Chapter 13

Lwazi looked around to make sure no one was watching before heading to the niche. He felt it and pulled out the box and the tome that he had brought and hidden. It wasn't that he didn't trust the other heads but he knew from experience that some things that should be known by all are sometimes best kept by a few especially when you knew the tendencies of some people. This tome and box he brought when he heard about young Hakim's choices for the exhibition.

Lwazi was very old and he looked younger than his years but he had seen much and he could tell that what the young head was attempting could potentially start a war. At the moment only one had firm opposition and two were in a state of limbo, more or less siding with less logical reasons. Three wanted to see the old ways honored again. They had been approached by the gods and given commendation for that choice. He brought what he thought could help but hoped not to use it.

He looked through the tome to make sure nothing had happened to the pages. Mostly they were genealogies of families, primarily the six families chosen to head this tournament. The box had minor things in it but he kept them together for safekeeping even though it was probably foolish and the whole eggs in one basket line came into play.

Lwazi looked around after he thought he heard a noise. He then muttered, "In the end blood has power but not in full blood." He then tucked everything under his arm and left.

Haley had been silently cursing herself for making noise. She was surprised that her grandfather was hiding something in the library. She knew better than to question things but living on her own and even in the companionship of an overzealous bodyguard, she had to look for things herself. She was suspicious that her grandfather had something that was worth hiding but he must have his reasons. She knew he wasn't a bad person in general.

The phrase that her grandfather said before he left was perplexing. Haley knew that Lwazi knew about the power of blood when it came to spells. He was a juju man too like her father and arguably the most powerful to come to the tribe. He wouldn't need blood to power his spells unless he was attempting something that was bad.

Haley slid out of her hiding place and slowly crept to the door to exit the library. She peered out the door and looked down the corridor. Maybe she should head back and pretend that nothing happened. Then she could ask Lwazi about his plans she normally would. It would save a lot of headache in the end. She let herself out and quietly shut the door and took the corridor that led the way to the quarters she was sharing with her grandfather. She rounded the first corner and nearly ran into the tall stately man that Lwazi.

"I suspected that your curiosity would prompt you into exploration."

Haley stepped back and lowered her eyes respectfully. She replied, "I just wanted to see if there was anything out of the ordinary."

Lwazi gave a slight smile at his granddaughter. He knew that Haley came when she heard about the tournament and who would be there since she had never been interested before. He knew that she was trying her hand at the hunting game, using the talents she had been born with to help others. In terms of her experience, she was still green but she was capable and he had intended to let her know eventually. "Help is always welcome though I am curious about your motivations."

"Let's just say that I owe quite a debt to the ones who saved me from certain death."

Lwazi continued to smile. Haley had learned a few things and giving suitable if not complete explanations was one of them. "I see. You are familiar with the saying that curiosity killed the cat correct?"

"Only if it is not directed towards a purpose."

"That you are right. I see you haven't forgotten what you have been taught."

"I never forgot. I was just a coward; hiding in the name of duty."

Lwazi put a hand on his granddaughter's shoulder. "Never a coward. True courage is making the hard decisions in spite of the pain the consequences bring. It may sound foolish at times but who are we to judge?"

Haley couldn't but smile at being reminded of what she had told Dean when she first met him and quizzed him on his deal. She replied, "We can't judge because of the nature of what we do. Absolution is a good example of that." It was sly on her part but it was a lead in to what she wanted to ask and at least it would save face.

Lwazi nodded, suspecting that Haley was getting at something. He replied, "Yes. Absolution is a good example considering that she is not full blood."

It was coming to the moment of truth. Haley could blurt out everything or dance around it in order to make a point. She replied, "And yet in many things blood is the key."

Lwazi knew that Haley had been the one hiding. Perhaps he should have looked for her and scolded her and sent her to her room but she was like him and her parents. They would have found out the means or argued the point to know the full picture at least on their part. He replied, "I see that you suspect something or someone mentioned old things."

Haley knew that she shouldn't lie. She also knew that the archangel wished to be anonymous and for reasons she suspected had to do with Angela. She made a compromise and she knew that her grandfather would understand, "Revelation tells that it involves blood."

Lwazi had an idea who told her and was surprised that they would even be around. Then again… He replied, "There are forces that know of its power and I am reluctant to tell you of it."

"Absolution?"

"Absolution is a leader, a natural one and that is powerful. There are also secrets that were entrusted long ago and others have found out through manipulations and the like."

"Then what must be done?"

Lwazi looked at Haley for a time. She was just getting back into that world she left behind to protect what she had been chosen to guard. That decision had her mother in tears even though she was proud and her father worried for her even though he did what he could with his juju. In all fairness she shouldn't be involved but she seemed determined. He had to be sure though, "Are you certain you wish to go down this path?"

"It would help in better helping a friend protect another." Haley couldn't help but tell the old man her reasons. She had heard the rumors regarding the demons and that the king of the crossroads knew that Angela was on his tail even though there had been little to no activity in that area. If she had an idea of potentially why the interest in the woman, she could let Dean know and he would better understand.

Lwazi sighed. Haley had always been able to make friends easily and she was devoted to them especially if they happened to be good people. In this case Absolution made an impact on her. From what his son told him, Absolution saved Haley from the power of the old guardian of the water horse tribe of her mother's people. The fact that Absolution had been accompanied by two others was an interesting point. He figured one of them was Absolution's entry in the tournament and Lwazi had been impressed with the boy. He saw that Haley was determined and replied, "Then let us go to my quarters. Even walls have ears." He led the way to the rooms he had been given.

Wosret thought it had been too long since she had seen the one who knew how to pull a good prank when he wasn't in the mood of teaching a lesson with a deadly twist. He was good at bringing down the prideful even though that made him a few enemies. She had to admit that he startled her when he grabbed her like that but if he hadn't, she would have kicked his ass. She stared straight at him and replied, "So what brings you here? Bored already with the tricks? I thought you were keeping company with Kali?"

Gabriel knew he deserved that. It was his nature to be an ass with the women he cared about and yet he still wondered why his girl still cared. He looked at the face he hadn't seen in probably centuries by his last count. She was still the beauty she was when he first noticed her. She had always been in his thoughts, maybe not at the forefront but she was always there. He replied, "I came to watch. Cat was coming and I wanted to see her."

Wosret knew about Cat. When she last saw him, he would talk about Cat for hours on end and how she actually sent up a nasty prayer at one point because she was pissed at his brothers. She knew that Cat had a place in Gabriel's heart; not the kind she initially thought of but more of the brother-sister kind of possession. She replied, "You've seen her?"

"Well I've been keeping an eye on her lately. I've not seen her seen her. It's complicated."

"All because you make it so. So tell me, why aren't you up to your usual games? You usually come around when something important is going to happen. Did Mother and Father send you?"

Gabriel made a slight face as he tried to choose his words carefully. True Hapi had hinted at asking him to convince Wosret to drop out before it was too late but who was he to tell her what to do? She would have ignored him. He looked down at her and saw that mischievous grin she got when she was in the mood for some fun. He couldn't help it and replied, "Would you have listened if I happened to say that yes they did?"

Wosret grinned, "Not really. I wanted to enter. I heard about Absolution and saw her in action. I wanted to see her in actual combat so I entered. I had no idea her human pet was the entry. He's good though."

Gabriel resisted the laugh at Sam being called a human pet. She certainly wouldn't have liked that either. "So why still in it?"

"Because there is the possibility I will go against the boy. That would be fun in of itself," Wosret replied with a smirk and she put her arms around Gabriel's neck. "I'm tired of being kept out of things. I want to do something that fits in with my nature."

"You mean fighting. Go to a bar and start hustling and get caught. That'll work."

Wosret released Gabriel and gave him a smack on the shoulder. "You know that's not what I mean. I know something big is coming on the horizon Gabriel. Mother and Father want to keep me out of it. I know there is something going on here at the tournament and it seems to center around Absolution. I want to know what it is."

"Of course it will center around Cat. Who here doesn't know her? Both sides are interested in her yes and as far as I know she is on her own side even if that is with a couple of numbskulls."

"Cat is Absolution?"

"Of course," Gabriel replied with a frown. "Cat is the natural leader and blah, blah, the usual crap that pretty much caused the falling out between us. That's what most everyone sees. The big picture lies within."

"So this is the part where you tell me like Mother that I am too young to know anything about it?"

"No because in a way it involves you." Gabriel looked at the frown that marred Wosret's features. He sighed knowing that he was going into complicated territory. He hadn't even told his girl this and for a good reason. So he decided to bite the bullet and explained, "Look the reason your parents are worried is because you are a goddess literally but you are young and untested and have that human element to ya. Yeah you are born of two gods but heck maybe it was Dad's sense of humor at play. I certainly thought so when he placed the burden on Cat."

"It's the humanity that I was born with. Many of the gods have lost it or it is too small to matter much. Mine is just enough and could be easily swayed. I'm guessing that it's the same for Cat. She was born human. That much I know from Isis."

Gabriel gave a slight snort of appreciation. He had spoken with the goddess before and she was never perturbed by his demeanor towards her. "Yeah but like I said, it comes down to blood. The old timers think that the purebloods and full blood are the more powerful but it's not so."

"You speak of the theory that the child born of two races could be more powerful than full blooded versions." Wosret had heard of this theory before. It was more of a genetics lesson, like the difference between purebred and mutts. Mutts were hardier, could withstand more punishment and there were some cases that the mutts had superior abilities to their full blooded kin. Yet the results were inconclusive. "That's just a theory though. There are dozens of examples how superior strength is nothing more than a fluke."

"Try telling that to ambitious assholes. Think about it Wosret: a Halfling is hardier than both sides in some degree and the abilities that show up; it is a tempting proposition. I'm glad Cat said no to the asshole."

"You are referring to the incident in Greece."

"I should've smited him."

"And blow your cover? You yourself said that you were in witness protection… whatever that is."

"Wosret, a half blood has more value. I think that is the underlying theme to sabotaging the event."

"You mean the plan was to…"

Gabriel nodded, "Lure Cat here and then start something. She would be distracted into keeping the peace while the behind the scenes act goes into play."

"What does this have to do with me?"

"You are not a well-known goddess. You appear human but anyone with experience in spotting differences can see that. A young goddess with her humanity in tact…" Gabriel trailed off to let Wosret make the connection. He had heard much through the grapevine and for once was glad that the demons were not up to something. They knew better unless they were foolish.

"I see," Wosret came to the realization. "Well I guess the first thing to do is to warn Cat."

Gabriel rolled his eyes. That wasn't the idea. Then again Wosret always did her own thing. "The point is to get you out."

"And what about your precious Cat?"

"I am concerned about you. There are some in that ring that have little to now respect for gods or goddesses."

Wosret glared at Gabriel and challenged him, "Are you saying that I can't take care of myself? Cause if you are, you can stick it where the sun don't shine."

"I'll say it anyway and that it is not that you can't take care of yourself but there is the possibility that one or more may be working with the one who wants this whole thing to fall."

Wosret paused. This was a side that few have ever seen the archangel show. He reserved it only for a few choice individuals. She knew he did it when he mentioned Cat and he did show that side to her. It was like at times he was ashamed of showing feelings. Maybe Cat knew that as well as she did. It certainly was something to think about. "So you are saying that by staying in, I could be putting myself in danger?"

"That's the possibility but I'm not going to tell you to do anything since you make the choice."

"Much like your Cat."

"She's a rare breed all together."

"Then maybe I should stick around. More likely she has figured out who I am already. Her pupil seemed to think something was up when he bumped into me earlier." Wosret gave a saucy grin; the kind Gabriel liked to use when he was up to something.

Gabriel knew that he had done what he could. He spoke to Haley the witch and hinted to look into things regarding blood. That would lead her to Lwazi and they would do their juju thing. Wosret most likely would be helping Cat should something happen. Yi Xiang and Hakim would be watching for signs of treachery and Cat... Cat, short for Catalina, the name she no longer went by, she would probably do what she did best and that was to play along while doing what he liked to do, set up the plan to fall into place. He couldn't do anything more since there was one secret of this place that few knew about. He almost glared at the Enochian symbol hidden on the wall. Angels were allowed in but couldn't interfere. It was a politeness to invite them.

Gabriel knew he couldn't do much unless it fell within his province to give a hand. All he could do was pretty much watch. After all humans had to get in and out of their own messes more or less by themselves. He said, "Alright. Just, be careful."

"Aren't I always?" Wosret replied with a smile. She gave a kiss to Gabriel and watched as he took off.

Hakim was sitting at his desk trying to work out family business since they did have to make a living. He was good though at keeping that separate from tournament business. However he couldn't put it aside completely since he was in charge of the vast empire in communications technologies his father had built.

The first day had gone smoothly. He was half expecting something to happen much like it did at the reception. If it hadn't been for Angela, that arrow could have brought about a nasty end to Yi Xiang and possibly start war. He didn't doubt that Yi Xiang could have stopped the arrow since she was an accomplished warrior and had actually won local competitions in her village before becoming head of her family. He suspected though that the elder woman wanted to see what his friend could do.

Hakim was not stupid. He knew that the heads were familiar with the name Absolution and the stories of one who would wield the sword and lead the armies of the earth against the horde of demons. An embellishment at best but a tribute to Angela's ability to rally troops when necessary. However the heads were more familiar with her combat ability. He never told Angela this but she had been dubbed as a warrior princess. He could hear her scoffing at that title and hear her working over time to dispel anyone of that notion.

It was fairly accurate though. It wasn't meant as a joke but an honor. Hakim and others like Yi Xiang and Lwazi saw Angela carry herself regally. She wasn't born royalty but she carried herself as such. It started rumors that she had been trained by the gods of war in the art of combat and even went up against certain gods when no one else would dare to. Again more embellishment to her character in that she stood for justice. It grew and it didn't help that he called her the name of the warrior goddess Wosret when he was a boy. He was just glad that she was there and that maybe her ability to inspire troops would inspire people and make this a reality.

He was thrown out of his thoughts when he heard a knock on the door. He said, "Come."

Angela entered looking like she was ready for battle. Hakim couldn't blame her nor could he blame the other warriors. He had noticed them wandering the halls carrying some sort of weapon. It was permitted but to attack without provocation was frowned upon and in all of Hakim's memory he had seen the consequences only once and he still shuddered at the memory. He looked at his old mentor and friend and gave a slight smile and said, "You look ready to pick a fight."

Angela returned the smile with one of her own. "Well it can be expected since someone doesn't want your plans to come to fruition."

"Well I would think that you prevented that when you did your moves. I know Yi Xiang appreciated it," Hakim replied.

"Remember what I taught you: the threat will never die until it is certain that plans are foiled."

"How could I forget? I use that strategy all the time when dealing with specifics for the Akhet," Hakim replied as he put the pen he had been using down in the spine of his ledger. "If this is about putting you on the spot with Victor, I'm sorry about that."

Angela frowned slightly bemused that Hakim would think she would be upset about that. She replied, "Don't be Hakim. I had no clue that he was here and you did pretty good in keeping him distracted."

"Victor does like pretty girls but intelligent ones even better."

"So this was your way for setting me up for a date?"

"No just protecting your student. I have the lists of all the warriors. Victor mentioned the name Winchester and I put two and two together. I asked Jason to help before you showed at the reception."

"I figured as much," Angela replied with her smirk of a smile. "Now Hakim there is a reason why I came here tonight and it's not about the tournament but rather the potential for sabotage."

Hakim knew what she was talking about and replied, "The grounds are neutral. You know this."

"I know but I am curious about the interest the demons have, in particular the boss of the crossroads," Angela replied.

"The demons want the tournament to be the same. You know that they have some semblance of honor. You know better than anyone the history of the tournament," Hakim replied as he closed the ledger and stood up. He went to where the wine table was and poured two glasses.

Angela gave a slight twist of her head in a knowing fashion. She could be accused of being a geek and Dean did once or twice though her sources were more from his side of the tracks like the Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift movie though the beans were spilt later. "True but I want to know is if my presence here has placed anyone at risk."

Hakim sighed as he handed a goblet to Angela, "I would say no but you and I both know that you are popular in both the good way and bad way. I suspect that it is one of the other heads that doesn't want this to succeed and they aim to have it fall on you."

"It won't be the first time," Angela replied taking a sip. Her eyes scanned the room and at one point she caught the flicker of the lamp light that Hakim had left burning. Someone was entering and they weren't invited. "The reason I ask is because Cary is here and if it's not for profit, it is for a job or he knows something and will sell it for the usual."

"Well Crowley was here and he is probably watching," Hakim admitted. "You know I can't turn him away if he wants to watch."

"The thing is that he knows I am sort of looking for him and it's in regards to some business which rather has me disgusted which is why I ask."

"He mentioned nothing," Hakim replied as he took a drink. "However in regards to the tournament, I suspect that something big is being planned. The thing is I don't want to ask you to try and solve it."

"Oh that won't be a problem," a new voice entered.

Angela looked up, still holding her goblet. There were maybe four or five black clad men and they looked ready to fight. She narrowed her eyes and she almost wanted to snarl.

A/N: Gabe and Wosret know each other and Lwazi shares secrets with Haley and now an ambush on Angie and Hakim. More fun next time on Warrior's Honor...