haven't been here very long. But I have many siblings. I haven't seen any of them in a long time, though. When we were born, we were scattered to the four winds. I think…there are sixteen of us. My name is Phi…by the way," he said in a shy, stilted voice. "Who are you?"
"My name is…Conchenn…of the Terrapin clan."
"What are you doing here? I didn't think…mermyds came to the surface anymore."
"They don't. We don't. I escaped. I was…banished," she answered quietly, memory beginning to seep back to her as she clenched her eyes tightly shut once again. When she attempted to sit up, she cried out, feeling a sharp pain from the right side of her tail.
"Oh! You're hurt!" Phi cried out in distress. When the young mermyd followed his gaze down to her tail, she could see an ugly gash that ran near a foot through her brown and yellow scales, blood trickling freely onto the sand.
"Damn," she hissed. One of the shark guards had got her with a dagger during the last fight. She'd spent so much power trying to keep other creatures from the scent of her blood during her escape, she might not even have enough to heal the wound.
"Please…let me help you," Phi requested, worry shining in his aqua and crimson eyes as he looked down at her. "I can do it."
"A- all right," Conchenn mumbled, just staring up at the Spirit in confusion. With a look of intense concentration, Phi bent over in his chair, lowering a hand to the site of the injury. As the light of his power began to shift along her tail, she felt a strange combination of both hot and cold energies moving through her body. When Phi finally pulled back, there wasn't even the slightest sign the wound had ever been there.
"There we go. You'll be fine now," the Spirit said with an easy smile, but then the look of worry returned to his face. "If I can ask…what happened to you? Who did you escape from?"
"How much do you know about the Daemon Wars?" Conchenn asked him as she slowly sat up. Though she could feel the immense power this being had, he also seemed very innocent to her. What did this gentle creature know about war?
"I know the wars began eleven years ago…when the witch Leonard Church attempted to go against the angels…and reclaim someone he loved from death. The balance between this world and the next was destroyed…and the daemons of the earth rose up against the witches and the humans for this sin. For six years, they fought bitterly against each other," Phi answered, not quite looking at her as he spoke.
"Is that all it was? Six years?" she asked in amazement. Really, she had no way of knowing how long the wars had gone on after her own people had withdrawn.
"Yes. After Atlantis withdrew from the fighting, the daemons and their allies could no longer maintain a united front. It's been five years since the fighting stopped, but I…I don't really think either side won. They just don't openly fight each other anymore…and the balance goes on decaying. No amount of fighting's going to stop that," the Spirit said sadly, almost seeming smaller than he had when she'd first laid eyes on him.
"Did you fight?" Conchenn asked him, though she didn't see how he could have. She was certain she would've heard about it if creatures like this were fighting for either side.
"No, but I watched others fight…and die. It hasn't been easy…but it must've been much harder for you…if you actually fought," Phi said, offering her a look of sympathy.
"I did…but not very long against the humans. My people were…divided…over the issue of the wars. Some were with the daemons. Others, like myself, wanted a compromise…to work together to restore what had been broken. Eventually the fighting amongst our own kind became so bad, we had no choice but to withdraw from the wars. We have been at war with each other for the past six years," she explained.
"And it was from this you escaped?" Phi prompted gently when she trailed off.
"Yes. Very few members of my faction remain now. Last night…our base of operations was ambushed. Many were killed…my older brother among them," she said, the words feeling strange and heavy in her throat – like she still didn't quite believe them.
"Oh…oh, Conchenn. I'm so sorry," the Spirit said, looking stricken.
Conchenn sat in the surf, letting the water wash over her tailfin. She wasn't really sure why she was telling this strange creature all of this. Really, she had no reason to trust him and this naïve stupidity would most likely get her killed. But at the same time, she was only partway keen on living at this point, and Phi seemed to be willing to listen to her talk. Why not take advantage of the willing ear?
"I…I was ready to die with them," she said quietly, the memory of her friends being torn apart by the shark guard reawakening vividly in her mind as she spoke. "What use is there in living if you are the only one who remains? I was ready to stop fighting…but then I saw my brother run through…by the republic general…and he…while Cale died in front of him…he was laughing," she snarled quietly, arms wrapping tightly around her own torso as the sound of her enemy's laughter echoed in her head – and the sight of the water growing murky with her brother's blood…
"That…that's awful," Phi said, reaching a hand down as if to rest it on her shoulder, but lacking a physical form, Phi couldn't actually touch her. All the mermyd felt was a hint of warmth where the Spirit's hand passed through her. If she'd looked up then, she might have seen the pained look on Phi's face for yet another failure to make contact, but she didn't. She just continued to stare out to sea.
"I don't know what the future of the world should be. I don't care anymore. Atlantis can perish in a boiling sea for all I care. I just…in that moment, all I knew was that I had to kill him…the one who killed my brother. So I fled. I fled before they could kill me, too. I swam until I couldn't swim anymore, and that must have been when I was just within the tide reach of these islands."
Flee, Conchenn of the Terrapin! Flee while you can, but no matter where you go, I will find you! You cannot escape me. Flee even to the world above, but return to the water at your own peril. One day I will kill you!
"Then…what will you do?" Phi asked her.
"I'll bide my time…wait…become stronger…and when I'm ready, I'll return…and I will kill him. If it takes the last breath in my body, I will kill Geo of the Shark clan."
"But what will you do until that time?" Phi pressed. "Just stay here? Won't you be lonely?"
"There's nothing wrong with being alone. Besides, you're here, aren't you?" she asked, looking up at him. She wasn't completely sure why, but the Spirit had already stared to grow on her in the brief time they'd known each other.
"I…yes…I am," Phi stuttered. "You don't mind? You'd let me stay?"
Conchenn managed a small laugh at the Spirit's amazement. "I don't see why not. You seem a decent sort. Why wouldn't I?"
"I don't know; it's just…most people are afraid of me. It makes them uncomfortable to have me around…so I never stay any place very long. This seemed like a good place…since the fishermen only come by once every month or so, but…you really don't mind?" he asked, the small note of hope in his voice making the young mermyd feel a tiny spark of joy after so many years of hardship.
"I don't see how anyone could object to you, but yes. It's completely fine with me. We can stick together, you and I. Though…I suppose I had better get suited to being out of the water," she said, bringing her hands up to her neck and using her power to change her gills, immediately feeling how much easier it was to breathe once she'd switched to a complete air-breathing system. From there, she moved downward, first erasing the fins on her forearms, then the webbing between her fingers, finally moving down to her tail. First, her beautiful scales sloughed off. Then, as the tail slowly became flesh-colored, it split in two, each section taking on fuller form until a pair of human legs sprouted from her torso instead of her tail.
"That's amazing," Phi said in awe as he watched the transformation. "You can do that?"
"Of course," Conchenn said, trying to be casual about it, even though she was really just as amazed as Phi was by her new human legs. She'd seen others make the shift, but she'd never actually taken on human form herself. "All spirit creatures can change their form. You can't do that?"
Phi shook his head. "I don't have a form to change. I can take control of other forms, but this…what you see is what you get," he said, gesturing self-deprecatingly to what passed for his body.
"Well, that's okay. So long as you can still move about, I suppose," she said, her focus gradually shifting back to exploring her new body. The place between her legs – the vulva, if she remembered the anatomy correctly – was particularly sensitive when she ran her fingers over it. She couldn't quite help the tiny gasp that escaped her lips at the pleasurable sensation that jolted through her body – much more sensitive than her cloaca in her own form. She heard Phi squeak in embarrassment and when she looked up at him, his aqua cheeks were once again painted crimson.
"We should probably try and find you something to wear," he said quietly, very pointedly not looking at her. "That…that's a thing humans do."
"True enough," the mermyd said, hands continuing to explore the rest of her body, as the vulva seemed to embarrass her new companion for some reason. She ran her hands down her new legs, feeling the unfamiliar musculature beneath her soft human skin. Last of all, she came to her feet, running her fingers over both heels, arches, balls, and the tiny fingers sprouting from the ends of the appendages.
Toes, she reminded herself. She would have to learn these things if she was going to be here for any extended period of time. There was also the fact that these strange new things were for much more than to just stare at.
"May as well get started," she mumbled to herself.
First she tried jumping up, which would've been a simple matter underwater, but on land she had no hope of propelling her body that far under her own power, so she just ended up crashing back into the sand. Phi clearly had to resist the urge to laugh.
"One step at a time, Conchenn. First try rolling onto your stomach," the Spirit coached her. This order she was able to follow easily enough.
"All right. Good. Now you put your weight on your hands and knees."
This she found a little harder to do. Her arms were very strong, strong enough to support her easily, but it was difficult having to account for two lower appendages instead of just one. It took a few minutes, but she managed to get herself on all fours.
"Now what?"
"First you bring one foot up between your arms, then the other. When you feel like you've got a handle on your weight, you straighten your knees."
This part Conchenn took very slowly, determined not to fall over again. She followed Phi's instructions to the letter. Then, when it was just her hands and feet supporting her weight, she slowly drew herself up to stand on her feet.
For several minutes, she stood completely still, balancing on her feet, feeling them planted firmly in the sand, feeling the weight of her body against the earth.
"Okay, you're doing great. Think you're feeling up for a few steps?" Phi asked her.
The mermyd nodded, taking a deep breath before lifting her right foot from the ground and placing it a few inches in front of her. Once she was certain of her footing, she repeated the motion with her left foot. Then again, and again, and again, until she'd taken several steps across the beach.
"Yes, yes, that's wonderful!" Phi cheered as he drifted along beside her. "Do you think you could manage a short walk? There's a network of caves in the nearby cliffs. We could probably find you a place to sleep there."
"I think I can do that. A place to sleep sounds wonderful right now," she said, slowly walking further along the shore in the direction Phi had indicated. Even though she'd swum herself to exhaustion and passed out briefly, that short time had hardly been restful. She needed to be able to just lie down and sleep.
Phi, for his part, was just relieved he'd been able to get Conchenn up and moving. He didn't know why, but he didn't feel safe on the beach. He felt that something was heading toward them – something bad and dangerous. And with the mermyd still vulnerable as she was, the Spirit thought it would be better to just keep themselves hidden until whatever it was that was causing this feeling had passed them by.
XxX
For all his reputation of being associated with the ocean, what with his shark-related tattoos and the motifs he preferred to adorn his weaponry with, Terrence actually really hated the ocean. He knew he would've done best to circle the island at least once before tying up his boat at the dilapidated dock. He just couldn't stand the thought of being stuck in the choppy waters off the coast any longer than he absolutely had to be.
Once he'd gotten his boat secured to the rickety old dock, he unloaded his gear as fast as he possibly could and gratefully got himself onto proper dry land.
"No more a' this on the water bullshit," he grumbled to himself as he hauled his equipment further inland. Next time there was an assignment that even remotely involved water, he was going to tell the boss exactly where he could stick it. The man could have Aiden or Gamma or one of his many other underlings handle this shit. Not that he anticipated capturing one little Spirit to be at all difficult. It was more the getting to the actual task part that he hated. He didn't want to count the number of times he'd nearly thrown up on this miserable boat ride and he knew it would be just as miserable on the way back. He'd just have to comfort himself with thoughts of the hefty bonus he'd be receiving for pulling off this job.
The first order of business was to get set up in the abandoned installation, which was easy enough, as the gates had been left hanging open. The military had cleaned everything out when they'd closed up shop. The only things that remained were the ramshackle barracks that had housed the soldiers and their gear. Nothing to loot, unfortunately, but it certainly left the hunter plenty of covered space to work with.
"Cheep bums," Terrence commented to himself as he looked around the deserted base. The buildings had been poorly constructed to begin with and the equipment the garrison had maintained couldn't have been much better. Was it any wonder that so many lives had been lost here? There was certainly truth to the rumors that the Isles would've been lost had the mermyds not started fighting amongst themselves.
After getting the little gear he needed secured inside one of the rundown barracks, the hunter got his EMF reader set up, the gears in the little box turning as it swept the area for signals of spirit activity. The needle on the gauge remained firmly at zero, which meant that the witches who'd cleaned this place out had done their job well, even if nobody else had. A place like this should be a nexus point for ghosts. However, it also meant one of two things for his own mission. Either it meant they'd received a bad tip and there was no Spirit on this island, for which he might have to choke a bitch later, or it could mean that his quarry knew he was here and didn't want to be found, erasing every trace so thoroughly that not even the EMF reader could pick it up.
If that were the case, there was nothing for it but to search the island manually, and with the network of caves and tunnels that riddled the seaside cliffs, that could take several days. Terrence growled in frustration as he went for one of his knapsacks, digging through it until he found his brown and green camouflaged cloak, exchanging it with the black one he had on. The moment he put it on, he could feel that the spell on it was beginning to wear thin.
"Shit," he groaned. "Knew I should'a had Price update it last week." The cloaking on the garment would keep him mostly concealed from any eyes that weren't directly seeking him out, and at full power it would also conceal his presence from any magical means of detection. The spell wasn't completely useless yet, but it would only be partly effective against a Spirit already on the defensive. He would just have to hope the Spirit had come here because it had nowhere else to go – that it wouldn't simply flee when cornered.
Arming himself with a pair of daggers, a pistol, and a flame charge, Terrence struck out from the base to begin his search.
"All right, kiddo, if you wanna play hide and seek, we'll play. I'll just take it out the worse on you when I do find you."
XxX
The twins ended up taking only one break on the flight out to the Isles. South couldn't pin down what it was, but ever since her brother had said goodbye to York, North had been anxious to complete the mission and get back to him. It was strange because her older twin really wasn't the anxious type. He handled everything that came his way with calm and levelheadedness. To see him worried was…disconcerting, to say the least.
The pair of them touched down near the abandoned complex and South was ready to stroll right in, but North's hand on her shoulder stopped her.
"What?" she hissed angrily. "This is the place we want, right? I thought you were so fucking eager to get back home."
"Wait," he said, keeping his voice even, though his grip on her shoulder tightened as he stared past her into the darkened compound. "Someone's in there."
"Uh…isn't that why we're here? To see what's been spooking this place? I should fucking think there'd be something in there."
North shook his head. "It isn't a spirit creature, or a Spirit. It's human. The presence keeps flickering in and out, but it's there. Look," he said, nodding toward one of the dilapidated buildings. The only light that should have lit the gutted installation was the light from the nearly full moon, but upon second inspection, there was something different lighting the busted window of the barrack. The light flickered and had more of an orange quality, like a fire or an old heating unit. And now that she took the time to sense it out, South could feel the human presence North had talked about.
"Think this is what spooked the fishermen?"
"I doubt it. The way his presence flickers like that…seems like a failing spell of concealment. Who would have cause for such a thing but a hunter," he pointed out.
"A hunter? But that would mean…that someone else is after the Spirits," South said, keeping her voice low, despite the ugly implications of that statement.
"That would be my deduction, yes," her brother said quietly as he began to pull her away from the compound.
"But that's impossible, isn't it? Nobody else knows about the Spirits. Who would be after them?"
"There shouldn't be anyone else who knows about them. So far as Vanessa's told us, everyone else who was present the night they were created died…everyone except Wash, and he barely survived. It's possible this is a hunter acting under the orders of another Spirit – someone who wants to regather the soul shards," North speculated.
"But what would it accomplish?"
"Honestly? I don't even want to think about it. Can you imagine what someone like Sigma or Gamma could do with that kind of power?"
"Yeah, you're probably right," South said, groaning in frustration. "Best not to think about it. So what do we do?"
"We'll set up shop in one of the caves and run our own searches from there. If our friend back there had already caught the Spirit, he'd be long gone, so it's still here."
"Can't sense anything?" South pressed as they moved through the dark.
"Nothing but the hunter, and that makes me lean even more toward my first conclusion. If some random hunter had shown up seeking the source of the reports in hopes of an easy payday and come up dry, they would've left by now. This one's dug in. He knows something's here. The Spirit must be hiding from him."
South shrugged. "Guess that's some good news. If it was one of the malevolent ones, it would've just attacked him instead of hiding from him. Maybe this Spirit can be reasoned with. I am kinda wondering, though…"
"Wondering what?"
"If this hunter knows what it is he's after…how does he plan on capturing it? No human could hold a Spirit."
"All the more reason to believe he's somehow allied with another Spirit. At this point, the only thing we have going for us is that he won't be able to sense our presence. If the Spirit is on the defensive, it certainly knows we're here by now. Probably better to keep our presence low key, just in case he's running regular scans. Best to keep your wings tucked," he advised her as his own golden angel wings vanished into thin air.
"Right," the cambion said as she tucked her dark red wings into the Aether. "And here I was looking forward to something simple. We're in for a long weekend," she said as she followed her twin into the caves.
XxX
Conchenn awoke near the end of the third day feeling very hungry. Sleeping on the cave floor was cold and uncomfortable, but it certainly wasn't as bad as other situations she'd been in throughout the wars. She hardly minded being without clothing, but the hunger was beginning to get to her.
"Any change?" she asked Phi, who sat just out of sight of the mouth of their little cave. The Spirit shook his head as he looked back at her. She could see a look of guilt in his eyes when she went to sit beside him.
"No. All three are still searching." He'd told her about the visitors to the island and had thought it best they remain hidden until they'd gone.
"I don't like just sitting here waiting for something to happen," the mermyd said. "I wish I could go out and confront them directly."
"No," Phi insisted firmly. "Even if you were in any condition to fight, you aren't used to that body yet. Any one of them could defeat you easily. It isn't that I don't have faith in your abilities as a warrior. I just don't want to see you get hurt when you've been so kind to me. Really, what…what I should do is just leave. If I leave here, they'll follow me. They'd leave you alone."
"Not happening, Phi. You helped me when I needed it most. We're in this together."
"And if they find us?" Phi suggested quietly.
"Then we'll fight. I don't plan on dying here. I won't die until I've driven my spear through Geo's chest," the mermyd snarled quietly.
"Well…unfortunately, we're stuck here for the moment. I hope that goal is enough to sustain you until you can get food in you," the Spirit said. There was a note of bitterness in his voice, but still a small smile on his face.
"Don't worry about me. I'll keep going as long as I need to," she said, closing her eyes as she leaned back against the cave wall. Then, wrapping her arms around herself, she began to sing quietly – a wordless melody that drifted easily through the cave, helping her to keep her mind off her hunger.
"That song," Phi started shyly after several minutes. "You sang that last night, too. What is it?"
Conchenn smiled gently, not opening her eyes as she began to speak. "It's my heart song."
"What does that mean?"
"Every mermyd receives their heart song when they come of age. We hear the melody in our dreams and it gives comfort in times of tribulation. More importantly, when your fated soul mate hears the song, they will be drawn to you."
"Really? Has…has anyone ever answered to your heart song?"
"No. And I've never answered to another's, either. Most likely whatever fated mate I might have had died a long time ago. Many fated partners have been severed by the fighting. I don't sing because I expect someone to answer, especially not here. I just sing because it eases my soul."
"It's very lovely. I'm sorry I interrupted. Please…go on," Phi said, the smile on his face quite plain to be heard in his voice. Conchenn's smile widened a little as she went on singing her song.
XxX
Really, South found herself wondering as she watched the hunter make his way into another tunnel network from her perch atop one of the cliff faces, how this moron makes a living hunting is beyond me.
Their rival was currently searching a network she'd already searched, so she could take the time to secretly laugh at him. Granted, she hadn't made much progress herself, but so long as he hadn't either, she was content to take things slow. She and North had been searching the island for two days now, their little friend even longer, and none of them had found any trace of a Spirit. The young cambion was really starting to wonder if they were all just making a mountain out of a molehill.
But then she heard the singing.
From the moment the soft, clear sound pierced the hollow of her ear, she was lost. It was like a hook sinking directly into her brain. The music was sweet and warm and gentle and Enid Jones had never heard anything so beautiful in all her life.
All coherent thought completely left the young cambion and she tumbled from her perch, her wings unfurling just fast enough to keep her from falling. Trapped in the trance of the lovely song, she winged her way along the cliff face, following where the voice led her – little realizing she was in full view of the hunter as she plunged after her heart's desire.
XxX
Conchenn expected to be able to sing a little bit longer before being interrupted again, but it felt like it was only a few minutes before she felt the warm, tingling feeling of Phi's hand passing through her arm.
"Something's happening," he said, to which she opened her eyes, glancing over to see him peeking over the ledge.
"What is it?" she asked quietly.
"The cambion. She's heading right for us. I don't understand. There's no way she knows where we are. Just get-"
Before Phi could even finish speaking, the cambion was there at the mouth of the cave, wings scraping at the rough walls as she clawed for purchase on the stone lip. When she seemed sure she wouldn't fall, she began to move further in.
"What…what do you want?" Phi tried to demand, moving between the cambion and Conchenn, but she moved through him like she didn't even see him. Her focus was all on the mermyd.
Conchenn tried to crawl back further into the cave, but she couldn't quite make her legs work. All she could manage to do was stare at the cambion as she came toward her. For a moment, she was afraid, but then she saw the look in the half daemon's sky blue eyes. There was no malicious intent in that gaze. Conchenn saw…rapture in those beautiful eyes. It was an almost childlike wonder, and it was focused completely on her.
The cambion tried to keep her wings tucked close against her body as she knelt in front of the mermyd, but occasionally they'd sweep out and catch on the walls of the cave. Conchenn was sure the motion must've been painful, but she saw none of that on the cambion's face. Just…amazement…adoration. Conchenn inhaled sharply when the cambion reached a hand forward to touch her face, thumb rubbing delicately along her bottom lip.
"Sing," the cambion requested softly, desperately. "Please…sing."
In that moment, Conchenn felt her heart connect with the half daemon in front of her, and this woman knew she would die if she didn't hear Conchenn sing once more.
No, the mermyd thought in shock as she reached up to touch the hand on her face. It can't be. It's impossible. How could it happen now?
But it wasn't impossible. She knew that. The answer to her heart song didn't have to be another mermyd. Humans knew the tales of the heart song as the siren's song – men and women walking right off of ships to answer to the call of a mermyd's singing. Their soul mate. But for this to happen now, when her world was falling apart around her…
"Conchenn," the cambion begged, voice helpless and pleading, Conchenn's name now imbedded in her heart through their newly forged link. "Please."
"Enid," Conchenn returned softly, the cambion's name singing in the very depths of her soul like the sweetest music. She didn't even know this woman and already she was beloved. What could she do but answer?
When she began to sing the song of her heart, the melody that was hers alone to know, Enid began to sing with her, only she sang in words – words Conchenn had never heard before, but that were somehow a perfect match.
Say it's only a paper moon
Sailing over a cardboard sea
But it wouldn't be make-believe
If you believed in me.
Yes, it's only a canvas sky
Hanging over a muslin tree
But it wouldn't be make-believe
If you believed in me.
Conchenn wasn't sure when the singing stopped and the kissing began, but it just felt so natural, she wasn't completely sure they'd ever not been kissing. She felt Enid cup her chin in her hand just before the cambion pressed her lips to hers. A gentle touch with just a hint of savagery behind it.
The mermyd felt a thrill of excitement pass through her newly human body, and she was suddenly aware of how very naked she was in the cambion's arms. She felt her breasts grow tender and sensitive where Enid cradled her against her own clothed chest. When the cambion groaned softly against her, trailing a kiss down onto her neck, she suddenly felt moisture between her legs. Then the cambion folded her wings around the two of them and Conchenn rested her head easily against Enid's.
"Oh…Enid," she gasped quietly, clinging tightly to the other woman.
"So this is where you been hidin', kiddo. Got ourselves a bit of a love nest, do we."
At the intrusion, all three sets of eyes immediately snapped to the cave entrance to see the hunter standing there, sneering at them. He had a hulking figure and a commanding presence, and with the black glass eye that glinted from his face where a true eye had once been, he reminded Conchenn very distinctly of a member of the shark guard.
"What do you want?" Phi asked, again moving between the mermyd and harm.
"You, bright eyes. I'm takin' you back with me."
"Back to where?"
"Back to the boss. See, he's got a thing for nice shiny trinkets like you and I'm gettin' paid a lot of money to bring you in."
"And just who is your boss?" Enid demanded, arms and wings wrapping a little more tightly around Conchenn.
"Wouldn't you like to know. It's none a' your business, mangy half breed, so stay out of it."
Conchenn could feel the rage trembling in Enid's body. She could feel her desire to tear the hunter apart, but Enid didn't release her. She continued to shield Conchenn from danger.
"And…does your boss know…exactly what kind of power he'd be getting with something like me?" Phi asked.
"Oh, he knows. He knows exactly what you are. That's why he wants you, you and all your brothers and sisters. He's gonna throw all a' you a nice little family reunion. Then we can all sit back and watch the world burn," the hunter snarled gleefully, a look of unhinged joy on his scarred face.
"Then…I can't allow you to have that power. I'm not going anywhere with you," the Spirit said, fighting to keep a look of resolve on his face as he started to move forward, as if he meant to move through the hunter.
"Wrong choice, chief," the hunter said as he slipped something from his cloak, holding the small device up for all of them to see. "This flame charge can take out a whole city block. I think it could pretty easy roast two spirit babes like them," he said, nodding past Phi at Conchenn and Enid. Then he slowly held the charge up, ready to prime it. "Give yourself up and I'll let 'em walk."
"No!" Phi cried out, his form briefly going all crimson. "I…I'll go with you. Just please don't hurt Conchenn!"
"That's more like it," the hunter said, sneering as he lowered the charge.
"No! Don't!" Conchenn shouted, beginning to struggle against Enid's hold on her. "Giving in won't make anything better, Phi!"
"Wait," Enid whispered to her. "Just wait." Before Conchenn could protest further, she felt the cambion slip a dagger into her hand, out of sight of the hunter.
As the hunter slid the charge back into his cloak, he tapped his glass eye with his free hand. Then he began to speak in a language Conchenn didn't recognize.
"Sahanash threi ualei. Salukush manash takem."
At his words, a look of horror spread over Phi's features. Then his form began to melt into a shapeless, seething mass, slowly bleeding toward the hunter, up into the eye.
"The eye?" Enid mumbled in shocked amazement. "The eye is a trap gem?"
Once Phi had completely disappeared, the hunter's eye was left glowing that same aqua color, tinged with a hint of crimson. The man laughed as he began to turn away from them.
"Well, ladies, don't mind me. Go back to what you were doin'. I'll just be goin'…unless you're in the market for an audience, a' course."
Before the man could say anything even more degrading, Enid was springing at him, claws and fangs bared. She got in a good swipe across his belly before he could reach for a weapon, and when she ducked, Conchenn took her cue to throw Enid's blade directly at the hunter's eye.
Her aim was true and the blade struck home, biting deep and shattering the eye. The shards and the knife fell to the ground as the man collapsed to his knees with a shout of pain. Blood and aqua light seeped slowly down his face.
Once Phi was completely free of the trap gem, he didn't immediately retake his old shape. He remained a shifting cloud of vapor, fleeing across the cave floor to the back wall, as far from the hunter as he could get.
"Damn you, fuckin' bitches!" the hunter snarled as he crawled backward across the floor, blood seeping from his new injuries. "Just you wait. This ain't the end of it. I'm comin' back for that freak. Then I'm gonna kill the two a' you…after I fuck you," he vowed. Then he was gone.
South immediately rushed to the mouth of the cave, searching for him, but he'd vanished completely. All she could see was the place where his trail of blood ended. There wasn't even a hint of his presence. Pounding a fist against the cave wall, the cambion let out a growl of frustrated anger before turning back to Conchenn.
"Are you all right?" she asked, voice feeling somewhat awkward on the gentle words.
"I'm all right. Are you?"
"Fine. Bastard never even touched me," she said with a wry grin. Then that look became slightly more serious when her gaze fixed back on the mermyd. "So you're…Conchenn…of the Terrapin clan."
"And you're Enid Jones…daughter of Nia Jones…sometimes South Dakota," Conchenn returned quietly.
"Wow…that had a lot more nobility to it than most people would do," South said, smiling softly as she looked away from Conchenn. When she finally looked back to her, there was a look of uncertainty in her gaze. "Would it…be all right if I just called you Connie?"
The mermyd didn't quite answer, but she gave an odd little half smile and nodded. Before either could say anything more, though, a tiny cry alerted them to what was still going on around them.
"Phi!" Conchenn cried out worriedly, gaze immediately darting to the back of the cave where the Spirit still cowered, remaining in his strange, shifting cloud form. Conchenn crawled back to him, reaching out a hand to make contact with the swirling energy. "Phi? Are you…all right? Can you hear me?"
The Spirit didn't respond. His energy withdrew from her touch, cowering even further back against the wall. A strange keening sound filled both their heads as the Spirit trembled, unable or unwilling to take form.
"He's…crying," South said quietly as she moved back into the cave, only stopping to gather the shards of the hunter's eye. Doyle, Wash, and Carolina would definitely want to examine it.
"Phi, what happened?" Conchenn asked gently. "What did he do to you?"
"It was awful," a childlike voice came to them, trembling in fear. "I could hear their voices. I could hear them inside!"
"Whose voices?"
"NO!" Phi cried out in anguish. "I'm sorry I ran away! I won't do it again! I didn't know what to do. There was so much screaming!"
"I…Phi…what can I do?"
"South!" the anxious voice of the cambion's twin suddenly interrupted. South looked back to the cave entrance to see her brother alighting on the stone lip of the opening, hurriedly tucking his wings as he rushed to her. "Are you all right? What happened?"
"That hunter attacked us. He had a trap gem, but I don't know how he activated it. I didn't recognize the language. We freed the Spirit, but…I don't know," she said, glancing back at the mermyd and the traumatized Spirit. "That gem did something to it."
North immediately tuned into the Spirit's tortured sobs, his own protective nature kicking in as he moved to kneel beside Conchenn. "Hey there…"
"Phi," Conchenn supplied.
"Hey there, Phi. Not doing too well, huh?"
"N-no," the Spirit whimpered plaintively.
"I think I know a way I can help you…if you're feeling up for it."
"W-what?"
"If you come with us, we can help you. I-"
"NO!" Phi cried out again, withdrawing even further. "I don't want to go back in the dark! I can't do it! Don't make me go back! Please!"
"What are you doing?" Conchenn asked him.
"It's all right," North soothed both of them, reaching into his knapsack for a clear gem. "I do have a gem for you, Phi, but this isn't like the other one. It'll help you heal. If you come with us, I can take you back to Epsilon and Rho."
"Y- you know…Rho?" Phi sniffled. "Rho and Epsilon?"
"Yes, I do. I'm sure they'd be very happy to see you. Will you come back with us?"
"If…if you promise…I won't go back in the dark," Phi answered, wide tear-filled eyes briefly taking shape out of his formless self.
"I promise. You can trust me, Phi," North said gently.
"And…Conchenn…will you be there when I wake up?"
"Of course I will. You didn't leave me. I won't leave you. I'll protect you while you sleep," she said, fingers reaching out again to trail along the cloud of trembling energy. This time Phi allowed it.
"O- okay. I'll come with you."
"Good. Come on. Let's get you home, Phi," North said, using the power Doyle had given him to help ease the tormented Spirit into the gem. Once Phi had fully entered, the gem glowed with his same aqua light.
"And he's really all right?" Conchenn pressed.
"Yes. It's exactly like I said. We're getting Phi back to his siblings. We'll keep him out of danger. I take it you'll be joining us?" North asked as he got to his feet.
"Of course I am. There's no way I'd-"
Whatever else the mermyd said, North heard none of it. A horrible wave of dread and agony and knowing washed over him as the inevitability in his veins suddenly and violently came to fruition, sending him crashing back to his knees. Pain gripped his heart and squeezed the air from his lungs. He couldn't breathe! Destiny had finally caught up to him and he hadn't even seen it coming.
No. No! It can't be! Please tell me it's not true! he pleaded with the Aether, begged destiny – the angel that had destroyed his world in one fell swoop. I'll do anything. I'll pay any price. You just can't take him!
"North! North, what's wrong?" he heard his sister calling somewhere above him, but he couldn't see her. He couldn't see anything but a snowy field – and blood staining the snow. It couldn't be true, but it was. It had happened so fast, he hadn't had time to stop it, hadn't even had a chance to say goodbye. As tears began to pour down his face, the answer was torn unwillingly from his throat.
"York."
XxX
(A/N) Lyrics for this story are from, you guessed it, 'Paper Moon'. If you've any interest in seeing why everyone was so worried about Wash and Maine or what happened to Locus and Felix, you should check out 'Blood Moon' and 'Hollow Moon'. And if you want to know what happens to York, then you'll have to stick around for 'Broken Moon', hopefully coming to you by Halloween night.