Chapter 6

Attack on Avalon

Temmy screamed and covered Steve as the glass shards rained down around her, bouncing off the thick leather of her Valkyrie combats.

"OH SHIT!" Kitara shouted as she covered her face to protect it from the shards. It was then that they came; the soldiers of the Forgotten Army. They wore their cloaks across their faces to hide them and carried weapons in their hands as they came bursting in. Kitara summoned her mighty weapon; a massive monster of a hammer, with a twenty pound head, that ended with a foot long , armour piercing spike on one side. She swung her hammer in both hands, striking the nearest enemy in the chest and sending her back through the window from which she had emerged. "RUN!" she shouted as more soldiers started pouring in and so Temeraire did, sprinting towards the kitchen. She was too late however as a pair of Forgotten Army soldiers were already there. Luckily, this house had gas… Without thinking, she grasped the pan of bubbling fat she had planned to use to cook the steaks and hurled it at her enemies. It struck the leader soldier in the face, coating her in the scolding oil. She screamed and fell away, clawing at her face as the oil soaked through her face mask and burned away the skin of her face. In the split second this gave her, Temmy reached under the wings of her combats and dragged her khukuri free, unable to use her halberd in such a confided space, especially when carrying her cousin in one arm. The other Forgotten Army solider charged forward, slicing with both her sword and a wickedly curved knife. Temmy blocked the first attack and then the other and then swung one hand forward, wrapping one of her uniform's decorative shoulder wings around her enemies wrist and using it to yank her forward and onto the blade oh her khukuri. Steve wailed as the soldier's warm blood splashed across his face, while Temmy looked in horror, into the eyes of her enemy as the life slowly faded from her face… but the young Valkyrie had no time to contemplate this. She had to keep moving. She grasped her heavy knife in her hand and set off at a run, haring around the corner and out, into the back corridor, bouncing off the walls as she went. She turned the corner and went up the stairs, still running. But as she turned the corner at the top of the stairs, she ran face first into another three soldiers.

"Get her!" one of them shouted but Temeraire was ready for them.

"CONCUSIVE BLAST!" she shouted and dropped to one knee, sending the blast down the corridor, catching all three of the Forgotten Army soldiers and sending them whirling down the corridor, crashing through the back wall and out into the rain. With that, Temmy ducked into one of the rooms and slammed the door shut behind her. With that, she sank to the ground, letting her khukuri clink against the floor. With that, she looked down at her cousin and grimaced at him. He was crying and covered in the blood of the woman who she had just killed. Gingerly, she reached up and unclipped on of the decorative wings from her shoulder and used it to wipe the blood from the babies face, muttering soothingly to him as she did so. "It's alright… it's alright" she said softly as her little cousin continued fussing. All the while, she listened to the sounds of fighting from below… as they slowly faded away. She shook her head sadly. She knew that Kitara had been defeated. She-

"LET ME IN!" Temmy leapt to her feet and unlocked the door, opening it and her friend came busting in, gasping for breath. She collapsed against the wall, clasping her hand to her side as blood seeped form between her fingers.

"MY GOD! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?!" Temeraire asked, while Kitara nodded.

"I'm fine" she said through gritted teeth, as she laid down her hammer. Beside her, her angel appeared, her face a mask of concern as she laid both hands on her Mistress's side, lending her her power to heal her wound. "Is Steve ok?" she asked and Temmy nodded.

"He's fine" she said softly. "A little shaken up but ok. How about you, are you ok?"

"She'll be fine" Mere Wolf said. "Did you get any of those bastards?" Temeraire nodded.

"I definitely killed one and hurt at least three more. You?"

"Five KIA" Kitara said as she glanced down at her side. "Now would you look at that? Blood's an absolute bitch to get out!" Then she paused. "Did you see how many there were?"

"No time" Temmy admitted. "I was too busy running".

"I counted twenty" Mere Wolf said. "Plus maybe a few more outside".

"So if we got nine of them…" Temeraire said.

"Well we're still screwed" Kitara said and then gasped as her angel pushed a little too hard on her injured side. "DAMN IT! BE CAREFUL!" Mere Wolf shook her head and snorted. "So what do we do? Is there a phone in here?"

"I doubt it. Besides, the number's downstairs. If we were to try and get it and call my dad then we'll be killed for sure!" But it was then that they heard the second most welcome sound in the world. It was deep and rumbling, cutting through the sound of the storm. The sound of a pair of approaching Ghosthawks.

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As soon as the power went off at Bob's house, the Guardians were dispatched. They had been given specific instructions that if ANYTHING suspicious was detected, they were to send a combat-recon force, just in case. As such, as soon as they had detected the power outage, two full teams of ten Guardians each, had boarded a pair waiting Ghosthawks and had taken off into the driving rain.

"Ok command, this is Howler One-Zero. We're two minutes out".

"Roger that" the ground controller said.

"So what do you think's going on down there?" one of the Guardians, a truculent dwarf, asked.

"Probably just a blown fuse" a former Niflguard said with a faint look of displeasure. "Not exactly what I signed up to the Guardian's for; to baby sit the Paladin's girl and her friend while he's off chasing down some bastard from another world".

"Quiet that up!" the commander said. "We know our orders; the slightest sign of trouble and we're to scramble in. It's probably nothing but I'd rather not risk the Paladin's wrath if we were to ignore it and then it turns out that it WAS something". There were several second of silence before the pilot's voice crackled over the intercom.

"Sixty seconds out. Let's go green". The Guardians didn't reply, simply reached up and activated the night-vision sights that were built into the face-plates of their helmets, filling their vision with a green and black version of the world.

"Howler One-Zero, this is Two-Zero, we are approaching the target area" the pilot of the other helicopter said. "So far it looks ok. No sign of any- No wait". There was a sudden feeling of tension inside the helicopter. "One-Zero, are you seeing what I'm seeing?"

"Roger that Two-Zero" said the pilot. "Looks like we have people out there. I count three… no, four warm bodies. Human sized… SHIT!" The pilot swivelled in his seat to shout back to the crew directly. "WE HAVE HOSTILES! LET'S GET TACTICAL SOLDIERS!" There were a series of hisses, clicks and whirs as weapons were drawn and guns loaded. While the former Valkyries and Niflguard tended to rely on their weapons, many of the other races couldn't keep up with them in a straight fight most of them carried power gauss rifles; magnet powered guns that fired high density tungsten slugs, with enough punch to take out a first class being, even if they were using their true form. The only downside to the weapons was the need to charge them before firing a new magazine, so while the rifles were charged, the doors of each chopper slid sideways and a pair of old fashioned mini-guns were deployed, one on each side of the chopper, ready to provide fire support while the troops disembarked. They never got a chance to use them.

"LOOK OUT!" came the shout over the radio as a fire ball arched upward from the ground, heading straight for the lead helicopter. It struck Howler Two-Zero just below the main rotor, ripping through the transmission and gearbox and blowing the spinning blade clear of the top of the aircraft. "MAYDAY! MAYDAY! ZERO-TWO IS GOING DOWN!" came the panicked voice over the radio as his powerless helicopter almost vertically towards the ground, while the second Ghosthawk banked sharply and dived, trying to get out of the line of fire. With a sickening crash, Zero-Two slammed into the ground, its tail rotor shattering as it struck a tree and the tail severing, causing the fuselage to roll, toppling over and over itself until it landed in a burning heap, the occupants most likely dead.

"Command, we have a Ghosthawk down! I repeat, we have a Ghosthawk down!" the pilot shouted. "We're under fire and taking evasive action! We need-" He was cut off as a second fireball shot upward, striking the second gunship at the base of the tail. The blast flipped the gunship over onto its back, as the tail separated from the main body, spinning off in the a random direction as the chopper crashed down on its roof, shattering its rotor and sending chunks whirring away into the darkness. And that was the end of that rescue…

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Temmy and Kitara looked out in despair as the two Guardian Corp helicopters went tumbling down in burning heaps, crashing into the forest with flashes of light and flame.

"Well there goes our rescue" Mere Wolf said. "So now what?"

"I guess we hold out as long as we can" Kitara said, rolling back onto her feet with a grunt of effort, grasping her hammer with one hand.

"You can't fight like that" Temmy said, still holding Steve in her arm, as she grasped her khukuri in her spare hand. "You got messed up pretty bad".

"Look, you and Steve are far more important than we are" Kitara said. "If Mere Wolf and I can hold them off for a few minutes, then you two can make a break for it and run to the city. If you can get to the Guardians, you'll be safe and…" The look on Temeraire's face silenced her. There was no way that she was going to abandon her friend, even with the Forgotten Army banging at the door. It was then that they heard the voice.

"GIRLS! COME ON OUT!"

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The soldiers of the Forgotten Army moved through Bob's shattered home, breaking things, overturning furniture, searching.

"As expected, nothing of value!" one of them spat as she kicked over a bookcase, searching through the contents.

"You know we didn't come here to steal… at least, nothing of that nature" came a voice and all of the soldiers turned in fright as a dark figure filled the open doorway.

"Lord Trenzilore!" one of them gasped and each of the Forgotten Army soldiers in turn fell to her knees and bowed her head in respect as their masked leader entered the room.

"So how goes it?" he demanded. "Have you succeeded in capturing the infant and his two protectors?" There was silence for a second. "Well? Have you?"

"Not yet" one of the soldiers ventured, raising her head slightly. "They fled upstairs when-" But then the Oracle appeared, the guide of the entire Forgotten Army, unmasking herself from the camouflage spell and with a hand, causing the soldier to gasp in agony as her body began to contort in an unnatural way… until her bones shattered, the bloody shards sticking out clear from the rents in her skin. The unfortunate soldier collapsed, screaming, as the Oracle turned to the others in the room who cringed in fear.

"Why haven't you captured them?" she demanded, glaring down at them, her eyes glowing in the faint light of the storm as she turned to face the reaming soldiers who cowered back .

"They are fast and strong" one of the others said, dipping her head ever lower to avoid the Oracle's gaze. "They killed four of our number and wounded another four before we could react. They are far stronger than we expected and…" She quailed under the Oracle's gaze. "Please my Lady! We know where they are; they-"

"SILENCE" the Oracle hissed and then she shook her head. "These soldiers are pathetic" she said, turning to Trenzilore. "The mighty Praetorians, unable even to capture a pair of barely trained first-year Valkyries".

"Patience my love" Trenzilore said. "We will find them, we will take them and when we do, we will have a force that not even the Paladin himself will be able to counteract". It was then, from outside the window, that the sound of explosions came. Trenzilore turned rapidly to see the first of the Guardian Corp helicopters go down, crashing down with a blaze of glory. "I see that the rescue party has arrived" he sneered as the second Ghosthawk was struck but then her frowned. "We had better hurry".

"Yes" agreed the Oracle. "We must find them before the Guardian ground forces show up". With that, she faded out, disappearing completely from view as Trenzilore turned to face the staircase that led up to the floor that Temmy and Kitara were hiding on.

"GIRLS! COME ON OUT!" he boomed, filling the room with his voice. No reply came. "GIRLS! THERE'S NO POINT IN HIDING! WE WILL FIND YOU, SO I SUGGEST THAT YOU COME OUT NOW, BEFORE YOU MAKE THINGS WORSE FOR YOURSELVES!" There were several more moments of silence before a voice drifted down from the upper floor.

"You're gonna kill us anyway!" Temmy shouted back. "I can't see it getting any worse than that!"

"KILL YOU?" Trenzilore asked, starting to move forward. As he did so, he nodded at the remaining soldiers who began to creep stealthily up the stairs, with their leader slowly following. "WHY WOULD I WANT TO KILL YOU? YOU TWO ARE FAR TOO VALUABLE. YOU AND THAT BABY. NOW, WE WANT YOU ALIVE. IN WHAT CONDITION WHILE ALIVE THOUGH… WELL THAT'S UP TO YOU".

"Why would you want us alive?" Temmy asked as the stealthily moving soldiers reached the landing and began moving towards the room where the voice was coming from. "Surely we're more of a threat alive than dead?" Trenzilore smiled and lowered his voice, layering on the sugar.

"Come now girls, you need not fear us. We of the Forgotten Army simply want to right a wrong that was done unto us thirty years ago. With Deaderuss on the throne of the Almighty One, the world will be sure to enter a new era of peace and prosperity, far beyond anything that Lind and Jago have achieved. And with your help, this could become a reality! Think about it; a world where every being is equal, with the exception of those gutless humans. We could-"

"We would rather die than help you!" Temeraire said.

"Oh don't be boring!" Trenzilore said with a sigh. "Everyone who says that dies!" Then he paused, stopping just outside the door that the voice was coming from. "You now Temeraire, I know about your little problem. Deaderuss had the same; neither of you can support an angel. But perhaps together, with my help and with the restoration of Deaderuss from your father's keeping then-"

"Jog on!" Temeraire shouted back. "You think you can bribe me with that shit? I'm insulted! If you want us then you'll have to come and get us!" Trenzilore grunted as he reached the door that the voice was coming from and then turned to one of the soldiers, jerking his head at it. The former Praetorian nodded and slunk forward, crouching just before the door, her hand hovering just above the handle.

"Girls, this is your last warning!" Trenzilore said. "Either you come on out or we come in after you!" There was a moment of silence before Temeraire replied.

"What do they call you?" she asked tentatively.

"They call me High Lord Trenzilore" he replied.

"Well I have one thing for you to say; GO FUCK YOURSELF!" she shouted.

"Very well" Trenzilore murmured and he nodded. She placed her hand on the door handle and with a shout, she threw the door open… and was instantly eviscerated as the nail bomb the girls had planted detonated, filling the corridor with shrapnel.

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"Who the Hell is that?" Kitara asked as Trenzilore called out to them.

"Probably their leader" Temmy said and then paused. "I've got an idea; take Steve". Kitara nodded and took the baby as Temmy began to mutter a spell, while Trenzilore continued shouting from downstairs.

"GIRLS! THERE'S NO POINT IN HIDING! WE WILL FIND YOU, SO I SUGGEST THAT YOU COME OUT NOW, BEFORE YOU MAKE THINGS WORSE FOR YOURSELVES!"

"Oh nails of cold iron, raise yourselves!" Temeraire whispered. "Release yourself from the timber that binds us and prepare to come to our aid!" With that, every nail in the room slowly rose from the floor, forming a swirling ball of glittering steel. "Now across the corridor to the other room!" Temeraire whispered and Kitara nodded, withdrawing Mere Wolf so that the angel's light didn't give away her presence. It was then that Temeraire called back down to Trenzilore. "You're gonna kill us anyway! I can't see it getting any worse than that!" she said and slowly crept after her friend shutting the door to the room she had just left and leaving the still magically bound nails hovering there at chest height.

"So what are you planning?" Kitara asked as they snuck into the next room and listened as the Forgotten Army soldiers started to climb the stairs.

"KILL YOU?" Trenzilore said. WHY WOULD I WANT TO KILL YOU? YOU TWO ARE FAR TOO VALUABLE. YOU AND THAT BABY. NOW, WE WANT YOU ALIVE. IN WHAT CONDITION WHILE ALIVE THOUGH… WELL THAT'S UP TO YOU".

"Now watch this" Temmy said Kitara as the first of the enemy soldiers came into view around the crack of the door. "I've been practicing throwing my voice. Catching it is still a problem but…" She then turned back to the door and called out, projecting her voice so it sounded like it was coming from the other room. "Why would you want us alive? Surely we're more of a threat alive than dead?" It was then that Trenzilore himself came into view. He wore a worn and battered cape of dark grey-brown oilskin and his face was covered by a mask. It was a simple mask; made of wood and painted white, with a few red marks across the cheeks for decoration. But from behind it, his eyes shone, twinkling grey in the faint light.

"Come now girls, you need not fear us. We of the Forgotten Army simply want to right a wrong that was done unto us thirty years ago. With Deaderuss on the throne of the Almighty One, the world will be sure to enter a new era of peace and prosperity, far beyond anything that Lind and Jago have achieved. And with your help, this could become a reality! Think about it; a world where every being is equal, with the exception of those gutless humans. We could-"

"We would rather die than help you!" Temeraire said and Kitara nodded.

"Oh don't be boring!" Trenzilore said with a sigh. "Everyone who says that dies!" Then he paused, stopping just outside the door that the voice was coming from. "You now Temeraire, I know about your little problem. Deaderuss had the same; neither of you can support an angel. But perhaps together, with my help and with the restoration of Deaderuss from your father's keeping then-"

"Jog on!" Temeraire shouted back. "You think you can bribe me with that shit? I'm insulted! If you want us then you'll have to come and get us!" With that, Trenzilore grunted and nodded at one of his soldiers who nodded back, positioning herself to open the door to the abandoned room. "Ok" Temmy whispered. "As soon as that door opens, we run. We can make a jump for it from the upstairs window and land on the roof of the woodshed. From there, it's a straight shot and into the woods". Kitara nodded and gripped her hammer tightly, praying that Steve didn't make a noise. He gave a little whimper but nothing more as Trenzilore turned back to face the door.

"Girls, this is your last warning!" Trenzilore said. "Either you come on out or we come in after you!" There was a moment of silence before Temeraire replied, curious as to who this masked being was.

"What do they call you?" she asked tentatively.

"They call me High Lord Trenzilore" he replied.

"Well I have one thing for you to say; GO FUCK YOURSELF!" she shouted.

"Very well" Trenzilore murmured and he nodded. With that, the soldier slammed her hand down on the handle of the door and shot in… just as Temmy released the pent up pressure in her ball of nails and sent them sailing through the door way and shrieking through the walls, killing and wounding her enemies.

"AYO VALKYRIE!" she screamed and with that, she charged forward, summoning her halberd and swiped aside a bleeding soldier as Kitara followed her. They shrieked past the stunned soldiers and down the corridor, to the shattered window that overlooked the woodshed. Not bothering to check the route was clear, Temmy leapt first, leaping through the shattered pane, slicing her thigh on a ragged piece of broken glass, landed on the room of the wood shed with a grunt, rolled, dropped to the floor, scrambled to her feet, slipped in the thick mud churned up by the storm, pushed herself up once more, leaning heavily on the haft of her halberd and then stood and turned as Kitara landed beside her. "You alright?" she asked and Kitara nodded as she sheltered the wailing Steve from the rain.

"I'm good" she said but then glanced down at her friend's leg. "What about you? That leg looks pretty bad". Temeraire looked down at her ripped and bloodied trousers.

"I'm fine" she said and then nodded in the direction of the woods. "Come on! Let's go!" With that, They both took off, heading towards the trees and the city beyond. If they could just meet up with the Guardian Corp fighters who would surely be on the way. They just- Kitara screamed.

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Temeraire turned back to see her friend go down, shrieking in pain.

"KITARA!" she screamed and raced back towards her, tossing aside her halberd and catching Steve before he hit the ground and then spun to face whatever was attacking her friend. It was Trenzilore. How did he…? She thought but didn't bother to finish that thought. She just had to them get out of here.

"Release her!" she shouted back to Trenzilore, drawing her khukuri and charging towards the horrifying man before her.

"NO! DON'T!" screamed Kitara, even as her friend raced towards Trenzilore… but then the Oracle appeared. And it was then that Temeraire's face turned to horror as she realised that she recognised the woman's face. It was a face she knew well. She had seen it on the day of her birth. But this face was on a different woman. A face of cruelty and malice. And then she too went down, screaming as she felt her blood being torn from its veins. All she could do was twist her body to the side so that when she fell, Steve fell on top of her, softening the impact for him.

"Did you really think you could escape us?" the Oracle asked as she leaned close to her prey, her eyes gleaming wickedly. "You're just like your father; always jumping into things without considering the consequences. But you picked the wrong fight this time girl… you tried to fight someone who has mastery of Blood Control, as you should have realised from your friend". And both Temeraire's eyes and those of the Oracle swivelled around to look at Kitara as the young Valkyrie collapsed onto her back, writhing in the thick mud, now stained with both her friend's and her own blood. Beside her, Mere Wolf lay helpless, unable to move either, for all her strength as a Fighting Archangel.

"But now, it is time for us to finish what we came for" Trenzilore said as he approached the two fallen soldiers.

"What are you going to do?" Temeraire asked, her eyes rolling in their sockets as she tried to look at the approaching warrior.

"Well that's simple" the Oracle whispered, leaning close to her and brushing her hair away from her ear, as the surviving group of the Forgotten Army's soldiers approached them. "Now, we plan to use you to defeat the Paladin… for I shall take your mind!" And then the Oracle placed her hand on Temeraire's head, hacking into her mind… no, into her very soul. The last thing she saw before she blacked out was the sight of Trenzilore approaching Kitara, his own hand outstretched... and then there was darkness. And a gunshot.

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Both Trenzilore and the Oracle turned as they heard on of the gunshot and one of the Forgotten Army soldiers went down, spraying blood.

"This was a very foolish move" Jago said as he twitched the barrel of his enormous pistol aside, aiming for Trenzilore now. His cloths were battered and bloodied and his hat look singed but above all, the Paladin look ANGRY.

"Twoarchs!" Trenzilore hissed. "How… when…?"

"I got back as soon as I head that something had happened at the house. We were on the first gunship when it went down".

"We?" Trenzilore asked and then he felt the blade being pressed into his back.

"Yes" hissed Bob, his eyes burning with rage. "WE!" If it was possible for someone in a mask to pale, then that would have happened as Trenzilore realised his predicament; he had threatened the children of three of the children of some of the most powerful warriors in the world… and now, two of them were here. And they were heavily armed.

"I didn't expect to see YOU here" Jago said as he switched his aim to the Oracle. "I thought you were banished". The Oracle rose to her feet, glaring at him.

"You mean YOU banished me!" she hissed. "You forced me to leave HIM and…" But without bothering to finish, the Oracle launched herself, sideways, grasping Trenzilore by the shoulder and they both disappeared in a flash of light. Jago fired his revolver, aiming at them but the shot came too late and the twenty mil slug whizzed harmlessly though the air. With that, the remain soldiers of the Forgotten Army jumped to, trying to fight or to escape. Jago charged forward, dropping two soldiers with a pair of rapid fire shots as he reached under his jacket and drew his sword. He had once used a mighty claymore but it had been broken during his last battle with Deaderuss and so, now he used a newer, more versatile weapon; a 1796 pattern heavy cavalry sabre. It was a cruel and crude weapon; thirty-five inches of hardened, single edge steel, more a sharpened club than a true duelling blade but in the hands of someone as strong as Jago, it was a perfect weapon. But it was Bob who was the real nightmare here. After the death of Chrono, he had gone into a blind rage, unlocking one of his Opal-essence. It had taken all of Jago's combined strength to force the beast back inside, his brother's Opal-essence known as Orion. And so together, they fell upon their foes. You do not mess with the father wolf.

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Temeraire woke to find someone shaking her.

"Temmy? Temmy? Are you alright?" Slowly she opened her eyes and then screamed, looking up into the face of… but no, it was Lamb. "Oh, Lamb! It's you!" she said and she wrapped her arms around her father's angel, pulling her close. "Thank god! The Oracle-"

"I know. I saw her" she said and she helped the girl to sit up, sheltering her from the rain with her wings.

"Is she…?"

"I'll explain later" Lamb said and then she turned slightly as Jago came into view.

"How is she?" he asked, crouching down beside the pair. He looked worn and tired but he smiled at them both.

"I'm fine" Temeraire said, rubbing her head with her hand. "So what the Hell happened?"

"Don't you remember?" Jago asked and his daughter shook her head.

"All I can remember is… we were attacked… but I can't remember-" Then her brain suddenly stuttered to halt. "Oh shit! WHERE'S STEVE!?" she asked, trying to get up but Lamb held her in place, effortlessly keeping her in place with a single hand on her shoulder.

"Steven is fine" she said. "In fact, we all are". It was then that Temeraire realised that they weren't actually alone. In fact, they were surrounded. Guardians, Valkyries, Niflguard; all had been dispatched as soon as word of the attack had come to light. In fact, the reason that they could see at all was because the Guardians had arrived a squad of "Pink Panthers", heavily modified combat Land Rovers, equipped with heavy machine guns and spot lights, which were now being used to illuminate the area.

"Then where is he? And where's Kitara? And Mere Wolf? Where are they?"

"Steven's with his father" Lamb said. "As for your friend and her angel, they're both being treated for their injuries".

"As you should be" Damascus said. "You cut yourself pretty badly jumping out of the window. Now sit still so I can fix you up". Temeraire nodded as the devil knelt beside her, placing a hand on her bloodied thigh, as Lamb continued to shelter them from the rain with her wings.

"So what the Hell happened?" Temeraire asked and then gasped as the devil slipped one of her claws into the deep gash on her leg, gently using it to remove the muck and dirt from the wound. "Watch it!" she hissed.

"Watch your mouth" the devil said, not bothering to look up. "I may be a devil and a woman but I'm still technically part of your father so I won't take any shit from you. Now shut up and hold still". Temeraire nodded and then turned back to Jago and Lamb.

"So what DID happen?"

"You three were attacked by the Forgotten Army; at least twenty of them, as well as their leader, a particularly nasty bastard called Trenzilore. When we got here, it looked like they were trying some kind of mind control shit on you" Jago said. "You and Kitara both. Why, I don't know but I can probably assume that it wasn't for anything good". He paused as Damascus finished sealing Temeraire's wound and then held out his hand. "But I have to admit, you two did good. You took out ten of their soldiers before they took you down with Blood Control. I have to admit, that was pretty good stuff. They were all former Praetorians and even with thirty years of hiding, they're still tougher than most high level Valkyries. I have to say; I'm impressed".

"Thanks" she said as he helped her to her feet. "So did you and Bob get them all?"

"Most of them" Jago said. "In fact, Bob was so angry, I had to drag him away from them". He turned and gestured to a few surviving soldiers who had been forced to kneel before one of the Pinkies, their hands bound behind their heads. "But we're not gonna get anything out of them. Before I could capture them, they all bit their tongues off. Still, at least we got most of them".

"Most of them?" Lamb shrugged.

"A few of them made it into the woods. They're being tracked down now".

"As for you, you and Kitara are going back to Heaven for now. It's not safe for you two to be on the surface… not until we figure out exactly what's going on". Jago then gestured upward, to an approaching helicopter which had begun to slowly descend towards them.

"So what happens now?" Temeraire ask.

"Well, Weth and I are gonna pull an all-nighter and try and track down their survivors. As for you? You're going hope to a hot shower and a warm meal. You've done more than enough tonight". Temeraire nodded and then turned away as the Ghosthawk touched down, filling the forest with the wash from its rotors.

"So when will I see you again?" she asked.

"Soon, hopefully. I'll be by in a few days to check on you and to report to your mother on what we found. Till then, you keep your nose clean". Temeraire nodded and was about to turn away again when Jago smiled to her. "Oh and one more thing; good job lass".

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Bob was sat silently on the step of his shattered home, cradling his infant son in his arms when Jago approached. The baby was cold but Bob had wrapped him in a clean sheet and had him sheltered under the wing of his coat. He waived a tiny fist in the air in red faced rage as his father rocked him slowly crooning softly.

"How is he?" Jago asked, hunkering down beside them and tipping his hat back so that the rain dripped down onto his back, not onto little Steve.

"He's fine" Bob said quietly and then he looked up at Jago, tears in his eyes. "I nearly lost him tonight. If it hadn't been for Kitara and Temeraire…"

"But you didn't. The girls did good".

"Yeah. I was wrong about Temmy; I'm sorry. I never meant-"

"Bob, you're my brother, don't worry about it. If you want to apologise to anyone, you can do so to her, the next time you see her". Bob nodded as Jago paused, looking down at his little nephew. "So what's your plan?"

"Well I can't stay here" Bob said, jerking his head towards the door. "My house is totalled. Besides; it's not exactly a secure location". Jago nodded and tapped his chin.

"You wanna stay at the Guardian base? We have spare rooms which we keep for the on duty officers. You can have one of those if you want". But Bob just shook his head.

"No, I'd better get back up to Heaven. As soon as you've sorted things out down here, I want to be back into the action. After what Trenzilore did-"

"I can't let you do that" Jago said. "Not right away. You have your son to look after. No, if you're going to Heaven then I'll speak to Lind and find someone to take over the Auxiliaries, at least for a few days. You're in-"

"Jago" Bob said slowly. "I could have lost my son tonight. I want to get back at the bastard who did this!"

"Bob, I'm your brother, I'm five years your senior and I almost DID lose my daughter. I can tell you, I'm in no fit state to be going after Trenzilore and if I'm not then neither are you".

"Well I don't have lung cancer". Jago shook his head.

"Who told you?"

"One of the Councillors. I can't say who but they thought I had better know".

"Who else knows?" Jago asked and Bob shrugged.

"A few other I think. I took the liberty of ensuring that it was kept as close to the chest as possible. We all know what would happen if it became common knowledge that you were dying". Jago nodded and then stood.

"You've got a point. Now, I can't order you to do anything but I'm suggesting that you take a few days off before you help me go after Trenzilore and his ilk. Ok?" Bob nodded slowly.

"I'll think about it" he said and then Jago turned as Kitara and Temeraire's helicopter took off, beating its way back towards the city of Valhalla. It was then that he saw Lamb approach, still using her wings as an umbrella.

"Hey Master, Weth's here. She wants to talk to you". Jago nodded and tipped his hat to his little brother.

"I'll see you later, Little Man" he said and turned away, heading back out into the rain. Bob simply nodded after him and then ran a calloused finger down the side of his son's face. He had been wrong about Temeraire. She had done her duty. And for all the wrong she had done by him and Chrono, he was thankful to his little niece.

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"Hey Weth" Jago said, tipping his hat to her. "So what's up? I heard that you needed to talk to me?" Weth nodded, the hood of her cape flopping in the rain.

"Yeah, I did. By the way, I'm sorry I was late Jago; we got here as soon as we could". Jago shrugged.

"It's alright" he said. "At least you're here now". He paused and nodded at the captured soldiers. "So what's gonna happen to them? They can't talk any more".

"We'll try a mind hack on them to determine what they know. However, I have my doubts about how much we can learn from them". She paused and then glanced sidelong at Lamb, who was busy conversing with a group of Guardians. "So is it true? Was SHE here?" Jago nodded.

"Yeah, she was here. Lamb's hiding it pretty good but she's pretty shaken up. Still, at least it's worked out alright, even if she and Trenzilore escaped". It was then that Weth shook her head.

"That's what I needed to talk to you about; there was another attack at the same time as this one".

"Where?" Jago asked with a sigh.

"Buggerup".

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Jago touched down just outside the perimeter that he had created around his house. It wasn't usually for security; he was powerful enough deal with any attack foolish enough to be launched against him and he kept little of value in the place. The main reason as to keep away tourists and weirdoes who were constantly bothering him for things. Being the Paladin was no game and certainly not for the shy. However, today as he landed, couching with the exertion of having to fly under his own power, he unlimbered his heavy revolver, snapping it open to check the chamber and reload as slowly, he retracted his wings back inside himself. His wings, like his angels, were mismatched; one purple and bat like, the other white and feathered, as he used one from each of his girls, as he had the same amount of respect and love for them both and so, tried to share the load between them.

"I hate flying" he muttered to himself as he lit a cigarette with his thumb, using his Stetson to keep the rain off.

"Well maybe you should practice more" Lamb said as she fully emerged from his back, fanning her left wing with vigour.

"Yeah, maybe if you did, you wouldn't give us wing-cramps when we landed!" Damascus said, fanning her right. "You know how painful it is to have unused muscles try and support two and a half times your normal weight, one winged?"

"Are you saying I'm heavy?" Jago asked, grinning around the fag at her and she shrugged.

"Well yeah! Master, I weigh… about ninety pounds and Lamb? I'd say a hundred and fifty?" Lamb glared at her and folded her arms.

"A hundred and fourty" she said and Damascus snorted.

"Is that with or without the fun-bags?" she said, pointing at Lamb's chest. The angel went red with indignation before Jago sighed and glanced from one to the other.

"Come on girls" he said and snapped his gun closed with a very final snap. "We've got bigger problems than each other". The Archs both paused and nodded sheepishly as the trio slowly made their way towards the house. It was as they passed under a tree that a light flashed form up ahead and a high-pitched whirring filled the air.

"Is that one of the sentry turrets?" Damascus asked as they continued forward and then they had spotted it, high in a tree before them. It was indeed one of their sentry turrets, a mini-gun that whirred as the barrels span, preparing to spit down a wall of tracer fire on them. But the fire never same and as Lamb drifted up to the gun, in order to deactivate it, Jago's foot clinked against a pile of spent shell casings.

"Looks like it fire off its whole magazine… I hope it hurt whoever it was it was firing at". The same was true for all of the guns. They had a number of defence turrets set up around the perimeter of the house as anyone determined enough to get past the non-lethal defences was probably a hostile but now, each turret appeared to have used its entire magazine, ten-thousand rounds each. Whoever tried to get passed them, before Lamb deactivated them must have been extremely determined… or bulletproof. There first real source of worry though was when they came to the moat. Someone had attacked the crocodiles. There were two of them visible; one floating belly up in the moat, its belly split open and one dragged out on the shore. It lay there, its mouth and eyes closed, a large knife sticking from the top of its skull. Whoever had done this must have been incredibly powerful as these weren't pets; these were twenty foot long super-predators. But the attackers had also suffered, if the evidence was to be believed, as Lamb stooped cautiously at the water's edge, grasping something and pulling it from the water.

"Here you go!" she said, tossing it to Damascus. "'Armless!" Damascus caught it and then gasped, dropping it. It was an arm.

"That's horrible!" she said.

"Well at least the crocs did their job" Lamb said as she stood up once more. "Looks like at least one of those bastards got what was coming to them". It was then that the surface of the water erupted and she shot backwards, using her wings to boost her out of range of the crocodile's attack.

"Well I see that Gustav survived" Jago said, nodding as the huge reptile disappeared back below the surface. Gustav was the biggest crocodile in the area; a twenty-three foot behemoth, with a mouth full of teeth and a bad attitude. If anything could have survived an attack by Forgotten Army soldiers, then it would have been Gustav.

"He still wants to eat me though!" Lamb said as she touched down on the far side of the moat, waiting until Jago and Damascus made their own way across.

"Well it's your fault for being so sweet and tender" Damascus said, earning her a glare from Lamb and a disapproving grimace from Jago.

"What is with you tonight?" he asked.

"Sorry" Damascus said. "I guess I'm in kind of an antagonistic mood". Jago shook his head and then turned away. It was time to get serious. They were approaching the house.

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The door had been kicked in when they arrived, shattering the lock in the process. Jago led the way inside, his revolver heavy revolver held before him. It was unlikely that they would encounter anything, as the Forgotten Army were probably long since gone. Still, it paid to be cautious. Damascus was in the middle, providing light via a glowing orb in her palm, while charging a powerful spell with the other, while Lamb brought up the rear, cracking her neck in readiness.

"Ok, I'll check downstairs. You two check the top floor. But be careful. They may have left traps". The pair nodded and departed, heading silently up the stairs as Jago slowly made his way through the lower levels. In fact, HE almost walked into a trap. As he advance cautiously, his leg caught on something and he tripped, almost falling. He caught himself and then realised just how lucky he was; hovering just before himself was a taught piece of thin wire. In fact, as he looked, he realised that the entire corridor was filled with the stuff. If he had in fact fallen or had hit them at any speed, then he would have been sliced to pieces. "Be careful girls" he shouted. "They've strung cheese wire across the corridors. You could cut yourselves to ribbons". With that, he reached into his pocket and felt around until he located what he was looking for, carefully removing a pair of wire-cutters which he used to delicately snip through the thin filaments. He then continued onward, entering the living room. It was wrecked. Pillows and throws had been heaved across the room, the chairs had been overturned, the curtains pulled down, the table smashed. He shook his head and then went into the kitchen where it was pretty much the same story; broken plates crockery and glass covered the floor, alongside piles of scattered cutlery. It was then that he heard the scream. Lamb. Without a second thought, he turned and bounded back down the corridor, heading up the stairs at break neck speed. He burst into Lamb's room, his gun in one hand and his khukuri in the other. "LAMB!" he shouted, ready for a fight but then paused. Lamb was sat on the bed, with Damascus holding her tight, weeping openly and biting her knuckle. Like the rooms downstairs, Lamb's had been overturned, but it was something that lay on the bed that seemed have upset her. An empty box, lined with tissue paper. "What is it?" Jago asked. "What's wrong?"

"They took her!" Lamb moaned. "They took her!" Jago gave Damascus a confused look, to which, the devil simply shrugged.

"Took who? What's missing Lamb?" Jago asked, holstering both weapons and placing a hand on each of Lamb's shoulders. "Lamb, look at me. WHAT did they take?" And Lamb let out a deep sob, wrapping herself around him.

"They took her Master!" she whispered. "They took my baby!" Jago looked confused.

"Baby? Wha-"

"My baby Master! They took her! They took my egg!"

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Trenzilore gasped as he and the Oracle stepped into the Jötunnheim.

"I wish you wouldn't do that" he said. "It can't be good for my heart".

"Oh boohoo" the Oracle said. "I got you out of there didn't I? And you weren't shot".

"We failed though. We failed to capture the prisoners we need".

"It matters not" the Oracle said. "We will just switch to Plan B". And Trenzilore nodded.

"Yes. It will be risky… but we have the advantage". And he reached into his cloak, pulling forth a tiny white oval. "Besides, we have the egg now. I would never have thought that Lamb would be the one to bear it".

"Is it really that much of a surprise? I hate to admit it but she is the most powerful angel in existence… short of Anzus's girl of course. But now, we have her daughter. And we shall turn her against them".

Authors Note: Uh oh, so what are Trenzilore and the Oracle planning? Why did they take Lamb's egg? And what's going to happen next? Stay tuned!