So it's been about a year, and thankfully everything keeping me from updating has faded away. So I hope that I'll be able to update this story far more frequently from now on. I hope you enjoy this episode, as I begin delving into completing the next.

Until then, enjoy!

Episode 11 - A Witches Covenant - Drama From Bon Temps to Mystic Falls and Beyond!

Sookie Stackhouse sighed where she lay out on a lawn chair out in her front yard, enjoying the bright summer sun. It was peaceful, had been for several days now. She hadn't thought about Eric or Bill much, and for the first time in a long time she had spent time with Sam and Alcide without bringing up the supernatural. But not all was good, and as she turned around to let the sun hit her bikini clad bust, she sighed her depression.

Tara hadn't talked to her in weeks, not since she had taken bullet for Sookie and the only way for her and Lafayette to save her had been to turn to Pam. Now Tara was an unhappy vampire. Of course it didn't make her feel any better that Tara wasn't talking to Lafayette either, that was just icing on the cake. The few times she had made it out to Fangtasia hadn't exactly ended in hugs and kisses and gossiping over margaritas.

Her brother Jason was inside the house, having come back on his break to check on her and have lunch at home. He looked nice, professional even, in his police uniform, something Sookie hadn't thought possible for the longest time. Of course, she had always seen the potential Jason could have, and had always watched out for him like he had for her, but sometimes he could just be idiotic. Then again, so could she.

"Oh what are you going to do Sookie Stackhouse?" Sookie asked herself quietly, hating that she had ruined her only day off this week from Merlotte's with such negative thinking. She had tried to do something, a good something if a little… alright a lot selfish, but Tara had done something so selfless. The intention… it hadn't even been hers at first, Lafayette had wanted it and Sookie had simply wanted her best friend back.

"Yeah, Sookie, what are you going to do?" She heard Sam Merlotte call out to her, seconds before his car door slammed behind him. She could hear Lafayette howling after him, near tears. Sam had found out about Tara almost immediately after it had happened, having found her in his freezer in the back of Merlotte's. It had been… a complicated reintroduction. "Better yet, for once, what are we going to do?"

Sookie propped herself up on her elbows, her beautiful blonde hair swirling down around to gather on the straps of the chair. Her bikini barely hanging on any more after her having toyed with sunbathing in the nude, of course Sam and Lafayette showing up had only proven the need to not dress down. The only saving grace was that they weren't nosey neighbors but actual friends.

"What exactly do you mean, if you don't mind my asking?" Sookie breathed out in a Mississippi drawl as she rolled her head around to try and work out the kinks in her neck. She eyed Lafayette wearily, noting the jumpy beat he had alongside the fact that he was on the verge of hyperventilating. "Lafayette, what's wrong?"

"He woke up screaming at the bar not thirty minutes ago," Sam said as he gestured over his shoulder towards the tall, burly black man who at times could be a flaming queen and at others a person you wanted to get the fuck out of the way of. With magical power to back it up, he had proven himself a threat to the vampire community very recently, though they had learned not to toy with him after the whole Marnie incident. At least, they didn't toy with him as much. "He said something was coming after him, he thought it was vampire that could walk in daylight. I've been trying to calm him down all morning, Sook, but… I'm getting nowhere."

Sookie blinked at that, doing everything in her power to keep her eyes from the bulge in Sam's tight jeans. He had moved on from his feelings towards her, at least that was what he tried to exude. Sookie couldn't keep him from moving on, though, after all he had Luna to lean on now. But the chiseled face, strong jaw, well-formed muscles, and tight backside were always a sight to be had on top of the mess of brown locks and deep brown eyes.

"What kind of something?" Sookie asked as she swung her legs over the edge of the lawn chair, quickly tying the strings of her bikini tighter so that her breasts wouldn't be bared for all to see. "Because it can't be a vampire, we all know they can't walk in the sun."

"No, no, Sookie!" Lafayette exclaimed as he rushed forward, wrapping his big hands around hers and nearly crushing them as tears started falling from his eyes harder than they already had been. "I seen it, vampires are comin' for me, Sookie! Day-walking, blood suckin' vamps are headin' this way for me and I can't… I can't stop 'em I know they're comin' for me!"

"Lafayette," Sookie cried out as she struggled to free her hands from his tight grip, pain starting to overwhelm her defenses and allowing his thoughts to sweep through her mind.

Sookie shook violently in place as she felt tiny bolts of white electricity surge up her hands from Lafayette's. It arced up her arms to spread out across her body, completely different from any other time she had used her fae powers. Vague imagery swept through her mind's eye, two handsome vampires with familial rings on their middle fingers, the taller blonde one wore his on his right while the more muscular and slightly shorter dark-haired one wore his on his left. They were physically domineering in every possible way, beautiful and alluring, dark and deadly. But something was wrong with what Lafayette had said and what they were doing in her vision.

They moved towards Lafayette, veins around their eyes as if they were about to maul him, but they quickly vanished as they spoke to him. Though the words were muted for her, she could tell that they were trying to calm Lafayette, telling him that they weren't here to hurt him. In Lafayette's fear, though, he lashed out at them with magic to knock them back with as he turned his head away from them.

Then, someone else stepped through the doorway which sunlight shone through. He was someone who was muscular and tall, with a body which looked as if it belonged to someone who did construction all day. He moved with an ethereal grace, with his short light brown, almost blond, hair fluttering in the wind that had come with him. Blue eyes looked down upon Lafayette with sadness and pity, though that only lasted a second before the man reached for Lafayette and tore his neck up to his waiting fangs.

Everything grew hazy before finally blurring into darkness just as Sookie pulled off of Lafayette and stumbled backwards, heaving and covered in sweat that hadn't come from the sun's brilliant heat. Lafayette cried out in pain as he fell onto his side, clutching his arms around him tightly as Sam rushed forward to check on her. She could hear the front door of her house open almost immediately as Jason called out in fear and confusion, gun waving wildly.

"Sookie, are you okay?" Sam asked as he dropped to his knees to slowly pull her up into his lap. He brushed a lock of her sweat soaked hair aside allowing him to peer into her eyes as he used his enhanced senses to feel for something wrong with her physical state.

"What the hell happened out here?" Jason demanded as he knelt down beside Lafayette's crying form. He put his gun down beside him before patting Lafayette nervously, trying to soothe the man's pain but not knowing how to go about it exactly. But Sookie was just as confused, especially after what she had seen from within Lafayette's mind.

"It was just so strange," Sookie breathed as she brought one hand to her forehead. She smiled her thanks at Sam which only grew as he helped her up. "I mean, I was viewing everything through Lafayette's eyes as if I was lookin' through a memory, but it wasn't a memory. I was lookin' into the future, through Lafayette's eyes in the future."

"Lafayette can see the future?" Jason asked with arched brows and a mischievous smile. "Hey man, that means you can win the lotto and not feel bad about it because it wasn't really cheating!"

"Jason, really?" Sam asked flatly, to which Jason responded with an expression of brief bewilderment before sudden realization dawned upon him.

"Oh damn, right, man I'm sorry, are you alright Lafayette?" Jason asked as he hurriedly went about helping Lafayette stand up, concern in his gaze and thoughts about how selflessly idiotic h could be within his mind. Lafayette brought one hand up to his head and shook it slowly, trying to purge the images from his mind. Sookie could see that he was about to keel over as everything tried to overwhelm him. It was too much and as Sookie reached out to try and help him something just vanished.

"I think I'll be fine," Lafayette breathed out then as he started to calm down, all the images suddenly gone from his mind. "The images, they're gone now and I feel a lot better. I don't know what you did, Sookie, but I'm feeling hella good, bitch."

He said it with such nonchalant flare that Sookie barely caught it, only to part her lips in confusion when she did.

"Lafayette, I didn't do that." Sookie said as she took a cautious step forward, Sam's hand still on her back as she moved. She liked it there, it felt almost right there. Of course, it felt the same when Alcide had his hand on her, and Bill, and of course Eric. Oh why couldn't they all just come crawling to her and pleasure her rather than the other way around. Men were so fucking difficult. "I didn't take the images away; I just saw what you were seeing."

"But if you didn't do it…" Sam started to say as Lafayette paled considerably. "Sookie, if you didn't help him then who did? Things like this don't just go away by themselves. Not when we're involved with it at least."

"That usually is the case," Sookie sighed as she finally decided to let go of ever having a simple, normal, care- and supernatural-free day. It was unlikely to ever happen again, ever since Bill Compton walked into Merlotte's and into her life. But then again, simple was always boring.

Sookie smiled as she parted her lips to say something, only to feel a sudden wave of heat wash over them as something bright and red started towards them. "Get down!" Sam exclaimed as Jason and Lafayette turned towards the source of the heat and light with surprised expressions.

"So glad you got our warning," a woman called out from up above as flame swept across the air directly above them with only five feet between the flames and their tallest member. Sookie cringed as Sam dropped them both to the ground, feeling the heat radiating off of the flames which were far more intense than the sun only because of how close they were. "We wanted you to understand what would happen to you if you don't come with us right now."

"Granted we're taking you with us whether you want to go or not." A man chuckled as the flames swirled up and away before disappearing into the palms of their hands. The woman was tan and beautiful with long wavy brown hair and hazel colored eyes. She wore a black dress with a white cloth belt wrapped around her middle to gather the skirt and make it shorter while also flaring it out around her shapely legs.

The man with her was tall and athletically built with dark brown hair and cold blue eyes which peered down at Sookie, whereas the woman was focused solely on Lafayette. He wore an expensive suit which hugged every inch of him alluringly, as if it had been designed specifically for him.

His chuckle had faded almost instantly when his gaze had fallen on her, and as fear began to set in, she knew that even her fae powers couldn't protect them against these two newcomers. And in the middle of the day there wasn't a vampire in town that could-!

"Oh," Jason said under his breath, drawing Sookie and Sam's gazes towards his stunned expression.

"My," Sam said with wide eyes as his gaze finally settled on what Jason and Lafayette had already seen.

"Fucking god," Sookie finished as two blurs sped past Lafayette and Jason to straddle her and Sam. Bill Compton, standing at five feet and ten inches just as her brother did, stood beside her closely with his dark blue eyes narrowed and aimed at the two beings who hovered above them. Eric Northman, her most recent vampiric lover towered over them all at six feet and four inches, only Alcide was taller than him and not by much. With tufts of blonde hair and ice blue eyes and a beautiful body seemingly cut from stone, which she could have sworn she had read somewhere, Eric appeared with his hands in his pockets and his body in a lethally laid back stance.

"Where did you two witches blow in from?" Eric asked with one brow arched out of curiosity, his body moving infinitesimally, reminding Sookie of how quickly they could turn from a sex God to a brutally demonic killer. "And while we're at it, what the fuck do you think gives you the right to infringe upon my King's realm. This isn't fucking California where witches can do whatever the fuck they want."

"You must be Eric," The man said as he and the woman lowered down towards the ground to stand between them and Jason and Lafayette, putting Sookie on edge. "We haven't yet met, though I'm sure we will soon enough. Don Stark, and while this might not be California," A ball of fire swirled into the palm of his hand. "We're the kinds of witches you don't want to fuck with, aren't we Maggie dear?"

"Oh people usually don't want to mess with us," Maggie said as she whirled her hand to bring forth her own ball of fire. "We're the Stark witches, faithfully serving those who have ambitions which far outweigh the knowledge you have. Now stand down so we can depart with our guest or become a scorched pile of blood and guts. Why don't you give them a taste of our power, Don?"

"My pleasure," Don said as he threw his hand out to direct the ball of fire towards Eric's chest. The ball burst into small flares upon impact, all of the heat having dissipated to leave only a concussive force which sent Eric flailing backwards into the tall tree behind them. "I could always incinerate you, but someone's already spoken for your continued existence."

"As has someone for yours," Maggie said as she directed her own ball of fire towards the ground at Sookie's feet. "Fairies are so damned valuable these days, but we'll come back to that at a later date sweetie."

Sookie cried out as she clung to Sam's arm, feeling his other hand wrap around her protectively while Bill sidestepped around them to try and keep the flames from getting any closer to them. Sookie snapped her gaze towards the woman, hating her for what she was doing. She could feel her thoughts and Sookie knew what they were here for, or rather who they were here for. They had come for Lafayette so they could use his power for a ritual. But even they didn't know what the ritual was for or who was doing it. But they did know where it was being performed.

"So why don't you stay out of the way before I break your neck with my Jimmy Choo's?" Maggie said as she flipped her hair off of her shoulder so that it flowed down her back. She then looked over her shoulder and smiled flirtatiously as Jason pointed his gun at her.

"I don't care what you are; if you don't let my sister go I'm gonna bust a cap in your ass right here and now." Jason threatened as he bent his legs to hold his ground. Sookie could feel his fear screaming out. He was afraid of their powers but fighting through that fear to protect them. It was so… stupid but brave. "Now, let them go!"

"Isn't he adorable," Don said in a deprecating tone as he snapped his fingers and chuckled darkly when Jason was thrown backwards at the sound of a loud clap. Jason screamed out in agony as blood hit the grass, a hole in his right shoulder as if he had been shot by whatever Don had done. "Now then, why don't you surrender yourself peacefully or end up like your friend over there, in pain but still very much alive to do what we want."

"Make the right choice sweetie," Maggie said as she started towards him, her distance doing nothing to lessen the flames around her, Sam, and Bill.

"Sookie, I'm gonna go out there and protect him," Bill said under his breath as he crouched down low. "No matter what I want you and Sam to run the second the flames die down. We'll take care of everything, I promise you that."

"Bill, before we even get in on the fact that fire can kill you, though now I'm starting to question that as the sun is on you and you aren't burnt to a crisp, they have other powers that can stop you long enough for them to escape." Sookie said as she watched everything transpire around her, only stopping to take a breath when she knew she had gotten most of her point across. "I know where they're planning on going, and kind of what they're planning on doing. We need numbers and other things on our side to handle them. That and a damn good plan to get us in and out alive, or have you forgotten your common sense along with your fatal weakness to the sun?"

"Sookie," Bill said then in that alluring 'I'm trying to protect you' tone of voice he always used. But this time she wasn't backing down. She didn't want any of them to die, and if a little bit of planning and a whole grab bag of supernatural creatures could make that possible than she was going to sacrifice Lafayette to save him and everyone else in the process. "You're right…"

That was definitely a surprise, one that was cut short by Lafayette's fearful scream as flames shot past him to circle around Jason and keep him in place, writhing on the ground. "We have to be smart about this, I can feel their power and I know they aren't the same kind of witch that Marnie was. They're more powerful than she was, by a long shot."

"Help me, god somebody help me!" Lafayette cried out as Don reached out towards him and dragged him through the air into their physical reach. Lafayette locked eyes with Sookie, and all she could do was stare back afraid to reveal their plans aloud and put their lives in danger. It wouldn't do anybody any good if they were all killed, then no one would know where Lafayette had been taken.

So Sookie simply watched as her friend vanished in a vortex of flame alongside the two witches, Don and Maggie Stark. And when they were gone, Sookie fell to her knees in a heap of tears, shame, and fear, as all of the fires the witches had brought forth petered off into nothingness.

"Sookie, where did they take him?" Sam asked as he and Bill knelt down on either side of her, one hand on either of her shoulders. She could feel Eric started towards her, the void that was his mind something of a pleasant reminder that there were some people out there whose thoughts she couldn't read. Of course, that extended to all vampires, even the bad ones.

Thankfully this enemy wasn't a vampire.

"They've gone to a place called Mystic Falls in Virginia," Sookie said as she wiped away her tears. "Get Alcide and the others, we're gonna need them. Those witches hurt my friends and took Lafayette, and for that they are going to pay."


"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't gank you right here and now?" Dean demanded of the young witch and the blonde vampire he had a gun trained on, knowing full well that it would only barely slow her down. A stake to the heart, however, would do the trick nicely and he wouldn't even have to break a sweat. She wasn't the same kind of vampire he was generally used to hunting, decapitation being the only reliable way of killing them, but the classics were always a favorite tactic of his.

The werewolf growled as he pawed at the ground, prepared to leap at Dean and attack him, but as Rogue took a step forward and removed her gloves, he knew he had his own backup. Damon and Elijah stood on either side of Dean and Rogue, staring down the group, waiting to see how this was going to turn out. A vampire, a witch, a werewolf, and a doppelganger stood on one side of the barrier, while Dean, Rogue, and two vampires stood on the other. It could only end just peachy.

"Klaus's witch just betrayed you, doesn't that seem like reason enough to give up on your desire to sacrifice my friend." Bonnie said as she took a step forward, her arm hovering between her and the others. "I don't know what that telepath did to you and Stefan, Damon, but I'm going to fix you."

"I don't need fixing, or haven't you noticed I'm doing quite fine for myself." Damon said flirtatiously, waggling his eyebrows as he cocked a half smirk. "I'm fine just where I am, Bon. You should try it some time, you might even like it."

"Like I'd ever want anything to do with a cold dead corpse whose about to help kill one of my best friends," Bonnie said derisively, her eyes glimmering red as her anger took a foothold in her entire demeanor.

"Bonnie," Elena gasped.

"You always did have a problem with me," Damon said as he clenched his fist, his smirk increasing as he hovered between attacking and taunting. "Well then, now's your chance to do away with me, although that might just make you a witch with a capital B. Oh wait, that would just make you a-!"

Dean cringed as he felt himself lose control of his body seconds before he crumpled down to his knees along with Rogue. Damon wasn't soon behind, though he never lost his smirk. Elijah flinched briefly, most likely out of surprise, but the man quickly recovered, while Dean hit the ground hard along with the others.

"Unfortunately for you, we do not have time for such trivial nuisances." Elijah said calmly as he knelt down and gathered a handful of pebbles. Dean writhed in agony and pressed his hands against either side of his head, trying to dull the pain as he watched the pebbles strike the barrier and continue on towards the three women.

Caroline screamed as the pebbles struck her body like bullets, sending her stumbling backward until she fell to the ground, unconscious. The rocks aimed at Bonnie and Elena were swiftly caught by the former's power of telekinesis and allowed to fall towards the ground harmlessly.

Dean clutched his head as he watched Tyler leap towards Caroline's side, nuzzling her onto her back as Bonnie glared at all of them. Dean could feel the pain slowly fading, leaving only a ringing in his ears that he easily blocked out. Sitting up, Dean cringed at the sensation of his pants tightening around his legs, adding to the pain he thought he had already overcome. Witches… Bonnie wasn't like any witch he had come up against before. Dean didn't have a clue on how to take her down. Dean didn't have a clue if he even should be taking her down.

"I'm not afraid of you," Bonnie said in a cold and eerie way, her hair flurrying around her as her eyes narrowed into slits. "Now back off before I show you what the power of a hundred dead witches can do."

"Only a hundred," Rogue said dryly as she casually dropped her gloves, looking completely disinterested in what the woman was saying. "How do I know you aren't working with the witch that just took a friend of mine?" She took a step forward so her hand could hover in front of the barrier. "Why don't you come show me what a hundred witches are capable of?"

Bonnie cocked a sly grin as a swirl of fire crackled into existence, hovering in front of her body as a mysterious gust of wind blew her clothes and hair out around her. Dean wearily looked between the two of them while Elijah simply stood there, another grouping of pebbles bouncing in his hand. Tyler growled menacingly as Elena took hesitant steps forward, a pleading expression capturing everything that this girl had to be going through in that exact moment.

Dean didn't particularly want to fight with these people, especially since he didn't know them from the vampire standing right next to him. He had spent years hunting down vampires, werewolves, and demon clown things… and a myriad of other nightmarish creatures. But the vampires and werewolf who stood, or crouched, before him only wanted their friends back… kinda like them.

"Alright, alright, enough," Elena cried out as she rushed in front of Bonnie and threw her arms out.

"Elena, get out of the way." Bonnie said as the fireball grew in size until it was bigger than the girl who had created it and the girl standing in front of her. Caroline stirred where she laid, her hand instinctively going to her head as a pebble dislodged itself from her forehead, subsequently closing around the wound with only a small stream of blood as evidence of her ever having been injured. "If he's not on our side then he's dead weight."

"Bonnie!" Caroline said harshly as she sped onto her feet, her hair bouncing when she came to a stop beside Elena. "They're our friends. We can't turn our back on them because… because of some bleach blonde's mind thingy."

"You guys really don't get it do you?" Bonnie asked flatly, the fireball surging up and over them to crash into the barrier. "They're soulless monsters who want nothing more than to use us as their play things and dispose of us when they're done. They need to be done away with… now!"

Dean braced himself as the fireball leapt over the two girls and crashed into the barrier, sending sparks and flares in every direction. Rogue hopped backward, her eyes narrowing as she prepared to lunge forward. Damon bared his fangs, his hands splaying as he eyed a route to take, while Elijah rolled his eyes in exasperation.

Elena and Caroline ducked down, the heat of Bonnie's spell having easily overwhelmed the two of them. Tyler dashed forward to stand in front of Bonnie, all the while the fireball raging against the force field. Dean looked the girl over, her cocoa skinned form peeking through the flames every few seconds as they fought to consume the oxygen around her. The hatred in her expression towards vampires was clear, but it seemed… exaggerated.

The heat was all that passed through, though, and as he looked up towards the field once again, he found himself praying that it held steady. Cocking his gun, Dean felt he should do something. If only to keep them all from killing one another, he aimed the gun to the side of Bonnie and fired. Her concentration didn't falter, and as his eyes went wide he watched in surprise as the fire pierced the force field and barreled down toward them.

"Looks like we better take a step back," Damon said under his breath, fear trickling through his expression as his entire body paled. Dean slowly stumbled onto his feet, and dug his heels into the ground. There wasn't anywhere they could go on this near deserted street that her fireball wouldn't be able to reach. They were sitting ducks. "Vampires plus fire equals barbecued corpses. There's no coming back from that."

"And yet you pissed off a witch capable of producing fire," Bonnie said coldly, glancing briefly towards her three friends without ever moving her head. Elena and Caroline gasped as they were pushed aside while Tyler was simply lifted into the air and set down next to the women in their new position, allowing Bonnie to increase the fiery attack in size and power. "Not very intelligent of you, Damon, you should've taken our offer."

"I like my odds." Damon responded flirtatiously, leaping out of the way of her fire while Dean quickly pushed himself and Rogue aside. "Especially with a vampire on my side that can't die," Damon added as he leapt out of the way of another stream of fire, hiding behind Elijah.

Elijah looked over his shoulder, amusement flickering through his eyes as he stepped forward and held his arms out. "Bring what you may, witch." Elijah said simply. Dean winced as the fires seared across his entire body, immolating him within seconds. The stench of burning flesh permeated the air but as Dean looked up his color began to return.

Elijah's lips curled into a dark smirk as he stepped forward, his body burnt to a crisp, flakes of clothing swirling around in the wind to leave him entirely nude. Though the sight of his nude body was anything but appealing in its current state, Dean could feel Rogue shift underneath him, her one ungloved hand placed as far away from Dean's skin as humanly possible.

"Now then," Elijah said as bones began to slowly return to their rightful places. His skin swiftly regenerated in a disgusting, if curious, manner as he craned his neck to either side. "Why don't we try to discuss things in a more… civil manner?"

"He… he's still alive." Bonnie croaked as she and her friends took cautious steps back. Elena covered her mouth in horror, while Dean simply took in the disturbing beauty that was the type of vampire he had only recently been introduced to. Vampires coming out of the closet, as some of them liked to joke, had really made it difficult for hunters to take down the soulless bloodsuckers Dean and his brother had usually come across. The other types, though, had found near celebrity status with their abilities and a capability, the allure was obvious… unfortunately most of the vampires that he had hunted had started to abuse that status. But Damon and Stefan… they weren't like those other vampires Dean had encountered on the road.

They were different in more ways than they were similar.

"Here, dude, put on some clothes." Dean said as he shrugged out of his leather jacket and tossed it over to Elijah. He caught it deftly and tied it around his waist to hide something Dean assumed the man wasn't ashamed to be possession of.

Bonnie ground her teeth as she took an antagonistic step towards them, her hair flowing around her as she raised her arms. Clearly, she wasn't one to give up even when the odds clearly weren't in her favor.

"We have to get out of here," Bonnie said under her breath, her gaze focused solely on Elijah. "We don't have the power to take on an original vampire, especially this one."

"Flattery will only get you so far, my lady." Elijah said as he took a slow step forward, his calm demeanor doing nothing in the way of defusing the situation. If anything, it looked as if Bonnie wouldn't to kill Elijah even more than she had a moment prior.

"Bonnie y ou're the one whose still attacking them," Caroline said as she looked between Dean's ragtag group of mix and match supernatural beings. "They can't get past this barrier. Elena's safe."

"She was safe regardless," Dean couldn't help but bring up, drawing the attention of everyone around them. "I don't know about him, but I don't plan on sacrificing your friend. I'm just in the mood to save my friend."

"What?" Elena breathed in disbelief, while Elijah simply arched a brow and stepped aside. Elijah gestured for Dean to go on, but Dean couldn't help but feel he might be a second away from having his jugular ripped out.

"I don't give a damn about Klaus, or what he wants." Dean went on to say, thinking back to how uncomfortable he had been when the vampire had shown up at that restaurant. The way he had drawn Adam's attention, if hypnosis was one of the man's abilities it definitely explained how easily he had pulled Adam in with just his charm. That charm had led to Adam agreeing to something they didn't fully understand, bringing to light the young man's naiveté. And with Klaus' witch off her leash, Adam, Emma, and Remy were in some serious trouble. "Whatever deal he made with that witch, she doesn't seem to think he'll hold up his end of the bargain. Now she's taken another of my friends, and I want to get them back before she takes another."

"Klaus can kiss my ass if he thinks I'm going to help him kill someone," Rogue said as she clenched her hands into fists and placed them on her hips. Looking over Dean noticed that Elijah had sped away, though Dean could understand the reason behind that. Elijah was siding with his family, just like Dean would always do. If Sam needed something to happen, Dean would find a way to make it happen no matter what he had to do to make it so.

"He left," Tyler said as he slowly turned back into his human form. Dean watched as Bonnie's whole demeanor changed, going from a hate-filled young woman into a young girl with a fear-filled expression.

"I can't believe I just did that…" Bonnie breathed as she brushed her fingers against her lips in disbelief. "I don't… I don't know what came over me. I just felt… angry and I couldn't stop myself."

"Whatever it was," Rogue said as she flipped her hair back and out of her face, moving over to stand between Damon and Dean. Elijah had left, and as Dean looked back over towards Elena, Bonnie, Tyler, and Caroline he gasped as the barrier flickered into obscurity. "It doesn't seem to be affecting you now, though I can't say I blame you for trying to protect your friends."

"We've always stood by each other," Tyler said as he moved forward a single step, prominently placing himself between those he didn't quite trust yet and his two friends. Dean completely agreed with Rogue, though. No matter what Bonnie had been feeling, she was doing exactly what Dean would have done.

"How about we call a temporary truce then, witchy-pooh," Damon said in a salacious tone as he looked Tyler up and down. Dean blinked several times as he caught a glimpse of lust flicker within Damon's gaze, something Dean had noticed within his own gaze as of late. Until recently, Dean had always considered himself a man who solely appreciated women as his sexual partners. Now he was finding his own brother enticing, and as disgusted as he felt he should be with himself… Dean couldn't find it within himself to be disgusted.

Confusion, though, was aplenty.

"Call me witchy-pooh one more time and I swear I'm going to jam these Tory Burch's right up your-!"

"We accept," Elena said as she brushed past Tyler and Bonnie, a small smile gracing her lips as she held her hand across the invisible line they had associated with the electrified barrier. Dean moved forward, knowing that it probably wouldn't mean much if Damon did, and if they had known about Rogue's powers, they might consider her an outright threat. "I don't want to die…"

"I won't let that happen," Dean said confidently as he took her hand and held it firmly before shaking it lightly. Her voice was fraught with fear; it was something Dean had thought had been beaten out of him over the years. Every time Sam was in danger, though, Dean found out just how wrong he was about that. Fear was a major part of who Dean was, and he wondered if it was a major part of who they all were. "As long as I'm standing, I won't let anyone kill you."

Klaus had found a way to work his desires into Adam's mind, however strange that sounded. But with everything they had experienced throughout their lives, Dean found that it was ridiculous that he found it to be surprising or strange at all. They dealt with the supernatural world every day of their life, there was nothing he shouldn't expect any more.

"Now, now, children," a dark and entrancing male voice said as a burst of green sparkling energy whirled towards the ground, forcing everyone to jump out of the way for protection. "You're all so busy fighting amongst yourselves; it makes me wonder if I need even bother stepping in."

Dean felt Elena pull her hand back, while he stepped to the side and withdrew a heavy pistol which he quickly trained on the fashion victim of a madman who now stood before them. Dean had a feeling that this guy was a lot more dangerous than he looked, and Dean had grown to trust his feelings over the years. A dark chuckle emanated from the tall, lanky pretty boy who had long black hair and piercing green eyes. He was definitely a dangerous man.

"Azareth, Demetre, if you don't mind." The man said as he lifted his body up into the air. With his arms folded over his chest, the man watched as fire leapt up from the ground, bringing forth a tall and muscular man with spiked dark brown hair, next to a sinewy and beautiful woman with long flowing dark brown hair.

Dean didn't know the two; he didn't even think he had actually seen them before. But the air of arrogance they moved with and their mode of teleportation, Dean knew exactly what they were. They had two demons to contend with now, and as Dean cocked his pistol, he knew they were going to be in for a fight. These demons… they were a step up from the black smoke which constituted the demons from hell, but then again, they were from hell too.

"Don't get too excited, Loki." Demetre said as she brought her hand up towards the loose group. Her lips curved into a dark smile as violet energy sparked around her hand, aimed directly towards Dean.

Dean gulped. This was definitely going to be a long fight.


Rogue leapt to the ground and forced herself into a roll, trying to dodge the flames Azareth was spewing all around. His partner in crime, Demetre, was thrusting psionic bolts of energy randomly, seemingly targeting no one in particular. Either way, she wasn't very good at aiming.

Pushing herself back up onto her feet, Rogue took a deep breath. They needed a plan. Hell, even better, they needed an out! But Loki had redirected the barrier and trapped them all within it. Now he hung in the air high above them, smirking triumphantly as if he had already won.

"Any solutions…?" Dean asked as he cocked his gun and took fire at Demetre. Rogue simply shook her head as she looked around the battlefield. Elena had been backed up onto the porch, with Caroline standing directly in front of her. They were both watching Tyler circling around Demetre, clearly looking for an opening. Elijah simply looked up at Loki. Damon had daggers in his eyes as he clenched his hands into fists, clearly ready to brawl.

"I recall that man from somewhere…" Elijah said as he rolled his shoulders and took a breath he didn't need. "I remember him from New Orleans a few centuries back. He's not a vampire, which, of course must mean he is…"

"A demon," Dean said as he cocked his gun once again. "We ran into them a couple weeks back when he decided to attack a place in San Francisco before we headed off to Manhattan. We thought we'd exorcized them, only to learn they attacked the restaurant we were staking out shortly after we left. The guy has telekinesis and fire power, so be careful and the woman's a telepath."

"Telepathy doesn't exactly work on me if you don't know what you're doing," Elijah said as he sped forward gracefully and wrapped his hand around the woman's throat. "So then, how would you like to die… oh forgive me, I didn't quite catch your name…" he snapped her neck with one fluid movement, Rogue gasped her shock as he released her, and simply said, "Never mind."

Demetre fell to the ground in a heap, eyes wide with shock which was mirrored in the expression of her ally, Azareth. "You…" he started to say with fear clear in his tone… but then his expression turned sly and a dark chuckle escaped his lips.

When Demetre suddenly spun around on the ground and kicked Elijah's feet out from under him, everything quickly fell into place for Rogue as Demetre moved to drive a silver blade into Elijah's chest.

Fear coursed through his expression as he quickly moved to grab Demetre's arm, breaking it with ease so that the blade fell harmlessly beside him. "Where did you get this?" Elijah demanded as he swung his leg into Demetre and sent her flying away, before quickly grabbing the blade and darting away to stand behind Rogue.

"Where did you get this blade?" Elijah demanded more forcefully as he held onto it tightly, the fear in his eyes having been replaced with anger.

"You know where we got it, Elijah." Azareth said as he took a step towards them, bringing forth a whirl of fire. "And we were only directed to use it against you should you get in our way. If we had to use it, then we were also directed to remove it once we were finished procuring our target. It was simply a precautionary measure, you see. Klaus wants you all by his side; the whole of the Mikaelson family is to be reunited after tonight. All we need is the Bennett witch and the doppelganger."

"The… witch," Elijah said as he looked down at the dagger in confused fear. Rogue blinked several times as she remembered a brief mention of the other siblings. It had literally been so fleeting, it hadn't seemed important, but Klaus was using Elijah to get to Elena in the first place, and now he needed Bonnie too. She had to tell Adam this as quickly as possible; Klaus definitely wasn't who he was proclaiming to be. No matter his promises to immediately resurrect Elena, he wanted to manipulate Adam onto his side, and Rogue wasn't going to let that happen.

So Rogue removed her glove and pressed her palm flat against Elijah's face. "Dean the dagger," Rogue breathed as she felt Elijah seize at her touch, struggling to grab at her hand and break contact. Dean was quicker, though, grabbing he dagger from his palm and driving it into his heart.

"You bastards," Azareth roared as he threw his arm out and splayed his hand out towards them. Bonnie, though, quickly flung herself in between them and him and brought up a barrier to block his power of telekinesis just as Rogue had felt it take its effect on her.

Rogue took a fearful step back as she felt Elijah's strength, power, and vitality flow into her. She couldn't hold onto it forever, she knew that intrinsically, but for the time being she had all the benefits of a vampire for at least a few hours. Looking over her shoulder and down towards Elijah, she cringed at the sight of his pale, veiny body. She couldn't believe that she had just done that, but from everything she had heard she knew he would be alright. However that worked out, though, Rogue didn't care. She needed to find Adam, that was all that mattered and she knew deep down that she couldn't do this alone.

Tyler quickly escorted Elena around the barrier, which Damon quickly took her hand and placed her firmly behind him, while Caroline drop kicked Demetre back a few feet, before back flipping into the air to land on top of a car. "Caroline, get in here now!" Bonnie screamed as she flexed her hands to try and strengthen the barrier while Loki simply chuckled.

"I've got her," Caroline ground out as she leapt towards Demetre, only to be caught mid-jump and flung down into the asphalt, hard.

"No sweetie, we've got you," Demetre said as she stamped her heel into Caroline's back, digging the heel of her stiletto into her just to add salt to the wound. "You really should have listened to your friend," Demetre started to say as she knelt down and twirled a lock of hair off of Caroline's ear. "Because now we can use you as leverage over our friends, oh I do love a good plot twist!"

"Let her go!" Elena cried out in pain as Tyler cursed under his breath. "Please, I'll go with you but just… Stop hurting her!"

"You aren't enough of a deal-breaker." Azareth said as he splayed his hands wider and increased his telekinetic assault on Bonnie's magical barrier. "We need you and the Bennett witch or it's a no-go. And if you think we won't…"

Caroline screamed out in pain as Demetre pulled her arm tightly and pulled it out of its socket painfully. Caroline whimpered in agony as Rogue and Elena covered their mouths in horror. "The next time I might just rip it off of her body, after all I don't really know my strength."

"Now then, Elena," Loki said as he hovered down to stand between Azareth and Demetre. "Obviously you have two choices and obviously one of them results in the death of your friend. So really, as a good person, you have only one option."

"No don't go with them!" Caroline screamed then, as she used the break in her arm to jamb her shoulder bone into Demetre's face and knock her back. Caroline scrambled onto her feet and started to run towards them, a look of hope washing over their expressions as she reached the barrier only to be ripped away as she was yanked back into Azareth's embrace.

Azareth moved his hand over the break in Caroline's arm, repairing it as red sparks flickered around it for effect. "I'm not as psychotic as my friend is, but we will kill her if you don't surrender yourselves at the quarry by tonight's full moon. Make your choice wisely, ladies…"

"Otherwise, your friend will die," Demetre said as she pulled a leaf from her hair as she walked over to stand beside Azareth. "Loki, we have all we need, let's go before we have to kill off our leverage."

"No, no!" Caroline screamed out as she struggled against Azareth's hold, not wanting to go down but the futility of her efforts was growing apparent with each passing second. "Bonnie, Elena, don't do it!"

"Caroline we…." Bonnie breathed as they vanished in a swirl of flame and green sparks. The rising sun stood crafted a dissonant background to the despair before them, bringing with it a dark beauty as Bonnie screamed out, "Caroline, no, come back!"

Bonnie fell to her knees in defeat, tears flowing freely from her eyes. Rogue held her breath as she looked over at Damon and Dean, fear flowing into her as she realized whatever this all meant. They truly wanted Elena, but now they wanted Bonnie too.

Adam had grown close to Remy and Emma, and Rogue was starting to grow close to Adam. She didn't want his new friends to be the bad guys, but they're actions towards Elena from what had been revealed were clear cut. Rogue couldn't help but think that there had to be another explanation though. Emma and Remy were they trying to drag Adam to a darker side or were they just being used for some other purpose.

Whatever the answers were, Rogue knew she couldn't wait any longer. So she pulled out her cellphone and hit one and brought it up to her ear. "Storm," Rogue breathed as she turned away from Elena and Bonnie's tears, needing to be strong for this call. "Storm, Adam's been taken and I need the X-Men to help. Emma and Remy were taken earlier, but now… I don't know what's going on."

"Don't worry, Rogue," Storm said in a maternal tone, her voice soothing as Rogue fought to keep her tears from falling. She had wanted to prove to herself that she was strong and independent, that she didn't need to rely on others and that she didn't need to be afraid of her powers. Now all hell was breaking loose, o was about to at the very least. This wasn't the time to be selfish. "I'm rallying a team now and we'll be there within a few hours."

"Thank you," Rogue said softly as she felt the phone slip through her fingers, only to be caught by the dark and smoldering Damon Salvatore. "Thanks," Rogue said as she felt her cheeks heat up as he handed the phone back to her.

"So, what's the verdict?" Damon asked as he cocked his hip to the side and tilted his head over towards the two girls. "What are we doing here now?"

"The X-Men are coming and we're going to stop… whatever the hell they want Elena and Bonnie for." Rogue said as she shook her head to clear her mind of anything that might contradict that. "They aren't going to lay a finger on her; I swear to you we will get Caroline back."

"Yeah well how the hell can we trust anything that you say?" Tyler demanded as he sidestepped in front of Damon and pushed him back when he tried to comfort Elena. "You attacked us last night Damon, don't think we forgot. And if he's with you then that seriously calls your judgment and trustworthiness into question."

"They can help us, Tyler," Bonnie whimpered as she looked over her shoulder at him. "We exacerbated the situation and allowed for the pieces to be put in place for them to take her. They aren't fully to blame and neither are we. But now we need to work together to save our friend."

"We want to help, and I know there's something to explain what made Emma and Remy attack you." Dean said as he returned his hand gun to his holster and rested his shot gun at his side. "I've known them for a while, they're good people if a little quick to use their powers to get what they need done, done."

"If we catch up to them before tonight we'll be sure to talk to them." Elena said as she wiped away her tears. "I want to know what the hell happened to make them want to sacrifice my life."

"And know you shall," Rogue found herself saying, her words not her own. "Sorry, love, I needed to borrow you for a moment and I promise to vacate as soon as possible. Emma Frost, here, and I'd like to arrange a meeting to… mill things over so we can solve everything in due time. Greta's behind everything, unfortunately, and now we need your help too. She's trying to take me and Klaus; I can feel her power reaching out over us now even as we fight her. I fear by the time we meet she'll have succeeded in taking him, and possibly me as well."

"If that's… true, then meet us back at my cabin, the one you so decidedly forced me to invite Elijah into last night," Elena said dryly, her words directed through Rogue and too Emma. "Everything can be figured out there."

"Alright, then, thank you Rogue for the rental," Emma's voice came through, and just like that she was gone. But Rogue felt as if she had taken all of the knowledge Rogue had come into in the past few hours with her, to get their group up to date. Within her mind, though, was information regarding what had happened to Adam and her group. Images of Greta exerting her power flowed through her mind, bringing with it a sigh of relief as she went to share that with Dean to reassure him, and her as well, about their allegiances.

Now they just needed to prove it to Elena and her group, and as she watched them she knew it wasn't going to be easy. Still, as different images of the same events flickered in her mind, she knew that Emma and Remy had Adam's best interests at heart. He trusted them, and right now that was enough for her.


Emma called out as her body exploded into a glittering ensemble which protected her from the falling rubble and sinking earth, Remy crouched behind her, waiting for the perfect moment to move, and I held up a shield of water around the three of us. We weren't going to last much longer, I knew that for a fact. I had acted fast, the second I had felt myself begin to slip into unconsciousness, and I had fought it hard and long. And I had succeeded in bringing forth a shield of water to save us from being buried alive.

For a moment I had thought I had been knocked out, but a rush of energy had come from practically nowhere to give me my second wind. A necessary rush of energy at that, more earth had flowed in through the cave-in then seemed possible. It was if it were being sent out continuously to try and kill us. It was the only possible explanation. Greta hadn't left us, and now she was trying to kill us.

"Hang on," Remy called out as he slipped his arms out of his tattered trench coat and clenched his hands around it for a brief moment. "When I say so, give me an out for this attack. I'm gonna get us out of this." I nodded at that, and Emma looked over her shoulder to watch as Remy coated the trench coat generously with kinetic energy.

I held my ground with my water, not trusting myself in letting it go to access Paige's powers to save us. Fear was the trigger, but I was more afraid that I wouldn't be able to save us in time if I let the barrier fall than I was in not being able to use the power effectively.

"Don't worry love, I'm not gonna let you die," I heard a male British accent coo, drawing my attention away from Emma and Remy towards the falling earth. I tried to look through my barrier and the assailing spell as if I might be able to see who was there. I knew that it was futile, but something about the tone was drawing me in, as if I couldn't ignore it, didn't want to ignore it. It was almost as if I had lost all control of my own personal will.

I felt his arms wrap around me snuggly, careful and protective, warm and inviting, taking me into his embrace with far more ease than I believed should ever be possible. And yet as his musk enthralled my senses, I clung to his shirt, my nails digging into his back as fear tried to take control of my entire existence. My eyes were closed tight, my breath held, and my hair billowing behind me as he moved.

Klaus had saved me from the falling debris; I knew it was him just from the feel of his skin against my own. His breath against the side of my head as he sped through the trees drew my head up towards the gap in between his head and his shoulders. I felt as safe with him as I did with Sam and Remy. Why was it that dangerous men seemed to draw me in? Why was it that these men drew me into their entire being?

"Hold on tight, love." Klaus said softly as he leapt into the air only to land safely on a tree branch as if it were the precipice which held us safe above the world. I blinked profusely, drawing his half-crooked smile which showed off one of his glistening white fangs. His hands held me close, his gaze held me closer. I wanted to know why it was I wanted him, when I had just found myself desiring Sam over Remy. "Greta betrayed me; I hope she didn't hurt you too much."

"No, she didn't." I whispered as my thoughts screamed at me to claim his lips as my own. "What about Remy and Emma, are they safe?" I breathed as I felt my concern return to flood the forefront of my mind. "They were right beside me; I didn't have a chance to let Remy try his plan."

"Stefan grabbed Remy, and Emma held her own long enough for Sam to distract Greta." Klaus said as he let me lower my legs onto the branch, which was large enough to hold us both safely. Though I was quite certain that it was Klaus who made me feel safe over the protection the branch gave us from a long fall down. "You won't have to worry about her any longer."

"Don't you need a witch to break the curse…?" I asked softly as I closed my eyes and listened to the calls of nature. One of the oldest of vampires had me in his grip and I felt entirely safe. He wanted to sacrifice three beings, a doppelganger, a vampire, and a werewolf, and even though I knew that I should object to that… I found myself wondering why I couldn't. It was almost as if I didn't want to.

"I'd rather you not concern yourself with that for the moment," Klaus said as he looked down towards the ground, his lips curved into a disappointed frown, prompting me to join him in looking downward. "It looks like Greta doesn't want to stay down." Klaus tsked as he shook his head, his hands roaming up and down my arms in an enticing manner. "I do hope you aren't afraid of heights."

With great speed and dexterity, I found myself backed against the trunk of the tree, alone. I watched as Klaus launched himself down towards the forest ground, fangs barred as he lunged for Greta at the same time Sam dodged a fireball. Emma's glittering form was soon followed by kinetically charged leaves. They were all fighting this powerful witch, and each and every one of them was shuffling me off to the side for safe keeping, as if I couldn't hold my own in a fight.

Water swirled into my palm, my breathing increased dramatically, and I knew that I had to get a grip. I couldn't piss and moan every time someone kept me out of a fight. Being a whiny brat wasn't conducive towards anyone's end but my own… end. I leaned my head back and turned it towards the side, catching glimpses of fire and the sounds of gunshots and explosions. A guttural roar ripped through the darkened night sky, sending icy chills down my spine.

I had made myself come here. It had been my choice to join Sam and Dean in coming to this town to save Emma and Remy. I had known and understood the danger completely. I had found myself questioning my feelings for Remy long before this trip. Sam had captured my attentions, my desires, and now I was finding the same thing happening to me when it came to Klaus… an Original Vampire. Whatever that meant, I didn't fully know. But I knew that it entailed danger, tragedy, horror, passion, adventure, just as it did towards Sam and Remy. Darkness encircled the three of them, just as it seemed to do my life and my powers.

I wasn't afraid of one witch, no matter who she was. And as I leaned over to watch a flurry of leaves imbued with kinetic energy dart towards a swirl of flames, I held my breath in anticipation for her to make another move against them. Seconds turned to minutes, and nothing happened. Sam, Stefan, Remy, and Klaus circled around the scorch mark that had appeared in the tail end of Greta's teleportation, while Emma's diamond form slowly dematerialized to allow her to use her powers of telepathy.

I blinked furiously as my gaze darted in every direction I could easily get at, but I couldn't see her anywhere. It was almost as if she had left the area… but why? I gasped as I felt the air around me begin to heat up. Slowly I turned my head to look out ahead of me in time to see flares burn into a pillar of fire. I knew exactly what this meant, and as the water I had already summoned began to forge a barrier between me and her, I spread it out to cover the whole of the branch three feet ahead of me and all the way along it towards the trunk… only then realizing my mistake a second before my water erupted into flames.

I let out a small scream of surprise as the tree branch I had been standing on turned to ash and sent my flailing down toward the ground. Greta had my waters on fire, and she wasn't allowing me to break my connection with them. I couldn't turn it off and use another power, which meant… I was as good as dead.

But I wasn't going to let that happen, especially not at the hands of a two bit witch. Power burned within my body, the kind of power I had feared when I had first accessed it knowingly. It was white and hot, and as it formed around my body I felt power burn through me and into my power over water to burn through Greta.

Her scream was loud and agonizing as I flooded her body with my own magic, having no idea what the hell it was that I was doing, but knowing it was completely necessary in that moment in time. I closed my eyes as the connection with the power I feared the most was severed, and although I knew Greta was still alive I knew I didn't have the strength necessary to continue the fight, even though I knew deep down that I would be the victor. My power… it was dangerous, filled me with fear, and exhausted me swiftly. Perhaps I should be thankful for that.

"Gotcha," I heard Klaus whisper into my ear as his arms slipped around my body, changing the direction in which I had been moving up until that point through fear. I felt my eyes grow heavy, tired from the exertion of power and force, desiring sleep to claim me as it so rightfully should. But I didn't want this moment to end; I didn't want any of those moments to end. Remy and I in the hotel room, Sam and I outside the impala, and Klaus and I on the tree branch. I wanted it all.

But could I have it?

Klaus's hand slid down my back, eliciting a strong sense of arousal from me as I held my breath wanting nothing more than to turn around and claim his lips for my own. What was it with me and men? Until recently I'd had the luck of an ugly duckling amongst a flock of exquisite swans. Now men flocked to me like I was the swan… it was disturbing really, but at the same time I found myself enjoying the attention despite the nagging feeling I had that it wasn't real… forced perhaps?

I didn't know, but what I did know wash that the power burgeoning within me had just taken down a witch of extreme caliber. "Die bitch!"… Apparently not….

I looked down towards the ground as Greta threw her hands out towards the tree Klaus and I stood on, his breath hot against my skin, his hands still wandering. How could arousal be the foremost thing on my mind when a deranged witch was sending fire towards me, fire that my water powers effortlessly fueled?

And then, in a span of time that I couldn't even comprehend, I was standing behind Klaus and him before me. His entire muscular form prevented me from seeing anything, but as the fire struck his body, the heat was enough of a reminder for me to understand what was going on. Klaus was protecting me… again. Why was everyone so damn keen on protecting me?

Was it the power I had within me, but didn't quite understand, or was it the sex appeal that had sprung from seemingly nowhere, what was so damn good about me to warrant this from people?

Then again, I had to wonder why it was I liked the thought of them trying to protect me. Most especially Remy, Klaus, and Sam, they were at the forefront of my mind, some longer than others. Some were louder than others.

Why did I find them so attractive? Why was I so willing to go along with them without a second thought? Klaus wanted to sacrifice a young girl to get what he wanted; even if he could assure me that she would be brought back to life… did that mean I could go along with it? Or was I so insecure with myself that I would do anything to please a man, just to get him to like me?

"I'm sorry darling, but this fight is simply getting on my nerves," Emma said dryly, her lips curling into a dark smile as she leapt out of the way of Greta's final assault, the cocoa woman's shuddering form hitting the ground hard and fast. Emma lowered her hands, her tattered clothing swaying in the wind. "You should've found a better avenue for your talents."

"Well then," Sam said as he lightly kicked Greta in the side. Greta cried out as she rolled over, clutching at her side where Sam had kicked her. Sam grimaced as he took a hesitant step back, looking down at his foot in stark disbelief. But I looked at Sam and only found pleasure in the sight of him… perhaps it was just me. "She's down for the count."

"You won't get away with this deception, Klaus." Greta said coldly as a whirl of pink and orange sparks flurried up from her body. Greta looked up at them; her hair splayed out around her head as she brought one hand up to clutch her neck and rub it softly. I watched as the sparks whirled through the air, seemingly undetected by the others as they moved to close in on Greta. Remy, Emma, Sam, and Stefan all stood around Greta, watching her intensely as they waited for her to make one wrong move.

"You talk as if you can overpower me," Klaus said as he slid his arms around my waist and leapt down towards the ground. My hair swirled around me as we fell through the air, only to land deftly on the ground as if we had simply jumped from a single stair and not the height of an old and large tree. "If you had simply done as I had asked, Greta, I would have kept up my end of the bargain. Though I think I'll give you an olive branch, just this once Greta-!"

"Wait," Emma breathed as she pressed her hand against her temple. "Klaus… you… Adam, get away from him now!" I looked up at Klaus with furrowed brows, confused as to the sudden one-eighty that Emma was now pulling. "Adam Greta's controlling him! She's trying to take control of me again! Stop her," Emma screamed out as she fell to her knees, diamond having faded away to leave nothing but flesh.

"What?" I stammered as I felt Klaus's hand wrap around my throat tightly to cut off my breathing instantaneously. Greta was controlling him, making the look of hatred in his face laced with the fear in his eyes turn on me. I struggled to claw his hand off of me, but he was an Original Vampire, stronger than even the normal vampires I had only just come into contact with. What hope did I possibly have to stand against him?

"Let go of him right now!" Remy roared as he leapt towards Klaus, only to meet Klaus's other hand. But he was far stronger than I was, and I watched through blurred vision and tears as Remy wrapped his hands around Klaus's pulsating muscular forearm and caused it to glow a bright red with black spots lacing through it. "Let us both go right now or I'll blow your fucking arms off. And don't get me wrong, even a vampire will lose to my power."

"It's okay we don't need her," Greta said then, her words almost hesitant as she stood up and dismissively waved off Emma as brilliant diamond skin flowed back into existence. "Let them go so we can get out of here!" Greta exclaimed then, more confidently as Klaus nodded almost absent-mindedly. I coughed and clawed at my throat as I fell to my knees, air finally restored to me as I looked on in fear.

Klaus and Greta vanished in a whirl of fire, just as Sam and Stefan crashed into each other, having planned on a surprise attack on Greta that had gone off too late. I kept my hand around my neck, lightly, as Remy pulled me into his warm and safe embrace, reminding me of why I had almost given myself to him in our hotel room in Gotham. Sam, Klaus, Dean… I had feelings for them all and a lot of other men too, but I felt as if I truly loved Remy. I felt as if I could share my life with him… but as I looked over at Sam I found myself feeling the same way. Why was I feeling this way, and what was drawing them all to me in such a manner…

I knew deep down that I wasn't that fucking special; no one in the world was truly worth more than any other person in the world. But when they looked at me, they made me feel truly special.

"I hear Rogue calling out to us, searching for us." Emma said softly as she struggled to stay on her feet. "She's called the X-Men for help, apparently a girl named Caroline has been taken, and a couple of old friends of ours want Elena and Bonnie to sacrifice their lives to protect hers. Adam, they may not want to talk to us, Greta manipulated us and Elijah last night to try and attack them… to give them Elena. Rogue's taken Elijah down with a dagger and now they have him lying around waiting to figure out what to do with him."

"Klaus must have been under Greta's control when he said he wanted to use Elena's death as a catalyst for a ritual," I said as I looked up at Emma, desperately needing to believe in those words despite the nagging feeling that they were wrong. I needed to think with my big head and not… well you know. "If they have their friend Caroline, then they're definitely trying to force their hand. We can't let Greta sacrifice Elena, and we can't let them hurt anyone else. That has to be what's going on, Emma, it's the only reason they would manipulate all of you, to turn you all against each other so that we waste our times focusing on one another and not the true threat. We'll get Klaus and Caroline back. We have to, Emma. I don't want anyone else getting hurt because of Greta."

"We will," Emma said as she smiled mirthlessly don towards me as she held her hand out towards me, having allowed her diamond form to dissipate.

"It's not just you who has to explain," Stefan said as he scratched the back of his head, dark, brooding, and alluring all at the same time. "Everything Damon and I did, I know Greta had to have used her magic on us. I could feel it tingling about my body, telling me to do things I never would have done."

"I know, darling," Emma said with a soothing nod as Sam moved to pull me into his embrace, spreading his warmth and love all over me. "Now then," Emma said with a clap of her hand. "It's time to regroup and so that witch just how far she's strayed."

"Of course, mon ami," Remy said as he slipped his hand around my waist, intentionally pushing Sam back a few inches. "The lady with the beautiful hair awaits us, as does the love of your life, right Mon ami?"

"Right, her," Stefan said as he moved into step beside Emma as if he had always belonged there. I smiled over at Sam as I reached my hand out towards him, feeling as if I could simply share myself with both Remy and Sam. Why care what people thought about me at this point? I was a witch, a mutant, gay, and black and I knew there were still people out there who would hate me for any one of those things that made me who I was. What was wrong with starting a harem?

It was a joke, I knew, but as we started to follow after Emma and Stefan, who knew the way out of this place, I started to consider it in a more serious light.


"Are you sure this is the right place, Phoebe?" Phoebe heard Billie Jenkins asked as she pushed the car door open to step out into the fresh air of the small town known as Mystic Falls. Phoebe had been scrying for days, alternating with her sisters whenever their lives had had to take precedence over saving the world. That she had been the one to find the place, Phoebe had opted to check it out first with her sister's hanging around on the edge of town. "I mean it's just so... normal."

"Azareth has to be here, or at least he was here." Phoebe said as she stood up and ran her hands down her pants to smooth away the wrinkles. Looking around she smiled as she watched the citizens of the town enjoy their daily lives, so unaware of the terrible danger that might be looming over them soon. "Now that we're here, we can find him faster if he is still here."

Phoebe was a young woman, in her early thirties, who stood at five feet and two inches, with shoulder length wavy brown hair and matching brown eyes. With slightly tanned skin, Phoebe had a toned body that she kept in shape for her own benefit, although it didn't hurt when it came to demon hunting either. She wore a spaghetti strapped pale blue blouse which showed off more cleavage than she had been lately, and a pair of tight denim jeans which flowed seamlessly into open toed ankle boots.

Billie, their young protégé was only twenty three years old, but much taller than Phoebe, standing at five feet and seven inches. With blonde hair which she let flow down her back and light green eyes, she was a feisty young witch that had been their enemy for a short time. Thankfully that time had passed fairly quickly, and they had been able to return to normal, or rather, as normal as it could be after being forced to kill her own sister in self-defense. She wore an off the shoulder white shirt with a red and black design running around it randomly, and a pair of denim jeans and sneakers.

"I just love operative words," Billie said dryly as she shut the car door and moved to walk around the car. They had rented it from the closest city and drove into town, giving themselves plausible deniability and a way to keep their magic from being exposed for as long as possible. Witches were being persecuted right along mutants and vampires now, and as much as they sympathized for them, Phoebe and her sisters had to remain out of the limelight to protect their children and keep from being hunted while hunting.

The decision to come out as witches was up in the air, though, and Phoebe was the most willing to come forth as witches. Phoebe reached out to shut her door, and felt something cool flow through her entire being. Magic filled this town, exacerbating the already potent source of magic she shared with her sister. But this was something different… something brighter than her current destiny as a Charmed One.

She could feel something inside of her; nothing to do with lust either, and rather it was love that was burning in her. Phoebe knew she was pregnant, at least in the earliest part of it as well, with her second child. Her powers had given her the gift of knowing this long before it had happened, and now she was finally being rewarded. But she refused to let Azareth be a threat by the time she would be giving birth.

"Does it bother you that the Winchester Brothers turned up here too?" Billie asked as she looked over at the town square. She leaned against the side of the car and crossed her arms over her chest while Phoebe mulled that over. The Winchester's… the items Castiel had given them to scry with had come up to the same small town for Paige and again for Piper while Phoebe had been looking for Azareth.

"It's genuinely convenient, isn't it?" Phoebe asked dryly as she pressed her palm against her forehead. "It begs the question on how far Emma Frost is from them, and whether or not she's entirely responsible for their disappearance."

"I guess a case could be argued that they never really disappeared," Billie said as she reached into the front left pocket of her pants to pull out a pack of gum. "They were with her in Central Park; and security footage of the Bruce Wayne gala that was attacked placed them there as well. Now that is something I'd love to look into."

"Which part?" Phoebe asked as she reached into her purse to pull out a map of Mystic Falls and the surrounding area before making her way to the back driver side door. Specifically hunting down demons was never fun, and as long as Azareth was flaming around town, an annoying form of demonic teleportation that Phoebe was far more intimately tied to than she ever liked to admit, it would be a hell of a time finding him. Humans on the other hand… who were chained by normal modes of transportation, well they were just a piece of cake to find.

"The pair of witches that attacked it," Billie said under her breath as she turned around to lean in the open window so she could watch Phoebe work. "I looked into it and this particular pair has been showing up all over the country, always after a witch. Their magic is a lot more… latiny though."

"Latiny," Phoebe chuckled as she felt the power of her magic flow through her entire being until it could focus within her hand and travel down the length of the chain before finally reaching the apex of the beautifully cut amethyst. "Is this the first time they've gotten their man… or girl in this case?"

"No, they killed a few of them actually…" Billie said in a sullen tone as her gaze fluttered downward in a distressed state. Protecting innocents was their nature; it was what they were all about. That and protecting the greater good and by extension the Grand Design which held the entire universe intact. Being a paragon of good really sucked sometime. "Which makes me wonder why they took that Green Arrow dude you were telling me about. If he wasn't a witch, why'd they take him? I mean, it's not like he was in the way or anything."

"Do you really wanna know?" Phoebe asked as she looked up and over her shoulders to bring Billie into the forefront of her sight. She was a beautiful young woman, quick to catch on to what needed to be done, and even faster at formulating a plan that could at least get her through the initial stages of success. Finesse wasn't really her forte, but it was a teachable trait. Phoebe had learned it from her Grams, older sister Prue, and over time she had made it her own craft.

"I think I'll pass this time." Billie said as she chewed her gum, puffed out her cheeks, and proceeded to unleash a pink blob of gum from between her lips. "I mean, I can't believe I even volunteered to come out here today. Guess my life's been a little boring since…"

"Yeah," Phoebe whispered softly, knowing that Billie was talking about the last time they had faced Christy… Billie's older sister. Billie had been forced to kill the girl to save her and them. Even calling it self-defense didn't change the fact that Billie had had to do something so terrible. It wasn't something Billie would ever get over, not completely. Phoebe blinked as the crystal began to swing around in a circle, swiftly locking onto the location of the Winchester brothers first. "Looks like we've got 'em, Billie," Phoebe said as she leaned in close to get the exact location.

"Alright then, let's get…" Billie's words trailed off, prompting Phoebe to sit back up straight and look out the window to find out what had happened. "Hey isn't that," Billie said as she pointed over towards the town square where a beautiful tiered fountain sat in the midst of stone laid pathways with freshly cut grass in between each path.

She caught sight of a pair of large tan work boots, dried mud splashed around it, beside them were a pair of clean, crisp black stiletto boots. The pair of work boots led up to a pair of jeans, which clung to places on the muscular legs hidden beneath them, while a pair of fishnet stockings sensually covered the tone, shapely legs of the woman in the stilettos. The tight blue shirt worn beneath a red jacket showed off his muscular torso in a pleasing manner, one that Phoebe had no qualms about enjoying before looking over at the woman. She wore a pair of short black shorts, her fishnets flowing into them easily, while her black corseted top flowed seamlessly into the shorts. Her cleavage was up front and center, covered only by a fishnet halter top that continued on underneath her corseted top. Black gloves covered her arms up towards just below her armpits.

Phoebe's face lit up as she reached the man's strong square jawline and beautiful navy blue eyes. "Clark," Phoebe laughed as she opened the car door and moved to climb out of it. The stunning woman who stood beside him, with long flowing wavy locks of black hair which framed an angular face which held blue-gray eyes, smiled lightly as she and Clark started towards them. "What brings you to the sleepy town of Mystic Falls?" Phoebe asked, knowing that he could hear her perfectly fine despite the distance between them.

"Hey Phoebe, it's good to see you again." Clark said with a warm smile as they finally reached the car. Phoebe smiled and laughed lightly as he pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly. Even though they had only fought together once before, Phoebe found Superman as being an ideal hero when it came down to it, he had what it took to be out there. Being invincible helped.

"What brings you here, and hello, I'm Phoebe," She said with a cheery smile as she held her hand out towards the woman who had to be at least five years younger than Phoebe was. Although with the serious magic swirling around her aura, Phoebe had absolutely no idea how old she really might be.

"Zatanna Zatara," she said with a wink and a gentle tilt of the head. Zatanna accepted Phoebe's hand and shook it gently, and for a brief moment Phoebe felt as if a premonition were calling out to her but refusing to come forth. "And I have to say, as a magic-user it is a pleasure to meet one of the famed Charmed Ones. My father spoke highly of your prophecy before he died."

"I'm sorry to hear that, about your father I mean," Phoebe said as she felt her smile fade. The woman definitely had strong magic, but Phoebe could feel it as their hands. Zatanna's magic was extremely different from Phoebe's, and yet at the same time the similarities were there in spades. "If you don't mind my asking, I feel like a premonition is trying to come to me, but isn't. You wouldn't happen to be blocking it… would you?"

"I was afraid of that," Zatanna said as she pulled her hand away and held it close to her chest. "Our magic… I know it's not the same but I was hoping the premonition would unblock itself if we… if our magic connected. From the second I stepped foot in this town… my powers of prescience haven't been working."

"I…" Phoebe began only to blink back in surprise as she realized her magic had been calling out to her long before Zatanna had shaken her hand. Billie looked over at Phoebe wearily, as she dialed a number on her cell phone.

"Should I call Paige and Piper?" Billie asked in concern as she held off on dialing the last number. Phoebe breathed in and out, trying to make a connection to her power of Premonition, her original Charmed power. Levitation, Empathy, and lastly Pathokinesis had only come to her over the course of her life, years after she had tried to unlock the full potential of her Premonition power.

"Call them, but right now, I think we better figure out what our visions mean." Phoebe said after several long seconds of complete silence. She could feel something hovering in the distance, what it was and what it meant she had absolutely no idea. What it wanted, however, was what she truly desired to know. Witches, mutants, vampires, werewolves, metahumans, aliens… a purview of which no single species could ever hope to understand let alone contend with. "Let's do this."

Zatanna smiled lightly, while Clark shuffled where he stood and Billie dialed the last few numbers on her phone. "I'm glad you agree, Charmed One." Zatanna held her hand out and Phoebe joined her. Their palms opened, their fingers splayed and intertwined, and then a moment passed before a brilliant light burst out around to envelop them. Everything around the two of them melted away into a hot white light, nothing could be seen, nothing could be touched, and nothing could… be?

"Where are we….?" Phoebe asked as she looked around, trying to find something to hold onto as her eyes travelled down to see that they too were standing on nothing. Looking back towards Zatanna, though, as her face contorted into an expression of confusion, Phoebe knew exactly what the woman was about to say.

"I have no earthly idea…." Zatanna said as she joined Phoebe in looking around. "I intended for us to join our powers of prescience and yet… I can't even begin to understand where we've gone."

"Death is not the end," a willowy voice called from nowhere… and yet from everywhere at once. "Death has touched you many times, and those closest to you and yet you continue to fight."

Fire swirled from above them, causing Phoebe and Zatanna to flinch, but their hands refused to release from one another. "I can see it clearly in you… on you… around you. The Phoenix isn't the only force to rise from the ashes. The forces of light that fight for all that exists, I can feel them converging in ways never anticipated, in ways that should never have been… and yet… you're both here together. You're both in the White Hot Room!"

"The White what…?" Zatanna breathed as she moved aside to stand next to Phoebe, their hands dropping to their sides, still intertwined. "As a mistress of magic I find it hard to believe that I've never heard of something… so obviously magical in nature."

"But it isn't magical," the flames spoke, her willowy voice beginning to take form. "It is cosmic, as is the problem you seek answers to. An unknown source of power, part witch, part mutant, entirely confused about his place in the world."

"Adam," Phoebe breathed as sudden insight hit her like a thunderbolt. "You know what our premonitions are all about, don't you?"

"I do not," the woman said simply, her form now that of a beautiful woman forged entirely of fire. "It appeared suddenly, and just like that it was as if it had always been."

"It…?" Phoebe questioned as she looked up at the creature incredulously. "What do you mean it?"

"An anomaly of sorts," the woman continued as her form hovered despite there being no ground to step on. "The power within this being is surpassed by multiple others and yet I can see it becoming far more than just a power, but an answer. The question you must seek, though… is it the answer that the universe is searching for. If not then you must seek out its des-!"

A loud explosion shocked through Phoebe as her hand snapped from Zatanna's, leaving the creature's last word unfinished. Phoebe stumbled backward, everything coming to a head as she realized something horrible was going on. As her eyes met Clark's, though, she saw a pained expression flash across his entire being before he hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Clark," Zatanna cried out as she rushed towards him, Phoebe gasped as she backed up and took an offensive stance. When her foot bumped into something, though, she felt ice run through her body like a speeding train.

"Billie?" She breathed as she turned around fully and dropped to her knees, brushing a lock of hair out of the young woman's face. Her friend made a terrible sound when Phoebe leaned in to pick her torso up and hold the woman in her arms. "What the hell happened?"

"Phoebe, run… AH!" Scrambling to look over her shoulder, her eyes went wide as she saw Zatanna soar past the two of them, smoking wavering from her chest until she crashed into a car twenty feet from where they had parked.

A man wearing black and green leather, a cape billowing behind him, and a strange metal crown on top of his head bellowed out as he lifted his arms up, a staff in one and a ball of energy in the other. "So many potential targets to pick from, and yet pregnancy prevents the strongest witch here to join me."

"Just because I'm pregnant," Phoebe began sternly as she carefully lowered Billie's body back onto the ground before standing up straight. "Doesn't mean that I am anything less than a Charmed One, so you better watch out." Phoebe raised her arms out to either side of her, her entire body soon floating up into the air as she lifted one leg up slightly to pop her knee out. "Because I'm not gonna go down that easily."

"Such a pity," he said caustically as he thrust his staff forward. Phoebe spiraled out of the way, feeling her magic flowing into her. She'd need time to recite a spell, but her power were just as effective at a time like this, and luckily for her Pathokinesis was right up her alley now. Kicking herself up higher, Phoebe dodged his next attack and lobbed herself up and over him to land directly behind him.

"You're right," Phoebe breathed as she placed her hands on either side of his head. "It is such a pity." Phoebe allowed her power to flow from her mind, to her hands, and outward as tiny bolts of magical electricity. Feelings and emotions were unloaded upon his mind at a frightening speed as Phoebe refused to hold back until she knew he would be knocked out for the count.

His screams were guttural and hard to hear, but she couldn't let him get away with what he had done or get away period. Seconds passed, as his hands unclenched to drop the staff he had used to attack with. It hit the ground with a loud crash and then-!

And then Phoebe was the one screaming as an explosion of green energy sent her stumbling backward, blinded and disoriented. "I'm sorry, mortal witch, but I haven't the time or the patience for your parlor tricks. Though you did fall for mine," Phoebe gasped as she felt his staff knock her out from under her feet sending her towards the ground, defeated.

She waited for her body to hit the ground, hard, knowing it would do irreparable damage to the life growing within her. But as precious seconds passed, she knew that it was never going to come. So rather than wallow, Phoebe took the initiative and let her eyes flutter open to see Clark's smiling face encompassing her vision entirely.

"You really are a Superman aren't you?" Phoebe questioned flirtatiously before heaving a sigh of relief. Her daughter was safe from harm despite the idiotic move she had made against… whoever the hell that was. Clark moved to steady her on her feet, and it was then that his smile faltered.

"But not for everyone," he said with a heavy sigh. "Whoever he was… he took Billie with him when he left."

Phoebe paled at that, understanding what the man had meant before they had gotten into the fight. Looking down at her middle, the pallor refused to leave as she realized that the only reason he hadn't gone for the more powerful witch… was because of her child. But why would he want Billie?


"You don't think they're in trouble, do you?" Ms. Marvel asked as she surged into the X-jet, flight giving her an advantage over the others going on this mission. Wolverine and Cyclops strode up the ramp a second before Colossus surged into the jet hanger, slipping into his tight black leather outfit. He was glad that he was getting the chance to go on a mission, getting out and seeing the world, and doing something with his powers, staking a claim in the world.

Storm flew into the room, her cape whirling around her as she came to land on the solid metal ground below, her heels clacking loudly against it as she did. "We wouldn't have to worry about that prospect if Logan could act like a member of the team." Storm said caustically as she stalked towards the ramp, anger clouding her eyes as she moved. Wolverine rolled his eyes as he moved towards the second tier of seats, behind Cyclops, allowing Storm to take the co-pilot station.

"Teamwork is essential and after all this time… I thought you knew that." Storm said as she moved to buckle herself in. A loud bamf sounded in the confines of the jet, seconds before the ramp began to lift to seal them inside. The engines roared to life, the wheels begin to screech, Nightcrawler took his seat opposite Ms. Marvel, letting Colossus fill the seat across from Wolverine. The blue demonic looking mutant, whom Colossus had become good friends with over the past few weeks, instinctively touched his two swords as he sat down, making certain they were still there.

Beast rounded out the team, leaping through the doors with mere feet to spare from being crushed. Wearing a pair of black leather shorts which kept him from overheating and gave him the freedom to perform the acrobatics his abilities gave him. As one of the original five X-men, Colossus had enjoyed training with the Beast, seeing his experience as a wonderful gift.

Psylocke and Angel had volunteered to remain behind at the mansion, and as far as Colossus knew so had Shadowcat and Iceman. This was their team, the X-Men, and as the doors began to slide open, he felt his breath catch. No other team had what they had. Persecution of the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, the Justice League, the Lantern corps or of lone heroes like Spider-woman, Spider-Man, the Batman, the Flash… it was new to them. The X-men had been persecuted since their inception. Hated, feared, mobbed, massacred, attempts at curing them, the few human groups that had been subjected to the same treatment were far more sympathetic to the X-men's plight. But what happened to mutants in droves… it wasn't just unspeakable, it wasn't just inhumane, and it wasn't unthinkable.

It just…was.

They took off, speeding towards a town that, until today, had never registered in Colossus's mind. Now it was suddenly the hot spot for mutant and supernatural activity. The only reason they were involving themselves… a mental cry had screamed out to Xavier like a beacon… from Adam. That Quicksilver had dovetailed into the town with the Slayers was negligent at this point. He wasn't their goal unless he was directly involved in whatever had caused Adam to unleash the call.

Professor X had absolutely no idea if Adam had even intended the call… or how the young man had done it so loudly without possessing the power of telepathy. His power to copy other's Xavier had noted almost immediately that telepathy had not been one of those he had copied despite it having been used on him directly… on numerous occasions. How he could easily mimic all other powers without even trying was confusing at best, frightening at worst if he were to become the threat that the witch had seen.

Colossus sighed as he leaned back in his seat. Things were growing stranger and stranger since even before Adam had joined them at the mansion. Jean's disappearing act and the revelation of vampires shortly before the witches had come out of the woodwork as well. It was all so… contrived. Colossus was beginning to wonder if there was any correlation aside from the fact that they were extra-normal beings. Persecution had come swiftly towards them, and despite his claims, Bolivar Trask had yet to send a single Sentinel to wipe them out.

"Whoa," Shadowcat breathed as she stepped forward, causing Colossus and several of the others to do a double-take. Colossus turned around almost completely in his seat to see the young woman, hair done back in a taut ponytail, garbed in her tight black leather X-suit with Iceman a foot behind her… still phasing through the door which led into the small bedrooms in the back equally dressed in his X-men attire. "If I had known it was gonna be a senior affair… I guess we would've stayed home."

"Like you've ever done what you were told." Wolverine said with a dark grin as he looked out towards the front of the jet to see the darkened clouds forming as Storm tightened her grip around the controls. "Better sit down before a tornado knocks us outta the sky."

"I thought we could help, especially since we put Rogue in this situation." Iceman said as he took a hesitant step forward. "If I hadn't flaunted my new relationship with Kitty in front of her like… twenty-four-seven, she wouldn't have gone off with the hunk duo and Adam."

"Rogue made her choice," Cyclops said with a curt nod as he tilted the controls to the left, veering out of the way of a flock of birds seamlessly, leaving them completely unaware of their presence. "That unforeseen consequences have rendered her and Adam in a position of desperation makes us all as idiotic as they are. Or should I start listing examples of our own transgressions?"

A long silence filled the room as they all thought back to the times they had put themselves in danger, all without ever thinking it was possible. Colossus knew he had done that before, in regards to Kitty herself when he had entered a relationship with the girl. Ill-advised, most likely, but he had been drawn to her in a way he hadn't ever fully understood. It had put the two of them in a precarious situation where they had been one another's major weaknesses. Shadowcat had almost died because of it… he understood perfectly well what Cyclops meant.

The darkened sky swiftly dissipated as its natural form returned, the early morning sunlight flooded the jet and pierced the windshield. He didn't know what had been so bad as to have pushed Adam over the edge but it had definitely been well after that pillar of light had descended from the sky. Xavier had sensed a person within it, not mutant, but definitely not human either. Further analysis from Beast had revealed that the same pillar of light had struck Earth before, and out came Thor.

They suspected him of being in the area as well as at least one member of the Lantern corps, the Charmed Ones, and a smattering of the Justice League. Vampires and other witches and magic users were scattered across the area as well, two of them with similar physiology to Thor. Emma Frost and Remy LeBeau were there too, with Adam as of Xavier's latest Cerebro scan and Mystique wasn't too far off from where they were. It looked like it was turning out to be one big party that the X-men had unfortunately been invited to.

Preparation was the best option for them when it came to their missions, and with so many forces in play Colossus was glad that Professor Xavier was there for them. The man had brought them together, gave them a home, trained them in the use of their powers, but most importantly and above all else the Professor had given them… hope. Hope for a better life, a better future, one where they didn't have to fear for their lives because of a part of them that they couldn't control.

Colossus had had hope ripped from his hands the second his powers had appeared within him… or rather around him. His sister had gained powers as well, by then Colossus had joined Xavier at the mansion, and so he had arranged for his sister to join him here. That she had agreed to come and join them at the end of the summer had brought such hope to Colossus, something he had always hope would return to him. Things were looking up for his family… and he was more than grateful that Professor Xavier had given him such hope.

"Alright, you're here, so we might as well brief you on the mission." Storm said in a much softer and kinder tone as she pressed a button on the control panel. Her chair swiveled around so that she could face them all, leaving Cyclops in control of the entire jet. "An hour ago we received a telepathic call for help from Adam Luca. The Professor pinpointed his location to be in the small Virginia town of Mystic Falls."

"What made him call for help?" Shadowcat asked as she crossed her legs simply one over the other, her seat belt tightening around her torso. "His powers are strong and growing fast, why would he need the aid of an X-men team of this size and caliber. I mean… he heavy hitters are on this one."

"Loki and Thor were sensed in the area, as well as another being from Asgard." Storm added as her gaze travelled between Iceman and Shadowcat. "The hostile witch from the Wayne Enterprise gala was also discovered to be there on top of a swarm of vampires and witches and several others we have absolutely no way of identifying. Quicksilver and Mystique are our secondary targets if we get the chance, the Brotherhood might make an attempt on Adam in a moment of crisis."

"It's too all over the place to be a coincidence." Wolverine said gruffly as he spun his chair around to look at them as well. Ms. Marvel leaned back in her seat and turned her head to the side to glance at Nightcrawler for a brief second before looking towards Storm. "So many varied groups are involved. We can't take any chance on the Brotherhood using this situation as a smokescreen. Not with that kinda power brewing."

"Even if that wasn't the case," Cyclops said coldly. "Even if the Brotherhood weren't involved, or Loki and Thor weren't present we'd still be heading out there with this large of a force. Not as a show of force or because we want respect, but because when one of our own, a member of the X-men, a faculty or staff member, a student, or in this case a mutant who we have opened up our home to, we do everything we can to protect them. Because we're the X-men, and we don't leave anybody behind if we can help it."

Colossus found himself nodding at that, knowing intrinsically that that was the truth. They would do anything to help a friend, even if that friend didn't want their help. It was for that reason that Colossus knew the Professor had always tried to be appraised of Jean's location, even after her disappearance. That the Phoenix Force had consumed her… body, mind, and soul had broken them all when it had happened and she had fled them in her darkest moment of fear. Colossus knew that they would take her back, that they would do whatever they had to in order to help her feel back at home with them where she belonged. It didn't mean it still didn't hurt that she hadn't stayed with them. It hurt a hell of lot more than most of them had ever let on.

"Adam called for our help, and he's going to get it." Storm said with finality as her chair began to spin around towards the front of the jet. "When it comes to family we have to stick together. Even when our family makes decisions we don't entirely agree with."

Colossus lips parted in shock at that, but from the look in her eyes, which he could only just barely make out in the reflection on the windshield, Colossus had the strangest feeling that she wasn't talking about Adam in that moment. But it had to be Adam she was talking about, it was the only logical conclusion he could make, but as Storm stiffened in her seat… Colossus knew it couldn't have been just Adam.

"Looks like we're coming up close to Mystic Falls, engaging camouflage now" Cyclops said as he leaned forward to flick something open, press a sequence of buttons and then press the one he had just revealed. Colossus looked outside his window, catching glimpses of the small town as they grew closer to it. "There's a clearing near the quarry, we'll land there and then make the trek towards Adam's location."

"Everyone, be on alert," Storm added as she typed something into the console on her side of the jet. "We only have generic information about the situation we're about to get into. Teams of three since our lovely little stowaways rounded us out to a better number."

"Did you guys feel that?" Wolverine abruptly asked, bringing Colossus's attention towards the floor of the aircraft. He could barely feel it, but he knew it was there. The floor was shaking, almost invisibly so, but as he closed his eyes and simply breathed, he knew that it wasn't just the normal shaking of a flying plane. Something was wrong.

"You don't think…" Shadowcat paled as she looked out the front of the jet, bringing the attention of everyone who already hadn't seen it yet into overdrive. "Oh crap," Kitty breathed as she braced herself.

"Everybody, just hang on," Cyclops ordered as he tilted the plane to the side in an attempt to dodge a pillar of fire that had surged up towards the jet. He spun out of the way of the fire, and breathed a sigh of relief as he began to level off. "Dammit," Scott cursed as a second pillar of fire soared from the lake within the quarry below, striking the tail end of the X-jet and sending it into a spiral headed straight for the water below.

Iceman screamed out as wind rushed from the interior of the jet as the back was torn free, sparks arcing from the jagged edges of what had once been a complete plane. Colossus craned his head around, his face growing pale with horror as he realized why it was that Iceman had screamed out in the first place. His seat was barely hanging on by a thread with Shadowcat's a lot less than.

Shadowcat struggled to reach out towards him, while at the same time Ms. Marvel ripped off her seatbelt and leapt towards them, completely ignoring the chaos within the jet. She reached out for them, floating in midair as the duo prepared to reach for her hands, knowing that their lives were literally hanging in the balance.

Cyclops and Storm gripped the controls, trying to salvage the situation, only to yell out as the side of the jet was ripped off of the body, taking Wolverine and Beast with it. Colossus's eyes went wide as he watched the two men tear through their seatbelts, only for a piece of the seat to strike Wolverine in the head and sending him crashing into the wall behind him. Beast looked behind him, screamed something, and then leapt from their section of the jet a second before the piece crashed into the quarry wall.

"No!" Storm cried as she removed her seatbelts and moved to fly after them, only to scream out as the windshield shattered inward, knocking her to the ground and sending her sliding towards the first hole in the jet. Ms. Marvel grabbed the two younger X-men while Nightcrawler teleported away in black smoke, reappearing in front of Cyclops and then vanishing again.

Colossus tore free of his seatbelt, and breathed in as he felt his body embrace the cool organic steel form that had protected him all these years. He pushed into a roll and grabbed Storm before pulling her into his arms lightly but safely, seconds before they slid out the back of the jet. Colossus watched as Ms. Marvel swooped out of the jet, Shadowcat and Iceman in her hands, flying up towards the edge of the cliff. The jet hit the water sending a torrential wave of water into the wall of the quarry to splash loudly against their falling bodies.

"Hold on!" Ororo commanded as Colossus loosened his grip on her, a swift wind swirled around the two of them, catching them midair. Colossus heaved a sigh of relief as the whirlwind carried them up towards the edge of the cliff near the others. Colossus landed on the ground softly, as Storm spun around and threw her arms out to either side. Her eyes clouded and the skies darkened, sending the winds screaming and roiling around before finally calming as she lowered her arms to her side.

A second passed before another whirlwind brought Wolverine and Beast towards them as well, safe and sound aside from a large piece of shrapnel in Wolverine's leg that he soon tossed over the edge of the cliff. Wolverine breathed heavily for several long moments, never flinching as the wound healed up completely.

"Guess that answer's your question." Wolverine said darkly as he snapped his arm back into place, causing Colossus to flinch as he realized how badly he had been injured in the crash. Beast grimaced as he looked over the edge of the cliff towards the wreckage, standing on all fours. "They know we're here, and they know why."

"What the hell are you talkin' about man?" Iceman heaved as he pressed his hand against his chest, shaking visibly. "They just took our jet down, Wolverine, we weren't even visible."

"I know…" Wolverine responded simply as he pushed himself up and onto his feet and dusted his butt off. Colossus looked over towards Storm as she surveyed the scene, most likely looking for Cyclops and Nightcrawler. "Now why don't you tell me what you think that means?"

Shadowcat watched Wolverine as he strode over towards a grove of trees, arching his back and stretching his arms out overhead. Iceman looked down towards the ground, his eyes moving swiftly as he thought that over, but Colossus already knew the answer to Wolverine's words. Whoever had attacked them and knocked their jet out of the sky with the clear intention of killing them in the resultant crash.

"They knew we were there." Beast breathed as his eyes narrowed. The afternoon sun hung high in the sky to the south of them, casting their shadows out around them. Colossus was worried about that fact. Someone had attacked them, knowing they were coming was bad enough. How had they known the exact point to attack though?

"So now what do we do…?" Shadowcat asked then, her words trailing off as she looked back towards Storm and Beast. "What are we going to do now that they know we're here?" A loud bamf sounded then, drawing everyone's attention towards the center of their loose circle as a cloud of red-black-purple darkness appeared to reveal Nightcrawler and Cyclops.

"Exactly what we were gonna do in the first place." Cyclops coughed out as he waved his hand out in front of him to disperse the smoke more quickly. "We're gonna save Adam, Emma Frost, and Remy LeBeau. And then, as per the Professor's request…" Cyclops shook his head then, and Colossus arched a brow in interest. "We're going to invite the two of them to join the X-Men."


"So say we believe this," Elena said as she looked at the two who had basically tried to hand her over to Klaus not but a metaphorical five minutes ago. Emma Frost and Remy LeBeau were two mutants, which didn't bother her in the least because she was supernatural herself and spent her days with vampires, werewolves, and witches.

They were back at her lake house, only because she had refused to pull the dagger out of Elijah in her own home and allow him access to it. But now as she sat on the armrest of the couch directly across from Stefan and Damon, both of whom she was having a hard enough time forgiving, she had to let doubt fall away if this were the case. She loved them after all.

"Greta used magic to control all of you and two beings that are supposed to be nearly indestructible?" Bonnie went on to say as Elena found herself lost in her thoughts. "She… I could have done that? I've only ever caused aneurysms in their heads over and over again, but I could have controlled them and stopped them from doing so many horrible things?"

"There are certain beings that cannot afflict vampires, fae being one of them." Emma explained as she took a step forward, only to backtrack without fear when Tyler puffed out his chest. "Oh what I would do to a man like you, but other more important matters need to be tended to now than your attitude. Witches can affect all others with their powers, regardless of species or defenses. Greta is a strong enough witch; she'd have to be in order to complete the ritual she's going to do."

"Kill me and make Klaus indestructible, by allowing him to use his werewolf from," Elijah murmured from where he lay on the dining room table, bound to it by magical chain courtesy of Bonnie. Adam sat on the other couch, with Rem and Sam on either side of him while Rogue sat on the back of the couch directly behind Adam. Dean stood to her left, while Emma stood at the edge of the couch closest to her. Her brother Jeremy had forced his way into this, still pissed about not being included from the initial fight and wanting to air his opinion now. Thankfully her Aunt Jenna had been out at the bar and missed the whole situation, it was bad enough trying to keep everyone who did know but wasn't in on it out, like Sheriff Forbes. Oh god, they had her daughter! "That's why they took Caroline."

"I'm afraid so," Emma said as she looked over at Elijah. "They know that Elijah only seeks Klaus' approval so that he can be reunited with his siblings, but he won't harm you I can assure you that. All we want is Klaus and Caroline to be brought back to us safely. If we work together…"

"Working together didn't exactly get us anywhere against those two witches and whoever the hell Loki is!" Tyler exclaimed the, something in his words causing Emma to pale considerably. "All it did was give them the opportunity to rip Caroline right out of our arms."

"And as much as I know that pains you all, we need to keep clearer heads about the situation." Adam said as he leaned forward where he sat on the couch. "They won't truly harm her, not as long as they need her to lure you to whatever they truly have planned for you. We can use that to our advantage. Loki, Demetre, Azareth, and Greta are the only people we have to deal with, and when the X-Men get here our numbers will be increased alongside the variability of our power structure. We can do this, guys, I know we can."

"I want to believe you," Elena said as she pressed her hand against her chest as all of this information began to sink in. Greta manipulating Stefan, Damon, Emma, Remy, Klaus, and Elijah towards her own ends seemed farfetched, but she was the witch planning on bringing out Klaus' werewolf side. She had to be strong, Elena knew she was strong. After all she had made it out of this fight alive whereas Maddox hadn't. "Alaric should be here soon, I know he'll know what to do."

"By now they've gotten the moonstone from Katherine in the tombs," Emma said as she took a step forward, ignoring Tyler's guttural growl. "If they break this curse on Klaus, while it will benefit him immensely, he'll still be under Greta's control. Then there will be a vampire-werewolf hybrid that can kill us all without a second thought. And he will because they won't be his thoughts."

"She's telling the truth, sort of." A woman said from the doorway as it opened up immediately. "Sorry to barge in, but a quick scry told us who was in the area and we don't have any time to waste. Charmed Ones, everyone else in the room who doesn't know us here's the quick version, most powerful good witches of all time here to kick ass and save lives and it looks like that isn't in short supply around here."

"Piper Halliwell," Emma said with a warm smile as the room stared at the five people now standing just outside the cabin on the porch. She'd met all but one of them, though her strange yet sexually charged attire and strong magical powers emanating off of her made it clear who she was. "And I see you've brought Superman and Zatanna Zatara, a rather bloody powerful witch.

"Everyone say hello to Phoebe, Paige, Superman, Piper, and Zatanna," Emma said as she gestured towards each of them to get introductions out of the way. "Elena, Bonnie, Tyler, Stefan, Damon, Jeremy, and for those of you who don't know, I'm Emma, this is Remy, Dean, Sam, and Adam, and that's Elijah on the table. Currently not present are Matt, Alaric, Klaus, and Caroline, the last two having been taken into demonic custody."

"Charmed Ones," Bonnie breathed as she looked at them in awe, surprising Elena that she knew who they were … or what that meant. "My grams told me about you and what you represented. Are you… are you and Emma Frost on the same side?"

"At the moment we are," Phoebe said as she looked Emma up and down. "We've worked together on at least one occasion towards the same goal, and right now we're about to do it again. Caroline and Klaus aren't the only ones taken by, I'm assuming Azareth."

"Yes, and Greta," Stefan pointed out quickly. "She used her power to force us to try and take Elena and Bonnie and when that didn't work she took those around us when the opportunity presented itself."

"I can see someone has put the works on you," Phoebe breathed as she gestured towards the door. "Mind if we come in? I know we're practically strangers right now, but we're about to save the world from certain danger, I think that merits a little bit of hospitality."

"I don't invite or disinvite you in," Elena said carefully, trying to figure out if they were vampires in disguise. "Just in case," Elena added on as they each stepped through the doorway with ease. "Oh thank god I could not handle another damned vampire."

"Well…" Paige said with a slight shrug. "There was that one time, though, but that was years ago and was like only a day long."

"Long story, no time for the intimate details," Zatanna said as s brought a black cane with a white top out of thin air and waved it out in an arc. "I've sensed a grouping of powers start to appear around near here. Different types of magic are being drawn to this town for some reason, and I'm afraid the ritual intended to claim your life isn't the only one being performed."

"What other ritual could they possibly be planning?" Jeremy asked as he shifted in his seat to get a better view of the sparks of light appearing around the room, forming two seven pointed stars intertwined around one another. "And what exactly are they planning on doing if they succeed?"

"The types of magic and the amount they have… it's hard to say, but breaking a curse is simply a distraction I just know it is." Zatanna said as she whirled her cane around delicately. "Billie was the most recent magic user they took, but I sensed someone powerful be taken from New York, a place called Bon Temps, Beacon Hills, and they already have the woman from a few weeks back."

"Andi Lewinsky," Superman said as he shook his head. "I remember that night; I know what it feels like to have someone use you against your will. They used me to get to Andi and because of that I need to save her."

"We'll get her back," Adam said as he surged to his feet. "We'll get them all back and stop whatever it is they're planning. With you, and the X-Men, and everyone here fighting for the same cause we just can't lose!"

"The only problem is we don't know where they're performing the ritual," Piper said as Zatanna lowered the symbols and drew the energy back into her cane. "And if this is all going down tonight, we can't exactly split up to try and find the location. That would just defeat the purpose of us combining our powers and skills to stop it from happening."

"But we know where they want us to be!" Bonnie exclaimed as she looked around the room. Elena gasped as she realized Bonnie was right, Azareth had told them where they needed to be by tonight.

"They want us at the quarry…" Elena breathed as she gripped the edge of the armrest tightly, digging her nails into it to try and keep herself from falling over. "We can pretend to give ourselves up and then you can attack them from every direction and we can get them all out of there."

"We'll have to go into this knowing it's a trap," Remy said as he tipped his card deck towards them. "To think it wouldn't be would be a mistake, no?"

"No, you're right," Superman said as he nodded lightly, the red cape swirling around him as a car pulled up outside. Alaric was here, and as Elena looked around the crowd she saw that he had Matt with him. "Sorry, it looks like the rest of your number is here."

"Alaric," Elena called as she started towards the door, only to falter at the sight of his grim expression. "Alaric, what's wrong?"

"Elena," Alaric breathed out as he pulled her into his arms, completely ignoring the large group of strangers in the room outside of a cursory glance to determine they weren't threats for the moment. "Elena someone took Jenna right as we were coming to get her. They just… took her in a whirl of fire."

"Jenna…" Elena whispered hollowly. "Why would they take Jenna, they already have Caroline, they already have something to force my hand." Elena went limp in his embrace, wanting only to tear free and punch something with all her strength. Vanishing in fire, it was exactly how Azareth had taken Caroline. He was behind this; she knew it beyond a shadow of a doubt. "We have to stop them, whatever they're doing. I won't lose Jenna to this."

"I think we should-!" Emma's words were caught off as a shockwave rocked through the house, shattering everything glass within and without the cabin. I felt Remy, Sam, and Dean moved to cover me without a moment's thought towards their personal safety. Everyone else had quickly taken cover, and the way the sunlight bounced around the room told me that Emma had taken on her diamond form.

And then a giant pillar of fire surged up into the sky not too far from where they were, interrupting whatever anyone had been about to say. It was a grand announcement of someone's power over fire, but who had unleashed it remained to be seen.

The only thing certain from it was that it was a power they would have to face in short order. Were they ready or simply kidding themselves into believing they could take on this force?


"The barrier is complete," Loki heard Amora say, as she appeared in a glittering swirl of green energy. "And the witches have come to take their places around the quarry. Once the last two witches of the Unwilling are brought forth, we can complete our mission."

"All the players are on the board," Loki said as he looked over the water in the quarry. It had swiftly claimed the remnants of the jet that had intended to land near it. The Stark Witches were quite adept with their powers, especially when they worked in tandem. Sending pillar after pillar of fire to take them down… ingenious really, and at the same time it had allowed the so called heroes know that their arrival had not transpired unnoticed.

He didn't know where Amora had found them but the amount of power they were able to expel was astonishing. Loki, having the burning powers of a God within him, could easily crush them should he choose to, but they were necessary to whatever plan the beautiful Amora had in mind.

"Bonnie will certainly come to her senses by the time the spell needs to be cast." Loki said as he folded his arms over his chest and watched as Amora gathered a swirl of green sparks in the palm of her hand.

"And once she does, we'll no longer need this… girl." Amora said as the blonde vampire, Caroline was her name, materialized before them. She slept peacefully, completely unaware of the tool pressed against her heart that had been created by vampires to execute other vampires. Some sort of phone-activated stake, it was rather intriguing, though Loki would have much rather preferred torturing the woman himself for months and perhaps even years, until she decided to become a faithful servant.

"Andi Lewinsky," Amora said as she flicked her hand and created a pillar of green sparks. Another blonde woman, this one taller and fuller due to her older age, collapsed to her knees with her hands at her throat and gasping for air.

"Billie Jenkins," Amora said next, flicking her hand once more and summoning another pillar of green sparks. A third blonde appeared and fell forward with a look of pure rage contorting her face. She was one of those Loki had captured personally, and all in his first days of being a member of this particular cabal.

"Willow Rosenberg," Amora said harshly as she flicked her hand a third time, bringing forth another pillar of green sparks. This time, a red-haired woman whose beauty was hidden behind garish clothes, fell to one knee and almost immediately tried to rush them. She hit an invisible barrier which shocked, painfully, and knocked her onto her backside.

"Lafayette Reynolds," another pillar of green sparks and another witch appeared, this time a man with strange braids with either side of his head shaved for some strange reason. Tall and muscly, it was rather strange taking in his ebony beauty. There was something about the man… something dark within him that Loki could almost taste. Loki hadn't captured this one himself, but the stench of vampire on him clearly indicated who might have done so.

"William Kaplan," was the next witch as a younger man appeared in a pillar of green sparks. His body was lithe, with little muscle definition though it was only because he was young and inexperienced. Jet black hair and brown eyes with pale white skin, he was interesting too in a similar manner. His power was potent, that was rather obvious, but it was strange in a way that actually made Loki shudder.

"There powers are… so different from one another and yet they all possess magic!" Loki said with a confident nod and a quickly growing grin. "How ever did you manage to locate them all?"

"Magic is a beautiful thing," Amora said as she looked over her shoulder, voluminous locks of blonde hair falling down around her as she did. "They all draw their power from a similar source, The All, a plane of magic that is so beyond what they can conecieve that most of them have never even heard of it. But, it is a plane accessible by all worlds, as we refer to them on Asgard. They use it in different ways, though it can always bring about the same effect. But its application is unique, that is what we require for this particular ritual. In order to circumvent the laws of magic, nature, and destiny itself we shall draw upon the magicks of seven different applications."

"Bonnie makes six, so who is the seventh?" Loki asked with arched brows and folded arms. This was quite intriguing. To think that someone could conceive of such a plan just to access some nebulous force, it was astonishing. The question, though, revolved around what kind of force this group The Order wanted to access.

"A creature near death from a place on the other side of the country," Amora said as she waved her hand. "We kept her alive to hunt down a group of werewolves, whichever ones survived would have unknowingly proven that they were worthy. It seems she managed to eliminate one, and another perished for other reasons. But her last act will be to repay that which she never knew saved her."

A pillar of green sparks erupted violently then and then a horrifically burned woman with slashes across her face stumbled forward, bloody and beaten. Loki could only discern she was a woman based off of her breasts, everything else about her though was far too gone to identify who she might have been. "A darach, a dark druid, while not a witch, she suffice for the Nature aspect of this ritual The other will be here shortly, to round out the Willing witches, another Druid who serves a dark purpose. Now then," Amora said as she brought her hand high above her head. "Bonnie Bennett and Elena Gilbert have but five hours to arrive before I drive a stake through her heart, slowly and painfully."

"They'll show," Loki said as he crossed his arms over his chest and smiled darkly as everything began to fall into place. "Friendship is far too important to them not to show up, Amora. And when she does…"

"We'll have everything we need," a voice said from within the trees as the bald man from before stepped forward alongside another two individuals. "Allow me to introduce you to two of our other members, who have simply been waiting to meet you Loki. This is Crowley, King of Hell," the man said as he gestured towards the short and stout man with short medium toned brown hair and eyes, a clean shaven face, and a tailored suit that looked perfect on him. "And Klarion the Witch Boy," he gestured towards the taller, slender man with pitch black hair which was styled up into twin horns in front. His eyes were just as black as his hair, melding perfectly with his light blue skin tone. "Or was we refer to them, Provider and Caster."

"And you are?" Loki inquired witch arched brows as he folded his arms over his chest and waited for a response. Loki knew he could have easily figured out the man's identity, but it was rather more fun to watch humans try and deceive him. The man smiled smugly before waving his hand deferentially.

"Introductions, I suppose, are in order by now." The man said as he slid his hands into the pockets of his expensive suit. "My name is Lex Luthor, and I'm the Destroyer in all of this. It's a pleasure to have you join us, Loki. Do you prefer Loki, or have you decided upon another moniker with which we may refer to you as?"

"I have actually," Loki said as he took a step forward, truly enjoying himself as he looked the man up and down with a hint of lust in his eyes. He had found himself looking at men more and more lately, and he was beginning to wonder why that was. It was as if there was some sort of spell over him. "You can refer to me as the Trickster, from now on."

"Well alright then, num, num, num." Klarion murmured as he moved his hands in a grandiose fashion only to set them before his chest as an orange and white cat materialized within his embrace. "I really like him, hehe. Can I keep him?"

"In due time we shall all get what we desire, Caster," Lex said as he glanced over at the man, whose words had captured Loki's attention for a brief moment. "Now then, why don't we set up for the guest of honor, Seducer?"

"Of course, one long decayed vampire coming right up!" Amora announced enthusiastically as she raised her hands up high to shoot forth sparks of green energy. The sparks swirled around violently before diving back down towards the center of the circle that the six witches now stood around. "Doppelgangers are quite… entertaining. Aren't they, Destroyer?"

"Yes, Seducer, that they are," Lex said as a glittering light appeared in his eyes. "And once we've resuscitated him, the link we'll have to the power we're after will be well on the way towards our endgame."

"Remember those words, Lex," another man called out as he appeared alongside Demetre and Azareth in flames with a third person, a woman just a few feet behind him. "Our endgame, of course, because if you forget it you know we'll cut you out replace you with someone more amenable."

"Of course, Klaus," Lex said with a deferential smile and a curt nod of his head. "How could I ever forget your generous contributions, now let me remind you that it is your force we're drawing on first. That and your benefit will be within your grasp by night's end."

"I know," Klaus said as he took step forward. "As the one who acts as the Decider, upon which forces were to be involved, it was only natural for him to choose what I needed over your desires. Never mind that my desire was easiest to obtain at the same time as the force we want."

"I realize that," Lex said as he nodded again, this time with a lot less curtness and sarcasm. "Creator won't be showing up for this one. Converter and Persuader will also be no-shows for this ritual."

"They're all far more involved in what this success will allow us to do," Amora breathed as she extended more power. "Once our guests start arriving, though, it won't matter really"

"Greta dear," Klaus said as he drew her chin into his hand. "What wonderful acting you displayed earlier, falling into Emma's mental commands with such quick grace, I'm quite fond of your skills. Now then," Klaus said as he looked over his shoulder towards the other. "Why don't we go prepare our own ritual to keep them away from this one? Keep up the act, dear, and everything will fall into place."

"How can you be certain we can trust Emma Frost?" Crowley asked with arched brows. "She's a renowned liar, one of the best, managed to convince me to apply to Hellfire Club and I'm the fucking King of Hell. I didn't even think about flaying her alive!"

"Emma has always been looking for a place in the world, a home, and a purpose," Klaus said as he smiled darkly. "The second I appeared to her and she asked me to join her for protection, I knew I could pull her into our cabal. She's grown close to him, and we can use that closeness in a way that will prepare him for our chosen mate. Then the real fun can begin. Emma Frost is useful to us, and this is something Lex Luthor can give you the answer to. As a human amongst monsters he definitely knows the rules better than even we do."

"When one wants to win the war, my friends, all one has to do is fund both sides." Lex said simply as he tilted his head towards Klaus. "We've successfully manipulated nearly every force on the board to do exactly what we need, and after three years of hard work it's finally going to start paying off. The first force of darkness has been appropriated and will be a success unlike that unfortunate Eve incident."

"How the hell was I supposed to anticipate them finding a Phoenix they could use against her?" Crowley demanded as his eyes went bright red.

"You couldn't which is why we've changed tactics in that regard," Klarion said as he petted his cat gently. "Teekl even knows that one silly. That is why we're gonna bring something else back, something else that'll make Eve look like a weakling."

"There aren't a lot of forces out there like that," Crowley said with a decidedly dark smirk. "I can't wait to see what you pull out of hell next, Lex."

"Don't worry, my friend," Lex said as he looked over towards the circle of witches they had already gathered. "Now then, call in the Starks and Marin Morrell, so that we can get this ritual on. If she proves useful, Deucalion might just find a place amongst our number as well."

"Oh I'm going to love what happens next," Amora said coldly as green sparks erupted out violently to form another circle of sorts within the one already formed by the six witches present. "Let the fun begin!"